On Wednesday, September 30, 2015 at 11:04:52 AM UTC-4, Sean Fidler wrote:
A 2016 Jr. Soaring Nationals USA?

(drum roll..........) I will offer to host a first ever USA Jr. Soaring Nationals 2016 in Ionia, Michigan the week before the SGP USA (appx. July 16-23). We need to have at least 10 commitments by a reasonable date (March 31). If anyone has any better ideas, please feel welcomed to raise your hand and speak up.

I challenge US soaring clubs to produce (identify and motivate), support (provide gliders, funding and coaches), develop (train and practice) and send (escort the teams, provide vehicles and help fund) qualified Junior entrants and send them to their first contest just for Junior pilots. I look forward to hearing what US soaring clubs are interested in answering my challenge and would appreciate some heads up (soon) so I can gauge interest and decide if I should start seriously planning.

The competition format would likely be sports class, or could even develop a format as docile as an OLC (max handicapped distance).

The Juniors can mingle with some of the very best pilots in the USA and the world that week as they ramp up for the 2016 Sailplane Grand Prix USA (http://www.sgp.aero/usa2016). This environment could be a lot of fun for junior pilots. But the key is that this is a National Soaring Contest, just for Juniors, and hopefully heavily supported (and attended) by their fellow club members and our national soaring authority (the SSA) just as it is in Britain and other developed soaring nations.

Patiently waiting for feedback...

Sean
7T

This is an excellent idea and I hope people step up. Thanks for taking the constructive approach.

Another alternative would be to add a juniors' sports class onto an existing, successful regional (or Nats). This offers the significant advantage of providing a little flying action for the coaches, and might bolster participation. Venues like Wurtsboro & Mifflin would be great for this.

I'd love to tow along an up and coming junior to my next regional. I've got a glass ship I can put him (or her) in, and I'd be happy to coach. We don't happen to have someone in the club who's ready for this in 2016, but as they say, "Rome didn't get built in a day!".

Evan Ludeman / T8