CHassan's blog
July 29, 2012 A good day to fly Ohio!
Sun Jul 29, 2012 4:18 am
[  Mood: Cool ][  Currently: Working ]
So I had a night to sleep on it and here is my story.
I arrived early hoping to set up a classic glider of John's. I need something to fly at the Great Miami River Days and John offered his Moyes Maxi circa 1977. Last John had seen it he loaned it out to someone and wasn't sure if it was all there. Sadly it wasn't. The control bar has been misplaced somewhere along years. Ahh well. Later Rick mentioned he had an old Raven sitting at home. I've been given permission to wash that wing up for him with fresh clean "mountain stream" water.
So I started setting up with a couple other guys at the west end of the field. I don't know what happened, but I looked up at one point and I swear I saw 15 or so gliders set up. It looked like flight park. Must have been something in the air.
Matt G took a flight "early" around 11:30. John's first tandem went up a bit after that, but John didn't come straight back down. With a sky full of cu's I decided I was going to chance an early start too. Steve W, Ken, and Mike C all beat me to the punch. I think most of them managed to scratch up to cloud base, as when I launched I was looking up at a couple gliders.
Rick towed me up and through some decent lift. About 800 on the average. When we came back around and he shot up, I pinned around 1800 I think. But finding the lift I saw previously was not easy. I scratched in zero, and 20 up. I think it took me 20 or 30 minutes to finally get and stay above 2k. Soon there after it was cloud base, and the day was on for me.
I couldn't tell you how many glides I took, or how many thermals I worked. I made a couple trips to Derby, almost touched Mt Sterling, and Almost tagged Five Points. I know I flew some with Larry, Dan, and Steve. I also got a good look at John and a tandem passenger I think I worked the same lift as several other gliders, but I couldn't tell who they were.
I spent the majority of the day bouncing from cloud to cloud. Come out from under one and have to dive down to get below the next. There were a few glides under connected clouds (not quite organized enough to call a street) where I would go 4 or 5 mile glides with only a few hundred feet of altitude loss.
The few times I got down around 2k it did get a little sketchy. Lift above 2500 or so was much easier to find and work. Thankfully I didn't get low very often. My first trip to Derby had me worried about getting back. Near mt Sterling I again got uneasy about making it. At Five points I was sure I needed more altitude to make the field. I found enough lift to get from 2500 to about 3500, and made it back to the field with just over 2k to spare.
The Climax was a joy to fly. I think the Climax has a built in left turn. Every glider I've flown I've preferred right turns in a thermal, but the Climax feels rock steady to the left, but to the right it is like your neighbor's wife sitting on you lap. A little awkward and embarrassing if anyone should happen to see you.
I still have to get use to the glide being so flat. It just goes and goes and goes.
So I burned up a few thousand feet over the field, set up and landing nice and easy to end my 4+ hour day. That makes my longest flight to date.
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ng
Joined: 05 Feb 2011
Posts: 31
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 Posted: Mon Jul 30, 2012 4:55 pm Post subject: |
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Sounds like a fun day. 
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