How do we inspire pilots to truly take up cross country soaring ?

Some great ideas being discussed. Most require a "sparkplug" or two and a lot of dedication and time, and take a while to show positive results. Often those who are most interested in XC and competition are the least inclined to organize and drive these efforts although they're quite happy to support them.

Some years ago there was an annual intro-to-XC event held at Philadelphia Glider Council's facility. Classroom sessions (IIRC, Roy McMaster came down for it) followed by several task options with mentors, each of whom flew with 1-3 "students". A couple of students with a little more experience had Doug Jacobs as their mentor one year! Several of us who had been volunteered as mentors tried to convince the organizers that we could benefit more from flying with Doug than our students could with us.

Yes, obviously the participants had to have access to their own gliders, but many (most?) private owners don't fly cross country that much so this effort was targeted at them. One weekend enjoyed particularly good weather, which allowed us to get out on course and gain some real experience, including students getting low. Weather is obviously a huge imponderable when planning ahead.

I don't know what the stats were regarding effectiveness of the program but the Governor's Cup--a season-long competition around common courses in the PA/NJ/NY area anchored by half a dozen gliderports including PGC--took off about then and was a big draw for pilots of widely varying abilities.

One thing to keep in mind: it's not just exposing people to soaring and then converting them. I honestly don't know what the attrition rates are but we seem to lose a lot of pilots who are active for a while and then drop away. Having been out of soaring three times over the years, I can say it can be tough to stay with it no matter how much you enjoy it. It's expensive, takes an inordinate amount of time, isn't always family friendly, and is a lot of work. Yes, the truly motivated will persevere. It's the mortal rest of us who are sometimes diverted, not always by choice.

I've resumed soaring three times after lapses of 5, 3, and nearly 4 years and it's pretty daunting. HUGE thanks to Hank Nixon (already lauded for his work) and Erik Mann (heavily involved in the PGC experiment and driver of the G-Cup) who have kept in touch even when I wasn't flying, aided enormously when I undertook comebacks on my own, and provided the spark (shove) to get me moving the last time when I needed encouragement. The days of "paying your dues" by working your way up the ladder painfully slowly and "if someone really wants to fly badly enough, they'll find a way" are long past. There are too many other demands for our time/money in today's world.

Chip Bearden
ASW 24 "JB"
U.S.A.

On Saturday, August 15, 2015 at 11:09:43 AM UTC-4, Sean Fidler wrote:
From another thread recently, thought it might be a good topic to paw around with everyone...

For me, soaring is great fun. I've been doing it consistently for about 5 years now. I've met a bunch of amazing, great, kind people and have learned a tremendous amount about the sport (light years left to go). Thru and thru, as a group, soaring pilots, their friends and family are among the nicest, smartest most interesting people I have ever met. I am attracted to this immensely.

Part of the reason I have devoted time and energy to the sport is that am truly inspired by what competition/cross country pilots are capable of doing in gliders. I am still fascinated by it and want to be a part of it. This, for me, was huge. Glider pilots are amazing pilots, PERIOD.

I probably never would have truly learned of the sport (and what it really is at the highest levels), or been so attracted to it if my dad was not involved. Having a family member with a high performance glider, flying it regularly and promoting how amazing the sport could be all the time was key.. Having access to a high performance glider and a group of local friends who could mentor me and take me out on cross country flights shortly after I got my license was the key moment. Would I have got my license if the motivation was just flying around the airport? Probably not.

Those experiences flying with the Ionio boys on short, mentored cross country's "set the hook" for me and eventually led to me buying a glider so that I could fly with everyone rather than leave my dad back at the airport whenever I was flying. Of course once I bought my first glider so I could fly with this gang regularly, the learning curve grew dramatically. The hook set deeper. And so on.

Flying clubs are important to US soaring "health" I suppose but they also seem to lack in areas. They often don't have much to offer in terms of even moderate performance gliders. They often don't promote or in some cases even allow cross country.

It seems that European clubs are more into cross country which is more challenging and more rewarding than local flight, which I think gets old after a year or so. If some inspirational figure is not actively encouraging and facilitating cross country glider flight (the whole point of the sport I think) at that key moment in a glider pilots career, I think they come to the conclusion that they have checked the box and move on.

Obviously without glider clubs more focused on taking pilots into cross country levels, one has to have the financial means to do it on their own. I dont see that as a real problem as numerous 40:1 gliders are available for the same price as a small sailboat or powerboat, which almost everybody seems to have these days (jet skis, snowmobiles, etc). It's a matter of priority. Gliders I suppose are for one person (usually) where a boat (or other rec toy) is for the whole family.

But Europe seems to have an entirely different dynamic with respect to soaring. More youth, larger numbers, etc. U.S. numbers have been steadily declining for 25 years.

