Bmx2996

My Feedback: (1)

Hi everyone, today was prabably one of the worst days for a 16 yr old so far with my hobbie.
ok let me start, I just finished a plane i have been rstoring for about 3 months and it looks so beutifull...RIP.
finally saturday she was ready and i went to fly her at my club and i was so exited and just couldn.t wait for everybody to say what a good job i did!
I unloaded it and set it up for someone to look it over.....then it started....i noticed one of the members were pointing at me while discussing something with someone....(i thought he was looking at my plane and telling others about it)...but no, he came marching over to me and said my Club Dues were a week late.
I have been a member for a year now and i would kinda think that they would at least notice me about my dues in the mail.
so anyways he came up to me ( its a good thing my mom was parking the car or she would have torn him up) . He was really rude and said that its BULL that people dont pay their dues!
( you have to remember im only 16! and he was so rude to me)..sorry for my language. he gave me a speech that i should have payed my dues and said im not going to fly today because i didnt pay my dues (which i dont have a calender stored in my head, so i dont know when it was a year yet). you would think that they would at least notified me by phone or mail!..
Ad he said that i should go find another club to mess over since i forgot to pay for my dues. That ticked me OFF!
so anyways i finally gave him the $20 bucks he begged for. (this is where it gets bad) He wrote my name and asked how much my dues which i am a youth so i got the youth member ship which was $20. but the first guy i talked to went up to the president and said i should pay an extra $20 bucks because i was late on dues!....arrgggggggg.
The president wasnt a Jerk like the guy so he said no i shouldnt. The guy kept saying that i should be charged extra for being a week late.!
Then the guy i first met ,who said i should pay extra, said i someone who can afford this hobbie can afford their dues.
Im am 16 and work 2 hours a day after school in a machine shop and each week i have $60! I take that money and i Fly FULL -Scale lessons every saturday... whitch i can barely afford! it cost $72.64 an hour. so i barely cut it. id rather fly Full scale than a little RC plane anyday, but i really enjoy flying rc and is my is my anti-drug.
So After getting yelled at by some stupid old man (i forgot to mention i am the only kid in my club!!!!) I went and waited by my plane. I noticed everybody was ignoring me. no one wanted to even check my plane over. I stood their for about an hour and no one talked or even looked at me. sually im always talking to somebody, sharing tips or something. everybody knew i had a new plane and usually evry time i bring a new plane evrybody surrounds me. but no , everybody gave me the silence treatment.
Finally asked somebody i know to check out my plane for me. He walked over and barely checked it. He raelly didnt check it that well, he was very strange acting towards me. ( Its like no one wanted me at the feild) So he checked it and we got her up......and on the way for landing she wouldnt pull up......
She dove in the ground at close to 60MPH. head first.
What happened was that (i have really a lack of experiance of building. The CG on my plane went out! I rubber banded a few metal peices to get the cg right. and they all fell out during flight.

Everybody just watched my nice plane crash for a few seconds and just turned away and started talking away again. At least the guy that crahsed my plane helped me pick up the peices.
Usually when someone crashes a plane everybody at least helps out.

Thats why your supposed to get someone to check your plane, but no, the guy checked it half way. probably because i was late on my dues. so , i basicly quit and since i now have no support i will eventuall just sell all my planes since i really have no support anymore( Wich is a really important factor for a Juvenile). my club has basicly disowned me and now i will just take the hint and get the heck out of there! I payed my dues and they can take it and enjoy it
I hope this story of my memorial weekend gave some of you alesson on how important the next generation of RCers is .
No wonder there are less kid than old grumpy men. (im not ripping on all old men) but most of them are just selfish and really dont give a hoot about the next GEN.

( and no one said anything how nice my plane looked)

it was nice knowing you guys and this will prob. my last post at rcu. or you might see me in the for sale area

-nick


I edited this post to remove some of the off color wording. The context of the post was not altered. Thanks Dave

Taildragger

My Feedback: (204)

Nick, If your story is accurate I would like to be the first one to apologize. You need to reveal the name of the club so we can hear both sides of story though. It's only fair. Is there not another club within driving distance that would take you in?

nedyob

My Feedback: (67)

