Conditions: frontal passage, 10-15 with gusts (Kelvin measured a 34 mph gust with a Kestrel in the slot, I measured one to 25 from the top of the tower with a Halls). Several highly experienced pilots elected not to fly. Mark C. launched first at about 3:45, cleanly, and reported no problems in the air. The four remaining pilots started looking at eachother: it was too strong for the last pilot to launch solo, so somebody had to not fly. Tom McGowan was the gentleman, claimed to be rejecting the conditions. John Middleton and Randy Weber helped me get in position and reported neutral on both wings. As I started my launch run, the wind seemed to be on top of the wing pushing down on my shoulders. Also, I was being pushed to the right of the normal ground track. It all happened so fast, but I imagine I pushed out a bit to get the wind under the wing, which it did, but first and stronger under the left wing. I was immediately helicoptered up, but also rolled and turned to the right. I got a much better view of the trees than I wanted. (John said I went BETWEEN the trees on the right side of the slot.) I was very much a passenger, holding on the the left downtube for dear life to get back to level flight, but certainly not in control of my trajectory. It was a race between rapid altitude gain and displacement to the right that determined whether I went in the trees. Through pure dumb luck, the elevator won. I think I heard John say "take it slowly" on the radio, meaning to resist the impulse to land immediately and kiss the ground (cow pies in the LZ), but fly for awhile and calm down so as not to blow the landing as well. I elevatored up to about 800 over, then pulled on 3/4 VG and penetrated out to the LZ to get out of the lift band. Once I was sure I could get down, I went back to the ridge to regain altitude, but sunset was approaching. Randy had hesitated after my miserable performance, but determined conditions were still acceptable and launched. Mark, I and Randy landed in rapid succession (my landing was actually pretty good).
My apologies to all concerned for putting them at risk of having to respond to an emergency. Clearly, this was a shot across my bows - a chance to learn and improve my judgment without having to pay the price of broken bones and equipment. The first lesson, of course, is not to launch in strong conditions. Problem was, it appeared to be launchable - we were more worried about turbulence aloft and getting blown over the back. As Bacil pointed out on the CHGA list, I need to take more time to pick the moment to launch. Also, I will add tape to my right down tube for better traction on my slippery windbreaker to get better roll control on launch (the left one already has tape to cover the radio PTT wiring). As I drove home, I considered all the reasons I have to stay alive and not just let shit happen... - Hugh
Woodstock Saturday: ugly, scary, no-good, verybad launch!!!
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- silverwings
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Was a close call for Hugh
As he started his run, the right wing dropped some (not extreme) and since the general wind direction was crossing some from the left it added to him turning right. I did not see an aggressive correction to the left but the elevator help him fly between two trees and clear it. Once he was clear I radioed him to relax and calm down. Whew!
- john middleton
- john middleton
A couple more things to consider when launching from
Woodstock in strong conditions:
1.) Your objective is to get away from the slot/trees/mtn
with alacrity. The lift band will be *way* out there,
no way are you going to sled! So fly out with
'good' speed (sorry, I've never looked at my
airspeed indicator during that portion of flight, can't
be objective), concentrate on a clean line, and don't
even _think_ about turning!
You may be surprised by the degree to which 'muscle memory'
tries to subvert your intentions.
2.) You won't need as much running room, so consider taking
several significant steps down into the slot. This gets
you well away from those two big rocks on the left & right,
and any spoiled airflow they may be causing.
3.) Strong winds can cause air to dump/rotor down into the
slot, which can cause your wing to "feel heavy" on launch.
The streamers may all look ok... and you may be sorely tempted
to go for it, especially if the lulls are rare and your vehicle
is in the LZ But don't get suckered! Do not launch unless you
can feel that there's some lift under your wing. If anything feels
weird/different, set it down!
There are no guarantees : you can find yourself in a jam on a strong
day even with the best of technique and judgement. This is where
your individual decision about risk level comes into play....
If you *do* decide to fly on such a day, then you for darn-sure
should have a launch/flight-plan in mind that addresses the
challenges the strong winds pose (both general and site-specific).
About my own flight on Saturday: In concentrating on (1), I felt that
I over-controlled a bit as I exited the slot, which led to a little
bit of oscillation. Nothing radical... but... suppose a huge gust
had hit me at just the wrong moment? Could have turned something minor
into something major. And we're back to personal decisions about
risk levels aren't we?
