Originally Posted by Piper.Classique
Now don't get me wrong, I am not accusing you of lack of ability, but usually people get bored with local soaring after a while, and want to do a few longer flights. The silver C is a pretty basic qualification in any glider with a glide angle better than 30 to 1. Most club gliders (which I assume you fly, as you don't mention being a private owner) are well capable of 300 k closed circuits. My forty year old libelle certainly is as is its somewhat older owner. And beat up it is not, even though I might be.
I've never been much of a badgehunter. I did several 50km and 100km cross countries, several 3000ft height gains and a couple of five hour flights, mostly in the club K8, before actually declaring them and getting the silver. And I only did that because of peer pressure from my syndicate partners who were keen to get our insurance costs down! I've done a 9000ft climb in wave over the Pyranees (Jaca) which was about 800ft short of Gold height (That'll teach me for not getting a good low point before starting!!). I've been out to Jaca every year for the past 6 years and I only know one occasion whilst I've been there when the weather has been good enough for someone to claim a diamond. The club glider (Pegase) I hired that day didn't have oxygen so a climb to 15000ft was out of the question for me. I guess I'm just unlucky.
Anyhow, I'm leaving this thread now. I just came on here to ask a simple question about learning to fly on DA40's and taildraggers so that when I go to the the airfield this weekend I'll have some idea of which flying school I want to sign up to. What I seem to have recieved in response is four pages of people going on about how great Cessna's are, people telling me that I'm looking for excuses not to fly, that I have no talent but a big ego, I have no respect for anyone who flies a Cessna etc. etc. all because I dared to say I would rather fly a modern trainer than a tatty outdated one.
I'll repeat what I said before, it's no wonder private flying is in decline in this country.