Parowan Contest

Pity some reprobate has to spoil things.

Where I come from a contest without a small horde (pun intended) is unheard of.
The kids, and their parents are the current community and the future of gliding
- we should (and most do) encourage them.

Last contest I was at they erected a whole recreation area for them, and drafted
in a couple of young ladies to keep an eye... Happy kids are noisier than your
average glider pilot, but frequently less childish.

I know competing is a selfish activity but it can't be that much effort to
stretch your social skills to accommodate a couple of kids after flying. Someone
should point out to the said reprobate that if what he / she wants is absolute
solitude it can be arranged - as in "there's the gate. Please close it on the
way out" - If you let individuals alienate families, eventually all you have
left at these events will be the group of misfits with no family, and about as
many friends. But hell it WILL be quiet, except for them grumbling about the
decline in gliding.
/rant

As an example - we have one family that flies at our club - Mom and Dad share a
single seater, participate in the management of the club and generally are very
useful members. They have two kids, a pre-teen who will probably solo at sixteen
and an autistic daughter who can be a real challenge. If we had not accepted
her, and found ways to ensure her safety, and keep her from damaging the
equipment when her father started as a student we would not have the benefit of
their membership and friendship. We all grew from having her around. In fact her
self absorption is similar to some others, she just doesn't fly.


Tuno wrote:
My 2.73 y/o was in the mix and my wife was standing nearby. A kid
screaming in a temper tantrum is one thing, but kids having fun are as
innocent as the pilot landing out in Farmer John's field. My wife was
very upset too.

Don't know if it's the straw that broke the camel's back (it didn't
help!!!), but on the way home my crew told me that was her last
contest. (At least until the kids are growed up.) FS: 2005 Seabreeze
LX 32' motorhome, 9500 miles, 8L GM Workhorse, every factory option
but the sat dish, a screaming deal at $91,500. WTB: gently used Honda
Ridgeline. Wanted: hotel roommate for 15M Nats at Uvalde next August.

~ted/2NO

Interesting-Parents of unruly kids telling other to Shut up and go
somewhere out.

Those are the probably the same children that are unruly and
disturbing other at restaurant, commercial airplane and other public
places-of course those parents never realize this. Talk about rude.

I am sure that we talking about good kids with parents that have their
own views on child behaviors.

This doesn't have much to do with soaring and contest.

Well I can relate to both ends of this thread.

On the one hand, I was there with my two kids who were
attending their first contest. On the other hand I
had a landout on Day 3 and had a terrible time getting
through to the retrieve office. Cell phone coverage
in the Parowan task area is spotty and I called a dozen
times using a borrowed cellphone - the connection never
lasted more then 10 seconds.

The retreive office was set up in the hangar where
pilots meetings were held. It was the only shaded space
of any size that was available. As such it became a
magnet for folks trying to beat the heat - including
kids - including my kids. I got more than one stern
comment myself from retrieve office volonteers who
were trying to hear instructions from downed pilots.
I felt terrible that I was standing between a pilot
and his retrieve. If someone was a bit sharp about
the ambient noise, I'm sure it was mostly under the
strain of trying to get pilots accounted for. Perhaps
it wasn't understood by everyone in attendance what
the retrieve office does or the challenges they faced
in this contest.

Hopefully we can all be a bit empathetic. Soaring contests
are not all that engaging for those on the ground -
particularly since the start and finish gates have
gone. Kids will be kids and seek some self-entertainment,
but the work of contests goes on for the unthanked
volonteers who make sure we get launched and home every
day.

