Avax XC2 Maiden Voyage

Today I flew my maiden voyage on the Avax XC2. I flew in thermic conditions for 1:45 and enjoyed the wing very much. The following notes are offered as a first impression only and are not meant to be interpreted as anything more than my personal impression. I will include the information I look for in a report. My experience with the AvaxXC2 is limited to this flight only and I won’t mention conditions I haven’t experienced.
My Background:
Most Recent Wings: Gradient Aspen2-28 (120 hrs) – Airwave Sport 2 (200 hrs) – Gin Bandit (40 hrs) – Edel Confidence (80 hrs)

I plan to attend an SIV clinic this week and will report on the festivities.

Gradient AVAX XC2 Flight Impressions

o The Wing came with a std. Gradient cinch bag for the wing and a nice rucksack of a newer design than my Aspen’s Rucksack. The new design is slimmer and taller with a storage pocket that can carry a full flight suit and coat. The top flap protects the helmet. I’m not sure if I’ll continue to use this new sack since my Ram Race Harness is a rather tight fit.

o The lines are thin, unsheathed Edelrid Aramid - 1.2mm to .5mm.

o The risers are standard Gradient riders thin but robust, with “snap” type brake handle stowage. The main difference is that there is only one speed-bar pully.

o Accelerator system.

o I used the same setup on my speedbar (a 3-step UP bar) as I use with the Aspen2 and found no adjustment to the system was necessary.

o The speedbar that came with the wing is a simple one bar with a tygon tubing covered loop. I will donate it to a new pilot.

o Much has been written about Gradient’s decision to use only one pulley in the speed system. I found the speed system to be the same resistance as the Aspen2 (which has 2 pulleys) and within acceptable strength requirements. I used it much of the day & had no fatigue issues.

o Brake toggles are Std. Gradient. They seem to be adjusted properly right from the dealer.

o Wing.

o Size 26 (85-105kg) Color Blue/Grey top with std. Gradient Blue under wing decoration. Weight during flight – 102Kg.

o 73 cells and 6.38 Aspect Ratio. Weight 5.4kg.

o Workmanship is excellent. The micro lines attach to the trailing edge with a doubler.

o The brakes attach with a with a loop of cord through a ring in the trailing edge – both are methods of attachment of the microlines that are not used on the Aspen 2











o Behavior.

o The Aspect Ratio of 6.38 makes this a bit of a handful to ground handle at first. I found the A&C (Mitsos) method to be slightly less effective due to a tendency for the wing to break & snake if I was heavy handed with the C’s. I expect this to be a temporary problem as I learn more about the wing.

o Launch is very Aspen-like. The wing comes up easily and can be stopped accurately with brakes or C’s. Directional control is good. No bad habits.

o Landing was very straightforward. The additional glide performance in short LZs will take some getting used to.

o Flight Handling

o This wing is a high aspect ratio wing with crisp handling. I found that the wing was very responsive and reassuring in its response to turbulence. In the 90 minutes I flew the Avax, I felt very comfortable in rough lift and maneuvering close to the terrain. In short, I would fly this wing anywhere that I’d fly the Aspen 2.

o When traversing the edges of strong thermals, I got a couple of small tip-tucks, very minor and quick to come out. The wing never moved out of the safe zone & was very responsive to my inputs.

o The wing WAS a bit more ‘twitchy’ than the Aspen 2, but I think much of this was due to my inputs rather than the wing. My habits were for the less responsive Aspen2 so I started the flight overcontrolling a bit.

o On the speed-bar the wing felt rock solid. Even more solid, on bar, than my Aspen2. I flew COMFORTABLY on full bar between thermals. It made my eyes water it was so fast (or were they tears of joy?) and the glide didn’t seem to degrade greatly with bar.

o Thermalling the Avax is a treat. It doesn’t retard when entering lift, it cuts into the thermal and goes where you tell it to. Banking up to stay in a small thermal is easy and attitude control when banked up is straightforward. When the lift is weak, I found the sink rate in flat, slow, turns to be excellent.

o I had only two very small tip tucks – I wouldn’t even call them collapses – and they came out by themselves. The wing is not prone to frontals or loose tips – I flew in many areas where there was shear and the Avax stayed pressurized at all times.

I have no performance estimates or reports of recovery from collapses at this point. But, the wing covers considerably more ground than my Aspen2 and scoots!
The Avax XC2 is an excellent ‘follow-on’ glider for an experienced pilot who regularly flies a modern DHV 2 wing like the Aspen 2. It has very good handling and is forgiving in turbulence.

Tim

NOTE: Additional info on XC2 at SIV HERE.

New Feature

I'm heading to Denver today for a 3-day session of simulator flying, lovingly referred to as "You Bet Your Job" by those of us that fly for a living. . . When I get back, if the UPS tracking system is to be believed, my Avax XC2 will be waiting for me.

You may have noticed (or not) a cool new feed I've placed on my blog. It's a nice daily feed of paragliding photos that are of good quality. Rod Bailey, a British pilot who (apparently) had some time on his hands & a dream, has put together a system that will allow those of us who like to look at purdy pictures of PG (like me) and allow charitable folks who take purdy pictures to upload them to the server that automatically resizes & serves them out. A good idea that only needs the grist of good photos to survive. Check out pPIC and upload your quality photos.

I hope to fly the Avax XC2 over the weekend & will report on it when I get something to report.

Tim

2008 Flying Events

I've been reinvigorated by the Australia trip. Even though I had a dismal result, (39th out of 65) I did get to goal & set a PR of 71 miles on the last task. The flying we had this Jan. & Feb. will jump-start my season. I think my Avax XC2 (arrives next week!) will give me the performance to score well if I make good decisions in the upcoming XC season. . .

I'll be flying the West Coast Paragliding Championships in Ruch, Oregon the week of June 8-14, 2008.

I'd LIKE to fly the Rat Race, also at Woodrat Mtn. in Ruch, Oregon the week of July 6-12, 2008; and the Chelan XC Open, in Chelan WA. July 28th-Aug 2nd. I don't have the time off yet for those comps.

I'm also planning to fly the U.S. Nationals in the Owens Valley Sept. 14-20.

In addition, I'll be flying as many of the Northern CA XC League (Jug comps) as I can this summer.

So here's the Calendar:

BAPA Comp March 29th and 30th Potato Hill
BAPA Comp April 12th and 13th Dunlap
Comp Clinic May 2nd and 3rd Competition Clinic in SBA
BAPA Comp May 17th and 18th to be Potato Hill
WCPC June 8-14 Ruch, OR
BAPA Comp June 21st and 22nd Dunlap
Rat Race July 6th-12th Ruch, OR
BAPA Comp July 19th and 20th Potato Hill
Chelan XC Open July 28th-Aug.3rd Chelan, WA
BAPA Comp August 9th and 10th Dunlap
BAPA Comp September 6th and 7th Potato Hill
U.S. Nationals Sept 14th - 20th Bishop, CA
BAPA Comp October 4th, 5th and 6th Owens Valley
SCXC Comp November 15th-16th Santa Barbara
SCXC Comp December 6th-7th Santa Barbara


Tim

Recap of the OZ trip

'Been back from Australia for a couple days now and I thought a recap was in order.

