Is WS Wave for U?

[Spark]

New topic to kick around:

How many of us aspire to fly in the Woodstock wave?

Yes there is lift out there, but there is significant turbulence too.

There is also the distinct possibility of not penetrating ...

Is this a risk that we can adequately assess and manage?

If so, then can anyone share ideas on how best to use wave at WS in a hang glider?

'Spark

[Dan T]

There are a few pilots who do this regularly so clearly it can be done and probably safely. In my one experience in wave I was fortunate to intersect the smooth rising air and avoid the notorious turbulence. I also recall a great deal of difficulty penetrating to the West.

In the right circumstance it would be a treat to fly it again. That requires catching it well away from the ridge so there is little chance of getting pinned against the mountains, having clear exit routes down with plenty of bailout landing fields, and ideally teaming in radio contact with someone who has done it several times before.

My one experience was among the most exhilerating and terrifying flights of my career. The terrifying part was getting whited out as the clouds closed in all around me. That's not a situation I care to repeat.

Dan T

[mcelrah]

So, assuming one's glider speed enables staying on the leading/rising side of a wave, one thing to do is to crab NE/SW as if on a mountain ridge, right? Cause if you turn downwind, you may get hammered. But Nelson wrote that he had maneuvered (downwind, presumably) through several lift/sink zones, speeding through the sink, I guess, and turning into the wind to stay in the lift. I guess the trick is to find a day with relatively gently wave conditions... - Hugh

[Flying Lobster]

I don't know about Nelson's flight--but on the day I tried to actually use the wave amplitudes to jump and go XC I topped out thousands of feet above the clouds--it was very easy to tell where the approximate amplitudes descended down through the lenticular formations below. I don't recall violent turbulence until descending down through the clouds--my guess is that there is a "dumping" of air mass at the bottom of the amplitude and that possibly smoother air is encountered when gliding from the apex of lift.

Danny B--what have your's and other sailplane pilots observed--since I assume you guys have far more experience with wave in the area?

marc