The Bob Show

[<BS>]

Funny, I did consider logging back on, to edit them out. Just googled - the oranges - and fourth on the list was - the oranges of the investigation.

[Tad Eareckson]

Donald J. Trump - 2019/05/30

Russia, Russia, Russia! That's all you heard at the beginning of this Witch Hunt Hoax...And now Russia has disappeared because I had nothing to do with Russia helping me to get elected.

Donald J. Trump - 2019/05/30

No, Russia did not help me get elected. You know who got me elected? I got me elected. Russia didn't help me at all. Russia, if anything, helped other side.

And here I was thinking that a US President is supposed to be elected in a democratic process because a sizeable chunk of the country's citizens believe him to have the best interests of the country at heart and will be effective at moving them forward.

Has any US President ever said anything like that before? Isn't it usually something along the lines of...

"I am deeply honored to have been elected to represent and serve the American people in this great office and promise to do my utmost to be fully worthy of the trust you have bestowed upon me."

But yeah, Bob... Your guy GOT HIMSELF ELECTED (with a bit of help from Russia, Russia, Russia! (Putin, Putin, Putin!). Wow. That should sure go a long way towards helping folk rest a bit easier tonight.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=3503
Static Tow Location

wes - 2019/06/22 22:51:49 UTC

I have spoken with the owner of Gateway Airpark (Keith Smith) http://www.facebook.com/GatewayAirpark/ and he can static tow gliders on his 2,000ft air strip. Additionally, he told me that we can also use the Greenfield Airport with their 4,000ft airfield to tow there as well. I'm super excited!

Sam Kellner - 2019/06/23 03:14:47 UTC

Bob Kuczewski - 2019/06/23 06:00:09 UTC

Way to go, Wes!!!!!

That's how we have to grow the sport ... by making things happen!!!

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=2944
Discussion of USHPA SOP 12-02.1 through 12-02.11

Joe Faust - 2018/04/20 21:40:42 UTC

Have zero mention of paragliding, towing, tandem, unenforceable tribal control matters.

Michael Grisham - 2018/04/21 02:36:49 UTC

Joe, you are brilliant.
Now substitute "Faust" for focus in the above post:
"Faust" just on raw knowledge and raw skills.
Then you will have success, just as Joe is.

[Steve Davy]

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.kitestrings.org/post11590.html#p11590

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=2434
Rethinking towing

Scott C. Wise - 2019/07/02 01:36:22 UTC

I hope I can call you Ziggy.

Might as well. His one and only Bob Show post was six days ago.

I would like to say that many of the US Hawks prefer the idea of good old basic foot launched hang gliding.

- All the Bob Show Members In Good Standing are dickheads.

- Good old basic foot launched hang gliding devolved from towing.

- THIS:

009-01013
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8648/16052644694_9630f01f06_o.png


isn't foot launching?

- I would like to say that Emperor Bob doesn't really give a flying fuck about towing or much else very far outside of his Torrey-centric flying environment and has a well documented history of helping torpedo towing reform efforts and proponents. (Doesn't want too much damage being done to the sport.)

The problem with any other form of getting in the air is that it adds complexity.

Right.

90-61012
http://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1970/31734430308_2485d16abd_o.png


Thousand foot ridges, thermals packing momentum, crosswinds, katabatic flows, ramps, brush, trees, boulders, wire crews, running, trimming, leveling, uprights flying, transitioning, kicks into boots, two hour turnarounds, setups, breakdowns... None of these issues count as complexity and contribute to fatal launch incidents.

92-61040
http://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1902/31734429728_cf5281c3f2_o.png

Complexity increases the chance of error.

So you should lose your battens, luff lines, defined tips, suspension spreader, speed bar, faired downtubes, wheels, helmet, gloves, sunglasses, CamelBak, radio, vario, GPS, parachute, two point bridle, secondary releases and weak links... Anything you can chuck and leave your glider still capable of being blasted skyward for a few seconds will increase your safety margins tenfold.

Oh... Almost forgot. Any concept of a tow release with more than three components needs to be immediately tossed in the Rube Goldberg bin and shipped off to your local toxic waste disposal facility at the earliest convenient opportunity.

Go fuck yourself Scott. If complexity were the slightest actual issue in aeronautical safety then Apollo 11 would've blown up on the fuckin' pad half a second after the button was pushed fifty years minus ten days ago. Nancy Tachibana didn't have SHIT to do with COMPLEXITY. It had EVERYTHING to do with the incompetence and criminal negligence of Mission Soaring Center and the vile corruption of the national organization which enabled them - and continues to do so. (And hopefully some of the perpetrators of this one will get sued out of existence in the not too distant future.)

