Sat 30th November

The forecast for today was pretty dismal so predictably, and despite a super-optimistic call to arms from duty instructor James Flory the preceding evening, there were just 5 or 6 hardy club members assembled in the fog-bound club house at 08:30 this morning.  What was interesting, though, was that some of those members had travelled knowing that flying was unlikely but nevertheless, had come up to the club hoping to complete ground training towards specific individual goals.  And so, following the first morale boosting highlight of the day – which was Vicki’s arrival and the opening of the café for a very welcome breakfast bap – duty instructor James was kept busy, with Andy Batchelor working his way through some AssCat groundwork, Kevin Fairburn taking the first, embryonic steps on the Bronze theory exam pathway, and Karen King heading for the simulator to practice launch failures.  Under the watchful eye of James Flory, Andy Batchelor also used the simulator to practice some of his instructional patter on willing victim Karen King, with Kevin stepping in to set up and operate the simulator.  

Karen and Andy supervised by James (Kevin Fairburn)

By lunchtime, the club house was starting to fill up, with more members arriving to complete various tasks around the club, or just popping in for a coffee and a chat. Christmas had also arrived, with Cheryl  leading efforts to get the Christmas tree up in the clubhouse, adding a little Christmas cheer to a fairly gloomy, fog-bound day.  Sadly, the fog refused to dissipate in time for any chance of flying, but the day certainly wasn’t wasted, with club members capitalising on the opportunity to use the simulator, complete their ground training goals and carry out various maintenance tasks around and about the club.  

Simulated launch failures at North Hill (Kevin Fairburn)

The simulator was extensively used at the huge cost of precisely ZERO deduction from the flying account...  What's not to love! It's been a fallow November for most of us, but if we can't fly there is no excuse, take advantage of all these fabulous resources to keep us as close to currency as possible... Spinning, cable breaks, practicing all these important and perishable skills, or using the simulator to fly anywhere in the world...  Maybe another UK club or a ridge task flying in the Alps might be for you?

And, of course, as is the aviators tradition, we all discussed the inclement weather at length, and looked forward with hope to the spring!    - Andy Batchelor and Kevin Fairburn

Thurs 28th November

Who stayed home to sweep up leaves? If you did you missed a great day to stay current!
Through the winter we all know how important it is to stay current, weeks can slip by very easily, that’s why it is vital to grab the chance to fly with both hands. 

A great view of North Hill (Mike Sloggett)

Today started with a skeleton crew at briefing, however those who attended were determined to fly, ( I really like that). Once the gliders were readied a few more turned up having looked at the webcams!
We took the gliders to the other end of the airfield, the field was largely remarkably good, apart from some soft stuff in the middle.

Lovely late Autumn sky (Mark Courtney)

The duty instructor Mike Sloggett, decided that winching might be possible later, but decided on aerotow to start. With the wind strengthening from the ESE the launch point was moved to the north of the centreline. The climb out was “interesting” but above 500ft things were very smooth. 

Interesting below 500ft (John Borland)

 

Chris Wool turned up and immediately started working with Paul Medlock training for his Basic Instructor rating. 

Posing for the camera (John Borland)

Mike worked through the list, with Simon Jordy positively salivating at the chance to fly the EuroFox in the lively conditions, this  enabled me to have a couple of mutual flights with Tom (you spent how much! ) Sides. - Apparently according  to the logkeeper, when he entered me to pay, a message jumped out and said “seriously??” 

Last flight of the day (Mark Courtney)

 

Aerotows continued  at some pace, this enabled everyone to have a flight before orographic cloud on the south ridge and misting canopies stopped play. We stopped in time for late lunch dished up by Vicky. 

A very satisfying day on all fronts, pilots are now current, and all enjoyed flying at this difficult time of year. 

