Improved live tracking for the SSA membership?

The SSA already requires prospective contest organizers to do several things in order to be sanctioned. Things such as writing a pilots kit, securing a CD, submitting a budget, buying Costello event insurance, following SSA rules and various other guidelines, etc. Trust me, this is not a very high bar for an organizer to get over. If they fail to do so the SSA will, I assume, refuse to sanction the event. For example: if an organizer used FAI rules (and ditched SSA rules), the event would no longer be sanctioned and an emergency SSA BOD meeting would be immediately called to order to deal with said blasphemy ... ;-)

So, SSA requirements exist. The FAI also requires certain standards to be met. Same for FAI SGP.

So the quality of the event is generally governed and maintained by the organizing authority thru these requirements.

Today, the SSA tracking investment is a miserable failure. In large part due to it not being managed by the contest organizers.

Moving forward, SSA contest organizers should be required to take the two (measly) minutes each day to enter the tasks into Glideport.aero per some new SSA contest guideline/requirement. Or required them to simply use the integration to push the task out of winscore. Or the SSA should designate someone enter tasks for all contests remotely (organizer is required to send that person an email each day with the task). SOMETHING! ANYTHING! It's simply not being done. It needs to be done consistently. Otherwise all the effort in developing Glideport.aero is a complete waste.

Adding this requirement would be a wonderful improvement for an SSA organization which (thru its apathetic attitude towards technology) has created (for itself) a sport with an average (and increasing steadily) age of the upper sixties (per almost zero focus on youth for decades now) and is therefore so obscure to outsiders that it's "sport" (are all TATs contests even a sport? Or are SSA TAT "socials" more of a pastime, like golf?) is almost impossible to follow, even for people who know exactly what they are looking for, even in today's modern world (well, that is to say modern outside the SSA)...

If the idea of requiring the SSAs tracking investment (Glideport.aero) to be used (properly) by contest organizers hilarious to you, I'm not sure what I can say to you. For me, what is hilarious (and sad) is how ridiculously low the contest organizer bar is being allowed to be. What's hilarious and sad is how poorly the SSA represents itself outside of the the SSA insiders club. What is hilarious is how poorly the SSAs tracking system is turning out to be (people, process, technology).

The SSA, IN SO MANY WAYS, needs to raise itself off the floor and to have some respect for itself and it's brand (a focus outside of the anti technology good old boy network that controls it).

The first step in improving Glideport.aero tracking for SSA contests is to REQUIRE contest organizers enter the tasks into Glideport.aero. I'm asking for two minutes day one, 30 seconds a day after). The second is that pilots ensure that their trackers are operating properly. The third is for the general group to actually give a **** and stop walking around in three day old clothes (so to speak).

Clean yourself up SSA! Have some respect for yourself and your investments.. Care enough to ask the organizers to use your own tracking investment.

LEADERSHIP. Where is it?

I should not have to submit a proposal. I'm not an officer of the SSA. These are simple table stakes. Are we inept or are we not?

Next time an Australian race with trackers is on see if you can get nonflying friends or coworkers to sit through it. Let us know how it goes.
On Tuesday, April 18, 2017 at 10:50:30 AM UTC-4, Sean Fidler wrote:
The SSA already requires prospective contest organizers to do several things in order to be sanctioned. Things such as writing a pilots kit, securing a CD, submitting a budget, buying Costello event insurance, following SSA rules and various other guidelines, etc. Trust me, this is not a very high bar for an organizer to get over. If they fail to do so the SSA will, I assume, refuse to sanction the event. For example: if an organizer used FAI rules (and ditched SSA rules), the event would no longer be sanctioned and an emergency SSA BOD meeting would be immediately called to order to deal with said blasphemy ... ;-)

So, SSA requirements exist. The FAI also requires certain standards to be met. Same for FAI SGP.

So the quality of the event is generally governed and maintained by the organizing authority thru these requirements.

Today, the SSA tracking investment is a miserable failure. In large part due to it not being managed by the contest organizers.