HELLO NICK,
DON'T GIVE UP ON WHAT YOU LIKE DOING.TRY AND FIX YOUR PLANE OR KEEP THE ENGINE AND TX FOR YOUR NEXT PROJECT.CHECK RCU OUT FOR A GOOD USED TRAINER AND START AGAIN.
IF YOU GIVE UP THEY WIN,IF YOU HANG IN THERE AND LEARN TO FLY, YOU WIN.
I THINK EVERONE HER AT RCU KNOW WHAT ITS LIKE WHAT YOU WENT THROUGH TODAY, BUT DON'T LET ONE PERSON CHANGE WHAT YOU WANNA DO.
REMEMBER YOU WILL BE AROUND ALOT LONGER THEN THAY WILL BE,AND BELIVE ME WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND.SOMETIMES IT TAKES AWHILE.
I'M A CHARTERED MEMBER IN MY CLUB AND KNOW THAT CLUBS NEED THERE MONEY TO KEEP THERE FLYING FIELD AND CLUBS GOING.SO PAYING DUES IS IMPORTANT.I ALSO KNOW THAT THE YOUNGER GENERATION IS IMPORTANT TOO.JUST HANG IN THERE YOUR ROAD TO SOLOING IS NOT THAT FAR DOWN THE ROAD.BUT REMEMBER EVERONE NEEDS TO DO THERE PART IN THE CLUB.
NEDYOB

tinman

My Feedback: (13)

i hope that some1 from ama is reading yur letter....also if what you say is the abolute truth...clean up yur letter and send a copy to the club president and at top also put cc: your area ama director cc:ama president. then jus sit back and wait. you will be driving soon also and may look for a diff flying club.

-Tinman-

tinman

My Feedback: (13)

hi nick,all.....does that club have a web site nick? address? if so plz post it here for me...i like writing letters.
-Tinman- <----turning the big 50 in 65 days...

fliers1

Nick,
I will make a deal with you. If you come to my area for two days, I will spend up to 4 hours a day teaching you to fly using my equipment, my time and my fuel. I have several trainers that you can fly, you won't be responsible for any damage and I can almost guarantee that you will be able to fly safely on your own within that time. BTW, this offer to help is absolutely FREE.

Take care,
CCR
http://www.kites.org/rc_instructors

Flying Scotsman

If story is true then I sympathise with everyone who gets treated like this by the elitests at the flightline. Going by the list of planes in your profile & for a 17 year old "without much money" you seem to love R/C, so don't give up your planes yet!

Happy Flying!

nchrome

Nick don't let a few of these old people force you out of this hobby. Calm down a bit and do like advised about the letter. All clubs need thier youth. You might of messed up a little but they messed up a lot. Our club is haveing a hard time getting new menbers cause of verious things. But I plan on hanging around for a while and hope to see more youth come into the hobby.

seafury_fb11

Nick,
First of all, I'd like to apologize for your club's behavior. If what you say is accurate, they are way out of line.

Second, everyone has a bad day now and then. Don't let it get you down too much, and don't let it ruin you love for the hobby. It sounds to me like you really enjoy flying R/C and you should stick with it. If you find that people around you are acting like jerks, just ignore them. The way I've always dealt with that kind of arrogance is to just tell myself that it's not me with the problem, it's them. If they are giving you the cold shoulder, then that is their downfall and you are the better man by ignoring it and by not treating others in that manner. I can tell you that I have enjoyed this hobby for over twenty years and still love it! Getting involved in R/C planes was probably one of the best things I've ever done for myself and I think that you deserve to have many years of enjoyment in the hobby also. Please don't sell you planes, stick with it. I think the previous suggestion(s) to send a letter to you club's president is a good one. Who knows, if you tell them how you feel, they might even apologize.

Russ.

Jazzy

Nick, I feel for ya dude!
As mentioned above, clean up your letter, make two copies, send/give one to the club president and send the other to your district president. Request that the member who gave you such grief be reprimanded formally and give you a personal apology.

Sounds to me like no one in the club wants to stand up to this guy. Now that I'm off probation I'd be happy to accompany you to your field and deal with this poor excuse of a man.

Usually the due date for club dues is handled at club meetings and posted in news letters. Try to find out why you missed the date and maybe some good will come of it for future members.

Getting both sides of the story is rather necessary for an accurate assessment of the situation.

Jeff

robert

I would be very carefull with what you do though, as often, naming and shaming them will do little forr your habby. Remember, you are in this for the fun, so no matter what anyone else says or does, just have your fun. If you send a letter out, chances are that everyone else in the club who was also ignoring you, will treat you badly for the rest of time at the club. This will obviously RUIN you. If the club president was also acting the b****, then it is alot more serious. The fact that he is there for keeping everyone else happy, but left you out is a serious matter, and that should definately be investigated. I had a similar incedent when I didn't pay my dues as I was unaware, but they didn't mess me up. I was chatting to someone one the phone, and he said, "ohhh by the way, we forgot to mention to you that......."
Just be carefull with what you do, and try not to make matters worse.
Robert.

