Thurs 23rd December

On the eve of Christmas Eve, there was hope in the forecast for a sunny afternoon after the rain on the cold front had cleared through. It was very foggy all morning, and there wasn't a lot of rain, but then there wasn't a nice clearance either - Ho Ho Ho!

 

With thanks to Hans Jenssen for the Christmas image

Stewart Henshall brought his VR kit in for a demonstration, and a few members (not yet converted to Condor) enjoyed the spectacular Virtual Reality of flying around Interlaken and ridge soaring the Eiger. 

We look forward to more joining the Condor Racing Group soon, in the meantime we wish all our Members and readers a Happy Christmas and a great soaring 2022. - J&P

Wed 22nd December

About a dozen people were at the club, taking up the Instructors invitation to 'keep current' on one of the last flyable days of the year. It turned out to be much better than expected with wave to the south of the field making 'staying aloft'  very easy. 

 

The call from Chairman Nick - Come on up, there's wave above North Hill (Nick Jones)

Three instructors were available which helped while a good SSE'ly crosswind made for some entertainment on launch and landing. All bar one had good flights with many having to 'airbrake down', but unfortunately Andrew Broderick just missed flying when low cloud started moving in just before 1pm. 4 gliders had been towed up to the Western end including the DG505, and for some time they were all in the air together, with little for those left on the ground to do.

We were all down by 1:30pm, but managed 8 hrs of flying in 14 flights, and everything was packed away before the rain came. - Chris Warnes

Tue 21st December - Condor Racing

This evenings entertainment was again in the Alps in the familiar area just north of Interlaken,  - 250kms of good ridge running  and with strong thermals if needed. 

Eight 18m ships  (mainly Ventus 3, JS3 and an Antares) lined up full of water for a long aerotow at Bex.

Once everyone had climbed up to the start height of 9500ft, the race was on, with Simon Leeson leading the way, most of the field was quite bunched, but with Dan Hender and Stewart Henshall hanging back aiming for a fast time...... 

Stewart even had time to take photos (Stewart Henshall)

The first leg was a North East dogleg and then on to cross Lake Thun for the second turnpoint then back across  the Lake and then along another ridge line past Lausanne to Lake Geneva where a top up was needed by some. It was a 20 km glide across Lake Geneva and then back to Bex for the finish. 

Stewart was fastest at 224kph with Dan coming second 220kph, and the 'alsorans' completing at nearer 200kph. Unfortunately some lost points by not dealing with the flutter correctly. A really enjoyable evening in the sunny  mountains with superb scenery. 

Join us for more on-line Condor racing this winter, events are planned for Sunday and Tuesday evenings and more will be held over the festive season - all are welcome - J&P

Sun 19th December - Condor Racing

Tonight's flight took place in the Austrian Alps near Innsbruck, and comprised 13 turnpoints in a distance of 111km. 

Unlike the weather at North Hill this weekend, conditions were perfect for a fairly fast ridge run. A nice sunny day with a moderate northerly wind was ideal for the run. 

 Nine standard class gliders (most in Discus 2a, but also a Genesis and LS8 Neo) lined up on the grid for an aerotow, and all bar one managed to complete the task, with the fastest Dan Hender coming in under 33 minutes, demonstrating that he still has pace in a virtual glider, as well as a complete understanding of safety altitudes.

 So quick in fact that four of the group (who had no other commitments) decided to run the course again looking to improve their previous times with Stewart Henshall leading the field this time (but 30 secs slower than Dan's first run.) Some observed through Condor's "spectate" feature. Others were able to join live streams on Discord - which doesn't even need Condor installed.

Thanks to Chris Warnes for hosting the server for another enjoyable online session, and thanks to all those who had far too much fun flying it. Much better than waiting on the ground at DSGC for the mist to clear.  Join us for more on-line Condor racing this winter, events are planned for Sunday and Tuesday evenings and more will be held over the festive season - all are welcome - Chris Warnes & Stewart Henshall

Thurs 16th December

The recent weather has not been very kind to glider pilots keen to get away from writing Christmas cards and wrapping presents and for most of the week the forecast for today was again suggesting a day of no flying at North Hill. With this in mind, alarm clocks were reset for today and ‘to do’ lists created - and all seemed correct actions until the forecast improved just a little overnight and suggesting that some flying may just be possible today. And so it was that some of the Plymouth Thursday fliers exchanged messages and decided that if nothing else a trip to North Hill would allow a pre-Christmas catch up.

