We realize that this is your first convention and it can be overwhelming. There is so much going on, so much to see, and so much to do, it is hard to know where to start. "Start Here!"

The "First Timer" tradition started back in 1995 based on a suggestion form in the convention packet, and we have used this method to help orient our first-timers to ensure that they have a fun and enjoyable time at convention. We actually hope that you will enjoy yourself and learn so much that you will want to come back again and again.

Be sure to attend the "First Timer Reception" which is our first offical event of convention. This fun-filled 30 minute event will give you lots of insight into how we do things in the AYA and what to expect. You can also expect that at the end of the 30 minute meeting that a group shot will be taken so be sure to look for your self in the Star when the convention article appears. Welcome to the AYA.

Contents
Volunteering| Things To Do| Meal Tickets| Badge| Pin the Map| Arrival Picture| Fun!| More What To Do| Pet Friendly| Ribbonology of the AYA| First Timer Inspired| Letter from a First Timer|
What to Expect
Volunteering - The AYA is a volunteer organization. Your Regional Directors, Officers, Program Directors all volunteer their time to make the AYA the organization that it is. Convention itself is a volunteer affair. All those folks you see running about, working in the hot sun, serving meals, giving seminars are all Volunteers. It is the best way to ensure a great time for all, meet lots of new friends, and learn the ropes. Want to play? It's easy, find a team lead or a sign up sheet and give it a whirl! We used to have ribbons for volunteers, but several years ago, Norris Hibbler (Aircraft and Marine Insurance) began paying for Volunteer Pins like the one pictured here from the 2008 convention. So get involved, have some fun, and get a great pin to wear proudly!

Things To Do - One of the first things to do is to register with the folks at the registration desk. This way, you get your convention badge, your meal tickets, any last minute information that you will need and any convention clothing that you ordered. Registration is not open 24/7 so be sure to check the times and locations (airport or hotel). Also usually located nearby is the signup sheets for all our Reindeer Games, so sign up for the events that you wish to compete in. Details of the events are in your convention packet (you did remember to bring it, right?)

Meal Tickets - Be sure and write you name on every meal ticket in your packet. Do the same for your spouse's and children's tickets as well. This way when Door Prizes are drawn, we won't get a blank ticket. Also if lost, they can be returned to you.

Badge - Somewhere in the stuff you get at registration will be your name badge. Make sure your name is spelled how you like it. What goes on the badge changes a bit from year-to-year but it should have your main airplane and location correct. Some years we have even had our emails on the badge. For the past few years we have even had a nice badge holder that you wear around your neck. These are great at holding your meal tickets, voting ballots, and a great place to display your volunteer pin. You did volunteer for something, right? Most folks find that having a piece of paper and a pen to swap info come in handy as well. Your mileage may vary.

Pin the Map - Somewhere in a main area, there should be a map of the US and Canada areas. So pick a map pin and mark your home on this map and take a look back at times to see where all the other folks are from.

Arrival Picture - Hopefully by now you have had your arrival photo taken. If not, find the convention photographer and get one with your plane or any background that you wish. This photo is our gift to you and in recent years it has been digital so we can email it to you or transfer it to a memory stick, whichever works out best for you.

Fun! - Before we go any further, it is important that you know that convention is FUN. Let me say that again,"Convention is FUN", and it should be treated as such. I mean where else would you find grown men wearing a tiara? So let your hair down (that is, if you have any left) and come on out and play with the rest of us. Convention is for a lot of us a big family reunion and we hope that you will treat it as such when you come back. Enjoy yourself, ask questions, meet new friends, and let us know how we can make it better.

More What To Do - Now here is a collection of things for you to do in your time here, and in no particular order either. There are seminars to attend and they cover the gamet from maintainence , electrical, redoing your plane, to survival skills. They are rated from the beginner to the expert so attend any you like and learn. Oh, and by the way, feel free to ask questions. There will be a membership meeting held and during it you will be informed what action the board took on your behalf all this last year. Our board meets only nce a year, so they cover quite a bit of business in their meeting. Following the membership meeting we ususally have the Ice Cream Social and this year we are going to have a premium ice cream for you pleasure. Seconds are encouraged! There will be social time for you and your new friends to chat, exchange flying stories (image that), and even try a few local drinks. Of, course, you can also chill if you like! Finally, we have a service called "Star Squad" that will keep your small children busy and entertained. It is a blast for them and give you a few minutes to breath deeply and enjoy yourself. Be sure and check out the Star Squad page near the bottom of the left-hand links. We'll be bringing you the activities that we have scheduled for them as well as a schedule of times and locations. From Ice Cream to paper airplanes, we have them covered. We also like to leave time in the schedule for time to just chill and chat (or take a good nap). That is one of the reasons that this years convention has an added day, to put some much needed social time back into the convention schedule.

