LGC NEWS
October 1999
LGC NEWS |
October 1999 |
Opinion - Alan Dennis
Cec, tired of
waiting for something to happen....
I'm really sorry to have to be saying this, but just in case nobody has noticed, the tug is now back and the club is flying again! Unfortunately, apathy seems to have become the order of the day over the last few months. I'm sure people are going to knock me for abusing my position and pointing this out, but I hope it's going to wake everyone up and get you all back over to the club and flying again. Besides, it's all completely true and we all know how the truth hurts! Everywhere I look I can see it and feel it and people have told me about it and yes - I'm as guilty as the next person. Several times over the last few weeks I've been over on not brilliant, but flyable days and there's been no-one there (except the tumbleweed rolling past the hangar doors) so I've turned right round and gone straight home. Apparently, at the last committee meeting (I missed it - my first for a good few years - at least I had an excuse), plans for a social didn't even raise a glimmer of interest and that was one of the more warmly received topics up for discussion... You would not believe the struggle I've had to try and get material for this newsletter - blood and stones are a doddle by comparison. I see the bowser sat there in a state of semi-destruction awaiting some hands to turn it into a valuable and desperately needed avgas storage tank. Even when we do manage to fly, I hear non-stop moaning from some people and wonder just why we bother at all.
But then, out of the gloom, a half-decent day arrives, there are a couple of really good flights and everything comes sharply back into perspective. I remember exactly why we bother and realise it really was worthwhile after all. Gliding is fun, it is rewarding, it is challenging and all of this stimulation for just a little bit of effort. So now that the summer is (unfortunately) behind us and the pressures to do all those other things that somehow manage to eat up the best summer days are gone, there's no excuse for not getting off your backside and trekking over to the club. You never know, that not so promising day could turn into the best wave day ever and even if it doesn't, an extra pair of hands are welcome on the bowser or for a bit of pushing and shoving to help to get through those voucher flights and even if we're not flying there's no harm in swigging a coffee in the clubhouse, soaking up the bonhomie, wondering if the rain is ever going to stop whilst mulling over those plans for future epic flights and reliving those of days gone by (except 500's and Oly-2Bs though PR!). So come on. Wake up - The club's still here..... Use it! Get back into the air ASAP and remind yourself just what you've been missing.
Alan Dennis (Editor / Secretary)
Alan D.
You may know that the club has recently started running one day introductory courses which aim to provide a more comprehensive introduction to gliding than can be achieved on a single Air Experience flight. Four people have been on these courses so far, and with a couple of suggestions for improvements, have been well received, as the letter below indicates.
The course includes four flights per person over the course of a full day. One glider and an instructor are made available to a maximum of two people on the course. As well as the actual flying the instructor will give full briefings too. A log book and introductory text book are also supplied. The cost is £90 and includes 28 days club membership from the day of the course to come back and fly at club rates.
Dear Alan,
This is just a 'thank you', to yourself and the other members of the Lakes Gliding Club who made my wife and myself so welcome on Sunday last. In particular I should like to thank Peter Lewis, who arranged the One Day Introductory Course via your newspaper advertisement and very kindly made the Clubhouse facilities available overnight to two complete strangers and also Dave North who provided the instruction in your ASK21 glider, he was absolutely excellent and everything that an Instructor should be. It was a very interesting and stimulating day at Walney Airfield. Though the visibility could have been better through the heat of the day, the people we met could not have been. It was also very pleasant to have met and spoken with your hard working 'Tug' crew, Peter Craven, known only previously by reputation, 'Rip', ex R.A.F. and Bristow pilot and last, but by no means least, Peter Lewis.
You have some excellent members and a very good facility there, which no doubt has been only brought about by the efforts of many over a number of years. I hope that I may visit you all again, but it may not be immediately, as my wife and I have some travelling planned in the near future. In the interim, I wish you all the very best of success, good weather, good flying and of course, happy landings,
Yours Sincerely.
Derek H. Wood. (Mr.)