I have done two types of towing, aero towing and ATOL truck towing.

And thus I'm one of the world's foremost authorities on the dangers of complexity in hang gliding.

When doing so I was probably rated as an Advanced (H4) pilot.

With a Prone Flying Special Skill signoff.

I've never done static winch towing.

How 'bout STATIONARY powered winch towing? Which is what Nancy was murdered on.

If I remember correctly static was what was involved in Nancy's case.

And it would certainly be way too much fucking trouble to go back and review the discussions and eyewitness accounts.

Personally, I don't think towing is a bad way of getting in the air.

Personally, you don't think it's worth acknowledging the existence of T** at K*** S****** - due to the stellar morality standards you share with Emperor Bob.

But way too many inexperienced pilots have died doing one version or another.

How 'bout this:

06-03114
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3728/9655895292_f4f808fb0e_o.png


http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3713/9655904048_89cce6423a_o.png
25-23223

asshole?

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3746/13864051003_a820bcf2b8_o.png


Were either experience or complexity the slightest of issues?

Unless a student is flying with an instructor I don't think that any pilot rated less than experienced Intermediate (H3) should be doing it.

Nancy WAS flying with an instructor. One of the most experienced stationary winch towing instructors on the fucking planet. Didn't do her much good. If she'd recruited a halfway intelligent fifteen year old kid from a few doors down and spent part of the morning learning how things worked and experimenting with the controls she'd have probably come out fine with another day's worth of lowish skims under her belt. Certainly wouldn't have come out any worse.

Certainly not a Beginner (H1) rated student.

Zero rated and experienced students survive towing introductions all the fuckin' time.

One exception would be Scooter Towing, which is designed as a teaching tool and keeps a student just a few feet above the ground as they get a feel for how the wing flies.

And the Mission state-of-the-art equipment wasn't capable of providing that experience?

Scooter Towing can also very slowly increase a student's altitude as they show their ability to fly and land the glider in a consistent fashion.

And the Mission state-of-the-art equipment wasn't capable of providing that experience?

There's also always an instructor watching the student and operating the "scooter" in response to how the student is doing.

Name some tow modes that don't have that capability.

Hill training should always be a/the major part of hang gliding instruction.

- And if you don't have a suitable hill available within three hundred miles you can go fuck yourself.

- Why do you need a hill?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvhzoVC1UqM
Simple Progression for Teaching Hang Gliding

Ryan Voight - 2015/02/22

If you teach them how to pull the glider with the harness they'll learn to steer the glider through weight shift simply by running toward their target.

069-25104
http://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1572/26142964830_289bc3f2cb_o.png

And they can quickly and easily learn on their own to steer the glider through weight shift simply by running toward their target and thus pulling the glider with the harness.

So much of what makes a glider fly is learned there. Wind, plus running speed, plus nose angle = flight, and you don't fly if you don't understand them in combination and separately.

Why do you need to actually fly. You can learn to fly a glider pretty competently just standing in one place in a substantial breeze and kiting it - just like the paragliders do all the fuckin' time.

I would add that I've been a hang gliding instructor and seriously felt that my student's lives were in my hands.

I haven't BEEN an instructor. I started helping fellow students in the course of my first 43 flight classes run 1980/02-07 at Kitty Hawk and was invited to come back as a paid instructor - which I did that year (and in '82). I got kicked outta the sport the better part of eleven years ago for trying to get sane aeronautical SOPs implemented and enforced. Kite Strings is in no small part an instructional resource and I as an individual and we as a team work hard to make sure that every punctuation mark is valid as we know that a reader's life can be dependent on the validity of what we're saying. And how's that been working out...

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8143/7462005802_bbc0ac66ac_o.jpg



...on The Bob Show? And did you go on the record condemning Sam as the incompetent sleazy total fuckin' douchebag he is before he slaughtered Terry? Or did you just sit around with your thumb up your ass 'cause Terry wasn't YOUR student and thus wasn't anything in the way of YOUR responsibility?

No student of mine was ever hurt out on the training hill.

- So we certainly don't need to worry about Terry (see above).

- Big fuckin' deal. How many students did you bring up to Two level and how do your figures stack up against high volume commercial operations?

- It's a TRAINING hill. They're not supposed to get hurt. They're supposed to get hurt on the real world stuff for which they're training.

I am proud of that fact.

Awesome. So how well were you getting them prepared for real world soaring launching, flying, landing conditions? And I guess your instruction regarding towing was "Don't."