Pet Friendly - Did I mention that the AYA is Pet Friendly (and so is our hotel this year). Many of our folks love to travel with the furry members of the family and our poster children are picrtured here. So don't be bashful, say "Hi" to Pascal.






Ribbonology of the AYA - Ribbonology, is that a real word? Well here are what the various ribbons mean. A"Speaker" ribbon is someone giving one of our seminars, so be sure to ask them what their topic is. A "Director" ribbon is one of our Regional Directors. These are the folks tha plan you local flyins during the year and see to it that your region makes the Star with write up of all of your activites. If you are really new to the AYA, go find out if your regional director is in attendance and introduce yourself. The "Chairperson(s)" ribbon is worn by those that have worked so hard to put this convention together. So be sure and tell them thanks for all their hard work and what a great time you have had. Just for completeness,a "Volunteer" ribbon is shown but it has been replaced now with the Volunteer Pin pictured earlier in this page. Ribbons change over the years, and the new style of "First Timer" is shown here. The old style is picture on the right-hand panel. Finally we come to the "Program Directror" ribbon. This is one of our programs (Archives, PFP, Insurance, Technical, Scholarshiop, Safety, etc) directors and they are also a volunteer of the AYA during the year.

First Timer Inspired - Jimmy Candaletti attended Glens Falls (AYA'07) as a First Timer. He listened to the experts, took some notes, ask a few good questions, but always remained in the background. The wheels were surely turning there. Jimmy went home and spent the next 10 months prepping his plane for AYA'08. His plan was to be ready for February, we told him he would not make it. Just days prior to Burlington, Jimmy had his plane out of the shop (he painted his own plane at home - trailering it both ways) and redid his interior based on what he had heard at convention. Obsessed with having the best? Not at all. Jimmy raced his plane at AYA'07 and when he removed the tape that made his race number it removed some of the paint from the bottom of the plane. So he started pulling a thread. The results? Jimmy walked away with 4 trophies, "Best 4 Place - pre90's", "Best Interior", "Best Exterior", and the coveted, "Best in Show". I have just heard a rumor that he is redoing his avionics, so I wonder, what will he win this year? Jimmy may not be your typical first timer, or even you typical AYAer, but he serves as an inspiration ot many of us, as to what we can achieve. This is why we work so hard to make sure that every first timer has a great time at convention.

Letter from a First Timer Maryjo is a non-flying spouse and here are her impressons of her First AYA Convention.

What We Did On Our Summer Vacation as published in the September/October 2007 American Star - Volume XXXII, Number 5 (pages 8,9)
Flying is my husbands’ passion, not mine. I usually bring a book to pass the time so I do not have to sit there bored and feeling left out, especially as he speaks with other flying enthusiasts. I enjoy the quality time we share when he flies as we have had many hours of good conversation while confined to a cockpit enroute to and from that $100 hamburger. This is what I expected at the convention, with a few side trips to sites of interest around the airport while he attended seminars on aviation related stuff. Maybe I would meet a few non-pilots with whom I might spend some time while hoping we had some connection beyond sharing spouses with Grummans for mistresses. Jim also had similar reservations; with only four years of flying experience, three years in the AYA, 200 hours on his Tiger, he was not sure what to expect. Would there be things of interest for him? Would we be bored? What would it be like out in the middle of nowhere with people we did not know? Being a first timer at a convention can be intimidating. At least we were not too far from home. We found none of this to be true.

I have been a school teacher for the past six years, having recently finished the requirements for my masters after two years. I work overtime during the school year so that we can afford those $100 hamburgers. This was my first summer with no commitment beyond my family in quite a while. Jim is the pilot and a crane operator. He works all year, getting time off, especially in the summer, is often impossible. He is often asked to work overtime and on weekends. We needed a vacation.

