Like a kid on Christmas Eve -

That's me.  I'm waiting for my new Gradient Avax XC-3 to arrive.  The early reports are very positive and the performance is being touted as 'much better' than the XC-2, which I was very impressed with.  When I ordered the XC-2 (3 years ago) I was concerned that it would be too hot for me.  I was very happy with the handling and benign flight characteristics and it was perfect for my stage of development, as a paraglider pilot.

Now, I'm ready for anything that Gradient can get by the EN-D testing.  And I'm ready to enjoy the great handling I've come to expect from the Gradient team.  I won't be worried about competing against the ultra-specialized, exotic, 2-liner comp wings rolling off the factory floors - I'm a serial guy, and happy to be flying a little less performance with much better handling.

I didn't want to complicate my order, so I went with the stock blue colors.  It should be here within a couple weeks.  I plan to fly it in the US Nat'ls in Sun Valley in August, and the PWC in Chelan, WA in July.

The XC3 is advertised as having a better-than 10:1 glide ratio with a nice wide speed range that exceeds 60Kph accelerated.  The 6.8 aspect ratio is right between that of the XC2 and the Boomerang 5 I flew this year.   The 3-line configuration eliminated almost 25% of the line length (read drag) and it looks like the line diameters haven't been increased substantially, like they have been on the 2-line designs.

More info to come when I get a chance to wring it out -

Here's a nice video of the XC-3 in flight.

YouTube Link

Over the Back at Cuesta

Today was one of the best looking days in San Luis Obispo Co. for XC in a long time.  Patrick pinged me early and we decided it would be an early day so we met at 10AM at launch.  Cumulus clouds were popping in all quadrants and the cycles were causing regular gusts up the face.

We hurriedly set up our gear and were ready to launch by 10:30.  My goal was to take advantage of the Westerly flow and make a downwind dash to Mike's place (about 20 miles East) and then reassess and continue to reach  I-5, if possible.  I had not made the crossing to the range East of Santa Margarita, so this would be fun and new.

I launched first and scratched a bit, before contacting a ripper that took me right to cloudbase at 5000'. Patrick was working up also so I headed over the back to the East side of 101, where I expected to catch another thermal under the building clouds. All I found was trashy sink and soon found myself landing at the small airport near town. Patrick came over & also dirted after only a few miles. Jack was kind enough to drive over and pick us up so we could give it another go.

The wind had come up quite a bit in the interim, so neither Patrick nor I were planning to go XC the second time, but when Jack called to say he'd decided not to launch in the freshening wind, and would drive retrieve, I was ready to head over. This time the cloudbase at launch was over 5300' and when I got the second climb in trashy air in the lee of the East ridge, it was 6-700'/min. to 5800' cloud base.  Unfortunately, as I headed East at over 40 mph groundspeed (that's bookin' for my PG) it became apparent that the ground was shaded and the wind, that was adding to our groundspeed, was also breaking up the lift. The landing options are so much better than I had expected while driving through the area and the route is not as intimidating as I had previously thought. I expect to go this way with more success in the future.  It was a fun flight for a short 13 miler, but it really got Patrick and I thinking about the possibilities of the route.

I landed in brisk wind just off of Parkhill rd. (like Patrick, I thought it might be 58)   It was a short 13 mile flight but lots of fun for Patrick & me.  One more thermal and Mike's place was easily possible, two more and we'd have been smoking to Bfield ;-)

I snagged a ride, with a nice local guy named Scott, for the 5 miles to Hwy 58 and we picked Patrick up on the way.  Jack soon picked us up on the Hwy.  Thanks for the time behind the wheel Jack - we really appreciated it.