The trip started off with my complete PG rig & suitcase missing the flight to Sydney. This was a minor set-back & fortunately the Killarney weather wasn't flyable while David & I drove the 7 hour round-trip to Brisbane to pick up the bags.

The Killarney comp was well run & the air of "no worries" was a welcome feeling. David & I didn't fly our best early in the comp. I'm assuming that it was because we are coming off a few months of low air-time during the Northern hemisphere winter. . .

I was able to complete the last task of the competition 114k (71 miles) and felt much more comfortable flying the aussie conditions on that flight. The weather was more flat-land with low cloudbase than I fly usually in CA & OR. It was a great experience to watch the locals tear these conditions up.

Manilla was experiencing a stationary trough for much of the time we were in town, but we were able to get a few sledders and one XC flight. The countryside in both areas was beautiful & friendly, the people were welcoming & eager to give rides and generously offer a "shout" in the pubs.

In all I flew over 300 kilometers and 15 hours. I was able to set a PB at 71 miles and, most importantly, David & I discovered one of the best places to fly PG in the world. We made some great friends. We look forward to revisiting Australia.

It was a great trip but being home is great too.

Flying in Manilla

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After three days in Manilla, with only a couple of very short flights, Dave and I had a treat today. The skies were dry & the winds calm when we woke. The forecast was for light winds and no overdevelopement until late afternoon. We launched arount 12:30 and both had nice climbs to cloudbase (low at only about 1200 meters) I enjoyed the flying near the clouds since we seldom get to do that in California.

I worked down the ridge until reaching just North of Manilla and went looking for some more lift. I got low in shadow & went for one of the few dry looking fields in the basin. I stayed with very light lift until it bloomed into a nice weak climb to 1200 meters & petered out. This gave me enough altitude to head up the main Manilla road. I ended up well West of the main road in the foothills & eventually landed in a nice field. I only covered 22 kilometers, but the 1:45 flight was fun.

My hike-out was 3.6 miles to the main road where, before I'd even set my bag down, I got a ride into town. Dave called my phone & said he'd pick me up in town. . .

We had another great meal at the RSL club in Manilla and were treated to the sunset in the photo above. We hope to get a good long flight in tomorrow since it will be our last chance before we drive to Sydney on Sunday.

Tim

Another Day in OZ

Yesterday Dave & I were able to get a short flight in at Mt. Borah. The weather continues to be quite unsettled & a trough promises to bring wet weather to the majority of Eastern Australia. At the moment, there are scattered showers, some with solid rain in Manilla. The forecast for this area is not encouraging. T-Storms with widespread showers are forecast for the next 4 days. I’ve checked the weather forecast for Bright (about 8-10 hours South of Manilla) and am encouraged that partly cloudy skies are forecast for Wed.-Thursday. The plan, as of now, is to head South to Bright in the morning.
So here we sit, with pilots from all over the world, in one of the best XC spots with our wings in the bag & a good book in hand. . .
I’ve found a few more photos from our time in Killarney to post - The first is a spectacular sunset display. The photo isn’t enhanced to make it look better – no need.

Click for larger image
The second is my dog friend Storm relaxing in his hammock. He was the kind of dog that was a clown when he wasn’t tearing stuff up.
I hope everybody is enjoying their adventures as much as David & I are.
Tim

Sittin' around in Manilla

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This morning the Killarney skies were overcast & drizzly. David & I decided to head South to Manilla, the site of last year’s worlds championship comp and Ewa’s famous CB tour. The drive took about four hours & we drove through many small towns with names like Barraba, Bingara, and Texas. The drive went quickly and as we proceeded South the weather got progressively more threatening looking. We saw kangaroos, wallabies, fox, and goannas and a host of tropical birds as we travelled the ranches along the road.
We pulled into the encampment at Manilla around 2pm. The weather was as you see it in the photo, above. The hill is obvious, with a couple of launches visible from the road. Manilla is Godfrey Wenness’ pet project. He’s spent many months and many $$ to turn this site into a world class flying site. Mt. Borah has four launches, all with Astroturf surfaces. The West launch and the East launch are as large, or larger than a basketball court. We drove to the top of the hill (the peak is 350 meters above the valley floor) and did a tour of the 4 launches. There are expansive setup areas adjacent to each launch. The launches, in some spots, are shallow but all look very good.

We have rented a cabin from Godfrey and enjoyed a great night’s sleep last night. Today (Mon.) is overcast with a forecast of rain & isolated T-Storms for the next few days. . . it appears the wx has finally caught up with us. We hope to get some flying here, this week, when the wx allows. Another option is to head to Newcastle & join up with James T. to fly some coastal sites.

Tim

Killarney - Day 8

We got to the hill at 11:30 & things were looking up. The wind was brisk & cloud base low. A 49k task was called but before ordered launch was started, the task was canceled due to rain showers on both sides of the hill.

We all flew anyway since the conditions improved as the morning progressed.

Craig Collins won the contest handily with 5739 points in 6 tasks. He was more than 1000 points ahead of 2nd place Mark Watts. Results are HERE

I ended up in 39th place. I really only flew one task well & got to goal so I didn't deserve to rank any higher that this in a contest of this caliber.

The contest has been very enjoyable. The Aussie farmers in the areas we flew always greeted us with a wave when we landed in their fields and the locals in town were friendly and glad to have us. The other pilots were helpful and a gregarious group who understand that the bottom line is winning, but having fun is paramount.

My special thanks goes out to James Ryrie & his daughter Hanna, who made the logistics of retrieval easy, and James Thompson who was there to offer advice when asked.

Dave & I are going to fly in Australia for another week, not sure where yet, I'll post any events of note.

Tim

Killarney - Day 7 - Task 6

Today was the best day of the comp. Not only was the weather looking perfect for a good task, with moderate winds from the East-SE, but the thermal activity was forecast to be 3-4 meters/sec. (600-700 fpm) and cloudbase was forecast to be 2200-2500 meters.

A 115 Kilometer task was called to a little farming town called Millmerrin with individual starts. Dave got in the air earlier than I did and decided to head over the back early. I launched about 20 minutes after Dave.

After launch I went right to cloudbase and waited for a few other gliders to join me so we could head over the back, on course. I pushed out, raring to get some Ks behind me, but a glider behind and left of me turned in a good climb so I backtracked to join him in a climb back to cloudbase. I was feeling very good & liked the conditions as we proceeded along course towards Warwick.

From the radio calls, I determined that James T. was about 6 k ahead of me and James R. was behind me about 5k. Dave was out there somewhere, but very quiet. I pushed on & soon Warwick was behind me & I was half way to goal. Today was a good day to get & stay high. The clouds were streeting nicely & I was able to fly for 2-3k without turning & gaining altitude. I spent more time on speedbar today than any prior task. When it began to look like I would make goal I got a little more conservative and worked some lift until I saw 6:1 glide to goal. I pushed full bar & flew the last 6k at 50-60kph but still arrived with 800meters of extra altitude.

