You know what I mean: Young people need challenges

The influx of young people into soccer clubs remains strong and is truly enviable. And no one would argue that young people don’t need—in addition to a challenging education—any other challenges. Certainly not competitions! But what’s the difference when it comes to model aircraft flying? Is it the active divisions, with young women and men serving as great role models who exert an unexpectedly positive influence? Many books have already been written about role model pedagogy. Educational scientist Dr. Margrit Stamm writes on the subject: “It (the role model function) also supports individual forms of identity formation and lifestyles.” In soccer—and other sports—it’s essential to involve the public as spectators and media consumers. People want to be seen. Returning to our hobby, which also includes a modest element of competitive sport, the role of role models in most of our clubs is virtually nonexistent. Demonstration flights are good, but they miss the mark. Competitions, such as those in aerobatics or thermal flying, require specific promotion and—most importantly—clear, accessible information for visitors and spectators, even if there are only a few of them. We need to step up and showcase the great benefits of our sport. Model-building classes held in some school basement make it difficult to involve parents—not to mention the general public. However, I see the biggest problem in promoting youth participation as the widespread complacency of our clubs and their members. We live in luxury. We have everything we need. We can fly whenever we want; even food and drink are provided. Think about it: What kind of impression do we make on our juniors when they show up at the airfield after school? Is there anyone there to explain how they try to keep their glider in the thermals? Is there anyone there to motivate them to work some beautiful aerobatic maneuvers into the sky? Just don’t turn every airfield into a sports camp right away. There are plenty of chatterboxes already. It takes so little: one or more colleagues organize a flying competition or judge a fellow pilot’s aerobatic maneuvers. The key to success lies in simplicity. Good luck!

Model aircraft clubs: Please share your experiences with the editorial team (redaktion@modellflugsport.ch). Thank you in advance.

Best regards
, Emil Giezendanner