Day 3
On the third day winds finally switched to WNW. That meant we didn't have to drive anywhere, and I got to run off Henson Gap ramp again. The ramp is a marvel of engineering, and it is a pleasure to launch from.
On the downside, the day's forecast called for even lighter conditions than two previous days.
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| Ollie tells us about the weather |
David Hanning reviews XCSkies forecast
The task committee and safety committee were trying to map forecast to something XC flyable.
Eventually, it was decided to fly between LZ and the launch. C task, for example, - tag LZ, tag launch (at launch height or above), land at LZ. A and B tasks were similar but with added SW launch waypoint, and multiple trips back and forth.
- Erik and Bryson writing down day 3 tasks on the whiteboard
The day progressed pretty much as expected. Paragliders launched first and some of them were able to tag the waypoints a few times. It was a lot of work even for them to stay up.
Around 3PM our team decided to launch. Steve went first, and I could definitely see why I would want a topless glider. He went to the north, all the way to the other side of route 111, and he was working some light lift there.
Paul launched next, I went after him, and then Dana. I probably dove of the ramp a bit too much for the conditions, and lost more altitude than Paul. I was gliding toward route 111, but I got there a bit too low for my comfort. I turned around, and went for the LZ. I got there with enough altitude to box the field and do a nice DBF approach. Paul landed just before me. I am not sure if he was sinking faster than me or simply decided to land so we wouldn't have to land at the same time.
Steve landed quite some time later. I love watching his landings - he is so relaxed and graceful
Here is the video of his landing:
While we were breaking down, other gliders were landing every few minutes. Everyone was executing good landings, and some people were having fun, showing off their landing skills. Like, a topless glider skimming the ground downwind at high speed, pulling up, turning around and landing perfectly. It is amazing how much energy this glider retains.
Breakdown area in Henson Gap LZ
Steve Pearson
And a short video review of my flight with multiple camera angles :-)
Day 4 and up...
Not much to say about day 4. It was Whitwell day again. It had some potential. But wind switched, and launching safety was questionable. Our team made a mistake by setting up at the paragliders side of things. At that launch it started to tail after 1pm. All paragliders packed and went home.
Hang gliders were launching from the cliff. But only Zac Majors was able to stay up. He found a thermal somewhere in the middle of the valley. My poor Sport2 had no chance getting there even if I was at the cliff launch.
We packed our gliders and went back to Henson. The cool thing about that day - I spent a lot of time talking to Steve about past and the future of the sport, different glider designs, and why certain things on a glider done one way or another. Did you know that curved tips on your glider don't do anything for glider's performance and handling? But that's what people wanted for non-engineering/non-logical reasons. It would be much easier to assemble the glider without those things, too. Anyway....
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Day 5 - it was raining. Natalia and I spent time playing tourists. Visiting Chattanooga, Ruby Falls, and Lookout mountain hang gliding launch.
The morning of day 6, after reviewing the weather for the next 2 days, we decided to head home. There was a chance of flying this evening, probably without XC tasks. And forecast for the next day was questionable, too. I had plenty of flying done for the last 2 weeks, and didn't want to stay for marginable days. It's a long drive home. It was time to get back to our cats :-)
Final thoughts
It was my third year in a row at Team Challenge. Different time of year - each time very similar conditions. Despite of very challenging flying weather that I got here, I loved flying in Sequatchie Valley. Tennessee Tree Toppers club at Henson Gap is awesome, too. I definitely going to be back, I am just not sure if or when I am going to do another Team Challenge.
Team Challenge was a good event for me to push beyond my comfort zone, and submerge in everything-about-flying atmosphere for a week. It was not that good for me from practical, A pilot to C pilot mentoring, standpoint. Most of the time I was on the ground before A pilot could provide any coaching. Oftentimes, A pilot had trouble staying up as well.
I DID learn a plenty. Most of it on the ground, of course, from conversations, presentations, lectures, weather reviews, observing other pilots. But hang gliding is a physical sport, you can have all theory you want, but without practice, it is unusable. And on the trip down south this year, I got that kind of practice... in Florida where Tom Lanning led us on an XC flight from Wallaby to Quest. On that flight, he provided exactly the mentoring I was looking for at Team Challenge.
One very useful thing that I picked up (or rather started to develop) from 3 years of visiting Team Challenge - weather analysis. I find weather subject very boring. I know, as a pilot, I need to understand it, but it puts me to sleep very fast. All these years, I relied on a couple of very basic tools and, mostly, on other people do the weather forecasting for me. At TC, every morning, David Hanning had excellent forecast analysis using XC skies, and a couple of other tools. This year, to my amazement, I started using some of those tools, and it even started to make sense, I think...
So, it was all good. Made new friends, learned new tricks, challenged myself, scared myself a couple of times, got to apply my New England thermalling skills to Sequatchie Valley (which is apparently has very similar weather). I am glad I didn't just go once and forgot all about it. And I recommend any new H3 pilot (or a paraglider pilot) to do the same. Or, for that matter, to any pilot who wants to get exposure to competition basics. Even if you are an H2 pilot, go fly there outside of the competition, you can help with the retrieve, fly, and absorb a wealth of flying information concentrated there.
Will I be back?... If we form a New England team - I'm game. On my own... probably not next year. Green Swamp Sport Klassic event, on the other hand, looks interesting. Oh, and when I get to paragliding - I will definitely do another Team Challenge. Paraglider pilots seem to have too much fun in Sequatchie Valley...
Thank you Ollie and everyone helping to organize this event! It's been real. I'll see you next time, whenever it is going to be.
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