Maybe @
BobG will chime in. He was one of the leaders of the unsupported, x-country ACA tour I did way back in '99. (Our original leader did not work out, and the original replacement, Frank, had a late-summer commitment and could not finish the trip.) I know he's led other tours for them, but I am not sure if he's active.
Frank and Bob were very good leaders. One thing Frank said about leading is that "It's never about you," with "you" being the tour leader. I gave it some thought for the future but have pretty much decided that I probably wouldn't have the patience and temperament to be a good leader, at least for an unsupported tour, if only because I don't like to spend too much energy managing things. On my unsupported ACA tour (I also did one of their fully supported tours) the leader was required to keep track of money and expenditures and make any necessary camping/lodging reservations. I don't balance my own checkbook. Having to do something like that during a tour doesn't sound to appealing to me. I also don't think that problem/dispute mediation/resolution is a strong suit of mine. Our original leader created some unpleasantness and tension within our group. The last thing I would want to do is to take on the job and then end up being "that guy," especially since some people who go on their tours are fulfilling a dream.