Cobbadah

Tuesday looked like it might be windy and stormy. There was a bit of hesitation to send us up the hill, but by 11:30 it looked like it would be OK, so up we went. It was blowing west, a bit strong for the paragliders, but just fine for us. A cross wind out and return task was called to Cobbadah 31 miles to the north.

In spite of the generally ridge soarable conditions at launch, many pilots struggled to get up, and several flush cycles saw many in the bomb-out. I spent more time than usual around launch trying to get high – as it turned out this was a good strategy, as those who left low struggled on the course line for a long time. I finally went on course, 2 minutes late for the 2:30 start gate, but happy to be high and on my way. Many of the best pilots had taken an earlier start, so I was on my own most of the flight. The pilots I encountered on course were generally flying slower than me, and were more hesitant to go on glide. It was nice to feel that I was making progress in the pack and not being left behind for a change!

Slowly as the flight progressed I got more comfortable and felt my confidence returning. I only made one poor choice of glides – a long 8 mile glide that got me lower than I was happy with. Even at that I was still nearly 3000 feet AGL, and the first ground trigger I went to netted me a 600fpm climb that took me to nearly 11000ft. From there the flight was fast. I definitely could have been flying faster, but I was quite comfortable to be high. I rounded the turn point after a smooth 7 mile glide under a cloud street, still above 9000ft. I glided back to Barraba under the same cloud street, staying above 9000ft the whole way. At Barraba, 20 miles out, I found a smooth 1200ft/min climb that took me to over 12000ft. My flight computer told me I had goal on glide with lots of margin. I went on glide choosing a line that would take me under a couple of nice looking clouds. I was flying fast, trying to use the flight computer to its best capability. 8 miles out I was starting to worry about my glide numbers. It really takes a lot of nerve to trust the glide computer on final glide. A difference of +/- 1000ft can make the difference between arriving in the stratosphere and not making it. I found that the numbers were fluctuating by thousands of feet. I decided that I need to go back and understand the basis of the calculations so I can make more informed choices on glide.

Right about then I hit another smooth 1200ft/minute climb. This was too much fun not to stop for. It would also definitely alleviate any fear I had of not making goal. I took the climb all the way to 11000ft before I pulled on the VG and pulled in the bar for a fast glide to goal. I was only using ¾ VG, and at that I was only able to maintain airspeed of 55 or 60mph. I’m still getting used to flying this glider fast, and I wasn’t comfortable going to full VG. It was great practice flying fast and keeping the glider straight with no worry about not reaching goal. As it turned out, taking that last climb was a good move, as many who trusted their glide computers struggled at the end. Their glide put them below the Borah range on the lee side close to goal, resulting in more than the calculated sink. I definitely had many thousand more feet than I needed, and could have saved another 5 minutes by leaving that last climb earlier. In spite of that I found myself in goal in 14^th place with a time of 2hours and 12 minutes. My average speed was 28mph. A couple of pilots who beat me were actually slower, since they received departure and arrival points, and only Jonny did the task in less than 2 hours. I lost two minutes by leaving the start gate late, five by taking the extra climb I didn’t need, and probably one or two minutes on final glide not using all the VG. It’s definitely nice to find myself getting faster and understanding the choices that I make that make me slow. This was definitely another example where I felt I flew at the level I am capable of. If I can just start doing this consistently, from there it is only small refinements that will start moving me up in the standings.

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