[Rick Masters]

Another possibility is THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM.

BobK has allowed me to post information on the dark side of paragliding on his (this) web site, stating it was worthy of consideration by all members. In my view, the major problem with the thing the USHGA turned into was the acceptance of parachutes as "gliders," following all the hard-won strides in safety and design robustness of hang gliders that the old USHGA, in alliance with the HGMA, made from inception up to the day soaring parachutes were admitted into the association. The long history of being a safety advocate for the membership mutated into a bizarre form of lip service and posturing as the U$hPA turned a blind eye on the deficiencies of soaring parachutes as accidents and fatalities began to mount in the early 2000s.

The important thing to the U$hPA was not to rectify the problem - which does not seem possible - but to silence critics such as myself. Somehow, I had become the problem rather than the issue of paraglider collapse. Today, with more than one thousand three hundred dead paraglider pilots worldwide, the important issue in the eyes of U$hPA is going after Bob.

Hang glider pilots want to fly and to be left alone. They know they have to put up with a certain level of bureaucracy to do that. I understand this. But we had honor when I flew. Today, that's gone.

[dhmartens]

The comments posted on Tim Herr remind me of a childhood cartoon where Daffy Ducks arms both sides until they realize it.

The High and the Flighty is a 1955 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon animated short featuring Daffy Duck, Foghorn Leghorn, and the Barnyard Dawg.
http://vimeo.com/68561196


"This, I say this calls for massive retaliation"

Doug

[Merlin]

But we had honor when I flew. Today, that's gone.

Exactly.

[Bob Kuczewski]

I should make it official that I've been recently allowed to return to the Oz forum in a limited capacity based on an email message that I sent to Davis Straub:

Hello Davis (bcc others),

I'm writing because I've been informed of an ongoing discussion on your forum regarding my expulsion from USHPA.

I'm writing to ask if my account might be reinstated with the explicit restriction that I only post to that topic. I am happy to abide by that restriction.

Since USHPA is an effective monopoly, expulsion will end up grounding me. Let me quote Graeme from your own forum:

      "If Bob has been done an injustice then grounding him would
        be a terrible thing to do. Actually grounding any pilot for more
        than a few days is an anathema to me."

His comments are right on target.

This grounding is clearly rooted in politics not safety. The USHPA Board is an elected body (not a judicial body), and that means that to a large degree, my trial will be based on political positions and political pressures. I am asking for the opportunity to represent myself through your forum in that political arena so that I might have a fair chance to present my side of the matter to a large audience just as the other side is already able to do.

I ask this in the name of fairness.

Sincerely,
Bob Kuczewski

Davis agreed to those terms, and I am currently "Bob Hawk" on the Oz Forum.

Thanks Davis.

[Bob Kuczewski]

Getting the charges ...

Justice starts when a police officer tells you exactly what you're charged with doing. They cite a specific law that they are willing to testify that they've seen you violate. Let's see how USHPA handles this first stage of Justice:

Here's my original letter from Sunday March 22nd:

Subject: Re: Hearing Notification - Robert Kuczewski
Date: Sun, 22 Mar 2015 11:06:59 -0700

Mr. Palmaz (cc Rich Hass, bcc others),

In your letter below, you indicate that the USHPA Board is initiating an expulsion procedure against me based on the good faith determination that I have failed in a material and serious degree to observe the rules of conduct governing USHPA or have engaged in conduct materially and seriously prejudicial to the purpose and interests of USHPA.

Since the upcoming "hearing" is to determine whether I've:

1. "failed in a material and serious degree to observe the rules of conduct governing USHPA"
- or -
2. "engaged in conduct materially and seriously prejudicial to the purpose and interests of USHPA"

then I would like clear and definitive answers to these two questions:

1. What are the rules of conduct governing USHPA?
2. What are the purposes and interests of USHPA?

Please answer those two questions separately, and please include any references to external documents as well as the full text of those external references so that your response is self-contained and stands on its own. I am making this request as a current member of USHPA.

Thanks in advance,
Bob Kuczewski

Based on a recommendation from a fellow Torrey Hawks member, I also placed a call to Martin Palmaz on Monday in an attempt to open communications. I followed up with this letter to both Martin Palmaz and Rich Hass:

Sent: Monday, March 23, 2015 1:08 PM
Subject: Re: Hearing Notification - Robert Kuczewski

Mr. Palmaz (cc Rich Hass, bcc others),

Thanks for taking my call today. As I mentioned on the phone, I was asked by a member of our local club to reach out to you to open communications, and I've honored his request.

