Hidden Earth
National Caving Conference

Bryan Ellis Award

This prize covered the period 2000 to 2006 and is no longer currently awarded.

This award is given by Pauline Ellis in memory of her late husband, Bryan Ellis, a former BCRA chairman and Administrator. It is presented through the BCRA and is for innovation or enterprise in one of Bryan's many fields of interest, these included Caving Administration, Surveying, Publishing (writing and production), and Caving Gadgetry. As well as his interests in UK caving, especially the Mendips, he also had interests in caving in Ireland, North Wales, Iceland and Slovenia.

Rules

This award is given by Pauline Ellis in memory of her husband, the late Bryan Ellis, former BCRA chairman and administrator.
The award usually consists of a cheque for £100. It is presented annually, and is announced at the BCRA AGM.
The award is for innovation or enterprise in one of Bryan's many fields of interest, whichincluded Caving Administration, Surveying, Publishing (writing and production), and Caving Gadgetry. As well as his interests in UK caving, (especially the Mendips), he also had interests in caving in Ireland, North Wales, Iceland and Slovenia.
Judging is at the discretion of Pauline Ellis, but she wishes to work closely with BCRA Council. In practice a nominated individual (the 'coordinator') will liaise with BCRA's magazine editors and Special Interest Groups and will present Pauline with a short-list of contenders.
It is recognised that there is some overlap between this award and the Arthur Butcher and E.K. Tratman Awards; perhaps also the CREG award. For this reason, the coordinator may also need to consult the coordinators of these other awards.

Previous Winners

Also see Reports of past events

2000 Julian Todd: In 2000 the award was made too late to announce at the BCRA AGM and national caving conference. Julian Todd received a cheque for £100 for work on his innovative 'Tunnel' and 'Tunnel 2' software for creating 3D models of caves, and for the drawing of 2D surveys of complex systems.
2001 Tim Horne and the Titan Dig Team: The Titan Dig started in October 1999 in order to obtain a connection from the surface to the Titan Shaft found in January 1999. This involved elements of both surveying and engineering. During October 2000 bone fragments were found in the Glacial Sediments which, with the help of a BCRA Research Grant, were carbon-dated. This will hopefully aid the understanding of the speleogenesis of the region. For the team's impressive engineering, as well as surveying and bone-dating activities in the dig, Tim Horne receives a cheque for £100. See detail.
2002 Graham Proudlove: Graham's work on Biological Recording was considered to be an essential part of the BCRA's activities that had been neglected since Jeff Jefferson's time and it was thought that this should be encouraged. Graham had put a large amount of time and effort put into this project - work which is at the core of BCRA's aims.
2003 Tony Jarratt: This year, the award is given to Tony Jarratt and his team for the work done at Hunter's Lodge Inn Sink. The cave is a fantastic find and in an unparalleled location. We hope that the award can be used towards the cost of scientific examination of the archaeological remains found in the cave.
2004 Ray Duffy: The Red Rose CPC are the resident guardians of the Lancaster-Easegill cave system on the Cumbria / Lancashire / Yorkshire border - probably the largest cave system in the UK. Over an extended period, the Red Rose has been undertaking an extensive project to re-survey the cave and to update the survey as an aid to exploration and research. The work to date has been published as an excellently-presented monograph and survey, and further publications will follow. One person in particular, Ray Duffy, has been instrumental in this work.
2005 John Cordingley: John Cordingley has been involved in cave exploration both within the UK and on the continent for many years, and as one of the UK's leading cave divers has made a massive contribution to the quality of underwater cave surveying. He has an exemplary record of writing up and publishing his results.
2006 Shepton Mallet Caving Club: This year's award goes to Shepton Mallet Caving Club to recognise the quality of the publication of their series of stone mine surveys, for their inventive software, and for making the information available to a wide cross-section of cavers and members of the public.
2007: No Award: For 2007, BCRA Council released a statement saying... It has always been accepted that the Bryan Ellis award and the Arthur Butcher award could, potentially, cover similar ground. After long discussion, significant debate and consultation with Pauline Ellis, it was felt that in order to simplify the awards process, the Bryan Ellis award would be suspended from 2007. It was felt that there was sufficient opportunity for individuals with interests in each of the subject areas to gain suitable recognition from the existing awards.