The 1997 Annual Meeting was held on January 18 at Shane's Signs in Manassas Park, Virginia with Spencer Annear presiding.

1. The following Club members were elected to the Board of Directors for 1997: Joe Parrish, Jim Kellett, Kevin Fleet, Joe Rees, John Ayers, and Ralph Vawter.

2. Spencer Annear was elected to the Board as a Special Member for 1997.

3. Following the Membership Meeting, Jim Kellett was elected Temporary Chairman by the new Board of Directors.

4. The following Club Members were elected to the Club's three required offices:

   President - Joe Rees

   Treasurer - Stacy Barber

   Secretary - Jim Kellett

5. President Joe Rees then convened the first 1997 meeting of the Board of Directors.
   1. Joe Parrish presented two amendments to the Club's By-Laws. After discussion, both were approved first by the Board and subsequently by a vote of the full membership.
      1. Add to Article V, Section (1) a new subsection (e) as follows: "Notwithstanding the number of Directors defined in subsection (a) above, the outgoing President shall serve a one year term on the Board of Directors."

      2. Remove the words "or hold office" from Article IV, Section (1).

   2. The following positions were named by the Board of Directors:

      Operations Manager - John Ayers

      Membership Manager - Joe Parrish

      Aircraft Maintenance Manager - Bill Vickland

      Roster Manager - Lisa Sergent

      Auto Maintenance Manager - Tim James

      Special Events Manager - Piet Barber

      Skylines Editor - Phil Jordan

1997 State of the Club Address

In the world of business five years is a benchmark of survival. Skyline Soaring Club completed its fifth year of operation in December, in spite of early skepticism by some outsiders. I feel certain that with its current membership the club will not only survive but it will grow to be a significant factor in the soaring movement.

In 1996 we increased our outreach in the soaring community by running the Petersburg wave camp and the Vintage Sailplane Regatta. In 1995 we did the wave camp alone, in '96 we invited MASA to join us, and in '97 we will be joined by not only MASA but SVSA too. We are taking outreach steps that seem sustainable.

Membership has remained stable at about 40 active members for the past three years. While we have brought a number of new members into the club a number have gone inactive. This is a transient area which contributes to a lot of moves.

Our level of operations has also remained stable in the 700-800 tow range. 1996 was one of the wettest years on record which showed up in the tow totals. Also, maintenance on the Pawnee probably cost some tows. We also suffered from some inefficiencies in ground operations that cost us some tows.

Since its beginning in December 1991 Skyline has made over 3200 tows, involving over 13,000 aircraft flight operations without an accident involving either club equipment or member owned aircraft. While there have been several incidents involving Skyline associated aircraft none have involved personal injury or anything more than cosmetic damage. We need to continue our efforts to prevent dangerous situations from developing both in the air and on the ground. Shane has done a great job as safety officer.

In the maintenance area, 1996 was a bit of a tough year because of the Pawnee AD but on the other hand it was the first year we didn't break a cylinder. The Pawnee is through its annual inspection and is ready to be flown back to New Market. Both the Pawnee and 2-33 will need some dope work in 1997. We hope to improve our maintenance effort in 1997.

Skyline's finances improved in 1996. Changing insurance agents mid stream saved several hundred dollars in 1996 and should save about $1300 in 1997 (while staying with the same insurance company and getting better tow pilot coverage, with the difference lying in group vs. single policy). As Skyline became an SSA chapter to get the insurance Skyline dues now include our individual SSA dues. We also have a projected budget for 1997 which will be a guideline for the new Board.

Skyline has survived because of dedicated work by many people along the way. James Postma (our first president), Shane Neitzey who not only worked hard to organize the club but who has been very active since, Bill Jones who did yeoman's duty towing and instructing the first few years, Bela Gogos our first treasurer and business advisor, Jim Kellett our longtime secretary, Jim McCulley maintenance officer supreme, Charley Lee who did many things in the facilities including the ASK storage system, Joe Parrish our membership meister, Phil Jordan who puts together a great newsletter, and many others have worked hard to make Skyline work. My thanks to you all.

