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I’m putting this thread on the forum for transparency, for respectful discussion, but mostly to let you all know how serious this is. A small, but loud, minority of pilots have a tendency to rant about the BOD, about USHPA, CALFIRE, SB National Forest, well just about every authority, agency, or organization that governs our sport or our public lands. I don’t know exactly what it will take to get these folks to understand that we are nation of laws, and the majority of us have no problem functioning just fine within the bounds of reasonable jurisprudence. I think that we, as in the majority of CSS pilots who conduct ourselves with midfullness as fully formed adults, have to reinforce our values as responsible pilots and stewards of the land we are privileged to use for our sport. We have to make sure that everyone understands that these types of behaviors that put our club and facilities at risk should not, and will not, be tolerated.
– CSS President-
One of the responsible parties, who is a CSS member, has received a notification of 30 day suspension from the the CSS. If they do not comply with the landowner’s requests there will be further consequences that may include a longer term CSS suspension and the possibility of USHPA credentials being revoked.
It’s very sad that any of this has to happen at all. This is basic stuff. One of the core principals of what we stand for as pilots is to respect the property rights of landowners. If we fail in that arena, if we trample all over the rights of parties, we will lose launches, we will lose LZ’s, we could lose our site all together. In this case, if the situation devolves further, we could potentially lose our access to the Training Hill. What do you think that will mean for our landing approaches? There is a lot more at risk here than just the bunny hill where we train new pilots.
Since Encore University Hills purchased all of this land to the east of our LZ (around 2021), we have had their permission to continue using the Training Hill. There is now a significant chance we could have that permission rescinded due to the actions of one or more CSS members.
A CSS member, without permission of the landowner or endorsement of the CSS BOD, has been storing personal vehicles, tools, equipment, supplies and other materials at the top of the Training Hill. This stash of personal affects and equipment was placed there over a period of about the last two years. An Encore University Hills Site Manager notified the responsible individuals personally, face to face, over a month ago. Encore followed up with an email to the CSS BOD that was forwarded to those responsible individuals. In early July, a letter was sent to the CSS Board by Encore Attorneys, notifying the club and the responsible individuals to remove their vehicles and other items from Encore property no later than August 1st. That deadline has come and gone, no effort has been put forth by the responsible parties to honor the landowner’s requests.
As many of you already know, Encore University Hills LLC has purchased almost ALL of the land to the east our LZ which includes the Training Hill. They plan to build over 300 homes right next us… very close. Danger close.
The CSS BOD has worked extensively, along with a an appointed committee of veteran CSS pilots, to maintain a professionally courteous relationship with Encore. We are committed to creating a solution with the developer to build those homes in a way that still allows CSS pilots to maintain a safe approach and traffic separation pattern for landings at AJX.
This effort will only work if the CSS respects the requests of landowner and works with them in good faith so that Encore responds in kind. The CSS does not have the financial resources to become combative and/or disrespectful with a Developer that has millions of dollars and a Cadre of Attorneys at their disposal.
Swimming at the Pond will be open from 4pm to 7pm on Saturday during the Fly-In for CSS members. Brian and Dale will provide rides from the LZ up to the Pond in the Ranger.
Remember to bring your swim wear and a towel if you’d like to cool off in the Pond after flying.
Please keep in mind that you get go up the Pond in the Ranger or if you walk (and its a long walk), no personal vehicles are allowed to go up the Pond access road.
As a bonus, or a welcome change as it were, the BOD has chosen to allocate club funds to purchase food and soft drinks for the Fly-In BBQ and we will NOT be collecting cash from CSS Members.
If you bring guests that are not club members, please consider making a small donation to cover food costs. We also will have CSS T-shirts available for purchase. There will a QR code to scan for Zelle payments or bring cash.
Not at the moment, no. I the TFR for the Lake Fire has been reduced to 3 NM, so it no longer covers Crestline Launch. I was onsite most of the day Sunday and there was no CalFire aircraft activity on the Lake Fire, however the Cable Fire started in the early afternoon, but no one was flying anyway.
For right now we are clear unless there is any re-start of Air-Tanker or Helicopter activity.
Alan, sorry about the delay. The new BOD will get these published asap.
Friday April 18th is forecast for some rain and North Winds, so its not likely that anyone has plans to fly anyway.
Monday and Tuesday next week (21-22 April), on the other hand, are forecast to be sunny, high 77, and winds WSW… still a bit far out for a soaring forecast. We typically get limited activity on weekdays.
