Flytec
Wills Wing

Oz Report

Volume 3, Number 105
Wednesday, August 4 1999

https://OzReport.com
"Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."

to Table of Contentsto next topic Manfred storms back

Tue, Aug 3 1999, 10:00:00 pm GMT

Worlds 1999

Big air, big task, high altitudes, big finish, a big day.

When I go outside in the morning I see that Sigillo and Monte Cucco has returned to the conditions that we first experienced here two weeks ago.  It’s warm, there are no clouds in the morning, and the air is still.  It looks like it will be a good day.

Finally we get to take off from the main Monte Cucco launch facing west out into the valley that contains Sigillo and the Villa Dama.  Clouds are forming by 10 AM as we start setting up.

The task is 72 miles. We are asked to head down the range to a tower 30 miles to the south, jump out in the valley to the Basilica at Asissi, and back to the LZ just below the launch just north of Sigillo.

The rigids get two start times 1 and 1:15 PM, and the flex wings get the same start times, plus a few more to spread them out a bit.

Unlike every other day in this meet so far, we immediately start climbing at launch and get to cloud base at 6,700' MSL (5,200' AGL). The main problem is waiting long enough to take the second start gate.  Christof and Juerg Ris don't wait and get out on the course as the first rigids.  Most of the flex wing pilots hold back.

With strong lift running down the range is a piece of cake.  I get a later start then most as I run out to the valley first looking for lift that turns out to be false.  Oh, well, just trying to get ahead of everyone puts me a bit behind.

Dave Sharp is running with Hansjorg as the rigids are in front of the flex wings who start a bit later.  Johnny Carr on the Swift and Brian Porter on the Utopia are catching up with the ATOSes 15 minutes in front of them and finally catch them at the first turnpoint.

Manfred starts late and Joseph Zweckmayr starts early so he's out there with Dave and the other rigid wings.  I've turned the risk factor way up on the Ball Vario and am working with a bunch of flex wing pilots hoping from one 500 to 700 fpm thermal to the next trying to catch up. Until today, 300 fpm was great.

The course line is full of thermal markers and it makes it easy for racing as we blow down the course.  Brian is now in front with Johnny Carr and Dave is with Hansjorg.  They are catching up with Christof and Juerg.  The flex wing pilots for the most part are just behind them.

The jump to Asissi, which has its own big mountain out in the valley, can be taken from a point further north off the range to the east, or in a straight line from the turnpoint.  Those pilots who stay high can get up on the mountain first and blast into Asissi.  Dave and Brian are blasting, I get low and have to work the sunny side of the mountain, but get to cloud base very quickly at 7,600'.

Johnny Carr gets to goal first to win the day.  Brian lost him and makes it in 24 minutes later.  Then the ATOSes start coming in with Dave Sharp in fifth and Hansjorg in fourth.  As they started later than Juerg and Christof, they are the winning Class II "hang gliders" for the day.

Josef Zweckmayr comes in after Dave as the first flex wing pilot, and soon behind him Manfred.  Manfred got a much later start and wins the day.

More pilots pour into goal and probably 100 flex wing pilots make it in. Almost all the rigid wing pilots get to goal.  I'm slow having made Asissi late, and having to work the range low back 20 miles to goal.

Bettino appears to be the top placing Brazilian for today in 22nd, but it looks like the total scores will again completely change.  Here are the totals in the flex wing class after yesterday:

There were three Brazilians in the top four places yesterday with Allan Barnes from the UK in third.  Manfred had been moved down to a tie for sixth with Oleg.  Steve Moyes had moved into tenth.  Here's a shot of Andre Wolf who was in second:

The Brazilian team is doing well and appears to be leading in the team competition.  I say appears because we aren't getting provisional team scores.

Jim Lee and Chris Arai made goal for the US team.  All the US rigid team members made goal.

I have asked the meet organizers to get the daily results up on the web, but it doesn't appear to be happening.

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to Table of Contentsto next topic Ghostbuster reappears at Worlds

Tue, Aug 3 1999, 10:00:01 pm GMT

Ghostbuster|Worlds 1999

We were surprised to see one of the Ghostbusters return to launch today.  We asked Daniele Bello what the story was.  He had told us earlier that he had problems with the flaps and with the speed bumps.

It seems that yesterday when he landed out, he had company.  Francois Chamoux flying the ixbo, landed on Daniele's Exxtacy 99 and broke the leading edge.

With a broken Exxtacy, Daniele decided to go back to the Ghostbuster.  Francois didn't seem to have any problem with his ixbo and was up there flying it today.  We think that Daniele is flying factory gliders from Flight Design, especially now that he has ordered an ATOS.

Berndt Weber's special ATOS nose, the weather giy who called it right today, and the gliders on Monte Cucco launch with Monte Cucco in the background.

The photos above were taken by David Glover (http://www.1800hangglide.com).

Discuss "Ghostbuster reappears at Worlds" at the Oz Report forum   link»

The Oz Report, a near-daily, world wide hang gliding news ezine, with reports on competitions, pilot rankings, political issues, fly-ins, the latest technology, ultralight sailplanes, reader feedback and anything else from within the global HG community worthy of coverage. Hang gliding, paragliding, hang gliders, paragliders, aerotowing, hang glide, paraglide, platform towing, competitions, fly-ins. Hang gliding and paragliding news from around the world, by Davis Straub.

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