[TadEareckson]

miguel,

I've put more energy into positive stuff in hang gliding over the past three decades than you could possibly imagine if you dedicated five years to the task. And damn near all of it has been neutralized by the scum that controls this sport worldwide.

US hang gliding - which is THE model for the rest of the world - is incompetent and corrupt and there's zilch in the way of accountability or law enforcement. Out in the real world things there are hundreds of thousands of guys who wear uniforms and carry guns and do little else but continually bash folk. They take drunks off the left side of the road, shoplifters out of the stores, muggers out of Central Park, Ponzi schemers out of Wall Street, murderers out of college campuses, and extermination camps out of Central Europe. (Yeah, it's actually a lot more nuanced than that but sometimes it works the way you see it on television.)

If I look negative and vengeful the reason might be because I AM negative and vengeful. I might be a bit less negative and vengeful if I could get a little help from other negative and vengeful pilots and next of kin and their attorneys to get the heads of a few of the serial killers in this sport up on pikes to make other serial killers think a little bit and behave in more responsible manners.

I'm not really interested in insurance right now 'cause I don't think people should be in the air to begin with until they understand how to do it and equip properly. Wanna help me with that project by participating in some of those discussions? I can be astonishingly positive for brief periods on the rare occasions when people show interest in making progress.

(Hey Bob, mine's STILL shorter.)

[Bob Kuczewski]

miguel,

I've put more energy into positive stuff in hang gliding over the past three decades than you could possibly imagine if you dedicated five years to the task.

Tad, this is an example of a statement that discredits all of the other statements you make. You cannot say that in 5 years miguel couldn't "possibly imagine" the work you've done in 30. That's total baloney. Your credibility just went down 10 points.

You make yourself less believable on bent pins and weak links and many other topics (where people should listen to you) because you make outlandish statements that aren't even true in cases like this. Shame on you Tad.

If I look negative and vengeful the reason might be because I AM negative and vengeful.

Negative and vengeful is one thing. But you're acting more like a mad dog trying to bite anyone foolish enough to share a forum with you. You're your own worst enemy Tad. You claim to want to fix all the atrocities in hang gliding, but all you do is bite people who get close and scare away anyone who's got the time and sense to run.

I might be a bit less negative and vengeful if I could get a little help from other negative and vengeful pilots

Tad, I've been bullied by David Jebb, bullied by the USHPA EC, bullied by their lawyer Tim Herr, bullied by Dave Wills and his bylaws committee, and bullied by many (if not most) of the Directors on the Board. I've got as much right to be vengeful as anyone. But I struggle to keep from slipping into that pit of negativity and vengeance (I don't always succeed). I struggle because I know the people who are beating down this sport want to put me (and you) into a box labelled "Mad Dog - Will Bite". Once we're in that box, then they can rest assured that very few people will come along to help us. Very few people will reach out their hand for fear of losing their fingers. That's why you've got to resist making statements that put you into that box. Please!!

I'm not really interested in insurance right now 'cause I don't think people should be in the air to begin with until they understand how to do it and equip properly. Wanna help me with that project by participating in some of those discussions? I can be astonishingly positive for brief periods on the rare occasions when people show interest in making progress.

I've shown a lot of interest (considering that I don't tow yet, and I'm juggling a dozen other things right now). And yet you still bite like a mad dog. In fact the mad dog analogy is very appropriate. Just as you can't have visitors come to your home if you're harboring a mad dog, it's been very difficult to invite people to this forum with a mad dog prowling the topics. Miguel is one of the few pilots who's ventured here to speak with us, and you slam him by saying that in 5 years he's not capable of imagining all the great things you've done in your career. Miguel doesn't need to put up with that kind of crap. He comes here to help out, and you slam him. The same has been true of Sam Kellner (one of our best members by the way) and many other people that you've denigrated.

Now if you want to help make hang gliding a better and safer sport, then please try to bring something positive to the table. If you've got specific things that you want people to do better, then please spell them out. Now I can already hear you pointing to the crusades I've fought against Jack, Davis, and USHPA. And in some ways I am guilty of being negative. But I've got clear things that I'm asking them to do:

    I'm asking Jack and Davis to stop banning people without some form of due process.
    I'm asking USHPA to publish the voting records of their Directors and to support all clubs fairly.
    I'm asking Jack to return the torreyhawksforum domain to our club and stop using it as a billboard to smear his enemies.

