The air field dried out enough by noon that we were able to get
through a gate and on a gravel road at the south end of our launch area between
the paved runway and our hangars. The
cu's started popping before noon and were building up as we got out to the
field.

Curt Warren and Jonny Durand are teaching a cross country clinic with four
pilots each. There are another maybe twenty pilots here free flying (waiting for
the competition) using the
resources provided by Moyes, four Dragonfly tugs. If the winds pick up maybe
there will be an effort to set records. A few pilots are here to qualify for an aerotow
endorsement.

The pilots got off soon after 1 PM. Cloud base was between 6,500' and later at
7,000'. With a 7 to 9 mph wind out of the north the cloud streets lined up
perfectly. The students did an out and return course heading first to the north
32 km and then coming back.  They all made it back. A perfect day for a
first day of a cross country course.

I found that the lift was super smooth (all the wet ground?) and strong and the
cu's marked the obvious sources.

I'm flying a Moyes RS 3.5, for the first time in three years. At first it felt
"big" which I assume is due to the span. That gave way quickly. The VG is easy
to pull, but it takes a lot of cord to make it easy. I found it very comfortable
to go all the way with the VG and fly fast.

The glider flew straight at 55 mph with minimal effort on the base tube. I'm
flying the glider that Jonny flew at the pre-Worlds.

I'm flying in a Wills Wing/Jeff Shapiro Covert harness for the first time. I'm still
adjusting if for comfort. One thing that was very cool was that it didn't rock
up when I pulled in and went 55 mph. That has not been true of any other harness
that I've flown with before.

I have to loosen the shoulder straps a bit more. The harness is very comfortable
other than the shoulders at the moment. I have almost a week to get comfortable
with it and the glider before the competition begins.