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We are in the process of planning the events for 2017. Here are some preliminary notes so you can place a hold on your calendars: 2017 East Coast Fly-In April 2016 saw the first TMGA East coast fly-in, hosted by Jim and Kathy Lee (USA Phoenix distributor). The response to the event was such that we decided to continue the fly–in on that coast. Jim and Kathy, however, decided to en-camp for Minden, NV as a permanent base of his Phoenix operation and, in true TMGA fashion, another TMGA’er stepped forward. We are pleased to announce that the 2017 East coast fly-in will be managed by Mike and Suzanne Schumann (new Phoenix owners). The event will be held in Naples, Florida Thursday March 30th through Sunday April 2nd. The timing was decided upon to coincide with both the Sun-N-Fun national fly-in and baseball spring training. The weather should be great, and Naples is a world-class destination. We’ll be arranging lots of non-flying things to do and we’re confident that we’ll again get a great banquet speaker. Stay tuned for details, but plan on coming for a great time. For non-USA TMGA’ers, there are major international airports within 100 miles of Naples so, think about making this fly-in as part of a great USA vacation. We’re only five months away from this fly-in, so get on the list by accessing the EVENTS tab on the website, then go to the 2017 East Coast sub-tab. 2017 Mid-America Fly-In At Minden this September the question was asked: why isn’t there a mid-country Fly-In. Since we didn’t have a good answer, we tasked the question-poser to come up with some ideas (no good deed goes unpunished)! It will most likely be held in the summer, so stay tuned for details. If you have any thoughts or suggestions, please post them to: richard.pearl@motorgliders.org. 2017 Western Fly-In In 2017 we’ll continue the tradition of moving the western Fly-In around to new locations. Southern California TMGA’er Gabriel Cioffi (turbo Diamond) has volunteered to be the local “sparkplug”, with a proposed fly-in at Camarillo, California. This coastal airport in Ventura County – just north of Los Angeles – offers exceptional geographic beauty and many exciting places to fly to, and ground visit. At this point we’re thinking about late August or early September. Stay tuned.

Here is a letter that just went out: We are now just three months from the fourth annual TMGA fly-in, scheduled for July 12 – 15 at Minden, Nevada (MEV). We had 25 ships on the flight line last year and we expect to significantly improve on that number this year. If you are planning on attending, we need you to sign up Now! See page 2, point 1. The Fly-In will again feature morning briefings and knowledge-sharing, flying the spectacular Sierra, and great meals. We may do some local fly-outs for lunch. If you have any ideas for the morning sessions, please advise either directly to me (pennyrich@aol.com) or through the Event discussion Thread. The Event committee has made special arrangements with David Walley’s Resort, Hot Springs, and Spa (www.davidwalleys-resort.com) for accommodations. Walley's is an old-time hot springs resort that sits above the Carson Valley at the base of the Sierras and looks out over the Carson Valley. People long ago traveled here by steam train and stagecoach to soak in the natural hot springs. It sits just south of the tiny town of Genoa, which has the oldest bar in Nevada. It is about five miles from the Minden/Tahoe airport. The spa/hot springs has been developed into a very large full hotel facility with a restaurant, saloon, and cafe. They have about seven separate hot spring pools and one large regular pool. It's a great place for the family with the spa, barbecues, and other activities. The rooms are very nice. Generally, the studios face west and look at the mountainside. The one bedroom and two bedroom rooms mostly face east looking out over the Carson Valley and also have full kitchens. See attached photo’s. Negotiated room rates are: $79 for a studio, $109 for a single bedroom, and $139 for a two-bedroom suite (perfect for doubling up and bringing the per night fee down to $70). All rates plus local taxes. With the optional Spa and hot springs ($10/day/person) this property might be the PERFECT opportunity to bring a non-pilot spouse, S.O., or friend to the event. We were able to secure a guaranteed 30 rooms at Walley’s: 15 studios and 15 one-bedroom (total 30 units). In theory you could book a studio and a one-bedroom to make a two bedroom, so there are thirty “slots”. Each one-bedroom unit could also accommodate another person in the sleeper-couch. There should be more rooms opening up starting