About the Book 

This gripping true story—a surprise Amazon #1 New Releases Top Seller—takes readers on an emotional journey of triumph and self-discovery. A 14-year-old boy learns to fly gliders and develops as a top sailplane racing pilot to emerge from the shadow of his All-American father. After a violent crash on the national stage alters his life forever, he battles failure and overcomes adversity while redefining success as a pilot, as a professional, as a Boston Marathon veteran, as a husband and father, and, ultimately, as a man.

This compelling account of that tragic day and its aftermath will inspire and motivate readers, who will:

• Learn how to overcome their own life’s challenges and never give up on their dreams.
• Be emotionally moved by the compelling tale of personal growth and transformation.
• Gain a newfound appreciation for the power of resilience.
• Enjoy an uplifting and heart-warming story of success in the face of adversity.

Goodbye, Papa Golf is:

• A flying book for pilots and non-pilots.
• A marathoning book for runners and non-runners.
• An adventure story written in the universal human language of doubt, fear, success, tragedy, failure, comeback, love, and ultimate redemption in a remarkable life’s journey.

If you’d like an insider’s look at the somewhat arcane sports of flying gliders or running marathons or simply need an uplifting tale to inspire and motivate you to pursue your own dreams, read this book now.

The Backstory

The story behind Goodbye, Papa Golf is a testament to perseverance and dedication, not only to the book itself, but to repeatedly overcoming adversity and essentially coming of age—a second time—relatively late in my life.

It all began 40+ years ago in the pre-dawn hours at a nondescript chain hotel in southwestern Ohio. I had drawn the curtains against prying eyes and the yellowish glare of high-pressure sodium lamps in the parking lot. The wall-mounted air conditioner hummed in the background stirring the faint scent of hotel disinfectant. The room was still and nearly black except for a narrow circle of illumination from a single bulb above the small Formica table where, bleary eyed, I raced to record on Holiday Inn stationery as many details as I could of the worst day of my life before they began to fade.

Based on these notes and sketches, over the course of 25 years, I embarked on an on-again/off-again writing journey on what I initially envisioned as a magazine article. However, the depth of the story—which transcends flying—surpassed the allowable limits of most articles. Former World Soaring Champion George Moffat, an integral character in and an early reader of the article, commented, “It is very moving and often beautifully written, especially the philosophical final pages.” He cautioned me, however, that it was already much too long for any magazine! He suggested either (i) drastic cuts or (ii) transforming it into a full-fledged book.

Cutting it held little appeal, so I soldiered on with what I hoped would someday be a book. More years passed, marked by myriad drafts and revisions. A literary agent highlighted a crippling flaw. A developmental editor recommended significant restructuring to address that flaw. A second editor who collaborated closely with me sparked even more changes in a manuscript whose scope had expanded far beyond flying.

My commitment sometimes wavered, but I was heartened by strong support from early readers. Their feedback—including critical comments by those who pointed out weaknesses—helped drive evolutionary changes.

This isn’t just another flying book but soaring (gliding) is nevertheless integral to it. Since it’s almost impossible to convey the essence of that in words, I embarked on the monumental task of collecting and curating thousands of my father’s and my own photographs spanning 75 years. I scanned countless photos (mostly 35 mm slides, many of which required extensive restoration) into electronic format, obtained permissions from image owners, and created maps and diagrams to illustrate key events. I designed the book’s interior, formatting the text and placing over 100 mostly color images in their precise positions. After a lot of thought, I elected to retain the color images despite the substantially higher printing cost compared with grayscale. At least the cost of the less-expensive eBook was unaffected. 

By 2022, I chose a cover design from half a dozen submissions. In early 2023, I rushed to complete multiple rounds of “final” edits, requested printed author proofs, and commenced work on the eBook version (another challenge given the many photos and the profusion of devices and formats of eBooks). Creating this Web site added another dimension to the project, almost 30 years after my first (and only) foray into Web design. Finally, in mid-2023, after 43 years of dogged effort, it was time.

Describing Goodbye, Papa Golf as a “labor of love” seems inadequate. It became an obsession. Yet, despite the imperfections I still see, it was worth the endeavor to me. I invite readers to judge for themselves and share their thoughts through reviews on the Amazon site or Goodreads or via email.

I still have second thoughts. An obvious one is the title, which may be confusing to non-pilots surprised to find no mention of the sport comprising Scotland’s second-most-popular export (ha ha) within the pages of Goodbye, Papa Golf. A previous title, Flying with Superheroes, paid homage to influential figures including my father, former U.S. Soaring Champion Robert Robertson, and George Moffat, all of whom played significant roles in my life, as well as the remarkable cinematic Superman, actor Christopher Reeve, who demonstrated his flying abilities during a dark, sobering encounter that I also documented in the book.