District II
New Jersey, New York, Europe
Eric Williams
Vice President
Associate Vice Presidents
Dennis Andreas, Freeport NY
Frank Costello, Somerset NJ
Chuck Davis, Sayville NY
Gary Fitch, Delevan NY
Gene Gavin, Staten Island NY
Frank Granelli, Rockaway NJ
Bill Hauth, Hamburg NY
Tony Jensen, Binghamton NY
Ron McGrath, North Chili NY
Anthony Rossi, Somerset NJ
Leonard Max Smart, Morrisville NY
Alexander Szemere, Kendall Park NJ
Michael Wong, Mahwah NJ
Herb Ziegler, Baldwinsville NY
RC Event Sanction Coordinators
Tony and Trish Jensen
CL/FF Event Sanction Coordinator
AMA Headquarters, Competitions Department
Not until my home club, the Flying Knights Model Aircraft Club, recently held its AMA Take off And Grow (TAG) Day that I better appreciated the underlying dynamics of these events. TAG events, open houses, learn-to-fly days, or whatever you want to call them, are great ways to promote your club and our hobby.
Introductory flights and training are not the same thing. Among the most common remarks introductory flight students make is, “I didn’t realize it was this difficult.” And that’s a good thing because it helps dispel illusions that model aircraft are just toys. This also creates a challenge to be well managed, because some introductory students believe piloting model aircraft is beyond their abilities. Good introductory instructors will encourage students that they can be successful and to keep trying.
The trainer aircraft at the Flying Knights TAG Day included three electric-powered airplanes and three glow-powered airplanes. Each aircraft had previous flights to help ensure safety and reliability. Extra fuel and many batteries were part of the preparations. Of course, Murphy’s Law prevailed and two of the aircraft were grounded because of issues. As the Boy Scout motto states, “Be prepared!”
Introductory flights and general flying do not mix. The day needs to be dedicated to welcoming visitors to our hobby and getting their hands on the sticks. Airplanes buzzing around at higher speeds quickly become a significant distraction for instructors and students. Learning to fly among other aircraft is an important skill, but doing so during a student’s first flight is an unneeded interference.
Having dedicated, well-separated times for demonstrations of non-trainer aircraft is a good thing to excite the public, but not during introductory flights. Instructors need to focus on their student’s flight, not avoiding other aircraft!
Providing free food is a necessity. As one of our club members frequently says, “You don’t invite new neighbors to your home and ask them to pay for dinner.” Save club fundraising for other events and activities.
Promote, promote, promote—and then promote some more! Facebook and Facebook paid ads seem to get the most event exposure for the public. Posting flyers on coffee shop bulletin boards can be helpful. Event listings on local community group internet sites works as well. And don’t forget to personally invite local politicians and public officials!
Be certain to collect contact information for all visitors. Reaching out to them to thank them for their attendance and welcoming them back to the club is critical in keeping them interested!
Don’t be discouraged. Your event might result in a few new members. What will happen is that you will advance your club and the hobby in your local community and more people will be talking about your club. That local networking is what helps build a club’s reputation, and by itself, you will find new members down the road.
Remember, it’s not about what you fly, it’s about the friends you make.
