SHGA Celebrates 20 Years in Sylmarwith Huge Event on Saturday, June 28th

by Lynn McLaughlin

On Saturday, June 28th, we celebrate the 20th anniversary ofthe founding of Sylmar Hang Gliding Association (SHGA)and the 30th anniversary of the first National Hang GlidingCompetition, which was held in 1973 right here in Sylmar!

The celebration, held from noon to dusk, will also hosta hang gliding flight duration contest between StateSenator Richard Alarcon (D. Sun Valley) and Los AngelesCity Council president Alex Padilla (7th District). And, wewill add a third participant from the UPNnews media, Maria Quiban. Also attend-ing will be well known pilots from theFirst National Competition, communityorganizations and leaders from the UnitedStates Forestry Service, Federal AviationAssociation, and Sylmar Chamber ofCommerce, among others.

We are looking forward to displays fromthe U.S. Army, Los Angeles County Fire andLos Angeles Police departments, the SylmarChamber of Commerce, hang gliding manu-facturers, Windsports and Acme Paragliding.The opening ceremonies will include myfriend Rebekkah Del Rio singing the National anthem. Therewill be games for the kids held throughout the day and a barbe-cue for Club members and their families at the end of the day.

Wills Wing has graciously offered to sponsor a display ofa wide variety of vintage and modern gliders from the 1970sto the new state-of-the-art gliders constructed from carbonfiber and mylar. If you own a vintage glider, we would behappy to add it to the display. Please contact Joe Greblo atWindsports to coordinate adding your glider to the display.

Rome Dodson is working with the Sylmar Chamber ofCommerce to solicit donations from local merchants to raffleoff. So far, we have wonderful prizes donated by WarnerBrothers and others on the way. The money raised will bene-fit SHGA. Be sure to get your raffle tickets at the event!

20 Years as a ClubSHGA becoming 20 years old is not a casual accom-

plishment. All you have to do is take a look around our LZto see the challenges we have faced and continue to man-age, as we maintain a vital community presence. Very fewhang gliding flight parks remain in the United States andeven fewer exist in the midst of urban development.

There are poignant reasons we are the exception—mostof them centering around our continued efforts as commu-

nity activists, our indomitable spirit aspilots and as a well-organized club. In thepast two decades there have been morethan a few occasions where our existenceas a flight park has been in jeopardy.

As part of our upcoming birthday cele-bration, I thought it would be valuable tobring the hang gliding community up tospeed on what has been required of us tostay open over the past 20 years. The firststep is to share the history of our site witheveryone. There is a special article on thehistory of SHGA written by RichardSeymour. Please be sure to look for it in

the June issue of Hang Gliding Magazine. Richard did exten-sive research and spent a great deal of time interviewing our“geezer” pilots and digging through piles of old newsletters,pictures and flight memoirs. Many thanks Richard!

The reality is, when we get together in June, we cele-brate a lot more than becoming 20 years old as a Club! Wecelebrate our founding pilots, our neighbors and the localrepresentatives that have stepped up to the plate to supportus when no one else would.

So come to the party on Saturday, June 28th. Bring oldhang gliding t-shirts, pictures and flight stories. Bring yourfamily and friends. And, bring your pride as a hang gliderpilot of SHGA and Sylmar, The Hang Gliding Capital ofthe World!

We are the current generation of over 30 years of hang gliding in Sylmar.

June, 2003

20th Anniversary Edition

1969: Bill Bennet flies Sylmar.1973: First U.S. Nationals (Annie Greensprings) held in

Sylmar.1974: Otto Lilenthal Meet; 300 gliders make 1,200 flights

without injury.• Southern California Hang Gliding School

(Windsports) opened by Rich Grigsby and JoeGreblo.

