US Hawks Hang Gliding Association

Does anyone know his status of his banishment from Torrey? It could affect our insurance as he is a competitor.
Oct 18, 2015 Tandem Andy Jackson


Dec 26, 2014 Tandem Lake Elsinore

http://www.hanggliding.org/wiki/Special_agreement
Brad Hall's Proposed Agreement between David Beardslee and David Jebb

This is a transcription of a paper document drafted by Brad Hall and given to David Beardslee to sign. David Beardslee objected to several of these items. The most concerning was item number 4 which restricted his freedom of speech at the Gliderport and anywhere else. The wording of that particular item put David Beardslee at risk for violating the agreement by making any public comment anywhere about the unfair practices at the Gliderport.

Item number 7 was also troublesome. It states that David Beardslee "will refrain from any and all activities that are counter productive to the site, other pilots and/or the management". But who gets to decide which activities are "counter productive to the site, other pilots and/or the managment"? This was a clear area of concern.

Furthermore, the document is self-contradicting in the sense that it seems to indicate that David Beardslee would be treated as any other pilot and expected to follow the same rules as any other pilot. But no other pilots are asked to sign a special document limiting their free speech, so the requirement for David Beardslee to sign such a document is already contradicting the statement that he will be treated as a new qualified pilot.

The limitations on his free speech and several other problems were sufficient for David Beardslee to reject this offer.

Eventually Bob Kuczewski hired a lawyer to review the terms of the lease and write letters requesting a written reason for the suspensions or asserting their right to fly. Those letters were not challenged, and Dave Beardslee and Bob Kuczewski were returned to flight without having to agree to the terms of the Hall/Jebb letter below.

FLIGHT PRIVILEDGE AGREEMENT

The following is intended as a means to restore to David Beardsley the opportunity to once again fly hang gliders at Torrey Pines Flight Park. Both the Management and David must agree to all points listed for this agreement to be valid. The spirit of cooperation and fairness is the essential component of this document.

1. Both parties agree to put all past disputes aside and begin anew. David will be viewed as a new, qualified pilot and extended the same courtesy as any other pilot.

2. David will agree to abide by all rules and regulations posted and/or explained to him by the Management. The rules and regulations will be the same for all pilots flying the site. This will include, but not be limited to, paying daily flight fees, signing in the log book, and signing all current waivers. This will be done prior to any flight. Any violation of said procedures will be viewed as just cause for suspension of flying privileges.

3. The Management and his employees will agree to not harass David in any manor, providing he is following established procedures.

4. David will agree to refrain from any public displays or discussions that disparage the Management, its business practices, or its employees.

5. Both parties agree that should any conflict arise, it will be discussed in a calm and respectful manor out of view of the public. Every effort will be made by both parties to come to a fair and equitable resolution of any dispute.

6. A copy of this document will be kept on file and be readily accessible.

7. David agrees that his main focus is to fly the site and have fun. He will refrain from any and all activities that are counter productive to the site, other pilots and/or the management.

8. It is understood that the final authority in all flight operations and Gliderport activities is the Flight Director.

dhmartens"]http://www.hanggliding.org/wiki/Special_agreement
Brad Hall's Proposed Agreement between David Beardslee and David Jebb

This is a transcription of a paper document drafted by Brad Hall and given to David Beardslee to sign. David Beardslee objected to several of these items. The most concerning was item number 4 which restricted his freedom of speech at the Gliderport and anywhere else. The wording of that particular item put David Beardslee at risk for violating the agreement by making any public comment anywhere about the unfair practices at the Gliderport.

Item number 7 was also troublesome. It states that David Beardslee "will refrain from any and all activities that are counter productive to the site, other pilots and/or the management". But who gets to decide which activities are "counter productive to the site, other pilots and/or the managment"? This was a clear area of concern.

Furthermore, the document is self-contradicting in the sense that it seems to indicate that David Beardslee would be treated as any other pilot and expected to follow the same rules as any other pilot. But no other pilots are asked to sign a special document limiting their free speech, so the requirement for David Beardslee to sign such a document is already contradicting the statement that he will be treated as a new qualified pilot.

