Thanks for all your hard work and the detailed update, Luke. Good luck to you guys and I hope the club will thrive for years to come. Thank you for giving up your time and effort so that we can continue to fly & land at AJX.

I know that there are many opinions on how things should be done, but in the end most of us want the best for the future of AJX, even if we try to arrive at that point in unique ways. Let’s hear each other out and come to a compromise, instead of fighting words.

Now a basic fact & PSA; The club needs funds to be able to operate, so please do your part and pay your membership fees, donate if you can, because it’s the only way this place will survive. Free-flight feels free, but it turns out that in the real world if you want to keep the nice things, you have to work, or pay for them. Also, the real world demands insurance, and insurance for our type of activity is damn-near impossible to come by these days. We have to reach real deep into our pockets to get it.

As much as we’d all like to fly for free (certainly there are ways if you don’t mind landing in the bushes), and if you like that nice LZ where you like to hang out, have a good time, or conduct business, that is not cost-free at all. It takes money, blood, sweat and tears to keep it running, all done by volunteering pilots just like you! They’d rather be flying, but they sacrifice their time and their own money to keep AJX going for you and for themselves. They care deeply.

If you physically can’t, or won’t volunteer on LZ/road maintenance tasks, then please, the least you could do is stay on top of your membership dues. Instructors, please explain to your students that joining the club on day 1 is mandatory and make sure they’re listed under the current members! Nobody wants to have to set up a police force to check everyone’s IDs, check up on their friends, interrupt a lesson, or have to remind their friends that club dues are mandatory. Please avoid these awkward encounters by self-policing.  Don’t be THAT guy/girl. Don’t be a drain on this club, when so many others are diligently supporting the club by paying their dues and/or volunteering. It will make this club a better, nicer & friendlier place.

Finally,… I’d like to thank those of you who supported us the last couple of years. We really appreciate it.

I’m stepping aside, I have far too much on my plate to recover from with everything that’s happened to my immediate family and therefore myself, and I just can’t focus on anything else except my own mental well-being for a while. I look forward to coming back out and flying with you all as soon as the weather permits. See ya out there!

Here’s how I understand it (and please correct me if I’m wrong):

The pond was created for the purpose of irrigating the LZ grass. This was solely made possible by Len and Owen, when years ago they generously purchased the XC ranch property with their own money for no other reason (that I know of) than to keep it out of the hands of developers. This ensured that the club would have clear landing access to the LZ. They had the financial means and they did a beautiful thing for the club.

Naturally they could not incur this cost without the club’s assistance, so the club agreed to pay a certain monthly dollar amount to the XC Ranch to make it sustainable for all. The club benefitted via this land purchase in a few ways, Len and Owen would slowly be recouped by the club over time, and every pilot who flies and lands at AJX wins.

After years of hard work and many club member volunteers, the irrigation pond became what it is today, a great place to relax, take a swim, etc. Club members were allowed to enjoy the pond at their leisure and they did! We had parties, we had club member family gatherings up there, it was the best place to cool off before, or after flying when the heat got out of hand in the summer. Most club members knew it was there and some used it.

Now let’s examine the reason we are no longer able to enjoy this place without direct supervision from Len, Owen and/or perhaps Jamie; I was told that a year or two ago a pilot’s dog nearly drowned a small child in the pond. This probably sent shivers down Owen and Len’s spines, thinking of the liability if something had happened to that child. They had to rethink some things. An insurance policy, a fence around the pond, or supervised pond access only. There may have been other incidents of which I am not aware that led to this.

If you have a pool at your private residence or property, I think you can probably understand the fear of your neighbors coming into that pool without your supervision while you’re not home. If something bad happens, someone gets hurt or drowns, there could be repercussions for you. Same idea with this pond. We’re allowed to hike through, we get to enjoy it during the few supervised pond parties, but unfettered access to it is no longer possible due to the huge liability until further notice.

