| In January 2007, It was a joy to have a chat with Tom Price (right) who was Dean of Students 1973 - 1979. He was instrumental in promoting Outdoor Activities in his time at Bingley and encouraged, the then Principal, Ray Stirling to appoint Pete Livesey as a lecturer in the Outdoor Pursuits department.
At the time Pete was at the forefront of British kayaking and rock climbing and as Tom describes: "To get him on our staff, I said, would be akin to getting Nurehev in one's ballet company...."
Tom also recalled a Bingley College climber who he never got to know:- "That was the one who put the Christmas tree on top of the dome of the main building's clock tower..... Seconded by Dennis Gray, who lived nearby at Guiseley, I made the second ascent and took it down, finding the route greasy with industrial grime. I was glad to be able to prise the lightning conductor away sufficiently to get my fingers behind it, and I should certainly not liked to do it solo, in the dark, even given the Dutch courage of a few pints of beer. I fully expected the name of the culprit to come out sooner or later over the grapevine, but it never did." |