Upon arrival at the airfield the actual weather was indeed an improvement on the forecast and with a smaller than usual Thursday group of members, a decision was made to go flying - both K21s and a Junior were soon out of the hangar and having daily inspections complete.

The winch was set up towards the East end of the airfield whilst Launch Control was towed down to the other end - until it was nearly there and then the Tow vehicle and Launch Control came to a complete stop in a rather soggy area of  old grass, which delayed the plan to fly by a couple of hours - after trying various ideas the only thing left to try was to use the ‘big tractor’. Peter Smith and Mark Courtney had been working away in the MT hangar, but once told about the problem Peter was soon appearing over the horizon like the cavalry. The big tractor made easy work of towing out the combination and soon the Launch Control was positioned where it needed to be.

View from the Winch (Mike Sloggett)

 With time lost due to the above only a K21 and the Junior were taken to the launch point. We welcomed Paul Davie from Dunstable for his first flight from North Hill, Paul has moved down to Budleigh Salterton and is planning to join us.

And then it was on with the flying with everyone getting into the air, with reports of launch heights up to 1400’,  before a lowering cloudbase saw an easy decision to complete hangar flights bringing the day to an end - not spectacular flying today but all those who flew were able to reset their currency levels.

Resetting Currency (Mike Sloggett)

 Thank You to all those who helped today, particularly Peter from "Blue Overall Recovery Services" for his timely arrival and help. - Mike Sloggett

Thurs 9th December

 On Thursday morning, the forecast had reverted to a couple of days previously and fortunately members had not been put off from the pessimism from Wednesday. 

So with the ridge holding, light southwesterly wind, sunshine to start with, but a very wet airfield, it was deemed aerotow only (reduced price) with hopefully a full morning of flyable weather. 

With Peter flying Mike was free to take photos (Mike Horwood)

 Two K21s and a Junior were brought out of hangar, and after waiting a short while for the air to dry out a bit, launching started. The sunshine had not lasted long, and there was clear signs of pre-frontal wave, and there was a watching brief on the progress of the rain approaching from Cornwall. 

Signs of pre-frontal wave (Jill Harmer)

 Flights were extended with reduced sink, but any wave was elusive, (9 launches in total) before some wetness arrived. - You never know what's going to happen at North Hill unless you are there!

After lunch, Geoff Lawrence, James Smart and Jill & Pete discussed the Exeter Airport Focus Group meeting on Wednesday and agreed strategic content for the DSGC response to the 19 options put forward by EDAL for pre-consultation. 

And in the simulator, Stewart has added a Cable release sound for the randomised, automated cable break scenarios. - J&P

Message from John Street

I would to thank the the Committee and whoever nominated me for the Honorary Life Social Membership.

Sadly I was unable to attend the 2021 AGM, this was due to the medication I am on and I have been advised to avoid crowds, plus the treatment I am having makes me very fatigued in the evening and driving at night, I find particularly challenging, my thoughts were with you all last Saturday.

 Congratulations to all who won a award, I haven't missed an AGM since I joined the Club many years ago, I have also missed posting the Wednesday Blog, which I penned for over ten years.

As for my health, I feel fine most of the time and I have to remind myself that I am getting on a bit.
I am going to receive a course of radiotherapy after Christmas - something to look forward too.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish all my friends at North Hill a Happy Christmas and a safe New Year, I hope to be back up at North Hill after my radiotherapy treatment has finished,
Until then, keep safe best wishes.  - John Street

Sat 4th December

The weather forecast suggested that in and amongst the rain showers and with an “interesting” wind strength, flying might be possible today.....

The Club was a little quieter this morning either due to the weather forecast or members leaving their arrival until nearer the start of the AGM planned for later in the day. The morning saw a series of rain showers build to the West and steadily move across the airfield which delayed the potential start of any flying. James Flory as Duty Instructor took the opportunity to do some ground school briefings on navigation.

By mid-morning the showers had mostly moved through so a decision was made to get a Junior and a K21 out of the hangar with the winch set up in the North West corner of the airfield. But with the odd rain squall still moving across the airfield a decision was taken to have an early lunch.

