Seeking new pilot advice in Georgia

Okay guys, anybody know of any good flight schools in or around Georgia. I'm a Georgia Tech student, ya know, stereotypically short on cash, but I never let that stop me from doing the things I want. I've been scouring the web for flight schools in my area and I've found Lookout Mountian Flight Park. http://www.hangglide.com/mainpage.html

I was wondering if any of you have experience dealing with these guys and are they a good value what is learned and how it is taught. I've got a lot of experience with stunt kites and other flying toys so I know the basics of wind cycles/flight pretty well.

Thanks!

- C0rbett

Corbett,

Lookout is probably one of 5 to 10 Hang Gliding Schools which almost every pilot in the US could name. It's been around forever and has trained a ton of pilots. As another poster said, the quality of instruction as it pertains to you will depend on how well your particular teacher can communicate with you: some are better for particular types of pilots, others are true teachers and adaptable. A school the size of Lookout probably hires quite a few instructors (note: I've flown there, but not taken a lesson from them, aside from a 'special skills' course known as the 'Assisted Windy Cliff Launch' course from Buzz Chalmers, who was an excellent instructor himself.) All in all, you'll get good training for the going rate - I'm sure you can find cheaper instruction, but having the consistency might be worth the extra cost. With smaller schools, you're more at the whim of the instructor whether they decide to teach or just blow the weekend off.

I don't know if they have a deal like this, but my original school offered a wintertime 'unlimited package' - all you could fly, with an instructor, from November through March for one price. I advanced through my Hang II that way and then proceeded to learn from my peers and fellow club members after that. I agree with the first respondent that you should probably fly often at first: once a week if you can and at least twice a month. However, I disagree with him on one point: I was definitely able to get quite a bit out of several lessons a day (usually a 'lesson' will consist of a fixed number of flights - 5 guaranteed, in my case), for both days of a weekend. I think my record was 19 flights in one day (2/3/91, 'Boojer' instructing)- all from the large dune. Yes, my legs were killing me and I was exhausted, but I *had* it - landings were great, launches were smooth, and they let me move up to the double surfaced 'Mark IV' glider - whoo hoo! Booj was my primary instructor for that time period, quite a lot of fun and a good teacher.

Good luck getting started, and I think you'd be happy with Lookout.

Cool. Thanks for the great responces. A quality newsgroup makes me even more excited about flying as it lets me know that there are dedicated people in the sport.

- C0rbett