Hi everyone, this is the regular Thursday posting to let you know what is coming up in the near future and the highlights from the last committee meeting.
This week.
Access road
This week, with help from Charles Carter who drove the excavator, we were able to do some more work which will further improve the drainage from the road.
We will continue to monitor the condition of the road over the coming weeks and will arrange more repair sessions as and when they are needed. Watch this space for future dates.
BGA conference
Sarah did a very well received marketing presentation, this is of major interest to all the clubs and we are leading the pack in some areas. The conference was extremely well attended and provided a wealth of ideas to help us.
We received an update from the business rates team who are working tirelessly on our behalf.
8.33
Just a reminder the funding runs out in December so if you were wondering whether to claim then you need to act quickly.
Your team this weekend is:
Saturday: Mark Sanders, Peter Orchard, Dave Cole (we may need a substitute).
Sunday: Mark Sanders, Denise Hughes, Peter Orchard, Laurent Couval
Forthcoming events
Weekend
Poz is coming! It is his birthday party this weekend so fingers crossed for good weather for him.
EASA
The conference was quite explicit that the delay to EASA implementation was to ensure that administration was in place and there is no evidence that the conversion will not take place.
Safety
The BGA is getting concerned about aerotow accidents, I know we are only winch but many of us do goto aerotow sites so I urge everyone to pay attention to below:-
The BGA Safe Aerotowing webpage has been updated to reinforce the need to avoid distraction, and to highlight potential handling problems on tow. We’d be grateful if you would highlight the updated information among your club pilots.
https://members.gliding.co.uk/bga-safety-management/safe-aerotowing/
Christmas dinner 9 December
Peter Turner has once again “volunteered” to run the raffle, however we need prizes. Words of encouragement from Peter :-
“Dear members it’s that time of year when we ask you to be generous again and come up with some prizes for the Xmas lunch raffle. You have been so generous in the past which helps to bolster the social fund to provide the cash for some of those extras that the club budget might not be able to support.”
Can I suggest you bring your prizes along to the members evening.
Winter talks
Denise has worked out a superb schedule for this winter’s lectures. They all start at 18:00 and if we have a speaker then we do ask for a small donation on the night to cover their expenses. Book the date, have a few flights, enjoy the talk then have a superb evening meal.
Members evening
November 25 will be the members evening when the committee will present our strategy for the next 5 years and invite your input and approval. We will present the strategy, the critical issues then a short presentation on the finances, the marketing and membership followed by the fleet. Please be aware there will be audience participation!
January 13 – National Trust. All of your questions answered (who does own the horses?) and the trust’s plans for the future development of the Mynd.
February 24 – Julian has very kindly offered to talk about Euro Glide with us. More details closer to the time but I can assure you it is absolutely brilliant and will inspire you.
March 10 – Hugh Browning the BGA safety wizard.
Shobdon events
I am delighted to be able to publish Shobdon’s winter events as well as our own. See below:-
The next evening will be on Wednesday 29th November, with two topics:
Choosing a glider and how syndicates work’ – by Rose and Iain. Advice for members looking to buy their first private glider, covering suitable gliders to choose and effective ways to organise a syndicate.
Venue: Bateman Arms in Shobdon village.
Timings: 7 p.m. to 9.30 p.m.
Committee highlights
The water supply testing has been commissioned
Price adjustments (except courses and accommodation) will be discussed at the December meeting after the members meeting.
Fleet. LUV is waiting the CAA to tell us how to fast track the registration, EVV we are awaiting the insurance, Discus will be opened up for sale generally.
Health and safety. Continual progress is being made on the items, the priority items will be monitored by a separate meeting.
Buildings. Rob Shepherd has had to resign, Richard Bennett has kindly offered to take over the task, he will report to John O’Reilly at committee level
CFI report. There will be a safety review on the 2nd of December with the regional examiner.
Finance. the cashflow will be presented at the members meeting. The business rates will be discussed at the BGA conference by the Chair and Roger Bagley of the BGA rating team.
We still only have 2 signatories for the bank account, getting 3 signatories is now a very significant priority for the club.
- We are doing tests on one of the main winches to find out what is causing the smoke.
Grounds. Tim and Howard have done a great job on the access road, we will await the drainage work before scheduling another day. Steve Middleton will be repairing 120 metres of fencing w/b 13 Nov
Land Rovers: we will continue with the small tanks and re fill at lunchtime if necessary. Julian wants to use a second Shogun instead of Vitara as it will be more flexible in terms of winch towing
GDPR: John O’Reilly will be producing a set of milestones.