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On Mon, 09 Jul 2012 14:15:13 -0500, bryanrene
wrote: Bryan, Welcome to the forum, and congratulations on your decision to take up soaring. I'm a CFI-G(lider) down in Houston, flying with Greater Houston Soaring Association. We wouldn't be a great choice for a 5-10 course, since we fly mostly on weekends. Earlier this year, I went out to Estrella and did some aerobatic training. I was really impressed with their operation, and one of my students from Houston went there to "finish up" his add-on quickly. He also was impressed. It will be hot there (probably hotter than Minden), but if all you are going for is the flying I think it would be worthwhile to check them out. Another option, if you want to stay here in Texas, is Burt Compton's operation in Marfa. I haven't been there, but a number of our members have. Burt's schedule seems to be a bit "iffy", but if you and he coordinate ahead of time and he's available on the dates you have in mind, he comes well regarded. --Stefan Hello all. I'm a newbie just getting interested in soaring. Power pilot with 1200 hrs, enjoying a RV4 currently but would like to get an add on soaring rating. I live in central texas and Texas Soaring is not too far away but I have about 10 days off in August and was considering a full time school and doing the rating at one time. I tried "search" but obviously wasn't too successful. It seems that Minden is considered a great soaring destination but I wanted advice on a good place to do a 5-10 day add on rating. I have also read about Estrella but thought Minden might be nicer than Arizona in August (coming from Texas). I'm really open to anywhere in the US/Canada that would be nice experience. BTW, glad I found this forum, it is surprisingly active and I know there is a ton of experience and wisdom here. -- Stefan Murry |
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I transitioned from Power to Gliders (then later on went and got my
Commercial rating). My club isn't very well-organized so I wound up going to a couple of commercial operations for those ratings. I've also visited a few since then (for contests and such). Many of the good commercial operators in the western US are going to be beastly- hot in August; but I'd recommend the following (in no particular order): Williams Soaring (central California, about 2-3 hours' drive inland from San Francisco, CA) Estrella (about 30-45 minutes south of Phoenix, AZ) Sky Sailing (about 1-1.5 hours east of San Diego, CA) Williams is probably the largest and is run by the Mayes family (husband, wife, and teenage sons are all hard-workers and have a good staff). Its not the cheapest place to get your license; but they arguably have better equipment than the others. I haven't flown _at_ Williams; but the Mayes family ran the National Championships that just finished last week and I was mightily impressed with their skill, organization, and generosity of spirit. Estrella is run by Jason Stephens and a small crew of very capable folks. Jason is a multi-time aerobatic champion in gliders and has a lot of enthusiasm for the sport. I had a good down time there, finishing up my commercial glider ticket. Sky Sailing is where I got my private glider rating after making the switch from power. Its a somewhat-isolated desert valley location with a pace and a feeling all its own. But the Willat family are accomplished glider pilots who teach well. One word of caution: Training to fly gliders is *not* the same as soaring! You may be surprised to see some of rudimentary trainers and short flights that make up the training regimen. Sadly, soaring is a skill that takes a bit of time and effort to build up to. But it is WELL worth the time and effort, as long as you stick with it! Best of luck, and feel free to post here if you have more questions! Take care, --Noel |
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