Making goal, finally, was great. I flew well today & made some good decisions. I flew more conservatively (SLOW) than I needed to, but this assured goal & that was my priority. 114K (71 miles) is my personal best & my time was 3:17 for an average speed of 21+ mph.

James T. made goal about 40 minutes before I did. James R. (who was demoing a brand new Avax XC2 (like the one I'll be getting in mid-Feb.) went 22k. but had good things to say about the wing. David got low just past Warwick & went down there.

It's Sat. morning, the last day to fly, and it is much more overcast than yesterday. We expect a short task so the party will be well attended tonight.

Fly safe,
Tim

Killarney - Day 6 - Task 5

The weather improved today and a 76k task was called. The start would be a race start. Dave & I lanched as soon as we could by "pushing" to laiunch as soon as our priority would allow. We made it into the air 30 min. before start time. I went right to cloud base at 2000 meters and was ready when the gaggle went over the back at 12:30. I like race starts. . .

Dave had a tougher time & got low enough to land over the back but close enough to warrant a relaunch. Hanna did a great job of wisking him to the top for a relaunch before the launch closed.

Meanwhile James T., I, and James R., in that order, were flying West over Warwick & all having a good go of it. The lead gaggle was far ahead but occasionally there were crux points that slowed us all down. I made a low save & headed for the quarry where I joined another couple of gliders who were in the search mode. We moved around looking for anything & but eventually all of us dirted at 45 kilometers. James R. made it another 12k. and James T. made it to goal with a very nice flight.

Conditions today were more dependable & predictable - either that or I'm learning the local conditions. Dave had a rough day when he landed about 15k from launch on the second flight.

Goal was across from a nice country pub & there were many in goal, so in classic Aussie style, a party was had. . .

Results are here.

It's 6 am on Friday, and the day looks fantastic. Much drier than previously, but the fields should heat well today.

Tim

Killarney - Day 5

Click on image for larger view

No fly today, due to rain showers. We had a great lunch up on the Great Dividing Range at a great little bistro with a view of the canyons.

The forecast for the next couple of days is wet, but that's nothing new. We may get some more flying this week.

Tim

Killarney - Task 4

The weather in Killarney has been great. When it hasn't looked optimal at launch, it soon improves and good flying ensues. Today was the same. When we arrived at the East launch the winds were very gusty to 15kts. & cloudbase was low. As the morning progressed the conditions improved & a 115k dogleg task was called.

Dave & I decided to launch early and this was the correct decision as the lift was abundant and simply staying out of the clouds was an issue. We danced the dance until the lead gaggle decided to go over the back. I was in good position to go with the gaggle. I spread out & found a bad line that I corrected quickly, but some damage had been done as I was now 500' below & behind the leaders. I found some lift & stopped to work a 400'/min. thermal that the leaders had overflown & watched as they went on a long glide. Over the next 15 minutes,I made some poor decisions and ended up very low over a field. I got a good kick in the ass & thought, "OH BOY, LIFT!" then I noticed the sagebrush circling around me as I fought the turbulence & my thoughts changed to, "OH SHIT A DUST DEVIL!" I hung in there & soon I was 1000meters above the field in smoother lift. This encouraged me & I continued on to Warwick, but after 1:30 flight time, was on the ground.

Dave was able to continue on for another 10K before he landed on the other side of Warwick. Many made it to goal today. Dave & I are loving the flying but our frustration is high because the conditions look so good & we are having trouble reading the terrain & weather to extend our flights.

Overall Results can be found HERE

Daily results can be found HERE

Thanks to everybody who has wished us well. . .We are frustrated, but having a lot of fun. The people in Killarney are great & the event has been well run and very successful.

Tim

Killarney - Task 3

Today was a dry day compared to the previous two. The son was bright at dawn. We headed to coffee with James Ryrie, his daughter (and our retrieval driver) Hanna, James Thompson (the local expert)and his friend from Connecticut, LeAnne, Dave & me. Today looked like it might be big. Both Dave & I were ready for a good day of flying - neither of us felt very competent dealing with the weather & local topography. Today we hoped to accomplish a nice task.

The pilot meeting announced the leaders. Viv Williams, launching here, leads the women's and Phil Hystek leads the overall. My bad flight yesterday lowered me to 4th in the DHV2 cat & 39th overall.

At the top of the hill the feeling was one of anticipation. We all knew the day would be good. The wind would be a factor - so would the blue areas. The task was called early & long. A 139k (86 mile) downwind run. Dave & I decided to launch from the East launch again & launched fairly early. Most of those pilots who had launched were getting up so we hucked off. Right away we sunk to below ridge height, but we had lots of company so I wasn't worried. Soon the traffic was concentrated into such a small part of the ridge that there was a bit of jostling & yelling as we all struggled to stay in the air. After a protracted battle, Dave & I headed for the bombout. Our first bombout & relaunch. Our retrieval worked out great & we were on top with plenty of time to make a good start.

Relaunch into the now very brisk wind at launch was exciting but fine and we were soon high over launch Dave just 50' above in the same thermal. We headed over the back & soon found some lift that consolidated into a 2-3mps climb. At this point I lucked into a good line along a weak convergence & Dave, to my right about 100 meters, was in a lot of sink. By the time I found my next thermal at 1000'agl or so, Dave was struggling a few hundred ft. above the field. He had a great save & I headed out when I hit the 6500' altitude limit in protected airspace along the route.

Dave was far behind but fighting a good fight. I lost him when I began to get busy. I was working every bit of lift I encountered. The lowerI got, the stronger the wind seemed to get. I was circling in zero sink at times & drifting towards goal at 20-25 kilometers/hr.

By now James & James had landed & were watching Dave & I fly beyond there landing spots. Retrieval would be easy today. Dave had gotten up and caught me. I saw him just before I landed, he was 400meters (1/4 mile) closer to goal than I.

Today was pure fun. We had some good climbs and flew over beautiful country. We covered 25-30 miles today too. Rumor has it that there were 8-12 in goal.

Tomorrow looks good too.

Thanks to Brett Hardin for the photos of Day two.

Tim

Killarney - Task 2

Click image for Larger photo

Today looked like a great day at launch. The forecast was for over development to the South. As the photo shows, it did. This didn't affect the flight today though.

The task set was a simple downwind dash to Clifton 58 kilometers Northwest of the launch. Dave & I were far enough down the launch order that we decided to use the East launch to avoid the hold-up of the launch grid. It worked out very well as the cycles up the launch were perfect & we were able to setup and launch at the time we desired. I went first & found a nice thermal right over launch. Dave followed immediately.

We worked the same lift for about 15 minutes until I jumped to a better thermal & bumped the top-of-lift. I decided to head over the back with 3 or 4 others. We found some weak lift along the way but things weren't booming the way the sky indicated they should. I found some lift & the gaggle flocked to me for about 1500' of climb. When the lift faltered I headed off & was getting 7 to 1 glide with a groundspeed of 50 kilometers/hr. Unfortunately, the lift suddenly became sparse. I was with 2 others in a beautiful valley (called Emu Vale, we were to find out later) scratching to save ourselves. A Boom Sport (David from Italy) landed and watched me as I tried repeatedly to climb out. Once I was down to 700' above the field and found a bit-o-lift that allowed me the titillation of climbing to 900', but the drift in the 9 kt. wind was too much & I couldn't clear the ridge behind me. . . I landed 10 meters from Italy David.

