Originally Posted by
raptureboy
I don't need much investigation to figure out that's exactly the problem Franklin. It is getting harder and harder to find a place to fly and the avg age of members is climbing. I see very few young people joining our club or others. When you go to a fly in it's almost always attended by a bunch of old guys like myself. Drones are where it's at for the go-pro you tube generation, and the AMA and the manufacturers, and hobby dealers know that is where the money is. If I didn't need a club to fly my gas planes from I would not belong to the AMA anymore. If I decide to fly only park flyers I would not even bother with the park flyer membership.
For me, I could pay $100 a year on top of AMA, and for that get to fly nitro at a rough grass field 13 miles away. Or I could fly .25 size and below electric, or any size nitro heli, or nitro CL, and fly 200 yards from my house. If I'm willing to fly 500 and below electric helis or smaller electrics, I can fly 50 yards from my house. Either way I can put the $100 a year into batteries, equipment, or kits.
Since I switched to stuff I can fly within walking distance, I'm flying WAY more often - which isn't that really the goal? I'll probably keep my nitro stuff and just throw floats on them, and fly at local lake.
Either way, no need for a club, and one could argue no need for ama either.