As we look to 1997 and beyond there are several areas we should start thinking about. When Skyline changes, both in size and composition, its needs will change. There will be a need for more aircraft, both sailplanes and towplanes, as our numbers grow. There may be a need to change the meeting structure as we grow, e.g., have more membership meetings and fewer Board meetings during the year. We may want to split the president from the chairman position as the Board moves from operations to policy making alone. As funds become available we may want to upgrade our equipment, e.g., get a real base radio or get atmosphere measuring equipment. We may also want to upgrade our fixed plant after the airport question is resolved. We may also want to equalize the equity the various groups of members have in the club. Skyline Soaring Club does have a bright future but it needs every member to help make that future work. -Spencer Annear, Past President

As many of you know by now (and I hope it is not too great a shock for those of you who are just finding out), I have been accorded the privilege of having been elected president of the club. It is a humbling experience. Spencer Annear, the now President emeritus, led the club through the first five years with incredible skill and dexterity. Thanks to his leadership (and hard work by lots of members), we now have a club that is financially healthy, has a steadily growing membership, and, most importantly, has not had the first accident. Getting people to come out to New Market to enjoy a sunny day is not terribly difficult. We have found ways to attract new members and there is every reason to believe the club will continue to grow. If, however, we are to continue to be accident free (and we will), it will take the diligence of every club member, every day. It also means that we must develop procedures that will ensure that new members (there was a 25% turnover last year) will help us continue the accident-free precedent.

I thought this column would be a good opportunity for me to talk about issues facing the club, test the membership waters with new ideas, talk about what's coming up and focus on areas that may need special attention-like safety. If you are getting the idea that safety is going to be a special concern of mine, you are right. The best testimonial we can accord Spencer's five year reign, is to continue his accident free example.

The next five years is going to be a period of growth in membership, activities and fun. Jim Garrison has volunteered to teach a cross country course and additional equipment may be on the horizon. We may also be facing the challenge of looking for a new airport, as Valor Field is on the market (a committee chaired by Spencer Annear is looking at possible alternatives). But, whatever the future holds, it is important to remember that future success will depend on how much effort you, the member, puts into the club. I am always available and hope you will call, write or e-mail me with any questions or ideas.-Joe Rees, President

John Ayers, Operations Manager, conducted the Club Safety Meeting at Shane's Signs on February 1st, followed by Bill Vickland's Maintenance Manager's Report and still later, the Wave Camp Safety meeting.

John led a review and discussion of the fundamentals of our operation with an emphasis on individual safety responsibilities. The point was clearly driven home-that to the extent these proceedures become routine and rote, the chances that the firmament will rise up and smite us, is ever present.

Those members that missed the Safety Meeting must view the video of same before flying. Contact Ralph Popp by email (rdpopp@erols.com or 703-876-9053) for direction on viewing the video.

A Short Base Leg is Not a Congenital Condition.

Do you consistently find yourself making a quick 180 from downwind to final? Or have you found that as you level off on base you're already flying past the final leg? If so, you may need some surgery on your base leg.

While instructing or BFRing, I've noticed that when pilots crowd the runway on downwind, blow the base leg, and then overshoot the turn to final, they become very tempted to "kick" the sailplane around the turn with rudder, a skid. Great for spin entry, but not for longevity.

One technique to raise awareness of your entire pattern is to start timing the base leg. Just use the 1,001, 1,002 method. Precise timing is not critical as it will vary by the type of ship you fly, your own comfort level, and how fast you count.

Shoot for at least 5 seconds of straight and level flight on base leg, altitude permitting. (At 60 mph five seconds = 440 feet.) Keep cross winds in mind. A tail wind on base means a wider pattern, and conversely, a head wind on base means a tighter pattern. However, the time spent and the amount of altitude lost remains the same.

The time spent on base is not entirely for leisure. Take time to scan for power traffic on long finals or spectators standing on the runway watching your pretty sailplane. Plan extraordinarily coordinated base to final turns and avoid the danger of skids and spins. Since it is much easier to visualize your glide slope on base as opposed to downwind, start making adjustments to your ground path and altitude while on base, thus reducing some of pilot workload during the final approach. This will lead to better touchdowns, not all that important, except that we know everyone is watching.

Start logging how many seconds you spend on base. Write notes to yourself how a shorter or longer base leg affected your workload on final and landing accuracy. Find your comfort zone. Practice on a highway at 55 to 65 mph to see how far you go in 5, 10 and even 15 seconds. Two lane roads will do, or even an interstate if no one is behind you.

Bad habits tend to lurk subconsciously, escaping notice until you find yourself 10 knots and 10 feet short of clearing a tree line. The purpose of using the timing technique is to bring routine parts of flying up to a conscious level where they can be evaluated.-John Ayers, Operations Manager

Petersburg, WV - Feb. 15-23

The Mid-Atlantic Soaring Association (M-ASA), the Shenandoah Valley Soaring Club (SVSC), and the Skyline Soaring Club will be co-sponsoring a wave camp at the Grant County Airport (W99) in Petersburg, WV from Saturday, February 15 through Sunday, February 23. The Appalachian Soaring Assocation wave window will be in effect to FL230.

Wave conditions in the Petersburg area have contributed to many altitude, duration, and distance badge legs, and the surrounding terrain is well known to cross-country ridge pilots on the East Coast. This is Skyline's third year at Petersburg, and we hope for excellent soaring conditions such as those last season that allowed club member Bill Vickland to achieve Diamond altitude in his 1-26.