One of my students died while hang gliding months after he'd had lessons from me. He was sold an intermediate wing (as, at best, a Novice [H2] skilled pilot) by some shop out on the west coast (I taught him in NYS) and then he flew from a high site someplace in Norway which is where he died.

Probably a high tow site.

It was a very sad day when I learned the news. But I was no longer his instructor at that point.

And since I'd taught him everything he'd ever need to know about preflighting, hook-in checks, assessing conditions, slope launching, wire crews, approaches, spot landings, perfected flare timing.

Someone else, besides the late pilot, should have the guilt of his death on their mind (or minds).

Sure Scott. Me? I don't consider a student a product until he's a really solid Two capable of hard, low, coordinated turns above and beyond the call of duty. And what's he gonna be faced with that I haven't prepped him to deal with?

I can't teach him to thermal to safely cross large expanses of hostile landing terrain but I can teach him not to cross large expanses of hostile landing terrain until he's developed adequate thermalling skills. And you're not telling us SHIT about what happened with this guy. Two possibilities. You do:
- not know what happened - and therefore you can't say that his death can't be a consequence of an inadequacy in your training
- know what happened - and therefore you're:
-- withholding information every one of your readers could use to improve training and performance to prevent a rerun
-- almost certainly covering up a lethal deficiency in your training approaches, procedures, emphases

Either way... Fuck you, the horse you rode in on, all the Bob Show motherfuckers giving you free passes.

P.S. Pity you couldn't provide us with an example of one of your untold scores of training hill graduates getting a badly skinned knee after he ventured out into the deadly complex towing environment contrary to all your strenuous admonitions.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=2434
Rethinking towing

Bill Cummings - 2019/07/02 02:53:29 UTC

ziggyc - 2019/07/01 22:52:10 UTC

If there isn't a way to make towing a safer activity, then it should be accessible only to the experts.

This sentence is confusing to me.

We'll add it to the list.

How would one become an expert in towing if the activity was only accessible to experts?

Just use an appropriate weak link with a finished length of 1.5 inches or less. You'll be fine.

I must be missing the intended point.

Who'da ever thunk?

Scott C. Wise - 2019/07/03 15:58:25 UTC

Bill,

My best guess would be that pilots who have shown solid skills in hill launching, soaring in ridge lift and thermals and landing in a few different kinds of LZs would be the "experts" that Ziggy is talking about.

- How does soaring in ridge lift - save for the ultra-demanding stuff of Jockey's Ridge and small short hills - prepare and qualify anyone for much of anything?

- Why do you need to be able to landing in a few different kinds of LZs to be able to handle a TOWING site?

I, for one, had hit that mark before I ever did any towing. The expert label, as you've said, can't describe a tow pilot before they have ever towed.

- If you can fly competently then you can tow competently - at least you could before the Flight Park Mafia figured out all the expensive barriers and impediments they could throw in your way.

- There's no such thing as an EXPERT tow pilot. There's zilch worth of skill involved and while you might have the superhuman skill needed to keep your glider within a millimeter of target at all times in glassy air all you need is one well timed thermal blast to knock you on your fuckin' ear in the next millisecond. Find a fuckin' expert to claim otherwise. Pagen...

Dennis Pagen - 2005/01

I pulled in all the way, but could see that I wasn't going to come down unless something changed. I hung on and resisted the tendency to roll to the side with as strong a roll input as I could, given that the bar was at my knees. I didn't want to release, because I was so close to the ground and I knew that the glider would be in a compromised attitude. In addition, there were hangars and trees on the left, which is the way the glider was tending. By the time we gained about 60 feet I could no longer hold the glider centered--I was probably at a 20-degree bank--so I quickly released before the lockout to the side progressed. The glider instantly whipped to the side in a wingover maneuver. I cleared the buildings, but came very close to the ground at the bottom of the wingover. I leveled out and landed.

...maybe. A newish Two with a two point bridle, Tad-O-Link, and Rube Goldberg release system is gonna kick his stupid pretentious ass any day of the week.

I would mention again, however, that Scooter Towing is a towing method intended for the early stage hang glider pilot.

That's when you learn to master the easy reach to your Industry Standard release and handle the increase in the safety of the towing operation...

Wills Wing / Blue Sky / Steve Wendt / Ryan Voight Productions - 2007/03

NEVER CUT THE POWER...



Reduce Gradually
Increase Gradually

...afforded by your Standard Aerotow Weak Link.

So a newer pilot could be an "expert" at Scooter Towing after a dozen tows or so (depending on how well they've done). I'm sure that this kind of experience would help the Novice (H2) pilot gain a quicker understanding of other forms of towing.

