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Cheapest Club (was Best Gliding Club Website)
There are lots of excellent gliding club websites and most of them
give an indication of the rates for flying. It struck me that the Goldfields Gliding Club must have the cheapest rates currently anywhere in the world. Entry fee is about $14, annual membership is around $60, a winch launch costs less than $3 and an minute is $0.14 (including K7, K13, ASK 21, ASK 23, ASW 19 and ASW 20). Instruction is by an instructors panel which includes national team members and world record holders and is provided free of charge. The club owns its own airfield with hangerage available for private gliders for $12/month (thank goodness I don't have to rig my LAK every time I want to fly). The club has no dept and we try to keep the rates as affordable for as many people as possible. Couple these rates to some of the best thermal conditions around with masses of large, flat fields and it feels as if I fly at the best club in the world. Clinton LAK 12 |
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#4
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I did take a look at the rates, and it's affordable, but maybe not the =
cheapest. Just to compare the rates, here are these from my club in Poland (in US = Dollars): Entry fee: None. Annual membership: 84$ Winch launch: n/a (in most clubs it's below 2$ Tow (400/600m): 6.5$ / 7.5$ Glider time: Free of charge. Parachute, Barograph: Free of charge. So, considering a person who flies a lot in club gliders (some 15 = gliders) it's even cheaper. But, don't be distracted by this. I would = say the affordability of flying should be measured considering the = salaries in the region. Then, the South Africans may be in better = situation. I would like only to add, that the most clubs in Poland have lower rates = (for clubs' mebers of course). Regards, --=20 Janusz Kesik visit www.leszno.pl - home of the www.css-leszno.it.pl U=BFytkownik Clint w wiadomooci do grup = dyskusyjnych = gle.com... There are lots of excellent gliding club websites and most of them give an indication of the rates for flying. It struck me that the Goldfields Gliding Club must have the cheapest rates currently anywhere in the world. Entry fee is about $14, annual membership is around $60, a winch launch costs less than $3 and an minute is $0.14 (including K7, K13, ASK 21, ASK 23, ASW 19 and ASW 20). Instruction is by an instructors panel which includes national team members and world record holders and is provided free of charge. The club owns its own airfield with hangerage available for private gliders for $12/month (thank goodness I don't have to rig my LAK every time I want to fly). The club has no dept and we try to keep the rates as affordable for as many people as possible. =20 Couple these rates to some of the best thermal conditions around with masses of large, flat fields and it feels as if I fly at the best club in the world. =20 Clinton LAK 12 |
#5
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On 12 Nov 2003 16:48:02 GMT, Ray Lovinggood
wrote: Andreas didn't tell all of the story: The cheap flying at his club isn't the only thing included in the price. The dues also includes a bunch of friendly people and great food! The folks who work in the club house kitchen preparing Saturday evening and Sunday noon-day meals did a terrific job when I was there, and I bet that tradition has been kept over the years. Indeed... and I have to admit that I forgot to mention that these friendly people are active pilots (this is the nasty side of my club... lol): Anyone has his kitchen duty weekends once or twice per year (tendency is towards one weekend these days since the club has grown a lot since you left, Ray. 85 active members compared to 55). And, of course since the club is in Germany, the beer selection on hand was, and continues to be, first rate! Man, do I have great memories from my membership in that club! )))) .... did I already mention that we have more female (and really pretty!) young pilots than males at the moment? Bye Andreas |
#6
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"Janusz Kesik" wrote in message ...
