Flattop on Saturday 4/16/16

[rlweber]

Took this pic going over the back from Flattop on Saturday. It was a short xc. I landed in Beldor Hollow for a straight line distance of 4 miles. I may have made it to the Shenandoah valley if I had not dithered looking for more height. Those trees are ominous....next time. Better to be on the ground than tree bound! My landing field is by my hand. A local gave me a ride to Elkton, the nearest town, where my driver picked me up.

The smoke to my left is the beginning of the Rocky Mount fire. It was first reported on Saturday. The fire now covers 5,600 acres. I live approx. 4 miles south/southwest of the Massanutten Peak. When the wind direction is right it smells like we are sitting on the downwind edge of a camp fire and the atmosphere becomes smokey. Check out the following url for most recent pics of the fire.

http://www.nbc29.com/story/31773841/upd ... 5600-acres

[rlweber]

Here is a video I made of my last flight at Flattop. It is a bit long, but I could not bring myself to cut more. Notice the turbulence and collapses experienced on the launch .Can you find Daniels and Parker's Mountain? Listen for Tom's radio call and note the forest fire. I also did not add a sound track because I thought the vario beeps made a great sound track. The whole flight was a thermal flight. When I examined the track log I saw that I left too much lift "on the table". I was too optimistic. I also think the trees intimidated me. The downwind landing is exciting. Learning is what makes this sport fun.

https://youtu.be/Bcv0bgtKeC4

Randy

[rlweber]

Here is a new link to the video.

https://youtu.be/Bcv0bgtKeC4

Randy