As a foot note, we had Dunkerswell as a backup plan for today, I can’t thank them enough for their generosity and willingness to accommodate us through the winter.
Forget the leaves go flying! - Mark Courtney

Sat 23rd November

So the snow of Thursday had swiftly melted with the rising temperatures, and Saturday welcomed  Storm Bert, along with the warnings for wind and rain. NHL weather station recorded a peak of  nearly  40 knots from the south and 30mm of rain.

There were jobs to be done as one of the Beech trees along Wheelbarrow Lane had not coped with the wind. Thanks to all those who helped to clear the Lane.

Wheelbarrow Lane (Mike Sloggett)

During the afternoon, the Clubhouse was set up for the DSGC Annual General Meeting, Chairman Nick Jones welcomed all to the meeting (good turnout considering the weather), and there were the usual presentations and thanks to all our volunteers. 

AGM (good turnout) (Simon Leeson)

 

We thanked George Sanderson who was standing down from the Committee and welcomed Kevin Fairburn who is new to the Committee. Following the formal part of the meeting, the annual trophies were awarded by CFI Mark Courtney. 

Trophy	Awarded for	Current Holder 2024
Brian Master's Trophy	Winner of the Task Week	not awarded
Dave Fewings Memorial Shield	Best two-seater flight from North Hill	Phil Morrison & Nick Jones
The Kennedy Trophy	Best performance in a BGA rated competition	Dan Hender
The Kelsey Plate	Longest cross-country flight from North Hill	Richard Roberts
Tim Parsons Trophy	Earliest declared and completed flight over 300kms from North Hill	Pete Startup
The Wily Old Bird	personal presentation by the CFI for guile or cunning	Jill Harmer
The Rose Bowl	Winner of the Club Ladder (flights from North Hill)	Pete Startup
The Ken Andrews Trophy	Best flight in a glider with handicap 90 or less from North Hill	Stewart Henshall
Tim's Challenge Trophy	First O/R to Lasham in a glider with handicap 90 or less from North Hill	not awarded
Francis Bustard Tankard	Best gain of height	Pete Startup
Presidents Trophy aka The Norman Whyte Shield	Best progress	Ashley Thomas
Instructor of the Year	Member online vote	James Flory
Les' Tankard	Best contribution to the Club by a Junior member	Tom Gunner
The Dick Wolff Trophy	Best contribution to the Club by helping others	Dave Perriam
Des Champ Vachables Trophy	The member who achieved the greatest retrieve epicness	Connor Williams
Le Magnifique Pissoir	The most flights scoring less than 100pts on the ladder	John Allan
Mike Fairclough's Diamond Cup	The member who has achieved a Diamond leg	not awarded

The Clubhouse was then rapidly reset for a very welcome AGM Supper of Roast Pork and all the trimmings followed by crumbles,  

AGM Supper (Simon Leeson)

with thanks to North Hill Cafe Vicki and support team. - J&P

Wed 20th November

Sub-zero air temperature and ground frost at daybreak were novel. A good crowd at the Club and thanks to the regulars the gliders were basking in the sun before 09:00hrs. 

Lovely views (Peter Smith)

Morning briefing covered the likely weather as usual and also the addition of a “turning r/l base” radio call. The importance of accurate downwind calls was also emphasised, – those to be covered by an appropriately modified call. 

North Hill in the late afternoon shadows (Peter Smith)

Off into the blue sky and morning sun we went, no helping lift but lovely views. So it remained all day until misting canopies brought it to a close at 15:30. A really good day for the latter part of November with 27 glider launches.

 

Welcome to Instructing at North Hill (Peter Smith)

We welcomed Andy Pincombe on his first instructing day at North Hill and hope to see him frequently.

Only a month till the shortest day! - Peter Smith

Sun 17th November

 Given the long run of anticyclonic gloom that has beset the UK in recent weeks, there was a surprisingly small number of members gathered at the club this fine Sunday morning but we had enough to warrant breaking out the kit.  KEK remains u/s while we wait for some German folks to fashion some canopy support arms but HCX supported by the Perkoz and a Junior (plus a couple of private gliders) were more than adequate to get everyone airborne.  

