AHSP policies

Please note that everyone attending the AHSP is expected to abide by the rules, laws and policies of The Mountain Institute, NOVAC, and the State of West Virginia. Anyone who chooses to ignore these policies may be subject to appropriate sanctions.

1. There shall be no firearms, fireworks, or chemical weapons of any kind permitted at AHSP aside from those with specific, prior authorization.

2. There shall be no cutting of trees, branches, shrubs, or other foliage for any reason, including, but not limited to, use as firewood.

3. Do not alter, remove, or damage any campground fencing for any reason.

4. Do not use the sinks in the bathhouses for any purposes other than those which they are intended for; prohibited uses include, but are not limited to, the washing of dishes, utensils and/or clothing as well as bathing.

5. Absolutely no pets are permitted at AHSP. Individual exceptions may be made for helper or assistance animals. (See Disability Services.) However, you may see wild animals around the observation area; they live here.

6. Absolutely no horses are permitted on site.

7. There is a 10 MPH/16KPH speed limit for all roads within the campground. Use special caution in congested areas. The posted limits may be too fast for local conditions.

8. AHSP Staff shirts are worn by the AHSP staff for providing attendees needing assistance with a means of quick staff identification and are reserved solely to them for that purpose.

9. Anyone under the age of 18 years (a Minor) must be accompanied by a parent or court-appointed guardian to be admitted to AHSP. Emancipated minors shall be required to produce proof of their status when checking in.

THERE SHALL BE NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE.

10. Please note that there are no single-day admission rates for visitors. This includes family and friends. Everyone attending AHSP shall pay the full requisite fee from the date of their arrival until the end of the event regardless of when they arrive, depart, or how long they stay.

11. No power earth-moving equipment without the express written permission of TMI, including but not limited to, power augers and bobcats. Also prohibited without express written permission are gas generators, gas lawnmowers, weed eaters, and chainsaws.

12. Any deliveries to the site other than U.S. Postal Service deliveries MUST be met at the Registration Desk. Since delivery services can rarely give you an exact time of arrival this could leave you with a lot of time waiting. We will not come and find you.

13. If you have brought any single water receptacle with a capacity of 100 gallons or more, you may not fill it from the local water supply, nor may you drain it here.

14. Any structure over 7 feet in height may be required to be dismantled if there are complaints from neighbors or if there are public safety concerns.

15. NO mopeds or scooters will be permitted on the observing field after dark. ECVs, mountain bikes, and electric wheelchairs are permitted.

16. No trenches, wastewater pits, or fire pits may be dug.

17. All vehicles over 20 feet in length (including any attached trailers) MUST be parked in the RV parking lot. Any vehicles over 20 feet in length (including attached trailers) found in the regular parking lot may be towed at the owner’s expense without warning.

18. Parking in the handicapped parking area is reserved to those vehicles that have Handicapped Parking Plates and/or Stickers (see Disability Services office located in at the Registration Area for more information). Vehicles found in the handicapped parking area without a proper tag may be towed at the owner’s expense. (Also see Parking Rules.)

19. Public address systems may not be used after 10 pm.

Fire Safety Rules

Please make sure everyone in the camp is familiar with the use of fire safety devices in the camp and camping fire safety in general.

1. No open fires are permitted. Only camp stoves will be permitted for cooking. A fire extinguisher is highly recommended.

2. ALL fuels for flame-powered devices must be handled and used according to the following safety requirements:

• Liquid fuels must be stored and transported in appropriate containers. These are to be kept sealed and stored at least 20 feet from flame sources.
• Liquid fuels may not be discharged or thrown onto fires.
• Use manufacturer-approved fuel with flame-powered devices.

3. ALL flame-powered devices and fires must meet the following safety requirements:

• Flame-powered light sources must be spill resistant.
• Elevated open flame-powered light sources must have shatterproof fuel containers.
• No hand-carried torches are allowed.

4. Elevated open-flame-powered light sources must be stable and located at a distance equal to their height plus one foot from any structure or flammable ground cover.

5. NO open flames are permitted inside tents. Flame or combustion heat sources are prohibited in any tent or enclosed structure.

Alcohol

The legal age for the consumption of alcohol in West Virginia is 21 years of age. Attendees of the AHSP may obtain alcoholic beverage off-site for consumption on-site. Any violations of West Virginia law may be reported to the authorities and violators may be evicted from the event without refund.
Furthermore, no one may offer for sale and/or otherwise distribute alcoholic beverages without the proper license. Should you choose to serve alcohol in your group, you do so at your own risk and are solely responsible for ensuring that you conform to the laws of West Virginia. Drinking to excess will not be permitted and at the discretion of the AHSP staff will be grounds for expulsion from AHSP.

Alteration of the Camping Area

No alterations of the site are allowed. This includes the digging of holes, cutting of trees, or the installation of man-made structures.