Moving forward, SSA contest organizers should be required to take the two (measly) minutes each day to enter the tasks into Glideport.aero per some new SSA contest guideline/requirement. Or required them to simply use the integration to push the task out of winscore. Or the SSA should designate someone enter tasks for all contests remotely (organizer is required to send that person an email each day with the task). SOMETHING! ANYTHING! It's simply not being done. It needs to be done consistently. Otherwise all the effort in developing Glideport.aero is a complete waste.

Adding this requirement would be a wonderful improvement for an SSA organization which (thru its apathetic attitude towards technology) has created (for itself) a sport with an average (and increasing steadily) age of the upper sixties (per almost zero focus on youth for decades now) and is therefore so obscure to outsiders that it's "sport" (are all TATs contests even a sport? Or are SSA TAT "socials" more of a pastime, like golf?) is almost impossible to follow, even for people who know exactly what they are looking for, even in today's modern world (well, that is to say modern outside the SSA)...

If the idea of requiring the SSAs tracking investment (Glideport.aero) to be used (properly) by contest organizers hilarious to you, I'm not sure what I can say to you. For me, what is hilarious (and sad) is how ridiculously low the contest organizer bar is being allowed to be. What's hilarious and sad is how poorly the SSA represents itself outside of the the SSA insiders club. What is hilarious is how poorly the SSAs tracking system is turning out to be (people, process, technology).

The SSA, IN SO MANY WAYS, needs to raise itself off the floor and to have some respect for itself and it's brand (a focus outside of the anti technology good old boy network that controls it).

The first step in improving Glideport.aero tracking for SSA contests is to REQUIRE contest organizers enter the tasks into Glideport.aero. I'm asking for two minutes day one, 30 seconds a day after). The second is that pilots ensure that their trackers are operating properly. The third is for the general group to actually give a **** and stop walking around in three day old clothes (so to speak).

Clean yourself up SSA! Have some respect for yourself and your investments. Care enough to ask the organizers to use your own tracking investment.

LEADERSHIP. Where is it?

I should not have to submit a proposal. I'm not an officer of the SSA. These are simple table stakes. Are we inept or are we not?

On Tuesday, April 18, 2017 at 10:50:30 AM UTC-4, Sean Fidler wrote:

Today, the SSA tracking investment is a miserable failure. In large part due to it not being managed by the contest organizers.

Maybe you misunderstand the purpose of the tracker.

I think there is a lot more interest on seeing at a glance who's still flying, who's landed (& where) than watching bug races. The really excellent thing about the tracker as is is that it takes takes one link that works anywhere you happen to be. Very cool & well done Lane and Pedja.

best,
Evan Ludeman / T8

On Tuesday, April 18, 2017 at 10:50:30 AM UTC-4, Sean Fidler wrote:
The SSA already requires prospective contest organizers to do several things in order to be sanctioned. Things such as writing a pilots kit, securing a CD, submitting a budget, buying Costello event insurance, following SSA rules and various other guidelines, etc. Trust me, this is not a very high bar for an organizer to get over. If they fail to do so the SSA will, I assume, refuse to sanction the event. For example: if an organizer used FAI rules (and ditched SSA rules), the event would no longer be sanctioned and an emergency SSA BOD meeting would be immediately called to order to deal with said blasphemy ... ;-)

Sean,

In just your latest, admirably brief (relatively speaking--I'm not in a strong position myself on this point) post, you managed to insult or disparage the following 11 groups of people. And I could have missed a few. Some could be instrumental in helping you accomplish what you wish to do. I've certainly had plenty of frustrations regarding rules and policies over the years but I have learned that talking down to people isn't a reliable way to win them over. You make some good points. I don't agree with all of them but I think your objective is to effect change, not achieve uniformity of opinion. Just a suggestion.

1. SSA Board of Directors.
2. Contest organizers.
3. Anyone who doesn't agree that Turn Area Tasks (TATs) should be eliminated completely.
4. Anyone who flies contests partly because of the social aspect.
5. Golfers.
6. SSA members over 65.
7. SSA leadership.
8. Anyone associated with the current SSA tracking system.
9. Anyone who doesn't agree that the future of the SSA turns on technology.
10. Any SSA member who walks around in 3-day-old clothes (whatever that means).
11. Anyone who doesn't agree that watching glider races on an electronic tracking system is a fascinating way to spend time for pilots and non-pilots alike.

Chip Bearden