Thrill-seekers may find an outlet in the Silent Nights Glider Club, which will hold an open house this Saturday at 9 a.m. on the west side of the Ames Airport.

“The Glider Club is a nonprofit organization that wants to provide gliding instruction and gliding facilities for club members,” said Scott Hippen, the club’s secretary.

The club meets every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday afternoon, weather permitting. Currently, the club has about 30 members from the Ames/Des Moines area, Hippen said.

“The open house will start with a two-hour orientation and instruction,” he said. “Following that, the club will be giving a limited number of free rides to those interested in becoming pilots.”

Robert Nady, vice president of Silent Nights Glider Club, said the club was set up in the early ’70s to teach people how to fly gliders.

The club has expanded to help more experienced flyers earn their license from the Federal Aviation Administration. Nady said pilots must successfully complete 75 flights to become licensed.

The gliders differ from planes and hang gliders in many ways, Nady said.

The gliders are small aircraft with no engine and no propellor. They have aerodynamic control panels, but unlike hang gliders, they are not controlled by weight shift, he said.

Hippen said the cost is $500 to become an official member of the club. There is a $100 due when signing up, $144 in annual dues and $200 for a pilot’s first 10 flights, which puts a flyer on his or her way to becoming a fully-paid member.

For Saturday’s open house there is no equipment needed, but those who choose to join the club will be required to buy instructional books, Hippen said.

“We’re looking for people who want to be pilots,” he said. “If they want to learn, we want to help them.”

For more information about the open house or the Silent Nights Glider Club, contact Paul Kaufmann at 233-5963.