Beginner questions about buying a sailplane...

Chris Reed wrote:

Leaving the glider assembled is very much over-rated. Apart from
anything else, if you're experienced in putting it together and taking
it apart, then you have no fear of heading off XC because, after all, it
needs to be disassembled somewhere (so why not a field?). I've known
friends who don't fly XC because they're afraid they'll have problems
retrieving the glider if they land out

My experience was just the opposite. I had my longest x-country flight
ever in the LAK-12, i.e., I ventured much farther away from home. The
glide and performance are very confidence-inspiring. But I agree with
you that one should have competent rigging/derigging aids, which my LAK
has, so that fear of land-out is removed from the equation. I have no
fear whatsoever of outlanding and field derigging. They are easy to
take apart because precision alignment is not an issue. Reassembling
however is best done on a hard and level surface back at the airport.

Regards,

-Doug