• Second U.S. Nationals held at Sylmar. 1976: Phil Warrender, Jack Franklin and Gary Valle launch

from Kagel mountain.1977-1980: First attempt to form SHGA; lack of pilot

commitment dooms effort.1978: First Bob LaFay cartoon published in Hang Gliding

Weekly on February 27.1979: Rome Dodson and Jack Jungerman fly Kagel on

May 24.• Windsports (Rich Grigsby) begins teaching hang

gliding to Intermediate students that summer1982: First Annual Sylmar Fly-in and BBQ on January 3.1983: the Critical Year

• Old LZ on Olive View Drive lost.• Polk Street LZ lost.• Olive View Hospital LZ lost.• Wood launch ramp built on Kagel for Dale

Feddison, who lost use of his legs in an ultralightaccident. Dale rolls down ramp on wheels fortakeoff in his Seagull 10 meter.

• Manufacturer’s Meet held in May.• Mrs. Chaney writes to Los Angeles City Councilman

Howard Finn, complaining about pilot’s behavior.• Articles about problems appear in Los Angeles

Times; Herald Examiner.• Councilman Finn proposes guidelines; including

possibility of city-wide ban of hang gliding. Adhoc committee formed.

• Pilots meeting held in LZ on October 30.• Petition drive idea from Rome Dodson; organized

by Craig Baker. 95% of residents polled favorabletowards hang gliding.

• First Hi Times newsletter published by Wayne Yentis.• Formation of Sylmar Hang Gliding Association

(SHGA).1984: After extensive Club lobbying, ad hoc committee

recommends City table regulation proposals for oneyear, to give SHGA chance to self-regulate pilots.• Black Sunday. Severe thunderstorm hits Kagel;

pilots scattered over 200 sq. mile area. No injuries.1984-1992: Kagel launch ramp rebuilt three times.1986: Dockweiler Beach training hill closed.1987: Hang II pilot killed launching at Towers; hook in

failure.• Army Corps of Engineers proposes flood control

“mini-dams” topped with 6 ft. fences in LZ.• SHGA joins Sylmar Days parade.

SHGA History—1969 to 1988

On June 28, 2003, the Sylmar Hang Gliding Association(SHGA) will celebrate 20 years of continued existence.There will be a number of events involving local and visit-ing pilots, current and retired, as well as activities sharedwith our Sylmar neighbors, and the community at large.There will becompetitions,exhibits, and acommemoration,followed by aBBQ at the LZ.

This celebra-tion is in honorof all of thosepeople: pilots,teachers, enthu-siasts, specta-tors, familymembers, localofficials and home owners who have, over the last twodecades, given their time, energy and support to, at first,create and then maintain the existence of the club, andthus the availability of one of the oldest and most famoushang gliding sites worldwide.

The significance of this upcoming event cannot beunderstated because the pride of accomplishment the Clubmembers sense and the pleasure that will be felt by themas they celebrate will be underlined and accented by thefact that, by any objective view of the history and geogra-phy of the area, it is nothing short of a miracle that this isstill a major flying site.

The story of how the SHGA formed, grew and unceas-ingly fought to keep Sylmar open, is a fascinating glimpseat how a small group of activists, never more than a dozenor so key players at a time, backed by no more than a fewhundred Club members, kept at bay formidable antago-nists with vast resources. It is also an example to all hanggliding clubs worldwide how to protect themselves andtheir interests. By learning what happened at Sylmar, anyClub can copy and adapt these survival skills.

If we can keep our site open, you can keep yours open too.

Sylmar before 1983.The history of the Sylmar/Kagel flying site (see sidebar)

has been published in newsletters, magazines, books andmost recently on the current SHGA Web site. Club members

SHGA Celebrates 20thAnniversary... and 30Years of Competitonby Richard Seymour

Michael Helms flys his Raven over Sylmarin the early 1980s.

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1988: Erwin McDavid begins living in LZ.• LZ moved back to original location.• Flood control fence proposal withdrawn.• Site Monitor program begun.• Shade “gazebo” built in LZ.• True Flight Concepts hang gliding school opened

by Matt Spinelli and Don Quackenbush on May 28.• Fire burns launch area on October 16; ramp

escapes damage.• Control tower opens at nearby Whiteman airport,

placing LZ within Terminal Control Area (TCA).• SHGA obtains Special Permit to operate in TCA.