With all that said, this is the first time since I have been with the CSS over the last 6 years that any local first responder agency has asked our club for anything. These are the people who come to our aide when a pilot needs a rescue or an ambulance is called to the LZ… this is our chance to give back to them! This is why the CSS BOD enthusiastically agreed to their request to use our space.
Let’s not screw this up… let’s not test any limits. I would really just like everyone to take those days off all together, but we are not completely shutting down all flight operations because that’s not completely required. For anyone that just has to fly on those days… make good choices, don’t land before 4 pm, and make sure the LZ is clear before approaching in the case the FD is running late on the event.
Please also note that the AJX Parking Lot will likely be VERY full with all of the agencies participating in the training events. Just let them have the space and just keep clear, even if you are intending to fly late day and land after 4pm. Make alternative arrangements for parking and rides up to launch.
Also, if anyone has a handheld GPS that can plot and save a bunch of points, as long as they can be saved to a memory card or transferred to a computer, please bring that along.
If anyone has a gas powered weed eater please consider bringing it. It would be very helpful to knock down the taller weeds and the invasive mustard that is on the edges of the LZ.
For the position of Safety Director I am nominating Erika Klein (and she has accepted). Erika has been flying Hang Gliders for over 16 years and in the last couple years has also picked up PG. Erika’s presence on social media has undeniably helped grow the sport and has several other accomplishments in various positions & committees within USHPA. She has the right experience & judgment to make a great Safety Director for the CSS.
So in summary, I’ll give you my final pitch to earn your vote for CSS President.
I don’t toot my own horn much, but with the issues we are faced with I’m going to have to set humility aside for a moment and not pull any punches…
For the last two years I’ve bloodied my knuckles almost every single weekend of the year at AJX, even through the winter. I’ve skipped multiple flying days to fix the tractor, mow the LZ, chase gophers, fix the roads, fix the plumbing, kill weeds, paint the Pavilion beams, change windsocks, and fix a dozen other random things. I’ve spent numerous hours at home and in my office finding tractor parts, shopping for maintenance supplies, writing risk mitigation proposals, calling insurance companies, building relationships with the Forest Service, the Sherif, CAL Fire, and rebuilding bridges with USHPA and RecRRG. I would be remiss to not mention that were a few die-hard volunteers who helped me do many of these above tasks, and to them I am forever grateful.
I’ve got 10 things cooking but I’ve only got 4 burners on the stove. I certainly can’t do all of this alone. I need good people on the board, and I’m going to be asking for more engagement from members to get through some of these future challenges. When its time, and its a necessity, I’m going ned every last member of CSS on-deck to get us through what might be a tough situation with the developer next-door.
It’s not going to be easy, I never believed it was going to be. Just know that one thing I will never do is quit. Let’s leave the drama behind and work together on these things, its the only way.
Please vote for me for CSS President, Ben Kanselbaum for VP, Jamie Shelden for Secretary, Jeff Bether for Treasurer, Mimi BowQuay for Events Coordinator, Nate Halahan for Communications Director, and Peter Song for Site Coordinator.
I’ll leave you all with one quote, its not the most famous but it sure is inspiring… the Veterans in the Club will understand this one;
“WHAT makes the grass grow?! BLOOD makes the grass grow!!!”
So how is this going to play out?
I completed the Club’s Chapter Application for USHPA back in December. Being granted a Club General Liability Policy through RecRRG requires that apply for USHPA Chapter status and have an up to date risk mitigation plan on file. That part is done.
What’s next? The time-line right now is that we should granted a policy (if the Rec Board approves) on June 1st. Right now its looking good, they are satisfied with our application and some of the changes we have or will be making to satisfy risk mitigation requirements.
What are those changes and how will they affect the club? Most of them are very minor and won’t be noticed, they won’t change they way our Club has traditionally operated. There will be updates to the by-laws, they are all pretty common sense. One example is that when the Club offers HG/PG equipment storage we can’t have it as a separate line item to ‘buy’ on the website, we have to make it a part of ‘premium’ membership. It will cost the same, we just can’t have the appearance of commercial activity.
There are numerous other small details to how all of this will get wrapped up prior to the new policy going into effect in June. There will be a member Meeting and review for all of this and ratification vote for By-Laws prior to accepting the terms of the new policy. Just keep in mind one simple underlying reality in mind… it’s either $26K, or $10K. What would you choose?
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