getting way off subject, but...



i was living in arizona at the time flying a schweitzer 2-33. it is a very low performance plane with very little penetration. perfect for learning. we towed up to 900 feet and i got into a wave. we were up at 7000 feet in about 3 minutes. the screaming and crying from the back seat was horrible. i had to bank it at about 65 degrees to get down (even more screaming). the spoilers were not effective that day. i have never flown the planes you are interested in, but the schleicher looks similar to a schweitzer 1-26. the l/d on these planes look pretty low. if you want to just fly then buy one of these. i would rent for a while so you can try a few different planes. if you have a low budget, try a 1-35 (single) or a blanik L13 (two place). both are metal and pretty low cost. glass ships are great. make sure you get a ship that has spoilers. flaps are nice, but they are much harder to use and can stall the plane if reduced too quickly (usually on landing). i have seen 4 glider crashes (no injuries), and 3 of them were flaps only ships.



if you want more info about the ships i have flown and my experiences, e-mail me directly at david.taylor@mech-solutions.com