Towlines
The Newsletter of the
From the President By Bob Hudson
It’s a wrap…2005 is in the
can. As I look back it is hard not to
have a lot of pride in the things we did together as a club. I took over as your president last January
at the Gala. I assumed the leadership
role of a club that was in great shape.
We had money in the bank, we had just earned the title as the number one
club in the
So what did we do? Well we
hosted the 1-26 National Championships, which by their account, was a great
success. I still get e-mails from them
wondering when they can come back. (I am
not sure Pete and Judy have recovered enough for that.) We had a guest fly-in, over Memorial Day,
with friends from
Along the way we had our
share of missteps. We lost the Grob, and the use of towplane Ten Zulu for several months. But we overcame that
with a nice replacement (Grob) from George Applebay and Steve Hill.
Ten Zulu is now back with us with a new quiet prop. Several club members experienced significant
damage to their personal planes that kept them earth bound for a while (all are
back in the air).
We made some changes to our
operations procedures. We have put into
place a Mishap Board process to explore mishaps and to make recommendations to
your board for damage resolution and for operations procedures changes. (This board has been put into operation
already.) We established an annual
Safety Down Day. This means that, in
March we will once again declare a Safety Down Day in which all club members
must participate prior to flying club equipment, to include towing with our tow
planes. We did a study of our Training processes, but I am sad to say that the
club did not embrace the recommendations.
This group did a super job at looking at how we train, but our
membership was not ready to move to the next level.
So where are we going. Well, we have an On-line title to defend. We
need to host another junior soaring camp.
We need to get more juniors involved. We need to increase our club
membership by at least eight new members. Bob Knight and I are going to look at
an Operations training process. And we
all need to fly more. John Daffer is putting together a requirement for all
instructors to have an annual ride to validate that we are all teaching, and
receiving , the same instructions.
And lastly, we need to ask
ourselves why do we have this club? I
would like to see more participation in the everyday operation of the
club. We have members who contribute nothing
but their obligation to Operations, but won’t take another step to doing what
is necessary to run the club. I mean we
have folks who fly our airplanes, but have never taken the time to wash one,
vacuum one out or be part of the waxing team.
We have folks who use the club house, but have never taken it upon
themselves to empty the trash or straighten it up. When visitors come and visit they always
leave with the impression that we are the leaders in glider/club
operations. We need to keep that title;
it is more important that any On-Line title, because it defines who we
are.
Sometime, this spring I will
write a column on things I have learned from thirty years of flying jets, they
all apply to gliders. To wet your appetite…an instructor I had noticed I was
“stepping” to the plane with just my flight suit and normal flying gear. It was
seventy degrees outside and soon I was going to be strapped to that jet with a
million dollar heating system. He pulled
me aside and told me to go get my jacket and heavy gloves. He said: “dress to
fly like you are going to have to walk home.” I have noticed that only Mark
Mocho has learned that lesson. Drop by
his hangar and see how he prepares. It
might save your life, or at least keep you comfortable until help arrives. Even in the summer it is not uncommon to see
forty degree temp drops.
As always fly safe. Bob
The
On-Line Contest
It’s the quiet time for
Moriarty, but first blood for the New Year was scored on January 3rdCK by Mike
Abernathy and Mark Mocho in the Stemme. “We were just putzing
about and it was getting bad,” Mark reports. “But when we got back to the
airport at about 9000ft we found the wave again. So we went on and scored TK km.”
The real secret Mark admits
is that they hadn’t gotten drunk over New Year’s and so were able to go
fly. Soon it will be back to fly often,
log every flight!
Winter
Solstice By
Billy Hill
The winter solstice has come
and gone and the Druids have put away their party hats for another year. We band of glider pilots should likewise be
celebrating the winter solstice as it marks the point in the calendar year when
the days begin to get longer again which in turn reminds us that the convective
soaring season will be upon us in no time.