Davis S., meanwhile, left the hill after me but was in better shape & made it farther down the courseline than I. It was a tough day & we didn't go as far as we wanted - but that's the challenge ;-)

The clouds were spectacular today. The CBs to the South merged into one and became a supercell that eventually dropped rain on the campground around 4:30. I am not understanding the micro climate here. I've been let down by conditions that seemed to be better than they were. I need to stay with a gaggle that knows what it's doing, but with the individual starts that we've had the first two tasks, it's been very hard to pick your gaggle.

The week is shaping into a good one, with conditions for tomorrow looking very good. I hope to make goal tomorrow.

Tailwinds,
Tim

Killarney - Task 1

The morning dawned very dewy and overcast with little appearant prospect of good flying. We had the pilot meeting at 8:30 & decided to meet at the top of the SE launch at around 10:30. When we arrived at launch, the cloud was at launch elevation with drippies falling. Patience paid off, though, and the weather improved. A short task was called that overflew our caravan park & then drove downwind to abeam Warwick for a total task of around 63km.

I launched around 1:30pm and flew down the ridge, scratching a bit until I connected with some good lift to cloud base. The area was really looking good at this point with abundant cumulus clouds and some streeting. I was right behind the lead gaggle of 15 and in a loose group of 6-8 gliders at various altitudes. At one point, the lead gaggle stalled in some rather weak lift & I stopped short of that gaggle to work some 3-400'/min. lift.

Soon I was at the height of the top guys in the lead gaggle & my lift was waning, so I took my chance to reenter the lead gaggle. I hit the gaggle about halfway up the stack but found nothing to warrant a circle. This was the end for me & many others. The whole gaggle went on glide & many of us never had a peep on out varios beyond that point. The wind in the valley was blowing at 10-13 kts. so the landing was fun but very uneventful.

Dave got caught in the launch order queue for about 15-20 minutes behind me & didn't have much company for his flight. He was able to hit the first turnpoint at the caravan park, but landed fairly close.

As always the locals were friendly & in good spirits (It is Australia Day) and we had a great debrief at the pub & a feed at the rec center. I've asked a few Aussies what the celebration at Australia Day is commemorating, and the best answer I get is that it's a chance for a three-day party. . .

I don't know the scoring yet - I hope to do better today. The weather looks like we may have more wind & a nice cumulus day.
(EDIT) I just got back from the pilot mtg. & I went 17km of a 63km task - not great but good enough for 25th place (3rd in the DHV 2 category). Only 9 made it to goal due to the scratchy conditions & strong valley winds along the courseline. Today looks good & I'm off to launch -

Fly safe -

Tim

News from Down Under - Day 1

Dave & I made it to Brisbane without a hitch - I did have to roust him out to the airport 2 hours early to catch a delayed 4 pm flight that actually left at 5:30, but all worked out fine. I OMCed to get on the flight (sat in the cockpit until all passengers were boarded). This created a bit of a SNAFU though. Because I wasn't considered a passenger anymore, they took my name off the boarding list & promptly took my bags off. I didn't realize the problem until we got to SYD.

It's the next day now & we are in Killarney. I'll drive to Brisbane today & hopefully my wing & suitcase will be there. The Wicked Camper is working out well so far. It's the bare essentials and we are in a caravan park that has showers and wifi. It's a nice setting in rural Australia. The town has one store & the required pub. The park dog is named storm.

Sleeping isn't bad in the campervan. The beds are adequate & Dave & I seem to coexist without too much undesired contact ;-) There is a rudimentary kitchen with storage & camp-sink.

The week is starting to look a bit wet. The competition begins Sat.(tomorrow)with T-storms forecast all week. The following week is forecast to have improved weather so we will get some flying in regardless.

More when I can -
Tim

Getting ready for Killarney

I'm headed for Killarney Australia with David S. on Tuesday night the 22nd of Jan. We will arrive in Sydney the morning of the 24th, then fly to Brisbane to pick up our "Wicked Camper" and then a couple hour drive to Killarney.

The competition starts on the 26th and runs through the 2nd of Feb. The weather has been very wet due to El Nina, but the week of the comp. looks good.

I'll be flying my Aspen2 in this competition since the Avax XC2 will not arrive until mid-Feb. I haven't flown much this winter, so it will be good to get into the air again. I'll be updating this blog a lot during the next two weeks.

The competition results will be posted at http://fly-killarney.com.au/comps/.

Wish us luck!

Tim

Paul MacCready talks about innovation

Here is a video I discovered while doing some surfing online.



http://www.ted.com/speakers/view/id/159





Tim

Happy New Year!

It's 2008, and I'm sitting in Narita on a 6-day trip to Japan & Thailand.

I find myself more inclined to ponder how things are going when I'm alone & away from home. This New Years is no different. I don't make New Years resolutions, but occasionally, I do assess and reflect. 2007 was a tough year for me in some ways. I found myself bitching about my job more than I like. The fact is that I've lost the dream. I'm now resigned to "get on with it" and just do the job. If you were one of my targets for a diatribe - I apologize & hope to not bore you with self-indulgent whining ever again.

This isn't the job it used to be but I'm good at it & it does allow me the time to pursue my passions and spend time with my family & friends. . . even if I'm not always at home when I'd like to be. . . I'm thankful to have the job I've aspired to have since I was 14 years old & started flying.

This New Years I'm very THANKFUL.

Thankful that I have a good woman who allows me to love her & returns the favor.
I aspire to be a kind, supportive mate.

Thankful that I have two great, grown daughters that have made me proud. They are the sum of their parent's parts, and better for it.
I aspire to be a good father to my adult kids.

Thankful for my friends. Friends provide a feedback loop that is reasonable and helpful. . . and sometimes they even buy the beer.
I aspire to be as good a friend to those I have.

Thankful for my passions. My life is filled with activities that occupy my time & fulfill my need to be challenged, enriched, and educated.
I aspire to improve my skills & expand my horizons. To take risks that will stretch me as a person without impinging on any of the above aspirations.

I hope you all have a great 2008!

Tim

More on the Avax XC2

I guess you can say I'm getting excited about my new Avax XC2 which is scheduled for delivery in February.

I found some info on it's handling and specs and thought I'd share a bit:

Go to http://www.paraglidingheadquarters.com/avax%20xc.html for the complete write-up, photos & specs. The long awaited performance glider AVAX XC 2 is here. AVAX XC 2 has been tested extensively over a long period of time and by a variety of pilots before being presented to the jury. All Sizes 2passed EN (European Norm) as C rated gliders http://www.para-test.com/ what is rating roughly corresponding to DHV 2. Gradient, however, suggests this glider should be treated more like DHV 2-3. AVAX XC 2 is a typical representative of the latest performance gliders with parameters close to comp machines. It has a formidable aspect ratio 6.38 and a high number of cells (73) to assure a clean shape of the airfoil. Its weight has been kept very low: size 28 weights only 5.8 kg. As usual, Gradient is not trying to dazzle the market by amazing performance data, but anybody experienced with Gradient gliders knows what to expect. Just making sure there is no misunderstanding: The AVAX part of the name is no indication this glider is a down-tuned comp machine. AVAX XC 2 has been developed independently from the scratch as a performance glider and there are no compromises. This should be glider for demanding recreational XC pilots and aspiring comp enthusiasts.

