5th race Chatfield Spring Series CSYC

Great wind! Steady 8 kts with gusts to 15 and more. We started with the Jib and changed to the heavy weather Genoa during the starting sequence. John Seib and I got a great start 2nd behind Tireless. Our tacks were a bit ragged but we got into clear air and sailed within a couple of hulls of Norm & Gerry till the last reach. We widended our lead on the run and finished first by a little over 60 seconds. The PHRF wan’t kind because we corrected to 4th.

Lost the LCR Beanie that I had just modified with a snazzy little red propeller. Jim Stark got a chuckle out of it before it got knocked into the lake so it served it’s purpose….Ah well it just wasn’t meant to last.
Since the results were not available Sunday after the Regatta. Trophys were distributed during the Jack Lowe Memorial hamberger feast. I’ve a prety silver second place pickle dish. Still searching for that elusive first place at a S.A.I.L. Regatta.

#145

Very nice morning flight! 145 isn’t a magic number but it is the 100th trike flight and two weeks short of a year since the El Puerco Fly-in when I switched to wheels. I tried something a little different with set-up. Instead of laying the wing out in the butterfly configuration I used the thrust line to partially inflate the wing before I sat down. It pulls the risers all the way back to the cage but it’s not hard to separate the “A”s and get into position. The wing comes up fast and smooth and you need to use a little brake because it wants to overshoot… but I liked the feel of it and will try it again. Several of my last take-offs have been pretty ugly and I think it’s because I’m rolling out at too high a speed. This morning wasn’t too bad a launch but I was at take off speed very quickly and the first little bump wanted to pop me into the sky. It would be easier to modulate speed on a smoother surface than this bumpy field but I know it will help if I can slow down…stabilize the wing and then go to full throttle.

The air was smooth most of the flight. There was a little turbulence approaching Red Rocks Park which dissuaded me from trying to drop into the park and fly between the fins. I’ll do it someday when I can launch at the crack of dawn and be well into the park while the air is dead still. Probably not a good place to fly after the rocks have been cooking in the sun all day. I can imagine cool air flowing down the Rockies mixing with the warm air rising from the rock.

Downtown Denver was shrouded with early morning humidity and I was even able to see Chatfield off to the South.

After going west I turned to the east of the LZ and flew over the School, Jail and Southwest Shopping Center.It took awhile to descend from 2000 feet and I was surprise to encounter sinking air and bumps over the LZ

Spring Sailing

Paradiso is tied for first place after 3 races.

Today I went out single handed in gusty winds. Two reefs in the main and the #3 Jib. Only Rick and I were on the lake and he saw the weather comming in before I did. I was down by #5 and he was up by #2 I could see that he was getting his sails down but I didn’t see that he was in a blow. I must have sensed the weather was approaching because I went below and put on a jacket and PFD. Within 90 seconds the wind was on me hard from the N.W. I spent 40 minutes beating into the blow at the point of broaching the whole time. When the wind started to come down Rick and Stan motored out to make sure I was OK. Nice of them.

The sails got a bit of a flogging and my joints are a bit stiff but no damage done. I have full confidence in the standing rigging after that work out.

#144 First Flight at Dick Sporting goods Stadium

Interesting day. I wandered around a bit and found the LZ, which is North of the Stadium and police department. It’s not an ideal field, there is plenty of open space and it’s not too bumpy but there are sprinkler heads poking 6 inches above ground. You can make your best guess but there is always the chance of hitting a sprinker and flipping the buggy. Another issue is that the field slopes down into a sort of basin. So you have to think and plan to get the most level take off run. If the wind is ever comming out of the east or west I’ll launch right off the road.

Which brings me to an observation. The smoother the surface the easer it is to concentrate on getting the wing stable overhead. When you are bumping along in a field the buggy is trying to bounce into the sky and is to get bumped out of line with the wing . I can recall several takeoffs where the nose wheel was 15% out of line with the wing. It makes for slower takeoff speeds and reduced control. I’m using brakes more often than not when the ground is rough.

I took off in light breeze shortly after Dan arrived. The air was very similar to the last couple of days at Simms. Shifting currents and moderate bumps. I find myself turning more to the right with the torque and avoiding left hand turns. WORK ON MAKING HARD LEFT HAND TURNS. At one point I was carving some hard turns with about 45% bank. This looks like a fun place to explore but it is going to have to wait until I have a calm morning and can climb good and high without getting too much bounce. To the east there is a bunch of industry and a big gravel pit.

When it was time to land I saw a track in the field left by the grounds keeper and since it was in the same direction as the wind I landed on the track and avoided the minefield of sprinklers.
Dan didn’t have a very good day, I didn’t see it but I guess he fell after a very long take off run, breaking his prop and cage. Paul didn’t have any luck either. First attempt he got into some sink at take-off because of the slope. Twice he came down on his butt and was blowing dirt big time. Then there wasn’t enough wind and he stood there with his DK running. It ran so long that he loaded up the motor with carbon so that when the wind did come up it would come up to power. While I was watching Paul a lady cop came by and chatted with me. the best thing about this field is that we are welcome and have lots of cops nearby to protect us.