1989: Karl Stice forgets to hook in while launchingTowers; successfully lands in LZ on April 6.• Katherine Yardley sets Women’s Open Distance

record in Owens Valley on July 13.1990: Hungary Joe begins living in LZ.

• Arson/Crime Watch program started in August.1991: Bob LaFay publishes Far Gone Flyin’, collection of

cartoons.• Grass planted in LZ.• Joe Greblo buys house across street from LZ.

1992: Hungary Joe starts “Flying Circus.”• Julia Chandler killed in airplane crash in Simi

Valley on June 30.1993: Park Service proposes charging for rescuing

individuals engaged in “reckless” activities,including hang gliding.• California Condors return to area May 2.• Greatest Bob LaFay cartoon (“Hangover” featuring

Coyote and Roadrunner) published in Hi Times.• Fee drop off box installed; immediate increase in

visitors’ dues.• J Shelley and George Stebbins married on launch

on August 29. Reception in LZ.• Paul Coelho killed at Torrey Pines on September 17.

1994: Brian Berg killed in Mexico while paragliding onJanuary 8.• Earthquake hits on January 17; raises Kagel

launch 15 ft. Air space closed.• Joe Greblo, Gene Davies and Dave Barton obtain

waiver; Kagel reopens January 24.• Dogs banned from LZ in November.• Cabbagehead joins club; breaks downtube on April 4.• First Christmas Party/Talent Show, organized by

Toby Fazio, held on December 17.1995: Developers of Santiago Estates Phase II unable to

obtain financing. Without financing, there can be nocompletion, therefore no handover of title. Withouttitle, Club cannot obtain state Conditional Use Permit.• U.S. Forest Service considers installation of gate

on dirt road to launch, makes promises that pilotswill have access to keys/permits. Since similarpromises were made concerning gates on Big T.,May Canyon and Mt. Lukens, all subsequentlyclosed, Club opposes move.

SHGA History—1988 to 1995Craig Baker and John Wickham, in particular, have writtendetailed descriptions of the formative years.

Since Bill Bennet first flew Sylmar in 1969, this sitehas been in the forefront of the hang gliding phenomenon.Sylmar quickly became popular because of its excellentconditions: the right wind direction 300 days of the yearand the moderately strong, reliable thermals. It was theclosest mountain flying to one of the cradles of modernhang gliding, the California “beach scene.” Well main-tained roads, for the most part paved, combined with un-developed landing zones (LZs), helped as well.

This fortunate combination led to Sylmar being consid-ered and dubbed “The Hang Gliding Capital of the World.”Sylmar led all other sites in total pilot membership, accu-mulated flying hours, and multiplicity of local hang glidingschools and glider manufacturers. Many of the innovationsin the sport were created or at least tested here, and manyof the pioneers of the sport resided locally, as some still do.

Sylmar/Kagel can no longer claim to be the worldheadquarters, as the competitions, major meets and recordattempts have moved elsewhere. Yet it is arguable thatSylmar is still the most visible site to the general public,due to its location in the Los Angeles metropolitan area,and the film, television and media exposure this locationhas. Whether featured in an episode of “Blind Date,” a re-run of “Baywatch,” or a commercial showing Joe Greblo’sstunt company, uncounted thousands of people have beenexposed to hang gliding in some way.

However, the very popularity of the site set the stage forits near-certain demise.

From the very beginning, two factors began to confronteach other. Two very different populations, with oppositeideologies, desires and dreams collided head-on.

One of many LZs at Kagel, circa 1970s.

