32.881678,-111.854982,Francisco Grande, Casa Grande, Arizona,
USA

http://soaringspot.com/2010scfr/

http://www.santacruzflatsrace.blogspot.com/

http://www.jonnydurand.blogspot.com/

http://www.willswing.com/blogs/PilotBlogs/tabid/38/Default.aspx

http://westcoastbrit.blogspot.com/

The RUC and NAM forecasts were aligned and both predicted much more lift than we
eventually found during the day. We did not get 700 to 800 fpm, and we did not
get to 9,000'. Well, Bunner got to almost 8,000'.

Unlike the day before, there was lift right in front of the launch do it was
easy to pin off at 1,300' and climb up. Better lift a little to the north marked
by Jim Yocom, so I moved in under him and climbed to 4,500'.

The task start cylinder was an entry start cylinder of twenty four kilometers
around the Cornman turnpoint to the east of Casa Grande. After getting up I
followed Dustin over to the northeast to get upwind of the course line. We found
lift out near the airfield and climbed to 6,300' but took the second start time
from 5,800'.

On the glide from the edge of the start cylinder I followed Dustin a bit to his
south. Shapiro was south of us. Half a dozen pilots were spread out on glide
heading for the first turnpoint, obviously, twenty four kilometers away, to the
east.

No lift after six kilometers. Dustin kept going but I stopped for something that
turned out to be 28 fpm. The next thermal was 18 fpm. I headed south with
another pilot to a shopping center and found 160 fpm to 4,500'. Dustin came in
under me but Jeff stayed in the previous (18 fpm) thermal that got stronger (or
they found a better part of it). We climbed 500' higher than us.

The next five kilometer glide put me down to fourteen hundred AGL, but I was
able to climb out at 140 fpm (jeez, where is that good lift) to 4000'. Dustin
and Jeff kept going and didn't find any lift.

It was a seven kilometer glide to the next thermal just north of the turnpoint
down to 600'. I heard from Joe Bostik that he was just seven kilometers behind
me at 4,000' having started twenty minutes later.

Being this low was tough and then Jonny Durand came over me by 200'. I didn't
see him but he knew that we both were low as were a number of other pilots below
me. We suffered for eight minutes getting no where when Jonny spotted some birds
going up upwind that I didn't see (and I was watching for birds and had seen a
bunch doing nothing at this spot) moved upwind and found 600 fpm while I
struggled in zero one kilometer east of him.

I drifted past the turnpoint low not realizing that I had missed it and had to
go back and get it after I finally got up to 3,400' in 93 fpm.  After
nicking the turnpoint I didn't find lift until down to 250' where I stuck around
in zero sink long enough to get to a nice landing field, after not getting up.

A while after I landed I heard form Bostik that he was at 6,500' at the
mountains just to the east. Bunner was with him having thermaled up from 300'
AGL over an unlandable area (cactus). Larry eventually climbed to over 7,000' on
the mountain and after finding even better lift by the second turnpoint further
east won that day (no one made goal).

Joe made it back to the Picacho Peak, but was unwilling to risk going on the
windward side where there were few if any landing areas. He drifted back in the
headwind to land near the freeway.

Another tough day.