soarass's blog

AT LAST!!!!!

soarass — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 16:23:29 GMT

Finally got to make the inaugural flight on my new Sport 2. Got an 18 min sledder and a no wind landing without whack. Damn, she flies nice. I am in love with the VG. Only had enough altitude for one wang, and the first thing that came to mind is "this thing gets up to speed quickly". The wingover felt very solid and was well past 90 degrees. Also, exiting the wingover, I had a LOT of speed left over and had to control the zoom climb after The best part is today I get to do it again

Patience is Part of the Package

soarass — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 00:44:21 GMT

I have been sitting here all week watching the North wind howl down the canyons. Knowing my new Sport 2 is lying untouched and poised on the shelf is not making things any easier. But there's hope according to the Soaring Predictor: supposed to switch South around noon Sunday! I had the pleasure of watching Ken Howells perform the factory checkride on my new Sport and even got to circle with him a bit near the LZ. His big grin accompanied the words "you're gonna like it!" Then I can get some photos to post up to the Org. I anticipate with great eagerness the horizontal expansion of my gliding envelope

Maiden Flight

soarass — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 15:12:02 GMT

[ Mood: In Love ]
Finally Rob McKenzie got a 175 Sport 2 demo glider for me to try out!! He said we'd go Friday @ 3:00. I didn't want to go that late, but he's been doing this a lot longer than me, and I didn't argue. After assisting/teaching me the setup, he gave very good advice about training in some muscle memory regarding finding the down tubes. The base bar is a lot narrower than my Tandem F3 and it would be easy to tangle up in the rear wires. After getting a hang check, I practiced in the air after launch. I pulled on about 1/4 VG to reduce the wire slack a bit and walked it down to launch. Launch was pretty much a non-event; just kept the nose down and ran until I was lifted off. All my concerns about dropping 50 square feet immediately were gone. This flies NICE. Also immediately evident was the much lower bar pressure, and the streamlined base bar is far more comfortable than I had anticipated. I lightened my grip on the bar and never did experience any PIO. About 150-200 feet out front, I hooked a thermal which took me back over Marshall Mountain to 5K, and had the pleasant realization that I hadn't had to work nearly as hard as thermalling with my F3. The Tandem tends to wrap in when flying solo, so you are always highsiding. After leaving that thermal, I pulled on 3/4 VG and ran South to try to catch something off Cloud Peak. Got there A LOT HIGHER than the Falcon would, but the effort was in vain. Nothing but sink the rest of the way to the LZ, but it was a LOONGGGG glide. Completely slacked off the VG before setting up an approach, and still had to scrub off altitude with extra turns before diving in for a slight southeast landing. GLAD I practiced the move to the downtubes aloft. I was a bit disappointed when I made a timid flare and almost whacked. Unsure of a new glider and didn't want to zoom up. But no harm, and got the glider back to Rob in one piece. Now I am doomed until I get the new one ordered. So to make the Falcon feel better, I went out and got 2.5 hours the next day. The best October 1st flight I've gotten.

Proud Day

soarass — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 11:51:24 GMT

[ Mood: Happy ]
Yesterday I watched my buddy Jason get his H2 from Rob McKenzie. Even with an evening launch, the air was bouyant enough to give him a little soaring time before he landed and got the papers to send in. I think we got another natural. He must have gotten sick of me always coming in crowing about airtime I dragged down that weekend. Now I got a local flying buddy!

Rehab.....

soarass — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 06:36:12 GMT

[ Currently: Playing ]
Rehab full velocity now. The best part is when the therapist locks the shoulder into a fixed plane of rotation, then rotates it back so far you almost piss yourself, never mind act like a little bitch. BUT!!! the shoulder is stronger and improving, and I have a lot to be thankful for. PT Master says "Lay off exercise 2 days a week"! Layoff time can be as important as workout time in recovery, but DAMN, is it frustrating!! Glad I restrained myself when the frau decided "since the furniture is all piled up for the carpet cleaner, we'll just go ahead and paint". The shoulder held together through three rooms and a hall/entry. At which point, we surrendered by mutual agreement. After reconstructing the spare room, living room, and bedroom, and bringing the kittens' climbing tree back into the house, we visited family and gave ourselves a break. Looks promising for a return to light duty soon. PT Master says "8 weeks, now we can hurt you without worrying about injuring you!"...... WTF!!! Now starts the long uphill back to decent condition after laying about for two months, which hopefully would coincide nicely with the spring flying season! With approriate judgement of course. Gettin' there.