I also came across a video of 4 Avax XC2s flying at a great Czech site. . .My wing is either going to be the Grey/Red combo or the "Sangria" combo Red with Black leading edge.


I promise this is the last bit of excited gushing I'll do until I fly it - unless I get more info . . .

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

New Toy -

One of our local instructors, Tom M. has taken delivery of a used winch. He has plans to install it in his ski boat so we can fly at Lake San Antonio. I love the idea (since I got a taste of some real acro at my SIV course in Oct.) I went to his house, last weekend, & helped him modify & weld the unit so that it would fit into the boat.

When finished with the mods, I mentioned that it might make sense to try the winch out in my truck to eliminate the natural "fiasco factor" that is added anytime you involve a boat in an endeavor. Tom responded enthusiastically, so we drilled holes in my Tundra & mounted the unit. I chopped the legs off a lawn chair to use as a control operator's station, which worked surprisingly well.

Sunday afternoon we scouted for the perfect site to test the rig. We didn't find that site, but settled for a dirt road out in East Nipomo. Tom laid out his wing & Peter drove while I manned a hydraulic valve that I was completely unfamiliar with.

We managed a safe launch & climb to around 150-200' before a splice in the used line let go. Tom made a safe landing with his share of the line. We proved the concept & are comfortable with the winch's design & function. The sun was setting so we packed up -

Now we need to get comfortable with its use & finish the installation in the boat. We also need to find excellent spots to tow on land.

Fly safe,
Tim

Fun Flying

Today was only my second flight since I flew at the SIV clinic in mid October. A couple of weeks ago I had a magical flight at Shell Beach, a beautiful sea-side flying spot that generally depends on on-shore breezes to provide a thin band of lift parallel to the bluffs above the beach. Tom M. launched early in spite of the general negative prognostications of the local experts and was able to stay up so I suited up. I was very lucky & had perfect timing since the wind was freshly blowing on-shore as I launched. Five minutes later it would have been impossible to launch due to the wind switching to a calm or offshore breeze.

What had happened was that a strong convergence line had formed between the on-shore and Santa Ana-like breeze that we experienced inland. As it moved across launch, I was able to just fly the convergence and Tom & I were treated to a beautiful flight that took us to heights unusual for this site. I carried no altimeter, but guess that I hit 1500 to 2000' above the sea. The view was great & a great first flight at the site.

Today we headed up to Cuesta - I had high hopes since my forecast indicated very light winds. Patrick, Eric, Jack, Dave & I all arrived at launch around noon. Eric & Pat launched first & didn't get high, but flew around launch altitude for 15 minutes. They were both able to top-land & wait for things to improve. I was ready to fly & decided it looked soarable, so I launched into a nice gentle cycle. A nice thermal was right off the launch & I went up about 50' right away.

Soon I was touring the ridge looking for any shard of lift I could work. Within 12 minutes I was down to 1200' MSL (about 200' above the pasture) & planning where I would land to minimize the hike-up the hill to launch. The I felt a great bubble of lift & it filled my wing from right to left. As I rolled into my turn, it filled out the whole wing & I climbed back up to launch - much more quickly and easily than if I were to have landed & hiked up. From then on, the day was ON. Lift was everywhere & generally, the down cycles were few & of short duration.

It's not uncommon to fly over the ridge & observe other sportsmen and yahoos in various activities. Today our entertainment was a truckload of mullets, beer, & shotguns, who parked up ridge& proceeded to make clay pigeons into dust. That wasn't the fun part - The fun began when the CHP arrived on scene & showed the proper protocol for approaching multiple guys who have guns. . . all the while I (and others) were lurking quietly above, watching the show ;-)

Anyway, it was a fun day with all of us having good flights. I flew for 2 hours & landed just because everyone else had. The top landing took a couple tries since there was a bullet of a thermal right in front of the spot - but it worked out fine.

Fly Safe.
Tim

Now THIS is cool!

Give it time to load - It's worth it.

This is definitely on my "Before I Die" list.
It's Aiguille du Midi - on Mont Blanc.

http://www.passion-sport.ch/film/Aiguille_Midi.html
if it doesn't load.

Competition Flying to Win? OR To Fly?

Recently, on a forum I frequent, http://www.paraglidingforum.com I managed to derail a discussion about the relative safety of competition wings to the lesser performance - but safer - wings that us mere mortals fly. The certified, and therefor tested wings are rated from DHV 1 (beginner wings) to DHV 3 with performance increasing as the # increases. I competed on my Sport 2 (DHV 1/2) for a year and a half and now am flying my Aspen 2 (DHV 2).

If I ruled the world, we would have competitions that emphasized 'class' racing so there would be winners in each class. This would allow less experienced pilots to earn their 'chops' while competing against others in their class. I found that my response pretty well encapsulated why I enjoy flying XC and XC competitions so much. Here it is:

MadS. wrote: As for registering for competitions year after year just to pimp and learn, well it sure isn't a game for me - I strongly feel that if you're doing comps then you must want to win - and in most cases you won't be winning on a DHV 2 wing, so it follows that you won't be having fun on said wing.

My Response:

I know many people who 'race' knowing they won't win. They race for racing's sake; for the experience and comraderie. They are happy as long as they see improvement. I think my experiences echo many.

I strive to win tasks & have worked hard to improve my skills and equipment so my ranking is higher year over year. I've only flown PG for 4 years & comps for two, so I'm in the position where my goals to fly competitively are bumping up against the limits of my experience. I've many thousands of hours in other types of flying machines, so I acknowledge my limits and try to push them without hurting myself (usually). I've had intermediate syndrome in sailplanes, powered A/C, and jets, so I know myself pretty well by now. I want to win & I know I won't on my Aspen 2 without a fluke.

BUT, I AM having fun. I'd hazard to say that I'm having more fun than some of my friends who have flown competitively for many years without breaking through their frustrating 'plateau' and find themselves shaken & spent, while flying their 2/3 in rowdy conditions. I'm 52 & I have over 25,000 hours & I'm bored in the cockpit. But put me on the hill, with 100 other PG pilots and the electricity is palpable. The singular focus of my mind while flying an XC task and the amazing insights I've come away with, make flying comps one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. Learning is fun. Even when I place 27th in a national comp, I am proud. Next year I hope to place 26th!

I will, eventually progress to a 2/3, maybe next year - but I'll know when - I won't query the forum.

Tailwinds, and thanks for your contribution to this thread. What do you think about class racing Mads? Pilot vs. pilot - no bells & whistles. True competition. The 2/3 market is well represented by UP, could they use more Trango sales?

