[wingspan33]

Here's an interesting update to this story. Linda Salamone and Mark Fruitiger have both been off to the Santa Cruz US National HG comp. Mark was acting as a tow pilot and Linda was competing.

While they have been gone, RAF has been unable to do any towing - 'cause Mark is their tow pilot. And since the loudest voice in RAF is Linda, and she's absent too, basically no RAF tow or general flying messages have been posted to the Elmira/Binghampton email group. Sometimes silence is truly golden. And, all of a sudden, the Elmira email group is free of RAF towing "spam". Too bad it's only temporary.

Indeed, very few recent, serious flight related messages have even been posted to the RAF Google group. Given these circumstances it becomes quite obvious who is actually "in charge" of the RAF media and flying "machine". Cut that head off, even temporarily, and the (RAF) body falls silent. It's sad to think that so many local (Rochester area) pilots are so dependent on two "loud" personalities. It's also pretty evident who it was who was pushing the hardest for spending a huge chunk of the (long accumulating) RAF treasury on expensive tow equipment. Most/many comps these days employ towing and it's good for a competition minded pilot (Linda) to be able to keep current.

Clearly, other local pilots do also appreciate the ability to go out for a day of hang gliding via towing. I wouldn't wish to diminish that fact. After all, most of our local sites are between 600 - 800 ft high. A nice tow takes you to 2-3 times that height. That gives the average pilot an advantage toward getting a soaring flight. For at least this reason it can't be helped that towing activities will detract from certain pilots' interest in hill flying. I wonder what % of local pilots will end up more or less abandoning hill flying?

Personally, I think there is space for both ways to get into the air. But it's not quite right when towing is effectively shoved down a flying communities' collective throat. And, in the next week or so, I'll bet that the RAF (Linda Salamone and Mark Fruitiger) tow promotion campaign resumes full force.

[Bob Kuczewski]

First, I want to thank Joe F for his efforts in connection with this matter and on my behalf. I do wonder if those efforts will help. It would be very nice if they did.

And to Bill C, there could be some merit in letting some of my "friendly" hang gliding pals know about the US Hawks and that they can communicate with me here.

However, I can just about guarantee that that would lead to other negative and purposefully destructive (western NY) pilots showing up, as well. There's no doubt in my mind that they would not only spam threads I have initiated, but they would also spew all manner of invented, highly exaggerated and/or distorted information in regard to me and my character.

The US Hawks has a policy that we do not allow attacks by anonymous members who do not give their names. So if anyone wants to come here and attack you (or anyone else), then they'll have to give their real name or be restricted to the "Free Speech Zone".

I happen to be very tired of back and forth "attack" threads. There are around 6 core people in the Rochester club who would make (have made) it their personal vendetta to overwhelm my efforts to explain my position and true intentions - by employing close to non-stop slanderous yammering.

Bring them on!!     

Here's an example that should hit home here -

One thing that RAF member Mark Fruitiger has done on more than a couple occasions is state that my character can be defined in connection with being "thrown out of" the budding HGAA. Closely following that remark is the mention of me being thrown off of hang gliding dot org. The suggested conclusion to be drawn is that I get myself kicked out of every (HG related) place I go (including RAF).

I've just had that same thing used against me. Check out this post to the Crestline forum (http://www.crestlinesoaring.org/forum/20120731/7330) discussing the Regional Director race between myself and Dan:

BOB
I only met you once, so i don't know a bunch about you BUT I know Dan has a personality that is easy to get along with, and he knows Just when to Back-Off before pissing people off.

Only going in what i've seen in the past, but would be quite important if i voted for you ; can you tell us why you got kicked off both OZ and .ORG forums ?

Doesn't it kinda indicates that Ya can't get your point across without rattling feathers on your adversaries ?

Bille

My reply was a challenge for him to go ask Jack and Davis why they banned me and post their reasons to the forum. It'll be interesting to see what he posts next.

Well, I will bet that there are more than a few members here who know exactly what went on with Jack Axaopoulos (SG) and his pals in connection with the early efforts to begin the HGAA. As the elected Interim Chairman of HGAA, I attempted to help, as best I could, to get that group started. But closet dictator Jack Axaopoulos was bent on having ultimate control of the new organization - in defiance of its original mission of being a fair, democratic, of and for hang glider pilots, representative group.

With the distorted and easily manipulated member voting system that Jack Axaopoulos was pushing down HGAA's throat, I no longer wanted to be part of what was going on. On the day I posted my departure notice, Jack Axaopoulos had already just begun a campaign to get rid of me.

In the end, I am happy that I was "booted out" out of Jack Axaopoulos' twisted little club. I was also happy to leave Jack Axaopoulos' "living room" - his nickname for HG . Org . I have missed the community of pilots there, but they have lost all the informational postings I would have made in connection with 37 years of flying experience. The shame of losing anybody with that degree of history in the sport is a SHAME upon Jack Axaopoulos.

You're absolutely right. I have also missed the community of pilots there, but one by one I'm working to bring them to this new site where all points of view can be heard. Any help is surely appreciated.