'E' mail - derek@g4zjl.freeserve.co.uk
AX25 Packet - G4ZJL@GB7FUR.#14.GBR.EU
TCP/IP Internet 'Gateway' - g4zjl@n9dbx.ampr.org
'ICQ' Number - 41797801
John Martindale
Nationally and also internationally the gliding movement is changing, fewer people are flying but they are spending more time in the air. The days of a launch and a circuit are dying out, pilots are expecting to stay in the air longer. Some want to fly away from the site but the vast majority of us are happy to soar and avoid the trauma of possible land-outs.
Unfortunately these conditions occur fairly infrequently at Walney during the summer months.
Keith Butterfield has bought a winch for the club to use which once renovated will be fairly easily transported behind a car. The idea is to find a satellite site away from the sea which we can use during the two or three months of summer. Walney would of course be the main site the rest of the year. We now need to find a field!
I hasten to add that at present this is an initiative that the committee has not yet reached a conclusion on but if any members wish to support it either financially or practically speak to Keith or me.
We all want to know how it can take so long to repair the engine for the tug. The same work on a car would not take more than two weeks. Two firms of repairers have been involved and have given the tug master the run around and a lot of excuses. The reality is that our repair is a one -off. Their bread and butter comes from contracts they have with large commercial operators so our priority is low, unfortunately this is just a fact of life.
Keith Whitworth: Whilst several of the club members and gliders were away at Pocklington, Keith Whitworth did his five hours in thermals at Walney in his newly acquired K6. This was the first time anyone has done their Silver duration (endurance?) in thermals at Walney, at least as far as anyone can remember. Perhaps the club should have kept such a hot ship!
Linda Dawson: for completing the hour flight for her Cross-Country endorsement.
Andrew Watson: for going solo, first at Shenington following an intensive course and then back with the club at Walney.
Lyn M
There's not much to say due to the lack of flying. Alan and Linda did an impromptu barbecue as soon as the tug was back. There was to have been a social in September, but no one really seemed to be interested.
The annual dinner is on the 6th November at the Coote in Urswick, invitations are on the back page along with the menu choices. (Please indicate which starters and main courses you would like.) The cost will be £19.50 which includes the disco after the meal. Could I please have the money as soon as possible as I don't want to collect the money on the night. Note that it is 7:00 for 7:30 a bit earlier this year as the disco stops at midnight, however the bar will remain open as long as we like (and Jean will provide the music…)
It was a committee decision to change venues this year as the meal was poor and the service wasn't too good last year. Apart from that it was felt it was too expensive which could put people off going especially if you have to stay overnight at somewhere like the Grange. Since then I have heard people actually like staying in a hotel with a pool and making it more of a break especially those with children who like the break away without them. It's hard to please everyone, but perhaps we can try somewhere similar to the Grange next year.
Anyone is welcome to stay with us in Gleaston. There are plenty of settees and floor space available, but all of the beds are spoken for. Just a quick reminder for those with trophies, please remember to either hand them back before or bring them along on the night.
Don't forget the Christmas party on Sat 11th December.
There hasn't been a lot planned for the New Years Eve party, but the club house will be open and everyone is welcome to come along. Contact Dave North for details.
It's off to South Africa for the records news this time. Back at the start of the year whilst all of those women were racing around Australia setting records left right and centre, there was a fair amount also happening at Bitterwasser in South Africa. On the 18th of December, Angelika Machinek (Germany) flew a Discus on a 500km out and return flight to set a new feminine 15m speed record of 136.59 km/h. On the 22nd she went one better and broke the speed record over a triangular course of 750 km raising it from 110.33 km/h (set only three days earlier by Hana Zejdova in Australia) to 119.79 km/h. Then on the 5th January, Angelika also flew an ASH25 around a triangular course of 1000 km to set a new feminine open class speed record of 126.09 km/h, breaking the record set by Pamela Hawkins, (UK) at 122.42 km/h a few days before on Christmas Day.
The day before that, Walter Binder (Germany) established an open class speed record over an out-and-return course of 1000 km at 152.74 km/h. On that day too, Dr. Siegfried Baumgartl (Germany) set a 15m record over a 100km triangle at 165.10 km/h in a Ventus. This one didn't stand very long though because on the 6th of July, Mihael Thaler (Slovenia) increased it to 181.4 km/h in a Glaser-Dirks DG-600 / 15.