Tim

Upcoming Competitions

Dave S. and I are heading South to OZ in Jan. '08 to fly the Killarney Classic and then travel around looking for good XC for a week. The 2008 US schedule has been determined:

PARAGLIDING
West Coast PG Championships June 6-14 (Ruch, Oregon)
Rat Race July 6-12 (Ruch, Oregon)
Chelan XC Open July 27-Aug 1 (Chelan, WA)
2008 US Paragliding Nationals Sept 14-20 (Owens Valley)

HANG GLIDING
“Hang-On” HG Nationals Aug 17-23 (Lakeview Oregon)

BOTH DISCIPLINES
Chelan Classic (HG & PG) June 29 to July 4 (Chelan, WA) Practice days the 27th and 28th

I hope to fly the West Coast Championships in June & the US Nats in Sept.

Tim

Simulation d'Incident en Vol - SIV

I was able to attend an SIV course at Lake San Antonio this weekend. The 3-day class was run by Eagle Paragliding (Rob Sporrer) and featured Brad Gunnicio on the microphone.

Friday started well & 9 students and a crew of 4 headed over to the SE shore of the lake at around 8 AM. We setup a day-camp & got organized. We each introduced ourselves & listed our goals for the weekend. Mine were:

1. Go through the collapse series on the Aspen2, emphasis on accelerated collapses.

2. Perform well developed & timed spirals & asymmetric spirals.

3. Learn the entry & recovery of full stalls.

4. Enter & recover from incipient & fully developed spins.

5. SAT

I was first in the line-up. Although cloudy, the rain looked like it might stay South of us. Cloudbase looked high enough to get some basic maneuvers in. I suited up in cold wx gear & made ready for the tow. Due to a South wind, we were launching on a tangent to the shore so my time over the beach was longer than the standard pattern (fortunately). Launch went well & soon I was at 100’, just about to cross the beach & fly over the water when Rob came on the mike, “Pin off ! Pin-off! ” I released & turned crosswind to land near our camp. Apparently, one of the drive belts to the hydraulics had slipped & filled the boat with smoke. I’m glad I stayed dry, ‘cause it was maybe 40F. outside. The rain moved in shortly thereafter so we piled into the boat & went to a cabin for lunch & a brief by Brad. The day was over & I had the highest tow of the day ;-) Jim Wells from SLOSA was also at the course.

Saturday I was first up again & we towed as high as the cloud overcast would allow. I did the collapses & basic maneuvers (B-line stalls, horseshoe etc.) that Brad asked for. The first tow or two Brad is building trust – I listened & carefully did what Brad said to do WHEN he said to do it. This way he knew that if I did more advanced maneuvers & got balled up, I would still comply with his instructions. We all got to do the basics & 90 minutes later it was my turn again. Launch went well & I was soon 2000’ above the lake & upwind of the camp a mile or so. Suddenly the tension on the line went away & I realized that I was not attached to the boat any more. First order of business, steer the jet. I headed towards the camp & glide looked good. Next, I pulled in the line until the drogue chute was in my lap & pinned it under my leg. I could now see the line all the way to the water & realized that the lower I got, the more drag the line would have. I was just digesting this info when Brad said to do what I was working towards, “Disconnect the tow hitch in case the line snags on anything.” Good call, Brad. Then I planned my flight path so I didn’t overfly any trees or boats & flew downwind of the camp, dumped the drogue from about 150’ above the beach & landed back in front of the launch. Kind of a fun exercise!

A splice had let loose & soon the boys had it repaired & we were back in business. I got the next tow (since I hadn’t done any maneuvers) and was soon spiraling and collapsing again. It was great to be able to screw the wing up & get it back into shape without any concern of impact with the ground. Brad was great at encouraging & coaching. He kept it up all day long without losing his sense of humor or attention.

I drove home Sat. night with a sense of excitement – Tomorrow I get to do full stalls & SATs.

Sunday the weather at the lake was a thin layer of fog. It started to break up, so Brad went up for a couple quick tows & did an airshow for us. I caught one of his landings –

At this point we had a couple of mechanical issues that really slowed the day down. Rob & the crew did their best to get things going again. After 90 minutes we resumed towing. My first tow was very high & allowed me to do 5 full stalls. I was anticipating a much more dynamic reaction from the wing. The entry & recovery were both benign compared to my expectations.

On my last flight we were able to do 4 SAT entries & a few spirals. The SAT entry was not very hard technically, but was harder to do physically than I expected. The pull to initiate the maneuver required a wrap and I found the pull on the brake line to be more tension around my hand than I liked – in fact, I still have a numb pinky. The successive SATs really scrambled my brains. After rolling out of the last SAT, Brad wanted me to enter a spiral. I was so dizzy that I just ignored him for a few seconds to get my bearings & breath back. When he says on the video, "you're probably dizzy as hell. . ." he was so right. Then I entered some of my best & most dynamic asymmetric spirals. I was able to get way over the wing & felt the timing when it was working. The Aspen 2 really has a lot of energy & SATs very well too.

Here's a video of my last flight taken by Mike W. with a good video camera, followed by a (not very good) video of the last flight taken with my little point & shoot -

Brad’s debriefs were very helpful & I’m sure that as I rerun the maneuvers in my head, I’ll learn much more. I’m looking forward to working with Rob Sporrer & Brad again.

My wife Mary also had an ‘active’ weekend while I was at the lake. She ran the City to the Sea Half Marathon & set a personal best of 1:55. She placed 6^th in her age bracket!

A great weekend.

Owens Valley weekend

My Sun. Flight is HERE
My Mon. Flight isHERE

Jack G., Dave S. & I headed to Bishop to fly in the Owens Valley with the BAPA XC league. We had high hope for good weather & long flights. On the Friday eve drive North on 395 we saw the weather at left over the southern White Mountains (the East side of the Owens valley.) (click on pic) We saw some beautiful cloud build-ups & the Sierras were dusted that night with snow.

This proved to be the last of the weather though. Saturday dawned clear & beautiful. Unfortunately the winds were higher on Sat. than was prudent to fly, so we all had a recreational day in/around Bishop. Sat. night we all met at a pizza parlor to tell stories & celebrate Kari Castle's birthday.

Sunday looked good on paper, but had a very stable lapse rate, so lift was forcast to be weak & tops of lift - low. A task was called which ran us upvalley to Casbah & then South to Pupfish & across the valley to Keogh.

The leg North was straight-forward but lift petered out below 9000'. The field of 45 was littered all along the course. It was not a day to race - it was one of survival. I was able to hang with Jug & Rob S., thermaling towards Casbah. The guys decided to head out in the valley & tag the point & come back . I decided to hang back & work the last of the weak thermal. After gaining another 400' I too headed for Casbah. A mile from the turnpoint I found a great little core which bought me another 800'. I then tagged the turnpoint & returned to the foothills and entered the thermal the boys had found - this time I was on the top of the stack. This allowed me to work up high enough to make it down range & limp a mile of so farther than the field. Jug & maybe Josh C. were the only guys who made it further South than I. I put down in scrub near Susan who was headed to the waypoint. The scrub consisted of what seemed like barbed-wire tumbleweeds & it took 15 minutes to clear & fold the wing and another 50 minutes to cover the three mile hike to Hwy 6.
Miles covered: 15
Flight time: 1:40

Monday the forecast was for SE winds in the valley, & light winds aloft. Jug knew everyone was heading out on long drives at the end of the day, so a 25 mile task was called - Just a downwind dash N. to Benton (about 5 miles from the CA-NV border.)

