March 16th 2020 and trapped in the middle of this overblown, toilet paper hoarding, food depleting Coronabullshit. I have had zero flying since last August 2019 aside from my annual helicopter ride for work a couple of months back. The garage build took my entire summer of free time and I skidded over the finish line on October 30th less than two weeks before the first snow hit.
This upcoming summer I have no obligations as far as having to erect a two-story building so i'm free to play again. But with that being said, as my life typically goes lately, i'm injured again. As soon as one thing heals, another caves. And this time my shoulder has returned to what can be described as 'Crystal-normal' and stays in it's socket. But now, after having severe back pain and problems for the last several months that I ignored while keeping up on my weightlifting routines, I finally got to a point where I couldn't even sneeze, put on my socks, or pick anything up off the floor. After the usual pokes, prods, and imaging, I was diagnosed with an annular tear of my L5-S1 disc and arthritis in both vertebrae. My physical therapist has pleaded with me to not participate in stupid shit. Hang gliding falls into that category, unfortunately. Particularly carrying my broken-down glider around and the jolt on my back from the landings.
We've been inundated with all of this freakishly warm weather and I've been getting antsy for the start of the flying season but it looks like it's over before it starts. The aviation remedy for the time being is powered flight and working towards my tug pilot rating for the next few months. I'm starting my lessons back up this week for my private pilot license at the Portland Jetport. Wheeling in my Sport 3 is an option this season, and may be exercised come this summer if my back is healing and i'm chomping to get in the air. But for now I can't risk a hard foot-landing or shitty wheel-in as my doctor said i'm basically one bad jolt from a possible blown disc. I haven't been able to work out in a month now and i'm already going insane. I'm hoping I caught it early and the recovery time isn't going to take as long as they're saying. I have a couple more months of down time to see where my back is at when the park opens..
My desire to hang glide has returned with the absence of it for the last year and a half, but for now I have to focus on healing and taking it easy.
Monday 16 March 2020
Monday 7 October 2019
Thats a Wrap
And with that.. we're into October already. The leaves are changing and falling, the temps are dipping into the 30s at night, and the flying has been nonexistent.
My life has unfortunately been consumed all summer with erecting and weatherproofing my two-story garage. And it's still not over. I have to install the garage doors and button up the last remaining wall with siding. A few more full days of work and I can stop dealing with it just in time for the flying season to cease.
I went to the flight park two or three times all summer and my airtime this season (not including Florida) has been about two hours - the lowest ever. We have a new tug pilot who was awesome, and my flights were uneventful and, dare I say, fun. The sad part of it is I haven't really missed it. I miss flying itself, but the logistics and drama behind the scenes have smothered the desire. It seems we can't go hang gliding without being ragged on, have some kind of drama, impassible roads, weather not cooperating, grass is ten feet high in the LZ, etc. It's always been something to the point where I just don't care to go.
I started doing this when I was 13 and it's all I wanted to do for 15 years but now I'm indifferent. In spite of going into the Nationals with the mindset that 'even if I come in last, it's the Nationals' my poor performance snuffed out my confidence as a pilot since I got the shit stomped out of me. Yet for some reason I want to go down to FL to compete in the 2020 Worlds. Inevitably, my lack of airtime/confidence and the stressful comp environment would probably get the better of my nerves and my prediction is that I'd get slaughtered again. I got my hopes up at Green Swamp placing 13th out of 50-ish pilots, then got a reality check placing 22 of 28 against the cream-of-the-crop sport pilots and not flying two of the tasks due to the conditions.
There is no place in competition for my lack of confidence and sense of self preservation at the moment, and I don't understand where the drive is coming from to put myself through another comp. I'd like to meet new people but I'm an introvert who doesn't drink alcohol. Anyone in the comp scenes knows the morning pilot briefings typically contain the location and type of alcohol in the keg for the end of each task, which counts me out. I also usually keep to myself and don't reach out to chat with others because I've always felt like I'm bothering them.
We'll see if absence makes the heart grow fonder over the winter, but what I'm seeing is that I'm burnt out of flying the same sites over and over. Ilya and I are planning on a cross-country flying trip to fly elsewhere. Ilya and I were invited to fly in Texas, Colorado, Utah and California by a bunch of our pilot friends so that's the plan. I've got some other friends in low places dotted across the West Coast so we'll see where it takes us.
My life has unfortunately been consumed all summer with erecting and weatherproofing my two-story garage. And it's still not over. I have to install the garage doors and button up the last remaining wall with siding. A few more full days of work and I can stop dealing with it just in time for the flying season to cease.
I went to the flight park two or three times all summer and my airtime this season (not including Florida) has been about two hours - the lowest ever. We have a new tug pilot who was awesome, and my flights were uneventful and, dare I say, fun. The sad part of it is I haven't really missed it. I miss flying itself, but the logistics and drama behind the scenes have smothered the desire. It seems we can't go hang gliding without being ragged on, have some kind of drama, impassible roads, weather not cooperating, grass is ten feet high in the LZ, etc. It's always been something to the point where I just don't care to go.
