On Saturday, March 4, 2017 at 11:45:42 AM UTC-7, wrote:
I, for one, am not interested in racing (but I admire those that do, and I do follow the results). I have 2,200 soaring hours (and another 2,500 in hang gliders) so I think I qualify as a reasonably experienced soaring pilot. I have competed exactly twice (in hang gliders) and I did not enjoy it.) I have also organized, run and scored many hang gliding contests, served on the competition committee of the USHGA and written rulebooks that are still in use.

When people ask why I do not compete, I tell them that I can make all the bad decisions I need without the help of a Contest Director. I know the person that posted the question is (or was) an avid sailing competitor. Once I heard another sailor say, "One sailboat is a pleasant pastime. Two boats are a race." I can see that, as two boats in proximity are using each other to evaluate the wind and conditions in order to maximize efficiency, and this gets competitive quickly.

Two sailplanes often are out of visual contact, and therefore the incentive is, for me at least, diminished. (Flarm leeching notwithstanding)

Basically, I like to fly in order to avoid yardwork, enjoy the scenery and challenge myself to utilize the best weather conditions for cross country flight. I also don't particularly enjoy outlandings. (Had enough adventures in the hang gliding days.) Apparently, this makes me socially unacceptable to Wilbur, but to tell you the truth, I don't care. I have plenty of soaring friends who agree, as well as a bunch of soaring friends who compete.

What Mark said! In addition, I do not need:
1. the stress of contests
2. the significant additional costs of contests
3. to devote the many days required for a contest
4. the additional safety concerns of a contest
5. to fly in weak/marginal conditions that are often required in a contest

I really do have tremendous respect for those who compete and I closely follows contests, but it is just not something that personally interests me. I would much rather spend my time, money and effort flying OLC tasks with my friends!
Thanks - Renny