My club, York Soaring Association (www.yorksoaring.com) has been teaching youth camp students to fly for 40 years. These have been in the form of Youth Camps, two week flight courses, where the students stay at the club while learning, (our accommodation has evolved from the 'chicken coop' which not so imaginatively got its name from the building original use, to the York Hilton, - a semi trailer converted into a bunkhouse, to the current cabins and a few trailers.

Weather permitting, they take two consecutive flights, in 2-33's, in the morning, and a second set in the afternoon, with ground school and practice exams during the day. Almost 100% complete their license in this time period. These have run the first two weeks of August and the first two weeks of July.

In the last decade we added, and expanded follow-up scholarships to advance their skills beyond mere gliding in a 2-33 towards soaring, a Bronze Badge and beyond. Scholarship recipients are awarded $500 contribution to their flying accounts by Youth Flight Canada Education Fund, a Registered Canadian Charity (US pilots, think 501.3.c), in two tranches, with the second to follow after the required 10 hours of volunteer time has been recorded. This is 'dirty' volunteer time, not just running wings etc. and additionally, they pay out of their own pockets (or Dad's) $5 for each flight.

They are strongly encouraged to get an early checkout on the 1-34's (hey, - Schweitzer legacy), and then mentored in a structured fashion. This take the form of another post-license Pilot Training Record for the Bronze Badge, with scheduled class-room presentations on the theoretical (Advanced Thermalling, Advanced Instrumentation, Off Field Landing field selection and circuits, etc.) and then practical mentoring, usually in a Youth Flight owned Grob 103 or one of the other glass twins, where Ideally, the mento in the rear seat, an accomplished X/C pilot, will do 90% of the talking, while the scholarship recipient in the front seat does 90% of the flying. We practice and coach on reading clouds, finding thermals, centering the core, etc. as well as testing out the Android XC Soar and final glides. My favourite is always the De-rigging onto a trailer, and then the practical driving skills (backing up may shake their confidence in their skills).

Youth Flight Canada has endowed funds of over $250,000, the income from which ensures 20 scholarships are available. They are awarded to licensed pilots age 16 - 22, most of whom are graduates of our own club's training program, or from the Royal Canadian Air Cadets (think CAP), who teach to license app. 300 members of that organization each summer. Their skills meet the minima required, and thermalling is for the most part forbidden.

So the encouraged approach is four points:
- read suggested material from the club's Member's Forum (Speed Bank and Yaw, Dick Johnson on Thermalling) and posters in the classroom
- Briefing at the white board to ensure the reading has been done and deal with any confusion
- mentoring flight in a glass twin (2 103's, K-21, DG 500), all phases of flight: T/O, air manoeuvres, landing)
- apply the lessons in practice in the 1-34 with one of the Fly with CE position recorders

Progress is rapid, and self esteem blooms.

We know we will lose them as active members at some stages of their life, - young married w kids and job and mortgage, but in the 15 years we have run this, we have seem a gratifying number return to teach, and continue to learn themselves. Our LS 4 is used most extensively by pilots under 35, may former recipients of the scholarships. And the club is a better place with the energy of the young as a large part of the culture.