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1996: Santiago Estates receives funding; developers wishto change terms of agreements—Los Angeles CityCouncilman Richard Alarcon supports original titletransfer agreement; arranges hearings.• Joe Greblo and John Wickham attend community

meetings.• Bob England killed while paragliding at Torrey

Pines on June 1.• True Flight Concepts closes.• Four pilots suspended for two months for soaring

while helicopter rescue took place on October 11.• Dave “RC” Freund suspended for six months for

launching during helicopter rescue on October 11.• Dino DiNaso suspended for one year for performing

aerobatic manuevers over houses on October 11.• Joe Greblo writes letter to Board of Directors

expressing extreme concern about increasingClub-wide disregard for rules.

• Caitlin Elizabeth Benti born in New Hampshire onSeptember 5.

1997: SHGA receives title to LZ in January.• Club financial situation deteriorates.• Newsletter published semi-monthly.• Glider Storage Rack begins construction; Club finan-

cial situation improves after private loan of $5,000.1998: Nearby Mission College (LAMC) announces plan to

expand by buying nearby golf course, and relocatinggolf course in Paicoma wash in June. This wouldeffectively end all non-advanced pilot flying.• Club members, led by Joe Greblo, John Wickham and

Larry Chamblee, “meet with homeowners, attendcountless meetings, consult with numerous communi-ty groups, join local chamber of commerce, hire polit-ical consultant, and wage public relations campaign.”

• Trancas site in Malibu closed in October.• LAMC misses deadline to spend state funds; aban-

dons expansion plan.1999: Mike “Hollywood” Champlin killed in New Mexico

while attempting spins in rigid-wing Millenium glideron July 1.• Dockweiler Beach training hill reopens. City proclaims

September 9th as Los Angeles Hang Gliding Day. 2000: Wood ramp replaced by steeper dirt ramp;2001: Dino DiNaso banned from LZ on August 22.

• Avenue L site closed.• FAA closes all airspace on September 11.• Kagel reopens for flying on September 17.

2002: Mt. Wilson LZ closed, September. Forces closure of site.Forest Service closes local mountain roads becauseof extreme fire danger on September 24.• Rains return; Kagel reopens in December.• FAA complains of near-miss of hang glider by 737

over West Towers.• Windsports closes Van Nuys shop; moves opera-

tion to Greblo house across from LZ.2003: Work begins on second glider storage rack.

• 20th Anniversary of the founding of SHGA; partyheld June 28.

SHGA History—1996 to 2003On the one hand, the land hunger of the flood of work-

ers who manned the factories in the exploding aerospace,automotive and construction industries led to an unsur-passed building boom. This boom had already developedalmost all of the City of L.A. The northwest corner of theSan Fernando valley in Sylmar was one of the few placesleft. These people wanted a piece of the American dream,

and a new house up nearthe mountains within com-muting distance of theirworkplace was that dream.Once they got their dream,all of their energy (andmoney) was tied up in it.

On the other hand therewere hang gliding pilots.

Hang gliding, as MikeMeier of Wills Wing hassaid, started as a uniquemanifestation of its time;i.e. the counter-culture

movement of the late sixties and early seventies. Thecounter-culture rejected ties with traditional society, and feltthat suburban living in tract houses was the epitome ofeverything it despised. This was, of course, because most ofthe pilots had grown up in the suburbs. The counter-culturecelebrated freedom, rebelled instinctively against any formof rules or authority, and had a tribal us-versus-them mental-ity. Not to mention the fact that most of the pilots werebroke. Many of the best pilots of those days had these char-acteristics, as do some of the best pilots of today!

The pilots who flew over those little pastel-coloredboxes believed that they were special, and they were.Unfortunately this was sometimes expressed as contemptfor the mere mortals living in the boxes. The neighborhoodwas quick to pick up on this attitude, and its physical mani-festations of trash, noise and disregard for safety and theirpeace of mind.

Chris Wills, winner of the 1975Annie Greensprings’ U. S. HangGliding Nationals.

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Fritz Coleman, KNBC channel 4, awards SHGA the “Spirit ofSouthern California Award” as Club members look on, 1987.

