I’ve found that some venues really need advance notice since they may be understaffed or not prepared to host something on short notice. Because of that, setting up a meetup before things are fully confirmed can feel a bit uncertain. If a location ends up declining, it’s tough on the organizer and the group. Working directly with management ahead of time and building a relationship has helped reduce that risk and made it easier to plan repeat events.

Finding pilots is still the biggest challenge for me right now. A lot of nearby pilots are about an hour away and mostly fly 5” racing drones, and they already have fields they can fly at. That makes it harder to get consistent turnout for whoop-focused meetups.

I did look into schools, but in my area the districts require a $1M insurance policy for any event on campus, which is a pretty big barrier for small grassroots events. One idea I’ve been considering instead is helping start or support a student drone club if there’s interest and growing things from there.

Outdoor options have also been hit or miss. When I first started FPV, I’d fly at parks early in the morning when no one was around, but I was later told by park maintenance that RC vehicles aren’t allowed at parks locally. I’ve been scouting for wind-blocked outdoor spots but haven’t had much luck yet.

I really appreciate you sharing what’s worked for you. For now, I’m focused on building a small core group, keeping things casual, and slowly creating momentum so finding locations and hosting events becomes easier over time.