Tows and oxygen fills will be available for participants. A warm-up room and tie-downs for trailers and aircraft will also be available at the airport. (Due to extensive flooding at the airport last year, the usual warm-up room will not be available; instead, we will operate from the conference room in the main terminal building. We will probably make a project of cleaning up the old warmup room for use in subsequent years.) A number of hotels and restaurants are easily accessible from the airport. When I last spoke with them, the Hermitage Motor Lodge (304-257-1711) had a number of rooms available, including efficiencies and rooms with refrigerators.

Safety is the primary concern of the clubs sponsoring the wave camp, so an area briefing and field check flight will be required for participants without recent experience at this site. A small wave camp fee will also be required to defray expenses.For more details, please contact Joe Parrish at jparrish@ssl.umd.edu or at (703) 834-3228.

One Sunday morning, back in the summer of 1971, a friend and I were out riding around looking for something to do. We noticed a sign pointing to a small airport in the boondocks of Chesapeake, Va. and decided to take a look. As we pulled in, there it was! An airplane with no motor, coming in for a landing! Wow! That's gotta be neat! Wonder if we could get a ride?

The answer was "Yes"! The place was South Norfolk Airport. The group of pilots there belonged to the Tidewater Soaring Society. The glider was an SGS 2-22C and the tow plane-a 2 place Citabria . What a day! I got to fly twice and I've been hooked ever since! The Club invited me to join, but I was unable to come up with the membership fee right then (I was trying to work part time and go to college full time).

So,I'd just show up on weekends and try to snag a ride with whoever would take me up. These were the days when flying a glider was an awesome expense. A tow to 3K and an hour on the glider cost $5! Somehow, I managed to scrape up enough to get up to being ready to solo but, without that membership fee, no way.

While reading a Popular Mechanics Magazine, I saw it! My answer to free flight! Plans for a Hang Glider! So, I sent my $5 for plans, and in early 1973, built my first hang glider. It was constructed out of bamboo rug rollers and polyethylene-not state of the art stuff-but, it got me off the ground! After I started hang gliders, my time at the airport with the glider club got to be less and less, until all I was doing was hang gliding.

In 1975, I bought my first "real" hang glider. It was a Seagull III, with a state-of-the-art glide ratio of 4:1. My hang gliding really took of then. Trips to the mountains occurred every weekend, rain or shine, flyable or not, just for the opportunity of a flight.

In April of 1976, a new design came out. It was a rigid-wing hang glider called the Sundance. Back in those days anybody with a new idea just built it and sold it. There were no test flying programs. A friend became a dealer for the Sundance and asked if I would test it for him. Sure, no problem, glad to. We started out low on the sand dunes of Nags Head, N.C. early one morning in fairly benign conditions. Each successive flight I went a little higher up. We broke for lunch and came back to very different conditions. Winds now were blowing 15-20 mph. I was somewhat apprehensive at first, but went all the way to the top of the dune. This shouldn't be too tough-nothing I haven't done already! When I took off and entered the lift, that rigid-wing skyed-out like a homesick angel-nothing like that "bag-of-billow" Rogallo wing I was used to. At about 300' agl, it quit flying, dropped a wing, and returned to earth completely out of my control. My head was the first thing down, followed by the rest of my body. They carried me off in an ambulance-headed for a hospital in Elizabeth City, N.C. On the way, they informed my friend riding with me, as they pulled the sheet up over my head, that I was dead. "No way" he told them. "Keep working on him 'til we get there." I had suffered a massive cerebral concussion. After arriving at Elizabeth City, I was air-vacced to Norfolk General Hospital, Norfolk, Va. There I remained in a comma for 14 days.

After my accident, I decided to give it up. Until one day about 6 months later, when I was up on the Blue Ridge Parkway at our favorite mountain site, Raven's Roost overlook. There a bunch of my friends, glad to see me, offered to let me use one of their gliders. That did it! Hooked again! Back at it, like nothing had happened.

Over the following years, I cranked up the air-time in all kinds of evolving designs. I became very happy with a new one-a Sensor 170. At the time, mid 1988, the Sensor was the hottest thing flying, and I became a dealer. In early Sept.'88, my dealer demo arrived and I started test flying, very cautiously. By the middle of Oct. I was ready for some soaring time. The day came on Oct. 15, at Daniel's Mtn. (just south of Standardsville, Va.) when the wind was just right for a first soaring flight in a new glider. I set up and took off into 8-10 mph out of the S.W. As I was climbing thru 1000' above the top of the mountain, it became apparent that something was wrong. The glider was pulling hard to the right, and took all I could do to keep it flying. My big decision to make-how should I approach the landing field? No straight-in was possible. Should I approach with a turn to the right, into the wild turn, or approach with a turn to the left, against it? I decided to approach with a left turn. As I was making my approach and beginning my turn, I was hit by a gust from my left, which wanged me around downwind-into the face of the mountain. Another hard hit. Got broke up pretty bad. I now have 7 pieces of titanium plate holding my head and face together as the result of that flight. I returned to flying hang gliders about 4 months later.

