tMcCann wrote:
Clearly motorgliders are going to take over the World but the question that remains unanswered for more that 4 years is why isn’t there an independant motorglider association? The ability to stand on it’s own merits, that’s the test of legitimacy.
Is that your approach to things? Let us be a divided community? Us vs. Them?
I guess you feel that hand launched gliders are not a legitimate branch of soaring because there is no hand launch SIG? But there is a national association that coordinates events for the purpose of selecting the national team.
And certainly slope soaring should be cast out because where is the slope soaring SIG? I don't know if there is any form of national association for slope soaring as I don't fly slope contests.
There is a national ALES League that tracks contests throughout the year. In 2013 they listed 60+ contests, not counting club contests. Currently there are 352 nationally ranked pilots. Contests such as our club contests are not listed as they are not open to non-club members.
Let's look at how the LSF describes itself. Let me quote the web site, for your convenience.
The non-profit LSF fosters and supports all phases of both sporting and competition activity for model sailplanes and encourages the advancement of model aeronautics and related aspects of RC soaring.
It says ALL forms of both sport and competition soaring. All forms! And ENCOURAGES the advancement. That doesn't sound like a closed minded, "us vs. them" kind of organization.
Electric soaring pilots, myself being one, don't see it as "us vs. them". This is soaring via a different launch method. Why would there need to be a separate association? Why would we want to have a separate association? How would that benefit the soaring community?
LSF is
the Special Interest Group for soaring to the AMA. This is soaring and fits into the stated intention of the LSF.
Whether I launch my Supra via my winch, my hi-start, OneWinch, or give it a hand throw into a thermal or off the slope, it is all soaring. I switch the fuselage for an electric launch version, climb to 200 meters and go thermal hunting just as I do with the winch. Nothing changes but the method of launch.
Hopefully this sort of "us vs. them" attitude is not too prevalent in the soaring community. It would be sad to think that it is.