*POSTPONED*: Pulpit FlyIn/Summer meeting July 14th/15th 2012

[mingram]

Reminder that this event is only 2 weeks away! You know the drill. Camping, flying, cookout, CHGPA meeting, and more. More details soon...

Matt

[davidtheamazing1]

Featuring:
* Fantastic views (suitable for spectating and photography)
* 2 days to fly with the birds (certified P2+, H2+ rated pilots)
* Observer(s) for beginner (P2, H2) pilots
* Sat night potluck party
* CHGPA Summer Meeting
* Saturday Night Campout (Friday camp-out Optional)
(sure bets: campfire, stilt walking, frisbee, guitar pickin, etc)
* scenic drives through the Allegheny range
* Renew your club membership or sign-up to officially join!
* Donate to support a Woodstock slot cleanup/renovation

Due to the unpredictability of the weather, if you are spectating, please make sure you check in with a pilot and have the contact info. We may change the flying venues during the event to accommodate wind forecasts.
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Schedule:
Friday night camp-out (optional)

Saturday
Launches are usually between 11am until 4:30pm
Party: starts at 6:30
Camp-out

Sunday
Breakfast
Launches are usually between 11am until 4:30pm
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RSVP here!
and/or on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/events/197325230396496/

We are going to go pot-luck style, so please say what you are bringing...

food & drink:
Main courses
Sides
Dessert
Beer
Wine
Sodas
Other

Some special requests:
Lantern
Extra table
Plates/Napkins/cups/etc

If everybody pitches in, we can have a great party, do some flying, and show how much we value free flight.

Lots more general info on the club website:
http://www.chgpa.org/HGFest/hgfest.html

[davidtheamazing1]

Update: Peter H will be offering PG Tandems! Please spread the word to anyone you know who would be willing and able to enjoy a tandem lesson for a reasonable cost. (weather permitting)

[eggzkitz]

I'm in for both days. My family will be out of town, so I'll probably be up for camping.

[CraginS]

Y'all have a great time! Regrettably, I'll be down in Arkansas visiting family from the 10th to the 17th. Really hate missing our Pulpit Moveable Feast.
Let's hope MarkC doesn't emulate The Great San Diego Fireworks Fail.

[jyoder111]

I'll be out of town also. I really enjoyed the last two fly-ins even when the conditions weren't great for soaring. Bummed that I'll miss it this year.

Jesse

[Jammerwocky]

Hi - This sounds great! I'd love to come along and meet some local pilots. I'm brand new to paragliding - don't know if I can make it early enough to launch, but I'll definitely come out for the party with plates, cups, and napkins in tow.

Can I get an address for the Pulpit launch? That is, if it's not available via a few more exploratory clicks around the website.

-Jamel

[mingram]

Cool Jamel! Google Mountain House Restaurant PA. Launch is within walking distance.

Matt

[kcarra]

Karen and I are in!

Will bring wine and a veggie pasta salad.

Matthew

[Dan T]

Jamel,

Come on out. We will be glad to meet you. What are you flying?

Our set up and launch area is just a couple hundred yards down the dirt road that runs alongside the restaurant that Matt mentioned in an earleir post. The restaurant (biker bar) is right at the summit of Rt 30 on the Eastern edge of McConnellsburg PA. It's easy to find.

Dan

[Brit_in_SoMD]

Howdy folks

Hope y'all are all well and have had more flying than me so far this year.
Looking forward to fly-in fun again this year.
My wife's coming with me this year - i think she'll be up for a PG tandem ride.
We'll be truck camping.
Planning to arrive mid/late Friday afternoon, depending on the traffic on our trek up from SoMD.
Will post back to declare pot-luck offerings.

Richard

P.S. If we get there and the wind is off, who'd be some good folks to call to find out where everyone's at?

[mingram]

Hey Richard! Good to hear from you. I'd watch this thread for updates about flying on Friday. I'll PM you Peter Humes' number regarding PG Tandems and he can also clue you in on weather. The early forecast is that the wind will be East which favors Bill's Hill which is 20-30 minutes passed the Pulpit.

Matt
804.399.5155

[markc]

Although I don't know much about the plans for this year's Fly-In, here is a bare-bones webpage that contains a lot of helpful information about the event, including directions to alternate sites:

The 2012 Hang Gliding and Paragliding Festival at The Pulpit

Looking back on the history of the event, this is the 30th anniversary of the purchase of the Pulpit, the 20th anniversary of the Fly-In, and the 10th anniversary of the first participation by PG pilots! See the 2002 Photo Essay for a fun look back on the Fly-In of 10 years ago.