I did take a look at the rates, and it's affordable, but maybe not the cheapest. Just to compare the rates, here are these from my club in Poland (in US Dollars): Entry fee: None. Annual membership: 84$ Winch launch: n/a (in most clubs it's below 2$ Tow (400/600m): 6.5$ / 7.5$ Glider time: Free of charge. Parachute, Barograph: Free of charge. So, considering a person who flies a lot in club gliders (some 15 gliders) it's even cheaper. But, don't be distracted by this. I would say the affordability of flying should be measured considering the salaries in the region. Then, the South Africans may be in better situation. I would like only to add, that the most clubs in Poland have lower rates (for clubs' mebers of course). Regards, -- Janusz Kesik visit www.leszno.pl - home of the www.css-leszno.it.pl OK Andreas and Janusz I just gotta know where does the scratch, dough, frogskins, moolah, change, MONEY come from to purchase all this really, really nice soaring equipment? Somehow clubs in the Good Ole US of A don't seem so well stocked with soaring inventory even though by your standards the dues are outrageously high. Are we comparing apples to apples here? Craig- |
#7
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Wow! Janusz, what other income does the club have? Anything from
government or commercial sources? How can you offer free flying with tow fees that likely don't cover the fuel costs alone? |
#8
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"Andreas Maurer" wrote in message ... On 12 Nov 2003 16:48:02 GMT, Ray Lovinggood wrote: Andreas didn't tell all of the story: The cheap flying at his club isn't the only thing included in the price. The dues also includes a bunch of friendly people and great food! The folks who work in the club house kitchen preparing Saturday evening and Sunday noon-day meals did a terrific job when I was there, and I bet that tradition has been kept over the years. Indeed... and I have to admit that I forgot to mention that these friendly people are active pilots (this is the nasty side of my club... lol): Anyone has his kitchen duty weekends once or twice per year (tendency is towards one weekend these days since the club has grown a lot since you left, Ray. 85 active members compared to 55). And, of course since the club is in Germany, the beer selection on hand was, and continues to be, first rate! Man, do I have great memories from my membership in that club! )))) ... did I already mention that we have more female (and really pretty!) young pilots than males at the moment? Hmmmm, emigration beckons. Frank |
#9
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U=BFytkownik Bob Lepp w wiadomooci do grup =
dyskusyjnych = gle.com... Wow! Janusz, what other income does the club have? Anything from government or commercial sources? How can you offer free flying with tow fees that likely don't cover the fuel costs alone? Well, it's true that the club gets a good amount of funds every year = from the mayor of Czestochowa, but the most of it's property has been = inherited after the communism era (probably the only bright side of this = dark system). In these days all the clubs in Poland were funded and = backed by government. In return they were the kindergarten for the = military pilots... One of it's symptoms was that the medical = requirements for glider pilots were almost the same as for the MiG = pilots. I remember that even after the communism fell, in 1994 when I = was been trained for the first solo, for my ab-initio course, including = theory and board (who wanted could sleep in the guesthouse at the afld) = I had to pay the equivalent of 100US$. Now the course (including = theory) which consists of some 50 flights costs some 900US$. All the club gliders except for one PW-5 were bought by govt and then = handed to the club. Now, we only operate them, and there are no = prospects for new gliders coming to the club's hangar unless they are = privately owned. The worst thing is that the wooden SZD gliders in = Poland have to be inspected every 200h / 3 years which expires the = first. Every inspection costs around 1000$ and there are at least 6-7 = gliders which must be inspected every year. Also, as You noted, the cost of fuel may be not covered by the fees. If = the Wilga burns some 55l / h and the fuel price per litre is almost the = same like the price for gallon in the US... In my opinion it's just = eating away club's capital. :-/ I continuously appeal to look for a = winch, which should dramatically lower the costs, but it seems there's = noone listening. I feel it will end in a few years, and we'll be forced = to take the western model with the privately owned gliders, maybe with = one doubleseater owned by the club for training purposes and a winch, = because using the towplane consumes heaps of dollars. That's how it looks here... As long as the government / municipality = helps, it works better or worse. When it ends, it will be the end of the = club too. Regards, --=20 Janusz Kesik visit www.leszno.pl - home of the www.css-leszno.it.pl |
#10
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In 99% of Polish clubs (some 50 clubs) the equipment has been handed by =
the goverment bodies during the communism era (It's the only nice = thought I have got on it). There are very few gliders bought after = 1989yr and most of them were funded by municipalities or other goverment = supported bodies. Just to give the example, the PW-5 in my club was = bought with the help of the mayor of Czestochowa, or the two PW-6s used = at Rzeszow were bought by Rzeszow Polytechnic University, which has an = aviation department. Add to this few modern competition gliders bought = by the Polish Aeroclub to provide equipment for the National Team (most = of them fly at Leszno). Now, the most new registrations of gliders in Poland are privately owned = gliders, mostly Jantars which are reexported back to Poland from Russia = or CIS countries in general. They have a good prices and in my club = there are three Jantars Std. 3 which came back to their home country and = a LAK-12. So... You may be right, the apples may differ at least... --=20 Janusz Kesik visit www.leszno.pl - home of the www.css-leszno.it.pl OK Andreas and Janusz I just gotta know where does the scratch, dough, frogskins, moolah, change, MONEY come from to purchase all this = really, really nice soaring equipment? Somehow clubs in the Good Ole US of A don't seem so well stocked with soaring inventory even though by your standards the dues are outrageously high. Are we comparing apples to=20 apples here? =20 Craig- |
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