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

"Land out miles away, what follows, not so much fantastic."

Actually, land outs can be an entirely different adventure!

I believe that the 'good old days' of soaring really did happen and that
they still do at some popular locations...

Ah, the Good Old Days! No matter what activity (or even industry) we're
talking about, we all hear of 'em...and if we stick with something long
enough, maybe we'll even remember 'em ourselves. Or maybe...

Back when I'd heard tales of soaring's good old days from others, but before
I'd been in it long enough to have my own such perspective, I could (and did)
look around the club to which I'd recently moved, and saw "a
convenience-based-club" of mostly flagpole sitters, knew of a few weirdos
(e.g. myself) with dreams of XC, and even had a few geezer members (they were
older than I then was) pointed out to me in terms of awe as having actually
done some.

Convinced it was possible, knowing really very few other club members I felt I
knew well enough to pre-ask to crew, hoping I had enough savvy to not land out
"foolishly" - my goal was to not do it unless it was "a real retrieve" and not
just across a few fences - I kept my mouth shut and routinely did O&Rs as far
I thought each day would permit. By the time I needed retrieve help (on the
way back, and "just across a few fences" [sigh]), the geezer guy who came and
got me had surpassed my feeble efforts by self-retrieving many times, using
thumb and Trailways/Greyhound, from as far as 200 road miles away, sometimes
over multiple days. He was married. His wife didn't soar (actually, I met her
only at their house many years later; by then they were grandparents). Bob
(began soaring several years later than I) remains one of my many soaring
heroes...

Ah the Good Old Days. In soaring, they're *always* here!!!

Bob - never a TRULY bad landout experience (chortle!), mine or others - W.