Snowflake at Dawn #432 #433 #434 Test Filghts

Mike Bennett and & arrived at 6:30.  It was much better than yesterdays rain/mist, there was a fresh 7mph breeze from the SSW and clear blue skies. 

Trying to solve the chest pain I have made some modifications and this was the first time to try them out.  In order to position my arms farther forward I have moved the hangpoints 1 inch and to rebalance the rig, Mike and I mounted a 12 pound weight over the front wheel.  The brake lines have been lenghtened 3 inches and the brake pulley was lowered by the same amount and drawn in closer to the riser. 
I will have to heal before I know if the problem has been fixed but I think I’m on the right track.  It was definitely more comfortable and the pain is no worse.  The next step will be to remount the battery forward of the seat this will not ad weight to the rig but allow the hang points to be moved another inch forward.  Then I’ll play with the seat mount to get it dialed in.

Mike and I flew into the wind SSW and overflew the old ICBM Missile Silos.  The wind speed increased dramatically with altitude.  Mike flew low and I flew 400 feet higher at a much lower speed.  For the first time I flew with the trimmers out and enjoyed the Eden III ‘s much crisper response.  On the return leg downwind I exceeded 50 mph.
After a short break I went up again.  The last several flights have all been higher wind and its been a good experience.  The Eden comes up fast and sometimes pulls the trike back a couple of feet in the process but with a smooth surface it feels natural.  The wing comes overhead … I ad throttle, start the roll and usually rotate within 50 feet.  On soft terrain (sand) or worse…. bumpy (pasture) it may not be so easy.  On this flight I stayed close to the patch and worked on steering.  It is still not as comfortable as the trike buggy because I do not have the same range of motion.  I don’t seem to have the power and it feels like I’m using different muscles.  I can’t quite put my finger on the difference but I’ll work on it.
Paul M arrived just before I finished the second flight, so I decided to go for three.  It was starting to get thermic and was most bumpy over by the farm houses so I flew out to the gun range and crabbed back to the LZ.  The winds at the surface were twitchy as hell and I had to go around twice before I felt good to land.  Two of the three landings I popped a wheeley after touch down.  Next time I’m NOT going to kill the engine at two feet but will either go in dead stick or under power and taxi.  It was a good day.

431 Snowflke at Sunset

Snowflake at sunset.

Tonight I added a back pad to see if it would solve the chest pain.  Nope… I was more upright but it also moved me closer to the risers which moved my arms back even farther.  It was a beautiful flight anyway, the winds were about the same as yesterday.  Nice smooth laminer air.

This is the problem …my arms are being pulled back 

#430 Snowflake

Solo AM Flight…    One of the little quirks with the Falcon 4 stroke is that if you don’t turn off the ignition the battery will drain.   No big deal if you have jumpers and a helper to hold the machine and move the truck.  I had the jumpers.   I wasn’t sure how it would work but putting the spare under the front wheel kept the trike in place nicely while I got the truck moved.
It was blowing 8 to 10 which is about the most I will attempt.  The Eden III came up without pulling the trike back and the take off was clean.  It sure makes a difference to have a smooth surface to launch from.
Flight was shortened because my chest was hurting and the winds were building… 30 minutes was good.

#429 Snowflake

Mike got the gang together it was the first time I’ve seen some of these guys all year.  Mike, Ramon,  Paul M.,  Robert Kimpton (new guy but very experienced aviator and PG instructor), and John Sieb.

Mike and I jerry rigged the broken weld with a bolt and duct tape, I never thought I would be repairing my flying machine with “bailing wire and broken boards” but it was a good repair and I set up with confidence.

I blew the first launch when the wind shifted causing the wing to come up crooked.  I tried to recover but aborted when it looked to hairy to keep trying.  Mike’s machine was down with exhaust problems but he couldn’t stay away from the action which turned out to be a good thing because he was right there to help reset the wing and I launched from where I had aborted.   Thanks Man!

It was a good flight.  I could tell that I was still too far forward of the risers my chest was hurting and I was ginger with the brake input.  It didn’t keep me from going high and doing a few diving turns but I sure didn’t stay up as long as I would have liked.

When it got too thermic to fly I followed  Mike back to his place and we repaired the cage, toot sweet.

John and I finished the day racing the “Paradiso” at Chatfield. It was the last race of the summer series.  The winds built over the course overpowering the big Norlam Genoa. Never the less we won it clean and locked in third place for the series.

#428 Simms

Very short flight.  The trim buckle got hooked in the hang point loops causing the wing to pull to the right.  I made one circle and landed.  On post flight I noticed that the weak weld on the cage had opened up so the was it for today.
On the bright side I tried putting my arms behind the hang straps and found it much better.  I was laid back too much but with some back padding I think I can avoid straining my abs. 

