Re: The demise of Indoor FF

From: John Kagan <john_kagan_at_hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 11 Oct 2010 15:54:37 -0000

Hi Rick,

I'm one of the ones who believe that Indoor FF doesn't need a 21st century makeover to become cool or appealing. It already is cool and appealing. It's not like we're the Society of Butter Churners, or whatever the heck else they did in the old days. We just need to make more people aware of it, and give them a way to join.

You are spot on about SO. It's a fifty thousand person Indoor FF recruiting opportunity. Right now, about 49,990 don't know we exist. We can't sit back and consider SO to be their exposure to Indoor.

I did a demonstration before the awards ceremony at a local SO regional last year. Nothing major, just a 5 minute flight and a rambling speech on the microphone. When I was done, about twenty kids and coaches came down from the bleachers to talk and ask questions. I handed out sheets with Internet resources and such. Just the other day I ran across a thread on one of the SO sites from a kid who was there asking about Indoor FF and how to get into it.

Exposure works. And your point about giving them the rest of the path to start is just as important. This includes getting flying sites (definitely a catch-22 with participation levels) and having self-start resources available.

It also requires beginner events, like the ones you mentioned you enjoy flying. Which brings up the recurring topic of how to keep beginner events appealing to beginners.

Rather than complaining about how experts always ruin beginner events, Buxton, DeLoach, and I came up with the idea of the LPP Pro/Am. On it's first try we had 25 sign up and 15 actually show up and participate.

How many will continue? J.P. Kish was so enthusiastic about his experience, if he doesn't return next year with his own LPP I'll eat my hat. Elizabeth He has been shanghaied by the Tysons and will possibly become the first girl to make the Junior F1D team. Ken Achee has been hooked. The list goes on.

Indoor FF is not going to die, so we can quit lamenting. It's not a good look anyway – who wants to take up an activity whose own participants think is boring, old, and about to expire.

We do, however, have the power to increase our numbers. Which will make it more fun, and help with things like getting sites to fly in.

Also, let's quit bashing "expert" events, like the proposed 1/2A. Beginner events are the path, and expert events are the lure. If Delta Darts had been my only exposure to Indoor FF, I wouldn't be here writing this today.
Received on Mon Oct 11 2010 - 08:54:44 CEST