Following yesterday’s rain and wind it was widely predicted that today would
be sunny and dry with a moderate wind from the north-east. Which had the desired
effect in encouraging a good turn out of club members, having already put their
clocks back to what used to be called Greenwich Mean Time (now UTC, or
Coordinated Universal Time).
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| K-13 DMX in full climb. |
The changing of the clocks did not go down well
with the grass gremlins, however, which had crept up into the K-13 wheelbox and
could clearly be heard moaning about the disturbance to their extra hour’s sleep
as we pushed the glider into the sunshine. Giving them a shake or prod with a
screwdriver proved to no avail and so Pete Howarth resorted to the pressure
washer, with similar lack of effect (except to his trousers..!) Eventually, we
had to jack up the K-13 on its keel, drop the wheel out and remove the
slumbering gremlins by hand, at which point Farmer Phil remarked that not all
the deposit looked like grass..! A thorough washing of hands ensued.
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| Steve Fletcher takes club K-8 GDK into a brilliantly clear sky. |
Despite this delay we were still ready to launch before our first trial
lesson arrived, with one K-13 (and K-8 for club members) available, at the west
end. Conditions were ideal for trial flights but, frustratingly, the wind
refused to veer to the north-east, remaining stubbornly in the north thus
preventing club members from investigating any possible wave. Flight times were,
therefore, quite short (although Pete Howarth’s was, even more frustratingly,
the longest…)
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| Seventy-year old visitor Sarah Potterton seems to have enjoyed her flight..! |
First into the front cockpit was Sarah Potterton who, as a sprightly
seventy-year old, appeared with her husband and daughter to tick off gliding on
her bucket list. And I think we did quite well, especially with the landings,
which were much smoother than her experience in a sixteen-seater balloon, which
resembled a rugby scrum more than a landing…
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| Sarah Potterton is presented with her certificate by Instructors Peter Howarth and Martin Cropper. |
Next was Hazel Wood, who flew with
Pete Howarth, and was followed by Eddie and Liz Morris, from Torquay. Eddie was
a dinghy sailor (well, 46ft yacht actually) who found our vocabulary
reassuringly familiar (you can take that however you wish) and Liz who felt very
comfortable in the air. Last on the scene (but of whom sadly we have no photos)
was avid angler Dave Payne and family, emigres from Cardiff who regularly
holiday at Shaldon near Exeter for the fishing. He was thrilled by today’s
spectacular visibility (above water).
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| Visitor Hazel Wood is present with her certificate by Peter Howarth. |
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| Visitor Eddie Morris shares a joke with Martin Cropper. |
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| Visitors Eddie and Liz Morris are presented with their certificates by |
Club members John O’Connell, Steve Fletcher, Phil Hardwick, Ed Borlase, Dave
Westcott and, returning after 23 years or so, ex-Chairman Ray Boundy enjoyed
their training/currency flights before (the first occasion this year) misting of
the canopy called a close to proceedings at about a quarter to five.
Thanks go to the winching team of Phil Hardwick and Steve Fletcher, to those
who improved the drainage on the airfield two years ago, and to everyone who
recovered the gliders down the track, thus preserving the surface of the west
end landing area.
Martin Cropper