I went to the Doc with huge chest pains which he diagnosed as inflammation of the cartilage connecting my ribs to the sternum.  800mg Ibuprofin helped

427 Simms

Take off was to the east and climb was not great.  I flew over the H. S. parking lot and was not much higher than the light poles.  Yikes!

The seat has shifted or I have because I was leaning too far back and it strained my muscles between the shoulder blades.  Next flight I’ll try a seat back pad and put my arms behind the hang point straps.

Another No Fly Day

I was at the field at 6:15am.  I set-up to launch WSW which would give me about 50 feet of smooth surface before getting into the weeds.  I figured that I would be ready to launch by the time I got there.  NOT…! 
When I inflated the wing wanted to go more south than planned, when I got to the weeds there was a bump and I did not have enough speed to launch.  I left the ground for just a second and banged down hard.  I had shades of the big roll over and aborted.  The wing came down right on top of me and some of the lines got around the prop hub but just barely … there was no damage. 

Back at the truck I did an extensive “post flight” and discovered that the fiberglass rods had sagged and there was barely enough clearance on the right side for the wheel to clear the gas tank mount.  I probably could have tried for another launch but decided not to chance it.  The Colorado Balloon Fest is coming up and I want the machine to be in good shape.  Terry is sending me new springer rods Monday.

The replacements were three inches short but it should work fine.

#426 Simms

Good Flight.  I took my time paying attention to the little details.  The wing came up fast…I damped the surge and for the first time in awhile kept the power down and taxied a bit before committing to the launch.  I don’t know where I got into the habit of hammering the throttle until I was 100 feet up … maybe with the Thumper … maybe from launching in short fields.  Anyway it felt much better.  I was more aware of the situation… I could feel the weight coming off the trike and I could tell when I was about to leave the ground.  Gotta remember that and keep it happening.
The weather was good … warm enough that I didn’t change after work.  Just grap the maching and go!
The flight was 50 minutes of boating over the field and the golf courses.  I left the trimmers in and got to know the Eden III 30m. I climbed to 4000 agl and practiced basic maneuvers.  Diving turns … mild wingovers … spirals.  I was surprised by the trouble I was having at getting a flat turn.  It might be that it is just a bigger wing and I wasn’t patient but flat turns seemed far too slow.  The real challenge is to time the 4 stroke so that the power is there when I need it.  At one point I was diving fast and it seemed like the motor was extraordinarily slow getting up to power so I could climb out.  I’m going to have to move the pulleys down so that I can fly trimmers out and still be able to reach the toggles.
Toward the end of the flight the wing picked up and was shifting on a 120 degree arc.  Fling a straight ling my speed was vacillating between 22mph and 42mph.  I was worried that I might have to land in gusty conditions but once back over the field it was calm.  The landing was as smooth as the take off and I was surprised by the huge temperature drop at 15 feet.  All in all a good night … I’m glad that I took 7 weeks off.  It has forced me to pay better attention and I appreciate the flights more than when I’m flying every day.

#425 Getting the feel back ….Plus….Wing suit Video

Last full moon of the Summer.  Nice evening at Simms.  40 minutes Max Altitude 8500 feet.  Explored the area east.  The Prison sent a sheriff to ask me not to fly so close to the perimeter.  I will oblige…
Good Climb Good RPM. 
Need to adjust Brake pulley placement.

This is the best Wing Suit Video I’ve ever seen!

Back in the Air ! #424

Not Me!
Amazing Shot with a Go Pro
After being blown out two days in a row last week the weather finally cooperated and gave me a beautiful afternoon.  I stopped at Simms on the way to Chip’s house.  The ruts from the spring are mostly gone and part of the lz has been graded.  The wind was light from the east shifting to the south.   I set up and waited for it to swing back to my bearing.  The launch was good except that the wing overshot and I had to damp the surge.   The 4 stroke runs up slow and it is difficult to modulate the speed so Next time I’m going to try fluttering the throttle and see if that helps.  It would have been nice to damp the surge and taxi a bit before hammering the take off.
The first thing I noticed was that Mike Bennett ties his brake lines 6 or 8 inches tighter than I.  I’m surprised that I did not notice this at Bubba’s.  It’s good that the toggles are always snug to the pulleys but I’m not sure I like the brake lines this tight.  After a couple of flights I’ll decide which I prefer.  There was lots of lift and lots of sink.  At one point I was climbing at 450 ft/min and at idle I was dropping at 580 ft/min.  The air was mostly smooth except close to the hogbacks and C-470.
I stayed up for an hour and noticed that the RPS decreased 200 RPM to 3400.  I do not think it was a problem with the motor but more likely that the RPM’s decrease as the motor heats up. I will re-pitch the prop anyway.

I think it was a good thing to take a break.  My numbers are going to be way down this year but I payed attention to the details and today  …  it was  … ALL GOOD.