Andy Blackburn
9B

At 23:48 09 July 2007, Mickiminner wrote:
What the attendees of the contest refused to believe
while there was
that the contest staff had to run the retrieve office
out of the
hangar that all the crew thought was the 'party zone'.
We had
incredible difficulty hearing the radios, hearing the
landouts, and
couldn't even hear the cell phones, when a pilot landed
out. The only
time I remember being stern about the noise level was
with older
kids. The younger ones don't know any better, and
can't help being
bored and having energy to burn at contests. Anyway,
just wanted to
let everyone know that when you see landing cards spread
out with
radios and cell phones, that means that contest safety
is paramount,
before anything else!
Thanks
Micki Minner

Hmmm, the kids got energized after the barbeque, so it probably wasn't a
retrieve office issue as many of the peacemakers are suggesting. No, sad to
say, this sport is chock full of grumpy old white men, who open their
anxiety closets once, twice, or three times each year at soaring contests.
Happily, most are polite geezers and will yield the field to the young and
exuberant rather than make a scene. But, alas, some are simply without
grace.

Now that I think of it, they're not unlike the kids, too tied up in their
own little swirl of emotions to think much about their actions.
Unfortunately, their parents aren't usually in attendance to check them
before they run amuck, and most lack the charm of innocence.

But what's this... "individuals..." in the plural? A chorus sings out "Keep
those kids quiet!"

Your wife is right to stay away, but she doesn't know the half of it. That
last thing you want is to have your kids witness a 60-year-old self-made,
self-important, 21st Century renaissance man in the throes of a flight-line
tantrum because his crew did something wrong with/to/on his $130K glider.

Some contest sites are more kid friendly than others. Some contest officials
and contestants more skilled at managing a mob of energetic children. Sounds
like you happened on the lower left quadrant that particular evening in
Parowan.

Opossum Chef





"JMR" wrote in message
ups.com...
I flew two days with Karl Streidick in the back of his Duo Discus.
Simply put, it was nothing short of amazing. Funny thing, there was no
magic pixie dust, or voodoo magic, just simple thermal efficiency and
energy management. Oh yeah, he doesn't use a PDA or any of that fancy
software to get himself around the course. It's, get off tow, climb
until start gate is open, start, point nose in direction of first
point and GO!! Thermals were great, even though it was blue skies both
days for us, and we routinely saw 17k while out on course. Truely an
amazing and informative experience. Too bad my experience was marred
by some very rude contest pilots.
I had my family( wife + 3 young kids) join me on this trip so that I
could show my wife that contest flying could be a family event. The
dinner after the practice day my family joined me and then took the
kids away for the pilots meeting. I thought that was very courteous.
The next day, once again the family joined me for the BBQ. As the
eating began to wind down my kids, along with a couple of other kids,
had some energy to burn and were playing around in the hangar. Yes,
they may have been playing a little loud, but nothing ridiculous.
Unfortunately, some individuals decided to yell "keep those kids
quiet!" Whether or not they were joking, I don't care. My wife was so
embarrased she was ****ed at me for days for bringing her and the
kids. People, guys like me and our families are the future of this
sport, if you can't put up with a little youthful banter, SHUT UP and
go somewhere else. Otherwise, take it up with me personally!!!
Justin Rizor
way into the future contest racer--- with the kids, not sure about the
wife :0)

I witnessed the pleas from the retrieve 'office' for
quiet. It was far more often directed at adults (pilots
actually) than kids. It was also generally justified
and not unduly harsh.

We attended nearly all the barbecue events and I missed
the chorus of 'grumpy old men' on Sunday. That one
I can't explain. We generally had a fine time and kids
were allowed to be kids - the fireworks on the 4th
in particular were of a far more enjoyable variety.

9B

At 14:48 10 July 2007, User wrote:
Hmmm, the kids got energized after the barbeque, so
it probably wasn't a
retrieve office issue as many of the peacemakers are
suggesting. No, sad to
say, this sport is chock full of grumpy old white men,
who open their
anxiety closets once, twice, or three times each year
at soaring contests.
Happily, most are polite geezers and will yield the
field to the young and
exuberant rather than make a scene. But, alas, some
are simply without
grace.

Now that I think of it, they're not unlike the kids,
too tied up in their
own little swirl of emotions to think much about their
actions.
Unfortunately, their parents aren't usually in attendance
to check them
before they run amuck, and most lack the charm of innocence.

But what's this... 'individuals...' in the plural?
A chorus sings out 'Keep
those kids quiet!'

