SETUP YOURS
THE KITS, THE BOT, AND YOUR TASKS.
Understand the product, then consider the right solution for your club, 20+ years from now!
Consider the Proving Grounds as a part of the culture of your club in the future. The value is enhanced with each successfully flown task, each conversation about task flying.
Here we walk you through the components of the platform, highlight some options to consider when defining tasks for your club.
The Kit
When you configure the Proving Grounds for your club, we will ship you everything your club needs to make this concept real. Key components of the kit include the laser cut and labeled, stainless steel task boards to rank pilots on each task, 50 magnetic slips with ‘white board’ finish to record and rank the top times or speeds, task sheets, and more!
Laminated versions of the task sheets (8.5×5.5″) are provided to be installed in the pocket of all club gliders which include rules and turnpoints on the front, with helpful checklists, and local airports on the back to support and prepare novice pilots. A summary of how to submit times to the system and fill out a slip is also included. More ‘loose’ tasks sheets are shipped for individuals to keep/mark up and the task sheet file is available anytime by requesting the PDF from your club bot by including “Sheets” in the subject of the email to your club bot, or from the blog post about the club hosted here.
The Bot
Each club has their own @soaringtasks.com email address where flight traces are sent for automatic evaluation.
Pilots who think they have completed any task simply email their .igc file to the club bot, and within a minute, they will receive an email reply from the system providing the outcome of their flight in the context of the tasks.
The reply also includes a prompt to extract other features by email request.
Everything your bot does, it does based on the resources for your club – available by email, at any time.
It’s always ready to serve.
The Tasks
Tasks are the core of the Proving Grounds. Below, you’ll find a link to a guide to get you started, we’ll follow up with some specific setup assumptions and options before shipping the kit.
Keep in mind, tasks need be viable for your local pilots – not permitted (or willing) to fly beyond final glide of the airfield. Successive tasks support growth into attaining XC status in your club and a member more likely to stick around!
Small Task
Your smallest task should support a local pilot and offer safe final glides for those maintaining 1500-2000′ above circuit height.
A Racetrack is a diamond task around your home airport with turnpoints about 10-15km from the home airport. A task can be started at any point. Busy clubs mandate a direction to avoid collision risks.
Progression
Your second and third task should build on each other, with distances of ~100km, and 150-170km.
Building on each other helps increase comfort with terrain en route, and supports success on the middle task if a pilot aborts a large task attempt.
Terrain
Plan your tasks over forgiving terrain, free of airspace conflicts, with acceptable landout options – airports and/or welcoming fields.
Keep your pilots safe, and give them the opportunity to succeed!
Log Every Flight
Encourage broad participation. The platform is more valuable to your club with every successful flight!
Build a common language around the tasks to cement them in the culture of your club.
Imagine the satisfaction of a novice pilot’s first XC step on a day, otherwise unrecognized but for the Proving Grounds.
Have tenured XC pilots complete tasks as a part of larger flights and give novice pilots the opportunity to best thier mentors. Compete for the top time, and take it seriously. It’s really fun!
GET STARTED FOR YOUR CLUB
Do you see value in the Proving Grounds for your club? Do you have a sense of how this would work at your club to create excitment around task flying, delivering a consistent experience for years to come, with next to no member involvment required to sustain the initiative?
When you’re ready to get a Proving Grounds started for your club, click the link and get started!
If you require any proactive support, reach out for clarification, we’re happy to help, but need you to tell us about the right tasks for your club.