Dartmoor Gliding News – Sunday 3rd November 2013

The word 'keen' means both enthusiastic and sharp.  The forecast today gave a well predicted front due to bring in rain at some time in the afternoon, and the wind around 260 at 30 knots.  

Mike Sloggett and Don were our instructors for the day so, whilst Roger Appleblender and I prepped the winch, it was only right that the others got two K-13s up to the launch point.  Completing a couple of precautionary repairs on DI'ing the cable, both Roger and I noticed and agreed that the wind was far further south than the westerly that was forecast.  Clambering into the solitary confinement that is the winch man's lot, I released Roger (not Roderick...) to be the first to fly.
 

Start of the day

 Don was 'keen' to go fly the ridges; with Roger as his (paying) companion.  Launching was barely controllable from a winch point of view, so Lord knows what it was like in the glider - however the Launch Assistant is a godsend in at least letting you know how much to close the throttle - you just can't back it off quickly enough on high wind days.  Off Don and Roger popped (after a launch to 1500ft - not bad with 90 degrees crosswind) whilst the rest of us mere mortals (Leith Whittington, Andrew Swann, Darren Wills and Colin Boyd) settled into a launch/brief circuit regime that enabled them all to pitch their skills against the high winds and sinking air emanating from the south.

Not us dodging the showers but the showers dodging us...

Some while later ... you've guessed it ... we learned that Don and Roger had landed out - but only a couple of fields away so having set off back with 650ft QFE showing, the K-13 done good (someone said it would probably have made it back with a couple of welterweights on board...) Eventually, at about 3.30, after we had heeded the gypsy's warning of the first drops of rain and stopped flying, K-13 DMX made it back to the hangar (on its trailer), intact, so no harm done. Its occupants meanwhile, had some interesting photos of Cox Tor and environs, however Don did have to admit that 'There was just too much south in it...'.  

That's 'keenness' for you.  Thanks go to the Wednesday crew who, for 'technical' reasons, have been left with the task of re-rigging DMX.

Martin Cropper