One thing I learned in business school. It's often better to adopt successful competitors methods even if at first you don't fully understand them yet. Our clubs (and the SSA) should be talking to European clubs and picking their brains for advise. I wonder how many have actually done that. Perhaps take a trip to Europe on summer and spend a few weeks with a successful club, talk to the people, etc.

Oddly, my flying is at a location that actually IDs itself as IONIA NON CLUB. They don't like the politics. :-).

The rules is a small thing overall but debating the rules is an important thing in terms of competition pilots. My suggestions usually would make getting into competition soaring simpler for the new pilot. I do think our rules are too complicated, but the rule makers are all GREAT PEOPLE, working hard and want nothing but the best for our sport.

Sean
7T

How do you motivate pilots to fly X-C? You don't. Such a desire has to be innate. For us who think cross country flying is a sport too good for kings, it is hard to understand why it has no appeal to others, especially others who do, in fact like to fly. But that's the way it is, and you aren't going to change it. When instructing, I have always included X-C instruction to some degree in every flight, even if it was merely to point out where NOT to go or why this particular day wasn't good for leaving the area. I have always tried to go as far away from the airport as possible and still remain within gliding distance of a normal pattern.
Our BRSS has several club ships with good X-C performance, and many club pilots with the requisite skills to leave the airport. It doesn't happen.
This year we set up a X-C OLC to encourage club pilots to leave the nest. Here are the rules:

BRSS OLC Annual Award
This award will be presented at the BRSS AGM to the club member with the highest OLC score (above minumum) for the OLC period ending at the close of the OLC year . (mid Sept-mid Sept is currently the OLC year.) The minumum score for the award is a total of 300km.
A club member may only win the award once in a three year period.

This award is open to all club members who have never had an SSA competition ranking of 50 or greater. In a two-place glider, neither occupant may have ever had a ranking of 50 or higher. Distance in a two-place glider scores for only the PIC. In other words, only one pilot may claim the distance..

_______________________________________

We got two Nano3's for club use. We laid out short, ultrasafe circuits that would still give enough distance to score on OLC. We held a X-C lecture taylored to those who we thought might be interested.

So how has our program worked? It hasn't. To date, not one taker, not one X-C flight.
I wish that I could share X-C experience with more of my club members. It gets lonely flying all by myself all the time. But that's the way it is, and I don't see any change. But checking OLC in the evening after my flights, I see that there really are a lot of you out there flying X-C too, and it gives a sense of fellowship and comraderie.

And for the guys who are thrilled just to lull around for hours over New Castle - well, you couldn't pick a prettier place. I wish I could be so content.

As a relative noob to the sport of soaring with just a handful of PIC hrs, perhaps my input may shed some light on this issue.

We need to accept that there nothing unique in soaring that isn't encountered in learning other challenging endeavors. Soaring doesn't lack excitement so we needn't be apologists for it. Learning a difficult skill is what lacks excitement for majority of people and that's nothing new. What's new is perhaps that more people are looking for easy fun. People will walk 26.2 miles and claim that they ran a marathon, but few are willing to train for many years and suffer the injuries to run it in under 3 hrs. Truth: there's no walking through aviation training and flying cross-country solo requires years of experience. Do prospective students know that or do they expect instant gratification coming into it?

It is a fact of life that not everyone who's inspired by a masterful performance (or a Youtube soaring video) has what it takes to become a master themselves. Think of a kid that listens to a concert pianist and wants to take piano lessons without considering how many scales and arpeggios they'll have to suffer through during the following 10 years. Those with talent and perseverance will get there, but the majority of students will move on to easier pursuits. Before my own checkride last year I had a conversation with another student. He seemed uninspired and to paraphrase, was "still waiting for the fun part". The pursuit of mastery isn't always fun. Mastery itself is always fun, but that has to be earned. I have frequently questioned my own desire to pursue soaring starting with the first few patterns to the more recent unsatisfying flights. Earlier this year I was still waiting for the fun part. That is until last month when I had what I would call a breakthrough flight, a glimpse of what the "masters" experience. It took perseverance.

In conclusion, soaring is not poetry. If fact, a student will quickly learn that initially if feels more like rap. If it is to be considered a legitimate sport, perhaps we should learn from other sports and provide students with mentoring and coaching, not just instruction. Explain to them all the steps involved and help them set realistic goals and create a plan for attaining them, and yes, help inspire them when they are discouraged. Cross-country flight or competition is the big prize and the end of a journey. If athletes are to be attracted to this sport the slogan needs to change from "Soaring - the poetry of aviation" to something like "Soaring - have you got what it takes to fly a plane without an engine?".