Gliders Parked (Mike Sloggett)

 

Early afternoon Alan Turner took the first launch in the Junior and managed to work the West ridge extending his flight time, before returning to land. James and Emma Flory took the second launch managing to beat Alan’s time (just!). A discussion about the conditions and particularly looking towards the West end where showers continued to build, suggested that a pause in flying would be sensible - so the gliders were parked. Mid-afternoon with the weather showing more signs of deterioration it was an easy decision to return the gliders to the safety of the hangar - with members present soon involved fully in setting out the Ground Vehicle hangar for the AGM. - Mike Sloggett

With no AGM in 2020, there was a great turnout (54) for our socially-distanced AGM in the cold Ground Vehicle hangar, but with everyone suitably dressed and a couple of spaceheaters taking the edge off the cold, it was ok. The report for 2021 included details of Personal Achievements over the last two years, updates on the various ongoing projects and lots of thanks for all our member volunteers. There was an election for Committee Officers with John Borland, George Sanderson stepping down and Lisa Humphries, Mark Courtney and James Flory being elected. There was a Special Honorary Membership awarded to John Street who has supported the Club for nearly 40 years with over 10,000 instructional launches - we all wish you well John.

DSGC Club Trophies (Allan Mounce)

Following the AGM, CFI Stuart Procter awarded the trophies (some for 2 years), more details will be on the website. 

 

Cold Socially distanced AGM (Peter Smith)

John Pursey assisted by Phil Morrison and Alan Rappaport were keeping busy during the AGM cooking the wonderful Moroccan Chicken which was followed by ice creams. 

  

Then the AGM raffle 2021 took place with Sally Hender in charge, the raffle was being held to raise funds to cover the running costs of Ian King's donated K6 DRE - for our Junior members to fly at no cost. The raffle was supported brilliantly (I don't think many had escaped 'the eye' from Sally to buy tickets over the last few weeks.) There were some fantastic prizes donated by members and the Club. The raffle raised £1250, - thank you to everyone.

The upgraded DSGC Simulator also got its first airing with members queuing up to try it out. The immersive wraparound display is a great improvement, and the excellent User interface that Stewart Henshall has built, including many training scenarios with integrated random cablebreaks proved a great success.

All in all a great evening - thank you everyone. - J&P

 

Thurs 2nd December

With the prospect of icy roads and a strong north wind in a clear sky the Thursday regulars were slow to arrive and even slower to emerge from the Clubhouse to set up the field. The winch having been declared U/S yesterday required some magic from Peter Smith assisted by Gordon Hutchinson to bring it back on line.

 The first launch got away under strong Blue card conditions at 11am. With an 8 – 13kt northerly cross wind the conditions were challenging resulting in 4-6 minute circuits. Pete Harmer spent an intensive day in the gentle hands of Chris Wool (playing Blogs) carrying out his 5 year instructor checks and eventually emerging with a grin. 

Wooly playing Blogs for Pete's 5 year checks (David Clements)

 Ron Johns and Peter Smith bravely worked their way through the two-seater list. As the day progressed and the conditions improved, the card colour slowly descended to Yellow then Red.   Eric rigged his ASG29 and with the assistance of his Turbo managed to reach some weak wave to the North and spending 1:23 aloft. The longest winch launch went to Pete Startup making a dash for the North ridge  which was providing weak lift for an extended 15 minute flight.  

Ron Johns with Jonathan Erskine (David Clements)

As the sun slowly set in the south west (it is Winter) everyone had flown, clocking up 29 winch launches and 2 aerotows.  The last aerotow to 4000ft was for Andy Davey solo in a K21 who nearly managed to beat the Tug down with a sequence of aerobatic manoeuvres.  

Stewart emerged to catch a few rays before the sun went down (Stewart Henshall)

 And in the 'Batcave' aka Simulator Room Stewart Henshall  was putting the final touches to the upgraded system ready to demonstrate it on Saturday evening. All in all a successful days flying after an interesting start. Not bad for the first Club day of Winter. - John Borland

Sun 28th November

With the weather much improved from Saturday, and the lanes cleared of debris from Storm Arwen, there was a large turnout of members early on. So with four of the five gliders brought out of the hangar, and a group rigging KEK, and the Juniors got K6 DRE rigged, the airfield was ready and the grid was full by 9:30am, we even managed two launches before the magic 10am cheap rate cut off!

