FormerFF's blog :: July 18 - September in July

July 18 - September in July

Mon Jul 20, 2009 6:53 pm

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Mood: Cool ][

Currently: Listening to Jethro Tull ]

From mid-June to the end of August, the weather in this part of the country can be described with three H's: hot, humid, and hazy. Fronts don't generally make it this far south, and the air can get kind of stagnant. So, for a big surprise, a moderate cold front pushed through on Friday evening, leaving cooler, drier air, and a forecast for northwesterly breezes in the 5 to 10 mph range, which generally means ridge soaring. It's been four weeks since I've last flown, so naturally I reserve Saturday for myself.

Normally, I would head up early to get a sledder in the morning, and then an evening flight. Because the days are so long and the sun so strong at this time of year, I decide to skip the morning flight so I can get a little family time. My older daughter had fallen while roller skating, and her hand is in a brace, so I didn't want to run off first thing Saturday morning without spending any time with her. My plan is to head up mid-afternoon to observe conditions, with the expectations of a launch around 6 PM. I arrive at 3:15, and check in with Gordon, one of Lookout's instructors, who is observing the mountain launch. He tells me it's pretty windy, and tells me that a 6 PM launch sounds about right. I get out my airspeed indicator, and get readings in the 12 to 16 mph range, with puffs up to 20 mph. That's a little too much for me, but what's of greater concern is the condition of the landing zone. It's switchy and thermally, and more than I'd care to take on. After hanging out a bit and meeting with a few pilots, I head out on an errand, intending to return at around 5 PM.

After I get back from the errand, I swing by the LZ to drop off my bicycle and to offer a ride to anyone who needs it. The entire Poser clan is in the LZ, hanging out and observing, so I stop and visit for a few minutes. There are a few pilots who have landed and are breaking down, including Jake526, so I give them a ride up.

While I was in the LZ, I was observing the wind there. It was light, but would periodically shift 180 degrees. I imagine that was from a thermal, as the surface winds were light, but it's enough to make me want to push my launch back a few minutes. Some other more experienced pilots are launching, so I help wire a few of them off. Sky_walker is up, and is trying to decide whether or not to set up, as the conditions are a bit stronger than he'd like. Things back off a bit, and he and about a dozen other pilots set up and start launching. I finally find a spot to set up, and get ready to go. It's about 6:45, and I have Gordon and Matt Taber as a wire crew. The wind is smooth, and it's no effort to get the glider balanced and go. Off the ramp, I get a little climb, and I'm a bit over launch as I turn to the north. This time I remember to transition my hands to the base tube, and am able to make firm corrections when the wind picks up. Last time, I felt a bit tentative, but this time I'm feeling much more confident in my flying. There's not quite as much lift as last time, but I'm maintaining altitude along the ridge, even after the turn back towards the ramp. I do sink a little bit on the return trip to the ramp, so when I reach it, I head out away from the ridge.

There are some little patches of lift to work, and I do my best to use them. The air is fairly smooth other than the lift, and I can feel the lift before my vario beeps. The patches are small, and I'm extending my glide more than anything else. The air's a little buoyant as well, so I'm not sinking very fast, so I'm able to stay on the hillside for a while.

After a while, the trees start getting closer, and I have to head back towards the LZ. I'm hoping to find some lift near the LZ, but it's after 7 PM and there's not much left, at least not below the ridgeline, so I transit the LZ and start setting up an approach to the North. There's some bumpiness around 200 feet, but all in all, the approach is fairly easy. I think I pulled in for speed a little before I was level, and wind up oscillating a little on the way down. The breeze in the LZ is crossing, and I wind up turning into it a bit just before roundout. Because I'm preoccupied with keeping the wings level, I don't get the strongest flare, and wind up running the landing out more than I'd like, but nothing other than my feet touch the ground, so I won't complain. Total flight time was 12 minutes.

At this point, there's a pretty good size group breaking down, so I go over and join them. After the Falcon is packed away, I go over to the clubhouse and chat with the Poser family. Lookout is serving deli sandwiches for $5 tonight, so I join them for dinner. We're all sitting out on the deck, eating dinner and watching pilots play on the ridge, while others come in and land, and others tow up, all in the cool evening air. $5 for dinner and a show, can't beat that.

At some point, Sky_walker comes in, after an hour and a half or two hours up in the air. I go over and chat with him briefly, and then take Mrsposer up on her offer to run me up the hill to my car. I get back to the LZ and pack up my bicycle and glider. When I get back, Sky_walker is finished packing up, and he gives me a few good tips on where to find extra lift on the ridge. It's after 9 PM, so we get his glider on my car, and he, I, and his lady pilot friend get back up the mountain to retrieve her car. It's a good thing that they are cozy, because my bike was in the back seat, and they had to share the other front seat. Wink

After that flight, I feel a lot more confident in my ability to fly the ridge. I was able to try a couple of different turns that I may need when ridge flying, and I'm looking forward to the next front coming through.

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Sky_Walker
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Joined: 03 Nov 2007
Posts: 637
Location: Trenton, Ga

Posted: Wed Jul 22, 2009 3:05 am Post subject:

Nice write up !

It was nice to see you at Lookout, glad you got an extended flight. The weather was truly amazing this weekend, guess it did feel like September.

As always, Thanks for the help getting my glider back up top. I look forward to the next time we soar together.

Jaime

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