A few pilots launched 30 minutes before the start & flushed to the LZ in spite of some gallant struggles. A couple of good pilots hung in there & eventually I launched about 5 minutes after the Start Cylinder opened. There was speculation on the hill, earlier, that it may be the kind of day where you may be lucky to exceed minimum distance (5 miles) but after launch I climbed well to 8300' & Dave was ahead of me with good altitude. It looked like the day was improving.
Since climbs were low, I headed out lower than I wanted to. 15 minutes later I was only 600' off the deck & looking at another long hike to the road. . . I needed some lift NOW. With only 4 minutes to landing left, I felt a burble that foretold a core nearby. Soon I was happily climbing back into the game. I hate getting low when competing - it just slows you down drastically - but a save from low altitude is quite rewarding & set the tone for the next 18 miles.

I soon found myself flying with Bill Belcourt & Montana (both of whom made goal, dangit). We climbed in a couple of serpentine thermals to around 8000' but they wanted to push deep into the high ground. I knew the potential for high climbs was greater over the high ground, but I was sporting a serious blister from yesterday & didn't want to hike more than a couple of miles. They were also on higher performance wings, so I played it safe & stayed over the fingers.

This worked for awhile, but eventually I needed to point at the goal, use the tailwind, & head into the flats. I was able to find a couple of small thermals in the valley but not enough to make goal. I eventually landed 3/4 of a mile from Hwy 6 and 6 miles short of goal. This time I found a nice spot with an intersection of two dirt roads that allowed me to land and lay the wing down, clear of any scrub. The landing went just as planned & the wing came down with nary a snag. Meanwhile Dave had his best day & landed a mere 1/4 mile from goal.

Miles covered: 20
Flight time: 1:42

Altogether Dave & I drove 12 hours & each flew about 3.5 hours. . . This is within my personal 4:1 acceptable ratio of drive/fly. To be able to fly 2 out of 3 days in the Owens is great. Jack was very generous to offer us the use of his Tahoe to shuttle pilots up the hill. Dave was a great flying partner - able to candidly debrief with meaningful insights. The breadth of experience in this weekend's competitor list was unprecedented in BAPA comps. We had 5 US National Champs (including 3 of this year's US World's Team members) & many more top 20 pilots competing. What a great learning experience. Jug has done a great job of building this league to a regional status. His attention to detail & professionalism has made us all better pilots.

A great weekend.

Tim

Cuesta with Dave, Patrick, and Mike

Today was a great day at Cuesta. I rode up with Mike & Dave. Patrick was already in the air when we got there. Mike went first & had a nice 30 min. flight to the LZ. Dave launched next & soon joined Patrick. I wasn't far behind & soon we were bouncing around at 1000' over launch. Lift was abundant but very rough on the edges.

We were able to move around today to areas that have been untraveled by me before. I found myself directly over the TV towers at 3300' (1200' over launch). An area of convergence lay right along the Cuesta Ridge & some of the thermals bumping through this area were very strong & sharp edged. The winds above 3000' were from the North and the winds below were from the SW. Patrick headed North but found this headwind to be a problem & landed at Cal Poly. He gets the prize for most adventurous for the day. Dave, on the other hand, gets a prize for most optimistic. Ask him ;-)

I flew for about 2 hours & finally landed due to bladder issues - I'm sure that it was working until after 5pm today.

My gear worked well, I had many chances to practice with my new speed-bar & my blue-tooth phone dongle worked while I was flying. Next weekend we are headed for the Owens Valley so I want everything in order. Last year I flew 115 miles in two flights - I can only hope for conditions like that this year.

A good day -

Tim

Why I fly

Today I headed to Cuesta & met Eric & Patrick at the top. Winds at launch were brisk but not too high between cycles. Patrick launched first & wasn't having much luck getting above launch for a while so I decided to work on some tweaks to my stirrup & new 3-step speed-bar. Eric launched after a while & the two guys were able to get up & move around the area.

I got into the air & found the air to be quite buoyant. Within 6 minutes I was bouncing around at the inversion at 2600' (500' over) I had fun exploring the area & noticed that today there were a lot of birds of prey & vultures soaring today. I was struck that many of the birds were just out enjoying themselves - flying for the same reason I was. One medium sized raptor was flying along just upwind of me as I flew a lift band - as he went by, he folded his wings & dove 100' only to 'zoomie' back up to my altitude and bank over the top of me. He looked at me with a "Try that" look.

I headed up towards the towers & got closer than previously. I didn't like the way the air felt up there so I came out front to avoid getting caught back on the shallow slope of the ridge.

The RamRace harness I'm flying is completely different than my last - it is a much more supine design and utilizes a stirrup. I have been getting some quite twitchy rides on it. I've been feeling like the signal to noise ratio was a bit low until today. Today I played with the chest strap quite a bit & got it dialed in. I was able to feel the core of the thermals as my wing cut into them - it felt, at times, like a strong bubble was moving laterally along the span of the wing. As I learn to interpret this information, my flying will improve & become more intuitive.

After an hour and a half of fun, I landed at the base of the ridge in some very active air. I packed up & hiked the hill to get back to my truck. On the 900' hike up the hill I stopped to rest a bit & was treated to a pair of adolescent vultures playing follow-me along the ridge. They explored lee-side & rotor areas in a kind of chicken game that I hadn't observed before today.

It was a good day.

Better a low save than no save -

Today Patrick had a bunch of us SLOSA guys meet him at Cuesta for a site clinic. Although I've many flights at the site, I knew that Pat's extensive palette of strategies exceeded mine & I would leave with some info that would be valuable. There were 10 of us at launch at 10:30 am. The wind was clocked at 12-18 mph so we did a walkabout to view the various launch options & top-landing spots. Patrick did a great job of talking about the site in a way that the newbies could use, while including info that more experienced pilots could use.

The wind was less stiff at the lower launch so Dave S. launched there. I walked back to the top launch & it felt like the wind was lulling enough to allow a launch there. I set up while Dave flew the ridge. Try #1 (which usually is sufficient) was just ugly - the wing came up & I didn't control it properly. It overshot while I turned & frontalled - flailing behind me. I gathered it up & reset only to bring the wing up with a healthy stick in the right side lines. I pulled the "C's" but lost one of them so only one side of the wing was killed. The flying side took me for a ride into the scrub to the left of the launch chute, landing me ingloriously on my ass. Keith assisted my reset & finally, after 20 minutes of ineptitude, I slipped the surly bounds.

Once in the air I was having fun. The air was a bit choppy and the wind on the ridge was 8-10mph, but lift was abundant to the inversion at 2600'. I worked the full extent of the ridge and then was able to repeatedly press out front & then climb in thermals drifting back to ridge.
Eventually I headed out to the LZ only to blunder across a nice weak thermal at about 400' over the bluffs near the LZ. I playfully worked the lift until I found a core & then climbed to around 2000' before exploring a bit farther West. Eventually I found the LZ & landed.

