Glad to see there
is some debate, then.
Just to clarify some points raised earlier
1) gliders right hand circuit, powered a/c left hand circuit
2) grass airfield, unmarked runways, powered a/c land left of gliders.
3) R/T is "Radio" (sorry - I didn't mention this)
4) First visit (this might be relevant).
Now, I agree with CM that you don't want to get near the gliders. However, if the field is grass, with no clear runway markers, its a bit difficult to see where the runway is (especially if a first visit) - also to orientate yourself to a non-visible runway.
So what would be wrong with an abbreviated overhead join? By this, I mean fly almost overhead at circuit height +1000ft, but remain North of the active runway, away from the glider side. Once
near the overhead, the runway becomes visible, as does the glider ground positions and the left/right separation of the circuit traffic. Now, a left turn, still remaining North of the runway, on the "powered" side, towards the runway heading would allow one to orientate oneself to the circuit direction and have a good look at the traffic distribution. A descending left turn onto downwind would insert one nicely into the circuit.
What would be wrong with this approach?
GB