Thirty-six Hours Trapped in Collapsed Tent in Highlands Inspires Edinburgh Man to Launch Social Network for Scotland

October 23, 2008 - Press Dispensary - After spending 36 hours trapped in a collapsed single man tent in the north west Highlands (a lonely and wet experience!), Jason Finch of Edinburgh was inspired to set up 'Scotster' – a website dedicated to bringing Scots and friends of Scotland together online and offline.

The launch of the new networking site is timely as 2009 is the first year of 'Homecoming Scotland', designed to promote a social and events programme worldwide. And now, Scotster's user-friendly features will connect international visitors to Scotland with existing residents.

The Facebook of all things North of the border, Scotster provides an online community where members can promote local events, share photos and memories, and find new friends with similar interests. Members can even create opinion polls and run their own guestlists.

Scotster was conceived in a tent during the wet summer of 2008. Jason Finch enjoyed five nights of wild camping on the way to climb his first Munros, including the remote A' Mhaighdean in the north west Highlands. He says: "I returned to camp at Loch a' Bhrisidh one evening and found it looking like a rough sea with waves crashing at the shoreline. Torrential rain and gales lasted two nights and a day, after which the tent support was dead and it was letting in a lot of water. But the soggy time incarcerated on my own gave me an idea about bringing people together!"

After just a few days online, Scotster has already attracted members aged 16 to 76 from as far afield as Canada, the USA, France, Australia and New Zealand, as well as Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Lynne Gourlay from West Lothian discovered Scotster through a 'fan page' set up on Facebook, the US-based social network system, which has already attracted over 1,200 fans of Scotster. She comments: "Scotster lets people set up detailed profiles about themselves and shows who else is online at the same time. It's really easy to strike up conversations about photos and things of interest. Whereas sites such as Facebook tend to concentrate on existing friends, Scotster is more open and I'm already looking forward to meeting other members."

Finch concludes: "Scotland needs its own social networking site so people can find others who enjoy the same pursuits. Scotster is built on a framework that promotes local social events and get-togethers as well as the online aspect. Perhaps next time, I'll have a few comrades to talk to on these trips into the great wilderness. I'm also confident the site will help me and others find new friends in the city of Edinburgh and all around Scotland."

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Jason Finch, 35, is based in Central Edinburgh. He started visiting Scotland in April 2008 after spending six months living in a remote part of the Canadian Rockies. He wanted to be close to the mountains and the extended, wild camping experiences that he enjoys.

He has been involved with the internet since 1995 when he was co-founder of internet consultancy firm, 'port80', working with clients as diverse as Lotus Cars, Marie Curie Cancer Care, Toshiba Europe, UniChem, Swinton and Boots. He has been named one of the North of England's "42 under 42" by business magazine, Insider.

He made it to the summit of A' Mhaighdean! Photos of Jason on the summit with one of the best views in Scotland are available at various resolutions and with permission for publication.

Other photos are available on request, including screen shots of the Scotster website.

Scotster is free to join and to use.

For further information, please contact:
Jason Finch, director, Scotster / Up and Doing Ltd
Tel: 07795 245280
Email:
Site: www.scotster.com