I started doing this when I was 13 and it's all I wanted to do for 15 years but now I'm indifferent. In spite of going into the Nationals with the mindset that 'even if I come in last, it's the Nationals' my poor performance snuffed out my confidence as a pilot since I got the shit stomped out of me. Yet for some reason I want to go down to FL to compete in the 2020 Worlds. Inevitably, my lack of airtime/confidence and the stressful comp environment would probably get the better of my nerves and my prediction is that I'd get slaughtered again. I got my hopes up at Green Swamp placing 13th out of 50-ish pilots, then got a reality check placing 22 of 28 against the cream-of-the-crop sport pilots and not flying two of the tasks due to the conditions.
There is no place in competition for my lack of confidence and sense of self preservation at the moment, and I don't understand where the drive is coming from to put myself through another comp. I'd like to meet new people but I'm an introvert who doesn't drink alcohol. Anyone in the comp scenes knows the morning pilot briefings typically contain the location and type of alcohol in the keg for the end of each task, which counts me out. I also usually keep to myself and don't reach out to chat with others because I've always felt like I'm bothering them.
We'll see if absence makes the heart grow fonder over the winter, but what I'm seeing is that I'm burnt out of flying the same sites over and over. Ilya and I are planning on a cross-country flying trip to fly elsewhere. Ilya and I were invited to fly in Texas, Colorado, Utah and California by a bunch of our pilot friends so that's the plan. I've got some other friends in low places dotted across the West Coast so we'll see where it takes us.
Wednesday 24 April 2019
3 weeks in Florida
I just got back home to Maine today after spending the last 3 weeks in Florida for WillsWing Demo Days, a clinic with Mike Barber, and competing in the 2019 Nationals. I'll catch you up the best that I can from the start of the trip and everything that happened throughout it..
Ilya and I spent two days driving down to Florida and arrived at Wallaby Ranch on April 4th. The trip was uneventful and the weather looked to be halfway decent for us to get our first flights in 6 months. We set up our gliders and took a few tows mid-day and floated around in the bubbly Florida thermals.
Task 3, and we finally had clouds! It was a dogleg task with a slight crosswind section. I wasn't doing so hot in the standings which meant I was going to be launching almost last in line at the later part of the day. I decided to throw my name into a raffle for the early bird launches and won #3 of the 5 top spots. Score! Open class took off first with only a couple of the pilots relighting. I was on the cart second in line when I tried a radio check with Ilya and got nothing back. I could transmit but he and Max couldn't talk back to me. I was on my own again. I got towed up by April and dropped into a poorly formed 200fpm climb to the NE of the field. I worked my ass off but I wasn't able to break 2,000' and the broken thermal I was in vanished. I spent about 10 seconds hunting and heard Barber on my shoulder yelling "stop waffling in the shit!" So I pressed on downwind and was getting low. I worked broken lift coming off the treeline of the park when I spotted about a dozen vultures in a decent climb, but they were about a quarter of a mile downwind and it would mean I wouldn't make it back to the field for a relight at my altitude. It felt like the right decision so I left the park and any chance of a do-over at only 800' to get into the middle of the gaggle and it took me to 4000'! On the climb up I had one of the birds give me a look over his shoulder that felt almost inquisitive, probably wondering what the strange giant blue thingy was that was climbing with them. I topped out and went on glide towards the first turn point. I was stuck, again, with the same two pilots from the prior day. And again I pushed out front, would find a climb, and look back and see them vulturing towards me. I was very relieved to fly over the field that I had landed in the prior day with thousands of feet to spare and pressed on. Using Barber's tips, I spent a lot more time looking up than I had ever done before which helped me find the most lifty line. Throughout this ordeal I was unaware that Ilya was only one climb ahead of me the entire flight. I caught up to Max when he was low and watched him head towards a development trying to work the ground triggers. I noticed he was circling but not climbing. I then watched in amazement as one of the pilots who was tailing me the last 10 miles peeled off and flew towards the sinking pilot. Wtf? So I continued on my buoyant line further to the West of Max where I found a 600fpm climb to base again! I radioed twice when I initially got the climb for Max to peel my direction and later found out that my radio stopped transmitting entirely and he never heard me. (At this point none of us are surprised when our comms don't cooperate.) While circling I found time to fly one-handed while opening and slurping down my gel energy squeezie, a testament to the stability of the Sport 3. As I was climbing though I also noticed my distance to waypoint.. was increasing? How can that be? I pulled my map page up and saw that I was SouthWest of the cylinder and the climb was drifting me even further from it. I was way off course! It was now 3km directly upwind. I decided around 3,800ft that I had enough altitude to press upwind and tag it rather than take the point penalty and skip it for goal. I chose a decent line around -100 to -150fpm but on the push upwind I noticed a huge shadow coming. I was only 1.15km out and almost turned tail and ran but I was too close to give up now. My 6030 beeped that I hit the cylinder, but when I turned downwind to head for goal I was completely covered, there was no sun hitting the ground every direction within a mile of me and I felt it slowly shut the lift down. I was desperate, I was working every single ground trigger that I could pick out. Buildings, black greenhouses, intersections, treelines, moving cattle, even the fields with the shorter grass. I ended up over a small industrial looking building that was my last resort and spent a few minutes at a few hundred feet trying to work the scrappy 50fpm off it to no avail when *pop* my shoulder came out of it's socket and popped back in (luckily). Yes, the same shoulder I just had major surgery on two years ago. I used the flag on the building for wind direction and landed in the field behind it. I was already yelling expletives while on final. I was so pissed. This was the closest I had come to making goal and I was landing. AGAIN. I broke down my glider and packed up my harness with pain in my entire right arm and continued to have it for the next few days. Nothing a little ice and ibuprofen can't shut up. Lessons were learned that day though, and I had a perfect landing to top it off so it wasn't a total downer. The best part of the day though was Ilya made goal for the first time!