Entry and Re-entry into TMI

Each visitor to AHSP shall be issued a badge at the Registration Area when they arrive. This badge is your personal receipt and access pass to the AHSP event. Each badge issued is designated to a particular individual; the badges are not transferable. All visitors attending the event shall wear their badges at all times and shall produce their badges for Staff members upon request.

Please ensure that you take your badge with you when you leave the observation site for any reason. Anyone attempting to re-enter without a badge will have to go through the Registration Area process again and pay the appropriate fees.

Enter the site only through the designated entry/re-entry areas. Do not cross or remove fences to enter or re-enter the site. Anyone attempting to enter or re-enter the AHSP event without a badge, by crossing or removing fences and/or by transferring badges shall be evicted from the site without refund.

Mail and Package Deliveries

Mail deliveries for individuals via the United States Postal Service will be available at the Registration Area. You must produce sufficient identification in order to obtain your mail (please note: your site badge will NOT be sufficient). Remember that the Spruce Knob address should only be used for emergencies and NOT for routinely forwarding you mail while attending the AHSP.

Deliveries via private carriers (non-USPS) to individuals will be held at the Registration Area. It is the responsibility of each individual expecting a delivery to check with the Registration Area during the office's business hours. Any package or mailing not collected by close of the Registration Area on Sunday, August 27, 2006 may be returned to the sender or disposed of at the discretion of TMI management.

All other deliveries to the event that do not fit into the previous categories (i.e., pizza) must be met at the Registration Area. The Registration Area will NOT attempt to locate anyone or accept any items on your behalf when a delivery arrives.

It is solely your responsibility to be at Registration Area at the correct time to accept your delivery.

Minors and Children's Regulations

The following policies are IN ADDITION TO THE SITE RULES.

A parent or court appointed guardian must remain at the event for so long as the Minor remains on site. No Minor may be left unattended at the site.

Anyone attempting to circumvent this rule may be charged with trespassing and/or other applicable civil or criminal penalties.

NO PROGRAMS, ACTIVITIES, OR EVENTS TAKING PLACE AT AHSP ARE INTENDED AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR THE PROPER ADULT SUPERVISION OF MINORS.

Picnic Tables, Folding Tables, and Folding Chairs

No one may "claim" or relocate any picnic tables. Please recognize that there are not enough picnic tables for everyone to have one. Folding tables and chairs that are located in the public areas ARE NOT to be removed from those areas.

Quiet Hours

Quiet hours shall be enforced between 11:00 PM and 7:00 AM at the event. Please be considerate of your neighbors and refrain from loud talking and playing loud music at all times.

In addition, only very quiet portable generators (<60 dBa @ 10') may be operated from the hours of noon till 7 PM. Any attendees who wish to operate a generator louder that this must park their vehicles in the RV parking area and are still limited to the hours of noon till 7 PM. Extremely loud generators will not be allowed to operate at any time in either observing area.

Garbage Disposal and Recycling

As this is a remote location, no regular trash service is available. For this reason there will only be a limited number of trash receptacles located throughout the campground. These are only to be used for normal garbage and trash. Please separate and take your recyclables home with you as there won’t be recycling facilities on-site and these items may not be deposited in the trash. The use of disposable eating utensils is discouraged and if used the attendee must take this trash with them when they leave. Under no circumstances may garbage or refuse be burned.

Please be sure to remove all personal property from the site by noon on Sunday, August 27, 2006. Anything found after that time shall be considered abandoned property and may be disposed of by the Event Staff and/or The Mountain Institute management. Do not leave any large items (furniture, mattresses, old tents, etc.) in your encampment when departing, even if you intend to abandon them. Each individual is solely responsible for removing all such large items from the campgrounds; AHSP will not remove such large items on your behalf.

Personal Messages

The ability to take personal messages for individuals at AHSP is severely limited. Please remind your family, friends, or employer that there is only one incoming line for messages in the campground. In order to get a message to you, we will need the name of the person the message is for. BRIEF EMERGENCY MESSAGES ONLY will be relayed to attendees. If you are expecting a call for any other reason, please check with the Registration Desk daily to see if there is a message.

Smoking Policies

There is no smoking permitted in any building or public tent (including, but not limited to, dorms, bath house, session tents, or meeting room). If your neighbors are offended by cigar or cigarette smoke, you may be asked to smoke in a location designated as a smoking zone.

Please dispose of cigarette or cigar butts in a proper receptacle and be courteous of others when smoking in public areas. Dropping butts on the ground is dangerous and is not permitted.

Utilities

Under no circumstances may the existing utilities be altered and/or modified in any manner. You may not access or tie into any water lines or electrical boxes in order to install new or additional connections. Anyone attempting to alter and/or modify any of the existing utilities may be evicted from the site without refund and shall be responsible for any and all damages resulting from their actions.

No personal washing or bathing is permitted at the water spigots. Please be courteous when using showers. Please try and conserve water whenever possible.

