Wow! What a great time! That was excellent. I managed to finish sixth overall in the altitude limited class. As a relative newb, I'm pleased with this. More importantly, this event proved that FXJ rules work and this type of contest is doable. The man-on-man launches were very exciting. We had six to eight planes launching simultaneously. Initially there was some congestion, but the pilots spread out in search of their own piece of sky quickly. Landing was hectic at times and you had to stay aware of other planes in close proximity while making your approach. I blew more than one landing trying to avoid other planes. It became apparent that when acting as a timer you had to also pull double duty as air traffic controller, making sure your pilot was aware of the location of the other planes. Even with all this going on there were only one or two instances of planes making contact with one another over the course of the twelve rounds flown. For those who think sailplanes are boring, think again. The launch gets the adrenaline pumping. Finding that killer thermal that puts your plane way above the competition is a rush. Being the last pilot to set down just feels great. Now if I could just figure out how to hit the landing tape. I observed some guys who could do it with consistency. Gonna have to practice the landings for next year. Overall, it was a great time and I can't wait to do it again. Oh, and see the picture below of the contestants, which was shot...Continue Reading

I have experienced day one of the CAMs-Polecat-Soaring Circiuts 2K10 Open Soar located in beautiful Carlisle, PA. Almost sounds like some sort of medical condition, but I assure you it's not. The heat and sun were brutal. The competition was fierce, but friendly. I suspect a good time was had by all. There were two classes. Altitude limited and 28 mm outrunner. While there were only a few pilots running in the 28 mm class, all participated in the altitude limited class. And really, that is what it was all about - proving that FXJ is fun and competitive. We were split into to groups of seven and each group launched simultaneously, with seven planes rocketing to 200 m. At thirty seconds or 200 m, whichever came first, the motors cut off due to the CAMS altimeter switch and it became a nine-and-a-half minute soaring contest. The final task was to land as close to the center of a 10 m circle as possible, within the 10 minutes. We were able to get six rounds in today and finished up around 3:00 PM. Our CD, Denny, did an outstanding job setting this up and making it happen. Everyone involved did a great job (too many people for me to give credit in my sweaty, sun burnt state). Anyway, we get to do six more rounds tomorrow! I'm looking forward to it. Now I have to hop in the shower and blow the stink off as I'm stewing in my own juices.