A busy November day (Mike Sloggett)

 

Duty instructor Ron Johns worked his way through the two-seater flying list, while the Juniors and K6 were kept busy, and the Perkoz was used for IFP training by Stuart Procter and Chris Warnes, congratulations to Chris on completing his CFI acceptance.

Blue skies and puffy white clouds (Mike Sloggett)

 Unfortunately HCX was declared U/S after a few flights, with concerns over the cable release, thank you to George Sanderson and Peter Smith for their efforts with this, and bringing it back into service before the end of the day. Mike Sloggett took over as duty instructor for the afternoon, finishing the two-seater list in good time. Well done to Andrew Batchelor, for taking on and achieving the task of learning Launchpoint Control.

James Hood back in a glider with  Stuart the Boss (James Hood)

 
Both Trial lessons were flown with Robert Lee taking the 12:30pm and Chris Warnes completing his first ever at 2pm. Both were extremely happy with their experiences, and the visitors enjoyed themselves too!

Thanks to everyone today for their efforts a total of 61 flights, a great achievement in November! - Sally Hender

Wed 24th November

I arrived at the club around 10am to see a group of members walking KEK down the hill in order to de-rig and put it in the workshop for its annual. Robert and I took the easy way out and worked on getting the clubhouse internet back working. Within a short time, the cold group stamped into the clubroom demanding tea and coffee. 

The widespread low cloud took most of the enthusiasm out of setting up for flying, but by 11:30 Glenn rallied the small turnout (8 members) to pull some equipment and at least two gliders out of the hangar. 

The low cloud in the morning also gave Hans Jenssen and Stewart Henshall the opportunity to find out how to rig DG100 HMS, before Stewart headed back to the dark room, continuing the Simulator upgrade.

New toy for Stewart, Hans and Stirling (Hans Jenssen)

We were fortunate that we had an experienced bunch who rotated through winch driving, logging and launching/retrieve, plus we had the unusual situation of everyone wanting solo flights. With good coordination and eating a cold lunch alongside the launch point, we managed 15 flights before the cloudbase once again dropped and canopies started misting. 

Not epic flying, but it was great to see everyone pitch in and have a couple of flights. - Tom Sides

Sun 21st November

Even with the blustery conditions forecast, there were quite a few members at the club early on. The airfield was set up at the west end, with everyone thinking they may have needed another layer of clothing!

Flying started at 10:30am with Duty Instructor Peter Field starting on the training list, but the yellow card was quickly moved to a blue due to the wind strength, and unfortunately the booked Trial lesson visitor had to be put off for another day.

Not North Hill! ............ but Southdown GC with a NE ridge day

The training list was worked through, with Guy Adams taking over the duty in the afternoon. A few solo pilots took the opportunity to fly in the challenging conditions, but overall a fairly quiet day, and very limited numbers left to help, as we came to pack away and de-rig KEK for next week's Annual.
Thanks to everyone who stayed the course !! A lovely day.

More raffle tickets were purchased during the day, thank you to everyone who is supporting the Juniors K6 DRE fund, a new prize of a bottle of Jack Daniels has also been donated. - Regular blogger Sally Hender!!!!

Sat 20th November

It was a slow start, with low cloud stopping play starting too early. However the hangars were unpacked with the optimism ever present among glider pilots. Duty instructor Mark Courtney was feeling under the weather, so the afternoon instructor, John Sillett took on the reins and the first pupil in the K21. With just five flights taken, the cloud was moving back down towards the airfield, so the decision was made to break early for lunch. 

Low cloud started rolling back in (Dan Hender)

 However, after eating and putting the world to rights, the call was made to put all the toys away for the day. More tea and cakes were consumed and members drifted off home to earn brownie points (or watch the rugby!)

Stewart Henshall helped by Jill & Pete have been burning lots of midnight oil with fine-tuning the simulator upgrade, which will be ready for general release very soon.

Thanks to all who tried to make a go of the day. - Sally Hender

Wed 17th November

Wednesday saw most of the normal crew arrive for what turned out to be a good flying day with nice weather, and not to cold, but also not a lot of thermal activity, however a slight amount of wave.

The dual list was short with a greater number of solo pilots and instructors on site, so the K21s were used as well as the Junior for solo flying once the training flights were completed.

