So there I was, stood standing on the west slope of the Big L, feeling slightly intoxicated from the exhilaration of it all.
Perfect visibility, dry with warm sunshine, and the first gale of the autumn blowing straight onto the slope.
It was one of those times when I had to lean forward just to stay on the same spot, until the wind dropped, and then I’d have take a step forward to stop myself falling over!! :oops:
Wind speed varied a lot. With average speeds of between 40 - 50Kph with gusts to 80+ followed by sudden drops to almost dead calm for a few seconds before the atmosphere whipped itself up again. Bloody marvellous!
The model needed all the ballast I could fit in it to penetrate away from the ridge, meaning that it’s wing loading was around 170% of it’s un-ballasted figure. Very fast flying accompanied by phenomenal rates of climb :clap: in the enormous amounts of lift generated by the mountain side ensured that every manoeuvre in the book could be performed with ease. The only one that I know of that I couldn’t do was Ger’s ‘Vertical figure of 8’ by means of an inside loop on top of an outside loop. (He knows what I mean.) I found the wind kept blowing my little Phase 6 out of line and back towards the slope. :roll: Must keep practicing that one!
Landings were a little, er…how shall I put it………“Entertaining.” With dramatically varying wind speeds I could find the model suddenly rose, just as I was about to put it on the ground, or visa versa. A high level of dexterity was needed on the sticks to ensure that I went home with a fully working model. (I think I must finally be getting the knack of landing)
I do hope conditions will be good for the up coming glide-in. I’ve had a very enjoyable few hours flying today. And now, having driven home and eaten some lunch I’m feeling very satisfied with myself……….Hhmmmmm,…..now where’s my favourite arm chair?....... ZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.
Keith
