I'm going to have to disagree on the statement that soaring is not expensive. Yes it may not be as pricy as other things but for the masses, especially the younger masses, it is still a lot of money for a leisure activity.

I am the new members coordinator for Akaflieg SLO, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo' s soaring club and I deal with this reality every day. We do training with the CCSC (one of the cheapest glider clubs in California) and we even have a deal with one of the CFIG's for reduced rates, but still one of the main reasons we don't have more then 3 or 4 collage students out training each weekend is price. It may be pretty cheep to get a tow once you have your license and your own glider, but training can be quite expensive. I just wanted to pit that perspective out there that many young people want to soar, and many do, but a lot if others are put off by the cost of training.