Our track logs for the day:
Ilya and I spent two days driving down to Florida and arrived at Wallaby Ranch on April 4th. The trip was uneventful and the weather looked to be halfway decent for us to get our first flights in 6 months. We set up our gliders and took a few tows mid-day and floated around in the bubbly Florida thermals.
On April 6th the weather was looking decent for doing some soaring. Ilya and I got ready to fly mid-day again. I told Ilya that I was going to leave my radio behind for the flight. He objected and asked me if I would bring comms so he could make sure his gear was working. I thought that was a smart idea, not out of the ordinary, and brought my comms up so we could test them. We were up flying around for a little while when I heard,"Crystal, can you hear me?" and thinking that I just missed him trying to contact me previously I responded that I could. He then asked,"Will you marry me?" We were a couple of miles apart and I was in a climb, I forgot everything I was doing and responded,"What?" He again asked me if I would marry him. I said,"Are you fucking serious!?" And I could hear with his response and the tone of his voice that he was very serious. Of course, I said YES. I ended up booking to where he was and sharing a climb with him for a bit before we left to land.
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| Proposal flight |
I was elated. Ilya landed first and I was on final. I was so excited to get to him that I landed about 50' behind him in the LZ. He presented me with a gorgeous custom black opal ring that he had stashed away in his harness and asked me again in the LZ. He said he had been planning this since the prior flying season but wanted the perfect ring and for both of us to be in the air. I mentioned awhile back that I always wanted a black opal stone. My great-grammy had one and when I was little she used to tell me that the stones have the whole universe inside of them. Ilya nailed it. The stone looks like it contains a nebula and the custom ring has two little airfoil-shaped cutouts. Ilya and I met each other flying. It's perfect!
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| Airfoils |
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What seemed like it would be just another boaty flight around the park has gone down in history as the best flight I've ever had in 19 years!
On April 8th Ilya, Max, and I began our clinic with Mikey Barber which began with doing ground-school. It was a lot to take in but a lot of things clicked that we had experienced in the air before but had no explanation or name for. It also happened to be my birthday and I was under the impression that I was going to slip under the radar without it being noticed by anyone aside from Ilya, my sister, and my father. Unbeknownst to me, Ilya had mentioned this to the gang and they later surprised me with a small party. I hate surprises but it turned out to be really nice.. thanks guys! 😁
We spent the two following days with Barber trying to absorb all of his teachings in ground school.
We then towed up with him and flew around, trying to further the learning. I got to base in 400-1000fpm climbs up to around 4,000ft with Mike and we waited. Ilya was working on a low save and Max went in for a relight. I had tuned my Sport 2 over the winter and was finding that it had become even worse to control than before. I was getting thrown over my basebar and tossed around like a rag doll so after an hour I radioed that I was uncomfortable and was leaving to land. Mike flew with Max and Ilya for a bit and landed a little later. He stated he was also getting tossed around and that the fun-factor wasn't there so I think the conditions played a larger part of the control issues than my glider. Ilya and Max ended up flying with Mike the following day while I spent it on the ground returning my glider to stock tuning. They ended up doing the local milk run to Quest- about 22 miles away! If you've never done a clinic with Mike Barber, you need to get your life together and do it. He is an incredible teacher with every aspect of aviation, no matter how short or long of a time you've been flying.
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| Mike Barber giving Max some info on the mechanics of landing |
A day after our clinic WillsWing rolled in with the trailer full of toys.. It was time for Demo Days! I was interested in flying the Sport 3 135 and the T3C 136. I quickly learned that they did not yet have the T3C 136. They only had the 144 available, which is too big for me. I'm still hesitant to dip my toe into another topless experience after that season on my Litespeed, but the T2C in 2016 flew like a dream and from all accounts the T3C was even better still. To the point where it was described as "a topless U2". I'm intrigued..
I set my sights on the Sport 3 135. I was directed to the already set up full-mylar one and decided to take it for a spin in chunky conditions. I was in a full left correction around 600ft and the glider wasn't responding. After a few seconds of this I decided to release when I realized I wasn't able to get the glider back in line with the tug. The flight was uneventful but I ended up flaring early, going up a few feet, and lawn darting the keel into the ground to the point where the downtubes ripped out of my hands and I was left standing there with the glider standing upright behind me on its own. I looked over to see Aldrich and Wolfie getting a chuckle out of it. Aldrich said that almost everyone going from a Sport 2 to a Sport 3 does the same thing. The new glider doesn't need quite as much of a cresendo flare. When I was asked how I liked the glider, I told Steve with my shoulders slumped that it felt just like my Sport 2. He insisted that I take the full Dacron Sport 3 out instead, so I set it up.
