Lennie the Lurker writes
You are confusing what I have to pay for my fixed expenses with what I
have left for "fun money". I was spending about $200 to $300 per
flyable weekend at the glider port, plus $300 per month for the
payments on the plane, and no partners in it. But, lets say, $3600 per
year for payments, $900 for insurance, $35 per month for tiedown, $40
for a 3k tow, and an income of $1500 per month, on which I am now
completely comfortable.

Perhaps our objectives are different. Perhaps geography plays a part.
But I'd say you were paying too much. Certainly far to much for what you
evidently got out of it.

For my part, I'm learning to fly as a member of a local club. I use the
club gliders and the club instructors, all of which come within the
price of my annual membership (£220 pa). Because I took their "Fixed
price to solo" offer (£470 incl annual membership) I don't have to pay
another thing until I either go solo or I need to renew my annual
membership (another £220 next year). I just turn up on a flying day, add
my name to the flying list and help out on the ground as I wait my turn.
Hopefully I'll have gone solo by the time next years subs are due, after
which point it's £6.50 for a winch launch and 26p a minute after the
first 10 minutes (up to a maximum cap, can't recall what). A weekend's
flying once I'm solo shouldn't cost me more than £50 tops. About a third
of what you were paying.

Of course, were I to own my own glider, perhaps the costs would be
higher. Don't know. Haven't bothered to work that out yet. Owning my own
glider, as attractive an ambition as that might be, isn't really
appropriate at the moment.

I suppose the only point I'm trying to make is that your extreme
assessment of the cost of gliding isn't entirely accurate. At least not
accurate enough to qualify as such a sweeping generalisation as the one
you made previously.

I'm not trying to be combative. Could be I'm fortunate in where I live.
But it strikes me that I spend more on running my band, or used to spend
more on fishing, or karate or running my old motorbike than I currently
do (or am likely to in the near future) on gliding. It could cost me
more than I spend on gliding were I to join a local gym. So by
comparison, gliding as a past-time is, if not cheap, can at least be
comparable to any number of other hobbies/sports/activities. Everything
is relevant to budget, but the one thing that really grates me at the
moment is that I didn't realise quite how economic a past-time it could
be. I could have started this years ago, but put off even enquiring
because I was concerned over what I'd assumed would be the high costs.

As for reward, I'm a musician, so I relate deeply to your anecdote
regarding your friend's daughter and "You play the best songs". Music,
especially the performance of it, is a hugely rewarding thing in so many
respects. But I find comparing the rewards of music and the appreciation
of a child (or any type of audience, for that matter) to the rewards to
be found "in a cockpit" to be a bit non-sensical.

Called to make a choice between the two, I'm not sure which way I'd go.
Music, probably, because it's been so much a part of my life and dreams
for so long. But the fact that I'm going gliding tomorrow certainly
isn't going to stop me from turning up and doing the gig tonight. It
won't stop me from helping my son practice his guitar tomorrow night. So
I can have both, and am happier for it. The rewards each give me are
utterly different.

I don't know how much beer is, I've never bought any, but rather think
I can make a pot of coffee for a lot less, and rot my brain a lot less
at the same time.

Sure. But would you have as much fun rotting your brain in coffee as I
do mine in beer?

--
Bill Gribble