The limitations on his free speech and several other problems were sufficient for David Beardslee to reject this offer.

Eventually Bob Kuczewski hired a lawyer to review the terms of the lease and write letters requesting a written reason for the suspensions or asserting their right to fly. Those letters were not challenged, and Dave Beardslee and Bob Kuczewski were returned to flight without having to agree to the terms of the Hall/Jebb letter below.

FLIGHT PRIVILEDGE AGREEMENT

The following is intended as a means to restore to David Beardsley the opportunity to once again fly hang gliders at Torrey Pines Flight Park. Both the Management and David must agree to all points listed for this agreement to be valid. The spirit of cooperation and fairness is the essential component of this document.

1. Both parties agree to put all past disputes aside and begin anew. David will be viewed as a new, qualified pilot and extended the same courtesy as any other pilot.
**wrong, bad blood exists and if it interferes with pilot safety or San Diego recreational Industry DB will be assigned to penalty box for 30-60 minutes.

2. David will agree to abide by all rules and regulations posted and/or explained to him by the Management. The rules and regulations will be the same for all pilots flying the site. This will include, but not be limited to, paying daily flight fees, signing in the log book, and signing all current waivers. This will be done prior to any flight. Any violation of said procedures will be viewed as just cause for suspension of flying privileges.
**absolutely.

3. The Management and his employees will agree to not harass David in any manor, providing he is following established procedures.
**wrong. Harass him all you want but if safety is compromised, insurance directors will raise site insurance rates.

4. David will agree to refrain from any public displays or discussions that disparage the Management, its business practices, or its employees.
**wrong, but any distractions that compromise safety will be assigned to the penalty box for 30-60 minutes

5. Both parties agree that should any conflict arise, it will be discussed in a calm and respectful manor out of view of the public. Every effort will be made by both parties to come to a fair and equitable resolution of any dispute.
**wrong. Safety and San Diego tourism is paramount. Calmly document the safety violation for regional and insurance directors to analyze later.

6. A copy of this document will be kept on file and be readily accessible.
Not needed.

7. David agrees that his main focus is to fly the site and have fun. He will refrain from any and all activities that are counter productive to the site, other pilots and/or the management.
**wrong. Safety and San Diego tourism are paramount.

8. It is understood that the final authority in all flight operations and Gliderport activities is the Flight Director.
**absolutely.
as a final note the penalty box must include access to:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/cliff-hanger-cafe-la-jolla

Thanks for posting that, Doug!!!

Brad Hall's response when asked to help a long time USHPA member foreshadowed UHSPA's general approach at Torrey - back the conce$$ionaire over the pilots every time.

I just went through my own email records to verify the agreement that Doug has posted, and I believe it is accurate. The text I'm quoting below was taken directly from an email message sent by Brad Hall on March 12th, 2008. I haven't checked every word, but I believe it is consistent with Doug's post above.

Dave Beardslee did not agree to this because it essentially created a special "class" of participation at Torrey just for him. That "class" of participation would put Dave on perpetually thin ice ... thinner than that of any other pilot. Items 4 and 7 would have created a virtual "gag order" for Dave:

      "4. David will agree to refrain from any public displays or discussions that
        disparage the Management, its business practices, or its employees."

      "7. David agrees that his main focus is to fly the site and have fun. He will
        refrain from any and all activities that are counter productive to the site,
        other pilots and/or the management."

Now that might have been a reasonable tradeoff if Dave had actually done anything deserving of his banishment in the first place. But the reality was that he hadn't, and after some help from fellow Torrey Hawks, David Beardslee's rights to fly at Torrey Pines were fully restored without him having to sign a gag order or be on perpetual thin ice without the ability to speak out about problems. Dave can fly at Torrey to this very day.

I bring this up, because the same type of gag order is being proposed as a potential path for me to have my USHPA membership restored. David Beardslee didn't give up his rights in order to fly at Torrey and I will not either. It is a tactic of tyranny to "convict" someone of a crime they didn't commit and then offer them a "reprieve" from the conviction in exchange for rights that they would otherwise have.