Like pro towing - the form to which all us three point muppets aspire.

I'm not sure a Novice should be doing those other types of MORE COMPLEX towing...

Like THREE point towing - with bridles connecting to the pilot, the pilot, and the glider.

...unless with a tandem instructor.

Like this one?:

http://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4174/34261733815_bfb41c49d8_o.jpg


http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bRrpHNa68iY/UQ6Pv9gRZyI/AAAAAAAAjTg/Hc22bx5122Q/s2048/20943781_BG1.jpg

or?:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7597/16975005972_c450d2cdda_o.png


http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5788/23461251751_e98b9c7500_o.png

Skill in towing is about as useful as skill in fighting off a Grizzly attack. Use grade school level common sense to not get into a situation in the first place. 'Cause if you get into a Zack Marzec, Jeff Bohl, Tomas Banevicius, Nancy Tachibana situation you're not gonna come back out in one piece.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=2434
Rethinking towing

Bob Kuczewski - 2019/07/05 21:47:29 UTC

Tad Eareckson has a 15 page topic titled "2016/04/03 Tres Pinos fatality" available here:

http://www.kitestrings.org/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=89

It's not Tad Eareckson who has the topic. It's Kite Strings.

There are 142 posts:
- 119 - Tad
- 010 - Brian
- 009 - Steve
- 003 - Jonathan
- 001 - Jan

Yeah, the bulk of them are mine but I get a lot of help from other members - and all the members from whom I've gotten more help than damage have Moderator access.

Jack Axaopoulos aids USHPA in the cover up with his private "not for public viewing" topic on hanggliding.org here:

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=34243

Fatal HG crash in Tres Pinos CA 4-3-2016

On the U.S. Hawks:

ziggyc - 2019/07/01 22:52:10 UTC

It is my hope that organizations like USHPA do better to stay impartial and do proper investigations. In this case, they did not. And even went so far as to cover up and destroy as much as they could in order to save hang-gliding from a black eye.

Organizations like USHPA (and hanggliding.org) are operated by the people making money off the sport of hang gliding. They will never be impartial. The U.S. Hawks is operated by people who fly for recreation.

It's operated by Bob. Has been for five and a half weeks shy of nine years now and there's still no sign of any substantive change.

We have a different focus.

Whatever "WE" say it is - at any given moment.

Thanks for posting here.

Also thanks for not looking into Emperor Bob's history too much. 'Specially the part where he was instrumental in preventing T** at K*** S****** from doing too much damage to the sport - particularly the branch of the sport that pretty much murdered your significant other on 2016/04/03 and shredded all the evidence it could get its hands on.

As for the safety of hang glider towing, I feel there are some factors that make it safer than slope launch and other factors that make it more dangerous.

- And let's be sure to go with your FEELINGS. Certainly wouldn't wanna look too deeply into what we're getting in the way of anecdotal EVIDENCE. (The best we can do what with the Industry shredding everything possible.)

- Bull fucking shit. Everything we do that we need to in order to get quality airtime can be safely managed - although on rare occasions that management has to be another party who yields right of way. But it's WAY easier and simpler to manage tow launches than it is to manage slope, ramp, cliff stuff. Just look at the tens of thousands of launches they pulled from Ridgely and compare the relative miniscule volume of what was happening at the Mid Atlantic slope sites and what was going on with relevant incidents. And when you DO have tow launch incidents it's ALWAYS due to totally grotesque incompetence and negligence.

It is the management (or mismanagement) of those factors that makes the larger difference.

The mismanagement of tow launching is deliberate and institutionalized. That's a CHOICE the Industry and culture have made.

Personally, I prefer slope launch when possible...

Well for you, personally, slope launch at Torrey hasn't been possible for many years. A lot like the way AT anywhere ceased being possible for me after the 2008 season.

...but there are many areas where it's not available.

The vast majority of areas - including lotsa mountainous ones.

If I had to learn tow launching...

Tell me how you got your sailplane ratings without having to learn tow launching. Also how much fundamental difference there is between the two flavors.

...there's no one on this planet that I would trust more than Bill Cummings.

Good.

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1186
D. Straub's Politics=Gun Grabbing, Constitution/Baby Killing

Bill Cummings - 2013/02/19 02:43:00 UTC

No one should confuse me with someone that has been exposed to higher education. I avoided that style of incarceration like the plague.