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Not contentwith this smol-dering volcanoof bad publicrelations, whichwas soon toerupt, the pilotshad also man-aged to annoyquite a few otherorganizations.The U.S. ForestService wasvery concernedover pilots flying and possibly blocking the launch point ofthe rescue helicopters stationed at Camp 9. The City andCounty Fire Chiefs were tired of rescuing downed pilotsfrom the mountainside, and putting out the fires caused bypilots hitting the power lines. Southern Calif. Edison, thelocal power company, was likewise not amused. TheLAPD and the County Sheriffs were tired of answeringcalls from enraged neighbors. The companies that rentedand maintained the microwave relay station on Towers,notably ITT-Gilfillan, were afraid of lawsuits by pilots whomight suffer ill-effects from microwave radiation.

In early 1983, everything came to a head.

1983: The Critical Year.In the beginning of that fateful year, Joe Greblo learned of

plans to build little league baseball diamonds in the Paicomawash LZ. The City of L.A. started to hold meetings to hearcommunity input. Joe began to attend these meetings.

At the same time, the group of developers for SantiagoEstates announced plans to build pre-fabricated homes onthe plateau to the east of the wash. The City Planning Dept.requested that the developers accommodate all of the com-munity needs before beginning construction. Joe attendedthese meetings as well, where he made sure that hang glid-ing would be included in the final plan. This plan envi-sioned the developers giving title to the west of the wash toparcels meeting the needs of the local community college(LAMC), the little leaguers (SIBL), and of course the hanggliders. Since a title has to be given to an entity, the needto form (reincarnate) a local clubbecame obvious.

This need became more acutewhen all of the remaining LZs inthe Sylmar area closed. The relent-less forces of development closedPolk Street, Olive View Drive, andeven the emergency landing zonenext to the hospital. Still, if a clubcould be formed, and received titleto its’ own LZ, then hang glidingin the area seemed assured.

Then, disaster struck. A long, pent-up resentment on thepart of some of the neighbors caused an avalanche of badpublicity.

A certain Mrs. Chaney, who was a retired PhD, wrote aletter of complaint to the local newspapers and to thenL.A. City Councilman Howard Finn. The L.A. Times andthe Herald Examiner ran articles detailing the myriadproblems caused by the pilots. Councilman Finn then pro-posed guidelines, which included the possibility of ban-ning hang gliding altogether. On the advice of the CityAttorney, this ban would have to be city-wide.

Local pilot J. Fred Lucas contacted the City to find outthe details of the proposals. He then mailed copies(postage paid by the USHGA) to all the USHGA membersin L.A. County, inviting them to an emergency pilots’meeting on October 30. Meeting in the garage of theBennett house on a rainy day, 75 pilots debated the crisisand what to doabout it. At thatmeeting, it wasagreed to recon-stitute theSHGA as aCaliforniaCorporation,and officers ofthe Board ofDirectors werenominated andelected.

Little didthose pilots whowere gathered there that night realize that, for some of them,life would never be the same. A few of them became life-long political activists. They remained pilots; free at heart,but something had changed. If they wanted to keep flying atSylmar, they had to become committed to being part of soci-ety. That part of their rebellion was over. They now had to begood neighbors as well as good pilots. The hardest part ofthat was yet to come. To keep the site open, the Board ofDirectors had to police and discipline their fellow pilots, agroup that resisted rules instinctively, and would suffer abusebecause of it.

Perhaps it was a mercy that noneof the new officers realized whereall this was headed. The Club wasformed, and the battle joined!

It was now that Rome Dodsoncame up with his petition idea. Whynot find out just exactly where thepilots stood with the neighbors?Baker organized the petition drive,and pilots spread out through thearea, clipboards in hand. They wentdoor-to-door in the immediate vicin-

“Save Wilson Canyon Day” with stateassemblyman Richard Katz (on horse).

Dino DiNaso, as the Easter Bunny, helpsout at a fly-in for the Spastic Children’sFoundation, 1986.

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The early Kagel LZ full of standards.

