It was thermic from the first launch right though until around 1900 hrs, apart from occasional lulls in the conditions as hints of wave tried to confused matters.
We had a good turnout of members and visitors, and 'well done' to the former, for getting the kit out early and keeping things humming along efficiently and safely. I think the only glitches were a brief pit stop to replace a punctured inner tube on the Zugvogel; part of the parachute end of a launch cable was devoured by the winch, and (as ever!) someone lost a blue strop. Thanks especially to the winch drivers, who delivered surprisingly respectable launches given the light crosswind (which was sometimes downwind!)
The field was in great condition, thanks to recent efforts by our specialist field rolling team, and also to most pilots who now seem to be more selective in where they land - and the way they tow their gliders back to the launch point.
As an interesting illustration of how wet it has been, I found a load of frog's spawn deposited on what was recently a waterlogged patch - and is now one of the dryer parts of the landing area. (By the way, if you make a similar find, please scoop it up and remove it to a nearby ditch or pond.
Flying-wise, there were six gliders operating and for prolonged periods, all of them were airborne simultaneously. Apart from a few pilots who fell victim to those occasional lulls in conditions, most enjoyed strong thermals up to a 4,000 ft cloudbase - and Ged Nevisky reckoned he got even higher than that over the Moor. I believe that at least one pilot thinks he may have achieved Silver C height, and it was good to hear that Phil Hardwick's recent distance and height claims have been confirmed.
.JPG) |
| Richard Williamson's view from the Zugvogel |
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| Instructor Steve Lewis on approach in K13 G-DDMX |
Bob Pirie
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