T wrote:
I am not aware of any tow pilot or tow plane losses in the last few
years during tow or as a result of glider actions on tow.
I am aware of tow plane/pilot losses caused either by a 3rd aircraft
interaction (Colorado) or a midair back in the traffic pattern after
release and during landing. Not related to the act of towing.

I am aware of one. There was a tragic accident about 16 months ago at our
glider club in which our tow pilot (and club president) and was killed
during a tow. The NTSB released a probable cause just last month (and
the local paper had a story also):

http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/GenPDF.asp?...09FA414&rpt=fi
http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms...rash-plane.csp

I knew him somewhat, but not deeply. He never struck me as someone who was
cavalier about safety, so the mistakes that were made are doubly sad.

I note that the NTSB did not fault the student glider pilot for
inadvertently moving out of position due to the distraction. I suppose
other than making sure your mental facilities are unimpaired, clubs with
SGS 2-33's might want to make doubly sure that the back door is properly
secured prior to any launch - particularly with low time pilots.