Well, here's an update...

We are having a meeting this Saturday and this topic is at the top of the agenda.

All week long members have been sending email comments on the situation to the club president and he's been forwarding to the entire club. There are strong opinions on both sides, some that make you scratch your head and say how can someone really see it that way...but by my count about 85% of those responses are in line with the "be a good neighbor and follow the club rules or go fly somewhere else" sentiment. This process has brought to a head something that has been festering for quite a while. It's a pain to have this kind of conflict, but the entire club now has a much better sense for how serious we all are about following this simple rule. Here are some of the constructive suggestions that have been vetted via this process:

1) Unless you own the property you really must proactively be a good neighbor. Who was there first has no weight. Whether or not other activities in the area or any more or less safe has no weight. The threat of being told to shut down your club and move somewhere else is very real and taking a "don't worry about them...just fly" approach is only going to accellerate the closing of the club. Here's a quote from one of my fellow club members that seems to sum this up nicely:

"This is County land, first come does not count for anything, we are ONLY guests and must
abide by AMA and County rules for the safety of all persons in the area or lose permission
to play there, simple as that. "

2) Keep rules to a minimum, put them on paper and have every club member physically sign off that they will abide by them.

3) Enforce the rules...this is through a combination of a Safety Officer (one of the most experienced/respected pilots) and by-laws that give the club officers the authority to suspend or expel someone for flagrant/repeated violations.

4) Make the "special" rules highly visible by putting them on a large sign that every pilot can see as they taxi out to the runway...

5) If someone breaks a rule, club members need to TACTFULLY correct them on the spot (point to the special rules sign and yell KLONDIKE...see post #10)...likewise, the club members being corrected need to accept the criticism without getting defensive.

6) Club officers need to believe that the rules are important and convey that consistently to the club members. It's a thankless job, especially during time of conflict, but without a strong president leading the club through it, the issue will continue to fester and damage club unity.

Through this week's email communications I'm already seeing a coming together of the opposing sides on this issue. The offenders are not really the "rule ignoring *******s" the festering resentment had made them out to be, and the proponents of adhering to the rules are not just "whiners". I'm hopefull at this weekend's meeting we'll come up with a sensible way to adress this going forward. I'll update you all on the outcome. Thanks for ALL the opinions...this has been a short but good thread!