Magic Moments

Mother nature provided us great weather last week and weekend. We took advantage of it with 8 flights on Thursday, 28 flights on Saturday and another 14 on Sunday. With three weekends of flying under already under our belt this month, many members (almost all instructors) have had their annual checkout and are ready for the 2007 season.
The following description and photos from Jean-Marc Gagnon say it all...

Imagine this for a moment : you show up at GGC for your spring check out and one of the instructor asks you to give him a hand in towing the Puchacz to the flight line. The sailplane is immaculate, freshly washed up by the instructor himself. He then offers you a ride and a check out by the same token.

It is supposed to be a spring day but it feels like the middle of summer. A fresh breeze hits your face, the sun is high in the sky, you feel like this majestic falcon who did a cross leg over runway 26.

You take off behind the Pawnee, as if you were catapulted over the deck of an aircraft carrier and you have got to box this wake before 3,000 feet.

Once you are done with your spring check up, the instructor offers you a demonstration of sailplane acrobatics: three loops in a row and four wing over! You feel so lucky you did not eat what was in your lunch box after all.
Once on the ground, you get the stamp of approval in your log book, upside down! The instructor realizes his mistake, you laugh and tell him this is going to be a great “souvenir” of your first experience running in circles, upside down for a change.

Thanks for the memories, Wolfgang! There is never a dull moment with you!
Jean-Marc