Suggestions For Other Activities
(a) Club Magazine
A small magazine, printed on a duplicator could be an interesting and
successful project. It could be published once a quarter or even annually. One way of
meeting the cost of production would be to make it a charge upon club funds. The following
is a suggested layout: news and drawings of club activities, outdoor and indoor; kite
topics in general; review of the weather; outside contributions on the subject of other
hobbies, including perhaps model gliders and aeroplanes. These subjects, together with any
others accepted by the editor, would provide sufficient material for an interesting
magazine. All that remains to be said is that it should be well-designed and neatly
printed; and that every member should try to make it known to and read by others.
(b) Club Weather Station
This suggestion arises out of what has been written in Chapter
10 on the subject of the weather. An amateur station could be set up at home or at club
headquarters. In the latter case members might make up a rota by means of which daily
notes could be taken of temperature; pressure; cloud formation; wind direction and speed.
In this way weather trends could be studied, and estimates of coming flying conditions could be attempted. A kite club weather station would probably arouse considerable local interest, for everyone is interested in the weather. This in itself would help to keep the fact of the club's existence in people's minds. Of course, the project, if attempted, does require that one member at least should be well-informed on the subject.
(c) Talks, Discussions and Outings
In a balanced club programme talks and discussions
are given a place. The following are a few of the subjects which could be considered. The
first is the story of kites through the ages, as outlined in the brief history in Chapter
12. The second is on popularizing kite flying. The third deals with the theme of how kites
fly. Again, if there were any speakers available who were interested in other hobbies,
such as model gliders or aeroplanes, then they could be invited to give a talk. In a
general sense, club outings could be in the form of visits to places of historic or other
interest. Other outings could have a particular reference to kite flying. For example, one
might be organized as a survey of one's area, in order to discover suitable flying bases.
Another might be for the purpose of noting the physical characteristics of the area, in
order to discover whether these had any bearing upon local weather.
(d) Kites and the Camera
The suggestion here is that a camera might be part of a
club's equipment. On many occasions photographs could be taken in order to build up a
pictorial record of activities, such as exhibitions; displays; competitions; outings and
the like. In time, a club album would be a much-prized possession.
(e) Club
Funds
In running a club some expense is incurred by materials, heating and lighting,
magazine production, stationery, and so on. Apart from membership subscriptions, other
sources of income might be found in some activities where charges could be made for
admittance and refreshments. In addition, there may be interested people who would respond
to an appeal on behalf of such funds. And if a magazine were published, then a small
charge might be made for the copies.