Appologies

A place to stretch the truth a little...
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jdevorak
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Location: Kagel LZ

Appologies

Post by jdevorak »

Normal protocol is to not fly out to the LZ until you are ready to land. Sunday I was out here after 25 mins. It was my fault. I squandered the light lift I had to look for something better. When I arrived I noticed the streamer hanging limp. I felt 50 up off the end of the overshoot and worked it. I was 363 feet over the LZ (GPS measurement after down loading my flight). I kept working it and blocking least one pilot who WANTED to land. Eventually I made it back to launch. Sorry but not sorry. No excuses. Tickle me until I wet my pants.
eat right, exercise, die anyway!
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JD
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Post by JD »

You're forgiven Jay. That has to be some kind of low save record. So what time did Kendall get back to the LZ on Saturday? Or was it Sunday?
Greg Kendall
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Post by Greg Kendall »

Nice save Jay, and you were flying well on Saturday too. Also, thanks for the use of the GPS. Sorry again for waking you up at near 2am (when I made it back to Sylmar).

Greg
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skygeek AKA Seabass
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Post by skygeek AKA Seabass »

Greg that's it where is the story dont leave us hanging where did you land, how many miles? Get all DQ on our asses with details.
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JD
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Post by JD »

Greg Kendall wrote:Nice save Jay, and you were flying well on Saturday too. Also, thanks for the use of the GPS. Sorry again for waking you up at near 2am (when I made it back to Sylmar).

Greg
Funny about that Greg. Me and Owen had planned to fly West from Marshall to Sylmar. He got off and under way super quick but turned around along the Cucamonga Peak ridge due to North winds aloft. I nearly blew my launch and lost interest in the feat and barely scratched back from Lytle Creek. So I'm driving home around 7PM and passing you while calling Jay for a Sylmar report. I could only leave a voice message. At 9PM I was having dinner near home in Long Beach when my cell rings and Jay is wanting to know whether I'm still near Crestline?

I inquire and he explains the "situation". I wish you the best but in the back of my mind I'm thinking "early Sunday", "Motel", "I hope he brought his vol biv gear...", etc.

Ask Chip about the time that he and Chris Smith flew from Blackhawk back to Sylmar (if you aren't already familiar with that story). Well, I applaud your flight nonetheless. It will go down in 2013 Sylmar history as the longest flight of the year.
Cheers, D-Q
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JD
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Post by JD »

skygeek AKA Seabass wrote:Greg that's it where is the story dont leave us hanging where did you land, how many miles? Get all DQ on our asses with details.
Why Thank You Sebastian! I'm truly flattered.

I blow you this kiss....

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ch2ZTvFrhzU[/youtube]
Greg Kendall
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Post by Greg Kendall »

I wasn’t planning to go xc. I topped out at 6900 ft msl over East Lukens and was starting to head back after everyone else. Then I saw Loren coming up fast from below. I got in his thermal and it took us both to 8500 ft. You can’t just go back when you have 8500 ft, so I decided on an out-and-back to Wilson. The glide to Brown was crappy and so was the lift at Wilson. That, and the West wind, convinced me it would be safer to just continue east. There was lift, but it was all slow climbing and relatively low, mostly topping out at 6K or so.

A mile or two West of the San Dimas golf course, I was down to 4k before I got a slow climb over the hillside mansions. I thought about landing at the golf course anyway, but then I remembered a scary video of a near miss with the pond. I continued east.

The wind became less West and more South. Just West of Cucamonga Peak, I caught the glass off to near 7k, the highest I’d been since leaving Lukens. I glided past the face of Cuc at about 6k. I searched the lower peaks of the descending ridge East of it, as well as a big burnt area, and what looked like a truck stop without trucks, and found nothing. The late start and slow going got me.

I landed uneventfully in shrubbery along Clear Water Parkway, close to Glen Helen Park, 5 miles short of the Andy Jackson lz. I was wishing that my 5030 still had a waypoint for the AJX, but it got deleted in Arizona. If I had known the distance, I might have tried stretching the glide rather that searching for lift, though I still needed another climb. In any case, if I had known how the retrieve was going to go, I would have walked the rest of the way to AJX. I’ll save the retrieve story for later. It’s too painful to tell without beer.
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JD
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Post by JD »

Great write-up Greg! I'll buy you that beer next time we meet and we can lament our retrieve experiences.
Greg Kendall wrote:I thought about landing at the [San Dimas] golf course anyway, but then I remembered a scary video of a near miss with the pond. I continued east....
San Dimas Golf is the safest and easiest place to land. That incident involved a distracted pilot and had nothing to do with the quality of this bailout. Now 1 mile East at Marshall Canyon Golf in LaVerne the fairways are very narrow and surrounded by trees. Avoid Marshall Canyon. San Dimes is great but you need to immediately get off the fairway and as far from the golfers as you can.

The course manager is very apprehensive about anyone landing there even though it is leased property of San Dimas and I explained how they have no liability. They do have a traveling beer cart and I still have not edited that flight video. Shame on me.

A year or two ago I landed right here: http://goo.gl/maps/x5S7u which sounds like the spot you may have landed. On Saturday I made a low save from the next little hill West of there: http://goo.gl/maps/GHIyI This got me up and back to AJX. I assume that you worked one or both of these hills.

Sorry I wasn't with you as I know many of the triggers to get back to AJX from low at Cucamonga. Would have been more fun too. We have had several good flights together over the years. Next time!
Greg Kendall
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Post by Greg Kendall »

Yea, that's the place. I was kind of joking about San Dimas golf course. I've landed there a couple of times.
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skygeek AKA Seabass
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Post by skygeek AKA Seabass »

Thanks for the report since now I fly vicariously through other peoples stories.

I hear the guy that almost ended up in the fairway pond thought he was a red tail hawk swooping in on a fish. But I don't believe it.
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