Since then, hang gliding had lost some of whatever it was that kept me into it, so when I stumbled into the Warrenton soaring operation, I was easily excited to see glider operations near home in Woodbridge. I took 2 flights and promised myself that I'd be back for more. By the time I got back all was gone. Oh no! Where'd they go! There was one person at the field (I forget his name) who said the group was operating at New Market, Va. He then said that he was going to fly over there in his Super Cub (or whatever it was)-would I like to fly over with him? He had to twist my arm real hard, but finally talked me into it (ha ha). We took off and flew over to New Market and I was introduced to the Skyline Soaring Club with an hour soaring flight in the 2-33. Since then all of my soaring has been done with this fine group.

Over the years of exposure to flight, I have managed to accumulate over 1000 hrs in hang gliders, 250+ hrs in powered planes, and about 65 hrs in real gliders (many more to come, I hope). Since joining this club, I've had more FUN flying than I've had in a long time, and made a lot of new friends! This is what it's all about!

Pegasus Ponders

(It's hard to be nostalgic when you can't remember what happened!)-Jim Kellett

Ten Years Ago (SOARING Magazine, January, 1987): "Soaring brings out the best in people through its challenge to the individual and the reward of belonging to the group. It is important that we keep a Museum to remind ourselves of the highest standards of the sport". (Christopher Reeves, in a promotion for the National Soaring Museum)

Twenty Years Ago (SOARING Magazine, January, 1977): "Hopefully, I'd like to see the SSA assume responsibility for pilot and aircraft licensing from the FAA, as the BVGA has in Britain. At present, FAA requirements make type certification of U.S. designs incredibly difficult and expensive, so virtually abandoning development of new designs to the Europeans" (Val Brain, in article "The Next 25 Years**An Overview")

Thirty Years Ago (SOARING Magazine, January, 1967): "DID YOU KNOW" that Robert M. Stanley earned the first Gold badge awarded in America, and that Johnny Robinson was the world's first Diamond pilot?"

• When you come to the field for the first time, bring your log book. The Duty Officer will want to confirm that you are current and if not, make plans to make you so. Without a log book entry, the D.O. has nothing but your word-that and 75 cents will buy him a big cup of coffee- but it won't make you legal to fly.

• Spring Fun Day is scheduled for May 10th with a rain date of May 17. Any ideas and volunteers, contact Piet Barber (pietb@erols.com or 703-327-2514).

• High Altitude Training is still open to those interested. The FAA holds Hypobaric Chamber Training at 3 locations - our class will most likely be held at Langley AFB, Norfolk. We have 10 individuals signed up at this date with room for 6 more in this class. You will need a 3rd Class Medical for this training. AVED (703) 478-1036 can provide a list of qualified physicians. For complete up to the minute details contact Richard Freytag at freytag@freytag.org.

• John Ayer's address is 115 Lou Jake Lane.
• Matt Shallenberger is now inactive.
• Kevin Fleet's email address is kfleet@rma.edu.
• Joe Rees' email is NGBS20A@prodigy.com.
• Phil Jordan's email is pja@his.com.
• Tim James' work number is (202) 433-9013.
• Lisa Sergent's work number is (301) 731-0900.
• David Weaver's new address is 1021 Arlington Blvd. No. 1022, Arlington, Va 22209.
• Tony Bigbee lives on Hunt Club Circle.

Please keep the enclosed Membership Form in your files ready to spring on the next able body that wants to join Skyline Soaring. Additional copies can be obtained by calling Phil Jordan.

Nag, nag, nag...

If you missed the Safety Meeting be sure to contact Ralph Popp to view the video.

Editor's Note

We welcome your contributions...actually we beg for them. Kevin's biography is the last we have. With such a large turnover last year, there are many new members that could contribute their biographies as well as ideas and tips (please, no "buy low, sell high" tips). John has started the new year with an excellent CFI/Safety column and we will need more. You guys know who you are-so let's have the benefit of all your experience pand skill. With safety always a concern, we hope to have a recurrent safety column for each issue. As we learned from John's presentation, we'll never run out of topics.

Contibutions must reach me before the 25th of the month in order to get the newsletter in the mail before the 1st of the month. Phil Jordan 3420 Surrey Lane Falls Church, VA 22042. (703) 641-9466 or pja@his.com.