My name is Mike Carris and I have just purchased, with a partner, an
old forgotten PIK 20B that will take at least 500 total hours to get
flying again. I did this for one reason, to fly in the Club Class,
which is an FAI event, except in the USA. Now, there will be no club
class, just another opportunity, it seems, *for a very few *people
that can afford it, to get another chance to be on a world team. *Why
not allow the Club Class to flourish as it was intened. Soaring in the
USA takes a step backwards with this decision.

Do something for the sport, you know the one that does not require
mega bucks to compete in.

Mike Carris "0"

Megabucks are not required to compete in sports class. Dave Stephenson
had a habit of crushing us with KA6 and Fokas; Tim McAllister has won
in a Libelle. Sports class is handicapped. The handicaps not only
work, they favor older gliders. The tasking guidelines also favor the
older gliders. Tasks are supposed to be set for a standard cirrus, and
if that's too short for a nimbus 4, too bad. Ray Gimmey didn't buy his
way from nowhere to sports class dominance with an ASG29, he happens
to be a pretty good pilot too! Read the proposal -- this said nothing
about club class in the US, it said only something about how the US
team will select pilots for the world team. There is and will be a
club class anytime someone wants to organize and go to a club class
event. Which I hope you will do; vibrant club class racing in the US
would be great to see.

John Cochrane