With a good weather forecast against a background story of badge flights yesterday, it was no surprise that the hangar doors were open, and gliders being pulled out for daily inspections, well before 9:00am today. A number of private gliders were either rigged or being rigged and there was much discussion as to what might be achieved by private and Club gliders. The launch point was soon being set up in the North East corner of the airfield and first flight of the day was in the air just before 10:00am.
And with some fluffy clouds steadily appearing as the morning unfolded, alongside the Club gliders being launched there was a steady queue of private gliders getting airborne whether by winch or aerotow. Despite the optimism for some potential badge flights for Club members during the day, as ever the dreams were replaced by the reality of not being in the right place of the sky or not launching at the right time.
And with some fluffy clouds steadily appearing as the morning unfolded, alongside the Club gliders being launched there was a steady queue of private gliders getting airborne whether by winch or aerotow. Despite the optimism for some potential badge flights for Club members during the day, as ever the dreams were replaced by the reality of not being in the right place of the sky or not launching at the right time.
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| North Hill (Mike Sloggett) |
Various instructors worked their way through the Club flying list which was completed late afternoon concurrently with the sky going blue and with evident cooler sea air generally driving the thermals away to the North of the airfield, out of reach from a winch launch.
And with a scheduled NOTAM for a royal flight transitting from Highgrove House down to Cornwall to the West of the airfield and with everyone having flown it was decided to stop flying early evening. 54 launches in total - Mike Sloggett
And with a scheduled NOTAM for a royal flight transitting from Highgrove House down to Cornwall to the West of the airfield and with everyone having flown it was decided to stop flying early evening. 54 launches in total - Mike Sloggett
Cross-country stories
DD3 & 711
With probably the best weekend weather for cross country soaring, domestic jokers had to be played and a second day blagged to go flying.
Hot on the heels of Saturday's team outing to the Lasham area, the RASP forecast had people excitedly looking at routes in the club house which made the most of the promised good run out to the west late morning.
Phil M with typical nonchalance chose Holsworthy as the westerly end of a 500km with Lasham and Wroughton as the other two points. I say nonchalance because Pete S with much teeth sucking claimed it was too close to the sea, one of the cardinal no-nos (except in Enterprise) for serious X/C pundits. As it happens it was just ok since it sat in sea air but with this summer's great cloud bases a dart out and back was no real risk. Ron J ever the romantic for Cornish air, took on Phil's task and DD3 and 711 turned the Cornwall TP in rapid succession after reasonable runs down through Devon. Meanwhile train spotters JB and Pete turned Crediton station and started blasting off to their next station at Mottisfont on Pete's no-sea-just-trains 300k task.
The trip back towards NHL started what were some of the day's best conditions with super fast blasts twixt 6 kt thermals. Things changed beyond Salisbury with the air drying out and going blue. The spotters were lucky with their choice of TP and were able to blast back to the clouds while the ASH and Duo started to tiptoe. In the storming run up the smaller Duo wings really helped stretch out a lead but in the blue the mighty Albatross with it's seasoned skipper floated ahead and the LAS TP was turned line astern. Ron and Dan picked a good line leaving Lasham and went for clouds on the horizon. DD3 went on track and was soon in that out of phase with the lift feeling and much grovelling was required.
With probably the best weekend weather for cross country soaring, domestic jokers had to be played and a second day blagged to go flying.
Hot on the heels of Saturday's team outing to the Lasham area, the RASP forecast had people excitedly looking at routes in the club house which made the most of the promised good run out to the west late morning.
Phil M with typical nonchalance chose Holsworthy as the westerly end of a 500km with Lasham and Wroughton as the other two points. I say nonchalance because Pete S with much teeth sucking claimed it was too close to the sea, one of the cardinal no-nos (except in Enterprise) for serious X/C pundits. As it happens it was just ok since it sat in sea air but with this summer's great cloud bases a dart out and back was no real risk. Ron J ever the romantic for Cornish air, took on Phil's task and DD3 and 711 turned the Cornwall TP in rapid succession after reasonable runs down through Devon. Meanwhile train spotters JB and Pete turned Crediton station and started blasting off to their next station at Mottisfont on Pete's no-sea-just-trains 300k task.
The trip back towards NHL started what were some of the day's best conditions with super fast blasts twixt 6 kt thermals. Things changed beyond Salisbury with the air drying out and going blue. The spotters were lucky with their choice of TP and were able to blast back to the clouds while the ASH and Duo started to tiptoe. In the storming run up the smaller Duo wings really helped stretch out a lead but in the blue the mighty Albatross with it's seasoned skipper floated ahead and the LAS TP was turned line astern. Ron and Dan picked a good line leaving Lasham and went for clouds on the horizon. DD3 went on track and was soon in that out of phase with the lift feeling and much grovelling was required.
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| Southampton Water (John Pursey) |
On the radio the 300kers could be heard getting a fast convergence run home while the semi blue conditions towards Wroughton seemed a long way from home. The TP was probably in sea air coming up from Bristol channel but by staying high contact was made with better clouds towards
Salisbury plain. Closer to home it was clear there was some kind of convergence working but I certainly didn't make the best of it and another slow but steady grovel was required before the triumphant final glide at 120kts as conditions over The Blackdowns boomed us back up. The ASH was already in its pyjamas when we landed (but only just) but importantly the pints of Otter were poured and on their way over in the trusty Discovery.
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| Beer, nuts, olives (John Pursey) |
DG1
Pete Bennett seems to be getting used to the DG100 with a swift 146kms round Cadbury Cross, Chard and Knowstone at 75kph - "landed early for the football" .....
JB & 230
Pete Startup's train spotters task. 300kms Crediton Station - Mottisfont Station, I hadn't done this one before and when it was all blue as I approached Mottisfont and quite close to Southampton water I began to think I wouldn't do it again, but there were good blue thermals and it turned out to be an easy day. Probably should have done the 500 task! - JB
OL
Pete and Jill took the last aerotow and headed off following the energy west turning Gillingham and Glastonbury, A fast encroaching sea air from the south sent me north into the area that I am not too keen on (Somerset). I now know why. Reasonable looking Cu, no lift. Convergences that were difficult to read, but after a bit of a struggle we escaped back to better conditions.
ENW
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| Okehampton (Mark Courtney) |
Mark Courtney flew his glider! and went west turning Okehampton, before returning to North Hill and climbing in the Pawnee.
