Is AAC membership worth it?

I saw a thread where one person was saying they are only interested in funding themselves but Ive seen other people saying it's definitely a good thing to be a part of. Should I get a membership. This discounts are not a factor for me as I already get pro deals.

It’s worth it to me to know that I am supporting an organization aligned with my interests and values.

(And the Access Fund and the ASCA and my LCCs like the RCA, GCC, WMCC, Friends of the Ledges, and CRAG-VT).

It’s worth it to me for the rescue insurance (which I’ve now had to use).

An additional reason for me is that they are one of the last places of financial support for alpinism.

Alpine climbing is probably one of the least popular and therefore least marketable forms of climbing. Especially now that the number of followers a climber has often matters more for sponsorship than actual abilities. Alpinists are often relatively quiet about their efforts, the climbing and conditions are too difficult to put out a lot of media, and the masses of gym, boulder, and sport climbers don’t relate. They don’t have a ton of marketability on social media and this hurts their ability to make money from climbing to support their art. The AAC helps offset some of that through grants. 

I'll 2nd the plug for rescue insurance (which I haven't had the privilege of using). It's important for the individual climber to call for help when needed instead of delaying on account of being worried by the bill. And broadly, climbing is not sustainable if it is a cost burden to local rescue agencies. 

I've had a membership, up until this year, mainly to support the Accidents in N America compilations. But, the one I always push for people to support is ASCA. A super simple mission, direct benefit to climbers, and, even tiny donations actually can accomplish something, unlike bigger organizations. And they're super nice guys, too!

One big benefit that is often overlooked is their library. You can check out a guidebook, through the mail, for anywhere you're going.

From a financial perspective:

• Gear discounts are fairly huge.  If you buy a fancy new rope it would pay itself back. 
• Accidents in North American Climbing publication is very worth reading if you are climbing in the alpine. AAJ is a cool read.
• Rescue insurance is hard to say.  Most places in the USA don't charge for rescue, and international rescue can be a lot more expensive.  I've always purchased separate insurance for higher risk international stuff.  

From a community persecutive:

• Yes, they do a ton.  Too much to list, really.

Accidents in North American Climbing is a good read for anybody climbing outside.

I don't think this has been mentioned yet, but if you climb in one of the areas with an AAC campground, the discounts on the camp fees will more than pay for your AAC membership.

NateC wrote:

It’s worth it to me for the rescue insurance (which I’ve now had to use).

Sorry to hear you needed to use the rescue insurance. How was the process? Did it cover what you believed they should or was it like most insurances, full of loop holes?

Climb On wrote:

Sorry to hear you needed to use the rescue insurance. How was the process? Did it cover what you believed they should or was it like most insurances, full of loop holes?

Still going through the process but it's been smooth so far. I'll have to update in the end, but I have no reason to believe it's going to be problematic at this time. 

For me the discounts alone more than pay for the membership  but also like getting the accidents publication