Mission Statement
BC Tracking Association will set and maintain the Tracking Standards for use in the province of British Columbia, through an evaluation process
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About the BC Tracking Association
The British Columbia Tracking Association (BCTA) is a registered, non-profit society, dedicated to the establishment and the maintenance of proven and consistent tracker training standards in the province of British Columbia. Our self-imposed mandate is to not only oversee the high standards of training and to facilitate recognized tracker training opportunities throughout the province, but also to encourage the utilization of trained trackers in Search and Rescue operations. The BCTA’s scope of operations includes informing user groups as to the efficacy of tracking and how trained trackers can augment search operations. This informational process includes presentations, literature, and a professionally developed video.
Our primary goal is to have every certified Ground Search and Rescue volunteer in the province of British Columbia trained to the first level of tracking certification: Ground Search and Rescue Track Aware.
As of 1 April 2010, the Justice Institute of BC no longer coordinates contracted third-party Tracker specialist training for Ground Search and Rescue Volunteers. In order to make a transition, discussions were held by the SAR Stakeholder Training Committee (SSTC), which consists of representatives from BCSARA, JIBC, PEP and RCMP. Concurrently, the BCTA is also exploring innovative solutions to ensure that tracking training will continue to be available to all GSAR volunteers.
A History of the BC Tracking Association
Mike Neeland, Sign Cutter
The History of the BC Tracking Association
Below is the story of the BC
Prior to the
I was lucky to be in one of these groups. My mentor was a long-time hunter named Dick Beatle. We were tasked with locating a lost hunter west of Quesnel. After a successful search with Dick, I was hooked for life!
In 1982 Universal Tracking Systems, later to become Universal Tracking Service (UTS), made its first trip into the interior and held a Track Aware class at Mount Lolo – a radar station east of Kamloops, and the following year at Baldy Hughes, a radar station southwest of Prince George.
The UTS instructors were Joel Hardin, Al Eastman, Al Pratt, Jerry Darkis, Stan Robson and Marvin Martin. They were all either US Border Patrol, Special Deputies or Sheriffs.
Moving back in time and place to El Cajon, California, Joel Hardin, Ab Taylor and Frank Heile were Border Patrolmen along the US/Mexican border. Their job was to cut for
One day, the Border Patrol members were coming off shift and noticed a group of Search and Rescue volunteers on a task at a local park. They asked the SAR Manager if they could be of any help. The SAR Manager briefed the Patrol Members and they cut for
The SAR Group was impressed and they approached the Head of the Border Patrol and arranged for some of his members to conduct tracker training. So, the seed was planted for tracking to become a SAR specialty.
The use of the stick to find sign was developed by
Moving forward to the early
Lines of
By the late
The single sheets of tracking information that had been developed by UTS over the
Classes were fairly simple back then because there were plenty of Track Aware novices and only a few senior trackers – so a single class for the both were the norm.
But, soon there were more UTS classes to be had and this generated more advanced trackers who also wanted to be involved in the In House classes.
The senior In House presenters lobbied UTS for permission to host a split Novice and Advanced class. UTS reluctantly agreed, with the proviso that “the needs of the Track Aware Novices would be fully met before the advanced students were split off to do tracking scenarios.”
In the
Thirty-two of the senior trackers in BC met with UTS and Stewart MacDonald from the JIBC to finalize an agreement to conduct JIBC/UTS TTT courses. The first course was held at the Youth Correctional Centre on the Vedder River south of the Army Base in Chilliwack.
It was agreed that funds permitting, JIBC would sponsor two UTS TTT classes per year so that more Trackers would have an opportunity to attend in different areas of the province.
Unfortunately, the UTS TTT concept was abused by some students who used it as an opportunity to attend a JIBC sponsored course and get a free UTS class. The TTT instructional content was lost to practicing tracking scenarios, instead of learning how to instruct and present a tracking class. Neither UTS nor JIBC ever issued TTT certification to those who attended the classes.
The last JIBC/UTS TTT course was held in Prince George in the fall of 2008. Only 11 of the 18 registered Trackers showed up and there was much dissatisfaction with the course content. Also, the course could not be used for Advanced Tracker re-certification.
In 2009, a meeting of the SAR Stakeholders Training Committee, consisting of EMBC, BC SARA, RCMP and JIBC, decided to end support for
The BC Trackers Association had been in existence for some time. It was an informal group of trackers dedicated to furthering Tracker Training in BC. However, in order to apply for funding and grants, they needed to be formally established as a Registered Society.
This was done in
Also in 2009, the Association and UTS signed an agreement, which basically continued the previous agreement with JIBC for TTT classes and In House training. In April 2011, the Association received a SAR NIF Contribution Agreement (NIF CA), which would provide funding for Tracker Training for one year. In addition, the CA required the Association to develop GSAR Tracker Training Standards and supporting training materials.
The first BCTA sponsored UTS Train The Trainer and Tracker 1
The draft BCTA Training Standards and instructional materials were gradually introduced during the 2011 courses.
The NIF funding was due to expire at the end of March 2012. Because there were fewer courses than planned and budgeted for, a request was made to use some of the NIF CA funds to produce a professionally-made BCTA Training Video. This was approved and the project was taped and completed between November and March 2012.
Also, a request was made and approved to extend the NIF CA for a second year – thereby providing funding to subsidize courses in 2012.
The first formal BCTA GSAR Tracking Instructor course was held in Vernon in April 2012 and nine instructors were certified by the BCTA. An Instructor Manual, including the Training Video,
Since 2010, the Association has provided 29 courses for over 566 students at the Novice/Track Aware and Advanced levels of GSAR tracker training.
The Training Standards and Instructional Materials will be delivered to EMBC and NSS at the end of the NIF CA on 30 March 2013. Undoubtedly, there will be much more history to follow…