The glider was my exact colors, had the carbon winglets, and even a carbon stinger. It was fate. I got a proper length hang loop from Steve and rolled out for an evening tow with Ilya behind me on the T3C 144.
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| Sport 3 135 demo (Photo: Max Kotchouro) |
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| Ilya in the T3C 144 for a demo |
As soon as I left the cart I was in love. The pitch pressure was noticeably lighter than my Sport 2. And once off tow I realized that it also turned much easier. I then pulled the VG and was stoked to find that it was like butter with the extra pulley system and I could do it effortlessly, not like with my Sport 2 where I had to turn my body and make grunting noises to get past 1/2 VG. I found a 50fpm boaty evening thermal and started turning. It handled like it was on rails. After a few minutes I spotted Ilya across the park to the North in the T3C. I scooted over to fly with him and even the glide felt a little zippier. We got one turn in together but he pulled VG and flew away, later stating that he thought it was another topless and didn't realize it was me. The icing on the cake was the landing. The glider took a little adjustment on my part doing a more gentle flare, but it was effortless to land. My Sport 2 had been returned to stock and was fine, but I was so enamored with the Sport 3 that I couldn't imagine not flying it.
I nervously asked Pearson if I could use the Sport 3 135 demo for the Nationals and, much to my surprise, he said yes.. I couldn't believe it!
We had our big Wallaby Ranch bash the evening before the competition then ventured over to Quest to get some sleep before the first Task. Ilya and I were stressed, to say the least. I wasn't sure what we had got ourselves into and sleep eluded us for most of the night.
04/15/19 - Task 1: 69.7km Race to Goal
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| Watching Open Class launch |
We awakened to our first safety meeting followed by our first pilot meeting. The first task was on a day that was blue and a bit windy for my personal liking. Open class towed out first, then sport class second. But people were hesitant to tow in open class because of the marginal conditions, which in turn delayed the sport class. It got to the point where Belinda stated that any open class pilots who didn't tow (about 20 of them) would be immediately placed behind the Sport Class. With that, there was a flood of the remaining pilots. But this then delayed Sport Class even further. We didn't begin towing until around 3:30. I was so nervous about the conditions that I was going to take a DNF for the day and remain grounded. Ilya and Max towed up and went on course, finishing 16th and 18th respectively. The launch window was closing at 5pm. At about 4:50pm I decided that I wanted to at least get in the air, so I took a tow behind Mitch Shipley. We got up to a couple thousand feet and he pointed out a sailplane circling that I had noticed shortly before. I pinned off and headed for where he was, only to find out the reason he was circling was because he was getting ready to land. Whomp whomp! I headed back to the park to land. The tow and landing were a bit chunky, but nothing terrible. I didn't go XC, but I was just glad to get a few points and get into the air briefly.
04/16/19 - Task 2: 39.2km Race to Goal
The second task, and the one I was most nervous about. I have never successfully completed a triangle, or square, or tetrahedron, or whatever shape the fate deems. It was a blue day, so it was going to be a blind ground-trigger hunt cross wind to the first turn point. Ilya and Max launched first. I lost Ilya, but ended up in a gaggle with two others. Max was a bit lower in a different climb with Mick Howard. We found initial climbs, but once topped out I discovered that the two people with me were not really helping venture out to find anything. It was a repeat of last year so I pushed out ahead to try to find lift. I was hunting for all of the ground triggers that Mike Barber had told us to look for and was lucky a couple of times. Max and I ended up climbing together but he and I split off from each other and I again pushed ahead alone while he went a different direction. His line later proved to be a better choice because the direction in which I decided to go (closer to the turn point) yielded a huge row of power lines and no lift within reach. My 6030 beeped that I had tagged the turnpoint, which I wasn't even aware that I was close to due to being so focused on staying aloft, but I was down to about 400'. There were two other pilots in the field below helping point out the wind direction, but I was hoping that I wouldn't need the assistance. I spent some time working, using the broken lift off the back tree line to get me back up. I was able to get back up to 650' but the drift was taking me directly over the power lines with only 100-200ft of clearance. I conceded and ended up landing, at the turn point. I was gutted. The elusive triangle course had proven to be unbeatable for me, again. Ilya placed 10th for the day with 22km. Max placed 13th with 20.59km, and I brought up the rear with 20th and only 11.24km. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.
04/17/19 - Task 3: 37.9km Race to Goal
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| Early Bird launch |
Our track logs for the day:
04/18/19 - Task 4: 148.7km Race to Goal
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| Ilya getting ready to launch |
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| Max getting ready to launch |
With the bad weather approaching, this appeared to be our last task for the competition. A huge dogleg to the north. And another chunky day with winds at TOL almost 20mph. Without even making it to the launch line, I decided to take a DNF and not fly for the day. I was in a glider that didn't belong to me in conditions that I was uncomfortable with to begin with so it was a no brainer. Ilya and Max saddled up and flew it though. I can't say with detail as I wasn't in the air with them, but Ilya said it was a challenging day of trying to jump cloud streets to get to the waypoint with heavy drift. He was an impressive 9th overall for the day with 31.51km and landed just South of the Villages in an incredibly technical/difficult LZ. Max made it part way with him to 18.8km.
