Electric is the way to go if you are getting back in. The evolution away from internal combustion is normal. With the lithium batteries, brushless motors and speed controllers, IC engines are dinosaurs compared to the new electrics. And the costs are comparable.
The quest for more power and better reliability has been the standard for model aviation for 100+ years.
I remember times when I would be out with my CL stunt plane and couldn't get the engine started (I think I was 8). That ruined the whole day. With e-power, I could have plugged in the battery and flown instead of trying to figure out if it was my glow battery, plug, bad fuel or whatever. And, the e-power would have been at least as powerful as the Enya 40 I was trying to start.
The thing that is brewing now is the FAA / DHS restrictions on airspace for RC models and drones. You can argue the need / reason / blame for these new restrictions, but they are here now, and we have to learn to work with or around them.
Like it or not, the LHS is now online. It may be hard to accept, but that is now the new normal for almost everything.
As for "Kids have many more options for entertainment these days", that has alway been the case. When I was in our local glider club in the late '70s, all we had were old white guys flying old gliders. And every meeting included some conversation about "How do we attract kids?". What's missing is the STEM courses in school. Remember the days when AMA and the US Navy sponsored all the public out-reach programs for aviation? Long gone now.
Embrace the change.
Last edited by ticedoff8; 01-07-2020 at 10:33 AM.