Bmx2996

My Feedback: (1)

Thanks for all of your help guys, im going to call the president today,(he wasnt at the feild the day that it happened, he's the better part of the club) hes the one who taught me to fly and he is always nice.
i have already soloed and been flying for about 3 months
non- training. Im going to take roberts and not mention any names but the one who was really rude, i wouldn't want to ruin it for me.
I really dont know if they do have a site or not. I thnk im going t get my mustang up ad give it one moretry a the club, if everything isnt going good ill just pack up and say goodbye.
I think eerybody WAS scared to stand up to the Rude guy.
Maybe i should jus report the rude guy.? After all he was the only one to talk to me the whole day.

depfife

My Feedback: (14)

Nick,

Sorry to hear about the trouble. I don't know you, don't know your club, and don't know any of the members. I would suggest a little different approach than most of the others have suggested.

First, I have to wonder if your story is completely true. In your first post you said the president was there.

"the first guy i talked to went up to the president and said i should pay an extra $20 bucks because i was late on dues!....arrgggggggg."

In your last post you say the president was not there.

"im going to call the president today,(he wasnt at the feild the day that it happened"

You also say that you are 16, but in your profile you claim to be 17.

Second, the language in your first post is rude and should not be used on this forum. This makes me wonder if your conduct at the field may have caused some of the treatment you received.

I would suggest going to the president and asking him if you have done anything that might have caused the other members to treat you like they did. You can tell about the incident, but I would not approach him as if I were telling on the other members. I would see if I had done anything wrong. If the others were out of line, I would think the president would take care of it, and you might get some insight into how others perceive you. Others don't always see us in the same way that we think they do.

I hope everything works out and you continue in this great hobby.

Eric

Bmx2996

My Feedback: (1)

this is to "depfi"


I meant to say the guy who collects dues... vice president i think.

i know im telling the truth......and i know for a fact i didnt do anything or disrespect the members at my club to make them mad because when they need a hand im there or when something broke id beglad to replace it or if they need to use my tools,they can use them.

The reason for the profile is i turn 17 in less than a month. close enough

Rude? i was "quoting" the guy, and expressing my feelings..

everybody at the feild loves me ( or used to i think) they always root me on and are nice to me, Just this one day really twisted it up.

about 1 out of 3 times i go to the feild the president is out there..
he's barely there



-nick

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

As you can see I edited your post to remove some of the off color language. As a member of the old Dudes group, I can tell you that what happened was not in my opioion right or correct. I can also tell you that I do not agree with the way that your training program is run. A good instructor will always check over the students plane, from prop to tail. However the solution to the problem is by using tact and consideration. The situation needs to be approached in an adult manner with nothing but calm and decorme. You should not allow any one to take away your hobby if you really enjoy it. Do what ever it takes to get another plane ready and if the fellows at your club won't help you, give me a shout, I will. Above all, remain clam, cool, and collected and keep smiling. I have discovered a smile is worth at least 5 cuss words and works with so much more effect. Good Luck Dave

Jazzy

Ah yes. The voices of reason. Rational thought-who'da thunk it?
(It is a rhetorical question. )

CaptainHook

My Feedback: (80)

Sorry to read about your club problems. If you should need some help resolving this matter, email me. I agree with the others, you need to clean up your letter if you decide to send one. I certainly hope this is not the club I believe it may be. The AMA VP was not very happy with them a couple of years ago.

Carey

gubbs3

My Feedback: (1)

Sorry to hear about that. As a 16 year old myself, I know what its like to be treated like a no good delinquent. I haven't been around the field for very long so nearly every time I go out I get asked if I'm a member because they hadn't seem me before. I say "yea" and show them my card so its all good. When I go to fly there's usually a few people that I know are watching out of the corner of their eye to see if I mess up. I was a very quick learner and have gotten bunch of compliments on my flying from the "old guys" so that put a self-confidence factor into my flying when I know people a watching.

My point is, you should be prepared to be treated like a dumb kid, just take it so you can shut up the old guys when you get back from the flight line.

Disclaimer - No offense to the "old guys" that read this thread. I have been helped out by many of them that have been very nice to me. There are only a few that spoil to bunch.

