The Santa Anas of Monday & Tuesday didn’t clear out the valley,  so I wasn’t expecting much for today but it was great!

At 2 pm there were a couple of pg’s over the lz at like 5 grand. I launched my UltraSport 166 from Marshall at 4:12 and the 1st thermal I found took me to 6,400 MSL with 800-1,400 FPM climb rates. My ears popped as I hit 5k. Soarable back at Crestline,  sinky going to Pine and I didn’t blunder into any thermals right away, so back to Regionals and Marshall, then around the radio tower. Halfway back to Marshall at 5,200 MSL I saw a helicopter, white with blue tail-boom, flying S to N right over Marshall at my eye-level. There were a PG & HG at a similar distance west of its flight- path. I never felt any turbulence. Had my head on a swivel every time my sail rumbled for the rest of the flight.

Had a core off Cloud Peak that I was drifting NE with and kind of flopping around.  Reversed my circling direction and it was suddenly rock-solid lift, so that thermal had some serious spin.  Soon was at 5,700 almost to the highway, so I dashed past Crestline before heading out to land.

Lift all around the LZ at 5:40 so I had to core some sink to get down to land into a nice looking SW cycle.

Great fun, lots of satisfied pilots. One PG from NY just moved here and said it was his 1st flight here, so he’s jazzed.

Great fun flying the UltraSport 166 again.

Thought I was videoing Mark Hoffman’s landing but the phone was in photo mode, so I just got a still while he was on approach and a still after he flared (quite nicely).

I had a very similar flight on Sunday.

Season’s ON!