In the last issue of the Plane Sailing the rhetorical question was posed, ".... do we as a club provide this value?"

Perhaps I could tease apart the underlying concerns prompting this question.

Firstly, an unreserved YES. The ability to fly anything at all for the price of flying gliders in a club environment provided at Bacchus Marsh today and sites like it is to be highly revered and highly valued. More especially, in contrast with a purely commercial operation such as Gliding at Benalla, or ANY Ultralight or General Aviation school for example. Dollar for flying dollar, Gliding in a club environment (not for profit) confers an extremely sound cost advantage compared with these other flying opportunities. I know, because I have sampled them all.

How does this come about? What makes club flying gliders different? Perhaps some observations could be made...

Because of the commitment of volunteer labour. In theory we all contribute so that we can all fly at the least possible expense. If you think that the communal effort provided by voluntary labour that makes club operations possible can be reproduced in any equivalent way by paying for everything, then you have much more money that I, and my suggestion is that you may well also misunderstand much of the meaning of club flying and flying in general as I know it. Clearly there are other values at work in this scenario, besides some arbitrary calculation of labour and work to get a glider in the air. We must also value fellowship, humour, shared learning and shared experience. We must understand, then reiterate that there is something wonderful and magical associated with the act of flying efficient, heavier than air, highly refined machines for a few tens of cents per minute.

We must appreciate our surroundings and share the appreciation of the experience to heighten our own and others depth of understanding of what it is we are doing. We are all privileged just to "be" there on this block of land, doing what we are doing, the way we are doing it. Flying is much more than 'hoisting' a glider into the air by mechanical means and providing potential energy to the machine (Where much of the "cost” is).

This reduced definition is about as meaningful as suggesting that playing the flute is accomplished by blowing over a hole in a tube and moving your fingers up and down. This misses so much. In a similar way we will miss so much if we submit to some commercial imperative, and amateur club operations disappear because we can't be bothered. A good well-rounded flying experience, like any other meaningful enterprise, is dependent on context. In this case, by a social context.

Going out and "buying" a commercial Gliding thrill for an hour or so, and then retreating to your comfortable home immediately, reduces the overall experience in my opinion. Flying is as much to do with the ritual of getting the machines out, washing them, D.I.'ing them, towing them, hooking them on, retrieving them, rigging them, hooking them on again, holding the wing, running with the wing, observing others, listening to others experience and yes, jumping in and flying them. Without the former ideas, the latter is less, not more. Ground contribution prepares you for, and then grants you, the "Air” experience.

Whatever we do, we must enhance ground experience by being there to share enthusiasm and dreams with newcomers. We must be tolerant of their ignorance while remembering our own; willing to tactfully engages them and introduces new concepts to them. We must be willing to listen to others flying experiences and share ours with them. And above all, contribute to and learn from a shared, active cultural knowledge. To do this we have to be around, available, committed to the greater good and willing to value the ground experience for the sake of others flying, that we may too avail ourselves of the same privilege.

Most of what I have learned about aviation has been gained by social interaction, listening to others conversations, reading books and then by personal flying experience. These things cannot be bought easily with money, but they do exist in inexpensive abundance in a group of committed focussed and willing individuals found in a healthy thriving gliding community. Lets keep this type of focus. Binding ourselves in rules may not be the panacea it is touted to be. Good solid technical understanding and a shared working knowledge of WHY we have such rules will be far better, but only if it supported by the generosity others. Fortunately, Gliding still retains most of these values. I am sure that lifestyle and pressure of work and other commitments make inroads however, many times it might be an excuse also. To me, the imperative must be to keep the remnant flying cultural values going, or we will end up making gliding a sport of the very rich, with shallow flying values matched by deep pockets and we will jolly well deserve it. While these ideas are obvious and inherent to many, it is the induction of new people to the scene that needs thoughtful articulation and re-emphasis. We all 'know' these things, but can we demonstrate these cultural ideas to a new generation of participants? Do we care enough to do so?