Library pic (Andy Mayson)

 
A couple of aerotows took place for those that wanted them which led to a couple of extended flights taking place in what can only be described as calm and enjoyable conditions.

So all day flying, leisurely lunch, and a cease to flying at about 16:00 made for a very good and enjoyable day with the normal banter and atmosphere. - Dave Perriam

Sun 14th November

The drive to the airfield under blue sunny skies, alongside a generally optimistic weather forecast, suggested a day of flying awaited Club members at North Hill today. With a good number of members keen to fly James Flory and Dave Herbert, as the duty team for the morning, soon had both K21s, a Junior and the Perkoz out of the hangar. Whilst daily inspections were completed on the gliders, James and Mike Sloggett went to the West end, to check the condition of the airfield and decide the best position for Launch Control and winch rope run taking into account the light NE wind.

Once the gliders had been walked to the West end of the airfield by mid-morning it was on with the flying list for a series of training and check flights completed by James and Mike whilst the solo pilots took the Junior for winch and aerotow launches

Andy Davey demonstrated how quickly one can lose height in a K21 from a 5000ft aerotow, being watched from the ground by various members as he completed a series of aerobatic manoeuvres. The arrival of Ron Johns and Peter Smith allowed flying to continue through the lunch period which meant the flying list made good progress as the day unfolded. 

Sunglint (Mike Sloggett)

During the day Paul Summers looked after our sole Trial Visitor. Well Done to Paul Medlock who successfully converted to the Perkoz.

Sun setting (Mike Sloggett)

 By mid-afternoon and as the sun started to descend in the sky the flying list had been completed, and with canopies starting to show signs of misting the decision was made to fly the gliders back to the hangar.

 

Sally hooking on Hans in the Junior (Rob Hender)

Thank you (as ever) to Sally Hender who did a long shift in Launch Control including some training of others - and after which Sally, being evidently bored and no longer needed in Launch Control, decided to help out with launching gliders!

A good day from start to finish, thank you to all involved today. - Mike Sloggett

Sat 13th November

View from the Duty Instructor

 The 1hr trip to the club from South Hams is a good chance to study the sky and today was an example of an interesting sky. First leg dropping my daughter at work in Darlington and I felt the training was paying off when she asked about the “smooth straight cloud over the Moor”. That opened the door to full bull s@@t mode about wave without me really thinking about the why. David Braine on Spotlight the night before made the day sound fairly inert with, I thought, light winds. Coming over Haldon, I was struck by how many lenticular-like clouds dotted the mid-level cloudscape.
Perhaps David Braine scared off people because it was a modest, but keen team that got the field going. Only two on the 2-seater list and yet no real risk of rain and gentle winds  so good  for training made me think “what a shame”!
Connor Williams and Rob Hender with their one to one tuition kept the K21s busy, while the sky filled and hid from view the early wave clouds.
Eric Alston  having helped with early launches and chatting about the sky, slipped the wings on to G29 and disappeared off. I heard the buzz of his engine just about the time the sky to the north started to show crosswind clouds and sunny gaps. The wind was very much NNW and fresher aloft so spying him at 5k’ on Spot The Gliders criss-crossing Culmstock was no surprise! Sadly I had to leave before he was down for a debrief but well done Eric for giving it a go! - John Pursey

View from the Launchpoint

Considering the weather forecast and conditions, there were very few people in the clubhouse first thing. Alan Turner had managed to get all the ground equipment out before the first pilots even arrived! With both K21’s, the Perkoz and a Junior brought out, flying began at 10.05am just missing the cheaper rate launches. Duty instructor John Pursey started the flying list, and Simon Leeson (although on tug duty) took a trainee too, which meant by 11:30 the two-seat flying list was completed!!! (Only two pupils today, so for any of those that could have come up, you missed your opportunity). The single seat list was four times the length so inroads were made into that throughout the morning. While I continued to sell raffle tickets between launches, trying to keep members up to date on the ever growing list of prizes (here is the link to the current list:  https://www.dsgc.co.uk/gallery/367-agm-raffle-2021).

 

The second axle has appeared as if by magic! (John Pursey)

Between launches, there was much admiration of the second axle on the Launchpoint, and I definitely noticed a big difference in the stability, big thank you to Peter Smith. Flying continued into the afternoon, with flight times increasing as the day progressed.