Your wife is right to stay away, but she doesn't know
the half of it. That
last thing you want is to have your kids witness a
60-year-old self-made,
self-important, 21st Century renaissance man in the
throes of a flight-line
tantrum because his crew did something wrong with/to/on
his $130K glider.

Some contest sites are more kid friendly than others.
Some contest officials
and contestants more skilled at managing a mob of energetic
children. Sounds
like you happened on the lower left quadrant that particular
evening in
Parowan.

Opossum Chef





'JMR' wrote in message
oups.com...
I flew two days with Karl Streidick in the back of
his Duo Discus.
Simply put, it was nothing short of amazing. Funny
thing, there was no
magic pixie dust, or voodoo magic, just simple thermal
efficiency and
energy management. Oh yeah, he doesn't use a PDA or
any of that fancy
software to get himself around the course. It's, get
off tow, climb
until start gate is open, start, point nose in direction
of first
point and GO!! Thermals were great, even though it
was blue skies both
days for us, and we routinely saw 17k while out on
course. Truely an
amazing and informative experience. Too bad my experience
was marred
by some very rude contest pilots.
I had my family( wife + 3 young kids) join me on this
trip so that I
could show my wife that contest flying could be a
family event. The
dinner after the practice day my family joined me
and then took the
kids away for the pilots meeting. I thought that was
very courteous.
The next day, once again the family joined me for
the BBQ. As the
eating began to wind down my kids, along with a couple
of other kids,
had some energy to burn and were playing around in
the hangar. Yes,
they may have been playing a little loud, but nothing
ridiculous.
Unfortunately, some individuals decided to yell 'keep
those kids
quiet!' Whether or not they were joking, I don't care.
My wife was so
embarrased she was ****ed at me for days for bringing
her and the
kids. People, guys like me and our families are the
future of this
sport, if you can't put up with a little youthful
banter, SHUT UP and
go somewhere else. Otherwise, take it up with me personally!!!
Justin Rizor
way into the future contest racer--- with the kids,
not sure about the
wife :0)

Fellow soaring friends,

Kids will be kids and that's all I observed, I found they were
creative and generally entertaining to watch. Andy and Micki
appropriately pointed out the retrieve office noise issue but I don't
see how that was improper or legitimately offensive. I attended all
but one of the evening dinners and didn't hear or see the nasty stuff
reported above but I wasn't looking for it either. I did notice a few
moments when the parent(s) seemed a bit over taxed attempting to keep
tabs on the excited group of kids... that seems pretty normal to me
and perhaps a source of some self imposed and shared stress.

Yes, this certainly is a selfish and time consuming sport, we climb
into cockpits alone (usually) fly off on some amazing but hard to
describe adventure that no one can assist you with (unless you land
out) then return to the real world with a grin, by design it's very
one sided. For some of us it's a big part of the attraction.

I've noticed over the years some folks have a built in instant and
personal dislike for contest pilots, yes as in all walks of life
unlikable individuals can be easily found, the key word is
"individuals". My personal experience with my fellow contest friends
is, as a "group" they are passionate about life and engaged in living
a full life. I find them generous and very interesting folks from whom
I have personally benefited greatly in knowing and consider them life
long friends. Now, for me that's the kind of people I want to be
around. When ever I go to a soaring contest it reminds me of a family
reunion, every family has a curmudgeon or two but you still love
seeing your extended family and friends none the less.

My wife attended this contest, (her 2nd) enjoyed herself in spite of
the "record heat", made new friends and took quite a few pictures of
the kids, I'll post some of them on the SSA Parowan contest report
site soon. I think you'll see as did every one attending the joy in
the little ones faces so perhaps the one or two negative comments
noted above were a rarity not the norm.

BTW, this contest, Region 9 Parowan was an absolute blast, well run
and what a beautiful place to fly! I have nothing but praise for all
involved. Perhaps we should start a new thread of the positive side of
the 2007 R-9 experience!

Respectfully,
Rick - 21










On Jul 10, 9:14 am, Andy Blackburn
wrote:
I witnessed the pleas from the retrieve 'office' for
quiet. It was far more often directed at adults (pilots
actually) than kids. It was also generally justified
and not unduly harsh.

