"Marty Shapiro" wrote in message
...
"Tom Sixkiller" wrote in
:
For flying, the Bonanza Pilot Performance Program is worth spending
some $$$.

I find that free government seminars are more bureaucratic "number
crunching", but then maybe this is that one in a thousand that isn't.


Price can be, but is not always, an indicator of quality.

Price (I find) is SELDOM an indicator of quality.
What many people confuse are the terms * Price, * VALUE, and * quality. I'm
sure we've all seen the joke about the PRICE of a gallon of gasoline
compared with things like similar quantities of bottled water, beer, cough
medicine...

Often, ego plays a big part. :~) A Honda Accord will get you somewhere just
as nicely as a Mercedes-Benz, and even be more dependable, but as one person
put it, it's not as efficient for getting chicks.

A few years ago, when the FAA still had some money, they would
sponsor
all day Wings safety seminars. One was at the county convention center.
Again, this was free for attendees, even though some of the speakers were
paid and the convention center was not free. Two of the better
presentations were one on fuel management and fuel reserves given by an
United Airlines captain and one on weather interpretation by a local TV
weatherman (who was also a meteorologist and a pilot).

Sounds like a pleasant abberation from the bureaucratic norm.

Just for perspective, how many have been well done, and how many
were...otherwise?

I'm sure the Bondurant school was outstanding. But, when you found
out about it, was it advertised in context with free driving seminars, or
was it clearly advertised as having a fee?

Oh, it definitely advertised it's fees. And there definitely were no
freebies. Like the BPPP (which I'll attend this year) or the Advanced Pilot
Seminars (Deakin, Braly) or Mountain Flying courses, there's reasons they
cost $$$, but they better deliver!!