Who joins the club? Is there a profile of a typical member?
Speaking of a typical member, these are often people who already hike in the mountains and have at least some minimal experience. However, this is not a mandatory requirement. What is important, first of all, is that there are no medical contraindications, that the person possesses at least some physical conditioning, and has the minimum necessary gear to participate in the simplest trips. Accordingly, the members who meet these criteria usually already have experience participating in mountain treks and climbs.
Are there ever people who completely surprise you, who don't fit the expectations at all, but become some of the best?
I understand the question, but just like in any other field, the key in tourism is to move toward your goal gradually but consistently. You need to train without missing an opportunity, moving step by step toward the set objective. This is more than enough to achieve truly great results within a year. You can grow from participating in the most basic hikes to tackling truly awesome and challenging categorized expeditions. But the key here is consistency. And, of course, hiking safely.
Where do you see the club in 5 years? Do you have specific ambitions, including on an international level?
We don't have any extraordinary ambitions. We plan to keep training and keep embarking on challenging expeditions. It is the same path as for any regular trekker.
The club grows from simple to complex. We don't forget to organize easy hikes, while simultaneously and gradually increasing the difficulty. We cover the entire spectrum of expeditions available to us—starting from the easiest one-day treks for training those who wish to join the club, all the way to truly athletic sports expeditions of the 3rd and 4th categories of difficulty. These allow us to explore truly remarkable places across Ala-Too, Teңir-Too, and the Tian Shan mountains.
The questions were answered by Adilet Zhumaev, Director of the Public Association "Sports Club of Mountain Tourism 'Tenir-Too'"