My flight can be viewed here http://www.paraglidingforum.com/leonardo/flight/332527

Me on the Avax XC2 flying with John H. Photo by Patrick Eaves

BAPA Comp at Dunlap May '10

Dave S. and I headed to Dunlap on Wed. afternoon with the intent to fly 3 days and then participate in the SFBAPA league events over the weekend.  When we arrived at launch the conditions looked perfect for a nice 'shake-out" flight around the valley.  We camped at Dan's LZ and enjoyed a nice dinner up the road at the pub.
Thursday Jug Arrived and we had another fun flight around the valley under great cumulus clouds.  The top-of-climb was low but it was still possible to move around the valley.

Friday was more of the same and I made the decision that I would be flying my Avax XC2 in the weekend comp.  I've decided to fly Serial class in the coming season and have ordered a new Gradient Avax XC3.  The Boomerang 5 is a great wing and I've enjoyed flying it for about 30 hours.  It never did anything squirrelly to me and has great glide performance.  I just didn't connect with the wing.  I didn't trust it and felt that I could actually score better on my XC2 or new XC3.  Maybe I'm not ready for a comp wing yet - I'm OK with that.  I'm firmly of the opinion that we all fly better on wings we are confident in and flying well.  I do know that I can't compete, in the open class, with the latest 2-line wings on a two-year-old Boom 5 so I might as well fly the wings I enjoy flying and that are at the top-end of their class.  


Saturday the troops all assembled at Dan's at 9:30 and we headed up the hill at 10:30.  The conditions were forecast to be good with lift to 6-7000' and a NW wind in the valley.  A task was called from launch to hill 49917 and back, then over Big Cat - and Bald, then a leg to Orosi in the flats for a total of 25 miles.



I had a good high start and barred it all the way to Hill 49917 the lift there was sporadic, but I soon found a thermal pulsing off the hill.  I climbed high enough to get back to launch and caught some lift with the lead gaggle.  We all headed down to Big Cat and then hit the 4km cylinder around Bald Mtn.


A few wings turned directly to Ruth Hill and were struggling low in the shade, so I was looking for alternatives.  To my right (the wrong way to Orosi) was in sunlight and I thought about heading there to poach a bubble off the low hills.  At that same moment, I noticed Josh coming across low to the same area.  He began to circle low in weak lift and I came in on top of him.  The lift was weak but soon bloomed and we climbed together to over 6000' which made it possible to pick our way past the shade at Ruth Hill  and start a relatively straight forward flight to Orosi.  The clouds were working well and lift was often 500-600'/min.  Josh pulled ahead when it was obvious that the flight was going to be easy and beat me to goal by 3 minutes.  Fredric and Steve made it to goal about 30 minutes later and Hoop made a great effort, landing 1km from goal.

Lesson reaffirmed: Don't follow others into conditions that are obviously NOT working.  Look for viable options and try to capitalize on the opportunities they present.

Sunday's task was started in conditions that included low cloudbase and some forecasts of convective activity.  We built a 19 mile task that would put more pilots in goal and keep them in the Dunlap Valley.   After looking over the conditions I decided to launch early to sample the lift and make sure that the convection was reasonable.  Climbs were plentiful and the lift didn't increase in intensity as the cloudbase was approached.   As the start time approached conditions felt better and as we made a glide into Hill 49917 the trend was obviously better.  At that point I just concentrated on the race since I was in the hunt with Josh, Eric, and Fredric.   By the third turnpoint I was in 4th place and the flying was fast.  Josh had stopped to take a climb after Big Cat, on the way to Airstrip, while Eric and Fredric continued into Granny's Knob low.  It looked like they had gotten stuck on the knob, so I took the next 400'/min climb and topped out at around 5500'.  This gave me sufficient height to overfly the guys while they wrestled with sporadic lift, low over the knob.  I was fortunate to pick a great line that actually provided lift as I tagged and returned from the Airstrip.   All I needed for the last 7 miles of the task was one more climb, which I took just short of Big Cat.  I knew Josh was on final glide and Eric was hustling to catch me, but I took the climb at least 1000' too high and had way too much altitude for the final glide.  A rookie mistake, but I still placed second for the day - 4 minutes behind Josh.