Here's the agreement that I have directly from Brad Hall in a March 12th, 2008 email message:

FLIGHT PRIVILEDGE AGREEMENT

The following is intended as a means to restore to David Beardslee the opportunity to once again fly hang gliders at Torrey Pines Flight Park.

Both the Management and David must agree to all points listed for this agreement to be valid. The spirit of cooperation and fairness is the essential component of this document.

1. Both parties agree to put all past disputes aside and begin anew. David will be viewed as a new, qualified pilot and extended the same courtesy as any other pilot.

2. David will agree to abide by all rules and regulations posted and/or explained to him by the Management. The rules and regulations will be the same for all pilots flying the site. This will include, but not be limited to, paying daily flight fees, signing in the log book, and signing all current waivers. This will be done prior to any flight. Any violation of said procedures will be viewed as just cause for suspension of flying privileges.

3. The Management and his employees will agree to not harass David in any manor, providing he is following established procedures.

4. David will agree to refrain from any public displays or discussions that disparage the Management, its business practices, or its employees.

5. Both parties agree that should any conflict arise, it will be discussed in a calm and respectful manor out of view of the public. Every effort will be made by both parties to come to a fair and equitable resolution of any dispute.

6. A copy of this document will be kept on file and be readily accessible.

7. David agrees that his main focus is to fly the site and have fun. He will refrain from any and all activities that are counter productive to the site, other pilots and/or the management.

8. It is understood that the final authority in all flight operations and Gliderport activities is the Flight Director.

Manager_____________date____ David Beardslee___________date_____

8. It is understood that the final authority in all flight operations and Gliderport activities is the Flight Director.

At a city park - Right.
At a nationally recognized (By more than one president) flight park - Right.
Courts have no final authority - Right.
San Diego tax money used for policing with no tax payer representation - Right.
USHPA rated instructors and the Flight Director has the final authority and not USHPA- Right.
No way to out bid the concessionaire, zero dollar strangle hold, for the site - Right.
Showing a history of rule changes usurping the authority of the FAA - Right.
So there is no injustice going on here - Right.
(I wonder what I've left out. Maybe Bob K. remembers.)

1. Good decision not to be pushed unjustly!

2. The concessionaire forgets that flying is not controlled by it; rather the concessionaire has some pull concerning a patch of land. The airspace is uncontrolled airspace. A variety of aircraft may enter and fly the airspace without any nod to the concessionaire. Pilots of various aircraft are to fly safely according to F.A.R. guides. In daylight without cloud: VFR. Any flying device belonging to the concessionaire are to follow the same rules when flying in the airspace; the concessionaire is free to add rules for itself that do not go against the F.A.R.s.; if the concessionaire forms a rule of flight that goes counter to some F.A.R.s, then such concessionaire would be taking on a liability risk that could be hard to justify in case of an incident that involved the contrary "rule."

3. Hang gliders using the uncontrolled airspace need not be a member of any private sport organization, need not be with any type of "rating" from this or that private sport organization, need not have a pilot's licenses, need not have an airman's medical clearance, need not pay any "flight" fee to any private business, and need not have his or her wings certified by anyone. The concessionaire's wording is repugnant, as it pretends to have rights over "flight" that the concessionaire does not have. The concessionaire is here advised to change its wording to focus on the leased use of public land; it has no lease over the federal airspace; the airspace is not privatized. Working with text by the concessionaire that is so off based is to work with a usurper of public airspace assets; do not be party to such a concessionaire.

4. A challenge for some hang gliders is to get flying without using the concessionaire's patch of park land.

I switched to Coors Light from Fosters after Denver won the Superbowl.
I have signed non-competition agreements, and been sued, I consulted with 18 lawyers in 1992 until I found one that actually won a case.
section 1666 on the California code says noncompete agreements are invalid. You can write anything in to a contract ie. if Bobk flies north of the bathtub, he must donate his left kidney.
Sure its written in a contract but just try to enforce it in court in California.

The flight park has the right to limit drama that could cause injury/distraction. Bobk can wear a tshirt to advertise ushawks as an alternative with its online training courses and software simulators and ushpa cannot stop his efforts to promote commerce in California.