For new and/or visiting pilots : Please be aware that restricted airspace P-40 lies downwind and OTB about 29 miles from The Pulpit. You REALLY don't want to bust that airspace, unless you enjoy being forced to land by fighter jets. Not to mention the possible consequences for the entire flying community. So please, if you have any questions or concerns, please talk to any of the local pilots who knows the scoop!

MarkC

[Dan T]

Matt Ingram has asked me if I can bring the grill from High Rock to the Pulpit. I have access to a truck and can pick the grill up Saturday morning. I'll probably need help getting it into the truck so I'm asking someone to meet me in the High Rock LZ sometime around 11:00 AM Saturday morning.

Can anyone tell me if it's charcoal or gas?

As things stand I cannot stay Sunday. Someone else will need to return it on Sunday or assist me Saturday night after the festivities. There is also a chance that I have to leave town suddenly later this week. While it is not a high likelihood it is a definite possibility. I'd greatly appreciate it if someone could back me up in the event I cannot make it.

Any volunteers?

Thanks,
Dan

[mingram]

It's a red charcoal grill that disassembles without tools. Just need a large garbage bag to hold the dirty bits. As for returning, we will likely use it for the High Rock fly-in later this year, but there are also other grills at High Rock. We could leave it at the Pulpit under the shed disassembled.

Matt

[Matthew]

So do we have a head count for the fly-in?

Sunday is looking West!

Maybe enough West for late Saturday too....


Matthew

[davidtheamazing1]

I'm coming. Will bring a dessert.

Also will have 2-3 Nephews who want to camp out, drive retrieve and mostly fly tandem with Peter H.

[sailin]

Unfortunately I can't make it to the Fly-In......work Saturday and off to Baltimore for a class on Sunday. Hope you all ahve a great time and get some nice flying in.

Jon

[dbodner]

I think I have to bow out. Suffering from sciatica (probably caught from John M.).

I'll still be in between pain killers during that time, so my normal sarcasm will be magnified into full-tilt hostility. It's probably best if the world remains unaware of that side of me.

[flying_story]

I am in State College, PA, for a workshop this week and will get to the Pulpit around 5pm Friday. I would love to be in touch with pg observers in the event that it's flyable on Friday.

Judy

[eggzkitz]

The forecast is not so hot for Pulpit (or Bills) on Saturday, slightly more optimistic about Sunday, but the OD potential still looks high. Hoping for a shift in the forecast. Start working your magic Bacil!

[XCanytime]

All the magic in the world can't undo the fact that the weekend forecast is non-ideal for any flying at all. Saturday a tad east of south winds and Sunday a tad west of south winds and potential for t-storms each day, more so on Sunday. Back in the "old" days we held the Pulpit fly-in around the middle of September each year. The weather patterns at that time of year are more in tune with flying at the Pulpit. Bacil

[eggzkitz]

Agreed on this weekend, although I am still confused by what I see as a divergent set of systemic discussions/maps and the local forecasts... I had been expecting a better ridge of semi-high pressure this weekend.

Perhaps the fly-in would be better positioned later in the summer/early Fall. If too late for shifting for 2012, a consideration for 2013?

[mingram]

Not having Fisher Road as a S/SE option really limits our options for flying in PA on Saturday. That site is closed due to no LZ and attempts at pleading with the land owner have been so far unsuccessful.

The Sunday wind forecast may be ok for the Pulpit, but Peter Humes was only available for tandems on Friday/Saturday.

I favor postponing the fly-in. Alternatively we have a south facing site called Daniels in Stanardsville, VA. That site looks possible for Saturday and we could even organize a work party to help clean it up since the weeds have grown into trees!, but it's still launchable with a light base wind. Tom Ceunen has a load of carpet ready to lay down at Daniels so we could help get that done at the same time.

The forecast could also work for Taylor Hill on Saturday - a training hill near Fredericksburg, VA. This site is open to all members (ok for students without ratings), but requires a waiver (print it out and bring it with you).

Matt

[Dan T]

As others have noted the forecast does not look promising for this weekend. Since this is an informal fly in without much if any participation by out-of-area pilots, perhaps postponing it for a month or so would be the best option. I know we'd all like to actually fly at our fly in.

I think the reason the organizers picked mid-July was because the Spring and Fall alternatives appeared to conflict with other fly ins, particularly the Hick Rock one. Under the circumstances it might be better to move it to the late summer or early fall anyway.

Unless things change I'm going to pass. It's over 300 miles round trip for me and too far to drive with little or no chance to fly.

Dan