Ilya and Max's track logs for the day:
And that was that. The weather shut the last two days of the comp down. In the standings out of 28 pilots (with no handicaps given to the Sports against the Geckos, U2s, MastRs, etc.) :
Ilya - 13th
Max - 17th
Crystal - 22nd (1st women's)
It was hands-down my worst performance yet. I was initially upset but realized nobody probably cares other than me. I had set my sights on making goal but that unfortunately didn't play out so I wanted to at least place first in women's like last year, which I was able to do out of 4 female pilots. And from what we saw during the competition the Sport Class was basically a side-show anyways. People just want to know what the 'big boys' are up to in Open Class.
I got to fly in a Sport 3 all week, got to use the intel from Barber during the comp, and I was safe with perfect landings the whole trip. I was also looking at the bigger picture. I got married, I'm happy, and that gorgeous Sport 3 that I had been flying all week followed me home.
Best trip ever!
Monday 11 March 2019
Getting to Goal
The Nationals are creeping up in a little over a month now and I'm super excited! The airtribune count ticks up daily with newly confirmed pilots and is currently at 83. The most I've flown with is around 75 so this will already be the biggest gathering of wings I've been in. Realistically the open class pilots will be way ahead on a different course by the time us sport classers putt-putt our way out of the start cylinder.
I'm not concerned about how I place because even if I bomb out last - it's the Nationals. To be competing at that level at all is pretty impressive (at least to me it is). My one goal in the competition is to complete a task, any task, and make goal. I was so close last year that I could see the pretty green crop-circle looking fields at goal maybe 8-10 miles off. I had flown about 30 miles and landed short, it sucked. I made a bad decision following my XT offset to get back onto the course line and promptly flew out of the lift line like I knew what I was doing. At that time I wasn't even really conscious of the fact that I was in a lift line at all since it was a blue day. Unfortunately, the pilot following me was unaware that I was unaware and ended up peeling off as well and landing in the same LZ not even a minute later. Ilya thinks the day was shutting off because he landed maybe 10 mins later up the course line from me. In hindsight the thermals were getting super weak, 20-50fpm, after being 500+fpm 2 hours prior so I flatter myself to think I wasn't the sole contributing factor to the fact that I landed short.
But in reality I made a couple bad decisions: one of which was forgetting to optimize my route which directed me to the center of a 8km waypoint. That mistake probably cost me a solid half hour because I had to climb out and get back to the course line after realizing my mistake.. and it allowed Max to blow past me from a couple miles back. I then chose to not fly over The Villages but opted to go around and subsequently grounded myself. It's all lessons learned, the hindsight is painful and it kills me to watch the 2D replays of the tasks last year because I sit and yell at myself on the computer, "WHERE ARE YOU GOING.. WTF ARE YOU DOING!?" I'm my worst critic. But in a way it's good to look back at your mistakes so that you can try to work out the issues for the next one.
One of the articles I found was in the XC Mag, 21 Tips for Getting to Goal:
Most people aren’t there to win
Most pilots fly comps because they want to fly with friends, learn, have fun and discover new places. Only a few will be there to win.
Everybody likes to be asked their opinion
Simply hanging out for a week with lots of like-minded pilots is a learning experience. Talk to the local skygod – “How was your flight?”
Preparation pays
You fly better if you are prepared. Start before you go: buy a map, explore Google Earth, look at tracklogs online. Turn up a few days early, or go to a comp in a place you know. Research the tasks the comp organisers have set before – they’ll probably set them again.
Local knowledge helps
You will relax more if you are happy about what’s below you: roads, railways, no-fly zones and how you can get back to base. Study tracklogs to find sink zones (where people land) and house thermals (where people go up). Relate the tracklog to what is on the ground.
The best glider is the one you like
You will fly better on a wing you’re comfortable with in a harness you know. Don’t make changes in your gear before a comp – you need to know that your gear works and you can depend on it.
Technology can ruin your day
Asking people to show you how your flight computer works 10 minutes before the window opens will make you no friends. Learn about your radio, GPS and instrument before you go. Ask the tech guru to help at an appropriate time, not as they are clipping in.
Batteries are cheapDon’t spoil a flight for the cost of a fresh set of batteries: use new ones or rechargables. And don’t forget your paper map.
Dehydration can spoil it all
You can be on a hot, windy, exposed launch for a long time. Wear a hat, stay in the shade and hydrate. In the air you will lose focus quickly if you don’t drink, and that means you’ll land early. Work out a way to drink (and pee) in flight if you can.
Knowing what you want helps
Having a realistic goal means you’ll go home happy. (Don’t make it “Win at all costs!”) Make goal, fly a personal best, fly for two hours… choose a goal that fits you. Be honest with yourself – and allow yourself a smile when it goes right. Don’t beat yourself up if it doesn’t.
You will pay for late nights
The social side of comps is often great (especially if the weather is bad). Stay up late though and you’ll suffer the next day. Watch the vino and make sure you get some sleep.
Early birds catch worms
Comps start early, so get up earlier. Have a proper breakfast, change your batteries, fill your water bottle and make the morning briefing on time prepared to go. Transport to launch can often take a lot of time, so bag your spot on the minibus and then relax.
