Asplundh, ISA and B2K Baltimore in the year 2000 – B2K – was a rallying cry for the organizers of the 76th Annual Conference of the International Society of Arboriculture (ISA), which took place August 6-9. Their rallying cries must have been heard since attendance at the ISA B2K exceeded 2,200 – about 500 more than last year!
For the heavily populated East Coast – and those of us from Willow Grove who regularly attend the conference – Baltimore's location was certainly very accessible. In addition, many attendees were probably attracted to ISA B2K because of the National Aquarium and the Inner Harbor attractions located there.

With arborists from all over the world, the annual ISA conference provides an excellent gathering place for every branch of the tree service industry – utility, municipal, commercial and research. This meeting always provides one of the best opportunities during the year to interact with arborists who use our services and to leverage our support of the ISA Research Trust into a greater overall contribution.

Raising the 'Green' on the Greens

For the sixth year in a row, Asplundh provided an excellent reason to come to the conference a little early – the ISA Research Trust Golf Outing! On Saturday, August 5 over 100 pro-ISA golfers enjoyed a light-hearted, scramble format competition on the beautiful greens of Woodlands Golf Course in Woodlawn, Maryland.

The ultimate goal was to raise funds for the ISA Research Trust, but hardly anyone paid attention to that once the little white balls started flying. In the end, two teams tied with a net score of 60, but the winning team (pictured above) was determined by the lowest score on the hardest hole. The second place team consisted of Andy Dodson and Loren Smart of Kansas City Power & Light, Mark Styslinger of Altec Industries, and Executive Vice President Scott Asplundh – last year's first place team!

The annual golf outing has become a tradition and is one of the primary ways Asplundh financially supports tree care research. With the generous help of 14 hole sponsors, and Terex-Telelect who sponsored the awards dinner, this event raised over $22,000 for the ISA Research Trust. Many thanks to all who joined in the fun for a good cause.

In the Trees for a Field Day and the ITCC

Nobody in the tree care industry wants to spend the whole ISA conference indoors – that's why there's a Field Day! Held on Sunday, August 6 at Druid Hill Park, it was the perfect excuse to get out and "kick the tires" of new equipment, explore innovative tools, and discuss work methods with other ISA members and suppliers.

Probably one of the greatest attractions of the Field Day was the International Tree Climbing Championship (ITCC), which featured the world's best tree climbers from 34 ISA chapters. Competing in five events – Secured Footlock, Belayed Speed Climb, Throwline, Aerial Rescue and Work Climb – the five climbers with the highest scores moved on to the Masters' Challenge. The winner, for the second year in a row, was Bernd Strasser of the Germany/Austria Chapter.

Despite an afternoon downpour that closed the competition for two hours, Druid Hill Park was the perfect setting for the ITCC. Foreman Trevor Burton of Asplundh Canada Inc. in Nova Scotia was our sole competitor this year. Placing 28th overall, Trevor was relatively pleased with his performance since it was only the second time that he had competed in a climbing contest!

On the Road with Tour des Trees

For the past few years, the event that generates the largest contribution to the ISA Research Trust is the Tour des Trees. A week-long, 600-mile bicycle ride, this year's Tour had a total of 70 riders, 52 of whom rode the whole way, including our own Technical Services Manager Geoff Kempter.

Each rider commits to raising at least $3,000 and more than 40 businesses and organizations made sponsorship contributions totaling more than $125,000. In all, more than $300,000 was raised to support the Tour and the Research Trust!

For the first time, Asplundh supported the Tour des Trees with $5,000 worth of
"in-kind" support. This included the use of a 12-passenger van for nine days, a rented sound system, press release services, and a public relations support person for the entire Tour – yours truly, Kristin Wild. It was a life-changing experience for me to be part of the "ride/eat/sleep/plant trees" group and to help spread the word about the importance of trees and their proper care. Thanks to Asplundh's, and many others' support, the Tour des Trees message was repeated on several TV stations and in numerous newspapers throughout the Middle Atlantic region. The exposure will hopefully continue to grow and support the overall goals of the ISA and the Research Trust.

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