Returning from sunnier climes to rain falling on a rutted and soggy airfield - with Steve Lewis's 'trout stream' in full flood - it was gratifying that several members turned up ready for whatever the day had to offer.
Inevitably there was an air of concern regarding club management issues - which have put such a strain on our secretary, our small, dedicated committee and the membership as a whole - but hopefully a turning point will be reached with the election of a chairman in a week or so's time. For a while there was a temptation to brew tea and fire up the wood-burner, but then the emphasis switched to what the club is really all about - namely gliding - or, failing that, enjoying each other's company while getting on with some of those essential chores which are always waiting to be done.
As an act of faith (or to be more truthful, to make room in the hangar for Martin Broadway and me to help John Bolt carry out the annual inspection on our ASW20F in the dry), the K8 and BVB were extricated and the latter DI'd and towed out to the east end launch point, with winch and cables also checked and ready to go. But then some heavy showers kicked in for a while, so it was afternoon before the first of a total of 10 launches was achieved.
With Ged kindly filling in for me with the instructing, Dave Rippon and John Howe driving the winch and Colin Boyd running the launch point, the emphasis was mainly on solo pilots keeping current. Our only student for the two-seater today was Shrek who, after a lay-off of several months, did three refresher flights in BVB. Ged reckons it should only take one more session until re-solo. So keep up the good work, Shrek!
Finally, our thanks to Dave Bourchier for spending the day attending to a variety of technical tasks, including hand-crafting a brand new axle for a K13 mainwheel.
Bob Pirie
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