I was just wondering what the average age is for members in some other clubs. I met the one in my area for the first time today, and I am the youngest(32) by a long shot. They were extremely nice and helpful though and can't wait to get out more often.
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It is really different by area. We've noticed clubs which have events open to the public such as an RC plane airshow, training session (buddy box), or simply showing off static RC planes to the public generally have a lot of newer and younger membership. -
Depends on the club as well. One of the well established ones here that's been going for almost 40 years has a higher average age (maybe 55?) than the electric-only club that's been around for only 10 years (average age is maybe 35). I belong to both clubs, so I get to limit the amount of "old guy syndrome" I get exposed to! :pPatComment
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Luckily, everyone in this club seems down to earth. None of those horror stories you hear about some of the older, more "seasoned" individuals.Comment
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From the places I've flown, I'd say the average age is around 50-60. I'm 22 and I've been the youngest in every club I've been in so far, not counting the college RC club. Most people have always been very helpful at the clubs, but there are always always a few people who still have the "my way or the highway" concept hard wired.Comment
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Funny seeing this here about the average age of club members. Last week I asked the question at my club about flying in the week, because I only fly at the weekends. I was told, "Oh the old guys fly in the week". Bear this mind because almost everyone at the club that particular day must have been well over 50 years of age.
MartinComment
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The "old guys" would be the ones in the 70-90 range. ;)
We have the same at my electric club. The old guys only fly on weekdays. You won't see them on Saturday. ;)PatComment
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Just think about where the hobby was when they were my age (32). I can only imagine where it'll be when I am their age.Comment
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Oh you young guys! Remember you will be us one day.:p And by the way the average age at our club is 50.Comment
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Our club has guys in the 70-90 range, although only one or two actually still fly. They'll come out during some events as a group and sit and watch and talk shop. Active flying pilots are mostly in the 40-60 range. Our youngest pilot (and by that I mean someone who flies more than once a month and who owns more than an airplane), is 10...11... I think? We've had a couple father/son pairs over the years, which is always heartening to see. Active pilots in the 15-25 category are very infrequent. Pilot Evelyn, of course, and a young man near her age who flies everything from turbines to Cox .010/.049.
Growing club membership is challenging. Membership aside, growing interest in model aviation is challenging. The younger generations... are hard to reach, captivate, inspire, and retain. It's probably one of the byproducts of the "drone craze" that I don't mind so much --I see far more young people flying drones, and my hope is that some of them will eventually make the jump to piloting real aircraft that have historical pedigree and thereby discover the source of passion we here share.Live Q&A every Tuesday and Friday at 9pm EST on my Twitch Livestream
Live chat with me and other RC Nuts on my Discord
Camp my Instagram @Alpha.MakesComment
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Personally, I printed a card with my name and e mail addy on it as well as all the club contact information. I've had several people show up lately and a friendly greeting and an honest interest in what they are/want to fly really helps.
They range in age from mid 20's on up. Even had a fellow show up that used to fly and seemed really interested in resuming now that a group of us are showing up on a semi regular basis.
I personally flew many months without seeing anyone else and was fine with that, but now that I've seen the social end of it as well, I look forward to seeing some of my new friends as well as some familiar faces.
The one thing I keep pushing for and really don't understand the hesitance to do it, is to offer some Motion R/C business cards for some of us who are interested in doing so, to pass on to these people. As every plane I fly is one I bought from Motion R/C, I have to tell people that:
A) It is not an E flite (unless it really is LOL)
B) I buy from the best company on the net, Motion R/C
You just wouldn't believe the reaction from people over the Bearcat and the Mustangs. The usual comment is, "They're made of foam!?"
So I give them the tour, pop the hatch and let them see for themselves. Of course the proof is in the flying...
But getting back to the subject and not running on like the almost-old-guy that I am, I don't believe, in the long run, that age is a big deal when it comes to this hobby, as soon as you show interest and enthusiasm, the age factor disappears, at least in my experience.
Grossman56Team Gross!Comment
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A lot of people stop along the highway to watch us fly here at the house, some will come over to the hanger and talk with us about the hobby, this has been good as we have had four people join our local club from these spectators. Our club is very diverse with about 100 members from all backgrounds and ages.Comment
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As one of those pilots (22) I agree. I have generally been the youngest member at most clubs that I have been to. The exception was the Embry Riddle (Prescott) RC Club, which was easily the most fun I've ever had in a club. The key to getting members around this age was cost. The flite test airplanes revolutionized things for our club, and we grew from 4 members to over 100 inside of a year. Great areas for slope soaring really helped as well, as did involvement with the AIAA Design/Build/Fly Competition. Once people got into the hobby, most were interested in 3D or miniquads, but there were a few who enjoyed scale. Here is the video of our club I posted a while ago on another thread: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEU0...HeGSCA&index=9 After moving down to TX to a much smaller club, I really miss flying there, lots of fun times and great company.Comment
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