2013 Canadian National Soaring Championships – Epilogue

T he Nationals have come and gone and we should all be proud of what we as a club have accomplished. By all accounts, this year’s Nationals was a great success (in spite of the weather challenges). We showed the Canadian soaring community the spirit that is GGC. A special thank-you goes out to MSC for supplying an additional tow plane. Between MayFly and the Nationals, GGC has now hosted two of the premier Canadian soaring events for 2013.

I would like to thank everyone that helped make this contest a success (and there are many of you!).

Next stop, Lake Placid wave camp this fall!

Roger

 

More photos - rigging line, Shark detail

Following photos from Tom Hastie:

Old fashioned but effective method of passing on info (CD Roger Hildesheim posting grid order)

Looking from the end of one line of the trailers - From the Shark (see the pretty winglet) to PE, an ASW20BL, to OX, Antares, and MF, a Jantar at the far end.  First Shark I've seen.  VERY pretty.
   Note the technique Emmanuel (PE) used; Tail dolly is open on ground, so that the glider cannot abruptly rotate in a gust.  A good idea, even in the hangar.

Detail on the 'droop' horizontal stab of the Shark...  Will all gliders get them?

DD

Misc Nats pictures

People are sending good pictures to me (and did when I was too busy to open/look/use them).  I will post them as I get to them in the post-contest mode.

Two pics from Doug Scott - crew W2 - now freed from his captivity, one hopes.

           KI's shirt on the last day

Tom H. always has interesting T-shirts (an apparently endless supply).  Doug, an amazing tow-pilot (who may eventually be presented with that SOSA tuggie of the year award he won (third award)) thought he looked hungry and gave him lunch... then took his picture.  Towplane is QIH, our 160 hp Citabria. 
In addition to towing, Tom sniffed for us in the club L-33, and had his first flight (3 hrs) in the new Gatineau ASW-20, RM - "It goes".  Another tireless volunteer, without whom the contest and club can't operate.

Looking back at the contest, the thing that I will remember is the persistence of the CD, task committee, and pilots in using the very small soarable windows that Mother Nature gave us, and managing to get one of the two contests in.  You came to fly... and did!  And if it's raining, the GGC clubhouse is comfy and cozy with the two fireplaces going...

W2, Chris Wilson, SOSA, Mosquito (crew Doug Scott); S1 in background

Hard to believe we had a day like that...  Nationals grid on one of the practice days - some competitors had not arrived yet  (Photos by Dan Duclos)

Contests stretch your abilities, make you fly on days you wouldn't, and go cross-country on days you wouldn't think you could...  In Eastern Ontario, we have GGC May-Fly to induct new pilots to contests, but really to make them better cross-country pilots, and the RVSS-GGC-MSC Inter-Club Contest (flown out of any of the 3 airports) to safely stretch their abilities.  It's said that the Nationals gives you at least a year of cross-country experience.  Why not plan to attend next year's?

If you can't fly, why not volunteer to help?  Crewing for an experienced pilot gives you a window into how to prepare the aircraft, see the briefings, watch the contest staff do their jobs (weather, scoring, gridding, launching, recovering, retrieving)...  Even a few days would be appreciated by the organizers.  It's rewarding.  I learned a lot about weather - by being the weatherman (thanks to Nick (as always), Joerg, and Jean Richard)

Sun shining - must have been a practice day... (photo by Dan Duclos)

How was Saturday?  Comment on OLC on a flight from Hawkesbury/MSC:

"blue start, sucker clouds that drew you in, took your money and left you with 0.5-1.0 kts. Big gaps of nothing, hot humide and ....  Until next time mother nature."  Look familiar? 

DD

Post - banquet pre-nap post - Cdn Nationals (update with club unofficial and FAI preliminary scores)

Winner of the day in FAI was Joerg Stieber.  Winner of the day in Club was Martin Lacasse - flying a club aircraft - ask your club if you can compete! 

The day was not as good as forecast.  Not nearly as good... the cirrus stayed around, and the lift was spotty.  Still, FAI and Club both got days.

FAI scores - these are preliminary; two scores may change slightly; they don't affect the top 3, and won't affect placing.  Unofficial scores will follow later in the weekend.

Club:

At the Awards - Trophies not awarded:

Carling-O'Keefe Trophy - highest scoring team in any class - minimum 2 teams; each pilot must fly one day.  No teams entered.