I feel very good about the weekend for two reasons.  Firstly; My indecision regarding how I was going to compete this season (and in future seasons)  was resolved, as I sold my Boom 5 on Friday and ordered a new Gradient Avax XC3 on Thursday.  I'm flying serial class for the foreseeable future.
Second; I left the Boom in the bag and flew my three-yr-old Avax XC2 well this weekend and placed 2nd to Josh in both tasks.  I really feel like some of the effort I've put into studying the game is paying off.  

The league has really flourished due to Jug's efforts.  Introducing the Mentoring program and reevaluating the goals of the league to promote the participation and education of newer pilots has revitalized the league.  It's going to be a great season.

Results are HERE.  
and more photos can be viewed HERE

Tim

Cayucos today

Jack called me early and it was a beautiful day.  Maybe the nicest day for awhile since some weather is headed this way on Friday/Saturday.  I was up for a hike-n-huck later in the day -

I spent 30 minutes in the driveway with the Avax XC2 rearranging my lines.  My friend Jug helped me replace all my lines last week and all was well, except that some of the lines terminated at the mallions in a way that twisted the individual risers.  It was easy to fix and I was ready to fly with my new harness & a newly-lined-retrimmed wing.

The new harness is a Woody Valley X-Rated 5, and I'm loving it.  The fit & finish of the harness and pod is good and I find it very comfortable.

After hiking to the top, and waiting for the ocean breeze to blow through,  a friend and fellow UAL pilot stopped by and, later, took the video below.  Scotty is a kick-ass kite boarder and I hope to see him under a paraglider soon.   The harness looks good and the Avax feels like a new wing again . . . I REALLY like this wing.

Tim

Flyby at Cayucos from Tim O'Neill on Vimeo.

WCPC - Practice Day 2

Today looked unstable early and we all knew it would over-develop before the day was done. The cell above was 20 miles East of us, near Medford, and it was late in the day before any over-development affected the Ruch area.


I launched early again today and got up easily. I headed across to Rabies and soon found a great thermal to 8,500 ft. Most of the collective wanted to go to Grant's Pass again, but I wasn't that motivated to fly the route again. I headed on course but turned and went to the West to make a triangle. I ended up an the Longsword Winery and enjoyed a nice red after packing up. My flight is HERE.

Tonight was sign-in for the WCPC and it looks like most of the regulars are here. Tonight the skies opened up with a very active lightning display and gully-washer rain, so the weather for the week is in doubt. I'm hoping to see some good short tasks early in the week and longer stuff when the instability eases. Wish me luck.

Tim

Cuesta Today - Feb. 18, '09

Today was a spectacular day in the San Luis Obispo area. I awoke with my usual "got in from Hong Kong yesterday funk," but shook it off when the forecast looked good for the Grade. The emails flew back and forth and it looked like a good weekday group would be at the hill around 12.

My flight is HERE.

After taking my dogs to the vet I hustled up the hill & was first to set up while marveling at how green things had gotten since last week. Patrick and Kevin soon joined me and prepared to fly. Patrick was first to lay out and that meant that there was an immediate lull for 10 minutes. The cumulus clouds were really starting to look good, with a nice cloud-street West all the way (it looked) to Cayucos and many more popping East of launch. Patrick passed up a couple decent cycles and I was getting antsy, so I opted to launch first. I launched at 12:30 and played with some scattered lift but soon was maybe 30-50 meters below launch wishing I had been more patient. I eventually found a nice bubble in the usual spot that bloomed into a nice climb back to the ridge and then to the towers. As I headed West, over launch, I could hear/see a blimp flying along 101 and crossing the grade towards SLO. He was maybe 300 meters below me and a mile away - it was hard not to head over to fly by him ;-)

Patrick soon launched as did Dave, Kevin and Jack. When I passed the towers I was over 1000 meters and things looked text book for a fun XC flight towards Cayucos. I was showing a S flow that veered into an Easterly flow at around 1200-1400 meters, so I opted to continue along the ridge Westbound. The cloud street was the nicest I'd flown in this area. Patrick was getting nice & high and looked like he might head East but turned back West to shadow me along the ridge. The best lift band seemed to lay just W of the ridge. The thermals were regularly spaced and reasonably smooth.



