Looking at an old Ercoupe today...

Brian wrote:
[snip all good stuff]
My pet peeve is when both glider and power pilots say the flying
gliders is to expensive.

As I previously stated Soaring can be expensive but it doesn't have to
be. It does usually require more time commitment than power aircraft.

I agree with everything you said.
One comment: My pet peeve is when people say glider flying is
inexpensive without adding any of the clarification that has been
discussed in this thread. As outlined, you can make it inexpensive *IF*
you have the time *and* some of the options discussed available to you;
if not, staying current *can be* an significant expense. None of that
negates its value, of course, but again, depends how much time and $ a
person can/is willing to spend for it.