Heading To Arizona Today

But first, a short flight on Wednesday at Dansville... April 16th

Karl was in the LZ when I got there, Bob and Bob and Scott up on launch. I brought Karl up and I thought conditions looked good but they were reportedly weak. Mark showed up and then people started launching. No one got much more than 8 minutes or so, Bob and Scott and Mark all landed to the west by the sailport. I got in the slot during a strong cycle, but when I turned around, it got deader than it had been all day. For a loooooong time... I potato'ed forever... finally I picked a decent cycle and even though the launch started out funky, that Saturn sure is easy to get off the ground. I immediately thought I had lucked out. The lift was strong and smooth, and right out in front... and suddenly it wasn't. Then I moved west and it was there, so strong and smooth and big... and then it wasn't. This pattern repeated itself as I waffled my way down the ridge to the west over and over again. The lift would just be so SOLID for a turn, maybe two, then just magically disappear and replace itself with heart stopping sink (I was right at the shallow ridge). When I went out to land, I got into what I believed again to be IT, only to be grovelling for distance so I wouldn't have to carry so far. Very strange air. When I did land, I expected to have a nice roundout but that was totally absent and I wound up plummeting 10 feet instead. I pulled in against NOTHING, and thought I was going to be a lawn dart. At the last possible second (my thighs had already contacted the ground) I flared and actually got my feet underneath me in a strange, strong rotation upward. Whatever!!!!

Okay so I think I got flight of the day with 11 minutes... well the HG 'FOD" since Karl may have scratched for 12 minutes after I packed up. Well I for sure know I won the women's division for the day...

High pressure sucks!

I will make no comment here about the chickens, but I will put this picture up of my son's road rash as it heals 3 days after he laid his minibike down in the driveway. Not flying related... but a picture, anyhow. Oh yeah, and the really big cockroach I saw when I was leaving work to take him to the doctor's...