Linda Salamone's Blog
Forgot to say how good the Cliffs was on Sunday April 2nd. Got an hour, 2400 over and had a nice landing. I used my new harness for the first time and had a 10 inch gap where I couldn't zip up.
Then I drove to Florida Ridge and flew for an hour at 4k or more over on Friday, April 7th.
Saturday, April 8th began the US Nationals at the Ridge. Firts task was a 75 mile ziuggling downwind of course line gzag downwind sort of flight. I got left in total crap at 1400' by Bobby (wtf?) and landed to launch again in the incereasing wind. It was 22mph when I finally launched behind Rhett and I had to leave with the shitty thermal I had because there wasn't much else. So, I waffled on across the canal, after flying with Jim Kolynich a little, then I waffled low over the swamp and caught a good boomer in the middle of it- thank God! But it drifted me over to that big ass lake (Okeechobee) and I found myself struggling downwind of courseline yet again.... but I did make that first elusive turnpoint, and the next leg was downwind so I thought it would be an easy run.. too bad I never found another climb until I was 800' over a long pasture, and I struggled with it all the way to the end and when it finally seemed to turn on I couldn't grow balls fast enough to take it low over a mile or two of very unlandable terrain. So I already knew Mark had landed back atthe flight park when his instrument failed, and my ride would be nearby, and when I landed it took 10 minutes or so of hanging onto my glider nose down before I could unhook and secure it. Mark arrived and helped me break down.
I found myself in 18th place the next morning, but the wind hasn't let up since and I don't know if we'll even get the day on Friday that we all voted to add to the comp. We are bored out of our skulls and even though I am an ace Tug pilot now, I am still not getting enough airtime. I became a Dragonfly student when Bobby realized at dinner one night it was me he left off in sinking air.
So one day of a task, one day canoeing, an hour of cloud fucking, 4 hours of sunbathing, hours of eating, an afternoon with my mom and sister's family.... oh so sometime soon this will be a hang gliding adventure.
Forgot to say how good the Cliffs was on Sunday April 2nd. Got an hour, 2400 over and had a nice landing. I used my new harness for the first time and had a 10 inch gap where I couldn't zip up.
Then I drove to Florida Ridge and flew for an hour at 4k or more over on Friday, April 7th.
Saturday, April 8th began the US Nationals at the Ridge. Firts task was a 75 mile ziuggling downwind of course line gzag downwind sort of flight. I got left in total crap at 1400' by Bobby (wtf?) and landed to launch again in the incereasing wind. It was 22mph when I finally launched behind Rhett and I had to leave with the shitty thermal I had because there wasn't much else. So, I waffled on across the canal, after flying with Jim Kolynich a little, then I waffled low over the swamp and caught a good boomer in the middle of it- thank God! But it drifted me over to that big ass lake (Okeechobee) and I found myself struggling downwind of courseline yet again.... but I did make that first elusive turnpoint, and the next leg was downwind so I thought it would be an easy run.. too bad I never found another climb until I was 800' over a long pasture, and I struggled with it all the way to the end and when it finally seemed to turn on I couldn't grow balls fast enough to take it low over a mile or two of very unlandable terrain. So I already knew Mark had landed back atthe flight park when his instrument failed, and my ride would be nearby, and when I landed it took 10 minutes or so of hanging onto my glider nose down before I could unhook and secure it. Mark arrived and helped me break down.
I found myself in 18th place the next morning, but the wind hasn't let up since and I don't know if we'll even get the day on Friday that we all voted to add to the comp. We are bored out of our skulls and even though I am an ace Tug pilot now, I am still not getting enough airtime. I became a Dragonfly student when Bobby realized at dinner one night it was me he left off in sinking air.
So one day of a task, one day canoeing, an hour of cloud fucking, 4 hours of sunbathing, hours of eating, an afternoon with my mom and sister's family.... oh so sometime soon this will be a hang gliding adventure.
posted by Linda Salamone at
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
1 Comments:
Bummer about the comp thus far - one day of flying out of five? Hope you get to fly today- you were off to such a good start.
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Anonymous, at 10:34 AM
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