Once again the World Class gets a few more records established - flown exclusively in the PW-5. Allen Keith Willis (Australia) set three records with one flight - the speed over a triangular course of 500 km at 76.42 km/h, the distance over a triangular course and the three turn point distance at 513.25km on the 11th December. Then in July, Adela Dankowska (Poland) set a feminine speed over a triangular course of 300 km at 73.25 km/h. While on the 19th August, Patrick L. Tuckey (USA) increased the speed in the general category (i.e. men or women) to 91.70 km/h from 83.47 km/h set almost a year before by Claudio Blois Duarte (Brazil).
Travel Insurance Facilities plc have written to the club offering (as the name implies!!) travel insurance policies specifically for gliding trips. Normally such insurance has the usual flying exclusion along the lines of "unless on a recognised airline" - theirs don't. Cover is available for individual trips or on an annual basis and covers four regions - UK, Europe and worldwide excluding or including USA. Costs vary between 5 day UK cover at £7.75 and annual worldwide at £130. There are a couple of leaflets or get more details by telephoning 01732 378100.
Alan D.
Once again a number of members and gliders from the club attended the Two Seater Competition at Pocklington, Yorkshire. The competition officially runs from Sunday 22nd August to the following Sunday providing eight competition days - weather permitting of course!
This year was one of the biggest entries ever with 42 gliders in the competition and around 300 people flying and crewing. The club took the K21 and the IS28 as well as a number of private single seaters. A total of x members went for some or just part of the week. The emphasis of the competition is definitely on having fun and with a wide range of gliders entered, from K7s to Duo Discus, there is always a variety of tasks set. The idea is that the pilots get to choose which task to attempt once in the air. Here's a summary of the weeks flying:
Saturday: A day for check flights and some "local soaring". Gordon Furness and Keith Butterfield flew the K21 all over the place for a few hours whilst I gave Peter's Redshaw and Seddon check flights in the IS. (both passed but PR needed some anti-wheelbarrow assistance and PS forgot the undercarriage down and locked bit )
Sunday: The first comp day and after an early briefing - 9:00 - four tasks were set., Doncaster out and return (110km); Newark out and return (185km); Newark - Wetherby triangle (231km); Newark - Barnard Castle triangle (371km). Keith and Gordon took the K21 again and managed to fly the 231km task, except that they didn't quite turn Wetherby. Peter Redshaw and I were having a bit more trouble being further down the grid and missing out on the good early conditions that the early grid enjoyed. On the second relight we got away and managed to turn Newark before arriving in a field a short while after. Luckily we encountered an exceptionally friendly farmer who eased out wait for the retrieve crew by bringing us cans of beer in the field before the local pub opened at 7:00pm.
Monday: A very optimistic task of 328km was set as the long task (Bottesford - Masham triangle) with fall back tasks of 77km, 119km and 218km if the weather did not turn out to be any good. Sure enough launching commenced in the early afternoon when almost everyone reported good conditions locally but those that set off were soon in trouble. Three quarters of the field landed out; most of these within 50km or so of the site, including our Peters Redshaw and Seddon in the IS28. They managed 55km and took the prize the next day for best "wood" (i.e. not plastic) glider. Peter Lewis and Walter Postlethwaite were in the K21 and did a heroic flight of 119k in the poor conditions to complete the intermediate task and finish 9th on the day. The best result for the club all week.
The other result of the day was for Gordon Furness who managed to do 50km in his Pilatus. It would have been a Silver distance if only he'd taken a barograph with him to prove it! (John, you might as well get that wooden spoon engraved now for him.....)
Tuesday was tasked and scrubbed in the early afternoon, PR had a 42 minute solo flight in the IS, just to keep his hand in! Wednesday was rainbound and completely unflyable.
Thursday: Wednesdays rain led to lots of damp looking low cloud that never really lifted properly to give any reasonable thermals.
A few intrepid pilots did set off however on the fall back task. This was a