I had been working for the past few days, and all I could do was keep checking the weather. Easterlies at Tavistock and clear skies meant one thing - a great day for gliding.
Having flown on Wednesday (02/03/2011), I was already itching to get flying again, and when Saturday morning rolled around, I was...
Well I was telling the other half to politley leave me alone and let me get back to sleep. However, she was persistant, and kept hitting me until I got out of bed. Out I jumped and looked out the curtains. I was blinded by the sunlight, and not a cloud was in sight. Yes, it was 0730 in the morning, on a Saturday, but I suddenly found a whole lot of energy and I was out the door and on my way.
The drive to the club was uneventful; the usual process of turning on the radio, hearing some god-awful song (Kidz - Take That) on Radio 1, and quickly changing to music from my iPhone.
Enter Shikari at 0830 in the morning? Job done.
Upon arriving at the club it was clear that everyone was sharing my enthusiasm for the day. Several private aircraft were being rigged - two Grob Astirs and a SF27, and the remainder of the club was animated in getting the club aircraft ready for the day's flying.
I spent the morning helping out on the launch point - hauling aircraft, retrieving using the quad and helping people strap in to the aircraft. The afternoon was spent learning to retrieve the winch cables in the Land Rover, and after some expert tuition, I was up and down the field like no-one's business!
Eventually the time came for me to fly, so I hopped into the K8 (after putting two ballast weights in) and went for it. The soaring conditions that everyone had hoped for never emerged, but it was a nice day for just getting some more experience. After two flights, Don Puttock, the Chief Flying Instructor, told me to get into the K6.
Nervously, I got into the aircraft, and got accustomed to my surroundings. It was daunting, to say the least, but I managed to pluck up the courage to haul the aircraft on to the launch point. Getting strapped into the single seater, I went through my checks. Once completed, I asked for cable on.
The launch was brief - mainly because the cable broke at about 250ft. I lowered the nose and regained flying speed before deploying the air-brakes. It was a weak link break, and could have easily been avoided with a signal to the winch driver by myself. However, it would appear nerves got to the better of me. After analysing it further, it was a combination of a fast launch, and too much back pressure on the stick!
Upon returning to the launch point, I was raring to go again. I got myself strapped in and off I went. It was a much better launch and I had a great feeling of relief when I was off of the cable. This was the first time I had actually felt what the K6 was like to fly, and in short:
Having flown on Wednesday (02/03/2011), I was already itching to get flying again, and when Saturday morning rolled around, I was...
Well I was telling the other half to politley leave me alone and let me get back to sleep. However, she was persistant, and kept hitting me until I got out of bed. Out I jumped and looked out the curtains. I was blinded by the sunlight, and not a cloud was in sight. Yes, it was 0730 in the morning, on a Saturday, but I suddenly found a whole lot of energy and I was out the door and on my way.
The drive to the club was uneventful; the usual process of turning on the radio, hearing some god-awful song (Kidz - Take That) on Radio 1, and quickly changing to music from my iPhone.
Enter Shikari at 0830 in the morning? Job done.
Upon arriving at the club it was clear that everyone was sharing my enthusiasm for the day. Several private aircraft were being rigged - two Grob Astirs and a SF27, and the remainder of the club was animated in getting the club aircraft ready for the day's flying.
I spent the morning helping out on the launch point - hauling aircraft, retrieving using the quad and helping people strap in to the aircraft. The afternoon was spent learning to retrieve the winch cables in the Land Rover, and after some expert tuition, I was up and down the field like no-one's business!
Eventually the time came for me to fly, so I hopped into the K8 (after putting two ballast weights in) and went for it. The soaring conditions that everyone had hoped for never emerged, but it was a nice day for just getting some more experience. After two flights, Don Puttock, the Chief Flying Instructor, told me to get into the K6.
Nervously, I got into the aircraft, and got accustomed to my surroundings. It was daunting, to say the least, but I managed to pluck up the courage to haul the aircraft on to the launch point. Getting strapped into the single seater, I went through my checks. Once completed, I asked for cable on.
The launch was brief - mainly because the cable broke at about 250ft. I lowered the nose and regained flying speed before deploying the air-brakes. It was a weak link break, and could have easily been avoided with a signal to the winch driver by myself. However, it would appear nerves got to the better of me. After analysing it further, it was a combination of a fast launch, and too much back pressure on the stick!
Upon returning to the launch point, I was raring to go again. I got myself strapped in and off I went. It was a much better launch and I had a great feeling of relief when I was off of the cable. This was the first time I had actually felt what the K6 was like to fly, and in short:
It was a dream.
It's penetration through the air was far superior to the lighter K8, and the responsiveness from the controls was also welcomed.
The flight was extended from the norm by a little rotor, meaning I managed to keep it in the air for a nice 7 minutes.
After I'd landed, there were only a few people left to fly. Once they'd finished, the club worked in great synchronisation to get all of the aircraft back into the hangar in next to no time.
All in all, a great day!
It's penetration through the air was far superior to the lighter K8, and the responsiveness from the controls was also welcomed.
The flight was extended from the norm by a little rotor, meaning I managed to keep it in the air for a nice 7 minutes.
After I'd landed, there were only a few people left to fly. Once they'd finished, the club worked in great synchronisation to get all of the aircraft back into the hangar in next to no time.
All in all, a great day!
