I had no experience in RC when I was given a Dynaflite Wanderer for Christmas. I had no knowlege of any experienced RCers in the area so after hand launching down a big hill for a while, (being in Minnesota in January) I took it out on the middle of a frozen lake and flew my heart out. No thermals out there but more importantly no trees, people or anything expensive to apologize for. I used a hi-start for launch. By Spring, I was catching thermals empty lots outside of town and had rebuilt the nose three times, the left wing completely once, the right wing was repaired. I measured my success by the number of pieces I came home with. I also learned a lot about building, and covering that winter.

I graduated to a Kadet .40 trainer that summer, and incidentally got to know some guys at the local flying field who helped me make the transition to powered flight. Honestly I would have destroyed the trainer by now if it were not for the instructor. The trainer hangs in my office and is pristine except for a scar from my first botched solo takeoff. (The put fences around the pitts for a reason!)

Learning by myself with a glider was just fine. Pick one that is gentle and slow with a good amount of dihedral, strong and simple construction two channel. Stay away from anything over 2 meter, fiberglass, or high performance. And consider starting with unpowered flight first and adding power later. Simpler-er is better-er.

The guys at the field are more than happy to help though and will save you lots of repair time and give you more time flying. Ive made a lot of good friends there. Just be honest with yourself - if you dont like to spend an hour in the shop for every minute flying, then you need to grab a buddy box.

Incidentally I got my sailplane from a guy who was trying to learn without an instructor. He jumped immediately to a .40 sized trainer and got frustrated and tired of building. He gave me his new sailplane, radios, field box, and all his accessories. He has never flown again.