I have an interest in helping clubs to put their best foot forward to the public. Most successful clubs go out of their way to welcome new members and be an asset to their community.
Too often I hear from a club that is on thin ice with its neighbors, often over noise. When I dig into the issue I find that the fliers have kept to themselves because they thought out of sight was out of mind. They thought that by keeping to themselves they wouldn’t draw negative attention and would be left to fly in peace.
But that results in no positive attention—attention that makes them a part of their community, builds relationships with the decision makers, and gives them a fighting chance when a small group of vocal objectors takes a dislike to them.
I want to give a club that is going in the right direction a chance to share its successes. The Sonoran Desert Flyers (SDF) has aggressively grown its membership in its six years of existence despite of being restricted by weight and altitude and to electric models by city leaders.
Our mission is to actively encourage interested people of all ages with a welcoming, mentoring environment and a camaraderie among our members that goes a long ways to promote our club and this hobby. Our club motto is “We fly the wind, and shoot the breeze!” and we mean it.
Our members are roving club ambassadors. We welcome visitors at the field and ask them about their interest in RC flying. We ask if they are interested in taking the controls for an introductory test flight, and the answer is almost always yes. At this point the seed is planted. “Welcome to the Sonoran Desert Flyers. We’re glad to have you!”
We have 17 mentors/flight instructors, a handful of club trainers, and we are always ready and willing to train new people on our club equipment. We have trained kids from eight, up to 70. We also welcome members of other local RC clubs who want to get away from the drama that is often present in other clubs. We try our best to provide a safe, convenient, and most of all, enjoyable place to come and fly while hanging out with like-minded modelers.
We developed a “Buy, Build & Fly” program to involve people in the hobby. We assist parents who wish to buy their kids model airplanes for birthdays or Christmas, then we assist them with the “build” part and help them learn how to fly. (You can find the “Buy, Build & Fly” manual at www.sonorandesertflyers.us/guide.pdf.)
We hold two shows late in the year (this is Arizona) to promote our club, the hobby, and the unbridled enjoyment of flying RC aircraft of all types.
We celebrate National Model Aviation Day in August with a two-hour air show followed by buddy-box flights for anyone interested in learning how to fly. We take four or five students up at a time for a 5-minute hands-on introduction to the sport. They are then invited back for further training if they wish to further their interest in the sport.
The second event was held this past year on December 7 (Pearl Harbor Day). This spectacular event included a fly-by of an emergency medical helicopter which landed and was on display throughout the day. The crew gave tours of the aircraft and answered questions. A group of local paragliders flew in and landed on our runway, and also staffed a booth and answered questions about paragliding and hang gliding.
Topping the event off was a dazzling 90-minute air show. Several hundred visitors attended we raised more than $1,000 in contributions for the Wounded Warrior Project.
Following are rules clubs should follow if they wish to grow and maintain their membership.
1. Greet every visitor that drives into your field with a smile and ask his or her name.
2. Take them down the flightline and show them the airplanes and introduce them to the members. Show them we are not just a club, but a family that is passionate about this sport.
3. All club officers in attendance should greet visitors and welcome them to the field.
4. Offer free introductory flights followed by training if the person is interested.
5. Make the local media aware of your events and try to get an onsite story on the news the day before the event
6. Keep membership fees reasonable. Our low overhead affords us to charge $20 per year.
7. Keep rules simple and understandable, keeping safety forefront and politics out. We are all in this sport to challenge ourselves and have fun.
We can sum up the attitude of our club with the following remarks made by a young student pilot. We took eight-year-old Mitchell up for his first flight this last fall, after landing we asked him, “Well Mitchell, did you like it?” Mitchell’s response was “No, I loved it!”
That’s how you build a successful club. Visit us at www.sonorandesertflyers.us.
Thank you to all of the SDF members who contributed to this month’s column. Until next time, I wish you nothing but happy landings.