Duty Instructor Peter Field held the morning briefing and by the time we were set up and ready to fly the canopies had just about stopped misting and we got going. The field was still surprisingly soggy but I think we all did a good job of going easy on it.  The wind, though strengthening and gusting a little through the day was westerly, straight down the track and very gentle in the morning.  The improving sky enabled Mike Rigby and James Flory to take an early aerotow to 3,000ft in order to undertake spin and stall refresher.  Added to some launch failures, this got Mike his red card! (ed: Well done Mike). The day saw regular use of Alan Rappaport and BumbleBee as well as frequent motorglider activity and a decent launch rate on the winch too.

KEK looking on, Launch Control at the end of the rainbow (DSGC North Hill cafe)

 

Club stalwarts such as Ron Johns, Pete Startup, JB and Martin Woolner were all present for the decent conditions.  As expected, there wasn’t a huge amount of lift around but the still conditions meant that it was possible to stay afloat for reasonable periods.
Vikki and her little helper kept everyone fed and watered in style.  Fading light, approaching showers and dropping temperatures brought an early end to activities but our instructors got through the 2-seater list and all the solo flyers got away too.

Aside from Monday, the forecast this coming week looks mostly fine and dry so let’s hope we can keep this run of flyable conditions going. - Mike Rigby

Sat 16th November

 It was a quiet day at the airfield, with only a handful of members turning up. However, those who did, made quick work of setting up the ground equipment, ensuring everything was ready to go in  no time. Once a ‘responsible adult’ arrived to oversee operations, we promptly brought out the gliders.  With KEK still awaiting its much-needed part, we prepared HCX, the Perkoz, and the single Junior for the day’s flying.

North Hill  from the North (Stuart Thomson)

 

Paul Medlock continued his BI training under the watchful eye of Simon Leeson, while James Flory managed the training flights. Stuart Thomson celebrated his return to solo flying after a break since  August, shaking off the cobwebs. Meanwhile, Chris Woodward and Tom Gunner in the Junior tried their best to stay airborne as long as possible. 

Paul Medlock continues his BI Training (Mark Courtney)

 

As the weather began to deteriorate, the group decided to call it a day and head to the clubhouse for a well-earned lunch. Vicki had prepared a delicious selection of treats, which were thoroughly  enjoyed by all. 

A quiet day at the Club (Mark Courtney)

 

Unfortunately, the weather didn’t improve after lunch, so we packed everything away, leaving the equipment and gliders ready for another day. Hopefully those that didn’t get to fly, will be back  up soon. 

 
LRD was dutifully rigged again and hope to have it back in action in a few days. A big thank you to everyone who came along and helped make the most of the morning. Even when the skies didn’t cooperate, the camaraderie and teamwork shone through. - Stuart Thomson

Fri 15th November - Brentor

 As glider pilots we gain great experience from visiting other Clubs whether to fly different gliders or to simply fly from another airfield with different scenery. Today the weather played fair and allowed us to undertake some aerotows both with DSGC members yet to visit Brentor, the home of the Dartmoor Gliding Society, and some making return visits to continue gaining experience.

Mark Courtney drove up to North Hill to fly the EuroFox down to Brentor, bringing Peter Smith down with him arriving soon after 9am. Meanwhile Mike Sloggett had arrived at Brentor earlier to liaise with the DGS instructors as to how the airfield would be set up and to work out a plan of who would be flying which gliders. 

A different view of Devon (Mike Sloggett)

Briefing completed the first aerotow was launched around 10am with DGS kindly allowing Mike to use a K13 to provide Robert Lee with an opportunity to complete his first flight from Brentor ahead of doing some towing in the EuroFox later in the day (with Robert reminiscing about his younger days at Kelly College as we flew over it!). 

DGS K13 (Mike Sloggett)

With Peter Smith and Mike sharing the DGS K13s in and amongst the local instructors also taking aerotows in the K13s and the Puchacz, various DGS private pilots took the opportunity to aerotow to maintain currency, - and Dave Perriam took the DGS Astir on aerotow to build on his previous experience in flying from Brentor.

