1/25 SkyPort

From: Dan
Activity_Date: 1/25/01
Remote Name: 24.8.188.224

Comments

Bob H., Casey R., Tom B. and more drove up to SP at noon. There was already a pilot ready to launch when we arrived. The cycle looked ok but the pilot did not connect with any real lift.

I sat up to launch but when I pulled my wing up it pulled to the east and did not come up strong enough so I aborted my launch. Diablo jumped in and after a few moments of waiting he launched and was able to get up over launch. I believe I heard him say he was landing at the polo fields.

I grabbed a good cycle and got up at launch and took the height to the antenna farm (Some what of a south head wind on the way) and scratched the ridge out front, ridge soaring until I caught some good lift which took me up to 3000+ feet.

I used this altitude to move back to the Thermal Factory, but there was absolutely no lift and I was getting low. I decided to head back, into the wind but I was not comfortable with the altitude I had to cross the power lines again. I managed to work my self around the spine of the antenna farm to get back out front, but there was nothing I could use to get back up so I opted to land on the road near the old gun range. The landing was a little squirrely as there was first a head wind then a tail wind and finally a cross wind. Landed like a feather on the right side of the road sort of on the side of the hill. Most everyone who did not get greedy and try to work back up from the antenna farm landed at Parma with plenty of altitude. Good thermals with plenty of sink mixed in.