Ride the Grizzly
Agrarian Boot Camp (ABC)
for New or Beginning Farmers/Ranchers (NewFRs)
The Vision
To Create a Boot Camp Intensive Learning Model
that will Launch the careers of hundreds of
New and Beginning American Farmers.
Trial Run: Boot Camp Agrarian (hereafter referred to as "ABC") creates a working-model-network of supportive connections between middle school, high school, college and university agriculture programs, and links them with experienced Farmer/Rancher Mentors in the Northern Sacramento Valley of California and elsewhere, in order to catalyze rapid response apprenticeship and support networks and programs for new farmers between the ages of 13 to 50 - across the country - in order to supply direct field-to-table food delivery systems (such as Farmers Markets, CSA's Local Food Hubs, Farm Stands etc.) with trustworthy and responsive farmers/ranchers to heal environmental injury while providing for the needs of locally based, health promoting, sustainable food systems.
At this point of critical transition, Trial Run 2012 - ABC will reconnoiter and plan toward a series of 3 week intensive Farm experiences involving biking and kayaking down the Sacramento River Valley in groups of about 35 each, starting in June of 2013 at Shasta Lake in Redding, California and ending at the Office of the State Grange in the State Capital of Sacramento California,
Trial Run 2012 - ABC will assess the resources and needs of the adventure of herding such a covey of participants, identifying teachers and mentors, references, music and entertainment community interaction opportunities, assessing needs, identifying obstacles and strategizing on how to overcome them, and mapping the logistics along a route ending 165 miles south of the starting point.
ABC expects to be a dynamic catalyst for spawning personal visions while precipitating personalized access and road maps toward making those visions reality for New and Beginning Farmers/Ranchers (hereafter and herein referred to as "NewFRs") across a broad range of Agrarian career and lifestyle possibilities.
Initial Conceptual Patterns
Bike/Kayak/ distances will be 20 to 40 miles each day not counting Public Transit.
There will be a stream of early morning and early evening classes utilizing both workbooks, and guest instructors and advisors including self guided study on a variety of topics including but not limited to:
- Food Production,
- Food Handling,, Preparation, and Marketing,
- Farm Planning,
- Bee and Book Keeping, (little joke)
- Land Acquisition Opportunities and Financing,
- Ag Tourism
- Grange History, Tradition, Rituals, and Laws and the Grange Resolution Process,
- Political and Policy Advocacy
- Farming and Ranching Models such as CSA, Farmers Market, Food Hubs, Produce Stands
- Wildlife Conservation,
- Permaculture,
- Composting, Biochar, and Organic soil amendments
- Soils and Irrigation Practice and Design,
- Organic Farming Practices,
- Meal and Value Added Food Preparation, Cooking, & Nutrition.
- Tool and Equipment knowledge, acquisition, and maintenance.
NewFRs will have demonstrated and expressed their desire to become direct marketing farmers/ranchers and will attend the ABC without fees. (at an estimated cost of $1,000 each) Scholarship Sponsor Mentors are encouraged to join in the journey as they can.
NewFRs will be encouraged to secure up to 3 Personal Farmer/Rancher Mentors.(Hereafter referred to as PerFRs - no just kidding! - this is starting to get out of hand) Participants will be presented with a t-shirt of a different color for each Mentor they secure.
Green for 1 Mentor
Pink for 2
Yellow for 3
The colors reflecting the 3 Graces of the Grange.
All Participants will be presented with opportunities to perform several hours of community service each week doing painting, minor repair, landscape maintenance, and/or break ground on community or student garden projects, or provide other service for their host neighborhoods.
Evenings will be spent mingling with the community sharing food, watching agricultural/food production videos (public invited) and participating in community based group discussion and examination of food related transition and sustainability issues., preparing potluck meals under the supervision of chefs, nutritionists, food safety specialists, and experienced foodies as well as drumming singing and dancing.
Hands-on experience based learning opportunities will include opportunities for, whole food baking, canning, steaming, pressure cooking, stir frying, grilling, and raw foods preparation,
and emphasize environmental health safety practice
in home and commercial kitchens
and at outdoor special events.
Four days a week are structured.
Monday – Thursday:
After and early breakfast of whole foods including plenty of slow burning complex carbohydrates, participants would scatter out from the Grange Hall base camps on bikes or kayaks and using Public Transit as available and appropriate - or a combination of the three - carrying sack lunches. Each individual would have the option of visiting a wide variety of farming/ranching operations according to the path of their individual interests before regrouping at the next base camp Grange Hall. (Some Base Camps might be set up on the River.)
Evenings would be spent for classes, meal preparation, socializing with the community through public showings of video, talent shows, public discussions, music, and dancing.
Three days a week are self directed.
Fridays – Sundays:
Using information, contacts and experiences from the weeks adventures they would be free to taste Farms/Ranches participation by, assisting existing farm operations with harvests, selling with farmers at farmers markets with farm stays, studying, resting, or recreating on the river, hiking canyons, biking.
Participants may chose more private time using the base camps as their base of self directed exploration.
The Fourth Sunday will be reserved for a Graduation Confluence Potluck with all participants and local community invited to celebrate.
What Participants can Expect!
ABC emphasizes Healthy Lifestyle Promotion.
Participants can expect to eat really healthy food, and be really physically active.
If you are overweight expect to lose weight.
If you are underweight expect to gain weight
Expect to see significant overall health improvements.
First week will likely be grueling,
second week you will find a second wind,
third week expect to fly.
Besides the t-shirts each NewFR receives for securing Mentors, upon completion of ABC each will receive a certificate of completion from the California State Grange and appropriate High School, College, and/or University Credit as can be arranged. These Participants will also be offered a 2 year Grange Membership Scholarship and Commendation to any existing Grange in the USA from the State Master.