Andy Batchelor converted  to Perkoz (John Pursey)

 

Mike Wilmott came back after his 3000ft aerotow reporting a very notable flight, found wave, did aerobatics back down through a hole in the cloud and found more lift on his way back.

 

View from above the clouds

Eric also got into the wave 

G29 above the clouds (Eric Alston)

 

"I Headed north and found a gap in the clouds,  stretching from Tiverton Junction to the Wellington Monument. Reliable lift along the southern side of the gap, at times averaging over 2 knots, climbing to 5000 ft QNH. The gap started to fill in so headed south over the cloud to another gap just west of North Hill. Some lift here, much less than before, then this gap started to fill so air braked down to below the clouds."  - Eric Alston

 

Everyone who wanted to, flew, and the three Trial Voucher flights went home with smiles on their faces, two of whom it was third time lucky.

 

The hangar was packed away by 4pm, thank you to everyone for their help today, we were fairly thin on the ground, but everyone worked well together and efficiently ran the airfield, with no real delays between flights. - Sally Hender

 

Thur 11th November

 Surprisingly, cloud was above launch height for the first flight, and the air was amazingly clean with sunlit banks of cloud.  Two K21s, a Junior and Perkoz were in demand. But during the morning the cloud started to build up and an early lunch was called for some light drizzle. 

Bands of cloud developing (Jill Harmer)

 In the afternoon, conditions got better and better, although the forecast southerly wind didn't pick up significantly. Some weak wavy conditions provided reduced sink for the high launches. 

Stewart Henshall and Andy Williams both claimed the longest flights of 22 minutes. With 23 flights in total it proved to be a really pleasant day. Unfortunately Stirling Melhuish missed out on flying after winching all afternoon due to the canopies misting as the sun was going down.

A wavy edge (Stewart Henshall)

Junior LRD was rigged after its Annual (thanks Carl Tharme and Andrew Logan for the speedy turnround.) Stewart, Jill and Pete spent some more time checking out the new projections on the Simulator at lunchtime and after flying. Thanks everyone. - J&P

Sat / Sun 6/7th November

An Eagle Tale

A weekend of interesting wind forecast (SW then NW) and recent banter on an Eagle WhatsApp chat about soaring St Cyre’s hill, led to Saturday starting with scouting of fields but then realistic appreciation that the day wasn’t going to plan. SW is always an interesting direction for the wind with wavy effects probably from Dartmoor interacting with the ridges around the club both positively and negatively. The big go for broke dash to St Cyre’s in an Eagle was but given up but thanks to Stirling’s help, AXJ got rigged and dragged out to enjoy the drizzle. Moments of brightness beguiled but didn’t deliver and we watched the low cloudbase disrupt as we waited a turn. A rope break at 800ft didn’t help the mood but the ridge was reached at XXX feet and enough height gained to do a circuit. The next launch for AXJ missed the bright gap and with the ridge getting weaker the lower we got the wave effects were definitely negative locally at that moment. A wide wall of rain meant a landing and park up seemed sensible.

 
So much for a S Westerly… Sunday and N Westerly become an option when for various reasons AXJ got left rigged and Alan R and I played a domestic credit to fly for a second day. With Pete S, Simon M and JB showing up and rigging, the faith in the NW wind being interesting was renewed. Wave again being the joker, from an unexpectedly buoyant ridge (given the wind angle) to the weak climb the ever canny Ron J found in the DG over the solar farm near the M5 Jn27. Ron kindly took two tows with Connor and Dan to coach local wave use.

 

Five Junior members rigged K6 DRE and all enjoyed some flights, whilst Sally Hender was busy selling raffle tickets to cover K6 running costs.

It's not all about a modern fleet (John Pursey)

 
AXJ by contrast,  hung on to the ridge and until a landing seemed inevitable when a series of weak climbs with Simon and Pete got steadily more solid as the day perked up. Strangely good for a while in band off the ridge,  the positive wave influence led to thermals that were quite useable until suddenly they weren’t. Dropping back to a now unreliable ridge we Eagled as low as we dared before landing. With no Eagle to follow Simon had to throw in the towel and land too… Pete who had made it further out earlier eventually dropped back and JB with the heady smell of unleaded and oil cruised a little longer.
More “ridge soaring” followed as the wave cycled and despite the oblique angle on the home ridge, lift could be found above the ridge. All in all a good day for November! - John Pursey

 PS welcome back as a DSGC member after a gap of 31 years to Eagle P2, Alan Rappaport!