Really hard to go wrong in an opinion based sport with someone with that much contempt for aeronautical theory - the equations worked out by Wilbur and Orville at the beginning of the previous century.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30971
Zach Marzec

Bill Cummings - 2013/02/28 06:11:37 UTC

When the pilot lost the towline it had the nose too high and due to that it climbed into a stall. My weaklinks would not allow me to climb that fast and develop into a stall like that.

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2527
Brainstorm, stop towline recovery chute entanglement.

Bill Cummings - 2016/06/25 14:20:12 UTC

Depending on the elasticity of a towline, releasing under much tension has proven to be a good way to instantly tie a bow or a knot in the falling towline. For this reason as well as not wanting to release into a climbing hammerhead stall I would always have the tow vehicle reduce (not totally) the line tension before releasing. I reduce tension for releasing while doing ST, (over land or water.) PL (over land or water.)

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=1511
Static Towing (ST)

Bill Cummings - 2017/12/12 04:41:20 UTC

If you are a recreational tow pilot, you should be breaking a weak-link regularly, since your main concern should be your safety.

Thanks again for posting.

Yeah, the best place possible, Bob.

I hope you'll continue.

He won't. If he were going to he'd have done so long before now.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3511
Best Plan to Save Sport of Hang Gliding

Bob Kuczewski - 2019/07/07 00:35:43 UTC

The hang gliding community cannot continue to allow their communication channels to be controlled by Jack and Davis.
There have been far too many good pilots with good ideas that have been silenced by those two clowns. And who do they silence? Some of the most talented and energetic people in the sport: Joe Faust, Rick Masters, Scott Wise, Ben Reese, Bob Kuczewski, Tommy Thompson, Warren Narron, Brian Horgan, Al Hernandez, and many others. These are the George Washingtons and the Thomas Jeffersons and the Patrick Henrys of the sport. Furthermore, the banning of these good men has also had a chilling effect on what others can say or not say (Frank Colver, Tom "Red" Howard, and many many others).

And make sure to not mention T** at K*** S******. Just write him outta history like he never existed. Never had shit to contribute to anything - beyond the qualities of intelligence and passion that Bob and his fellow u$hPa BOD buddies could've certainly used if only they'd been able to harness them in a positive direction. Unfortunately they weren't able to and had to settle for preventing him from doing much in the way of serious damage to the sport.

Brian Horgan. Yeah. Let's read his Jack Show farewell address...

http://forum.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=34472
Falling numbers of HGs

Brian Horgan - 2016/07/27 16:03:32 UTC

the downward spiral began with the elimination of the special observer program and the downfall of hangliding was accelerated by all the libtards that seem to gravitate to the sport i loved so much! Mcclure is a prime example of this infiltration by libtards.The best part is that all you dumbfucks dont see it and just keep pushing this sport into the dumpster. Funneling all these students through the few schools who have been chosen to survive is a perfect parallel with what is wrong with this country.The liberal progressive mind set is a cancer that needs to be cut out of our sport or it will die.I raped the f--- out of this sport and got my fix so i could care less if it dies but it is sad to see a free form of aviation dying in the hands of Incompetent fucktard liberals that cry fowl when they are almost always in the wrong.

Want to save your sport? Its simple! Quit shitting on the little guy trying to get his hang 2 or 3 by only having a few outlets for them to learn! I remember when they stopped the special observer program,i remember how stopping it caused all the veterans who had real answers to real problems to say f--- it and the puppy mill schools with a agenda to make money were the only thing left for these poor souls to go to.

I know nobody listens to me because im now the pariah in this sport but what im saying is what i saw through the 20 some odd years i have been doing this s---.At one point i thought this sport was the best thing on this planet but after i got to know the people involved the less i loved it.I did however learn who were real friends and who were back stabbing two faced pricks and after the smoke settled it was a gift to see who was still there for me.

Now that i stepped away from hg and surrounded myself with true friends that wont sell me out or raise the're hand to purge me from the're reality,i have found the peace i had before i started this odyssey.At this point i could care fuk all what any of you think of me but i do care about this sport so i figured i would put in my two cents.Now let the libtards try to cut me to shreds,lol. f--- off i got work to do!

If only our founding fathers had been gifted with those degrees of insight, intelligence, eloquence, dedication.

I - as a Five Plus level pilot - take a public stand against the lethal incompetence, corruption, criminal negligence that was happening under your watch at the time; permanently lose access to the only flying in which I cared to engage...

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=13545
tow accidents

Brian Horgan - 2009/11/01 17:18:06 UTC

if you dont fly then shut the fuk up.