June 12th (this is a time-share property); not guaranteed, but highly probable. There are also rooms available in Carson City, about 20 miles north of Minden, and possibly in Minden. The 30 Walley’s units are now available on a first come – first served basis. To secure it you must contact Walley’s and place a non-refundable one-night deposit to secure your reservation (see point 3, below). After our block of rooms are fully reserved, pilots will be put on a waiting list, but you do have options of securing other rooms (possibly cheaper, or more expensive) at other locations. We hope to get everyone at Walley’s. It will be a great experience, and it will certainly make the transportation logistics easier. Regarding transportation, we have traditionally relied on our pilot “locals”, plus visiting pilots who group together and rent cars. We are also looking into renting a large van and splitting costs among users. More on this later. If you are planning on coming, we need you to do the following ASAP: Sign up for the Fly-In now, in the Event tab. If you’re a “probable” or “possible” please also sign up. If you know of any non TMG pilot or interested person who wants to attend, please invite them and have them sign up also. Everyone is welcome! Enter your data in the pilot mapping section of the web site: Members > Roster > Roster Map. There is a data entry button at the bottom of the page. It’s critical to the long-term success of the TMGA that we get all our pilots ‘plotted’, and even more critical for those coming to the Fly-In from other states or regions for Buddy Flying purposes. We will have a separate Thread for those long-distance travellers who might want to link up for the flight. Make your reservations at Walley’s now. July is golf heaven in the Carson Valley and there is another large event going on in the Valley at the same time as our event…so don’t delay! Reservations should be made directly with the Resort (1-775-782-8155) mentioning that you are with the Touring Motor Glider Association. If you have any problems, let me know at: pennyrich@aol.com. We will have a separate Thread for those who are interested in sharing accommodations in a two-bedroom suite. We need to know when you’re arriving and what dinners you will be attending – see the Event tab, sign up section. There will be a catered dinner Thursday night in the Soaring NV hangar ($15), a Basque dinner Friday night at the Carson Valley Country Club ($30), and a BBQ at the Airport put on by the Taildragger restaurant ($20). Prices are approximate. If you’re local and have a car to help with transportation, let us know. Rental cars are available at the airport from Hertz and Enterprise. We’ll try to get a negotiated rate. More on this later. We’re working on a registration fee concept to include prepaying for the meals and tie down fee ($5/night) to lessen the on-site confusion and accounting. This year we will also be charging an Event Registration fee of $20 per ship plus $10 for each pilot/ participant to cover various hard cost expenditures (airport staff, facilities, etc.). There is a $10 discount for full TMGA Members ($15/year, see Members tab > Join/Contribution section). If you’re coming from out of the area, see if a flight “buddying up” is a viable option. Check the roster and check the Member map for locations. This Bulletin is being sent to everyone’s previously submitted email accounts, plus through the TMGA web site, to make sure everyone receives the initial information. Please note that all information for this will be distributed only through the TMGA web site, specifically the Forum tab and various “threads” for specifics, and the Event tab and the 2012 Fly-In section for monitoring who’s coming, when, and other details. Reminder: the TMGA web site is a “Opt In” web site. In this system you have to request the information and then you will continue to automatically receive it; but that means, no request, no information (alternatively, you could manually check all information periodically). We designed it this way because of the wide extent of the information contained within the web site. Bottom line, it’s important that you look at each area and select those areas you want. For further information, go to Help > then to New User Checklist for tutorials.) We’re looking forward to seeing all of you, so sign up ASAP and let the fun begin! Richard Pearl, Steve Sliwa, Ron Snedecor, Ray Buhr, Stu Ostrander Directors, TMGA P.S. For our international members, the above is indicative of how to use the TMGA web site to structure a Regional fly-In.

One of our TMGA members from Italy sent the following to me: Here is a link to the announcement poster: pdf