Bobk was not an employee or contractor for torrey or ushpa so a non compete agreement is off limits., What are they trying to get you to sign? trade secrets? no way. I would sign any thing they want you to sign. My lawyers will help sue their asses off if they try any thing funny. If you doubt me I was involved in a 9 billion dollar(company) lawsuit and won between Tenet healthcare, Progress Software. and because of this you will be able to see/watch Bernard Ebbers die in prison est 2027 even tho his salary was estimated at $120 million.


I got paid a Sh*tload of money from the French Miners to put away that thug and the money funds my hanggliding.
(you can watch this man die in prision)

As retaliation to ushpa discrimination of bobk, Point of the mountain is being carved by French Mining technology/the Mormons to resemble the Kagle/Sylmar 3 bowls to make it paraglider unfriendly.

I would sign the document to allow the rrg to register in California thus making Bobk a hero for all time.

Everard just passed along this photo taken by Bob Trampenau of Dave Beardslee many years ago (Thanks!! ). According to Everard, the photo was taken at Wilcox Beach in Santa Barbara, and appeared in "Hang Gliding" (December 1983), and was the calendar photo for July (1984).


I searched the forum for a topic with Dave Beardslee's name in the title as a good place to post the photo, and this topic by Doug popped up.

Thanks Doug!! I enjoyed the two videos you posted (Crestline and Elsinore). I've flown with Dave at both of those sites and I've seen him fly tandems many times at both of those sites. Majiemae flew a tandem with Dave at Crestline, and Dave flew a group of our UCSD students at Elsinore (when he couldn't fly them right across the street at Torrey). It was great to watch those videos and relive those days. Dave Beardslee is a true master of the art of tandem flight.

It's also good to have hit upon this topic for a number of other reasons. I had forgotten about Brad Hall's rotten gag order "deal" that he tried to get Dave Beardslee to sign. I'm glad that Dave declined that one. It also reminds me how chummy Brad Hall was with David Jebb. I didn't know it at the time because I'd gotten Brad Hall's name and phone number as a referral by Joe Greblo. I don't know if Joe knew how close they were either. In the end, Brad Hall disgraced himself several times. Both GlideJunkie and Councilwoman Donna Frye outed him for his behind-the-scenes treachery.

This topic is also a good reminder that hang gliding history is being continually destroyed on hanggliding.org. The link that Doug posted above on January 11th, 2016 is already broken. It had pointed to my own documentation of that incident and the surrounding problems at Torrey. It was part of the "wiki" that Jack Axaopoulos had set up. I remember working on that section. Now it's gone. If you follow Doug's link (http://www.hanggliding.org/wiki/Special_agreement), you'll find this instead:


"No text" in that page? Gee Jack, where do you think it went?

Fortunately, Doug preserved that snippet of hang gliding history by posting it to the U.S. Hawks. Otherwise it would have disappeared In the Orwellian nightmare at hanggliding.org.

By the way, I searched for the word "Orwellian" on our site and found it used by Warren Narron, Tad Eareckson, Rick Masters, Frank Colver, and Jim Fennison. The one above was my first use. I looked it up on Wikipedia and found a very good and very concise definition:

Wikipedia wrote:"Orwellian" is an adjective describing a situation, idea, or societal condition that George Orwell identified as being destructive to the welfare of a free and open society. It denotes an attitude and a brutal policy of draconian control by propaganda, surveillance, disinformation, denial of truth (doublethink), and manipulation of the past, including the "unperson"—a person whose past existence is expunged from the public record and memory, practiced by modern repressive governments.

That is a perfect description of how Jack Axaopoulos has operated hanggliding.org ... right down to the details of "manipulation of the past" and the "unperson" ("whose past existence is expunged from the public record"). Here's the list:

• destructive to the welfare of a free and open society - yup
• brutal policy of draconian control - yup
• propaganda - yup
• surveillance - yup
• disinformation - yup
• denial of truth - yup
• manipulation of the past - yup
• the "unperson" ... whose past existence is expunged - yup

George Orwell never met Jack Axaopoulos, but he knew him perfectly just the same.