This post ended up being a lot longer than I set out to have it be, but I wanted to address some of the concerns raised here. My name is Kelly, and I'm the managing editor of Sport Aviation. What that basically means is I'm in charge of the moving parts and making them come together. I've been on staff (in Oshkosh) for 7.5 years and have worked on many different areas of the magazine during that time.
Hi Falcon21-
The August issue would have shipped at the end of July. So depending on when you joined in July, you likely didn't make it onto the membership list prior to that list going to the printer for labeling and mailing. The September issue mailed today, so you should receive it soon. I'll happily drop a copy of the August issue in the mail to you tomorrow if someone from membership hasn't already handled it for you. Just let me know.
Hi Michael-
I'm not sure when you submitted your photo and description of your build, but let me offer some clarity as to how that process works. We accept What Our Members are Building submissions on a rolling basis and, as you can imagine, some months the completions are more plentiful than others. Yes, we have 4 dedicated pages each month because that is what we have determined is just the right amount of space to even things out so that each month has a similar amount of that content. Each month we also try to make sure there are a variety of types of aircraft featured. When I worked on that section it would have been easy to simply run a couple of pages of RV completions, but then I suspect readers wouldn't have been too happy about that. So, while we try to run them in the order they are received, sometimes they get held a month to help the mix. On top of all of that, our production cycle runs two months ahead of when the magazine actually mails. So if you submitted it yesterday, the absolute earliest it'll appear in print is December. I expect all of the content for the November issue to be in my possession Tuesday morning when I arrive at the office. The backlog? It's likely about 2 issues worth, which is healthy for our production schedule. I'm sorry Mark wasn't more clear about that.
As for Mark's New Jersey address, without getting too detailed on his resume and life story, he was once a full-fledged EAA staffer in Oshkosh before my time working on Vintage Magazine, but life took him in other directions and he ended up on the east coast. In recent years he's helped us on a freelance basis with Sport Aviation and we've asked him to help us get the What Our Members are Building section in order for us each month. He's able to dedicate attention to it while those of us in Oshkosh are busy getting the next issue out the door. He asked for more info because we've asked him to make sure we get the most complete, detailed information on builder's projects we can. In touching base with you he's just trying to make sure we represent your hard work in the best way possible with the space allotted. I've never had trouble getting in touch with Mark when I needed him and he's pretty good about deadlines, so I don't fault him for his east coast digs.
If you're interested in more member project content, I recommend you also check out our Shop Talk column. Budd Davisson has been profiling builders and their projects in more depth there in recent months. We also do have some features scheduled on some great airplanes we spotted at AirVenture, so look forward to that in coming months.
Congrats on completing your Hatz - I look forward to seeing it in our magazine!
FlyingRon-
I'm sorry you felt that way about the article, and I'm even more sorry that you felt that way after talking to one of the staff. I know that article ran quite awhile back now, so there's not much I can do about it at this point. I'm glad you didn't cancel your membership and strongly encourage you to keep in touch and continue offering us feedback on articles. I don't know who you talked to at the time, but you can always e-mail us (Mac and I check this inbox) at editorial@eaa.org, or feel free to contact me directly at knelson@eaa.org and I'll be happy to address your concerns.
-Kelly
Wow!
Ms Nelson. Thanks for the reply. However, I do think 4 pages out of 154 is not adequate for a "members" magazine. Is sport aviation a flying magazine or a builders magazine? When was the last time we saw an article on how to "fabric" Paint" "wireing" and so forth. Many of the features in the magazine do not pertain to sport aviation. Why not start a section featuring members projects in the process of being built. I am sure there is much we can learn from other members.
After nine years of building I expected to see the pic of my plane on the front page of the NY Times - or at the minimum on the front page of Sport Aviation. LOL
Thanks and keep in mind - we are first and foremost BUILDERS then we are fliers.
Michael
I would also like to see 1 or 2 more pages devoted to building and a WEB site link to see the many more detailed photograps and builders notes that weren't published in the magazine. So if it wasn't in the magazine there are resources to see the information in detail that would be of a value to me. I know you have a number of limited pages and even if you had six pages of article it is still a limited view of the project. I think this would be the best of both worlds.
Not really. There's a lot of builds that I find to be just as dull as you probably find a lot of the spam cans. There's a reason why I don't subscribe to Kitplanes and instead read each issue at the local bookstore before buying the ones with useful information. A magazine full of "So I assembled my kit..." is just as dull as someone who bought a plane from the local Cessna dealer.As members, are we not more interested in what and how other members are building than we are in the workings of a "thrush AG plane?
That presumes that a majority of us are building or looking at building a ragwing (and this is coming from someone who is building a LSA with fabric covered parts). I know more people who are putting glass cockpits in their planes than are wrapping their planes in fabric and ADS-B is a major issue going forward for anyone who is planning on leaving the traffic pattern.Are we not more interested in how John Q member solved a fabric problem than we are in ADS-B options???
Because after a point, the same type gets boring? How many different ways can you describe a RV kit assembly or something similar? Who is to travel around and write these?As a member magazine would you not think that it would run article and pics of member accomplishment???
As someone who used to help edit newsletters, the last thing you want to do is let the subject of the article write it for a couple of reasons (most people lacking the requisite grasp of the written English language and not realizing that what they consider to be a major point of interest might not be interesting or worth mentioning to the reader). Trying to edit peoples' build stories or other "So there I was..." tends to be a major pain in the butt given how many people get extremely defensive if you crop or request a rewrite. More often than not you get a response along the lines of "Well screw off then! You must not care!".
Unfortunately in science what you believe is irrelevant.
"I'm an old-fashioned Southern Gentleman. Which means I can be a cast-iron son-of-a-***** when I want to be."- Robert A. Heinlein.