Colorado Soaring Association

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Scenic Flights and FAST at Owl Canyon Gliderport

The Colorado Soaring Association encourages the exploration and growth of soaring flight by giving scenic flights to the general public. You'll be sitting in the front seat of our glider with your pilot flying from the seat behind you. As you are towed to altitude behind one of our towplanes, the view will be breath-taking. Once you have reached your release altitude, your pilot will release the sailplane from the towrope by pulling the release lever, and you will find yourself in motorless, silent flight. Now you are gently floating through the air, with plenty of time to take in the view. In the small, quiet setting of a sailplane, you will experience the true freedom of the skies!

Scenic flights are $150 for approximately 20-30 minutes of soaring.  Altitudes and duration of the scenic flights will depend on the weather and other factors. All scenic flights are piloted by certified flight instructors or commercially certified pilots in one of the club’s two-place sailplanes. A scenic flight does not include any formal flight instruction.

Guests are encouraged to bring a camera, hat and sunglasses. The view from the glider is something special and we want to you to take full advantage of it.

Weight Limit
Passengers from about 90 pounds to 220 pounds can be accommodated. The total weight limit includes the pilot and passenger and varies with each sailplane. We will ask you to give an estimate of your weight so that we can adjust the ballast to ensure your safety.

Children
Children are always welcome at the airfield, if they are accompanied by a responsible adult in your party at all times while you are visiting (this includes during the time you are soaring!).

Please call the Colorado Soaring Association at (970) 568-7627 or Scenic Flight Contact to arrange a scenic flight.

Gift Certificates for Scenic Flights

Scenic flights are a very popular way for guests and possible new pilots to get a taste of glider flight. We schedule all of our scenic rides to ensure flight time in the two-place sailplane, and we schedule your pilot.

If we need to cancel your flight due to weather, etc. We will call you at least one hour prior to flight time.

To purchase a scenic flight gift certificate just send a note to:
Colorado Soaring Association
3012 Phoenix Drive
Fort Collins, CO  80525

Indicate in your note:
1.  Whom the gift certificate is to,
2.  To whom the certificate is to be given
3.  The address you would like us to mail the certificate to, and
4.  Enclose a check for $150.00 US, made out to Colorado Soaring Association

Upon receiving your note and check, we will prepare a gift certificate and mail it to the address you provide. Gift Certificates expire one year after the date of issue. Sorry, we accept only checks at this time, no credit cards.

FAST and FAST-PLUS

Colorado Soaring Association offers the Soaring Society of America’s FAST (Fly A Sailplane Today!) and our own CSA FAST-PLUS package.

The FAST program gives you the opportunity to get a taste of what soaring is all about. It offers you an introductory lesson in flying a glider, during which you will handle the controls of the aircraft under the guidance of an FAA certificated glider flight instructor.
The FAST package is a great value. With your purchase you will receive:

• An introductory lesson, consisting of a minimum of 30 minutes of ground instruction and 20-30 minutes of flight time
• A copy of the Glider Flying Handbook  or Everybody's First Gliding Book.
• A glider pilot’s logbook.
• An introductory 3-month membership in the Soaring Society of America and Colorado Soaring Association, including one copy of the monthly magazine Soaring.

FAST PLUS: For a bigger taste of soaring, you can try CSA’s FAST-PLUS.  CSA's FAST-PLUS offers everything you get with the basic FAST package, plus:    

• Two additional instructional flights with one of our instructors.
• The opportunity to apply $50 of the FAST+ fee to your initiation fee if you decide to become a regular CSA member.

The cost of FAST and CSA's FAST-PLUS can be found on the CSA rates page.

FAST and FAST-PLUS are not available to current or past members of the Soaring Society of America. Participants must be realistic candidates for regular or student membership in the Colorado Soaring Association (i.e., must live within 125 road miles of Owl Canyon Gliderport). CSA introductory membership period is 3 months or until instructional flights are completed, whichever is shorter

Frequently Asked Questions

Can more than one person and a pilot go up at a time?
Not with our current glider fleet. The gliders we use for rides are two-place planes and one place is needed for your pilot.

Do I need to schedule a scenic ride?
Yes. Scenic rides are a very popular way for guests and possible new pilots to get a taste of glider flight. We schedule all of our scenic rides to ensure flight time in the two-place sailplane, as well as scheduling your pilot. If we need to cancel your flight due to weather, we will call you at least one hour prior to flight time.

Do you accept credit cards as payment?
At this time, we are unable to process credit card transactions. We accept cash or personal checks.

Is it safe?
After more than 15 years, we have a 100% safety record for scenic rides. The pilot is an FAA certified Commercial glider pilot. There are risks associated with all aviation activities, and you are agreeing to assume these risks by taking a ride with us

Do I need to take anything with me to the airfield?
We do recommend that you bring water, sunglasses, sun block and a hat with you to the airfield. Sun and heat exposure can be quite significant at the airfield, especially during the middle summer months. The winds at the airport are generally stronger than around your house so during the spring and fall be sure you bring a warm jacket.

May I bring my young children to the airfield with me?
Yes, children are always welcome at the airfield, as long as they are accompanied by a responsible adult in your party while you are visiting (this includes during the time you are flying!). Please remember that Owl Canyon Gliderport is an active private airport, and therefore children must be supervised at all times while they are visiting.

 

Updated 10/14/2023

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