Those are concrete things. I am specifically critical of those people and organizations for those particular actions. They are things that they can change if they wish. What has Miguel done to deserve your hatred and what exactly do you want him to do to correct it?

Finally, Tad, you're far too sensitive to perceived slights. In the course of discussions on forums, people will say all kinds of things and they'll fail to say all kinds of other things. There's nothing wrong with bringing up posts that you think are unfair or incorrect. But you seem to think that everyone is out to get you in one way or another. You've got to lose that chip on your shoulder. I know it's hard, and I imagine it took a lot of people to put that chip on your shoulder in the first place. But you're only doing yourself a disservice by lashing out at good people like Sam and Miguel. You're doing them a disservice as well. But mostly, you're doing the sport of hang gliding a disservice because you're keeping us from gathering the positive energy we need to build a new and better national organization.

OK, my post was definitely longer than yours. You've got me on that one.

[Bob Kuczewski]

OK, now that I've got Tad mad at me (hopefully not too mad), I'd like to get back to the topic of Mike Jefferson's case.

I just got a copy of what USHPA wants Mike to do to get his ratings back. Here's part of the letter from Dave Wills (VP of USHPA ... and no relation to the Wills family as far as I know):

I am permitting you to apply for re-instatement of the revoked certifications and rating, with the following conditions:

1. You will need to petition a committee comprised of local pilots for re-instatement. The members of the committee are at my sole discretion and can change at any time. A preliminary list of members is;

    Urs Kellenberger, USHPA Region 2 Director
    Steve Rodrigues, USHPA Director-At-Large
    Paul Gazis, former USHPA Region 2 Director, WOR President Elect
    Karl Allmendinger, WOR Vice President, WOR Safety Director Elect
    Dave Wills, USHPA Region 2 Director

The petition must be made to me and I will convene the committee. Scheduling of committee meetings is at my sole discretion.

2. You will be allowed to submit evidence that your behavior has changed and that you will obey FAA FARs, USHPA SOPs, and site regulations at all sites. The committee will determine whether you will be permitted to submit written evidence, oral evidence or both to the committee. Even if you are permitted to present oral information to the committee, committee discussion of the petition will be made in closed session.

3. Additional conditions for re-instatement of your certifications and rating are as follows:

a. Each certification or rating will be considered separately. If the petition for any certification or rating is denied, you must wait a minimum of 6 months before making a new petition.

b. You may petition for re-instatement of your Basic Instructor certification no sooner than 6 months from the date of this letter.

c. You may petition for approval to receive a Tandem 2 rating no sooner than 6 months from the date of this letter.

d. You may petition for re-instatement of your Advanced Instructor certification no sooner than 6 months from the date of re-instatement of your Basic Instructor certification.

e. You may petition for re-instatement of your Tandem Instructor certification no sooner than 6 months from the date of re-instatement of your Tandem 2 rating.

f. If the petition for re-instatement of your Basic or Advanced Instructor certification is approved by the committee, you will need to be re-certified by an Instructor Administrator. The Instructor Administrator must receive a copy of this letter prior to certification.

g. If the petition for appointment of a Tandem 2 rating or re-instatement of your Tandem Instructor certification is approved by the committee, you will need to be re-appointed or re-certified by a Tandem Administrator. The Tandem Administrator must receive a copy of this letter prior to certification. The Tandem Administrator must be someone other than Bill Cuddy.

h. The committee is the sole jury as to whether to permit re-instatement of the revoked certifications or rating. The committee’s decision is final and cannot be appealed.

4. You must acknowledge that you have received the warning that further violations will lead to the permanent revocation of your certifications and ratings without possibility of re-instatement.

Note that this committee is not a USHPA appeals committee as described in SOP 12-07. This committee is a local committee and does not need to conform to the appeals process in that SOP. The USHPA appeal process will continue to be available to you if this local committee rejects your petitions.

Let's see how Dave Wills starts out in item (1). He says he picks the jury and he can change the jury any time. Hmmm. Does that sound fair to anyone?

He goes on in item (2) to put the burden of proof on Mike. He also doesn't list any criteria for passing this test. Mike gets to present, and they get to say yes or no (in secret, of course).