CALPA Trophy - National Champion - Club Class.  Club Class did not have a contest - only 3 days...

Trophies awarded:

Dow Trophy - Best Flight in:
Club Class:
Pierre Cypihot, AVV Champlain, S1, 194.73 km at 62.20 kph hcp (Day 2 – 1000 point day)

FAI class:

Joerg Stieber, SOSA, JS, 224.07 km at 67.65 kph hcp (Day 3 – 1000 point day)

note - this was the same day - a small spread between the FAI and Club!

 

SOSA Trophy - Best Novice in the Nationals - there were two.  Judged best by higher daily scores was:  Martin Lacasse, GGC, ASW-24, M7.

 

Wolf Mix Trophy - National Champion in the FAI Class:

Joerg Stieber, SOSA, LS-8, JS.  On the final day in FAI, there were 330 m difference between the first 3 FAI finishers...  A well-deserved victory.

 

I'll post scores tomorrow. Unofficial 11 July scores are official as posted.

 

12 July scores become official 24 hrs after being posted at 10 PM EDT at the Awards if no protests are received.

 

DD

4 pm update - one return to base, two landouts

But in which class?  The suspense is probably killing you...

Will it be a contest?

dd

Sniffer stuck; launch finished; gates open; all have started (update 4)

Club L-23 climbed to 3,500'.  Karl in KI climbed in 4 kts to 3,500', Wolfgang in RM (new ASW20) climbed to 4,000'.  MSC reporting climbs to 3,500'. 

Launch commencing - just heard a Pawnee and L-19 and Citabria go about 30 secs apart.  Yesterday we launched in 26 mins...

Club gate opened at 1356.  Not a flood through the gate right now...  Tracker shows heights from 1,700 to 3,500'.  We just heard someone flying from MSC might land out (that's our first turnpoint)...

FAI gate opened at 1414.  There is now a flood of fibreglass flowing east.

We've confirmed the tracker is up and running on the internet, in Google earth. Link on the Nats webpage.  They're currently from 2,500 to 3,600'.

One group - large - left together; 3 hung back and have just left.  The cirrus deck appears to be moving in, not out...

DD

12 July - Last day of Championship - post-briefing

The Bermuda high has meandered east, and the front lies south of the task area.  It is still throwing a cirrus deck north at 2 PM local, and the forecast is for a blue day by 5 PM as it leaves the task area.

Winds are light and variable to 9,000' with light east-north-easterly light flow at the surface - we're gridded on 08 at 12:30 PM. The cirrus will suppress heating, and we expect the day to begin a little later.  I just looked outside, and the cirrus edge is right overhead; there are a few crappy wisps just in the blue area, no other Cu showing.  The 1000 local Dr Jack/XC Skies forecast shows the cirrus coming much further north than the previous one...  We may change Maxville for FAI to something a bit further north.

Joerg Stieber won the day yesterday in FAI, with a handicapped flight of 224.07 km at 67.65 kph (254.62 km at 76.87 raw), and Pierre Cypihot in Club had an amazing flight of 194.73 km at 62.20 kph handicapped (213.28 km at 68.13 kph raw).  Given that every pilot fell into a hole at least once, requiring perseverance to survive, and the unforecast rapid cycling of an e-w band just south of Pendleton to Montreal Soaring that pilots had to penetrate, these are very good speeds over wet terrain.  Commonly heard "That wasn't easy."

There are longer flights on the Online Contest - but flying a pre-declared task, where you must make the best of what is there, is infinitely more difficult - and rewarding, particularly if you finish.  There are many days at this contest where no one would have taken their gliders out of the trailer if they hadn't had to fly the contest.

Dr Jack says average 4 knots to 4,000 rising to 5,000.  We have set MAT tasks, 3 hour minimums, for FAI and Club.  FAI is off first today.

Next big event is the dinner - 7 gathering, for a 7:30 pm sit-down.

We'll announce task changes, and the tracker will show the flights, but we will not be announcing results until after the banquet - probably Saturday morning (not too early).  We expect both FAI and Club to get minimum distance today, which would mean FAI gets a contest in, and Club doesn't (3 days, 4 needed).  A visitor to the contest from another club was overheard to say "I was going to take up golf, but it wasn't frustrating enough, so I took up gliding instead."

FAI:

Club: