The Bunner's down under, again

[hang_pilot]

He made goal on a 308km (191 mi) task, the second longest called and made in competition.

http://www.forbesflatlands.com/index.html

Awesome, Larry!

~Daniel

[lbunner]

Hey all, Sue and I just completed the first half of two competitions at Forbes this year. I managed to get my new T2C and Covert harness here with no issues in fact it only cost me $200. We short packed the glider and put a suction cup rack in the luggage. We rented a Toyota Corolla in Sydney and put the rack on the front. We ran two ratchet straps through some rolled up blue camping foam and then place the foam and straps over the roof. One strap went through the back doors and one through the front. We cinched up the straps real tight, put the glider on the roof and rack and strapped the glider down to the straps that were holding the foam to the roof. No worries!!

Got my first flight on the new glider and harness on Friday and did a 3 hour out and return for 70 km. The glider flew great and the harness was a little tight length wise so minor adjustments and I would be good to go. The first day of the comp was Sunday, there was a chance of thunderstorms. I got up off tow but quickly drifted out of the start circle. T storms were building in the area to the south and west of course line but were far enough off not to worry. Davis left before the first start so I followed about 10 minutes later. The objective was to get as far down the course as possible in the event the task was stopped. I hit the first turnpoint and rode a nice thermal up just short ofcloudbase (8750' msl, 8000' agl). There was a T storm dumping rain 10 miles to the WNW and beautiful clear skies to the NE on course line. Davis radioed to the meet director that things were fine out in front of us however 10 minutes later they stopped the task as the T storm had filled in directly on the course line. I ended up with 1:55 and 75km however the day was not scored as the window was not open long enoughto be considered valid. Too bad cuz we were in the lead!
Day 2 was cancelled due to threat of storms although they never materialized.
Day 3 the task committee called a 168km kind of triangle with a 3rd turnpoint. I flew well but pushed too hard early on the course and ended up getting low on four occasions (600' agl) that really slowed me down. Eventually I got high again and decided to take my time to ensure I completed the task rather than race. I made goal and finished 22nd. I was in the air for 5:46 really flying myself into shape.
Day 4 the task committee calls another 100 plus mile day (163km) this one a zig zag course with a little mountain flying put in. I tok the third start with others and again pushed too hard out in front (will I ever learn?). Worked back up from 600' just before the first mountains, hit the Grenfell turnpoint in the mountains and headed back the same direction toward the 2nd turnpoint of Eugowra. I flew all the way to the end of the mountains and hills before getting back up. Just short of Eugowra I hit 100 fpm on the averager and topped out at 9500' before getting the turnpoint and then heading back into the mountains again. I took a bad line and sank out rapidly heading toward a small ridge before the flats again. I ridge soared like I was at the Pulpit and eventually connected with a thermal that got me back up and then on into goal. Flew better today but finished 23rd due to the two low saves again. I'll send more later when I get time.

[John Simon]

Go Bun!!
New harness, sweet. Guessing some yellow involved? I am jealous as usual and following along best I can. Davis is slacking a bit so thanks for the update. We are suffering here in MD with another cold winter, the hardy among us (others) fly some but not this bum. Maybe a Florida trip soon? I had fun in October at Lookout, but so long ago.

I am watching you and expect results so back to work and all the ass-kicking possible. Have fun Larry! Hi to Sue from Heather and I.

John

[Dan T]

Way to go Larry!

We are all flying vicariously through you. This has been a long cold winter already here in DC. Your posts are keeping us warm.

John, I'm retiring the end of Feb. I could be up for a Florida trip shortly after that. Let me know if that works.

Dan

[XCanytime]

Not taking anything away from Larry, but some hardy Hang IIs eager to learn new skills aren't waiting for mamby pamby land conditions . What happened to the Delta I used to know . Bacil

[lbunner]

Day 5 the big one! The task committee calls a 318 km task with two turnpoints to keep us near roads. The day was soft initially with climbs in the 300 fpm range to 6000’ however there were good clouds to use as markers. As it heated up the climbs got stronger (600 fpm) and higher (7000’). I was with pilots initially but chose to take a line of clouds to the south of course line getting as far as 10 km off course. I had to eventually cross streets to get back on track and was down to 2000’ before connecting with a thermal just before a green mountainous area. The lift was very good here and I climbed to cloudbase several times to almost 9000’. All the clouds dried up after the mountains and it looked like things might get tough. The first climb in the blue was slow but I was now with five other gliders. We helped each other out and slowly climbed back up from 5000’ to 9000’. We clicked off the next 50 km to the last turnpoint as other gliders converged on the same line. After the turnpoint I entered a thermal with 13 other gliders 170 miles from launch. How cool is that. A couple more climbs and long glides and 5 of us dove into goal. I lagged behind staying high to ensure I made it. I remember “Yoda” Glover telling me last September that it is better to make goal a few seconds later than others than to not make goal at all. I ended up 30 seconds behind the first in our group and only scored 2 fewer points. 12th for the day and 18th overall in the first comp. So far I have accumulated over 22 hours in 5 days of flying here. This place has possibly the best flying conditions in the world! On to the next comp, the Steve Hocking Memorial here at Forbes also.

[John Simon]

Nice Job Larry. Still Jealous.

Dan... Congrats! Great to here... again, jealous. Not sure when we will go but I'll let you know when I find out the date.

John

[Dave Proctor]

Check out the USHPA pilot rankings, link in the Oz Report. Larry is #1 ranked US pilot. Early in the season but still AWESOME.