We attended nearly all the barbecue events and I missed
the chorus of 'grumpy old men' on Sunday. That one
I can't explain. We generally had a fine time and kids
were allowed to be kids - the fireworks on the 4th
in particular were of a far more enjoyable variety.

9B

That last thing you want is to have your kids witness
a 60-year-old self-made, self-important, 21st Century
renaissance man in the throes of a flight-line tantrum
because his crew did something wrong with/to/on his
$130K glider.


Although 94.5% of glider pilots don't fit this profile,
it is unfortunately true that the 5.5% who do that
probably drive people away from the sport. Not sure
if there is much of a solution other then warning the
unwary of this possibility. To bad John Shelton was
not still writing 'Pez'....he would have a lot of material
to work with on this topic.

On Jul 10, 2:57 pm, Stewart Kissel
wrote:
That last thing you want is to have your kids witness
a 60-year-old self-made, self-important, 21st Century
renaissance man in the throes of a flight-line tantrum
because his crew did something wrong with/to/on his
$130K glider.

Although 94.5% of glider pilots don't fit this profile,
it is unfortunately true that the 5.5% who do that
probably drive people away from the sport. Not sure
if there is much of a solution other then warning the
unwary of this possibility. To bad John Shelton was
not still writing 'Pez'....he would have a lot of material
to work with on this topic.

As a dad with two kids who have attended a few contests (first
retrieve by my son was at age 5 months), I share the concern from
parents.

On the other hand, let's be fair, it's not just soaring. Any
activity like soaring where high-intensity people gather for a high-
intensity sport will lead to some amount of friction. I grew up
around tennis, and, though 95% of the people were wonderful, there
were 5% grumpy old men who always had a complaint about the kids.
It was worse when I started crewing for a friend of family in
sailboats at age 12 at the "yacht club" (which was, admittedly, pretty
low down on the spectrum of yacht clubs and the boats were only
Lightnings, but still...).

Those of us with kids have to go even more overboard to try to make it
fun for our families. Unfortunately, places like Parowan make that
really, really difficult. An airport in the middle of the dessert is
probably a tough sell. I've decided that there are some places
where I just can't bring the family. Instead, they come to places
like Harris Hill or New Castle where there is lots for the kids to
do.

BTW, no criticism whatsoever implied regarding the Parowan operation.

P3

Papa3 wrote:
Those of us with kids have to go even more overboard to try to make it
fun for our families. Unfortunately, places like Parowan make that
really, really difficult. An airport in the middle of the dessert is
probably a tough sell. I've decided that there are some places
where I just can't bring the family. Instead, they come to places
like Harris Hill or New Castle where there is lots for the kids to
do.

Actually, Parowan is a comparatively nice place to bring a family,
located in the midst of a growing town with an ice cream parlor and
other amenities (including trees), fancy condos to rent in a nearby ski
area, national parks and other interesting places within a short drive,
etc. If one wants to guarantee that they'll never have crew again, try
Tonopah 8^)

Another data point: my wife and daughter would occasionally accompany me
to selected non-desert glider ports, until my daughter reached 6 or so.
At that point, keeping her entertained away from home and friends was
more work than my wife was willing to put up with...

Marc

On Jul 10, 4:14 pm, Marc Ramsey wrote:
Papa3 wrote:
Actually, Parowan is a comparatively nice place to bring a family,
located in the midst of a growing town with an ice cream parlor and
other amenities (including trees), fancy condos to rent in a nearby ski
area, national parks and other interesting places within a short drive,
etc. If one wants to guarantee that they'll never have crew again, try
Tonopah 8^)

Another data point: my wife and daughter would occasionally accompany me
to selected non-desert glider ports, until my daughter reached 6 or so.
At that point, keeping her entertained away from home and friends was
more work than my wife was willing to put up with...

Marc

I stand corrected. Now, if I can just sell the "It's only a 2,000
mile drive" line, I'm set!