I would still like a clear response to my questions that I asked below regarding the charges made against me:

1. What are the rules of conduct governing USHPA?
2. What are the purposes and interests of USHPA?

I would like the answers to those questions in order to formulate a "defense", and I would like references to where those answers could be found by any member of USHPA.

Thanks in advance,
Bob Kuczewski

Martin wrote back that same day:

Subject: RE: Hearing Notification - Robert Kuczewski
Date: Mon, 23 Mar 2015 23:04:26 +0000

Mr. Kuczewski,

The answers to both 1 and 2 are available in the members only section of the website under the POLICY MANUAL menu button. There you will find the Articles of Incorporation, Bylaws, Mission Statement and remaining SOPs which outline all the rules of conduct governing USHPA as well as the purposes and interests of the organization.

Also, I’ll be away on vacation from April 1-15 and will not be available during that time. If you have inquiries during those dates, please direct those to Rich Hass.

Thanks.

Martin Palmaz, USHPA Executive Director

That's a 222 page document. So I wrote back:

Subject: RE: Hearing Notification - Robert Kuczewski
Date: Wed, 25 Mar 2015 01:13:57 +0000

Mr. Palmaz and Mr. Hass (bcc others),

You've claimed that I have:

1. "failed in a material and serious degree to observe the rules of conduct governing USHPA"
- or -
2. "engaged in conduct materially and seriously prejudicial to the purpose and interests of USHPA"

I am again asking for the exact references which you are claiming that I have violated.

Please respond in a timely manner.

Sincerely,
Bob Kuczewski

Here's the latest response from Martin:

Subject: RE: Hearing Notification - Robert Kuczewski
Date: Wed, 25 Mar 2015 01:13:57 +0000

Mr. Kuczewski,

The hearing notification letter outlines the basis for USHPA’s decision to initiate the expulsion.

Please base your response on the items outlined in that letter.

Thanks.

Martin Palmaz, USHPA Executive Director

A fair hearing starts with the charges. So far, USHPA hasn't even met that first threshold of fairness.

[Rick Masters]

A note to hang glider pilots belonging to the U$hPA:

Pilots, according to a member about to be expelled, the U$hPA is using a 220 page non-public document to justify the expulsion but has not provided the specific reference.

It is high time you looked around and recognized what your association has become. I was a member of the USHGA and I do not recognize it.

What are you doing supporting it?

It is time to start over.

The USHGA was formed so that all could fly. If the U$hPA now begins to deny U$hPA-controlled flying sites to hang glider pilots FOR POLITICAL REASONS rather than for reasons of safety, it is time to leave. Worse, if it makes accusations of safety violations that DID NOT ACTUALLY THREATEN THE SAFETY OF OTHERS, then it is clearly OUT OF CONTROL. Send notice to U$hPA that you do not plan to renew membership and/or your chapter is looking to find insurance elsewhere. Neither claim will be immediately binding, but will nevertheless send a strong message to the majority of the Board of Directors who chose this dishonorable action.

[BigBird]

Getting the charges ...

I would suggest that a letter from your lawyer might produce the information you are looking for...


Phil

[SamKellner]

Say ----wait a minute===

Sam is this the point that you were making on an earlier post at the OZ Report. If so I’m a little slow on the uptake.

I really can't take credit for putting all those pieces of the puzzle together at that time.

It was more of a shot in the dark with the scatter gun. . I knew I had hit the mark when all the squeelin' started.
......................................

FYI about go-tandem .... Cowboy Up HG is operated by Bart Wagthorst and Tiki Mashy. They are very experienced instructors and are helping HG pilots to some degree in our area.

They have been operating tandem rides in Jackson Hole for ~10yr.

They have also been conducting winter operations (lots of Groupon joy rides) around Houston for the past two seasons.

This year, apparently part of their operation will remain in Texas.

Mark Forbes mentioned CowboyUp in his list of those operations using large quantities of 30-day USHPA memberships.

Who recruited Bart=gotandem? u$hPa?

Also, long time Reg11 Director David Glover resigned at the spring meeting.

Newcomer, at least to Reg11, Tiki Mashy was appointed to serve the remainder of Glovers term.