Item (3) is a timetable designed to ensure that Mike suffers for fixed periods before he can even request an appeal.

Item (3g) is particularly interesting. It prohibits Bill Cuddy from reappointing or recertifying Mike's Tandem ratings. Does this imply that Bill Cuddy is some kind of "second rate" Administrator? Does it imply that USHPA considers Bill Cuddy to be corrupt? What kind of condition is that? If Bill Cuddy has been certified as a USHPA Tandem Administrator, then USHPA should have faith in his decisions. Period. If they don't, then they're implicitly saying Bill Cuddy doesn't have the integrity to be a Tandem Administrator.

Item (3h) declares the "committee" as the final judge, jury, and executioner. Jury of one's peers? Right of appeal? Sorry, not at USHPA.

But of all the items, it's item #4 that's the most disturbing. It says:

4. You must acknowledge that you have received the warning that further violations will lead to the permanent revocation of your certifications and ratings without possibility of re-instatement.

In other words, Mike Jefferson has to agree that any future violation will lead to permanent revocation - forever - with no questions asked. It looks to me as if Dave Wills (and his gang) are setting Mike up to lose his ratings permanently at some time in the future. After all, most people make mistakes from time to time. But Mike must be spotless for the rest of his natural life. Outrageous.

But then what are Mike's choices? Can't he just go to that "other" organization and see if they will be more reasonable? Oh, that's right, USHPA has a monopoly on the sports of hang gliding and paragliding. There is no where else to go ... and Dave Wills knows it.

Of course, Mike will have to accept this lousy deal ... because it's the only hope he's got. I suspect he'd like to ask for a more balanced process, but he can't really speak up without risking losing the one shot that he's got. So with that situation in mind, I took the time to write to the Directors who were part of this process:

Members of the Board, Members of the Pilot Community, and others,

I have read the terms set forth by Dave Wills and I find them to be far too harsh and they appear to be aimed at permanently removing Mr. Jefferson's ratings. In particular, Section 4 states that Mr. Jefferson must agree that any further violations will lead to permanent revocation of his ratings without possibility of re-instatement. This appears to be a trap designed to catch him in any future mistake that he might make ... for the rest of his life.

As many of you may remember, I did not vote to remove Mr. Jefferson's ratings when I was on the USHPA Board because I felt that there had been no presentation of evidence by anyone defending Mr. Jefferson. In short, there was no due process. I fear that the terms of this agreement along with the propensity of the USHPA Board to take actions against members without such due process puts Mr. Jefferson in perpetual jeopardy. For that reason alone I would recommend that these terms be redrafted to be more fair to Mr. Jefferson.

Of course, Mr. Jefferson is likely to be forced to accept these terms whether they're fair to him or not. His livelihood is at stake, and there appears to be no other choice for him. So he's not likely to raise (or even support) the objections that I've raised. That's why I've taken the time to do so myself.

Please consider having these terms rewritten by someone with greater impartiality than the people listed and proposed for this review board.

Thanks for your time,
Bob Kuczewski
858-204-7499
Former USHPA Director - Region 3
Founder - US Hawks Hang Gliding Association (http://ushawks.org)

I don't know how my letter will be received, but I do know that USHPA really hates to see me be right about anything. So rather than try to railroad Mike, I'm hoping they'd rather NOT give pilots any more reasons to hate USHPA and support the Hawks. So I am hopeful that this letter will help them take the high road and maybe relax some of those "gotchas" that they've included in Dave Wills' letter. Time will tell.

[Bob Kuczewski]

I recently received an email message from Anthony Lowenstein in support of Mike Jefferson's reinstatement.

Due to technical problems with this forum, I haven't been able to post it here. I will insert it here once these problems are resolved.

Members of the Board, Pilot Community and others:

I agree fully with and echo Bob Kuczewski's statements below. I have been an Administrative Attorney, including an Aviation Lawyer for 10+ years representing aviators to the Federal Aviation Administration (F.A.A.) - and assure you that all legitimate and lawful administrative agencies afford their licensees full and fair due process, as well as a right to recertification upon due discipline. And the USHPA should aspire to and offer no less.