Tattoo

Don't quit, or they win.

That's the spirit! Take it as a challenge, and make them eat their sorry attitudes.

onewinglow

My Feedback: (1)

Nick,
Like someone said in this post don't give up, or they win!
We have a few peiople like that at are club, but don't let them bother you. Just remeber that your eyes are better and your reflexes faster so use your advantage and learn to out fly them.
Then you will get the respect you want.
I think that you being a week late on your dues should be no big deal, so I don't quite understand why they gave you such a hard time.
I help lots of new members, and as long as they listen and try to learn I enjoy helping them.
Good luck!
Scott

CaptainHook

My Feedback: (80)

To all of you that have been following this thread, I have made contact with Nick. He has privately emailed me the club name and it was as I suspected. I and a few other members had a problem with this club a couple of years ago. It had to do with getting kids involved and goe's much farther than that, but I will not get into details at this point and maybe not at all. Trust me, this club has some real losers, but most are good members. I was hoping that I would not here of any more wrong doings by this club, and had put them in the back of my mind. Now, after reading this, I have a bitter taste in my mouth again. I'm hoping Nick will take my offer so we can get to the bottom of this. Bill Oberdieck will be interested in this if you want to take it one more step Nick.

Carey

RedWing

My Feedback: (4)

Nick,

Sorry for your problems.
I would like to invite you to our club but it is at least 50 miles away in White Lake, MI (Pontiac Miniature Airplane Club).
Maybe you could come down some weekend when we have an event.

I am 41 (flying for 3 years) and I see the attitudes of the long time flyers (old timers) that you talk about. Some of the old timers expect that you are at the club all the time and helping out every week. What I did was get involved in the club in my own way. My time is limited to do events and cleanup, so I help out on our newsletter. I have written several articles. I show up and fly when I can, I offer help anytime someone needs it. I refuse to get upset over the attitudes of some of the members. You will always have jerks, it's how you handle them that counts.

I have always wanted to fly full scale, but for now R/C will do and I will not let a couple of jerks get in my way. I have wanted to quit especially immediately after soloing. I had a couple of encounters with the old timers. Stay with it, I did.

Here is our Internet address. PMAC
Check out the newsletters.

I feel especially bad that it happened in our state.

Bill

Mluvara

My Feedback: (10)

Just a few words of encouragement for the young.... Nick, et al.

I started in this hobby when I was 8 years old in 1986. I've been flying ever since and have managed to gain the respect of many in our club and surrounding areas. It's tough being young because you have a lot to learn - and a lot to learn the rest of your life. Some people can be rude, and don't think that young individuals are mature and label them as so even though they may be more mature than at face value.

Keep your chin up and do what's right. Be polite, have a smile on your face, and enjoy the hobby. I've been fortunate enough to be part of a a great club (approximately 400 members - http://www.sccmas.org) and have worked my way up the ladder from newsletter editor (1996-2001) to currently being the club VP at age 23. I now run most of the day to day operations of the club, maintain the database, deal with the county where we lease our land, and field the club phone/fax at my house. In the past two years, I've had three articles published in R/C magazines and one in the AMA national museum newsletter. I do this because I want to. Part of it is my chance to give back to those whom have helped me so much in the sport and the other is to make myself a better person.

It's unfortunate that youths sometimes have problems like this in clubs. We have several (age 7-18) in our club that are flying as part of the group and that's the way it should be. I look past people's age and don't even worry about how old I am. Sure, I've run into much opposition in my life because of my age in different things. Do I know everything? Am I perfect? No. Do I make mistakes? Yes. I live and learn along my way. I try my best every day to do the right things.

The point of the story is to set goals and have people believe in you. Meet those goals, and and enjoy yourself. You'll always run into people in your life that give you flack, or some problems and you sometimes have to look past it. I've had many people believe in me at a young age and I think it pays off. At 19, I was given the opportunity to work at Hewlett-Packard. I'm still there today as I finish my engineering degree. Someone believed in me and I believed in myself.

Nick, it looks like you're setting goals. Having a part time job to earn money for the hobby and for flying full scale means a lot at a young age. It shows responsibility. In my book, you're doing good because there's a lot of really bad things out there a lot of people are doing at your age.

I don't know the whole story to this thread (just as it was presented), but it seems like it could happen the way it was presented and I wouldn't be surprised.

Regards,
Michael Luvara
SCCMAS
www.sccmas.org