The OLC is our
For those of you who have
your own steeds, now is the time to practice the fine art of the spot
landing. Proficiency in the art of
controlling the point upon which you touch down is something that will come in
very handy during this cross country season should you find your self out of
lift and getting ready to make an off field landing. Now is the time to schedule some instructional
flights in either of the two Grobs and hone your
flying skills. Touching down at a
minimum airspeed and on a pre-determined spot will minimize the likelihood of
doing any damage to your sailplane should you find your self in the ignominious
position of landing out and calling for a retrieve.
Actually there is nothing
wrong with making an out landing as that’s part of learning to fly and read the
sky. It’s also a lesson that even a more
experienced cross country pilot can certainly find himself in the position
becoming reacquainted with. The point
being that all of us who intend to fly cross country this season should polish
up those skills which will lead to enlightened cross country decisions a part
of which may in fact be an off field landing.
Now that we have a club data
logger, there is certainly no reason not to be doing some additional cross
country flying in the club equipment.
After all, isn’t that what we have that equipment for?
There are a few caveats
worth remembering as regards club equipment.
First, if you have not gotten together with a club CFI and been given,
as a minimum, a briefing on the new G103, then you will need to do so before
you fly it. Before using club equipment
for cross country flying, you will need to show proficiency in rigging and more
importantly, de-rigging your glider of choice.
You will also need to go over how to load and unload the glider you will
be flying from the club trailer.
Currently our club Grob trailer is being used
by George Applebay to store the remains of our old
G103. At some time in the not too
distant future we will need to help George unload it so that it will be
available for our use.
All the above mentioned
alludes to both currency and proficiency.
This is a yearly topic that needs addressing. As I’ve mentioned in the past, professional
pilots who ply their trade on a regular basis are required to take a
proficiency check ride every six months, which is akin to being reexamined for
the license they hold including an oral examination on the regulations as well
as specifics regarding the aircraft they are flying. We as recreational pilots flying under Part
91 of the
So, perhaps in the coming
cross country days, both Henry V and Crispian [Lordie, Shakespeare again.-ed] will look down upon us,
smile and grant us a year of safe and successful cross country flying to we
few, we happy few, we band of glider pilots.
See you at the airport.
Landout Kit
by Renny
Rozzoni
In early December, there was
a report about a Grob G103 that had landed out in the
mountains of
This incident prompted
Towlines to think about “landing out” and what supplies and equipment would be
recommended for carrying in your glider in the event you didn’t make it back to
Moriarty. This is especially important when planning to fly cross-country over
the remote and desolate terrain common in
So, the purpose of this
short article is not to try to cover specific survival techniques and
procedures, but simply to encourage each of you to think about what items you
might need if you have to land out. You do need to be prepared in case you have
to spend the night or even longer on your own at possibly a remote location.
I use a fanny pack for
carrying my land out supplies which gives me plenty of room for my survival
gear and it also gives me a pack that I can strap on to carry my supplies as
needed. Every winter I go through the pack to ensure that my batteries and my
food items are fresh, and that all items are “operational.”
Here’s a listing of the
items that I carry in my pack:
·
Hiker’s First Aid Kit
·
Strobe Light with fresh batteries
·
Pocket Flashlight
·
Signal Mirror
·
Windproof Lighter
·
Compass
·
Swiss Army Knife
·
Space Blanket
·
Gerber Multi-Plier Pocket Tool
·
Food Items (Power bars, Clif bars, granola
bars, etc.)
·
Individual Survival Kit which includes items such as: waterproof
matches, whistle, candles, tube tent, duct tape, nylon cord, energy bars, etc.
In the glider I also always carry:
· Two 70 oz Camelbacks with water and carrying case
that can be carried on my back. One is used in flight and the other is my
emergency back-up
· a land out tie-down kit
containing: nylon ropes, stakes and a hammer to pound the stakes into that
hard, dry
· my cell phone
· handheld VHF, aviation band
radio
I do not own an ELT, but
this is an important item that could prove very useful. Built in ELTs can be purchased from suppliers such as Wings and
Wheels for a bit over $200, while
portable, user activated, ELTs cost under $400. Portable ELTs
can be attached to your parachute in case you have to make a quick “exit.” With that thought in mind you may want to
take this a step further and think about what items you may want to have with
you in case you have to bail out and leave your ship behind. Wearing hiking
pants with multiple large pockets for basic survival gear, can be very useful
when you fly.