Smart pilots get ready first
On launch claim your spot and get your gear ready as soon as you can. You may have a long wait, but it’s much better hanging around then than rushing at the end.
Listening is underrated
Pay attention at the briefing on launch. Tasks can be tricky to grasp, especially when it comes to start times and cylinders. Take a pen and paper to write down instructions, the task, land-by times, radio frequencies and phone numbers. Each element of the task is crucial: you won’t be the first pilot who has got to goal but screwed up the start – and scored zero because of it.
Paper maps never die
Because you got your kit ready early, after the briefing you will have plenty of time to study the route on your map. Discuss it with a buddy, look for different options and plan your approach. If someone has flown it before, speak to them.
You should be in the air
When the window opens if you can stay up take off and get in the air. You will be much happier looking down on the crowd than on the deck looking up at it. Flying for half an hour before the start gate opens lets you relax, sort your gear and get into the day. Taking off minutes before the start and scrabbling to catch up is stressful.
Getting high is key
Get high before the start – rushing off low will only ruin your day. When the race starts gaggles form naturally. If this is your first comp don’t stress about staying with the lead gaggle – just fly the course and find your rhythm, you will naturally find pilots at the same level. Stick with them, it makes things easier. (You are now gaggle flying.)
Good pilots help each other
A good gaggle is a team: working together to find the best cores and climb quickly; spreading out on glide to cover more air in the search for lift. This way the gaggle moves faster than the lone wolf.
Getting to goal is more important than speed
Getting to goal in two hours is better than landing a metre short in 60 minutes. For your first comps treat the task as an XC route and forget about racing: it will simply put you on the deck early. Just fly the route. If it takes you four hours and you’re last in, so what? You made it.
Consistency is key
Get to goal every day and you will automatically rise to the top of the field. So fly consistently, calmly and safely. Stick with your gaggle, avoid necky glides and give yourself a margin for error. Watch others and see what they are doing, but don’t blindly follow – they may know less than you!
Goal frenzy is real
“I can get in from here.” The best pilots in the world have raced to the deck because of this thought. Be prepared to catch yourself. Stay focused and have patience. Spiralling down to goal is so much better than sinking out behind the train tracks.
The best pilot is the one having the most fun
It’s true. Never forget what you’re there for. The point is to have fun and lots of it. If you prepare well, feel comfortable and stay cool then you will naturally fly well – and that means the fun is all yours.
I'm not concerned about how I place because even if I bomb out last - it's the Nationals. To be competing at that level at all is pretty impressive (at least to me it is). My one goal in the competition is to complete a task, any task, and make goal. I was so close last year that I could see the pretty green crop-circle looking fields at goal maybe 8-10 miles off. I had flown about 30 miles and landed short, it sucked. I made a bad decision following my XT offset to get back onto the course line and promptly flew out of the lift line like I knew what I was doing. At that time I wasn't even really conscious of the fact that I was in a lift line at all since it was a blue day. Unfortunately, the pilot following me was unaware that I was unaware and ended up peeling off as well and landing in the same LZ not even a minute later. Ilya thinks the day was shutting off because he landed maybe 10 mins later up the course line from me. In hindsight the thermals were getting super weak, 20-50fpm, after being 500+fpm 2 hours prior so I flatter myself to think I wasn't the sole contributing factor to the fact that I landed short.
But in reality I made a couple bad decisions: one of which was forgetting to optimize my route which directed me to the center of a 8km waypoint. That mistake probably cost me a solid half hour because I had to climb out and get back to the course line after realizing my mistake.. and it allowed Max to blow past me from a couple miles back. I then chose to not fly over The Villages but opted to go around and subsequently grounded myself. It's all lessons learned, the hindsight is painful and it kills me to watch the 2D replays of the tasks last year because I sit and yell at myself on the computer, "WHERE ARE YOU GOING.. WTF ARE YOU DOING!?" I'm my worst critic. But in a way it's good to look back at your mistakes so that you can try to work out the issues for the next one.
One of the articles I found was in the XC Mag, 21 Tips for Getting to Goal:
Most people aren’t there to win
Most pilots fly comps because they want to fly with friends, learn, have fun and discover new places. Only a few will be there to win.
Everybody likes to be asked their opinion
Simply hanging out for a week with lots of like-minded pilots is a learning experience. Talk to the local skygod – “How was your flight?”
Preparation pays
You fly better if you are prepared. Start before you go: buy a map, explore Google Earth, look at tracklogs online. Turn up a few days early, or go to a comp in a place you know. Research the tasks the comp organisers have set before – they’ll probably set them again.
Local knowledge helps
You will relax more if you are happy about what’s below you: roads, railways, no-fly zones and how you can get back to base. Study tracklogs to find sink zones (where people land) and house thermals (where people go up). Relate the tracklog to what is on the ground.
The best glider is the one you like
You will fly better on a wing you’re comfortable with in a harness you know. Don’t make changes in your gear before a comp – you need to know that your gear works and you can depend on it.
Technology can ruin your day
Asking people to show you how your flight computer works 10 minutes before the window opens will make you no friends. Learn about your radio, GPS and instrument before you go. Ask the tech guru to help at an appropriate time, not as they are clipping in.
