The Three Musketeers @ Skyport

From: Dan
Activity_Date: 11/26/01
Remote Name: 24.8.188.224

Comments

With Debbie reporting winds OTB all morning long who would have guessed that it would turn out to be a great day. Around 11:45 Debbie was finally reporting NNE winds at 6. I called Ron F., Tom B. and Bob H. Bob was tied up. We hooked up at 12:15 and took Ron's car to launch. Ron was first off and went straight up at launch. He took the altitude to the R&R but came back complaining of roudy air. I was having a harder time finding the lift that Ron used up just eariler, but finally connected with a stronger core out front of launch. After that I went up and the drift was from the North. It was almost like a convergence out by the Holy Hills and there I topped out at 4800'. You could see from Pt. Conception to Port Hueneme and over the top to Mt, Figueroa as clear as it gets. So nice. I said I was going to the beach and that is all it took to convince Ron and Tom. Ron was about three minutes behind me getting to the beach and about 200-300' below. He showed us the wrong way to land (downwind) so Tom and I made very easy landings.

Andy D. was roller blading by and gave Ron and Tom a ride to Parma and a good friend of mine was by 15 min. later to do the same for me. Not long flights but it doesn't get any more wonderful.

Sigma 5 notes: The wing is more demanding than the Epsilon but not so much that I am over my head. Turns are much more efficient, and the amount of brake travel to make a turn is half of what would be required on the Epsilon. In moderately turb air, the wing does not balk at the upwind leg of a turn. I feel the air more but the wing does not give you the impression it is flying you, rather the Sigma has the trait of the Epsilon of feeling stable. The glide is fantastic. Normally my sink rate is 2.5-2.8'/ sec and with the Sigma is is 1.8-1.9'/sec in calm air.