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Staff Interviews

ONE-on-ONE with

Bob McGrew

Position: Assistant Director – Outdoor Adventures

Education: BS Outdoor Recreation and Education, Indiana University; MS Leisure Studies, UIUC

How long with have you been working for Campus Rec?
I've been here almost 18 years. I first started as a grad assistant for Campus Rec.

Have all of those 18 years been spent working in outdoors?
When I started as a grad I was mostly doing research and there was another grad who was in charge of the camping room. I was the first full-time Outdoor person for Campus Rec and have been working on clinics and trips ever since.

What was your first outdoor job?
I worked at a YMCA; I was the camping community director. We did some trips towards the end of the summer and over winter break. We also offered some outdoor classes similar to the clinics that the Outdoor Center offers.

Tell me about the Outdoor Adventures program has developed over the years.
Campus Rec started renting some camping equipment in 1975. Back then there was a grad assistant who was in charge of renting equipment from the camping room. While I was a grad assistant we set-up some classes in canoeing and started to try and do some trips. Cross-country skiing was our first trip, then the Grand Canyon, and then the Everglades. In 1982, it was decided to hire a full-time outdoors person and that was me. After I became full-time we started some day trips, ski and canoe mostly, and then 4-5 weekend trips per semester and longer trips over break times. In 1996 we moved from IMPE to this building (the Outdoor Center at 51 E. Gregory). The program has just grown since then.

Do you teach all the clinics offered by the Outdoor Adventures program?
I teach most of the clinics, but we bring people in to lead some of the more specialized clinics like kayak rolling, scuba diving and horseback riding.

Do you teach any courses for credit?
I teach Kinesiology 100 - Outdoor Adventures and Kinesiology 107—Canoeing. Both are 8-week courses and are offered in the Spring and Fall semesters. The Outdoor Adventures course focuses on different outdoor activities each week. The Canoeing class teaches students about safety and rescues. Some of the canoeing classes are taught at Crystal Lake Park, where students learn about paddling techniques.

How do you select your locations for your longer adventure trips?
We try and look for good places to go and scout them out a bit. Sometimes they are places I've been before, sometimes they are places that have been recommended. We try and offer some variety, although the Grand Canyon trip is pretty much a standard. We decided to alternate the Everglades and Big Bend trips and this year we are taking our first trip to Missouri Breaks in Montana.

Which trip/clinic is the most popular?
Depends on the year. Several years ago there were a couple of years at IMPE when people slept outside to sign up for the Grand Canyon trip. The backpacking trips tend to be popular. Scuba usually fills up fairly well, and recently kayak rolling. When there is snow cross-country skiing is really popular, but it's been a few years since we've had snow at the same time that the clinics are offered.

Which trip is your favorite?
Everyone always asks me that and I never give an answer. It's really hard to compare the trips because they are all so different. We go to different places, we do different activities.

What is the busiest time for the Outdoor Center?
Spring season seems a little busier or a little later in the Fall. During the fall there are weekends when all 70 tents and 100 sleeping bags are rented.

Do you offer any outdoor trips for novices?
Most of are trips are open to beginners, although good physical condition is required. The only time when someone is too much of a beginner is when we have to deal with harsh weather, especially snow. Our Family Campout is open for all ages.