Is anything going to be done by the USHPA to fix up the mess in
Texas?

The trail of evidence:

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24635

http://ozreport.com/15.156#0

http://ozreport.com/15.157#2

http://ozreport.com/1313156142

http://ozreport.com/1313272551

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3099

Probably not. Why?

It is difficult (perhaps rightly so) to permanently revoke an instructor rating.
Quite a bit easier to do a thirty day revocation, but still that requires a
Regional Director to step up and take on the responsibility of gathering the
evidence and making the case.

No Regional Director has been willing to make the case, in spite of the fact
that a few of them recognize the fact that the instructor presents a danger to
his students.

It is not fun to go through the process of revoking the certification of your
fellow USHPA Board Member. Hang gliding is supposed to be about fun.

The instructor has apparently intimidated his fellow Texas hang glider pilots in
the past who have spoken up about his unsafe practices with threats of law
suits.

The instructor has tried to limit the issue to his latest accident and no one
has been willing to look at the apparent overall pattern of abuse. He expresses
genuine remorse for the latest transgression, but, of course, is unable to see
the overall pattern.

Gathering evidence of a decade or two of what appears to be a pattern of abuse
is a difficult process.

It is much easier (looking at
the SOP that
governs this issue) to sanction an instructor who breaks a USHPA rule than
one who endangers and injures his students. Safety is not the primary concern
of the USHPA.

It takes courage, hard work, and dedication to take on the thankless task of
disciplining a fellow hang glider pilot and instructor for his transgressions.
It is easier to let a few unknown students suffer.

Many pilots have remarked on how "ironic" it is that the man who is widely
viewed as the least safe person in hang gliding is chairman (or is it
co-chairman, and there is a story there) of the USHPA Safety and Training
Committee.