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How far do you travel to fly at your club?


Adrian Smith 1
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5 minutes on a bad day (traffic wise). yes

I live 2 miles away from the club field (almost in a straight line !).

The only down side is that we only have an East / West strip. The prevailing wind used to be in the right direction, but over the last couple of years it has become increasingly changeable. The local trees are also starting to grow straighter as well instead of leaning !

Edited By kevin b on 20/10/2019 11:26:21

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Hi Adrian

I think that is personal preference. My club is about 25mins away so not to bad. But I did choose the club specifically. I have a further 4 clubs I could join, the furthest is about 45mins away. My main thought was flying time restrictions against membership cost (value for money) The club I joined has morning to dusk 7 days a week so good value, small down side is small membership so although we meet up from time to time at the field. You quite often fly on your own (not a bad thing for me). One of the nearer clubs has only 3 flying times each week so if the weather is bad it restricts how may times you can fly, the up side is a good club gathering and fun on good flying days. Another club I didn't even visit, their web site hit you with rules and regulations on the front page. I am fully away of all the rules and safety aspects of flying and I'm all for it but if you want new members, help them into the club and point out the safety aspects and rules as you go along, as we do at the club I belong to. I am getting into slope soaring more and more and there are some amazing slopes that cover all wind directions in a small area in the Brecon Beacons. Travel time to that area for me is 1hr 15mins but I definately intend to go (not been yet) I intend to go regular but I would work it to stay all day. So as mentioned it's personal preference and circumstances. So I think 45mins is reasonable.

 

Edited By Keith Sharples on 20/10/2019 11:32:13

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This is a difficult one to answer as the answer will vary depending on the individual and the club involved. Our club on the Herts/Beds border has a member who at times lived in Telford, Mildenhall and the far side of Canterbury and still attended the club field a couple of times a week. His firm did cover his fuel costs and he regularly commuted between work sites around the country so perhaps trips of that length were just second nature.

Personally, I have come to regard driving any distance as a chore, with roadworks, speed cameras and inconsiderate drivers becoming ever more prevalent.

My club is a pleasant 7 or 8 minute drive from home and I'm very glad of it - we have several members who are 30 minutes to an hour away and make the trip regularly throughout the year but we do have a heated clubhouse and a very nice pub at the beginning of our access lane!

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I'm a member of two clubs.

One is 20 mins away and I use it when the wind is northerly or southerly and the other is 1 hour away which I use when the wind is easterly/westerly and it has better facilities but if I travel the hour then it's for a whole days flying.

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Member of two clubs. My original club that I've been in for over thirty years used to be a difficult fifty minute, twenty mile trip across town, but after I moved twelve years ago, is now an easy fifty minutes and forty five miles down the A12. Travel outside of busy times at weekends so never a problem. Around a tenner in diesel for the round trip, so always make a full day of it 1000 - 1800 usually. Worth the trouble because of the lovely field and great club mates.

Local club is fifteen minutes away, so ideal for flying during the week for an hour or two in the afternoon.

 

Edited By Cuban8 on 20/10/2019 14:52:47

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12 miles to the club I fly with where we can fly either i/c or electric. 7&1/2 miles to the other local club flying only electric + the bit of bungee for the sailplane purists. So, weather permitting I'll fly at one or both most weeks (i.e. 2-3 sessions most weeks - but that's retirement for you). Now and again I'll do the 62 mile ( 1&1/4 gallons of diesel ) round trip to the Long Mynd, to have a happy 2-3 hours sloping at Pole Cott - however, being very much a fair weather flyer these outings are very weather dependant. (A bonus flying at Pole Cott, it's only a few minutes up the road to the full size glider club who have a very welcoming caff on site - excellent sarnies and home made cakes.)

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I live in the middle of a black hole for clubs - at least an hour's drive in any direction. My main club is 38 miles and just on an hour, depending on tractors and country buses, and my second club is an hour and 15, 44 miles.

It's a pain, but just about worth it to live in a very quiet, very low crime, very community minded, beautiful part of an AONB.

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