Technical Service Request

AHSP Technical Services asks all AHSP attendees to help us keep AHSP running smoothly. Event Staff will be using a limited number of FRS channels, which other FRS users will be asked to avoid. In particular, channels 1 and 2 will be reserved for emergency and staff uses only. Other channels requested for the sole use of the Event Staff will be identified in your onsite program. Please make a note of those channels and choose alternatives for personal communications. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Access to AHSP

Here is information concerning what is needed to get you through the Registration Area as quickly as possible:

1. A positive form of ID. We need something that has your photo, name and birth date on it. Most drivers’ licenses meet those criteria, as do most government-issued ID cards.

2. If you arrive with a minor who is not your own child you will need proof of legal guardianship for that minor This proof must be in the form of a copy of legal guardianship papers SIGNED BY THE JUDGE who appointed the guardianship. You will be required to sign a waiver in the child's name before admittance—remember that lying on these waivers constitutes fraud and will result in your family's expulsion from the campground. Emancipated minors must show legal proof of emancipation, in addition to the ID mentioned in section one.

3. No daily visitors. There are no provisions for single-day entry. Do not invite anyone to visit you for the day; they will not be allowed on site without paying the full fees. Space at the event is limited.

4. If you are getting a ride from someone who is not staying, they are not allowed to enter the campground without an escort and we are always short of those. So plan on an extra delay while we try to find a volunteer to act in that role.

5. We cannot refund pre-registrations, but we can transfer them to another person prior to the start of the event. So if you are unable to attend AHSP and are already pre-registered, you need to request a pre-registration transfer from NOVAC prior to August 24, 2006.

6. NO PETS. This includes but is not limited to ferrets, dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, and snakes.

7. We WILL NOT give out personal information at the Registration Area. This includes who is on site and where they are located. This is a privacy issue; please respect it.

8. For information about accommodating the needs of the disabled at AHSP, please send an email to info@ahsp.org.

Traffic & Parking Policies

All Vehicles shall be removed to the parking areas as soon as possible after registration check-in. Attendee vehicles may not be left in event coordination areas and may be towed at owner’s expense.

There is a 10 MPH speed limit for all roads within the campground. Use special caution in congested areas. The posted limits may be too fast for local conditions.

1. LATE-NIGHT ARRIVAL
Vehicles that arrive on site during quiet hours or after dusk will be parked for the night at a special lot away from the observation area until 8 am the next day. However, once morning has arrived the vehicle must be moved to the parking area in accordance with standard policies.

2. OVERSIZED PARKING
There is a separate parking area for trailers and oversized vehicles (trailers, trucks, buses, campers, RVs, etc.); please park such vehicles in these specially marked areas. All oversized vehicles and trailers must be parked in these lots or they will be towed. This is to allow the large number of anticipated vehicles to fit in the parking lots this year.

3. HANDICAPPED PARKING
Those wishing to park in the handicapped parking area will be required to have a valid state/provincial handicapped plate/tag on their car. There will be no separate AHSP parking tag this year. (See Disability Services.)

4. MOTOR VEHICLES IN OBSERVATION AREAS
Motor vehicles may be parked on the observation field. However all vehicles parked in the observing field must take measures to eliminate white lights from the interior or exterior from disturbing fellow observers when accessing your vehicle. Acceptable measures include covering all lights with red transparent tape or plastic, removing the fuse for these lights, or covering these lights with opaque material (duct tape works well). Vehicles may not be moved from the observing field after dark except in the case of an emergency. You may live and sleep in a motor vehicle located in an observation or parking area.

5. RV CAMPING
RV's over 20’ long will be parked in a separate parking area. There is no electricity and no hookups of any kind, but there is water nearby. You may set up your observing gear in this area or the middle observing field.

6. UNATTENDED VEHICLES
Vehicles left unattended for any extended period of time are subject to towing.

7. NO VEHICLES MAY BLOCK SITE ROADS OR FACILITIES
If a vehicle cannot be moved into a camping site, it must be pulled completely off the road. Vehicles found blocking and/or parked in the road will be subject to immediate towing. Roads must be available for emergency passage at all times. Vehicles that block access to the port-o-sans (portable toilets) will be immediately towed.

8. USE THE PARKING LOT IN A FAIR AND COURTEOUS MANNER
In the lot, please park only within the designated rows or as directed by parking staff. NOVAC and TMI reserve the right to tow all illegally or improperly parked vehicles.

9. NO VEHICLES MAY BLOCK THE PUBLIC ROAD
Please remember that the road is a public thoroughfare; do not block this road to local traffic for ANY reason. Blocking site access is cause for eviction from AHSP.

Common Sense

We've tried to enumerate items of potential concern in our policies, but in the end it all boils down to this: we expect AHSP attendees to exercise good judgement, courtesy, and common sense. We think you'll find AHSP to be a warm, friendly event--and we'll do our best to be flexible and accommodating whenever it's possible to do so.