Washington and Jefferson - by the way, Bod - voluntarily vacated the presidential office after serving two four year terms. Bob Show... Today exactly one month shy of nine years and you're still the self appointed sole power of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government. One man - everybody's vote on everything.

And if you think there's a snowball's chance in hell of something better than u$hPa ever evolving in a positive direction from that bullshit...

P.S...

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=2624
President Trump

Bob Kuczewski - 2016/11/09 07:54:02 UTC

Make America Great Again

C'mon Bob, let's start hearing about all the victories from which we've benefitted so far on the path of return to Greatness.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=3513
U.S. Hawks Observer Program Discussion

Bob Kuczewski - 2019/07/14 18:51:52 UTC

The U.S. Hawks Board has wrestled with the ratings issue, and we are at a impasse on adopting a system to issue new ratings. We've had great success at issuing ratings based on other existing ratings, but we haven't come up with a system to issue new ratings yet.

We have been at a stumbling block regarding the rating system documents themselves. We generally agree that USHPA's rating system (which evolved over many decades) is a reasonably good standard. Where we have differed is in whether or not we can publish copies of those documents which contain a copyright notice.

I don't want to rehash that argument in this topic (although it might be worth revisiting in a new topic), but I'd like to open the discussion about having U.S. Hawks observers who can give witness to the performance of various flight skills. Those skills need not be from any particular document, but could simply be a reflection as to what was witnessed. There is no copyright violation in referencing another document, and an observer could report witnessing task 'X' as described in USHPA SOP 'Y' without any problem.

We could even extend this approach to actually issuing ratings based on the existing USHPA SOPs, but it seems a little awkward to issue ratings based on documents that we can't publish or distribute ourselves.

Any thoughts are welcome.

The U.S. Hawks Board has wrestled with the ratings issue, and we are at a impasse on adopting a system to issue new ratings.

The U.S. Hawks Board only has one member who has a vote that can't be overridden so how come all the turmoil?

We've had great success at issuing ratings based on other existing ratings...

Sterling success. A member tells you what his u$hPa rating is or was and you issue him an identical Bob Show rating. Hard to find any fault whatsoever with...

Martin Apopot - Texas - 87177 - H3 - 2012/07/16 - Sam Kellner - AT FL PL ST CL FSL RLF

Terry James Mason - Leakey, Texas - 31982 - H3 - 2011/07/22 - Sam Kellner

...that system.

...but we haven't come up with a system to issue new ratings yet.

Just sell them. Preserve the continuity of the way things have been done for decades.

We have been at a stumbling block regarding the rating system documents themselves. We generally agree that USHPA's rating system (which evolved over many decades)...

Continually backwards.

...is a reasonably good standard.

Based on what data? Tim Herr shreds everything of any significance that he can get his hands on.

Where we have differed is in whether or not we can publish copies of those documents which contain a copyright notice.

And perish the thought that you should alter so much as a punctuation mark in any of these requirements which have evolved over decades worth of trail and error to attain the states of total perfection we find today.

I don't want to rehash that argument in this topic (although it might be worth revisiting in a new topic), but I'd like to open the discussion about having U.S. Hawks observers...

Empowered by guess who.

...who can give witness to the performance of various flight skills.

Why the fuck do we need witnesses in this age of GoPros and YouTube?

Those skills need not be from any particular document, but could simply be a reflection as to what was witnessed. There is no copyright violation in referencing another document, and an observer could report witnessing task 'X' as described in USHPA SOP 'Y' without any problem.

And then that pilot would be totally good to go. Three consecutive 25 foot radius spot landings executed with perfectly timed flares. What situation could such a skilled pilot possibly not be able to handle.

We could even extend this approach to actually issuing ratings based on the existing USHPA SOPs, but it seems a little awkward to issue ratings based on documents that we can't publish or distribute ourselves.

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=929
Training Manual Comments / Contribution

Bill Cummings - 2012/01/10 14:04:59 UTC

Tad's procedures for aerotowing should become part of any training manual.

And Tad says u$hPa's totally full o' shit. Also that Bill's full of enough shit as to be substantially discounted. So where does that leave things?

Any thoughts are welcome.

THOUGHTS? From The Bob Show? Good freakin' luck.

OK, how 'bout:

John Kelly Harrison - 53375 - H5 - 1996/10/23 - Joe Greblo - PL TFL TPL AWCL CL FSL RLF TUR XC - ADV INST, TAND INST

If that doesn't tell you that the entire system is rotten to the core beyond all description I don't know what does.

Rewind the tape.

- Shoot Kelly in the back of the head - two or three times to make sure. He'd have been killed instantly anyway.

