Crestline Soaring Society
Serving Hang Gliding and Paragliding in the San Bernardino Mountains
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Crestline 03/121:35 called Wendy she related blowing up at 2mph from SE.
Forums > Pilot Reports Great Day!What a great day of flying!I was up for 1.1 and DbyD let me fly his Sport II! Thanks Dave. Great glider and even a 70 hour beginner could handle it. Only one problem, it wanted to stay up? Go figure, I had to coax it out of the air. After 3 separate 360's on downwind she was ready to set me down gently for (dare I say) a nice no step landing short of the cone. Thanks to Dave, Rebar Dan, Mike B and Mike Z for your excellent advice. Double surface gliders are sweet! CoolNice landing, Lee. The Sport 2 looked good on you. I went to the 750 with Mark Hoffman. A couple of PGs sank off Marshall and a couple sank and climbed while we were setting up. There was a cycle when I got to launch at 14:10 so I just went. Got the thermal to the west and had a blast scratching in close and cranked up on a wingtip. Lots of drift and I got to 3k but over that east chasm it got weaker and I declined chasing it into the canyon below Marshall. Worked hard below the bluffs but it wasn't looking good so I landed before the descending crowd above got in the way. 17 minutes, a lot of fun.   first....flight in I don't know how long. Short, but it was all I needed. See you all tomorrow. -Dave Fairy Tale EndingGreat thanks to Dianne for running the shuttle and Everyday Mike for helping with the launches. Pretty good turnout at Crestline with about a dozen HGs. Fairly breezy so 1 to 3 step launches for the most part. Nice to see Lee have a great first flight on Sport 2. 3 ATOS launched and went globetrotting. I got in the air last and spent the first 40 minutes struggling to stay level with the ridge while my companions were all off having fun. Then the place was deserted except for two wings flying low over the Pipe 500 ft. below me. I was a little below the ridge at Billboard when I finally hooked a sweet thermal that took me to 6000. As I soared I thought, at last my comrades get to see me as I see myself. Noble, heroic, a god among pilots. Exalted, yet humble. But when I topped out and looked down again they were gone. Later Mike B told me it had been he and Dusty over the pipe. They climbed to 6100. I hate it when that happens. I trotted over to Pine and got to 6500 over the antennas. On my way back as I crossed Pine Flats I saw an ATOS just arriving several hundred feet below me. It started to circle and I flew above it so the pilot could see what the bottom of a Sport 2 looks like, probably a new experience for him. We were in the same place, me turning little slow circles and he turning big fast ones until 2 minutes later he was above me. But for a shining if fleeting moment that ATOS got to see me as I see myself. Noble, heroic, a god among… Mike Z PS. When I “landed” I let the left wing get low, tried some sort of half flare and plopped to the ground, the wing coming over for a whack. But the nose didn’t contact the ground, instead it was the leading edge. By the time I walked off the field Ken Howells had already named it “A Zeller.” Thus bringing a fairy tale ending to a beautiful day. I now have my own crash named after me. Zeller Whacks?I'm sure someone somewhere is losing a bet tonight. Because I'm sure plenty of people have bet that Zeller having anything less than a perfect landing is just impossible! DefendersMike B. and I were the only ones in position too see that your nose didn't actually touch the grass. The peanut gallery was starting to half-heartedly call "Whack!", their conscious surprise at seeing such an outcome for Mr. Z. battling with their Pavlovian urge to yell, and we leapt to your defense. More of a post-landing nose-over, and far less entertaining than the orange glider's whack. It did show off your bottom surface well. For the name to stick you'd have to do it again this year, which I aint holding my breath for. The Year Ain't Over YetI am reminded of the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz. Someday this club is going to errect a statue to that "landing." I'm ready to pose for it anytime a sculptor can be found. Mike Z So Many WitnessesToo many witnesses, you can't buy them all off. There's bound to be one that doesn't have a price. Mike Z no whackI can say with high confidence that there was indeed no whack on the play. There may have been a slight right leading edge grass drag. -Dave Still, He did land on his FEET.For my first landing in eight months, I opted to roll in on the wheels. I may try a flare on Saturday after the log party. The shoulder held up for an hour of fun lift, letting me work the Billboard to 500 over, and share thermals with Dusty at the house thermal. I must say I felt very fortunate to be back in the sky with the bird people. By the time I crossed the canyon and worked the spine behind Cloud, the shoulder made me aware of my limited (but IMPROVING) capacity. Contrary to most pilots' experience, I found the LZ resting under a large bubble of sink, which made it extremely easy to set up for my landing, which was a "greaser". Going in prone really magnifies the sensation of the speed over the grass. I found myself using the base bar as a parallel reference to the ground to anticipate the touchdown. The best part was the knowlege of "getting back on the horse" and being conservative enough to go home unharmed and able to fly tomorrow. Thats my rc wing in the picture I'm fairly certain that is my 36" flying wing in the picture up top. It was working so well I grabbed my PG and got a great flight and even top landed for the eco-friendly flight of the day. And the rc wing is solar powered too. Well.... solar charged. :) |
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Good day
Hi Jack, today was quite good flying. I burned a vacation day from work to join the group that Dianne drove up to Crestline. We probably left something for tomorrow, come out and fly with us!