surgery sucks

soarass — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 23:23:36 GMT

[ Mood: Sick ]
What I hoped would be minor rotator cuff repair turned out to be major after the doc got the camera into my shoulder. So I will be in a sling for six weeks then start phys therapy. Should be back to work about Thanksgiving. Missed all the big air of fall. Just hope i can get back into shape for the spring flying season. Gotta get a test flight on a Sport 2 175 next year, or maybe even a U2 160. KnumbKnuts sure loves his

Two Hour Cherry

soarass — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 12:49:12 GMT

[ Mood: In Love ]
[ Currently: Still dingin' from yesterday ]
Got 2:11 from Crestline launch! 5700 repeatedly almost without effort. I really need to get a glider that penetrates, although I love my Falcon Anti-Gravity Machine. After landing I went for beer and Chris tore down his Dream. Whole buncha people out for good flights across the board. For dessert, Chris and I jammed 'til it started to get cold in the LZ. I needed the jam ALMOST as much as I needed the flight, guess I'll be spending a little more money this summer on guitar strings. Life is truly good, then you go to work Monday AM.......Joel

Serious F#%**'n Whoops

soarass — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 01:59:57 GMT

[ Mood: Embarrased ]
[ Currently: readin' on the org ]
Feb 14 went up to Crestline launch, to fly off the snow. Sun was obscured by clouds, so the snow didn't get soggy. Got in a hurry, and neglected to fully check my harness. Probably trying too hard not to get snow in the harness, and didn't slip into the leg loops of my cocoon. Hooked in and checked that at launch, after I walked out. Got a good run with the nose down and as soon as I lifted from the ramp, I KNEW I'd fucked up, hanging too low. Kept my elbows down, sacrificing a bit of directional control, pulled in a bit and made a beeline for the LZ. Crossing Devil's Canyon, it wasn't the 2K drop under me that was on my mind, but how disappointed my wife would be. Approaching Regionals, I FINALLY got up the nerve to unhook the clip holding the boot, and managed to use the extension loop I'd tied on last year to get my feet into the harness, and got prone. After the breathing settled out a bit, I got back on the horse and tried to scratch on the face of Cloud and work any lift from the gully below. Left there to give me plenty of setup altitude at the LZ at AJ Airpark. I was sure I could not flare, and the wind seemed too light to try to run it out, so I set up the sweetest wheel landing approach you ever saw. At least I remembered the wheels, and kissed it in. As I rolled to a stop, I really concentrated on clenching my sphincter. I think that helped me not to puke. After putting up the wing, and staring at the BRIGHT RED leg loops for a while, 3 or 4 beers didn't dent the adrenaline, so I drove home slow. Did a lot of thinking and some praying the next day. Saturday looks like a turnaround day, and I gotta get some....SAFELY!!!!! Humbled, Joel

Back in the Air

soarass — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 22:54:35 GMT

[ Mood: Happy ]
[ Currently: Working ]
January 25 Launched Marshall after waiting over 2 hours for the lift to turn under the cloud cover. Alas, it was not to happen until the launch after us. However, when scratching for some light beeps out in the valley floor west of the LZ, I realized the wind had switched to southeast I set up by flying in over the parking area and crossed the threshold of the berm to land cross-field and did not do a bad job of judging a non-standard approach. Best was the fact that it was my first flight in two months. Sure felt good!!! Joel