After knowing Michael Jefferson for more than 4 years, I can say without reservation that Michael Jefferson is an excellent, dedicated HG Pilot and Instructor, who is a valuable asset to the hang gliding community; and a safe, helpful, and valued fellow-pilot to all who know him well. Regardless of the political forces and squabbles that have beset Mr. Jefferson, and turned a minority of pilots against him, the hang gliding community would benefit from and fairness would support his reinstatement.

Sincerely,
Anthony Lowenstein
LowensteinLaw.com

[Bob Kuczewski]

I also received an email message from another pilot in support of Mike Jefferson's reinstatement (July 19th, 2011). Here's the request:

I am new to USHPA joining about two years ago. I hold a commercial pilot’s license with an instrument rating and have been involved with the FAA and aviation since 1984. Mr. Jefferson was my first hang gliding instructor. I found him to be both professional and knowledgeable. During my training times with him I vividly remember him always being safety conscious with me as well as witness him practice this level of safety with many of his other students in his class. As a matter of fact I was so impressed with my initial introduction to his training I remember telling my wife how impressed I was the rules and level of safety in the USHPA. Coming from an FAA and aviation background for more than 25 years this has always been a very important aspect for me professionally as well as personally. Michael Jefferson is genuinely very nice person and is one of the types that will go out of his way to help people.

I have also read the terms set forth below and also concur with Mr. Kuczewski’s comments. I understand no system can be perfect and I do very much understand the need of an organization to have a way of ensuring their members follow the rules set forth for everyone’s safety however it must be done in such a way to ensure fairness on both sides. That said I have known Mr. Jefferson for over two years and find him to be a good person that cares about his students and honestly loves the hang gliding sport.

I’m looking forward to a long and happy time with the USHPA and just hope Michael is given a second chance and allowed to show everyone he has learned from his mistake and is allowed to continue to pursue his love of this great hang gliding sport. He is truly an asset to this community.

[miguel]

For the record, I was not offended or upset by Tad's answer to my post.

Just another day on the internets.

[Bob Kuczewski]

Thanks miguel.

Back to the Mike Jefferson case ...

I've been reading up on what Mike was accused of doing. It seems that he's accused of taking a few low level tandem flights (just a few feet off the ground) without doing the proper paperwork. The big deal seems to be the claim that he endangered the site because the paperwork wasn't in order. For that, he's had his ratings revoked.

Let me contrast that with another incident that happened in Region 3 when I was Director. I was at Torrey Pines on February 7th, 2010 when a paragliding student crashed into the hang glider setup area partially damaging one hang glider and narrowly escaping being impaled on several others. I approached the student and simply asked who his instructor was. Immediately, Brad Geary (one of the Torrey Pines instructors) jumped in and told the student not to tell me. I pointed out that I was a USHPA Regional Director and that I needed to know who the instructor was. Brad Geary insisted that the student remain silent, and he did.

Of course, I reported what I knew to USHPA including Dave Broyles (Chairman of Safety and Training), Lisa Tate (President), Rich Hass (EC), Mark Forbes (EC), Mark Gaskill (EC), Brad Hall (Region 3 Director), Rob Sporrer (Region 3 Director), Ken Baier (USHPA's Soaring Council Representative). Nothing was done. Nothing at all.

I later found out that the student was Brad Geary's brother and that he held no ratings at all. In fact, he wasn't even a USHPA member when he was flying at Torrey Pines under the supervision of Brad Geary. As far as I know, Brad Geary still has all his ratings and still teaches at Torrey Pines.

Double standard anyone? Here's a link to a lot of that discussion (titled "Where to find incident report form?"):

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=15666

[Free]

Back to the Mike Jefferson case ...

.. contrast that with another incident ... crash at ..Torrey Pines on February 7th, 2010


....reported to USHPA including Dave Broyles (Chairman of Safety and Training), Lisa Tate (President), Rich Hass (EC), Mark Forbes (EC), Mark Gaskill (EC), Brad Hall (Region 3 Director), Rob Sporrer (Region 3 Director), Ken Baier (USHPA's Soaring Council Representative). Nothing was done. Nothing at all.

I later found out that the student was Brad Geary's brother and that he held no ratings at all. In fact, he wasn't even a USHPA member when he was flying at Torrey Pines under the supervision of Brad Geary. As far as I know, Brad Geary still has all his ratings and still teaches at Torrey Pines.

