Caesar Creek Soaring Club has almost 240 members with 8 Club ships and
3 Pawnees
We have a $300 initiation fee at joining and $300 at the first
anniversary

CCSC was my original club way back when. Allowing for inflation, it
appears that they still have the same philosophy regarding finances.
IIRC:

1. Make it easy to join: i.e., set the 1st year of membership in the
"impulse buy" category. Recognize that after the 1st year, the truly
converted will pay what's essentially the 2nd half of a two-part
initiation fee. The casual joiner will drop out, their 1st year fees
having paid a big chunk of maintenance.
2. Fund capital items with equity: i.e., require members to purchase
stock over time. Yes, it's a chunk of cash (12x$100) but it's spread
over 12 years. And you can sell the stock back to the club when you
leave.
3. Encourage scheduled but volunteer monthly crew duty by offering a
big discount on flying fees. Some clubs don't agree with this
philosophy, requiring members to participate in order to avoid those
who want to "buy their way out of supporting the club". I think that's
short sighted in today's hectic world. We had a few back in the 60s
when I started flying there, although they were in the minority. I
believe there are more, now.
4. Based on the above, keep dues, tows, and glider use fees low. "Low"
is relative, but not many clubs undercut CCSC's flying fees and their
gliderport and fleet are enviable.

There's a lot of talk about how to market soaring better to keep our
sport alive. Much, if not most, of this activity goes on at the
grassroots level. A club's legal and financial structure can have a
big impact on its prosperity, just as with any "business" in
competition with other clubs, sports, and leisure time activities.

Chip Bearden
ASW 24 "JB"
USA