- Replace all the cheap stupid crap in his system with quality gear - including radio stuff you can actually use if/when you need to.

- Get a Two rated pilot with legitimate Two level competency.

- Find a driver with half a brain or better, brief him on what's supposed to happen and what he's supposed to do. Then question him to make sure he knows what's supposed to happen and what he's supposed to do.

- Clip Arys in next to the pilot and run the circuit tow.

Everybody goes home fine and happy.

Or feel free to cite a scenario in which that wouldn't happen and tell me how it could end any worse.

The entire system is total garbage.

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=27736
Increase in our USHpA dues

Mark G. Forbes - 2012/12/20 06:21:33 UTC

There are also numerous legal issues associated with accident reports, which we're still wrestling with. It's a trade-off between informing our members so they can avoid those kinds of accidents in the future, and exposing ourselves to even more lawsuits by giving plaintiff's attorneys more ammunition to shoot at us.

Imagine a report that concludes, "If we'd had a procedure "x" in place, then it would have probably prevented this accident. And we're going to put that procedure in place at the next BOD meeting." Good info, and what we want to be able to convey. But what comes out at trial is, "Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury, my client suffered injury because USHPA knew or should have known that a safety procedure was not in place, and was therefore negligent and at fault." We're constantly walking this line between full disclosure and handing out nooses at the hangmen's convention.

If they're suppressing all the fixes - which include in no small measure the solid SOPs they had on their own fuckin' books decades ago but never implemented - and they obviously are then it's a total no-brainer that they're promoting to the hilt all the lethal and often illegal shit that's getting people killed as "typical" - the way we've determined through trail and error that things need to be done for proper risk mitigation.

Scrap the whole rating system and let people do whatever they feel comfortable doing. I can't see how things could possibly get any worse than they are now.

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2019/jul/17/feature-self-regulation-working-torrey-pines/#
Is self-regulation working at Torrey Pines Gliderport? | San Diego Reader

Thom Senzee - 2019/07/17

San Diego's paragliding community continues to reel from the loss of two people many considered friends.

Bob Kuczewski, a perennial thorn in the side of Air California Adventure, is an avid hang glider whose arrest and banishment from the gliderport the Reader reported in 2015. He's been beating the drum about a multitude of claimed transgressions for years.

Says Kuczewski, those wrongs have been done not only to him, but also to other hang gliding or paragliding pilots who've deigned to criticize the gliderport's operator - not to mention San Diego taxpayers, who technically own the gliderport. These days, he's defending himself in a defamation counter-lawsuit.

"If I had to put it in a seven-word headline, I'd say, 'Gliderport Operator Sues to Suppress Accident Publicity,'" he says.

More than one pilot critical of the current gliderport operator said they think changes need to happen at the site, but were unwilling to share critical opinions on the record about how the facility is operated by Jebb's employer, lest they be "put on the blacklist with Bob K."

There's no such list, say operators of Torrey Pines Gliderport.

A self-proclaimed "conservative with a libertarian streak" who professes a belief in keeping government out of people's lives as much as is reasonable, Kuczewski nevertheless says that in order to standardize and make fairer the operation of facilities such as Torrey Pines, the Federal Aviation Administration should probably have more engagement than its current sparse regulations, designed for the days when ultralight aircraft were experimental.

"It may now be time for the FAA to get more involved," Kuczewski says. "Though I'd prefer local control, that would be preferable to what we have now."

Bob Kuczewski - 2019/07/17 21:50 UTC

To answer the question:

Is self-regulation working at Torrey Pines Gliderport?

No.

Neither of the deceased pilots had the ratings to fly at Torrey, so they both should have been under instructor supervision. Who were the instructors? Who issued the ratings? How crowded was the ridge? Oh that's right, the Torrey business writes the report. Do you think they'll find themselves with any fault?

The best estimates are that they bring in close to $2 million every year (no one will say for sure). They don't pay the City a dime of rent on a lease that expired in 2008 (yes, that's not a typo). Earlier this year the City budget was going to lay off 4 park rangers for a total savings of $325k per year. Rather than laying off good park rangers, why not station them to oversee the Gliderport and pay their salaries from the City's rightful share of that income? The answer is corruption. I brought that suggestion to the City Council and miraculously the City found money to keep the 4 park rangers ... without asking a penny from the business. Funny how that worked out.

Corruption. Follow the money. Barbara Bry and Kevin Faulconer and Mara Elliot have all known about this and looked the other way for their entire terms. Now two more are dead.

