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 April 18 2023 7:35am
Report of five pilots flying on Wednesday. Turned out to be a pretty nice day although turbulent. The top was 5,090ft. TODAY....summer with a twist of spring. Broken high clouds at 25K probably all day. Winds aloft are SW between 6 and 10kts. Max altitude 4,400ft.
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Shuttles listed are independent operations and are not operated by SHGA
Click here to reserve a seat in a Windsports shuttle.
Rides will appear available even if there is no shuttle running. If a minimum of 5 pilots request a ride we will run a shuttle.
Spring Air Festival
The Spring Air Festival is coming up! We will have Open and Sport Classes, as well as trophies for Air Hog and Spot Landings. Be sure to come out and participate.
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Wheels
There are lots of reasons not to fly with wheels. First, they cause drag. When flying in a competition against other pilots on equally fast gliders and of similar skill, then leave the wheels at home. Likewise, skip the Go-Pro camera, and make sure there aren't any wrinkles in your racing harness.
Wheels are also expensive; they cost as much as a downtube or two. For those who have never bent a downtube or scratched up a carbon fiber basetube, wheels are superfluous.
Wheels can also be problematic on a few launches; for example, they're discouraged at Yosemite. Then again, on rare occasion, one will observe a nearly-blown launch saved by wheels.
Aside from those special situations (competition flying, abject poverty, or Yosemite), consider flying with wheels. They really do reduce injuries, damage to gliders, and long-term cost.
Airspeed is What You Need
How much airspeed do you need for the roll control you want when flying close to fixed objects? How much do you need for the insulation against stalling that you want then?
Launching a glider is essentially a process of increasing airspeed. Consider that it's not a number of steps, or how fast, and read the Airspeed is What You Need post in the Safety Forum. Some conditions, some locations, need more.
Flying the Air or the Location?
When you're on approach to the Sylmar LZ, do you study the wind conditions? When you're circling in the staging area?
While you're on your downwind and base legs, are you adjusting your geometry to arrive at the entry point of your optimal final leg, flying your chosen speed?
It's natural for the human brain to organize around the visual information -- fly down that path, over to there, and then to there. However, we fly in the invisible medium that's in motion, and getting yourself to the top of the ideal final leg for the day requires an approach customized for the conditions you actually encounter.
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