Now that Len has generously donated the XC ranch to the free flight community by creating a non-profit organization called the Len Szafaryn Free Flight Conservancy (a.k.a. LSFFC), the XC ranch and pond land are safe from developers for many years to come, still there to be enjoyed by all club members under direct supervision. He has also agreed to lower the monthly cost to the club as a result, and has already done so. Now the club gets to keep more of its money for maintenance and savings, which is great news for all.

If you are not familiar with Len’s announcement of the XC ranch donation and creation of the LSFFC, here is his post:LSFFC Announcement

I am led to believe that Dan fixed it and has access to the controls. We (the board) don’t have the login or password info.

Thank you both for the very nice compliments. 😅 Luckily I’m surrounded by much more knowledgeable people who work hard to make all the good things happen. I credit myself only with the ability to listen to those people and try to make good decisions to the best of my abilities. 🤞

Since Linda (board member) wrote: “I do think anyone with a commercial interest or less than a set number of years in the CSS should be prevented from a seat on the BOD“. And the current BOD is one of the least involved with commercial activities at the site (a good thing) and likely most receptive, I warm up this topic.

Without having any specific people in mind, I propose that…

Current board members hold a membership vote to update the bylaws to disqualify board member applicants from having a significant commercial interest. The “significant commercial interest” will need to be defined, maybe: No school owner and family, no instructor and family, no driver, OK to be part of other club or USHPA leadership.

Commercial sympathizers may still apply, and lobbying can occur, but this bylaw change would still be a good step towards neutral board members. Motivated individuals may be harder to find, but it will be worthwhile.

Zero shame for being disqualified (I would be due to holding an instructor rating). It likely means that you are already busy helping the sport in a different way.

As always, nothing prevents people with “significant commercial interest” who are not board members, to do good things for the club and be praised for it.

If we prevent instructors, drivers and family from running for the board, that would disqualify both Kathy and I. This would be a great excuse for me not to run and simply show up, fly & have fun. Yay! BUT,… I had a lot of people ask me to run. I certainly didn’t do it for myself! 😄 Stephen always thought it would just stress me out (and he’s right!), so although he understood why I agreed to do it, he wasn’t exactly begging me to run for his own benefit. If anything, it just causes him more stress seeing me stressed out. 😅

Kathy has been helping with club events for more years than anyone realizes, without ever having been a pilot herself. She makes a great Events Coordinator and I am so glad she decided to take on that responsibility. She didn’t have to, but she loves the club and community. She actually had the same position on this topic as you, but I think she was referring more to preventing instructors from serving on the board (If I’m not mistaken).

Tim, Rob, Dan & others I may not even know about (because I’ve only been aware of AJX’s existence since 2015 and started learning to fly in late 2018)… they all did a great job for many years before any of us even knew what hang gliding or paragliding is. Maybe some mistakes were made along the way, but none of us are perfect. I appreciate them having done so much over the years to keep this club running for decades. Personally I don’t think the club would have benefited if they had been barred from running for the BOD, but I know that we can’t always please everyone at the same time.

Of course I understand that some people might abuse the opportunity, but that is why everyone should be paying attention to what’s going on. We are not a private club where one or two owners get the final say, where the members have little or no say at all. This club belongs to all of us, nobody owns it more than another, and if the majority ignore the red flags, mismanagement and bad things can happen! We could lose this place forever with a few wrong moves. If you love flying, if you love this place and you want to keep flying here for many years to come, then please pay attention to the decisions being made.

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By the way, you don’t have to be on the BOD to pitch in with the maintenance or events. We would really prefer it if you helped us out, because these tasks can be overwhelming. The club needs money to continue to exist (all kinds of maintenance, mandatory site insurance costs, etc). That means we need everyone to pay their yearly member dues, we need people to help out during fly-in and competitions to raise more money for the club, we need everyone to be polite, welcoming and keep the screaming to a minimum so that this can continue to be a place of leisure (not an insane asylum) and if you have an idea for a clinic, an event, a competition, then please e-mail the BOD and then help us help you make it happen!

That was Wyatt & the Kooks I believe!

Stephen and I also ran into a new local man by the name of John, who was perfecting some of the weed whacking. Friendly fellow who seemed interested in all the flying.