DGS Astir  (Mike Sloggett)

 

With Shaun Dayman and Nick Harrison also taking their first flights at Brentor the latest ‘working together with another gliding Club in Devon’ day which benefited all involved from both Clubs. 

What a nice day (Mike Sloggett)

Early afternoon saw some increasing cloud cover and an evident lowering cloudbase so the decision was made for the EuroFox to return back to its hangar at North Hill with Mark and Peter completing the last DGS glider aerotow before ‘disappearing’ into the skies to the East of Brentor and arriving safely back at North Hill mid-afternoon. 

13 aerotows for the EuroFox (Mike Sloggett)

A great day all round, thank you to Dartmoor Gliding Society for their usual welcome and teamwork during today. - Mike Sloggett

Wed 13th November

 Surprisingly the clubhouse wasn't full of eager pilots first thing this morning making the flying lists unusually short. As the gliders and ground equipment were made ready for the day's flying it was looking like an aerotow-only day as we were short of people, but before long there was enough to winch launch as well, although it was gone 11am before the first launch. 

Nice clear air (Mark Layton)

 
Pete Smith and Steve Westlake steadily worked through the flying list covering all the requirements including check flights, spinning exercises and cable breaks, including two real ones! Ian Mitchell was also in demand with both Nicholas Johnson and Sandy Harrup doing various exercises in the Falke. 

But short days (Mark Layton)

 

Trying to make use of the shorter days and the ever-present threat of the dreaded misting canopies flying continued through lunch until just before 4pm. With everyone happy to have flown after two weeks of gloomy weather there were plenty of happy faces in clubhouse trying to get warm after a day in the cold wind at the west end of the airfield. 

Long shadows and misting canopies (Mark Layton)

 

The appearance of several members donning the green 'thermal onesies' was a sure indication that winter is here! A good day was had by all. - Mark Layton

Mon 11th November

Thanks to Peter Smith reading the runes correctly and the skilled assistance of Simon Jordy in the EuroFox, a good attendance, alerted by Google Groups, made their way to North Hill on a Monday morning. Vicky also kindly opened up the cafe for a hot lunch, taken at a rather Spanish time of 2pm onwards, some even attending via hangar landings. 

First flight with the south coast shining (Peter Smith)

A bit unpromising at first as it was still cloudy, Long Lane was still closed and other delays manifested themselves on the way, but at about 11am Peter took the first launch and declared conditions suitable, with a gentle NE wind.  In fact things got better and better as the day progressed, until a really nice, but cold, couple of hours before sunset.

Last flight with all of Devon shining (Peter Smith)

 The Perkoz and one K21 and one Junior were joined by the two Falkes  and .in all, twenty flights were logged, all the glider aerotows to 2000 feet. I'm sure that everybody went home very satisfied with the day's outcome, with thanks to those who did the hard work, Peter and Simon.
Let's hope the rest of the flying week is just as good - Jonathan Erskine

Sat 2nd / Sun 3rd November

 Anticyclonic gloom.........but it wasn't all doom

On Saturday, various trailers were being cleaned and there was all the preparations for the DSGC Fireworks party, with proceeds going to the DSGC Charitable Trust. 

Well done to Team Hender for all the organisation, and thank you to all those who contributed in various ways. 

 

Busy Clubhouse (Simon Leeson)

There was a great crowd of DSGC members, family and friends and local residents, with the Clubhouse packed, all enjoyed the wonderful fireworks display and food. We're pleased to announce that £654.58 was collected for the Trust. If you couldn't make it, or would still like to make a donation, it's not too late, please contact Sally. 

On Sunday, there was all the Firework FOD to collect, Mike Sloggett did some ground school with Benjie Pitts and Cheryl Smith and  

Replacing the brake pipe (James Hood)

 

Simon, Leeson, Stuart Procter, Robert Lee and James Hood replaced the EuroFox brake pipe. - Sally Hender