Contest Day 1 - morning report

With the weather still not calling for substantial cumulus in the task area, CD John Good called for a 3.5 hour Area task which will keep us relatively close to Uvalde and in an area with reasonably friendly terrain. Turnpoints are Big Wells, Coyote Ranch, Chaparossa, Concan and Batesville. The distance will range between a minimum of 15o miles and a maximum of 330 miles. Launch will start at 1:15. Back to you later with impressions of the day and hopefully some scores.

Last practice day

The final day of practice is in the books. We are suffering from high temperatures (101) and blue thermals, not exactly what we want. The flying was difficult yesterday and today with thermals hard to find. we did manage to get up to almost 7000' but we had some very slow spots out to the west of Uvalde over some very unlandable terrain.

I am ready and the sailplane is performing well. I hope the weather changes and gives us some clouds to fly in. This would make it ideal.

More tomorrow on Contest Day 1.

Home away from home!

The weather was blue today as some drier air moved into South Texas. I decided to work on the sailplane today and finish off some minor adjustments to the instruments and a small repair to a water leak in the wing. Thanks to John Murray for doing the delicate work on the repair.

More pilots arrived today and we are up to 20. Some flew but did not rave about the conditions.

While in Uvalde, I am fortunate to be staying at a wonderful B & B about two miles from the airport. Live Oaks B & B is a wonderfully quiet spot that is a welcome change from the usual motels that we usually stay at during a competiton. Bill and Glenda Nelson are wonderful hosts and the breakfasts that Bill offers up are fantastic and usually will fill me for the day.

I am staying in the 'cabana'. The cabana is a converted pool house with all of the amenities of home. The pool is a mere three paces from my door and is something to look forward to after a full day of flying in the hot Texas sun.

Tomorrow morning I need to sand the wing where the repair was made and then I hope for the return of the moisture and the clouds.

Uvalde arrival

I arrived in Uvalde Wednesday evening after a 1,300 mile drive and three very heavy downpours. The most intense storm was between Houston and San Antonio. The seabreeze had come far inland and rained on all of South Texas.

Today I woke up to a normal day in Uvalde.....overcast skies and a breeze out of the southeast. I needed to get my home away from home organized and that took a good part of the morning. I assembled the ASG-29 around noon and decided to launch with no water ballast since it had been awhile since I had flown her. I fully expected today to be weak because of the rain but was pleasantly surprised at how strong the thermals were. I abandoned my plan to stay in the local area to shake off my rust. I headed southeast toward Cotulla on a beautiful cloud street. despite no water ballast I was making very good time. After making the turn I headed north to the Texas hill country where the cloud bases were up to 8,000 feet. After enjoying some very strong climbs, I turned back toward Uvalde and called it a day. It is odd how skills you nurtured over years come back quickly after being neglected. Although I was not razor sharp I feel that it is coming and I should be ready for the start of the contest in a few days.

A little over 4 weeks to Uvalde. I can't wait! I hope that we don't suffer the same fate with the weather as they have in Hobbs!