Batteries are cheapDon’t spoil a flight for the cost of a fresh set of batteries: use new ones or rechargables. And don’t forget your paper map.
Dehydration can spoil it all
You can be on a hot, windy, exposed launch for a long time. Wear a hat, stay in the shade and hydrate. In the air you will lose focus quickly if you don’t drink, and that means you’ll land early. Work out a way to drink (and pee) in flight if you can.
Knowing what you want helps
Having a realistic goal means you’ll go home happy. (Don’t make it “Win at all costs!”) Make goal, fly a personal best, fly for two hours… choose a goal that fits you. Be honest with yourself – and allow yourself a smile when it goes right. Don’t beat yourself up if it doesn’t.
You will pay for late nights
The social side of comps is often great (especially if the weather is bad). Stay up late though and you’ll suffer the next day. Watch the vino and make sure you get some sleep.
Early birds catch worms
Comps start early, so get up earlier. Have a proper breakfast, change your batteries, fill your water bottle and make the morning briefing on time prepared to go. Transport to launch can often take a lot of time, so bag your spot on the minibus and then relax.
Smart pilots get ready first
On launch claim your spot and get your gear ready as soon as you can. You may have a long wait, but it’s much better hanging around then than rushing at the end.
Listening is underrated
Pay attention at the briefing on launch. Tasks can be tricky to grasp, especially when it comes to start times and cylinders. Take a pen and paper to write down instructions, the task, land-by times, radio frequencies and phone numbers. Each element of the task is crucial: you won’t be the first pilot who has got to goal but screwed up the start – and scored zero because of it.
Paper maps never die
Because you got your kit ready early, after the briefing you will have plenty of time to study the route on your map. Discuss it with a buddy, look for different options and plan your approach. If someone has flown it before, speak to them.
You should be in the air
When the window opens if you can stay up take off and get in the air. You will be much happier looking down on the crowd than on the deck looking up at it. Flying for half an hour before the start gate opens lets you relax, sort your gear and get into the day. Taking off minutes before the start and scrabbling to catch up is stressful.
Getting high is key
Get high before the start – rushing off low will only ruin your day. When the race starts gaggles form naturally. If this is your first comp don’t stress about staying with the lead gaggle – just fly the course and find your rhythm, you will naturally find pilots at the same level. Stick with them, it makes things easier. (You are now gaggle flying.)
Good pilots help each other
A good gaggle is a team: working together to find the best cores and climb quickly; spreading out on glide to cover more air in the search for lift. This way the gaggle moves faster than the lone wolf.
Getting to goal is more important than speed
Getting to goal in two hours is better than landing a metre short in 60 minutes. For your first comps treat the task as an XC route and forget about racing: it will simply put you on the deck early. Just fly the route. If it takes you four hours and you’re last in, so what? You made it.
Consistency is key
Get to goal every day and you will automatically rise to the top of the field. So fly consistently, calmly and safely. Stick with your gaggle, avoid necky glides and give yourself a margin for error. Watch others and see what they are doing, but don’t blindly follow – they may know less than you!
Goal frenzy is real
“I can get in from here.” The best pilots in the world have raced to the deck because of this thought. Be prepared to catch yourself. Stay focused and have patience. Spiralling down to goal is so much better than sinking out behind the train tracks.
The best pilot is the one having the most fun
It’s true. Never forget what you’re there for. The point is to have fun and lots of it. If you prepare well, feel comfortable and stay cool then you will naturally fly well – and that means the fun is all yours.
Wednesday 20 February 2019
Chutes
It's that time of the year again.. Chute repack time! Now settle down. I know it's an exciting thing, and everybody loves it and does it every year like they're supposed to.. But, all joking aside, it's a necessary evil. If the unthinkable ever happens and you're spiraling and/or plummeting towards terra firma you'll be thanking your past-self for deploying, preening, and repacking your underfluffies when your chute opens. Unless you get tangled in your equipment, but that's another reason we train to throw.
The A-Team met up at Nick's hangar again to get our goods repacked before the Nationals in April. And, like last year, it was fairly uneventful. Ilya hates repacking, Max has a new helmet camera, Nick hates BBQ chicken pizza, and I discovered that I have a newly developed vertigo. I don't recall having the same issue last year but I'm hoping the lightheaded/dizzy spell was just from spinning in my harness. I'll find out in Florida.
On a positive note- I was able to get my chute out of my harness this year. Last year my shoulder was still jacked and I wasn't able to pull it free from the container. For months now I've been doing my meal planning and split-workouts from when I was competing. In addition to the self-esteem boost and endurance in everyday life, it's helping me with the flying side of the spectrum. It builds confidence knowing I can muscle my wing around better. It’s human nature to work on the things that we are good at but to be successful you have to focus on the flaws as well.
Plus, yoga pants.
Thursday 7 February 2019
Tweaking
Only 1 month and 27 days to go until sunny Florida..
Ilya and I spend our winter weekends getting little nips for our aviation fix. This started a few weeks ago with a tube of black shoe goo and some foam brushes. The boot skid on both of our Tenax 3 harnesses had worn through and we were looking for a more permanent solution rather than having to buy canvas replacement caps a couple of times per year from Italy. With 3 coats, a full tube, and a steady hand I was able to get mine coated.