As it turned out, I had a very fun flight, maybe 35 minutes or so,
topping out at about 1000' over. During the stronger cycles, I was
flying at 1/2-VG with the bar at upper-chest (on a U2). Conditions
were mostly smooth, but with some really major sink at times. Sunset was
beautiful : Woodstock, the valley, and the foothills all illuminated
by the magical shallow-angle light of the sun as it peeked out from
beneath a low-lying deck of clouds. The shadowed side of the mountains
a distinct smoky bluish-purple. Got out away from the mountain and
put the glider up on a tip, just so I could spin in the sunset rays.
Wow, not bad for mid-January!
--mark c.
Woodstock in strong conditions:
1.) Your objective is to get away from the slot/trees/mtn
with alacrity. The lift band will be *way* out there,
no way are you going to sled! So fly out with
'good' speed (sorry, I've never looked at my
airspeed indicator during that portion of flight, can't
be objective), concentrate on a clean line, and don't
even _think_ about turning!
You may be surprised by the degree to which 'muscle memory'
tries to subvert your intentions.
2.) You won't need as much running room, so consider taking
several significant steps down into the slot. This gets
you well away from those two big rocks on the left & right,
and any spoiled airflow they may be causing.
3.) Strong winds can cause air to dump/rotor down into the
slot, which can cause your wing to "feel heavy" on launch.
The streamers may all look ok... and you may be sorely tempted
to go for it, especially if the lulls are rare and your vehicle
is in the LZ But don't get suckered! Do not launch unless you
can feel that there's some lift under your wing. If anything feels
weird/different, set it down!
There are no guarantees : you can find yourself in a jam on a strong
day even with the best of technique and judgement. This is where
your individual decision about risk level comes into play....
If you *do* decide to fly on such a day, then you for darn-sure
should have a launch/flight-plan in mind that addresses the
challenges the strong winds pose (both general and site-specific).
About my own flight on Saturday: In concentrating on (1), I felt that
I over-controlled a bit as I exited the slot, which led to a little
bit of oscillation. Nothing radical... but... suppose a huge gust
had hit me at just the wrong moment? Could have turned something minor
into something major. And we're back to personal decisions about
risk levels aren't we?
As it turned out, I had a very fun flight, maybe 35 minutes or so,
topping out at about 1000' over. During the stronger cycles, I was
flying at 1/2-VG with the bar at upper-chest (on a U2). Conditions
were mostly smooth, but with some really major sink at times. Sunset was
beautiful : Woodstock, the valley, and the foothills all illuminated
by the magical shallow-angle light of the sun as it peeked out from
beneath a low-lying deck of clouds. The shadowed side of the mountains
a distinct smoky bluish-purple. Got out away from the mountain and
put the glider up on a tip, just so I could spin in the sunset rays.
Wow, not bad for mid-January!
--mark c.
Someone asked me what I meant by 'muscle memory' and I realized
I wasn't clear about that at all. So a couple more comments....
Most of the time we don't actually fly in strong conditions.
So flight after flight, at site after site, we all tend to turn as soon
as possible, to stay in the lift band. Even on moderate days... who
wants to risk sinking out, right?
In my flying, I've noticed that this engrained, habitual pattern of
behavior sometimes interferes with a conscious decision on my part
to turn at a later time than usual. Eg, when it's strong.
It's blowing hard... I've recognized this... I've decided what my flight
plan is.... but geez! Look at that! I just put in a little bit of a
roll input, didn't I? What the heck? Darn sneaky subconscious!
I haven't been burned by this, but it has definitely gotten my
attention over the past year or so. I've got to break out of
the 'ho-hum, same-old-same-old, another launch at Xyz' mindset,
at least with regards to that initial turn.
I don't really know if others have noticed something similar. But
thought I'd mention it anyway, esp. given that strong wind launches
are so unforgiving of mistakes.
Fly safe!
[/u]
I wasn't clear about that at all. So a couple more comments....
Most of the time we don't actually fly in strong conditions.
So flight after flight, at site after site, we all tend to turn as soon
as possible, to stay in the lift band. Even on moderate days... who
wants to risk sinking out, right?
In my flying, I've noticed that this engrained, habitual pattern of
behavior sometimes interferes with a conscious decision on my part
to turn at a later time than usual. Eg, when it's strong.
It's blowing hard... I've recognized this... I've decided what my flight
plan is.... but geez! Look at that! I just put in a little bit of a
roll input, didn't I? What the heck? Darn sneaky subconscious!
I haven't been burned by this, but it has definitely gotten my
attention over the past year or so. I've got to break out of
the 'ho-hum, same-old-same-old, another launch at Xyz' mindset,
at least with regards to that initial turn.
I don't really know if others have noticed something similar. But
thought I'd mention it anyway, esp. given that strong wind launches
are so unforgiving of mistakes.
Fly safe!
[/u]