Stiff Neck

soarass — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 19:55:31 GMT

[ Mood: Happy ]
[ Currently: Playing ]
Got a 50 min flight just the weekend before Thanksgiving, and that HAS TO carry me through to the new year, as I went in for neck surgery two days later. Grinding bone off for nerve clearance, so the left hand doesn't go to sleep anymore WORKED! As I heal, I am researching the idea of building a glider version of the Ligeti Stratos, in pursuit of a short-span soarable craft. Really excited about the idea, and am preparing to build an R/C version of glass and foam. The operation has allowed me to play a bit of guitar for the first time in three years, as if I don't already have enough on my plate. Actually managed to get a few really decent shots from my cross-bar mounted Nikon, and will post them as time allows. Still looking for a pocket size digital, to keep mounted
on the control bar for the quick shots, with a wider acceptance angle than the SLR, as well as learn the Mac OS, a surprise the wife sprang on me, to further complicate my existence. I bought her two Bengal kittens for Christmas, so I guess we're even. Now if the doc will only release me for full duty so I can work out the neck and shoulders to shape up for getting back in the air......

Over the Back

soarass — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 16:08:32 GMT

[ Mood: Amused ]
[ Currently: Working ]
Finally...Last Saturday I got a good thermal off Cloud Peak, and worked it back over the ridge and suddenly realized I was high enough and close enough to glide back toward Crestline! With some minor trepidation, I headed for the Crestline launch. Unfortunately, I arrived there between lift cycles, and figured my elevation mandated an immediate return to Cloud. Upon reflection, a bit more caution may be in order considering the fact that I'm flying a Falcon3 and she don't penetrate that well. Out over Cloud again, I made a couple passes over Marshall to get a total of 1.5 hours. Another personal first!!! JR

Wheels

soarass — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 23:27:40 GMT

[ Mood: Fed Up WIth Life ]
We are about to break into September, and I'm still a Hang2. Shit! Gas prices sure put a ding in my flying this year. Got a WAY better Camelback that holds 3 liters, and lets me load ice cubes with no grief. Now I'm shopping for a 20mm wide angle lens for my Nikon D70s, while I wait for my new wheels to arrive. 8" diameter pneumatic front casters from a wheelchair, no less. Potentially bad karma, but way cheaper than Finsterwalders! I figure to remove the ball bearings and sleeve the inside of my control bar ends to fit the bearing bores in the hubs. Spoke wheels ought to look a lot cooler than the blow-molded trainer wheels Rob McKenzie kindly loaned me when I started flying regularly. A bit sleeker, too, not that it will make much difference on a Falcon3! Always have harbored an itch to do it a little different than most others. Maybe the dream of laminating my own rigid wing will come true eventually. JR

Mount the Camera Dammit!

soarass — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 22:33:50 GMT

[ Mood: Happy ]
Got my first launch from Crestline. Bitchin' flight the day of the CSS Fly In. Finally hooked up with KK and got the camera mount. Just ordered the RF remote shutter release, so I'll be posting photos soon! Next will probably a boom mount project similar to DbyD's, but maybe hung from the downtube. I think I can get away with an unbraced boom, of 1" ID carbon tube. You can do well following the K.I.S.S. principle, with a bit of thought. More Later. Joel

Howdy, Fellow Airheads

soarass — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:09:46 GMT

[ Mood: Amused ]
[ Currently: Reading ]
I got back into this lunacy at 54 after flying a Rogallo in 1969-70 with my brother. After visiting @ Andy Jackson Flightpark, and driving one fellow's truck back down from Crestline, I was hooked. Rob McKenzie is a good instructor and I got rated H2 in March of this year. Just went over my 10-hour mark, getting to 6200 ft msl one day and logging 1 hour 20 minutes another day. I bought a Falcon3 Tandem and am getting better at scratching and landings. Just did my first back-to-back wingovers last week, when I arrived over the field with a couple grand to burn off. A little scary the first time, but WHAT FUN!! Knumbnuts is bringing me a camera mount, and soon I venture into Airborne Photo! Gotta work on timing thermal entry better, so I can get more high, long flights. I'd like to go XC eventually, but that may be after my wife gets her kitchen remodel, and I can get into a Sport II.