I'm with Uncle Hank: The less chatter on the radio the less chance of a mistake, and leaves the radio available for emergencies ("RED PAWNEE 10 KNOTS FASTER!!!).

As a tuggie (and comp pilot) I prefer to base my decision to go on what I see, not on what someone else is directing (unless it's a STOP command, then It may be something I can't see) - and I can see if the rope is full out and the wings are level. At a comp, that's all I should need - the glider pilot ALWAYS has the option of releasing if he isn't ready!

In a club environment, add a nice rudder waggle, and all I really want the wing runner to do is watch for a problem and be prepared to stop the launch - I'm not going just because he thinks it time to fly!

On a related subject, I'm having a devil of a time convincing our club (non-comp, mainly also power pilots) glider pilots (including our friendly FAA reps!) to not stage at the very end of the runway, putting the initial part of the launch alongside other gliders, cars, spectators, dogs, etc. Aside from the problem of preventing the next gliders waiting to launch from gridding, the concept of a groundloop into the crowd seems inconceivable to these guys - and the usual answer is that they want all the runway available (we have a 2500' grass strip with good overruns and landable options in every direction).

Do other clubs have this problem? And how do you handle it, aside from stopping the launch and yelling at people (which is my usual response....).

Kirk
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