http://ozreport.com/2.222

http://ozreport.com/2.221

http://ozreport.com/2.219

http://ozreport.com/2.217

Now this is really silly, but also very revealing. The USHPA Competition Workgroup proposes to set up a three tiered system of "events." Class A events are local or regional events. Class B are national in scope. Class C are National Championships, pre-Worlds and Worlds (held in the US, more on this later). Backwards? Upside down? Hmmm?!

Maybe the names don't mean anything, but it turns out that they do. More on that later.

Each event type has its own requirements for officials, scoring, budgets, training, USHPA appointments, and corporate sponsorship. There are added USHPA requirements on top of the existing system (the sticks) as well as a little bit of help (carrots). More on this soon.

The Class A events (local and regional in scope) are the least restricted, it just requires that the meet officials be USHPA members. GAP scoring is optional, but non GAP scoring must be approved by the USHPA Competition Committee (and the BOD).

Now it appears as though these "events" (they are never called competitions) could include spot landing contests (a skill that we wish to encourage), ridge races (like at Torrey Pines in the "old" days), duration contests (like the real old days at Chelan, Dog Mountain and many other sites), speed gliding, etc. Now we've had these "events" all along (we have a great spot landing competition for money at Big Spring during the "real" competition, for example), so what is different here? Why would anyone want USHPA Competition Committee sanctioning, for such a meet?

Well, this might be the reason: The results of these "events" are added to your points for National Team selection. "...the average score calculated from the best five rounds in Class A events over a two year period will be added." So you can get points for your NTSS ranking from attending and doing well in a spot landing contest? Just how is unclear at the moment.

The Class B "events" are what we normally think of as USHPA sanctioned competitions.  The Nationals have been separated into Class C, which we'll get to soon. GAP scoring is optional (like at the Nationals in 2009), trophies (or awards) must be awarded (this is a new requirement), the "event" must include a Sport Class, must include at least two "mentoring sessions," there is a requirement for a Safety Director that can't not be replaced by a Safety Committee made up of pilots, this is a new requirement.

The meet director must hold a USHPA Meet Director Appointment (more on this later). He must allow two apprentices to assist and be trained through the USHPA Director Apprenticeship Program.

Submit a budget, if entry fees are over $250, unless a USHPA Chapter is putting on the event for their benefit. Corporate partnering

So what we see here is some significant new requirements and burdens on the national level "meet" organizer. (Why do they keep using this term, "event?")

The USHPA has decided that it is best at deciding the qualification and qualities of the meet director, and it is not up to the meet organizer to choose the meet director from their own pool of candidates. We'll have a lot more to say about this later, as there is an elaborate Meet Director program.

I'm not a big fan of trophies, and this is an additional requirement, not now in the USHPA Competition Rulebook. But it looks to me that you can get around this requirement (which is often met, by the way, by handing out medals (which I like, and fit in my trailer) or other "awards" (say discounts on harnesses, etc., GPSes, tee-shirts)).

I do like the idea of "forcing" Sport Class on meet organizers as well as mentoring sessions. I feel that the burden is relatively small for the great benefit of bringing more pilots into competition, but I'd like to see a little more support for meet organizers and a little less forcing.

We have used Safety Committees extensively in our competitions and only rarely have a designated Safety Director. There is not problem with a three person safety committee made up wholly of pilots in the competition, and that should be allowed to continue.

What is so magical about the figure $250? No change over time? The USHPA relies on private persons to create their competitions ("events"). Without these private individuals taking the time, effort and risk of creating competitions, there would be no USHPA sanctioned competitions. Why are we adding this burden?

And why allow USHPA chapters to get away without a budget? Why the difference? What is the ideological reasoning behind this distinction?

I'll get to Class C competitions in the next article (this article is already getting too long), and discuss carrots and sticks and what it takes to have a successful competition system.