Ilya and I spend our winter weekends getting little nips for our aviation fix. This started a few weeks ago with a tube of black shoe goo and some foam brushes. The boot skid on both of our Tenax 3 harnesses had worn through and we were looking for a more permanent solution rather than having to buy canvas replacement caps a couple of times per year from Italy. With 3 coats, a full tube, and a steady hand I was able to get mine coated.
The next order of business was to mount the aluminum bracket for the new Flytec 6030 instrument pod that I had ordered. This involved the removal of my wheels to be able to scoot the bracket over another couple of inches closer to the corner and out of the way. I had been flying without wheels for years, but after my surgery and subsequent crash in Canada I flew with them the last couple of seasons for consolation.
I was once told "Use your superior judgement to avoid using your superior skills." I live by that statement and the only use my wheels got before or after that one crash was when I was too lazy to pick my glider up and rolled it around instead. Hopefully that's the only reason they'll be missed..
I had Ilya assist me in getting my glider into the house mainly to do the tuning changes that Steve Pearson had recommended. My glider has always been a bear to turn whenever there was more than 10mph of wind or punchy lift, but I've had instances where it wont respond to my roll or pitch input and will just turn wherever it wants. The smaller gliders have always been stiff, but the fact that I have a mylar top sail and don't weigh anything has compounded the issue to make the glider even more numb.
The pros: I can thermal the bug farts easier than the heavier dudes and my sink rate on glide is typically 180-200fpm.
The cons: I have issues maneuvering in active conditions and get crushed on glide. *putt putt putt*
So to remedy this, I shaved my tip wands 3/16" to bag the ends a little. The handling should improve noticeably.
The sprogs go tight for my lighter weight around 1/2 VG to the point where I can't physically pull it anymore. I lowered the sprogs 1.5 turns to improve the handling, especially with the VG on.
As a disclaimer: I did these tuning changes off the instruction of the man that creates these gliders.. I was apprehensive but reassured that 1.5 turns isn't much. I spent an entire season in a topless glider with the sprogs dumped and undisclosed to me by the previous owner and lived to tell the tale. I know what lowering them can do to the stability first-hand..
Monday 14 January 2019
Revelations
The A-Team is back, and what a difference a month makes..
After talking myself out of competition, I was gently nudged back into it. I don't do well with peer pressure and after Max texted Ilya and I that he was confirmed for Nationals we had a day of conversation weighing the pros and cons and decided to sign up as well. Ilya and I dug our heels in a little bit with each other: I didn't want to be the reason Ilya competed, and he didn't want to be the reason I didn't.
I'm competitive by nature and was worried that I would be in full 'win' mode. But Ilya said something that made me come to a realization: "How often at Green Swamp were you in the air worried about someone being ahead of you?", and the answer was "Never". I didn't give a crap about who was ahead. I was just focused on making goal, or even the first waypoint, or even just staying in the air. I was mainly looking for Ilya and Max when I was flying, but I do that up in New England anyways. Ilya said I also made a comment that changed his mind: "I'd rather regret that we did it than regret that we didn't." This chance doesn't come around too often, and we're going to be right there at demo days. Neither of us could envision leaving for Tennessee or staying at Wallaby knowing that the competition was happening so close to where we were.
I know my limits, I took a DNF one of the days at Green Swamp because I wasn't comfortable flying in the windy conditions and even though it bumped me to 19th, I managed to claw back up to 13th overall with an 11th place finish on the last task.
Comps are all about balance. Some days suck, some don't, but it all seems to even out in the end anyways. We're both relieved that we signed up so that's a good indicator that we made the right decision. I don't care if I come in 30th of 30, at least I can say I competed in the Nationals just once.
After talking myself out of competition, I was gently nudged back into it. I don't do well with peer pressure and after Max texted Ilya and I that he was confirmed for Nationals we had a day of conversation weighing the pros and cons and decided to sign up as well. Ilya and I dug our heels in a little bit with each other: I didn't want to be the reason Ilya competed, and he didn't want to be the reason I didn't.
I'm competitive by nature and was worried that I would be in full 'win' mode. But Ilya said something that made me come to a realization: "How often at Green Swamp were you in the air worried about someone being ahead of you?", and the answer was "Never". I didn't give a crap about who was ahead. I was just focused on making goal, or even the first waypoint, or even just staying in the air. I was mainly looking for Ilya and Max when I was flying, but I do that up in New England anyways. Ilya said I also made a comment that changed his mind: "I'd rather regret that we did it than regret that we didn't." This chance doesn't come around too often, and we're going to be right there at demo days. Neither of us could envision leaving for Tennessee or staying at Wallaby knowing that the competition was happening so close to where we were.
I know my limits, I took a DNF one of the days at Green Swamp because I wasn't comfortable flying in the windy conditions and even though it bumped me to 19th, I managed to claw back up to 13th overall with an 11th place finish on the last task.
Comps are all about balance. Some days suck, some don't, but it all seems to even out in the end anyways. We're both relieved that we signed up so that's a good indicator that we made the right decision. I don't care if I come in 30th of 30, at least I can say I competed in the Nationals just once.
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