[Frank Colver]

'Chris, you didn't have the wrong impression. It wasn't planned to have the 53rd anniversary Lilienthal meet until Bob called me on Wednesday evening and we decided to go to Dockweiler the next day, even though we hadn't planned a meet. I sent out the email Wednesday evening announcing that several people were going to show up at Dockweiler the next day to acknowledge Otto's B-day and the anniversary, even though we hadn't planned an actual event.

Next year we will do something, but we need to decide: will it be on the actual B-day, when a lot of folks who don't belong to USHPA can't fly or on a Monday or Tuesday when those who get the LA County waiver can fly?

Frank

[JoeF]

.... or maybe, just maybe, the world will get orderly and have the Dockweiler site open every day to both a business and public recreation as occurs for other beach sports and concessions: cafe open but people bring their own picnics, surf instructors alongside surfers who come to the beach to surf, boating instructors in the same water as recreational boaters, kiting instructors alongside recreational kiters, etc. The tilt installed by a private organization to hog the full site away from recreational hang gliding recreationists should be halted. The HG business owning the public beach is simply off putting to protectors of public recreational property. Side note: I bet profoundly that the business would have more business if it ran side-by-side with recreational pilots who would gladly maintain a deference for student flight efforts. The Dockweiler ridge is quite long; the school there rarely uses more than one or two launch points while recreationists could use the other twelve or so launch points ever deferring to the school's needs. And the school would get more business if the site were properly open to waivered recreational pilot aside the school site. That a private organization roots the grab of the public beach site should cause public leaders to have pain. The very org keeping the steal would do well to do all it could to stop the steal.

[Bob Kuczewski]

This is the best and clearest case I've seen for opening up Dockweiler:

.... or maybe, just maybe, the world will get orderly and have the Dockweiler site open every day to both a business and public recreation as occurs for other beach sports and concessions: cafe open but people bring their own picnics, surf instructors alongside surfers who come to the beach to surf, boating instructors in the same water as recreational boaters, kiting instructors alongside recreational kiters, etc. The tilt installed by a private organization to hog the full site away from recreational hang gliding recreationists should be halted. The HG business owning the public beach is simply off putting to protectors of public recreational property. Side note: I bet profoundly that the business would have more business if it ran side-by-side with recreational pilots who would gladly maintain a deference for student flight efforts. The Dockweiler ridge is quite long; the school there rarely uses more than one or two launch points while recreationists could use the other twelve or so launch points ever deferring to the school's needs. And the school would get more business if the site were properly open to waivered recreational pilot aside the school site. That a private organization roots the grab of the public beach site should cause public leaders to have pain. The very org keeping the steal would do well to do all it could to stop the steal.

The Monday and Tuesday open flying for the past 7 years has proven that it's a workable situation. I think it's time to take Joe's good arguments to the County Board of Supervisors.

[JoeF]

Parking income in response to anticipated equitable-use change: When recreational hang gliding can be open for all days aside the concessionaire's instruction business, one might run a careful estimate of the increased paid parking fees that would be paid by visitors and friends and flying pilots and their helpers. Each viewer, friend, helper, and pilot showing with a car would pay the parking fee. The total amount could be quite significant for the parking lot income.

Thank you for helping to make the waivered recreational pilots have equitable 7-day/week use of the great asset that is our hang gliding beach park.