May 22nd 2011

Two interesting days flying, one last weekend and one yesterday, May 21st.

May 14th saw only two flights, both made by Peter Cook and Josue Hernandez-Mago.
The second flight was the one where they contacted wave and got to 7000ft.  The wave, probably from the W/NW quarter.  Josue has written a splendid account which accompanies this news item.  We’d hoped for two good days this weekend but only got one, today being clagged out.

There were three trial flights, one each for Mr & Mrs Owen, both in their eighties and one for John Bailey who was so rapt with his flight ,he is going to get his son-in-law to have a flight.  What might have been a wave day turned out to have a lee convergence line forming up over a Mount Egmont-Stratford-Toko line.  Bags of gentle lift, I’m told.  Two hours twenty-five minutes for Tim in the Discus, Two hours ten minutes for James Walker & Peter Cook in the K7 and one hour, thirty minutes for John Tullett & young Tyler Turpie in the Twin.  John Frew towing last weekend and again yesterday with a cameo appearance by Jim McKay.  Unfortunately today (the 22nd) was not as kind for Allan Brady, Brendan Pittwood and Tyler Turpie for today was to have been their day. Anyhow, welcome to our flying.  We really do some!

We have held a couple of orientation days for our new members which went off well enough with a bit of club background, some do’s and don’ts, a run through of a flight from cockpit checks and so on to the down-wind checks and landing.  We adjourned to the hangar after watching a couple of videos on the second day and talked about the glider, how the controls worked and how it feels to fly.  Many thanks to Peter Cook for his role and expertise in the discussions.

The other big news is the completion of the hangar extension by way of the concrete floor being laid the week before last. The Discus now in proud occupancy.  A willing team of volunteers had the job done by mid-morning with Warren Cleland’s team masterminding proceedings and delivering a smooth finish to the floor.  Well done Tim for leading the project, Steve Barham with our late President Richard Arden for obtaining funding and thanks to all those who helped along the way.  The interior floor space is really impressive.

Our instructors are going to be busy for the foreseeable future with perhaps about seven or eight pupils lining up to learn to fly.  John Tullett’s K7 quite likely to be pressed into service.  Where is our Blanik when we need it!!



               
                            James Walker and the Twin Astir


                

                 Tim's photo of the Discus on the evening of May 21st.  The convergence line
                 still evident.