The results.



The flight and task.



Similar forecast to the day before. We are looking for OD later in the day, with
isolated thunderstorms. The day starts with a blue sky and it stays that way
until a few clouds appear near noon. Very dangerous as it is an inviting sky
with the prognosis for dangerous conditions later.



We called a 142 km task south southeast to Attila's goal, a field just short of
the goal on the last day of last year where Attila landed short. We were not to
optimistic that we would be flying later in the day, but as soon as we got to
the field we set up in the beautiful conditions with the steady north 
wind.



We had an hour and fifteen minutes launch window before the first start time. We
had moved the start time earlier in order to be able to get as big a task window
as we could given the prognosis for OD later. With the 12 to 14 knot north wind
we should be able to get to goal in a little over two hours.



Pilots were ready to go at noon and with the sky beginning to fill up pilots
were able to climb up to cloud base at a little over 6,000' MSL. There were soon
cu's every where and pilots had to be sure to stay clear of the cu's and run
away from them as they got close. There was plenty of lift.



Ten minutes before the start window opened at 1:15 PM I moved to the southeast
of Forbes, found strong lift and got to cloud base with Blay and Jonny. It
turned out to be perfectly timed and I headed off with Jonny under the dark
clouds toward the course line. Blay heads further east and was going down
quickly, so the clouds looked like the ticket.



I stopped for 300+ fpm as Jonny moved on. He must have found something better,
as the next time I saw him he was a few hundred feet over my head. We all went
on glide and it was 16 km for me before at 1,400' AGL I found a weak thermal and
was on my own.



I had to pay some dues in this weak bunny and get myself back in the game. The
drift was good, down the course line, so I hung in there until I could make the
next clouds and not risk landing in the forest that was coming up.



The clouds were working and there were some fellow pilots around so I wasn't all
along after all. I climb to almost 7,000' with Steve Blenkinsop and then we went
on glide for the next 20 km getting down to 500' AGL. Jon Snr was on my right
and I saw him make a little slow non climbing turn as Steve headed east. I
turned back toward Jon and we worked the weak lift together. I found the better
core and Jon came back to me and we climbed out of there.



As we twirl up we look back and see the area that we just flew from. It was
black then, now it is dumping hard. This is the first cu-nimb that we see, but
soon there is another between us and the goal. It's not looking good.



Cu-nimbs make me nervous and I leave the lift running to get away from the bad
area behind us and hoping to find a path around the rain in front. The cu-nimb
it shooting out high clouds over us and the sunlight is disappearing from the
ground below. But the lift is still there.



I'm beginning to think that the day needs to be stopped if there are pilots
behind near the cu-nimb. I race ahead to get away from the front in front of the
cu-nimb as the lift continues and I stay at about 5,000' no matter how fast I
fly. Finally I hear that the task is stopped (and the stop time will be set back
ten minutes).



I keep racing to find sink and not until I see Lenny on the ground at a small
sailplane port do I find any sink. The landing conditions are very mellow and it
is only after we get everything broken down and in the bag that the rain comes.
We hide under the sailplane trailers.



Task Six:

 

#	Name	Nat	Glider	Dist.	Total
1	Attila Bertok	HUN	Moyes Litespeed S 5	113.6	900
2	Robert Reisinger	AUT	Moyes Litespeed RS 4	109.6	879
3	Jon Durand Jnr	AUS	Moyes Litespeed RS 3.5	108.9	875
4	Cameron Tunbridge	AUS	Airborne C4 14	106.6	857
5	Michael Friesenbichler	AUT	Moyes Litespeed S 3.5	103.8	835
6	Blay Olmos	ESP	Moyes Litespeed S 3.5	103.7	834
7	Gerolf Heinrichs	AUT	Moyes Litespeed RS 4	102.6	823
8	Scott Barrett	AUS	Airborne C4	102.0	817
9	Maxim Usachev	RUS	Aeros Combat L	101.7	815
9	Pedro Luis Garicia Morelli	ESP	Aeros Combat L 13.7	101.8	815
9	Curt Warren	AUS	Moyes Litespeed RS 4	101.8	815

Totals:

#	Name	Nat	Glider	Total
1	Blay Olmos	ESP	Moyes Litespeed S 3.5	5330
2	Jon Durand Jnr	AUS	Moyes Litespeed RS 3.5	5327
3	Attila Bertok	HUN	Moyes Litespeed S 5	4901
4	Michael Friesenbichler	AUT	Moyes Litespeed S 3.5	4671
5	Gerolf Heinrichs	AUT	Moyes Litespeed RS 4	4634
6	Chris Jones	AUS	Moyes Litespeed S 4	4536
7	Lukas Bader	DEU	Moyes Litespeed RS 4	4496
8	Pedro Luis Garicia Morelli	ESP	Aeros Combat L 13.7	4288
9	Maxim Usachev	RUS	Aeros Combat L	4177
10	Davis Straub	USA	Moyes Litesport 4	4091

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