I hope we don't see too much of a "move-in takeover" approach to the CU ops.

[JoeF]

Surveying 50 years of hang gliding experiences, I hold BobK firmly in top-quality drawer for the good of hang gliding. The spirit of the EP (expulsion proceeding) belies a death of HG-love within the U$hPa's BOD. It is possible that thousands could move to form a HG-only org quickly; each pilot could post intents; word could travel via clubs and forums. Stop the HG money to U$hPa ... just send no more, not to renew any membership, not to buy from its store, not to cover students, not to get ratings, etc.; full stop the flow. Name what the third-party insurance has paid out; maybe something somewhere; but even at my regular open-to-see, I cannot name one paid-out benefit. Form a HG-focused national org. The U$hPa is dead to me; give it no more energy; it has lost the founding spirit; Otto L. cannot be found in the EP.

High-aspect ratio soaring parachutes in sure-to-occur negative-G natural winds will ruin lives and families at a rate that spells out that the canopies form a deeply poor device for an openly promoted sport; such activity will form its own future; may air-framed HG honor itself by high integrity focus on the needs of air-framed hang gliding. Awareness of the safety challenge was not keen enough at the birth of use of the high aspect ratio parachutes. The third-party insurance deal does not care how many people die; the insurance deal watches claims for third-party people and property, not the pilot-family suffering.

The HG community has options. Will the HG community continue sliding into the abyss of the U$hPa? Decide emphatically soon en masse to secede and form a new national org? Just 1000 members en bloc at $100/yr would interest Free Flight Insurance for the third-party insurance deal; but of the 3000, could we get 2000 at once to separate? Is there a potential of a class-action suit to effect a splitting of the U$hPa to two orgs; the U$hPa in the EP is showing colors that may define a de facto separation; maybe a court order could have involved flying sites respect the separated orgs sooner than later. Maybe antitrust matters are involved and could make the transition simplified http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Sta ... itrust_law

May all forums and clubs and pilots consider unified formation of a HG-focused national US org. USHG United States Hang Gliders or US Hawks HGA or ?

[Bob Kuczewski]

Pilots, according to a member about to be expelled, the U$hPA is using a 220 page non-public document to justify the expulsion but has not provided the specific reference.

Exactly.

It is time to start over.

Exactly.

The USHGA was formed so that all could fly. If the U$hPA now begins to deny U$hPA-controlled flying sites to hang glider pilots FOR POLITICAL REASONS rather than for reasons of safety, it is time to leave. Worse, if it makes accusations of safety violations that DID NOT ACTUALLY THREATEN THE SAFETY OF OTHERS, then it is clearly OUT OF CONTROL.

Exactly.

Send notice to U$hPA that you do not plan to renew membership and/or your chapter is looking to find insurance elsewhere. Neither claim will be immediately binding, but will nevertheless send a strong message to the majority of the Board of Directors who chose this dishonorable action.

I don't advocate this yet because that lets them win by driving us out BEFORE we have an alternate in place. I advocate staying within USHPA, speaking out about abuses, voting for new Directors, and working to build an alternative - the US Hawks.

I would suggest that a letter from your lawyer might produce the information you are looking for...

USHPA might consider that a violation of their "terms" that I cannot have representation. They're the only ones allowed to have a lawyer present. That's how they treat their members. I have sent copies of these discussions to several of the lawyers who are following what's going on. But it's a kangaroo court and I don't know any lawyers who practice in that venue.

FYI about go-tandem .... Cowboy Up HG is operated by Bart Wagthorst and Tiki Mashy.
...
Also, long time Reg11 Director David Glover resigned at the spring meeting. Newcomer, at least to Reg11, Tiki Mashy was appointed to serve the remainder of Glovers term.

USHPA trades favors for loyalty, and that's part of the corruption problem. We'll have to watch and see how Tiki acts as a Director. This "trial" will give us a good insight into many people's character.

Who recruited Bart=gotandem? u$hPa?

The U$hPa is dead to me; give it no more energy; it has lost the founding spirit;

I think this is sadly true. I think it's been true for as long as I've been a member (since 2004). But as I mentioned in reply to Rick, we have to deal with what we have until the US Hawks can provide similar services.

The sad reality is that USHPA would love for those of us who want reform ... to leave. In fact, they're making a con$iderable effort to get me to do just that. If we abandon USHPA without a viable alternative ... they win.