Hi everyone, this is the regular Thursday posting to let you know what’s going on & what is coming up in the near future. Neal still is away flying in Jaca, so you have me, Sarah, doing the honours again this week.
LAST WEEK:
Congratulations – To Matthew Cook who, as a result of his success at the recent aerobatic competition, has been invited to Europe by the World Aerobatic Champion to learn from the best. He’s over there now & having a ball!
Committee meeting was held on Friday 12th May – here are a couple of salient points & decisions which came out of it. Neal will no doubt share more as usual on his return next week. If you don’t know who’s on the committee, check the website for their mugshots or see the end of this blog for some.
- SAFETY: Following a recent incident report where children associated with a trial lesson were uncontrollable & at risk of endangering themselves and club members, a decision has been made to have an interim policy as follows: If trial lessons bring children with them, please advise them that “we do NOT allow any CHILDREN UNDER AGE 10 at the launch point accompanying trial lessons”. This will remain in place until the safety officer can fully consider what happened & come up with a reasonable plan for the future.
- SAFETY: There is a reason why the cone is placed a certain distance from the retrieve winch a) The wing could catch the retrieve cable resulting in the glider rotating and a nasty accident. However, an even worse scenario would play out if a glider were to over-run the retrieve cable during a launch and the tailwheel/skid were to catch on the cable – in this situation, there is NO recovery action you can take which will prevent a severe accident or something even worse.
- MEMBERSHIP RECRUITMENT: Can all those who’ve said they’re available to help at the 24th June Recruitment Day please contact Sue in the office this weekend to confirm the time slots you can cover & in which role (so that we can ensure everyone gets plenty of breaks).
WEEKEND OUTLOOK:
Weather is looking good, with sunshine & the odd shower on Saturday and a fine southerly day on Sunday. Your team this weekend is: Simon Adlard, Walter Baumann, Mike Greenwood, Charles Carter, Pere Orchard, John O’Reilly, Mark Wakem. We have a number of places available on the pre-solo and check flight flying slots – those who book in advance take priority for these slots over anyone turning up on the day on the off chance. Book one of these email mgcbooking@gmail.com & Mark will get you booked in. Places not reserved by 5:00pm the day before may be claimed “First come, first served” on the day.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS:
Subscriptions
Please, if you haven’t paid your subscription, contact the office without delay. Our club needs your subscription in order to survive and thrive. During discussion at the committee it was noted that we are nearing the end of the grace period, after which anyone who hasn’t made arrangements to pay their membership will be contacted for payment details – if these details are still not forthcoming, they will not be offered a launch until a membership payment has been arranged!
Going Cross-country?
Land-out packs are now available in the office. Please pick one up before you head off. If you are lucky enough to land in a field however far away, we encourage you to give the pack to your friendly farmer. It contains an invitation card they can send us, so that we can invite them to the Farmers’ Thank You supper, which will be held on 23rd Sept (No need to buy a pack when you get it from the office – you only pay for their meal if they turn up to the supper!)
3rd – 5th June – Aim Higher practical course
This course only has 2 spaces left, and I urge you to get your bronze so you can take advantage. I am absolutely delighted to tell you that Kevin has agreed to provide a “practical” aim higher course on the above dates. This means we get the best of both worlds, the theory then followed by the practical after we have all had a chance to practice. We are really privileged to be able to offer this combination this year so get your bookings in to the office as soon as you can.
Sat 24th June – Summer Membership recruitment day
Can all those who’ve said they’re available to help please contact Sue in the office this weekend to confirm the time slots you can cover & in which role (so that we can ensure everyone gets plenty of breaks).
Mac is organising this “longest day, open day” recruitment drive on the 24th of June. The promotion for this is well under way now. If you can help by putting a poster(s) up in your locality, please grab one from Martin. We emailed it out as a pdf to all members recently & would be grateful if you could circulate it to your friends who may be interested in booking a flight slot (for just £25). There will be tours, talks, catering, video displays, so it should give people a really good ‘Taster’ to see if membership could be for them. You can also encourage them to find out more details on our facebook page here.
Here’s how we’re approaching it: “If you’ve always wanted to learn to fly, please join us for a Gliding Taster Day on the Longest Day of the Year. We will be flying from 5am until sunset around 10pm!
Bookable flight slots £25
Experience flying over beautiful Shropshire & Wales at dawn or dusk
Discover what gliding is all about
Gliding talks & presentations
Guided tours of the airfield, clubhouse and facilities
Meet all the members, staff & volunteers (we’re very friendly & don’t bite!)
Find out if gliding is for you
Special deals & offers available on the day for those wishing to become members
REGISTRATION & PRE-BOOKING ADVISABLE, although you can also turn up on the day & we will aim to fly everyone!
To book a flight slot for you and your family or friends, please contact Martin on 01588650206 or office@midlandgliding.club”
In addition we want to increase the activity and the interest for members. Years ago we used to run a “dawn to dusk” day and we are going to combine the two. It is fantastic fun, we run in shifts and do “shedloads” of launches (or words to that effect). Flying starts at 5am and continues until 10pm. Please drop Neal an email at chairman@midlandgliding.club if you would like to help out for a shift, everyone is welcome and I guarantee you will have a great day.
8th – 15th July – MGC Wood Week
Roger is leading this year’s Wood Week, which is an opportunity for all gliders particularly those of the wooden variety to get together, admire their beautiful aircraft, and to take part in various “Enterprise” type tasks, either cross-country, height gain, or other fun things like spot landing competitions. It’s always a colourful event, so would encourage you to come along. Equally, if you know of anyone from other clubs who may like to join us, then please let me know & I can email you the poster or further details which you can pass on marketing@midlandgliding.club
5th-13th August – Simon’s Cross-Country Week
This popular week involves a mixture of ground briefings, in-air demos, set tasks, dual & solo flying, and post-flight de-briefs. So whether you are looking to hone your expert skills, or want to get your first Silver distance under your belt, this week is for you. Please book your place now with the office.
19th-27th August – MGC Task Week (party on 27th)
If you’re planning on coming, please book in so that we can start to know numbers. And if you know of people who may wish to join us, please do ask for the info/links (being set up at the moment) so that you can share it with them.
23rd Sept – Farmers’ Thank You Supper
See above for info. A great opportunity to thank your farmer, showcase the club & build our reputation as generally friendly folk, all at the same time!
Sarah marketing@midlandgliding.club
