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Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!harpo!eagle!mhuxl!cbosgd!osu-dbs!sutter
From: sutter@osu-dbs.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.aviation
Subject: re: lesson costs
Message-ID: <415@osu-dbs.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 30-Nov-83 16:53:00 EST
Article-I.D.: osu-dbs.415
Posted: Wed Nov 30 16:53:00 1983
Date-Received: Fri, 2-Dec-83 07:38:29 EST
Sender: sutter@osu-dbs.UUCP
Organization: Ohio State U., CIS Dept., Columbus
Lines: 29

To be reduntant but a little more optimistic:

The best way to fly dirt-cheap is throttleless.  That is, look into soaring.
A previous posting described costs much lower than those for power.  In
fact, I was amazed at how high those were.  They must have been for a
commercial operation.  If you want to cut it to a fraction of even that,
join a club (which SSA can also point you toward).  In my club, I rent a
sailplane (Schweizer 2-33 trainer, 1-26 mild performance, or 1-34 mid-range
performance) for $8.50 per flight.  This includes flight time, tow to 2000
feet AGL, insurance, and I don't know what all else.  Instruction, provided
by club members, runs a token $2.00 per flight.  BTW, a "flight" can be
anywhere from 13 minutes on a dead day to all afternoon and into the
evening, if the thermals are popping.  On weekends, though, we are
restricted to under an hour per flight since other people are waiting to use
the aircraft.

Any other sailplane pilots out there?  Any reviews of good/bad places to
spend a soaring vacation?  Are all the great things they say about Ridge
Soaring, Black Forest, Estrella, Hobbs, Bishop, etc. really true?  I will
soon be ready to start expanding my horizons from flatlands central-Ohio
into some more interesting conditions.  Ridge will probably be the first,
but I want to know about more.
				Climbing Quietly,
					Bob
-- 
Human:     Bob Sutterfield
Usenet:    sutter@...cbosgd!osu-dbs
Workplace: Advanced Design Methods Laboratory, Ohio State University
MaBell:    (614)422-4669 or -4691