#142 & #143 Simms

Dan & John Sieb showed up. Very light and variable winds made it hard to get the wing stable overhead. I launched to the east and the climb was very slow. Dan said the breeze had shifted at the last minute and I made a downwind take-off.
The air was very similar to the last couple of times I have flown Simms. Areas where the air is strong and weak. I also noticed some very sinking air. It’s not the kind of flying where I’m comfortable using the foot steering.
Landed beautifully with the trimmers out. The wing does feel much more sporty and I’ll have to fly trim out more often.
Once again two quick flights.

#140th & #141 Moderately Strong &Variable Winds

The winds were blowing 15mph from the west when I arrived at 5:00pm so I turned on the classical channel and took a little nap. At 6:15 it had shifted to the NNW and come down to 6 to 8mph. I drove to the South East end of the field and set up. The launch was very sloppy. I had filled the tires to 25 pounds and I think they were bouncing me up into the air. At one point I popped about 2 feet up and the buggy was twisting, rather than come down out of alignment I pulled some brake and climbed out slowly. Remember to let some air out before the next flight! If the buggy is having a hard time getting started, try laying the lift ramp under the back wheels.

Once up, the air was moderately bumpy, I remembered that Greg Boulton had said it was very bumpy over the golf course so I stayed inside the perimeter of the field. At 400 ft AGL it was blowing 15 to 18 and I stayed gentle on the brakes making mostly flat turns. I did one impromptu touch and go…just because it was feeling good. The landing was a bit twitchy but I controlled better than yesterday and killed the motor at 10 feet. Delaying the flare to the last second is the trick because the 28 meter wind landed just as softly as I was doing with the smaller one.
Second flight was another ugly launch. When I first powered up, the buggy didn’t want to start rolling and I had to give a little push with my feet. Maybe the tires were sinking into the soft ground because of more pressure. I don’t think so …there is just allot of initial resistant to roll.
Second landing was good and I managed to taxi cross wind for 100ft before loosing it to the wind.
Glad I flew …Top speed was 43 mph and the wind kept me from being too aggressive but I learned what happens when the tires are over inflated and was able to compare the performance of the 28m with the 26m. The whole flight I felt like the wind was fighting me…like it was pushing me into turns that I didn’t want to make. Wish I had let the trimmers out, I think it would have performed allot better and I would have been more comfortable. Good but not the best.

#138 & #139

Murphy’s Law Day…

Loose Belt…fixed

Twitchy Winds…caused a comic down wind takeoff attempt

Tumble Weeds all over the place turned me into a part time gardener

3 set-ups

and 2 very short flights…The first was over with one quick lap. I noticed a weed in the risers that was shortening the “A”s. I’ve flown with sticks in the lines before but this time I could see where several lines had been drawn together and the wing was flying noticably forward . I kept a little pressure on the brakes afraid of a forward collapse. I was very concerned about deflation and so made a slow flat turn to the left (the side the tangle was on) and landed downfield and upwind. The second flight was just plain bumpy and more of a test flight than anything else.

Paul Dillon took a short flight and tweeked his cage. Greg Boulton came out and got in a couple of flights. Strong pilot, his second landing was into 10 mph air and beautifuly done. He was being twisted pretty good but still managed to land within a few feet of his truck. I had a little ossolation during one of my landings but it seemed to come in smooth and I was still able to taxi up to the truck.

#136 & #137 Simms LZ

The broken ground wire is repaired and the spade connectors are protected with a blob of high temp silicone. The silicone will act as a damper to keep the vibrations down and prevent the spades from breaking again.

Paul Dillon and Marek were at the field when I arrived. Very light winds…I blew the first launch like a rookie. It came up crooked and because I was going by feel instead of looking at the wing it was dragging the left side by the time I aborted. The second attempt was even more stupid. The buggy was slowed down by the terrain and the wing got locked into the prop wash turning me into a big “Push me-Pull you”. On the third attempt I got up with a little brake and immediately went into a climbing spiral. It felt great! 30% of bank and 40/m / minute of climb.

Second flight took two attempts because I aborted after spotting a bunch of vegetation in the lines. Too bad because I recovered once after a 40% collapse and pumping out the subsiquent cravat.
The wing was flying at 30 mph in calm air with trimmers out. Fast wing!

Paul got in a couple of flight and Marek stayed on the ground to help Paul.

#133 #134 #135 April 13, 2008

This was a “strange air” day, it wasn’t really bumpy but the air had lots of cross currents. For instance I would be starting a relatively flat turn that would turn into a steeply banked downwind hook. The take off runs seemed to be longer than normal and I had to use a little brake on every flight to get off the ground. A couple of times I got into sinking air when I was inside the perimeter of the power lines and had to turn away to keep from frying myself.
The capper was the third flight when I came in for a low and slow fly-by. I floated over the LZ for about 75 feet and punched it to climb out. The engine had come up to about 8o% thrust when the motor died without a burp. I damped the surge and came down softly. One thing I have noticed about the 26 meter wing is that the landings are very easy to control. I look forward to seeing if I can do as well with the 28 m.
The problem with the motor turned out to be one of the three spade connectors that come out of the bottom of the starter housing. Fortunately the one that broke was a redundant ground wire so i was able to disengage the Master Kill circuit and route the ground to it’s connector.