http://ozreport.com/2014BigSpringNationals.php

http://soaringspot.com/2014bsn/

http://airtribune.com/bigspring2014/blog#!day_7

Replay: http://airtribune.com/play/279/2d

With the scores very tight after six days of flying the task committee had to
call a real and difficult task while still making the retrieves reasonably quick
to get us back in time for the closing awards at 11 PM.

They decided on a zig and a zag up to Lamesa:

This is how tight things were:

The totals after six tasks:

1.	Turner Derreck	USA	Moyes Litespeed S5	4969.05
2.	Majors Zac	USA	Wills Wing T2C 144	4813.33
3.	Bilyk Michael	USA	Moyes Litespeed RX 3.5	4761.94
4.	Barmakian Bruce	USA	Wills Wing T2C 136	4719.77
5.	Hamilton Robin	USA	Moyes Litespeed RX 3.5	4709.43
6.	Straub Davis	USA	Wills Wing T2 - 144	4693.75
7.	Opsanger Olav	NOR	Moyes Litespeed RX 3.5	4579.74

I held on on tow and Jonny Thompson dragged me to a 400 fpm
thermal to the west of the airport. Later he would thermal the Dragonfly with
the engine off from 2,000' to 10,000' where he had to get down because he was
not dressed for 42 degrees. (I wore 6 layers each day and had the hood from the
Flytec speed sleeves on).

The wind was 16 to 18 mph out of the south southeast so the last leg would prove
to be a bit difficult. Of course, the point was to find strong lift, get high
and overcome the wind.

We were able to start again near cloud base. Zac, again was a little higher and
soon got out in front of me. There wasn't much good lift until we got close to
Ackerly, the first turnpoint, twenty nine kilometers past the edge of the start
cylinder. Zac and Greg Kendall were circling above me and although the lift was
not as strong as I expected (it averaged 400 fpm) we had a good reason to stay
there waiting to get high enough to make it to the next widely spaced cu.
Derreck and Bruce came in under me and we hung there until I left first at
10,000'.

I wasn't at all concerned with flying with any one as there were plenty of cu's ahead
and I wanted a chance to catch Zippy ahead. The next thermal was much better and
averaged almost 800 fpm. I saw 1000+ fpm on the vario for long stretches. Nice
and smooth also.

I caught a brief glimpse of Bruce in the next thermal then lost him for the rest
of the flight. Derreck came under me for the next couple of thermals and I ran
away from him as fast as I could but appreciated the help finding the better
cores as he was not too far below me.

As I approached the 35 km radius turnpoint cylinder there was plenty of strong
lift and Derreck came in under again. I found the better core and out climbed him
taking the turnpoint south (upwind) of the non optimized course line and much
further south of the optimized course line (to keep myself upwind on the last
leg).

I went back toward where I got up but to the north where there were still good
cu's and didn't find the lift I had been in. Derreck would take a little bit
more southerly route and find stronger lift.

There was a set of clouds perpendicular to the winds along half the course line
toward Lamesa. I got under them 30 km from goal. I was 5 km ahead of Derreck but
he was 2,500' higher after taking the turnpoint. He got 2 km ahead as we topped
out in separate thermals 20 km from goal at 10,000'.

I was a little more cautious getting into goal and came in third after Zac and
Derreck.

Zac won the day and the meet (by 11 point) by flying fast and getting to goal 11
minutes faster than Derreck. Twenty pilots in goal so the wind didn't cause all
but a couple of pilots a problem on the last leg.