On the other side of the coin Gertrude - once you are solo and with a wee bit of experience then you can buy your own glider or join a syndicate and then the work to flying ratio will change somewhat
Some years ago after I bought my own wee glass glider - over the first summer of just weekend flying I did 79.35hrs in 34 launches - all off winch launches and including a successful 300k diamond goal which i managed to squeeze in on the last possible day of the season
And gliding is a great way of seeing the country - x country flying can be very challenging/satisfying/scary at times