Woodstock Saturday

[eggzkitz]

Great conditions today. After a very late start (left house at 12:30) and some delays in getting to launch (traffic on I-66), I launched about 3 and zoomed up to cloud base at 6k. Headed east, eventually crossing Shenandoahs and skyline near Dickies then continued on to just past Hume after about 40km. Landed voluntarily at 4:30 in order to get home for 6 pm BBQ with family. Lift was really nice and gracious and plentiful. Gorgeous day.

An aside, I was anti-carpet, but Woodstock is really tricky with the rocks right now. I basically fell out of the slot tripping on rocks in what was anything but a smooth launch. Hope the new slot plan comes through...

Another aside, I took some enormous heckling and grief from some hams on the radio who thought I was a ham freq pirate. I gave them my call sign and signed off, but they were really territorial about the whole thing. 146.475 is not the freq of choice...

[Alex from Hawaii]

Jeff! Alex here, from Hawaii. Nice flight! Clouds looked incredible in northern Virginia but I wasn't free to chase it today. Are you going out again tomorrow? Would love to hook up.

Alex
703-821-2359 or 808-223-0144

[mingram]

That's awesome! Congrats! I took off first after 12:30 at High Point in Cumberland, MD and got to 6k and went on glide and landed on top of a ridge. Silly decision chasing a thermal when I should have just gone downwind. I got my wing stuck in a tree, but got it out undamaged I think. Had a long hike out and long wait for a ride, but eventually got a ride all the way to launch. Most people got 2 flights. I flew 14k and 1 hour. Way too short for the effort, but it's a beautiful site, beautiful grassy launch and we all can't wait to come back.

How did the rest do at Woodstock?

[eggzkitz]

Alex from Hawaii, as in Alex Colby from Oahu?

Hey! Long time. I hate to say it, but today was my only shot at it and tomorrow looks pretty dodgy with 60% chance OD/TS. Based on the forecast right now, I don't think you'll find anywhere to fly within 2 hours of here tomorrow.

Sorry I missed you today. Still got my 808 number, but man I miss HI.

Good luck in Medford. Tell Hoffman hello if you see him. I'm out this year for Rat Race, but hope to be back next year.

Aloha,
Jeff

[Alex from Hawaii]

Yeah, Jeff, that's what I suspected, based on a limited understanding of mainland forecasts. Glad the timing worked out for you and others today! Maybe I'll sneak out from work over the next few days.

Doug said he might stop by the Rat Race this year. We haven't seen him on Oahu in a while. He's been killing the flatland flights in Washington though.

See you soon I hope, or maybe at Rat Race next year,

Alex

[CraginS]

Saturday 6/15 night about 8:15, we (wife, daughter, and I) were driving up I-81 returning from a week in Tennessee. We spotted two hot air balloons in the sky, on the west side of I-81, opposite Edinburg. I'd guess they were 1 to 1.5 K agl. I could almost make out the colors of the lower one. Did any Woodstock pilots spot that added aerial activity in the late afternoon? Was fun to see them floating along.