1.0 Introduction

2.0 Beginners introduction

2.1 Clubs
2.1.1 Local
2.1.2 AMA
2.1.3 LSF
2.1.4 Organizations outside the USA
2.2 What does it cost?
2.3 How long does it take
2.4 Choosing your first plane
2.4.1 Class restrictions
2.5 Radio equipment
2.5.1 Introduction & choosing the right radio
2.5.2 Transmitters & receivers
2.5.3 Servos
2.5.4 Batteries
2.6 Building your plane
2.6.1 General guidelines
2.6.2 Servo mounting
2.6.3 Tow hook mounting
2.6.4 Wiring
2.6.5 Visibility
2.7 Static plane trim
2.8 First flight
2.8.1 Special pre-flight
2.8.2 Normal pre-flight
2.8.3 Launch
2.8.4 Flight
2.8.5 Landing
2.9 Flight trimming
2.10 Repairs
2.11 Second plane

3.0 Thermal soaring

3.1 The plane
3.2 The lift
3.3 The ideal flying site
3.4 Launch methods
3.4.1 Hi-starts & bungee cords
3.4.2 Winches
3.5 Hand launch
3.6 Estimating distance

4.0 Slope soaring

4.1 The plane
4.2 The lift
4.3 The ideal flying site
4.4 Launching

5.0 Improving your skills

5.1 Flight plan
5.2 Turns
5.3 Circles
5.4 Thermal clues
5.5 Landing
5.6 Contests

6.0 Tools

6.1 Necessities
6.2 The well equipped workshop
6.3 Field box
6.4 Altimeter watches

7.0 Materials & construction techniques

7.1 Glues
7.1.1 Aliphatic glues
7.1.2 CA
7.1.3 Epoxy
7.1.4 Other
7.2 Woods
7.3 Fiberglass, Carbon Fiber & Kevlar
7.4 Built up construction
7.4.1 Advantages over composite construction
7.5 Composite construction
7.5.1 Advantages over built up construction
7.6 Wing incidence
7.7 Sheeting/covering wings
7.8 Hinges
7.9 Spars
7.10 Pivots, bell cranks, and control horns
7.11 Labels
7.12 Mixers

8.0 Contests

8.1 Introduction
8.2 Contest directors (CDs)
8.3 Thermal Duration
8.3.1 Launch order/windows
8.3.2 Pop-offs
8.3.3 Landing circles
8.3.4 Timers
8.4 Slope
8.4.1 Speed
8.5 Scoring

9.0 Glossary

10.0 Miscellaneous

10.1 Manufacturers
10.1.1 Airtronics
10.1.2 Futaba
10.1.3 Goldberg
10.1.4 Great Planes
10.1.5 Hitec
10.1.6 Hobby Lobby
10.1.7 JR
10.1.8 Northeast Sailplane Products (NSP)
10.1.9 Tower Hobbies
10.1.10 WACO
10.2 The big names
10.2.1 Joe Wurts
10.2.2 Daryl Perkins
10.2.3 Dr. Michael Selig
10.2.4 Dr. Eppler
10.3 Addresses
10.3.1 Snail mail & phone numbers
10.3.2 E-mail
10.3.3 Web sites
10.4 Publications
10.4.1 Model Airplane News
10.4.2 Model Aviation
10.4.3 Radio Control Modeler (RCM)
10.4.4 Radio Control Soaring Digest (RCSD)
10.4.5 Quiet Flight International (QFI)
10.4.6 Sailplane Modeler
10.4.7 Silent Flight
10.5 Books
10.5.1 Model Aircraft Aerodynamics by Martin Simons
10.5.2 Stick & rudder by Wolfgang Langerswitz
10.5.3 Tailless Aircraft in theory and practice by Nickel and Wohlfahrt
10.5.4 The old buzzard's soaring book
10.6 Legal considerations
10.6.1 FCC
10.6.2 FAA
10.6.3 Local laws
10.6.4 Liability

11.0 Bibliography