I wasn't pushing hard because I really wanted Patrick to catch me but just flew a reasonable pace. Occasionally I'd see a couple hawks above me and circle with them to 1000+ meters. Approaching the 41 corridor I notice that a blue hole was lying over the pass and optimistically (too optimistically as it turned out) continued into the blue at a mid altitude. Soon I was calling back to Pat that he needed to tank up before his transition. I cruised across 41 at the point the big power lines cross the hwy at a meager altitude. After a low save, I was joined by Patrick and we skated around in a 150 meter band of lift for 15 min. until I was out of steam. We both landed in the same field next to Hwy 41.

We had no cell svc so we hiked a bit until we found a turnout and set up for the hitch to Cuesta. After tying on my PILOT NEEDS RIDE sign and thumbing for 10 minutes, a nice gentleman offered to give us a ride to the top of the grade. We piled in and soon we were at the base of the dirt road hiking to launch.

It was one of the prettiest days I've flown at Cuesta. Unfortunately my thick gloves (which were VERY helpful at altitude) caused some fumbling with my helmet cam, so I was unable to turn it on.

Thanks to Patrick for taking the photos and making the flight a joint effort.

Tim

Chelan Day 2 - NO TASK

Called at 12:00 due to high winds associated with a small system passage.

Amir Izadi took some photos of the start and I seem to be placed well in the frame ;-) I'm on the grey/blue XC2

Thanks Amir -

It is 8 am on Day 3 (Wednesday) and winds are already very brisk. The forecast isn't encouraging for today so I doubt we'll fly. I saw Batman last night - Great movie.

Tailwinds,
Tim

Dunlap BAPA Comp - June 21-22

CTRL/Click Photos for larger photos

The lapse rate was good and the winds aloft fairly light, so it looked like it was going to be a good weekend. We had a lot of pilots and it was nice to have some friends & family to help with retrieves. The tasks both days were ambitious but the flying was very good. I met Dave S. at the school & he stayed in the camper with me. I flew 8.5 hours in two flights and Dave flew over 9!

Saturday the task was a 77 kilometer task 3 valley crossings and then a 53k leg to Exeter out in the San Juaquin Valley. I flew much of the last half of the task with 'Kansas' and we traded leads as we picked our way down the foothills. Eventually I caught a thermal that provided sufficient glide to get to Colvin Mtn. out North of Woodlake. This hill has some significance for me since it was the first hill I launched off of and thermalled in a paraglider, 5 years ago. A buddy of mine lives at the base of this hill. I spent 15 minutes or so trying to get a climb but nothing substantial cycled up the hill so I ended my 4:30 flight.

I figured Dan & Denise would have beer in the fridge & be willing to give me a lift to where the retrieval car could pick me up. Nobody was home. Bugger! So now with thoughts of a cold beer dashed, I started my hike out to the main road, three miles away. Did I mention that it was around 100F with no shade? I drank over a gallon of water and still got severely dehydrated. Fortunately a good samaritan gave me a ride to Ivanhoe where I met up with Dave & Kansas for the ride back to Dunlap.
Eric B. and Josh C. made goal, with Eric R. Kansas, Me, & Dave, landing within 5-10km. of goal.
My Sat. flight is HERE
Sunday the task called was identical to Saturday's except that after Bald Pk. we flew to Gage Station and then back to launch & out to the Pizza Place in Squaw Valley. I spent much of the task flying with Andrei A. & Eric R. They were both on Comp wings so I needed to use quite a bit of bar during the transitions to stay with them. Conditions were very scratchy so we spent a lot of time mapping the weak lift. I was able to get a low save off a low ridge while the other guys waited for the next cycle and headed towards the Dunlap valley. I got extremely low over the airstrip and spent 10 minutes in zeros waiting for the release of a decent thermal. Finally I got a kick and then a red-tailed hawk showed me the core of a 500'/min. thermal back to 5000'. This climb got me back to last chance but that proved to be my undoing. I struggled for a while in ragged lift. After 4+ hours, in sometimes scorching heat, I didn't feel like fighting with trashy air low over the trees. I fought the fight another 15 minutes without making any headway towards the Dunlap launch waypoint so I landed & hiked back to the school. My Sun. flight is HERE