Thur 4th November

After the cold night, it was a beautiful clear blue sky that greeted members today, and in the shelter of the clubhouse the sun felt warm. However on the northern side it was difficult standing up with the bitterly strong northerly wind. Although the ground equipment had all been readied, there was rather guarded enthusiasm for opening the hangar doors  with gusting to 26knots  straight in.

Sheltering on the sunny lee-side of Launch Control (Jill Harmer)

Peter Smith and Mike Sloggett did a reconnaissance of the west end  for a potential launch point and reported back that for once it was better at the west end. We took the opportunity to stow the light plastic chairs and tables in the hangar and then after another cup of tea, Wooly led the  careful extraction of a K21. 

Sparkling visibility (Mike Sloggett)

Flying was ready by 11:30 with Wooly and Peter Smith exploring the North ridge and the call came for another K21. With blue card conditions two-seater flying was limited to 1 flight each, most  were just extended circuits, around midday the ridge seemed to be kicking off something, and the Junior was brought out for the afternoon as the wind dropped. 

Sunset at North Hill (Mike Sloggett)

Extremely pleasant day in the sunshine and the lee-side of the Launch Control with everyone wrapped up in their winter clothes for the first time of the season. Thanks everyone - J&P

Wed 3rd November

Well the day started in a leisurely way with the normal Wednesday crew rolling in, the field inspection was carried out following the rather heavy or large amount of water that fell from the skies, but, it was deemed usable and the kit was readied and positioned for the days activities.

The weather was reasonable and quite calm, allowing a fair number of flights to take place, with all present who wanted to fly, flown. Flights were fairly short with it being quite cold allowing for minimal lift. The afternoon saw a couple of aerotows take place for currency and training.

However, the Wednesday crew led by John Sillett and Glenn Turpin had a good day and James Smart even managed to get a trial lesson flight in for a lady that really enjoyed her time in the air, and was full of the joys when back on the ground. 

Setting sun (Dave Perriam)

 As with this time of year the darkness started to close in and end of day hangar flights were soon upon us.

Overall a good days flying for the time of year. - Dave Perriam

Sat/Sun 30/31 October

 There has been a lot of rain at North Hill this week, and it was marginal on using the airfield on Saturday without damaging the ground, so after just a few flights including a trial lesson, it was decided to call it a day. No flying on Sunday with yet another 30mm of rain.

 But the Condor racers were active on Sunday evening with a quick ridge run from Innsbruck to Salzburg, although Matt Howard had tried it before and decided to play with some wave. 

 

 The rest raced down the valley some  struggling with a little fluttering..... but the task was won by Mike Willmott. - J&P

Fri 29th October -Juniors Expedition Long Mynd

Yesterday saw no flying at The Mynd primarily due to poor weather and with rain forecast for much of today there was only one topic of discussion over the final evening meal of the expedition - what time to leave for North Hill this morning.

Despite some optimistic views that the weather might change overnight, there was rain and wind battering the Clubhouse throughout the night, and whilst we packed the cars and hooked up the glider trailers confirmed that a planned early departure would indeed happen. 

DSGC Juniors at Long Mynd (Mark Courtney)

 

One by one the trailers set off for North Hill and it was a relatively straightforward journey back to Devon with busy traffic queues on various parts of the M5, but fortunately on the other side of the motorway for once!

Back at North Hill (Mike Sloggett)

 As we arrived at North Hill the bright skies enabled us to rig the DG505 and Junior putting both safely in the hangar for weekend use and just before the rain arrived. Thank you to DSGC, K6 DRE and Ian Beckett fund for supporting the Juniors.

Rigging the Junior (Mike Sloggett)

Thank you to Mark Courtney and Simon Leeson for organising yet another successful junior expedition to The Mynd and to Sally and Rob Hender, Dave Perriam, Ruth Comer, Oscar Leeson and Andy Davey for their additional help and support over the last week. - and of course a special Thank you to Midland Gliding Club for their usual warm welcome and help in getting our various gliders and pilots launched during the week .- Mike Sloggett on behalf of the DSGC Juniors

Thur 28th October

 A call to the field mowing team to service the mower and put it to bed for the winter brought out a strong team and by lunch time most of the necessary checks, sharpening and lubrication was complete. The oil in the gearboxes has yet to be changed for which we are purchasing a suction pump.

