2007 Western Conference

The Guild's 2007 Western Conference will be held at the spectacular Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove, California, on the tip of the Monterey Peninsula. The California State Parks Web site gives directions and other information. All rooms at Asilomar are now sold out. Here is a link to a list of alternative hotel and motel rooms and nearby camping.

The Main Event

Asilomar is Spanish meaning “refuge by the sea,” and is a unique combination of forest and white sand beaches along the shoreline of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary in Pacific Grove, California. Its 105 acres of pristine natural beauty is ideal for bird watching, walks along the beach, and is minutes away from world-class golf, wineries, missions, sea kayaking and the spectacular Big Sur coastline. Neighboring Monterey, Carmel and Pebble Beach are famous for attractions, including the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Cannery Row, Fisherman’s Wharf and the scenic 17-Mile Drive.

Originally a YWCA facility and now a California State Park, Asilomar represents the largest collection of work by architect Julia Morgan in one location. She designed more than 800 buildings during her 49 year career, and was the first woman to be licensed as an engineer in California and to obtain an architectural certification from the L’Ecole de Beaux Arts in Paris. Twelve of her buildings here are on the Registry of National Landmarks and demonstrate her skilled interpretation of the Arts and Crafts style, which was sweeping California in the early 1900s.

On Friday we will have our visiting group of Japanese carpenters, coordinated by Kojiro Sugimura, completing their “machiai” with the select group who register for the workshop that begins Tuesday. These daiku (some who were at our Western Conferences in both 2001 and 2003 and also at Burlington in 2002) will astound you with their technique and understanding of wood and tools. This exchange is part of recent Guild efforts to trade skills, knowledge and personnel internationally. Sugimura-san, who is currently head of Kezuro-Kai (a group in Japan and the US dedicated to preserving knowledge of traditional tools, particularly wooden planes), is forming an organization named Tsukuro-Kai, which will encourage the preservation of wooden building techniques.

Features

Throughout the Conference we will have numerous seminars and demonstrations and other activities. The Trade Fair will be underway, featuring suppliers for the timber frame industry who will display their products and services and explain in detail how they are used. Meet those who support our craft in the field, including panel suppliers, tool vendors and wood brokers. The Timber Frame Business Council (TFBC) organizes the Trade Fair. If you wish to exhibit, contact the TFBC at 888-560-9251, or info@timberframe.org.

Also, Charlotte Cooper and Bill Devereaux will once again bring the Summer Beam Bookstore for one-stop shopping and browsing for all those hard-to-find titles on woodworking and timber framing. Sponsored by Duluth Timber.

Ed Shure - Aging is a Myth: Ed will introduce you to the basics of training your core muscles, and the use of good body mechanics on the job site. This workshop will be a dynamic experience: we will use floor exercises and tools of the trade in real life situations to learn how we can prevent injuries and preserve our bodies. Times to be announced at the Conference - maybe early morning on the beach, weather permitting.

Sponsors

We want to thank the following sponsors for their contributions to help make the Conference more affordable for all of you:

Major Sponsor: HSB-CAD Auction Sponsor: Goshen Timber Frames

Contributing Sponsor: Timber Home Living Summerbeam Bookstore sponsor: Duluth Timber Children’s Workshop sponsor: Ancestral Wood Products

Please support our sponsors both during the conference and afterward, too.

Fees

The Main Conference fee includes admission to all presentations and activities beginning Thursday evening, April 12th, through Sunday morning, April 15th.

Meals and/or housing are not included and must be reserved separately on the Registration Form. You must register for your room and meals through the Guild, not through Asilomar. Click here for online reservations.. Your housing reservation includes three full-course meals per day beginning with dinner on the night of your arrival and ending with lunch on the day of departure. We will assign you a roommate if you wish to share a room. You are encouraged to reserve your rooms early. Commuter rates for those staying off-site include lunch and dinner on that day. There is good camping at Veteran’s Memorial Park in Monterey (831-646-3865). We can send you a list of off-site lodging and other campgrounds, but hotel rates will be significantly more expensive than at Asilomar.

No one may reserve a room from the Guild’s room block without being registered for the Conference as well.

Three full course meals are included with your room reservation, and are served family style in the spacious Crocker Dining Hall. Guest rooms have private bath, scenic forest or marine views, and are clustered in 28 quaint lodges. Many rooms feature fireplaces, balconies or private decks. There are no televisions or phones in the rooms, but Internet access is available. Other Asilomar facilities include a heated swimming pool, volleyball, ping-pong and billiards.

Travel Arrangements

Asilomar is 71 miles south of San Jose and 120 miles south of San Francisco. It is conveniently served by the Monterey Peninsula, San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland Airports. The lowest airfares can generally be found coming into San Jose; San Francisco usually has the best rental car rates. Shuttle service to Asilomar is available from Monterey Salinas Airbus at 831-883-2871.