With a bright and sunny day the Club was awash with hopeful sky dreamers. The launch point was setup in the North West corner and Mike Sloggett took the first pupil aloft at 10:45 and launched straight into a cloudstreet that had formed from Honiton across the field.
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| Nice early cumulus (Mike Sloggett) |
With cu popping downwind to the North and limited cumulus forming to the South, it was evident that the sea air was being pushed inland by the southeast/southwest wind just as RASP had predicted. This encouraged me to take the next launch in Libelle CLM into a relatively low cloud base, in the hope that I could push downwind to the North and outrun the thermal-killing sea air. It wasn't easy work but I slowly tiptoed up to Wimbleball Reservoir on Exmoor. Although finding the thermal cores proved difficult, there was 5kt averages to be found.
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| Wimbleball Reservoir (Rowan Smith) |
After Exmoor, I set my sights on visiting Yeovil reservoir. By now the cloudbase had risen and the thermals were much more predictable. Alas by Taunton, nature was calling so I cut my lake tour short to come home, finding a big blue hole over NHL.
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| North Hill Sea air (Mike Sloggett) |
Meanwhile training, family and friends flights and trial lessons continued with Mike Sloggett with help from Steve Westlake and Pete Bennett. The cross/tailwind proved tricky and the ends were changed causing delays, Pete Harmer, duty tuggie was kept busy, there were several private gliders out ASW20 FUN, Libelle M and CLM, Open Cirrus CEC, ASW28 JPT, HES Pegase, DuoDiscus DD3. But as ever launch timing was the key factor with some gliders climbing away from the winch launch and others simply having extended circuits.
Phil Morrison, bolstered by Peter Smith, Rowan Smith and Mike Sloggett took the afternoon shift. Another change of ends was enacted. DD3 took an aerotow and enlisted the iron thermal to get to the good air and took a tour of Somerset.
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| DD3 passing Halesland (Nick Jones) |
The motor glider G-BKVG took to the air once again having had a new engine fitted. Training continued into the evening to get everyone at least one flight and stopped just in time for the Hog roast…
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| Ian and Stu in the Stearman (Jill Harmer) |
The Hog Roast (which is provided by the Club to thank all our Members for all their volunteering efforts) was kicked off by an impromptu flyby from Ian Mitchell and Stu Procter in a Boeing Stearman, and Brendan Procter in a Piper Cub.
The warm evening was a very pleasant social gathering for members and their families, with Rob & Sally's game of 'Spot the photo' won by Oscar Leeson. Many thanks to Rob and Sally for organising the evening, and to Steve Westlake for the live music.- Rowan Smith, Mike Sloggett, J&P
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| Lovely evening for a social gathering (Rob Hender) |
