For those castigating me: Did you miss the part where I acknowledged the contest staff "working their asses off"?

TODAY I got up at 5am (after being up most of the night with neighbors setting off fireworks) to drive 3+ hours to a contest site, just to deliver a weather briefing. Any of you who know me understand that I do a lot of volunteering and I have a great respect for everyone who volunteers to run an event. And my involvement with contests is in addition to being on the Board of Directors for _2_ separate clubs, *and* being the primary organizer of a major XC/Contest Mentoring event every Memorial Day weekend for the last 4 years, *and* holding ground-school type sessions for our club's student pilots!

But oh yes, SHAME ON ME for pointing out a major and _embarrassing_ failing of our national organization! It was a major failure in two ways -

First:
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It was potentially a waste of the _final day of competition_ for a National Championship. If I was 20 points out of the lead and vying for a Worlds team-slot, I'd be _incredibly_ ****ed off about this! Can you imagine if the PGA cancelled the final round of any golf tournament? Or how about the Reno Air Races only holding qualifying heats and cancelling the final rounds?

And winning isn't the only reason for pilots to fly on the last day... Taking time off work to travel to a contest and compete is a major commitment, and getting as many flying days in as possible is important for contestants to feel like the trip and expense was worthwhile. I realize that a large portion of the SSA membership is retirees; but if you want to pay more than lip-service to the future of the sport then you need to think about how people in their 20's, 30's, and 40's can enjoy and participate in the fullest way. And that means being cognizant of work schedules and the pressures of people with families and family activities (and the greater number of time-sinks and alternative hobbies/pursuits in today's world).

Second:
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We've already got an image/messaging/marketing problem when it comes to our sport, and this kind of thing makes us look weak and amateurish. Sorry folks, but if we're not willing to admit when things aren't being done well, it'll never get improved. There are some fine people putting in long hours for both local and national parts of the organization. But - to be blunt - if the work isn't _effectively directed_ or isn't being done _efficiently_ then it doesn't matter how sweet or wonderful those people's intentions are.

Look, I used to be heavily involved in the SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) doing autocrossing and road-course racing. The autocross "Solo 2" National Championships are always a big deal in Topeka and the national organization does a good job liaising with the local politicians and land owners to ensure a well-publicized event. If that organization can do it, so could the SSA. How hard is it to have an ongoing dialogue with the town leaders and the airport manager? And if this _is_ something that's been coordinated in the past, why wasn't it a checklist item for the organizers and/or the SSA National staff?

As _people_ I like and really appreciate the individuals who give their time and energy to the SSA. HOWEVER, I think this screwup speaks volumes about the state of the national organization (either the way it is run, or organized, or how funds are used, or some combination thereof).

--Noel