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ity of the landing area. The results were sur-prising! It seems that 95% of the locals sam-pled approved of hang gliding in their neigh-borhood!

Meanwhile, the City Council, at thebehest of Councilman Finn, formed an adhoc committee, including all interested par-ties, to study the situation. At this firstmeeting, Joe Greblo represented the nation-al organization (USHGA) and J. Fred Lucas,newly elected president, the represented thefledgling SHGA. Attendees also representedthe FAA, homeowners, the U.S. Forest Service, the CountyFire Dept., local police and Southern California Edison.According to Joe, with the exception of himself and J.Fred, there was not one person in that room who didn’twant hang gliding permanently banned. Fortunately, theChief Field Officer for Councilman Finn made it clear thatno attempt to impose regulation from the City would bemade without an attempt to solve the problems locally.The Councilman’s attitude was influenced by the petitionresults. This gave Joe and J. Fred the window of opportu-

nity to try andcome up with amodus vivendiwith the com-munity.

At the ad hocmeetings, Joeand J. Fred man-aged to arrangea “consensus ofcourtesy” withthe major play-ers. Step bystep, their con-

cerns were met, and their resistance to hang gliding beganto subside. As a result, the committee agreed to recom-mend that a one year period would be granted to theSHGA to make good on it’s promises of self-regulation.

Hang gliding still had a chance at Sylmar.

After 1983.The year went by, and because of the absence of com-

plaints, the proposed guidelines were again tabled, wherethey remain to this day.

The next few years saw the Club grow, until it reacheda total of more than 200 members. The activists and Clubofficers vigilantly enforced the rules. The newsletter waspublished regularly, and a strong Site Monitor programestablished. Self regulation was working. Still, the clubwas never really secure. As one city official told JoeGreblo, after being asked what would happen if after 4 or5 years of safe operation a pilot crashed into someone’shouse, “Jesus Christ, Joe. Don’t let that happen! The citywill have no choice but to close down your operations.”

While most of the pilots recognized theneed for the 10 (now 12) simple rules,there still was a “wildman” element thattried the patience of the Club officers.Those most dedicated to the Club met withthe most abuse. This started a cycle thatcontinues to this day; i.e. Club officers areelected and sworn in, do their best toenforce the rules and maintain good rela-tions with the neighbors, get burned out,and then resign or refuse to run for re-elec-tion. Whoever coined the phrase “herding

cats” must have had hang glider pilots in mind.Still, there were activists who did not give up, and the

skills and contacts made during 1983 came in handy in thefollowing years.

Towers launch was lost for awhile, but after enlistingsupport from the City Council and Fire Dept, the Camp 9pilots and ITT-Gilfillan bought into granting a 2-year per-mit. The (relative) absence of problems since have allowedthis to remain a Hang IV launch.

Nearby Whiteman airport received a control tower in1988, which upgraded its status to Class D, which thennecessitated a Terminal Control Area (TCA), which swal-lowed the new Sylmar LZ! A letter writing campaign tothe local politicos helped the club receive a special permitto retain flying at the site.

During the late 1980s, a series of community involvementactivities were started. Rome Dodson came up with the ideaof an Arson/Crime Watch program that gained national pub-licity. The Club began entering gliders and “floats” in theannual Sylmar Days parade. This led to SHGA being, for awhile, a yearly entry in the infamous Pasadena “Doo-Dah”parade. Many service events and charity drives were held bythe Club to benefit cancer and cerebral palsy-stricken kids.The Club made arrangements with the Graffiti Busters, a pro-gram that places probationers with itchy spray paint triggerfingers in community service. They have pulled a lot of weedsin the LZ over the years, and have been exposed to somethingmuch more fun than vandalizing freeway overpasses!

Pilot LaCroix in the LZ, 1987.

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(l to r) Jeff Scott, Greg Tettemer, BobRodriguez, Gary Mosher and Andy Pililau.

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(l to r) Michael Helms, ColinHansen and Pat Sheedy.

