WISCONSIN HANG GLIDING CLUB,
doing business as the Sky Sports Aero Tow Club, Inc.
based at Twin Oaks Airport, Whitewater, Wisconsin

(262) 473-8800 (Office and Voice Mail)
(262) 473-8900 (Airport Phone)

Serving Wisconsin, Illinois, and USHGA Region 7

Welcome to our Club!

The Wisconsin Hang Gliding Club exists to serve you, the hang glider pilots of the Midwest. Our first priority is safety, and our second priority is having a lot of fun. If our rules seem firm, it is only with the best interests of the pilots, instructors, and students in mind. Please take a few minutes to review and familiarize yourself with our site protocol, operating procedures, and equipment requirements.

The ranking officers of the Wisconsin Hang Gliding Club include Brad Kushner, Bob Linebaugh, Rik Bouwmeester, Janice Haraldson, Mark Furst, Jeff Nielsen, Pam Nielsen, Mike Kearns, Terry Kramer, Derek Poff, Dan Morris, and Tim Thompson, . Any and all decisions made by these officers will be made with safety and the image of the hang gliding community as priorities. The satisfaction of the individual pilots, instructors and students is considered third priority. Tug pilots may refuse to operate the tug at any time. Individual pilots may be grounded for reasons of inexperience, weather conditions, equipment concerns, or attitude. Any pilot operating any vehicle (aircraft, golf cart, auto or bicycle) in any manner which endangers persons or property, disrupts the flying activities, or even shows disregard for landowners, spectators, neighbors, or motorists driving past may have their membership privileges suspended or revoked at the discretion of the officers.

As of this writing, we operate our four Dragonfly aerotugs exclusively at Twin Oaks Airport. We also have access to training hills. Additional sites will be opened, and we insist that you arrive at any of our sites with a full load of common sense and respect for persons and property.

NEVER DRIVE ACROSS GRASS. Do not drive into fields, or on or alongside the grass runway at any time, even to turn your car around.

PLEASE DON'T LITTER. If you don't know where to park, park with the other cars, or park on the shoulder of the road, walk in, and ask. At our grass runway, there are dirt roads at the very ends of the runway. Parallel parking is permitted along these dirt roads on the right only (as you drive in) so as not to block access by other cars. Do not park between the red & white runway markers, or in front of the flight path of descending aircraft, as your car may be hit by a trailing tow rope as the plane approaches landing.Driving irresponsibly or littering can jeopardize our leases and our permission to use the flying sites.

ALL DOGS MUST BE LEASHED & ATTENDED. Dog owners must pick up and dispose of their dogs' waste.

ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES ARE NOT PERMITTED ON SITE until the flight operations are over for the day.

ILLEGAL INTOXICANTS SHOULD NOT BE PRESENT AT THE AIRPORT.

EQUIPMENT REQUIREMENTS:

HGMA certified hang gliders (or foreign equivalent) in good repair. Double surface gliders are recommended. Some new single surface gliders aerotow well, but most early single surface gliders are not recommended due to high bar pressure experienced during fast flight. Pilots may not fly gliders that are rated Intermediate or Advanced unless they have the rating, skills, and/or experience that the manufacturer recommends.

Parachutes are required. Bridles are to be in good condition and at least 20 feet in length (25 feet is optimum). Repacks and attendance at a parachute safety clinic within the previous year are strongly encouraged. Parachutes on tandem flights must be 22 gore at minimum.

Full face helmets are required. No hockey style, soft shell, pro-tec or bicycle style helmets allowed. Visiting pilots may borrow full face helmets without charge. Special exceptions will be made only during nationally-advertised competitions.

Release mechanisms are subject to approval, and must be capable of releasing at both the top and bottom. Safety links / weak links will be provided by the Club at no charge. No other materials may be used without prior testing and approval.Wheels are required for all tandem flights, are strongly recommended for all pilots with less than 30 hours of hang glider airtime, and are encouraged for everyone else. Snap-together split wheels are not permitted for tandem and are not recommended for any other pilots, as they have been known to break apart. If you must use snap-together split wheels, they must be wrapped in duct tape.

Large (10-12") wheels are most strongly recommended.

Radios are often operated by the tug pilot and crew on USHGA channels for tow operation and novice supervision. All pilots wishing to talk on the radio are required to yield during tow operation of novices being supervised, and must either switch to another frequency or minimize radio contact on these frequencies during tow. Voice Activation (VOX) should be switched off whenever using this band; the only exception is for the pilot on tow who may use VOX only if the threshold is set very high to prevent accidental triggering.All trainees still under radio supervision of instructor add $5 per tow.

No charge for any flights released below 500 feet. Safety first! Pilots encountering any difficulties are strongly encouraged to release early and come back for a re-tow, rather than trying to "ride it out". Tows released between 1000 and 2000 feet will be charged at the 2000 feet rate.

Are you an experienced hang glider pilot, but new to aerotowing? We can help you get your skills for your AT rating:

A) USHGA Intermediate through Master rated, current pilots: No charge for ground school. First few aerotows should be in smooth morning or evening air. Tandem intro flights are available and may be required.

B) USHGA Novice with ample logged high altitude experience: Minimum 1 tandem at $95 for checkout prior to solo flying. Additional tandems may be required. No charge for ground school. First few aerotows should be in morning or evening air on beginner gliders.

C) USHGA Novice without high altitude experience: Expect to need 5 to 10 tandem lessons (or more) before towing solo.

D) USHGA Student and Beginner pilots may schedule tandem lessons with Raven Sky Sports. Reservations are strongly recommended.

Visiting Tandem Instructors may fly tandem using our aerotow system.

Protocol:

1) All appropriate ratings for pilot and passenger must be current and documents carried during the flight.

2) Pilots must have a minimum of 5 aerotow flights within the previous six months. If not current, the pilot must fly solo 5 flights on aerotow before flying with a tandem passenger.

3) Tow Fee: $40 per tandem flight to 3,000 feet (rental of tandem glider additional).

4) Attachment/release mechanism and weak-link condition are the responsibility of the tandem pilot. All tandem tows above one thousand feet are considered to be completed by Wisconsin Hang Gliding Club, even if the pilot releases early, breaks a weak-link, or experiences a problem during the flight. Problems with aerotug and/or tug pilot which results in an early release will not be charged to the tandem pilot, nor will any releases below 500 feet. Consider the weather, wind gusts, and the condition of your equipment and links prior to flying. We recommend against flying tandem in strong/gusty winds.

MORNING CHECK-IN PROCEDURE:
All pilots are welcome to call (262) 473-8800 between 6:30 - 7:30 a.m. for a live ëhang gliding briefing' on any flying day. Late changes due to weather, site changes, or equipment problems will be announced by the voice mail system (option #7, "Today's Update") at the above number, so pilots are encouraged to check for updates if arriving later in the day. If we're not too busy with flight operations, we also answer the ëhangar telephone' at (262) 473-8900 while we're on the field. Sometimes, we move to different runways (usually due to changes in wind). If we're not where we said we would be, phone in!

We're happy to have you in our club. Thanks for taking the time to read this. Please contact me or any of our officers for any reason at all.

Blue skies,
Brad Kushner,

Club Safety OfficerSky Sports Aero Tow Club, Inc. dba Wisconsin Hang Gliding Club