Why is Bart leaving?

[Gotandem]

Now that many hang gliding friends know that I am leaving Cowboy Up, I have to tell them what happened. I would like to explain here. The recent loss of 3 direct family members has turned my life upside down. It has set a chain of life changing events in motion. I feel the need to be closer to the rest of my family and loved ones, so I decided to move back to The Netherlands.
This was not an easy decision. I see our school as a life work. Tiki and I went through an incredible journey together. We had a fantastic time and truly lived life to the fullest. If you like flying, hang gliding and life, I can recommend starting a flying school with your best friend. I don't mean to say that it was always great. Tiki mentioned only a few of the hardships in her GofundMe video. There were many more serious ones that could have brought our school down. We knew it wasn't easy to earn a living flying hang gliders. Hence the name Cowboy Up. But because of our will to succeed we eventually came out with a thriving school in South Texas. It has given me great joy for many years and I'm proud of what we achieved together. Hang Gliding and flying is my life and it is the same for Tiki.
But now she's dealing with a business model that doesn't work anymore. She can't fly a tandem glider and tow it up at the same time. And towing solo gliders doesn't pay the bills. Our local pilots will have no place to go to and Hang Gliding in Texas will suffer. Maybe it will just end here. So I am glad that she turned to the HG community for help. Asking for this and opening oneself up about problems is not an easy thing to do for Tiki. I am proud of her and of this community that has already donated very generously. As I write this, we are almost one third on the way to secure hang gliding here, with a really good shot at growing our sport like we used to. So I'm optimistic. Tiki can Cowboy Up with the best. Our community just needs a little help now. Please donate.
Bart Weghorst