Some of the grass-cutting team (Peter Smith)

We decided not to pressure wash it this year as other than make it look smarter it serves no purpose and runs the risk of forcing water at very high pressure in to places it shouldn’t go. Thank you to all those who helped, much appreciated.

Meanwhile in the simulator Jill, Pete & Stewart were trying to get Condor to talk to XCSoar - to no avail, so it's on to plan B.

Later in the afternoon saw an arranged visit from the Devon County Council archaeological officer regarding the proposed glider trailer shelter. Jonathan Erskine produced copious documentation and showed him round the site in a howling Gale and pouring rain. He left duly satisfied after giving the few remaining soles some insights into how the iron was excavated and smelted, and more recently the wetstones mined.

We are fortunate to have such a wide range of skills and knowledge within the Club. - Peter Smith

Wed 27th Oct - Juniors Expedition Long Mynd

 Two words best summed up today's flying - integrity and hope. The forecast of a strong southerly wind enlightened prospects of wave in the valley. The morning sun shone through the passages to the wave system which were mainly located to the south and north west of the airfield. the strong conditions meant only the DG505 and a single MGC K13 were bought out. 

Mark Courtney and Simon Leeson took a met flight to determine the cloudbase and work out where the wave was accessible. A lucky dip was taken as to what order people would fly.Josh Funnell and Charlie Broderick each took flights which explored the wave accessibility to the south and north respectively. But neither managed to get past the rotor. However local word had it that towards Wentnor (two miles west of Long Mynd) there was a chance of joining the bottom of the wave. Simon and Josh Batchelor battled through the rotor for thirty minutes to eventually find themselves in the wave and above the clouds! With an average of 2kts up they were able to settle in smooth air to 4500ft. Simon was mortified when to his discomfort Mark radioed to ask he descend for the next pupil to fly whilst in steady 4kts up! 

Climbing in wave with Simon Leeson  (Josh Batchelor)

With wave now accessible, the team was determined to get a piece of the action. Jack Raybould, Dan Hender and Charlie Stuckey each had flights with instructors which managed to connect with some wave but unfortunately no further success to slide into the smooth air above the clouds. However, the determination did not impair the effort of those in the air and on the ground. Eventually the wind was too strong for flying operations to continue.There were still people to fly but safety was paramount. 

Above the clouds -a new experience (Josh Batchelor)

With the prospects of incoming wet weather the next day, the whole group were set on de-rigging the five private and club gliders into their trailers. The wind made this a challenge, yet strong comradery and teamwork allowed safe stowage of the gliders. Well done to the whole team for your efforts.

 
In summary, today taught the Juniors the challenges of flying and operating in tricky conditions. The importance of planning, communication and willpower were amplified. This trip has bonded and developed the DSGC Juniors who strive only to improve and echo the skills of our instructors. - Jack Raybould and Harry Rigby

Tues 26th October - Juniors Expedition Long Mynd

We woke up early and hopeful for a good day of flying, and  after a quick breakfast we had the hangar unpacked by 10:00. This was followed by a quick briefing and we got ready to fly. First launches were practise launch failures for the Long Mynd pilots around 11:00 with the DSGC Juniors helping out on the ground for a couple of hours before a lunch break.

The Long Mynd launch point (Mike Sloggett)

 The low cloud continued over lunch and some of the Juniors headed down to Church Stretton to explore the antiques and charity shops, whilst the others enjoyed some model flying off the ridge.

Midland Gliding Club at The Long Mynd (Mike Sloggett)

 

Around mid-afternoon, flying kicked off again with the cloudbase increasing to an impressive 1000ft above the airfield. Josh Funnell and Dan Hender had long ridge flights in the Junior whilst Charlie Stuckey was unlucky and only managed a shorter flight due to “disappointing conditions”. Rob Hender was the first to fly in the DG and was followed by the rest of the Juniors flying with Mike, Mark and Simon and everyone had an exciting flight before we finished flying around 5:30 due to the low sun and dicey conditions. 

Hangar packing at MGC is always impressive  to DSGC visitors (Josh Batchelor)

  Overall, a frustrating morning was succeeded by an exciting and fun afternoon for everyone. - Charlie Broderick