Double standard anyone? Here's a link to a lot of that discussion (titled "Where to find incident report form?"):

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=15666

I'm waiting for someone to throw that swept under the rug accident into the discussion at the Jacko show dot org. Ryan Voight defends the borg and Malcolm Jones doing the same thing a thousand times over because it was way back when..

Ryan Voight:
My point is these are two different cases, no matter how much you would like them to be comparable, there were major differences... namely 15+ years between them...

USHPA has knowingly condoned FAA infractions for many years. The Head of the FAA took a very illegal tandem in Florida a few years ago and loved it. USHPA acted like they didn't know what was going on but I've got an email from Mark Forbes stating that he did know it was illegal.
Now (we) are going to get selectively tough because 'times are different'.


The law of physics no longer apply. Buildings fall into their own footprint at the speed of gravity and no one cares the implications but a two foot groundskim puts all in jeapordy.

The illegal flight at Torrey ended in an accident and it wasn't 15 years ago. What will Ryan have to say about that?
Water under the bridge?

A slap on the wrist would have been sufficient in this case but give someone a little power and it goes to their head. The terms that Dave Wills put forward show the inner tyrant struggling to get out. It could be a path to take out the competition. Whatever, the penalty doesn't fit the crime as so many other crimes go unpunished and unaccountable.

[Bob Kuczewski]

Hi Warren!!! It's good to see you posting!!! I was getting worried about you.   

I'm waiting for someone to throw that swept under the rug accident into the discussion at the Jacko show dot org.

That's the problem with the Jacko show. He's kicked out a lot of the people who know the history of what's happened in this sport. He's also kicked out some of the best independent thinkers and finders of facts. So it's not clear if anyone over there will know the facts well enough to point out this clear inconsistency. And Mike Jefferson pays the price.

Thanks for posting Warren.   

P.S.   So when can I drive up from Florida to help you jump start the Mo Hawks?

[Bob Kuczewski]

On hanggliding.org: http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=22492&start=140

I know of a pilot who was suspended for a week to show the parks dept that the club was being responsible and taking some kind of action on an incident the pilot was involved in. The pilot could fly many other sites and didn't care if he missed a few days at this particular one if it got the real powers that be off the clubs back. Because of his involvement, he gladly accepted the role of the sacrificial lamb so to speak. I know it sounds like a BS game but it works to keep them from clamping down on us in a way that would really cut into our flying.

That was very big of the pilot in the example to take one for the team. Not everyone is as magnanimous yet around here they may find themselves forced into that position against their desires. Like the pilot who got suspended because a committee member had a bone to pick with him when the real infraction was by a favored child. I was in that kangaroo court as a witness and it was a complete joke. Or other pilots getting off Scot free for egregious activities purely because a "good ol' boy" or two stood up for them or was a friend of theirs. Been witness to quite a number of these, too. Who you are, who you know and whose butt is getting smooched come into play far too often.

No one forces the reins of power into anyone's hands. They're taken by choice and they demand to be held LIGHTLY. Sadly, that isn't what happens. Anyone who doesn't see it either isn't watching or they're too close to the problem.

Sad to say, but what you have pointed out appears in every strata of human existence. It is an unfortunate aspect of our DNA, probably something having to do with tribal survival. It's one of the reasons we have gangs and so much warfare.

I think our best strategy against primitive behavior is to elect officials and executives we know and trust. I'm pretty disgusted with the moral downfall of so many politicians that I have much skepticism about this tact, but what else can we do but our best? That and hold their feet to the fire when someone betrays our trust.
_________________
Steve Rodrigues
USHPA # 30605
H-5, Mentor, Tandem Instructor, Tandem Administrator

What Steve is missing is accountability. He assumes that if you know and trust someone they'll never go astray. Unfortunately, it happens all the time. Steve says that we need to "hold their feet to the fire when someone betrays our trust", but how do we know if they've betrayed our trust if we can't see their actions? Everyone on the USHPA Board knows that I've proposed keeping an open voting record for all Directors. And yet not one of them will lift a finger to make it happen. There are a lot of good people on that Board, but they've shamed themselves on this issue.

By the way, if anyone has any contact information for FPeel, I would really appreciate it. We shared many PM's on hanggliding.org, but since I've been kicked off, I have no way to contact him (another destructive by-product of how Jack Axaopoulos runs his site). Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me contact FPeel.