Yes, you are missing that today is july 1 and it won't be there till July 2.

Also, there is a listing of more articles on the right. I write two of the regular columns and I wrote the article on using a hi-start.

OH! ok, I shall wait
And I read most of your Hi-Start article, nice job, it helped me out more that you and the guys did on here! And BTW: im getting very good launches and not loosing any height compaired with my old ones and not stalling as long as I push over the top and dont let the plane hold it's own line/arch. But i've been down to the college field 2times sence the boomer experiance I had the first time and haven't caught anything. But the last time was cloudy and the 2nd time was a tad humid, so if I did find lift it was so undefined taht I couldn't stay in it, but i'll keep trying (ofcours )
Thanks!
-Jake

I've found new Handlaunched glider(s) sence I cannot get a Candy! They are the ArtHobby Bobolink DLH and the Colibri-V HLG. Both are 1meter and both are easy builds from the looks of it. Both are good and easy flyers and only $2 apart in price, I think ive decided on the Bobolink, but im still very much open for suggestions.
Any thoughts?

Links:
http://www.arthobby.com/gliders/specs/bobolink.html
http://www.arthobby.com/gliders/specs/colibriV.html

Ok, Ive decited to get the Bobolink DLG!

Of the two I like the Bobolink better also. This plane is pretty small. Be careful when you catch those thermals that they don't just grab it away from you. I have seen with parkflyers.

Our sailplane club also admits parkflyers. Sometimes the parkies like to thermal with the big planes and get too high. Last season two didn't come down, An Aerobird and a Firebird outlaw. Fortunately both pilots took it pretty well.

I got my Spirit back in the air today. Have not hooked up the spoilers yet, but what a joy. I forgot how much I enjoy flying this plane.

Wind was about 7 MPH when I started, but 2 hours later it was up ot 10 mph and gusting to 14. I had to add 3.5 oz of ballast in order to penetrate into the wind at all.

It is nice to have my old friend back. I should get he spoilers hooked up soon.

Nice to hear you still injoy the little guys, lol. I bet thoughs Biggens' get your attention pritty good and for a long while, but yah always gatta come back to your roots.

Oh, i'll be careful! After all the truble ive gone threw with my parents ordering it I sure as hell won't loose it! If I get caught in a boomer(i won't thermal in them, but u never know when one can suck you up!) this plane is pritty darn fast! So I should be able to push her down into a vertical dive and pick up enough speed to fly through the wall.

BTW: while on the subject of loosing a plane, Im going to cover it(or paint, idk yet) in yellow(my g/fs favoite color) on top of the wing and blue(my favorite color) on the bottom and vise-versa on the horizontal stabe., Is this a good idea?

Yellow is not as good a color as you think. But it's marginally better than white.

well, Amanduh is making me stick with yellow(lol, you know how that is ) so should I go lighter or darker yellow?
Keep in mind that I will not let this thing get over 500ft(if that high!). And it seems as though I have found a desent slope sight so i'll be flying it there too if the slope turns out to be as good as the local fliers say it is. No big, nor long rides on thermals with this thing, just some nice relaxing DLGing on lunch breaks and such

Originally Posted by Mchone, Jake

well, Amanduh is making me stick with yellow(lol, you know how that is ) so should I go lighter or darker yellow?
Keep in mind that I will not let this thing get over 500ft(if that high!). And it seems as though I have found a desent slope sight so i'll be flying it there too if the slope turns out to be as good as the local fliers say it is. No big, nor long rides on thermals with this thing, just some nice relaxing DLGing on lunch breaks and such

1) you will get above 500 feet. I have had my aerobird well over 500 feet and it has a 42 inch wing and is a pod and boom plane.

2) Be careful on the slope, that incoming wind can really do bad stuff. Remember never turn into the slope, always away from it.

3) You should look forward to long rides in thermals.

Consider adding one of these. They weight nothing.
Battery Monitor/lost model alarm.

The only long thermal rides i'll be doing is in light thermals(thats if I can get anything @ all @ my local school fields where I'll be flying it mostly). I realy wouldnt like her to get over 500ft. I've only got my Aspire to 500ft and it got me nervous enough, and my SS might have gone to 500ft before, but i'll never let them get that high again. Im just not comftorble with that high beause even with my Aspire I rarely get a chance to get that high. Its just a lack of experiance and confidance witch im sure will build up over time, but not on this plane.

By the end of the summer you'll be like the rest of us, you'll be specking it out and wonder why it every scared you.

I would hope so. But it shouldnt ne very hard @ all to speck this little bitty 1m out.

Originally Posted by WGH

By the end of the summer you'll be like the rest of us, you'll be specking it out and wonder why it every scared you.

If you had another experienced flyer to fly with, you would be more comfortable going higher. A good launch off of a full size hi-start or a winch can take the plane 400-600 feet on the launch, so 500 is not really high at all. However I am around 3M sailplanes all the time so I have seen how high these guys take the planes. When a 7 foot wing span plane is so high that you have trouble telling which way it is going, it is 1500 to 2000 feet away from you. Depending on how far down field it gets, most of that could be altitude

I made a simple altimiter for my plane. I measured off 500 feet, placed my plane there, standing on its nose. I held a ruler up to it, held the ruler at arms length and marked how wide the wings appear. That became my benchmark for height.

Guys have put altimiters in their 2M planes and recorded being over 2000 feet and the 3M planes go higher. We regularly have private planes pass under our models. Of course the higher you go and the further down field, the greater the risk of losing the plane in very strong lift, or not being able to get back to the field since you are usually down wind by time you reach this kind of height.

Well daggon!!
I didnt know that hi-starts could get you so high! I need a new one, but i'll wait on it if the slope is good enough.
I know the feeling of not knowing witch way the plane is going when I got my SS up to about 500-600ft one time. I lost ALL of my oreintation and had to cut power after she went into a diving turn. She landed byherself just fine. I found her 2 fields down on her wheels! Just a lil' bind in teh propshaft! I vouded to never try that again, lol, but only with my parkfliers. I'll be thrilled to get that high with my Aspire, but getting my Bobolink 600ft up would REALY test my skills! And I'd probably get so nervous I'd put it into a slow rolling dive and come down to about 400ft. Im sure the confidence will come, but only if this weather gets better. These past 2-3weeks have been realy not good for thermaling. Only 10* in temp varitaion between 12am and 12pm and very high humidity. Clouds are plintyful as well But as soon as the weather wants to cuaperate, i'll continue going as high as I comftorbly can.
I've crossed paths with a couple sailplanes in Lexington while training in C-172s, and most guys around Madison know me and know where I fly so I dont have to worry about them. But waht a way to loose a ship, huh!? lmao. That and a lightning strick would be the only ways it would be worth looseing a nice plane. But the chances are slim, so we dont have to worry about that
2000ft is pritty dang high! I dought i'll ever let mine get that high, if i can help it.