I have had the dream of flight for years and have always considered nothing
but powered flight, but reading this group has gotten me thinking
differently. *I was in to sailing on Lake Erie while I was in Ohio, so
chasing the wind and weather has a certain type of appeal to me, so looking
for thermals might be fun, too.

I have recently gotten to the point that my kids are through college, so
some more cash flow has helped the coming couple years be the right time to
go for it. *Now, all that remains are a couple health concerns and some
household projects to finish up, and the dream will commence to begin.

I wish there were more places near me to take glider lessons, and people to
fly with. *I will probably need to go with a self launch ship once I get out
on my own, since tug pilots and planes or winch launches are going to be too
far away to be practical.

So everyone, thanks for the good group you have going here. *(most of the
time at least) *I am reading and learning every tidbit that makes sense to
the bigger picture.

I am located in Western NC, between Hickory (on I-40) and Boone.
(Appalachian State) *Are there other opportunities for soaring bases that I
may have missed? *I am surprised at how few glider operations I have found
within a 45 minute or hours drive from here.

Eventually, my goal is to build my own airplane. *Perhaps even my own
design, further down the road.

I love woodworking, and would like to build one of the many good wood design
primary trainers out there. *What would everyone's first choice be?
--
Jim in NC

Jim,

I think the closest NC soaring is found at Piedmont Soaring, located
just west of Winston-Salem. Their website is probably on the SSA
"Where to Fly" webpage.

Ray Lovinggood
Carrboro, North Carolina, USA