• Tell us all about your model flying club and report on your activities. E-mail me with some idea of the sort of facilities you have, size of membership, types of model flown, social activities, reports of special events, site availability, guest arrangements, frequency of meetings, location, or anything else you can think to mention. Pictures will also be most welcome, and if you want to send me pictures by conventional post, my address now appears on the home page. If your club has a website, let me know the address and I will pay you a virtual visit!

The club is located in an area known as Rivington Pike, not far from Bolton, Lancashire, UK, and has three slopes available to take advantage of different weather conditions - and all affording some wonderful views. There is a monthly Cross Country event held from May to October

Right now, like so many clubs here in the UK, RSA is 'grounded' because of the dreadful outbreak of foot and mouth disease that has made the countryside a 'no-go' area. Normally, however, the club meets every weekend for flying and the flying sites are available to members every day. A group of pensioner members also meets on Wednesday afternoons during the summer.

Whilst not generally meeting away from the slopes, there have been occasions when the club has held 'Technical Evenings' where techniques have been described, e.g.wing skinning. 

RSA welcomes beginners to the club. They have a club proficiency certificate for members to achieve before they are allowed to fly alone. This applies to everyone and is a condition of membership and for insurance purposes. There is no formal training programme, but members are always willing to stand with beginners until they are able to take the proficiency test. This test, incidentally, is not to prove that someone is an expert, but to show they are in control of the model at all times and can land safely.

Rivington Soaring Association has an attractive website, the handiwork of webmaster Ian Harrison. Links on the home page take you to pages covering general information about the club and its sites, RSA events, RSA pics, News, Tips and Other Sites. The RSA pics page features an interesting window in which pictures are randomly selected from a growing gallery of members photos. The Tips page also carries a link to a site where full instructions can be found to build a foam cutter. 

RSA's website can be found at http://www.sar.bolton.ac.uk/ian/rsa.htm