Before school let out, while I was working on my final paper, Jim called out from the spare room “The AYA is having a convention in Glens Falls. This one is not too far, wanna go?” I asked two questions, one, “What will there be to do?” I was not into another gathering where I walked hundreds of miles looking at planes and dealers of airplane stuff. Thus the second question was “Is there anything for me to do that will be interesting?” If there was nothing I figured I had a few books to catch up on. I had received a new camera for my birthday, I could get some practice using it and learning all the features and advantages of digital photography. Since Jim’s regular flying partner has a Navion, and there was a Navion convention the same week, “I was it”. In truth, I lucked out!

Throughout the weeks before the convention Jim kept asking me if I wanted to do all sorts of things, take a dinner cruise on Lake George, take the cockpit cool course where I could learn to land the plane in case of an emergency. I had expressed interest in learning to land in case of an emergency but was told that I had to take the pilots course to learn to land the plane. I “had” no interest in learning to fly, I can’t drive with my husband in the car, I could not imagine operating a vehicle in three dimensions with him beside me. He often explains things as we fly. I listen, well, sometimes I half-listen. I found that during the convention I could visit a fort, take a hike, and of course, I could read. He downloaded the scavenger hunt list and I put it away for the trip per the instructions. The hotel was very nice and had a pool.

The day we left I opened the scavenger list and we were off. We discussed how to meet the challenges set before us, sometimes in riddles. We definitely approach things differently. When we landed someone took our picture and offered us water, and a golf cart ride to the terminal (where the ladies room was), thank you, Cindy. I thought “how nice”.

I found little time to read my book that week. Shortly after arriving I saw someone with a name tag saying “Roscoe”, one of the scavenger hunt items! I took a picture of him as he put an arm around Jim and welcomed us. I showed Roscoe the shot, he asked for a copy. Soon I was recruited to be a convention photographer.

Jim volunteered to be a judge and enjoyed seeing what other people had done with their planes. He took part in the race and came in third! Everyone told stories and shared experiences. “You have to meet…They are right over there...” were common phrases. Thank goodness we all had on name tags. There were so many people, it was hard to keep names straight! Jim talked shop and I did my own things. We participated together in the flour bombing. Jim attempted to run over eggs and to precision park. He took seminars on a myriad of things, unfortunately there were so many things he wanted to do but not enough time to do them all. I pushed a plane down a course with Jim telling me how to do it, and it was a blast! The two of us had a wonderful time working together and also getting together and sharing our day’s adventures. I never got to visit the fort or hike, too busy having fun. Bored we were not. If we needed anything or had any concerns all we had to do was ask someone with a vertical ribbon. Purple horizontal ribbons were first timers like us. We were asked “are you having a good time?” in earnest from so many people throughout the week. There were single people, couples, families with babies, and people who brought young adults with them. People also brought their dogs. We were amazed at how well everyone got along and were very comfortable with the warm friendly atmosphere. What a great group of people. We met quite a few non-pilot and pilots of all ages and from all parts of the globe with whom we spent a lot of wonderful time and who we both look forward to seeing again.

Surprisingly I was asked to photograph again next year. I was not sure if Jim could get off of work again but I was told that this would not be a problem. If I posted to the web site that I needed a lift, one will be provided. I also learned that the AYA supports their members during flights. Caravans are arranged, meeting at a point along the way. Everyone brings necessary parts. If problems occur resources are pooled. If a plane breaks down the loads and people are distributed. No one gets left behind. After meeting the group this does not surprise me. I would happily be a photographer next year although we both hope that Jim will also be able to come. We both had an awesome week and enjoyed the convention together !

I now find that I am an active flyer thanks to the patience and belief of the instructors for the cockpit cool course, especially Mike and Lou. On the flight home Jim went over the things I learned so that I can remember what I had been taught. We work together, from planning to closing. He explained what he was doing and I understood why! We are now flying partners. Wish driving in the car with him was as much fun and stress free. I still bring my book; I may be learning to fly soon although I am still so busy with little time to catch a good story. Maybe some day I will participate in those aviation conversations. ‘Till then, I will catch a few pages.

Thank you to all the AYA members. Everyone gave of their time and unique talents to make everything enjoyable for all participants. The burdens were shared, everyone from the children to adults enjoyed their convention week. Everyone was encouraged to have fun and supported in their efforts, whatever you wanted to do. Both Jim and I felt a part of this event from the moment we stepped out on to the field. It did not matter that we bombed at flour bombing, we had fun! On the way home I photographed a rainbow! What a perfect ending to a wonderful week. Who would have guessed?