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=463
Davis Straub's "Oz Report" Conflict of Interest

Bob Kuczewski - 2011/02/12 06:56:36 UTC

Without naming names (I'm curious to see if they'll own up to it first), on May 10, 2009, one Director wrote:

We need to consider getting an injunction against this guy communicating with the FAA on this subject.

That same day, another Director responded:

I forwarded the letter to Tim Herr yesterday asking about this.

For those who don't know, Tim Herr is ... USHPA's lawyer!!

A third Director (who I'll call "Mr. X") chimed in that same day with this:

Perhaps a strongly worded letter from Tim will do the trick. We can't force Tad to work within the USHPA framework but we can make it unpleasant and expensive for him if he chooses to makes derogatory and false statements about USHPA to the FAA he can't back up.

If I understand the previous comments, his sending USHPA a draft letter is an indication of willingness to engage in some dialogue before going to the FAA.

Good luck with this guy!

That's an example of USHPA's typical tactics: Call up the lawyer, then Attack, Attack, Attack. I responded to this last message by focussing on the only positive quote I could find in there:

his sending USHPA a draft letter is an indication of willingness to engage in some dialogue before going to the FAA.

I agree with that sentiment, and I think it would be wise for USHPA to ask Mr. Eareckson what it is specifically that he is seeking. I don't think trying to silence him with an injunction is a good start.

Also, I have almost no background in towing, so I've asked a close friend to review his concerns for my own enlightenment. If anyone else on the Board with towing expertise would like to offer comments on Mr. Eareckson's points for similar enlightenment that would be appreciated by us gravity launch pilots.

Thanks,
Bob Kuczewski

That all took place before my May 11th "vote" on the matter (which I posted earlier - 4th post on this page).

Eventually, some of the cooler heads among the Directors began suggesting that someone discuss this with Tad (pretty much as I had suggested). Unfortunately, none of those "cooler heads" were members of the Executive Committee (EC). In fact, if this discussion hadn't been circulated to all the Directors, there's a good chance that the EC would have taken legal action via their lawyer as they did with me (the infamous Rich Hass "Gag Letter"). That's yet another reason why later in that year (2009) I insisted that the EC should allow all Directors to attend their monthly teleconference calls. That would open up these issues to more Directors with more viewpoints. The EC didn't like that, and they refused to allow me to attend - despite repeated written requests and a telephone stand-off with Paul Montville (I'm glad that guy's gone). Eventually Dave Wills urged the Board to pass SOP changes that now allow them to exclude anyone they want ... including other DIrectors!! My legal advisor (lawyer) seemed to think it was illegal for them to exclude Directors (including me) without those SOP changes, and it may still be illegal for them to exclude any Directors even with those new SOP changes. This is because the Directors are effectively operating for the owners of the corporation (us members) and they should have a right to inspect every aspect of the corporation on our behalf. But rather than opening itself up to more member scrutiny, USHPA has done just the opposite. They even passed an SOP forbidding the recording of their meetings!! Unbelievable.

Aside from the details of this particular incident, it was interesting for me to see how the Board "circled the wagons" and how several Directors immediately began suggesting that USHPA should spend our member's money on lawyers to attack Tad. I'm sure that's how the conversations went behind my back when they prepared their Fall 2009 ambush for me. They even flew their lawyer (Tim Herr) all the way to Austin Texas for that fiasco. But that's another story...

Bob Kuczewski - 2011/03/09 02:33:49 UTC

This is going to sound cold, but I believe people have a right to make their own choices. I don't want a "nanny state" where anyone is telling me what I can and can't do ... for my own good. The sport of hang gliding would surely not exist if that thinking were carried to its logical extreme. There's something bred into all living things that urges them toward taking some degree of risk in their lives. Those who want to forbid that risk are essentially snuffing out the human spirit itself. I can't support that. I do support information. I support good information. I support exposing bad information. But I don't support dictating what anyone can or can't do. The fundamental principle of economics (and evolution) is two words: "people choose".

http://www.shga.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=3840
[TIL] About Tad Eareckson

Bob Kuczewski - 2013/03/10 18:20:34 UTC

I first learned about Tad Eareckson when I was Regional Director and the USHPA Board circulated a letter he had written (with intention to send?) to the FAA about some dangerous practices in hang gliding.

The Board's knee-jerk response was to try to take some kind of legal action to silence Tad. I indicated that I thought we shouldn't be sending our lawyers in as our first response, and that maybe we should have someone talk with him first. So Dennis Pagen volunteered, and I believe the matter was settled without any serious damage to the sport.

Thank you, God.
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Edited - 2019/07/18 17:15:00 UTC