Beat My Best Thermal Time and Assaulted a Tree!!

[RCFlybry]

Today was another one of those days where you could just about thermal a brick. 3rd launch off the winch, I come off high and begin to fly upwind before my first turn when someone yells "Hey check out the parachute" I glance over and it's just hanging there and not coming down. I turn towards it and begin to climb like crazy. I specked out in about 3 minutes and sat back for the long ride. My best time to this date was 43 minutes and I beat it by an additional 23. Smiling after having a blast dancing on the updrafts for a good stretch of time I turn to final and am lined up with the runway. Here's where that good old depth perception thing can kick you right in the keister.
I'm thinking to myself I'm well ahead of that tree line that borders our field when slam! Left wing tags about the last 6" on the tip of a juniper tree.
Down I go and hear that sickening crunch :eek: Thinking that my most favored Bird of Time is done for good, I was surprised to find very minimal damage. 2 hours worth of work and I'll be back as good as new. The only thing that hurts is my pride from kicking myself and saying how stupid could I have been. I could still swear that I was at least 200 feet in front of that tree line. Oh well..could have been worse.

Bryan

[Radian]

Long flights with lots of air time at 'spec' altitiude really tires your eyes. It's quite probable that if you had not had such a long flight, you would not have misjudged the distance to the treeline and your plane.

I have had several flights well over an hour. I have found that upon landing I need to rest my eyes and my neck for a quite awhile longer then I would with shorter flights.

Now I tend to limit my flights to between 20 and 30 minutes. Beyond that I find the chances of me doing stupid things with my fingers increases.

BTW, Congratulations on the 1+hour flight. It really is a great feeling when you finally get your first one. :)

Radian


Today was another one of those days where you could just about thermal a brick. 3rd launch off the winch, I come off high and begin to fly upwind before my first turn when someone yells "Hey check out the parachute" I glance over and it's just hanging there and not coming down. I turn towards it and begin to climb like crazy. I specked out in about 3 minutes and sat back for the long ride. My best time to this date was 43 minutes and I beat it by an additional 23. Smiling after having a blast dancing on the updrafts for a good stretch of time I turn to final and am lined up with the runway. Here's where that good old depth perception thing can kick you right in the keister.
I'm thinking to myself I'm well ahead of that tree line that borders our field when slam! Left wing tags about the last 6" on the tip of a juniper tree.
Down I go and hear that sickening crunch :eek: Thinking that my most favored Bird of Time is done for good, I was surprised to find very minimal damage. 2 hours worth of work and I'll be back as good as new. The only thing that hurts is my pride from kicking myself and saying how stupid could I have been. I could still swear that I was at least 200 feet in front of that tree line. Oh well..could have been worse.

Bryan

[Pteradactyl]

We don't have any trees at our field, just greasewood, mesquite and creosote bushes with a few yucca plants thrown in for good measure, so we don't worry about crashing into them.

We do, however have at least one very mobile bush that sneaks around the perimeter of the field and lies in wait for one of us to bring our plane in over the edge. When we do, this malicious refugee from an enchanted forest reaches up as high as six feet (I swear I saw it do it!) and snags the hapless plane, hurls it to the ground... and then disappears! We have gone out and looked for it, but it's extremely sneaky and very, very fast! JOhn

[RCFlybry]

I have to agree with you on how it tires your eyes. About 30 minutes into it I had to lie on my back and rest a transmitter case under my head for support. My neck was killling me. The BoT stayed at speck height for a good percentage of the flight. At times I had to get out of the lift and into the sink just to get low enough to keep a good eye on it. I will probably begin to limit my flights as well. I've had tons of flights on that field and have landed many times in the same pattern that I did on this last one with no problems. Problem is, just when you think you've got it mastered something will come back to bite you. I do have to say though that it is sooo nice to be able to go up and come down when you're ready to and not when you have to. I was happy to hit the 1 hour mark and that has been my goal for a long time now. Hey It only took me 2 years. :D

Bryan

[RCFlybry]

When we do, this malicious refugee from an enchanted forest reaches up as high as six feet (I swear I saw it do it!) and snags the hapless plane, hurls it to the ground... and then disappears! We have gone out and looked for it, but it's extremely sneaky and very, very fast! JOhn