Dave, meanwhile, was making a gallant effort. He had flown the entire route solo (a feat in itself-given the day's conditions) and made the Dunlap launch waypoint. He struggled for a while on the way to Squaw Valley before getting low enough that he side-hill landed at the base of hill 49917. I say the base of the hill, but he had a 90 minute hike-out. An epic day for David, he placed 4th for the day.

I really felt good about my flying this weekend. I team flew with one or two guys on comp wings each day and was able to contribute to the team so we all could make progress. I made the decision to continue on solo when it was necessary. The results aren't out yet, but I believe I placed 5th in both of the long tasks.

Results are HERE

A great weekend.

Tim

Cuesta Today

Cuesta today didn't live up to my hype. In fact, it looked pretty bad when Patrick, Eric & Sharon, Jim Wells & I got to launch at noon. The wind was blowing over the back at 5-10 kts. . .

Everybody left & I hung out because I needed to fly & I'm an optimist who enjoys chillin' in the sun ;-) The wind died by 1:15, and by 2pm the cycles started coming up the ridge.

I laid out & waited for a good cycle at 2:15 - I brought the wing up in a bit too strong a cycle & got the wing and lines a bit tangled in high scrub and spent 30 min. getting it cleared with the care a new wing with comp lines deserves. I finally got everything inspected & was in the air by 3. The lift was very broken & seemed to top out at 2000' (200' over launch). I spent much of the day below launch but lift was everywhere I needed it.. I made 5 or 6 circuits of the basin out in front of launch at times down to 200' above landing in the fields down by the Eucalyptus grove. The most dependable lift of the day was over the spot where I eventually top-landed. I flew for 90 minutes before top landing. Because the height of lift was so limited, it was a constant battle the whole time with little time to sightsee. There was still lift when I landed around 4:45pm. My flight is HERE.

As I hiked up to my truck, I passed a young couple parked up by my truck, they asked about my flight. We talked for a bit & it turns out he had just asked her to marry him & she had accepted. I wished them well & wondered, as I hiked to my truck, how anybody could look happier than those two did. . .

A good day -

Tim

Dunlap BAPA Comp - April 11-13

This weekend was the second installment of the '08 BAPA Series. I missed last month at Potato Hill so this was my first. It was also my first opportunity to fly my Avax XC2 against other pilots. Results will be HERE soon.

I arrived on Friday after picking up Jack B. (from Anchorage) at the Fresno Air Terminal. We met Celia & Patrick from the Bay Area & all got in some flying. The weather was great and lift was good to about 2000 meters. We all did a nice circuit around the valley.

Saturday morning the pilots all met at Dunlap School. The turnout was impressive with pilots from all over the West. The talent was deep with 6-8 top-twenty US pilots and many other talented pilots in attendance.

A 99km task was called with the usual valley tour and then a 20k leg to Sandy Creek in the hills towards the San Joaquin valley and a long leg to Porterville. I launch early to get some more time on my wing (I only had 6 hours on it) and explored the normal lift producers prior to start. I had a great start and stayed with the leaders for a few turnpoints before losing contact and flying with the second gaggle. After tagging hill 49917, I headed across the Dunlap valley and towards Sandy Creek.