These efforts to reach out to the community helpedcement the bonds established earlier. However, throughoutthe early 1990s there were counter currents that spelled dan-ger to the Club. Local sites continued to be closed, such asSoboba, Trancas and the local Simi Valley and Chatsworthtraining hills. The newsletter began to be published intermit-tently, and the Site Monitor Program slowly disintegrated. Asthe political pressures seemed to subside, some pilots becameless aware of the need for self-regulation. Pilots began to

shave, and thenignore, some of therules. The Board ofDirectors could not,or would not, enforcethe rules in a consis-tent manner. Thefinancial situationgrew alarming, and,if not for a privateloan from concernedpilots, might havebecome critical.

A series of eventsin ’96 and ’97 showed that the Club needed to take action,and it did. A new glider storage container was begun, aproject managed by Matt Spinelli. Rogue pilots were dis-ciplined or suspended. Cindy Benti took over the newslet-ter, and it went back to monthly publishing. New activistscame on board like John Wickham, Larry Chamblee andGeorge Stebbins. Fred Weinmann, who served as presidentfor three terms, set a standard for Club involvement andvision. This renewed energy came at a fortuitous time,because the most important threat to the SHGA since it’sfounding was about to reveal itself.

The Great College Expansion Battle of 1998.In the early 1990s, the local community college

(LAMC) received a $4 million state grant for expansion.This grant had a sunshine clause; it had to be spent/com-mitted by the end of the specified time period. The collegekept asking the state for extensions, avoiding the need tomake any concrete plans. Finally the state said “enough,”and the college was forced to decide how to spend themoney. This led to an ill-advised plan. The college tried torailroad a plan thru, bypassing the normal channels ofenvironmental and community review. The Club firstbecame aware of the plan in January 1998.

The college needed land to expand; they offered to buy theneighboring El Cariso Golf Course. The L.A. City Dept. ofParks and Recreation supported this effort, providing the col-lege built a larger, tournament class golf course nearby. Thenew golf course was to be built in the Paicoma Wash, north ofthe LZ, absorbing the Hang II and Hang III LZ. At the veryleast, this would turn Kagel into a Advanced-only site; mostlikely it would mean the end of Sylmar flying altogether.

Joe Greblo, Larry Chamblee and John Wickham began

attending meetings andtalking to the college andlocal politicians. Theywere shocked to discoverthat neither the college northe politicians were inter-ested in trying to modifythe plan to include hanggliding. The attitude of theState Assemblyman was“How can you comparerecreation with the needsof education?”

This was an extreme crisis for the Club, and the officersgot busy. The resources of USHGA were offered in theform of 28,000 postcards requesting support, whichappeared in Hang Gliding Magazine in October of 1998. A“Neighborhood Appreciation Day” was planned. All of thecontacts and alliances from years past were used and drawnupon. The Club joined the Sylmar Chamber of Commerce.An environmental consulting firm was hired. Meetingswith SIBL, the Santiago Estates Homeowners Association,and even the El Cariso Golfers Association were held.

After five months of increasing opposition from thecommunity, the college realized that their plans couldnever be finalized in time to meet the end of the yeardeadline for the $4 million grant. In December, theyannounced that the plans were being dropped. The collegehad to forfeit the grant. Some time later, the college presi-dent asked for an early retirement.

Recent Events at Sylmar.The mobilization of the Club and the victory achieved

gave new life and energy to the Club. The close shavewoke up even the most somnambulant to the fragility ofthe political situation. Pilots were forced to imagine whattheir lives would be like without flying at Sylmar.

The leadership of the Club capitalized on this revivedenergy, and new plans were made to improve the facilitiesat the LZ. The dues were raised and the Club was finally“running in the black.” A new launch ramp made of dirt

SGHA pilots pose for the camera, circa 1989.

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Toby Fazio “flying” for the Club in theannual Sylmar Parade, 1989.

Two of SHGA’s “youngest”members, Rome Dodson andBob Lafay, 1991.