If it is to be considered a legitimate sport, perhaps we should learn from other sports and provide students with mentoring and coaching, not just instruction. Explain to them all the steps involved and help them set realistic goals and create a plan for attaining them, and yes, help inspire them when they are discouraged.

That there, ladies and gents, is an encapsulation of a lot of the prior discussion.

I'm not sure that a passion for XC is "innate" - people often get the gliding bug only after their first flight. Similarly, the passion for XC often comes only after you've been shown the possibilities. It's a series of stepping stones with no true ending; some of the hops are bigger than others and sometimes the waters seem deeper and scarier than they really are. For those instances, friends, mentors and coaches will get people onto the next stone and the next challenge. Sometimes you just need to add more stones to lessen the length of the leaps.

DH

Well said!

I think I am going to bite the bullet and get my CFIG against the strong advise not to do it ;-).

I think teaching "beginner" cross country is what I would be most interested in.

Maybe I'll go to Chilhowee and know that out. How long does it take?

Great post! I still would love to see something significant attempted in terms of marketing (new pilots, cross country pilots, etc)? Perhaps a website and YouTube channel specifically focused on these demographics? Bruno's stuff is awesome with a great following, but if I was brand new I think Inkight be terrified. I think we need something with that much appeal but focused on the baby steps from new pilot to early cross country learning.

I think I am going to bite the bullet and get my CFIG against the strong advise not to do it ;-).

I think teaching "beginner" cross country is what I would be most interested in. That really doesn't exist in my area.

Maybe I'll go to Chilhowee and knock that rating out. How long does it take to get a CFIG?

Sincerely,

Sean

On Tuesday, August 18, 2015 at 4:37:23 PM UTC-4, Sean Fidler wrote:
Maybe I'll go to Chilhowee and knock that rating out. How long does it take to get a CFIG?

Sincerely,

Sean

Why don't you ask the Chilhowee operator/instructor (and former U.S. National champion) who keeps telling you she doesn't appreciate being scored separately in a contest just because she's a woman.

Recognition good; condescension bad.

Chip Bearden
ASW 24 "JB"
U.S.A.

On Tue, 18 Aug 2015 12:19:16 -0700, pstrzel wrote:

flying cross-country solo requires years of experience.

All due respect, but this is quite wrong given a suitable club culture.

A very high proportion of new solo pilots at my UK club will be flying XC
within 18 months of their first solo. Thats why the club owns two SZD
Juniors. It also owns three good standard class gliders, which are
intended for XC use by anybody with a Silver C who hasn't yet bought
their own glider.

Do prospective students know that or do they expect instant
gratification coming into it?

Instant gratification is the real problem. It is adversely affecting any
and all hobbys and sports, in short, anything that requires any more
learned skills than watching TV, texting or cracking another beer can.

Employable skills as well: why should your average numpty strain his
brain learning a profession when he 'knows' he can slide through school
and get loadsa money and as many girls as he can handle by kicking a
ball, joining a boy band or winning some reality stupid TV show? He knows
this because all the meeja and celebs say so and they can't possibly be
wrong or they wouldn't be so rich and famous.

The pursuit of mastery isn't always fun.

I'd disagree: putting in the time, thought and practise to hone a complex
skill, such as soaring, can be very pleasurable. But, maybe I'm just
weird.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

On Tuesday, August 18, 2015 at 3:51:50 PM UTC-6, Martin Gregorie wrote:
On Tue, 18 Aug 2015 12:19:16 -0700, pstrzel wrote:

flying cross-country solo requires years of experience.

All due respect, but this is quite wrong given a suitable club culture.

A very high proportion of new solo pilots at my UK club will be flying XC
within 18 months of their first solo.


Well, 1.5 years is still more than 1 year, so "years" is still technically correct. :-). I believe for the right person it can be done within a season, but goals need to be set by the individual and a road map to their attainment made available by the club. Your point about the suitable club culture is I believe the whole point of this discussion.


The pursuit of mastery isn't always fun.

I'd disagree: putting in the time, thought and practise to hone a complex
skill, such as soaring, can be very pleasurable. But, maybe I'm just
weird.

This may be semantics more than a disagreement as "isn't always" is in the same category as "can be".

Cheers,

Piotr S.

I'm forever indebted to the CFI-Gs who proved that with enough patience (and $s) almost anyone can learn to fly a glider.

CFI-Gs who don't have the skills or ambition to go farther than glide slope from the airport influence their students.

A highly respected CFI-G says "I NEVER want to land out" (to budding pilots gathered around the picnic table). "That's just dumb. Why would you get off tow below 1500 AGL? Why take that risk?"

Train CFI-Gs in XC, and train CFI-Gs how to develop those skills in students.