Tom (foreground) and me launching early

I saw Jug & Tom coming towards me at a lower altitude so I pushed on, hoping we could collaborate. Jug was lower & had to land. Tom and I worked some ragged, weak lift together for awhile but Tom moved North. I hung in the ragged lift until it consolidated into a nice 2-3m/s climb to 1900 meters. I pushed back to a ridge that ran towards Sandy Crk and found good lift along the way. The turnpoint was in the flat & I glided towards it when I got hammered by sink about 2k from the turn. I decided to overfly a small 300' 'bump' prior to the turnpoint hoping that I would get a bubble over it. No luck - so it looked like a death glide to the turnpoint. In addition to my concerns of impending landing, I was getting flaky readings from my GPS - it was getting spotty reception and actually said I crossed the turnpoint when I KNEW I was at least a kilometer from it. I pressed on until my back-up said 400 meters and made a desperation turn back to the 300' bump, which now was at my height. I was able to get a bump from the bump and soon was climbing to 1800meters.

I continued on until I was about 5 miles East of Orosi. I landed in a big cow pasture & shared a glass of iced tea with a nice couple in their 70's. I hiked about 4 miles towards Orosi before Patrick picked me up (Thanks!)

As it turns out, my GPS track from my primary was very fragmented so I used my backup tracklog. Unfortunately I had set the recording interval at 5 seconds so no trackpoint was inside the cylinder at Sandy creek. This was one of many technical problems encountered by pilots this weekend. It is good to get these problems out of the way before the main comps, later in the season. No one made goal today. Jack B., Josh, Eric, Dean, and Mike F. had the longest flights and I was right behind them.

Sunday was a carbon copy of Saturday. Lift was punchy and strong to 2000 meters. The course was similar to Saturday's with the last leg to the school rather than down valley. I launched early again and flew with Nick G. for 45 minutes before the start. I headed back to the start cylinder and found a bullet that put me at the top of the heap in great position for the run to Hill 49917. I stayed in contact with the leaders again until I found a hole coming back from Last Chance. I got stuck low on the main ridge and had to ridge soar until I was high enough to turn a circle in the thermals roaring up the side of the hill.

I made it as far as the airstrip and then ran out of ideas & lift. Landed in a meadow & got a nice reception from Juanita, who offered me some water & shade until my ride showed up. My flight is HERE

I made some mistakes this weekend. I found myself alone between gaggles too often. I need to really work at staying with the leaders, even if lower than them. The Avax XC2 has the performance to really hang in there & I am getting familiar with the techniques that are effective in controlling the wing.

This was also my maiden voyage with the pop-up camper. It was very comfortable for Jack & me. I will definitely be staying in it for the comps this summer.
Thanks to Chris Hilliard for the photo of my launch.

A great weekend.

Tim

My Birthday Present

Well, I made the jump. I've gone out on a limb a bit & I'm sure I'll have some stories to tell about my experiences. . .

Thanks to my wife, Mary, giving me the green-light, today I ordered a NEW wing - not only new to me, not only new - as in NOT USED. But I ordered a NEW wing - as in nobody has one in the US yet.

I've moved from my Aspen2 to the new (have I mentioned it's new ;-) Avax XC2. This is Gradient's highest performance certified glider. I will have one of the first wings to be flown in the US & hope to do it proud when it arrives in February.

I'm pushing my personal envelope a bit & will be cautious, but all the early flight reports indicate that the Avax XC2 flies very much like my Aspen 2 and has the light handling characteristics that Gradient wings display. It has been certified under the new CEN criteria as a CEN 'C' glider. This certification is quite impressive, as it indicates that the handling of the XC2 should be comperable, in skill required, as my Aspen 2.

The forecast performance will increase my glide ratio by 10% and speed by over 10%, so it should make it more possible for me to keep contact with the leading gaggles during competitions. This wing will, in no uncertain terms, allow me to evaluate MY performance during a competition without having to factor in a 'penalty' for the wing's deficiency in performance - No excuses. . .

I've put off moving to a wing of this performance for a while because the higher the performance class & speed, the higher the skill necessary to keep the wing in shape & over my head. I will conservatively fly this wing in the upcoming season & feel my skills will keep me out of trouble.

Happy Holidays!

Tim