tonycondon
Gastons CRO (Chief Dinner Reservation Officer)
I didn't go to Diana's today. Diana really wanted me to come over, and so did Kim, and Brent, and Brian probably. I really did want to come see everybody but I wanted to go fly my glider more I guess.
Weather was forecast to be decent, although there was a strong south wind. often when the wind is too strong it breaks up the thermals and makes them unworkable. I could tell that a later than normal start was going to be necessary as the temps needed to get up in the mid to high 90's for the thermal height to be above 4000 feet or so. I went out to the gliderport about 11 AM to start getting things ready. glider preflighted, wings taped, canopy cleaned, water loaded, landout kit loaded, maps folded, trailer hooked up and lights checked, made sure we had everything we needed for putting the glider in the trailer. the list goes on and on. Another guy was giving rides in the Grob and reported choppy lift on his flight at noon. at 12:30 he reported that it was getting a little better and the towpilot concurred.
I took off at about 1:30. tow upwind was rough to begin with but then it started to smooth out. smooth air on tow is generally a bad sign but we were occasionally flying through some up and down. I took a 3000 foot tow, as on windy days it usually pays to be up high, where the thermals are more organized and it would give me more time to find a thermal before heading out.
Long story short I caught a thermal by the airport and milked it up to 5700 MSL, my high point for the day. called leah and told her to start heading north/northeast like we had planned and she hit the road.
I was making good speed. 20 mph winds meant that when I was circling I was still making progress on course and when I was cruising I was really cruising. I noticed a disturbing trend and that was that I kept getting lower and lower. Next few thermals I was able to squeek back up to 4500ish feet. Climb rates were dissapointing, mainly in the 1-200 fpm range. The lift was workable though and above 3500 or so it was actually pretty smooth. I was able to get the glider slowed way down which it doesnt always like to do. So even though I was barely climbing I was still climbing.
I kept clicking away the miles and soon found myself flying mainly between 3 and 4000 feet. Ground in this area was around 1200. Its pretty hilly too but there were enough hay fields and other areas that I was never too worried about having a place to land. Leah was doing a decent job of keeping up, although I was outrunning her.
Finally I had to land, after 2.5 hrs. Put it down in a grass/hay field just south of Alma, KS. Total distance was right about 97 statute miles. One of my longest flights yet. Groundspeed of 40ish mph sounds pretty slow but is pretty good for my old glider and for flying so damn low. Spent a LOT of time circling. I was starting to get dizzy. Here's a nice picture of me, out standing in my field
Weather was forecast to be decent, although there was a strong south wind. often when the wind is too strong it breaks up the thermals and makes them unworkable. I could tell that a later than normal start was going to be necessary as the temps needed to get up in the mid to high 90's for the thermal height to be above 4000 feet or so. I went out to the gliderport about 11 AM to start getting things ready. glider preflighted, wings taped, canopy cleaned, water loaded, landout kit loaded, maps folded, trailer hooked up and lights checked, made sure we had everything we needed for putting the glider in the trailer. the list goes on and on. Another guy was giving rides in the Grob and reported choppy lift on his flight at noon. at 12:30 he reported that it was getting a little better and the towpilot concurred.
I took off at about 1:30. tow upwind was rough to begin with but then it started to smooth out. smooth air on tow is generally a bad sign but we were occasionally flying through some up and down. I took a 3000 foot tow, as on windy days it usually pays to be up high, where the thermals are more organized and it would give me more time to find a thermal before heading out.
Long story short I caught a thermal by the airport and milked it up to 5700 MSL, my high point for the day. called leah and told her to start heading north/northeast like we had planned and she hit the road.
I was making good speed. 20 mph winds meant that when I was circling I was still making progress on course and when I was cruising I was really cruising. I noticed a disturbing trend and that was that I kept getting lower and lower. Next few thermals I was able to squeek back up to 4500ish feet. Climb rates were dissapointing, mainly in the 1-200 fpm range. The lift was workable though and above 3500 or so it was actually pretty smooth. I was able to get the glider slowed way down which it doesnt always like to do. So even though I was barely climbing I was still climbing.
I kept clicking away the miles and soon found myself flying mainly between 3 and 4000 feet. Ground in this area was around 1200. Its pretty hilly too but there were enough hay fields and other areas that I was never too worried about having a place to land. Leah was doing a decent job of keeping up, although I was outrunning her.
Finally I had to land, after 2.5 hrs. Put it down in a grass/hay field just south of Alma, KS. Total distance was right about 97 statute miles. One of my longest flights yet. Groundspeed of 40ish mph sounds pretty slow but is pretty good for my old glider and for flying so damn low. Spent a LOT of time circling. I was starting to get dizzy. Here's a nice picture of me, out standing in my field
Gotta ask, long sleeves in August?