A rocky start but an hour of fun flying.

Makin' Circles

Usually, when a "WUFFO" approaches me in the LZ, one of the questions comes out something like,"So, waddayado, keep circling until you go up?"

Today, was that kind of day. When Dave & Pat & I got to launch at Cuesta the wind seemed a bit fresh for a PG flight. Patric was game though & it wasn't gusty so he hucked off & flew at launch alt. +/- 100' for 15 minutes. I decided I was in & got plucked right off launch & found some good lift to Launch + 300'. We toured the area & found that there was an area of lift that must have been a convergence line. We were able to climb to 2600' (400 over) while flying straight. I was able to get to 2800' later in a rogue thermal that had been able to bust through the inversion. Dave was last to try a launch & had no assistance on the hill. He worked it for a good 25 min. until deciding it was too windy for him that day. Patrick top-landed on a finger & I flew out to the LZ to get Dave's car. Flight time: 1:15 with lotsa fun.

Later Patrick & I hiked Cayucos & had short flights in weak choppy lift. A good day.

Thanks to Tom W. for the photo of Dave & me above.

BAPA comp at Tollhouse

SATURDAY
This weekend I headed to Tollhouse with fellow SLOSA members Dave S. & Jack G. We all were looking forward to a good weekend of XC because the local conditions have been weak. Dave is flying a new Boom Sport & this weekend will be the first real test. It's also my first high flight with my new Ram-Race harness.

Saturday looked good with light S-SW winds forecast. The inversion looked like it would be weakened by 1PM. The task was a leg to the NW to 4-lane-turn at the NW end of Sandy Ridge, then to KNOB (in front of launch), then past Black Mtn. to Humphry's Station, then to Piedra - down by Pine Flat Reservoir. The task total distance is 26 miles.

I started off strong with a quick start & made it over to Squaw's Tit with moderate altitude. Alex & I climbed a bit to the inversion (at about 4500') & decided to head out ahead of the normal lead gaggle, which had found a bit of a hole. . . we made it to the first TP at 4-lane-turn. At this point, we were joined by Josh & Eric R. I found myself climbing alone in my thermal while watching Alec & Josh & Eric climb in a thermal slightly upwind. Their climb put them about 1/2 a climb ahead of me & I was comfortable watching from about 1/4 mile behind.

After hitting the next turnpoint I watched as A, J, & E headed due West over the back of Black. This course was upwind of the courseline by 30 degrees. I watched them as I topped out my climb. They really weren't doing that well so I headed directly towards Humphry's. By cutting the corner I saved some time & distance, but now I was flying over low terrain & risking my longevity on a flat-land thermal. I found some weak lift & was able to bubble-surf along towards the TP at an uncomfortable but adequate altitude. As I hit Humphry's, I saw Alex come in under me & we moved south to the low-lying hills on the south side of the valley. I was maybe 900' over the field & just loitered in bubbles until I got hold of a thermal that allowed a climb along the terrain. Alex tried to hang, but eventually landed below. It seemed forever until I was able to make a 360, but once I did the core carried me up to contact Josh & Eric who had gotten skunked farther South. The three of us carried on for the next 15 miles together. I wasn't able to use my speed bar (due to some new harness set-up issues) but I still stayed with the guys & was able to watch & learn from the best. I also did a pretty good job of pimping ;-)

About 5miles from goal Josh & Eric went into race mode & I was content to just make goal. Eric finished ahead of Josh by 15 seconds and they beat me by 7 minutes. I was so thrilled to be in goal with that kind of talent that I was happy to buy the beer.

Results: Flt time - 3:12 Distance flown - 26.2 miles 3rd to Goal behind Eric & Josh.

Dave & Jack had good flights also. Thanks to them for making the long drive to goal for the retrieve.

My SAT flight is HERE
Results will be HERE soon.

SUNDAY

Sunday's flight was flown in challenging conditions. Lots of sink & lots of violent area of thrash. I can't say I was having fun, but I was enjoying the challenge. I made a slow, laborious trek down to 4 lane turn again & had the lead gaggle (which included Dave) in sight, but things weren't 'clicking'.

I found myself flying alone & got a bit more aggressive than I should've. I made a glide for the turn-point at the high school & tagged it low. I was depending on a suspicion, backed by some success of those ahead of me, that I would snag some lift. None developed & I put in to a small field with a nice big oak tree to fold up under. As I stashed my gear I watched, the more patient Dave, fly over head & proceed on course. Dave made it over Black Mtn to Nichols. His accomplishment doesn't go without notice on me - today was a hard day. He placed 3rd or 4th for the day. Not bad for a second XC on his new Boom. Jack made it to the LZ & was a big help in the retrieve again.

Results: Flt. time - 1:12 Distance - 10.1 miles - About 10 miles short of Goal,

My Sunday flight is HERE

Cayucos today

I've flown two 6-day trips to Frankfurt in the last 15 days (at my job in the 747) but have only flown one, short sledder since returning from Lakeview. I was ready to fly.

Patrick called me at 11:30 and said Cayucos was ON. I was doing Coffee House business, so I told him I'd be there soon. I got to the bottom of the hill just before 1pm. By the time I'd hauled my butt to the top of the hill, it was almost 1:30pm but conditions were perfect. Jessie & Eric were at the top with Patrick & were taking a break. I set up &launched into nice smooth lift that took me 250' over launch.

Today wasn't the kind of day to get adventurous or go big - which suited me fine - I wasn't in the mood either. I was ready to boat around, looking at the glory of the coast. I saw the Rock with a different eye - I saw the beach & surf and marveled at its beauty. It was the kind of day I just hovered in 0 sink, parked deep in the brakes, enjoying the view & feeling like a hovering kildeer. I flew for 80 minutes until I got cold & made a nice landing on the beach.

I'm waiting for my new harness to arrive - I made the plunge & ordered an Airwave Ram Race harness. It should be here any day.

Fly safe,
Tim

Home, at last.

The awards Ceremony - (That's me at far right)
Dave & I got home this evening after a 10 hour drive. It's nice to be in my own bed.

The last two weeks were very rewarding. The Rat Race was a lot of fun with flying 8 days straight. The Nat's had too much wind, and the flying was very challenging. I had two days at the Nat's where I chose not to fly in the conditions at launch and was fortunate that both day's tasks were called off. I never put myself in a position I didn't want to be, no risky landings and no botched launches.

HERE ARE THE STATS:
I learned a lot of lessons that I'm still digesting & pondering - In 14 days I flew 202 miles - Total flight time 24 hours. I made goal at the Rat Race 3 times in the comp & once to declared goal in practice. Landed out 5 times without incident. Relaunched '0' times. I ate 10 Power Bars, 5 Crunchy Energy Bars, and 30 pints of water on the hill. I only had to hike once - 2 miles. Won two trophies and scored 5 T-shirts. Met a LOT of cool people & successfully met my declared goal by having more fun than anybody else at the comps!

Timo