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Sunny
YCAB Saturday |
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03-Aug-13 |
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From: Garrett
Russell
Date: Sun, Aug 4, 2013 at 8:53 AM
Subject: Sunny (but small) Saturday at YCAB
To: cgcmemlist@vicnet.net.au
After the huge Friday as reported by Judith, and with
the first sunny
Saturday morning in what felt like a year, the duty
crew was prepared for a
big day. Duty Pilot Theo Mus may have even felt a bit
of trepidation as he
lined up for his very first day in the job, but the
day we expected was not
to be.
Apart from tuggie Karl Bodi, AEI Kevin Rodda and
myself, the only other
members who came out to fly were Rupert Perry and
David Griffiths making a very welcome return to our
skies after a long time away. It would have been a
very small day if we were not also joined by current
power pilot Steve Morris, who joined the club to pick
up on the glider training he had dropped out of down
at Lake Keepit a few years ago.
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Garrett
Russell with new member Steve Morris.
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Following a bit of a chat with Bert and Speedy, who
decided the dayıs
soaring prospects warranted a long second breakfast
much more than the
effort of getting their gliders out, our small group
bucked the trend of
power traffic battling crosswinds on 30 and followed
the windsock to RWY 24 and were soon rewarded with
most of the power traffic following us!
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Garrett
Russell and Theo Mus at our new location for launching
off 24 (north east corner of the newly displaced
Runway 06/24). Aero Club President John Dawson called
in and commented that it was good to see us using this
location in view of the prevailing south-westerly
winds. During launches the tug was turning left well
before the highway!
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Kevin Rodda's photo above illustrates where we set
up in the new
surroundings of the extended runway, but one
photograph we were too busy to get was of the deeply
bogged Barina being towed out of mud by the Pie Cart
tractor Falcon. BE WARNED the ground beyond the
line of surface water to the right of the runway is
not as solid as it looks!
Bert and Speedy were right about the lift. Patchy
little thermals and the
wave anticipated and sometimes actually felt
from the SW wind did not
sustain any flight longer than 22 minutes, which was
scored by David and
Rupert in CQC. Next best was 20 minutes for David with
visiting British
pilot Alan Calverd (who went away very happy
nonetheless)and the best flight in GYK was just 17
minutes. The dayıs stats:
GYK 3 flights 0:40
CQC 4 flights 1:14
We would have made more flights if the tail tyre on
the Blanik had not
suddenly deflated and defeated all of our (non
maintenance rated) efforts to
get the valve out of where it had sunk into the rim.
Lindsay will have this
fixed by the time I send this message on Sunday, but
for the Saturday crew
the dayıs flying was over.
The last word and last flight go to Theo, who not only
handled his Pie Cart
duties well, but also coolly handled a couple of
kangaroos right in his
landing flight path. ANOTHER WARNING the roos are
on the extended runway at all times of the day and
they do not scare away easily!
Here's to a much bigger Sunday than Saturday.
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Garrett
Russell
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