:D :D :D I know the feeling. The thing that really takes the cake is that we all took our wives out and they were having a picnic while we were flying. They were across the field and almost level with the tree line. She told me "If you'd have been a foot higher you'd have cleared it." "I could tell you were going to hit it" "How come you didn't yell at me to pull up or something." I said. She kind of smirked and said. "The same reason you never ask for directions when your lost, I just figured you knew what you were doing". :rolleyes:

Bryan

[Pteradactyl]

:D :D :D I know the feeling. The thing that really takes the cake is that we all took our wives out and they were having a picnic while we were flying. They were across the field and almost level with the tree line. She told me "If you'd have been a foot higher you'd have cleared it." "I could tell you were going to hit it" "How come you didn't yell at me to pull up or something." I said. She kind of smirked and said. "The same reason you never ask for directions when your lost, I just figured you knew what you were doing". :rolleyes:

Bryan

They sure know how to make a guy wish he'd never asked, don't they? :D John

[hang4]

Ok RCflybry, I read your post and then read it again, I can't stand it. What kind of plane are you flying to get that kind of soaring time..I got have one.

Bill
Hang4

[RyanPSU21]

It's great to get that one hour flight. I only have one that was a little over 2 hours with a GP Spirit. I ended the flight by folding the wing way up trying to spin the thing down. Sometimes you just get those days where finding dead air or sink becomes the challenge and the thermals become the problem.

[Seared Ice]

Ok RCflybry, I read your post and then read it again, I can't stand it. What kind of plane are you flying to get that kind of soaring time..I got have one.

Bill
Hang4

He was flying a Bird Of Time...very nice thermal plane :)

[RCFlybry]

Yup it was a Bird of Time, I was up late last night doing the repairs on it.
Kind of nice to see it back in one piece again :D
I got very lucky to even have it flying again as it could have been much worse. Here's a pic of it.

Bryan
http://mypeoplepc.com/members/thewickels//sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/readytogo!002.jpg

[Pteradactyl]

Nice Bird. But then what Bird isn't nice? John

[seerspaz]

What field were you flying at? I am getting very interested in sailplanes and would like to come and watch some time. Are you a memeber of the Intermountain Silent Flyers club?

Spaz

[paulcarnes]

Our field has this one small cable reel (about 12" high) marking an irrigation valve, 200' off the side of the runway, (where no airplane would ever be), there is a small nail in the wooden top of the reel......

[Master_Dirt]

and Paul has now requested LSF add the 'Hit the nail on the head' task; and make it retroactive.

[Seared Ice]

Lol! I'm the most recent winner of the "Hit the tallest tree in the treeline" award for my club... Actually, when I went back to get my airplane once it fell from the branches, it seemed there was a path worn to the trunk of the tree as if several other people had done the same thing...the guy that was with me said that's probably why!
~John

[RCFlybry]

What field were you flying at? I am getting very interested in sailplanes and would like to come and watch some time. Are you a memeber of the Intermountain Silent Flyers club?


Hi Spaz, The field that we have been flying at lately is at Mueller Junior High School in Bountiful. Take 1800 South in Bountiful and head East a good mile up the hill. There are two soccer fields there, we fly on the upper one. Beautiful views from the bench over the city and a lot of fun to fly there.
Theres even a good sized slope that faces west which you can slope soar off of if the wind is right.
I'm not currently a member of the Silent Flyers club but am friends with one who is a member. I may join them soon... Only problem is they mostly fly on the weekends and I usually work most weekends and fly mid days in the week.
On another note, I took the repaired Bird of Time out again today and it flies as good as new. ;) I was only able to grab 15 minute flights at best today as the thermals just weren't happening the way they were a couple of days ago. Why is that??? Same time, same temp., same clear sunny day.
Now I know why it's soo rewarding when you do catch a great long ride off of a thermal. I'm still learning but for me it just doesn't happen as often as I'd like.

Bryan

[AustinTatious]

Hehe That tree was gentle on you. I reciently Put my Enigma DLG about 80 feet up in a cottonwood tree, spent 4 days trying to get it down in various ways, ended up jsut cutting the tree down, resulting in a smashed airplane, the kicker was when I woke up the next day covered in Poision Ivy.... Reason for landing in tree: Pants too loose resulting in an inadaquate launch height, pilot failed to maintain visual seperation from obstacle.

After a long flight, I like to zoom down for a fly-by and then make a circuit to land... its fun and gets my perception back.