soy', you're blessed to have two good soaring operations at KBIG (that's Boulder Inter Galactic to those not from around there...). A couple observations: The skillsets which tend to give power transition pilots the biggest problems are pitch control, rudder/coordination, and accurately reading/anticipating micro- and meso-scale meteorological conditions; as well as head-out-of-cockpit. My direct observation is that you've got a much better handle on these than most of us.

If your goal is mainly the Flight Review, and perhaps tacking on what some of us like to call the multi-engine glider rating, the commercial operator might be the best route. If you want to hang out with some cool people and learn by osmosis from some top national competition/cross-country pilots the club might be a better choice. The club also does several remote multi-day camps at interesting soaring sites. As far as I know both are using the same DPE for flight tests (and occasionally the same grumpy old FSDO Inspector--who has his own glider on the field--a real anomaly--and is actually a good guy...). There are good clubs fairly nearby at Owl Canyon (www.soarcsa.org) and Ben Kelly (Black Forest) as well, should you want to get away from the KBIG zoo.

Just be careful though: You might get hooked and get high performance lust (50:1 glide ratio is addictive), or with your tailwheel experience you might get dragooned into being a tug pilot, and then all hope is lost

And feel free to pm or email me to bounce ideas around.

Thanks. cubscout

Thanks cubscout. I'm pulling the trigger on the SSB club and starting my training today - the training ships are just so much nicer and cheaper. It will be a real stretch to get my checkride done by 7/31, at which time I will need a powered FR. I think I would actually like to do some tugging. The pawnees look like a lot of fun, and they seem like they always need tow pilots.

Soy - I will be really interested to hear about your experience. I've been thinking about doing exactly as you are and have been weighing the soaring options around Denver. I admire your decisiveness! Good luck with the first lessons!

I've also been thinking about this. There are several glider operations around Puget Sound despite the environment not being as conducive to thermal generation as the basin and range country of Nevada, or even the desert region on the east side of the Cascade mountains. I used to fly hang gliders here, but that was mostly in ridge lift. Any PNW glider folks here that can opine on the value of training on the western, vice the eastern part of the sate?