Event Contact InformationFor general event information, volunteer andmusical opportunities, contact Lynn McLaughlin atLMcLaughlin@dicentertainment.com or Lisa Wendtat lswendt@earthlink.net.

For information about the raffle, contact RomeDodson at (818) 892-9890 or romedodson@aol.com.

For vintage glider display participation, contact JoeGreblo at (818) 367-2430 or windsports@earthlink.net.

re-enforced with wire was bulldozed into place, providingthe steepest, safest launch ever seen at Sylmar.

The re-opening of the Dockweiler training hill in 1999(Hang Gliding Magazine, January 2000) proved crucial inreversing the downward trend in membership. This steadyaddition of new Hang II pilots (25 in 2002) promises toprovide the nucleus of the next generation of activists andClub leaders. Hopefully, this new generation will have theadvantage of building on all the success of the past.

Kagel Mountain was closed twice over the past two yearsdue to events not related to the local political scene. Theevents of September 11 closed the site for seven days in 2001,while the extreme fire danger in 2002 closed all launchingfrom September 24 through the first week in December.

The Future of the SHGA.As of this writing, the future of flying at Sylmar looks

bright. For 20 years, the Club has managed to survive, andis now an entrenched, recognizable and (generally) accept-ed part of the Sylmar community. The local politicalactors know that the Club has strong friends in the area,and has the resources to quickly mount a support cam-paign if its interests are threatened.

The site is now more secure than it has ever been.Despite that good outlook, no one who knows the historyof the Club can ever think that all the battles are over.

What could shut down flying at Sylmar?Joe Greblo believes that there are two worst case sce-

narios that could end flying forever at Sylmar.One is a major aviation accident, such as a collision

between a glider and an airliner on approach to Burbankairport. The second is a period or series of events thatwould alienate the neighborhood.

The first scenario is not farfetched; there was an FAA com-plaint last year that a glider came within 500 ft. horizontal of acommercial aircraft near the West Towers area.

The second scenario is more likely, yet entirely avoid-able. If the pilots obey the rules, and maintain good rela-tions with the neighbors, a cushion of good will should

protect the Club. In the final analysis, as Joe says, “If weare good neighbors, and the community wants us, no onecan get rid of us. However, if we are bad neighbors, noth-ing can keep this site open.”

It is with this in mind that the SylmarHang Gliding Association invites allpilots to come celebrate with them onJune 28, and meet the neighbors. Theywon’t bite. In fact, you might meet someyou’ll like a lot.

We have!

Pilots’ view of SHGA landing zones includes Santiago Estates,SIBL, El Cariso Golf Course & Park, Los Angeles MissionCollege and the greater Sylmar/San Fernando Valley area.

© W

ayne

Yen

tis,

200

3

by Bill Lapworth

I was asked to volunteer to spread the word on the Netabout the 20th anniversary event like I had done for theDockweiler reunion. Sure, no problem, glad to helpbecause I knew it would be easy. I was not asked to builda Web site, and I’m not sure how it happened (but I sus-pect it has something to do with Lynnie knowing myweakpoints too well), but I found myself suggesting that aWeb site would also be a good thing. I knew I barely knewJack about creating a Web page, but I’m a professionalprogrammer, so how tough could it be?

Not tough at all. Lisa and Lynn provided the copy and art-work. I slapped some pages together, FTP’d it to my ISP,browsed it ASAP in IE and went “OH-OH.” Something wasmissing. No aesthetics. Nada, El Zippo. Solid pages of textwith nary a font change or a spec of color. I immediatelypulled the plug on version one and set out to figure out how Icould whip out some design without: A) spending too muchtime on it, and B) having Lisa and Lynn decide after viewingthe site that we really didn’t need a Web presence after all.

Low standards maybe, but you can decide if I hit themark. Check out, (be sure to capitalize the “F”),http://home.earthlink.net/~dancebert/Flyer.htm

“Official” Event Web Site