Dartmoor Gliding News–Wednesday 23rd July 2014

Today was the day of the BGA technical audit, and by 0900 hrs with the a clear blue sky, the heat building, the wind light and variable from the east, and the prospect of thermic activity later, the club was humming, with members old and new focusing on getting the day’s show on the road.

By that time, Steve Raine and Phil Hardwick had already set up the winch and launch point; changing ends in the process. This gave us the convenience of conducting flying operations only a few steps away from the clubhouse; ideal for access to loos, cold drinks and, later in the day, a snap ‘in situ’ inspection of the K13 between training flights. (Talking of loos, full marks to Colin Boyd and Ged Nevisky who started their day by having to repair a water leak in the gents’.)

Once the club’s operational needs had been fulfilled, and with ‘audit co-ordinators’ Ged and Colin  satisfied that they had all the tools they needed to help their awaited visitor, the emphasis switched to getting the private gliders (Astirs x 2, Jantar, Open Cirrus, K8 and K6) rigged and ready to go. All in all great teamwork, and the making of a super - if sweaty - day’s gliding.

The airfield from 2500 feet looking south

As the morning progressed, the cumulus started to brew and there were also signs of embryonic wave activity, with soaring occurring right from the first launch of a heavy and hot day’s training programme.
Having run out of my supply of bottled water by late afternoon, I was most grateful to Steve Lewis and Ged for taking over for a couple of K13 sessions. One of these was for trial lesson candidate John Patterson from Newton Abbott, who enjoyed a couple of short soaring flights.

Trial lesson Candidate John Patterson

 I think all of us were delighted that Steve, who spends so much time flying visitors, managed to rig and fly the Jantar. Not the hoped-for 300k which he has aspired to for so long, but ........ hours of extended local soaring which brought a smile to his face and, in the intense heat, was probably long enough. Because of all the soaring, our launch score wasn’t high, and the most impressive flight was a 100k Holsworthy-Crediton-Brentor by Mike Gadd in the Open Cirrus.

This large area of brown fields with it's attendant cloud gave an easy 6 knot thermal

Approaching the turnpoint at West Crediton 

The day ended with Fred Marks, an experienced North Hill pilot (and a nice guy who always chips in to help when he visits us) re-soloing and soaring in the K8 after a break of several months, having been checked out by Martin Cropper last weekend.

Fred seems happy with his endeavors.

The prospect of the BGA audit got us off our backsides and working as a team earlier than usual, and I hope everyone found the whole day fun and rewarding, as a day’s gliding at Brentor should always be. There was just one slight cause for regret, however, in that we were unable to accommodate Frazer and Kiyomi – our newest Junior Temporary Members – on this occasion due to a (hopefully
temporarily) administrative issue.

Finally, what about the audit? Well, Ged, Colin (later assisted by our senior engineer John Bolt) found the auditor, Keith Morgan, to be thorough and constructive. Any areas where improvement is needed were explained informally, and no doubt the formal report when it arrives will provide us with an opportunity to improve our performance.

So it’s ‘onward and upward’ for the club, as we all say so often. Finally, from a duty instructor standpoint, may I just thank and congratulate every single club member who contributed to such a productive and enjoyable day. Also, I must say that using the car park and keeping the airfield free of private cars made a big difference in terms of appearance and, more important, safety around the clubhouse and at the launch point.

Bob Pirie