There is extensive material
on survival techniques and survival kits on the web and I encourage you to read
about survival especially during the “quiet time” before our summer soaring
season begins.
Finally, there are many web
sites that sell various types of survival gear. You can also obtain many of
these items at sporting good stores such as: REI, Big 5 and the Sportsman’s
Warehouse. I recently visited the Sportsman’s Warehouse in
Hopefully, every land out
will be a “non-event,” but should you really end up out in the “boonies,”
having the right gear will help ensure that you have a safe wait for what is,
hopefully, a rapid retrieve!
Now, fly high, fly far, earn those OLC points and be safe out there!
The Annual Gala
Once
again we hosted the Annual Soaring Gala at the Marriott Pyramid. (I don’t know
why it is called the pyramid, I didn’t see any mummies, although I think there
is a curse.) Sixty aviators met and
socialized to a near perfect event hosted by Howard Banks. I say near perfect, because it would have
been more perfect if more of our group would have taken the time to join
us. You know the old saying; “their
loss….” One of the highlights of the
evening was the debriefing by Chip Garner on the recent Grand Prix in
Most Instruction Jimmy Wier. 80 instruction flights
Most Tows Ryan Thomas. 152 tows
Aero-tek X-C Award - For the longest Chip Garner. 1009.49 km
flight over 300km out of Moriarty.
Kim Harmon X-C Award - for the 6 1st - Billy Hill, Discus, 4006 pts
longest handicapped flights originating 2nd – Jim Cummiford, Ventus, 3479 pts.
in Moriarty for a pilot with a gold badge 3rd – Mark Mocho, Pegasus, 3105 pts.
or equivalent X-C experience. .
ASC X-C Award-Classic Class – Same 1st – Ryan Thomas, std Libelle, 1577 pts.
as Kim Harmon for a pilot with less 2nd - Dave Harmony, Ventus, 952 pts.
than gold badge experience. 3rd – Jeff Block, PW-5 407 pts.
ASC X-C Award-Best Speed- For the Billy Hill. Billy flew a 611km course at a speed
best handicapped speed over a course . of 151.1kph (93.9smph).
greater than 300km.
1-26er Award for accomplishment Carl Eckdahl. Carl was contest director for the 2005
related to the 1-26. 1-26 Championships. Contest participants
were unanimous in their praise for his efforts.
Harland Ross Award for soaring
Excellence Chip Garner. Chip was 1st in the world in the FAI OLC Centenary contest. He also participated in the Sailplane
Gran Prix at
Ain't soaring fun Award. Howard Banks, Murat Okandan, Jim Wier. This is a joint award to the three ASC pilots who managed to break
gliders this year.
Paul Callies Award for advancement
of soaring. Mitch Hudson. Mitch has been a very strong supporter
of soaring at Moriarty. He organized junior soaring
camps, invited other clubs to Moriarty and assisted in
the 1-26 contest.
Paul Scates Award for outstanding
Service to ASC. Harry Saxton, Ash Collins, Bob Knight.
conducted an in-depth review of the ASC bylaws and
. operations policy. They made numerous recommend-
ations to the board for changes.
ASC Safety Award. Markus Graeber. Markus prepared a detailed analysis
of glider accident history in
presented to the membership during our safety down
day.
ASC X-C High Point Award. Mark Mocho. 15,057.4 points in 53 flights.
For most points scored in the OLC
contest. This is a new ASC award.
The trophy was donated by Mary
Lattimore.
To those that attended, thank you for your support. For those that didn’t attend and couldn’t take the time to help us by answering our plea for RSVP…(in the words of Gomer Plye) shame, shame, shame. Me personally I am looking forward to next year. Bob Hudson