Must say that once the cable is attached to my glider, I'm acutely
aware that the other end is connected to a 300 hp V8 engine. I don't
let go of the release for any reason, nor do I stop scanning sky and
ground for potential conflicts. This continues until either the launch
starts or someone shouts "release". If something spooks me, I drop the
cable myself.

At our club, the guy on the lights/radio is usually an instructor and
if not, a cool-headed, experienced individual. We also make sure the
wing runners know about the "running" part. In at least two of the
aerotow ground loops I saw in August (none of which occured at my home
club) the primary cause was the wing runner, well, not running. In
fact one guy was wearing flip flops which of course fell off, and he
stopped.


Dan