| Sunday morning at Williams Soaring Center; Bill Curry, Rich Beardsley, Bruce Moore, Dudley Dufort, Steve Henke, Jim Rolle (all teared up) Scott Woodward, Dean Gradwell, (and friend) Roger Hebner & Ron McElliott. Notice the cash that Jim & Dean are holding. Payoff from Saturday. Maybe that's why Jim is teared up. |
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Click here to see a Google Earth trace of Sunday's flight taken from the on-board data logger. Note; Ignore the trace going south from the William's Soaring Center to the pilot's residence. The pilot failed to turn off the data logger after landing at the Williams Gliderport. |
The beauty of Cross Country flying is threefold. Unlike stationary flying, Cross Country gives you the unique opportunity to fully utilize a thermal. You not only enjoy the thrill of taking your plane to a very high altitude, you can then, put all that altitude to good use. All in a cooperative, team environment.
For months we’ve been looking forward to Thermal Safari 2010. We had fewer teams turn out, but ironically, it turned out to be one of the best weekends of flying in the history of this event. Both days were incredible.
Saturday morning we met at Bill & Kathy’s restaurant in Dunnigan. I don’t know about lunch or dinner but they put out a great breakfast. Country fried steak, eggs and a generous portion of hash browns is enough to keep a guy going all day. Called "the 100-mile breakfast", it’s the necessary sustenance for a day on the road. Around 10 AM we rolled up to the Pheasant Club to drop off extra cars and plane boxes. Then we headed over to our nearby launch site to get ready for the Dunnigan to Yolo run. As always, Dean Gradwell graciously set up his winch to get us airborne.
"Needles to say Ron, Roger, and I look forward to the Safari every year, not only for the flying but also to be with our friends. The course for Saturday was my favorite, most likely because we finished. SVSS is our adopted club and we thank you for everything you do for RC soaring." Dean Gradwell
Dean has a cool set up. He drives a Jeep as his chase vehicle. On the front bumper he has mounted his winch and it runs off the Jeep battery. It’s a very sanitary setup. The only downside is that Dean is always the last to leave the launch site because he has to wait until everyone else is out on course. That fact is never overlooked and very much appreciated. Dean’s a good stick. It doesn’t take him long to catch up and most times, overtake the pack. Dick Frame attended his first Thermal Safari on Saturday.
"This was my first cross country and I had a great time. I can see why all of the regulars look forward to the next one. The weather was good and what a great group of guys. Being an electronic engineer I think the most fun for me at the beginning. There was an engineering conference held to get Steve’s winch to operate without the foot peddle, that was left at home. After that problem was solved the flight was fantastic and it was fun to be with all of the great pilots that were there." Dick Frame
The Dunnigan to Yolo route was originally laid out to be about 30 miles in length. This year, some consideration was given to incorporating a "double back" along the way. The intent would be to add mileage to the route and increase the fun factor by forcing encounters with other teams going in the opposite direction. Instead we exercised option B. We added 20 miles to the course. This new addition provided more challenges through the varying terrain of the Dunnigan Hills. We had two crossings of I-5, two crossings of I-505, and ventured out into the flatlands around Zamora. All that varying terrain adds to the enjoyment of the course. This route is probably everyone’s favorite.
Although Thermal Safari was never envisioned as a contest, it’s human nature to try an out-do the other guy. At breakfast, each team threw $20 into the kitty. It was decided that the winner would be the team that completed the 47 mile course with the fewest number of re-launches along the way. On Sunday morning two teams split the winnings from Saturday. The Flying Tigers, (Dean Gradwell, Ron McElliott, and Roger Hebner) and Broken Aero (Jim Rolle, Bruce Moore and Dick Frame) took home the bacon. They did the whole enchilada, non-stop!
Each team has its own tales to tell, replete with low level saves, wrong turns and altitude records. The Dust Devils (Dudley Dufort, Jim Thomas and Sheldon Smith) hit 800 meters at around 4 PM near the end of the course. Translated into "American", 800 meters is around 2,600 feet. That was a big deal . . . until that record was smashed on Sunday.
"This is definitely NOT your normal TD type of soaring. Yes, the basic principle is the same...find lift and stay in the air. However, the task does not cover 6 or 10 or 15 minutes culminating in a spot landing. .It covers miles...over 50 miles, and 4-1/2 hours. Dudley Dufort and Jim Thomas took me under their wings as a team member and it was a BLAST! I've experienced X-C over a closed course at the NATs, however 50+ miles over open terrain, leading to significantly changing air conditions introduces a whole different set of challenges, not only in the air, but also if you land out and have to re-light! Some innovative thought goes into relighting on the course. While some people mounted winches to their vehicles, I think our team had the most "fun" approach... a zip-start, a 6000 lb Avalanche, and 22 mph...All in an effort to launch a $3000+, 11 lb toy airplane! My only regret is that due to work, I was unable to Safari on Sunday! Will I do it again...You bet! Should you do it...You bet - it's one of those "experiences" that really "round out" your soaring experience!" Sheldon Smith
The complete Thermal Safari route runs about 160 miles along I-5 from Red Bluff to Woodland. It’s broken into four segments of around 40 miles each. For Sunday, the goal was to run the second leg between Orland and Williams. We all met in Williams and "bench raced" over breakfast at Granzella’s. As most of you know, Rich Beardsley is a full scale instructor at the William’s Soaring Center. Rich made arrangements for us to leave our extra gear and cars at the airport. With a north wind forecast we decided to start at Orland and fly back (south) to Williams. It took almost an hour to get to our launch site on the western outskirts of Orland. Again the ever gracious Dean, set up his winch. What followed was a series of disappointing and unsuccessful attempts to get out on course. It was launch, glide, hit a tiny bubble and land for an hour. Around 1 PM we were becoming a little concerned. Was this year’s Safari going to be a one trick pony? Were we destined to call it quits, pack up and go home with only one day of actual flying? At 1:30 conditions began to change. And man did they ever change. Mother Nature rewarded us for our patience. It was huge! At one point, with Scott Woodward on the sticks, the Dust Devils’ SBXC went through 1,000 meters. Now you talk about "specked-out". 1,000 meters is more than 3,300 feet above the ground. Even for the oversized SBXC with its 12 foot span, there’s no fuselage. There are no tail feathers. The only thing that you can still see is a mere speck of a wing. During the final 10 miles the Dust Devils (Dudley Dufort, Scott Woodward and Rich Beardsley) were seldom below 2,000 feet. Rich Beardsley called ahead got clearance for the team to land at the William’s Soaring Center. That was kinda cool. About 20 full scale guys were on hand to witness the low level pass and smooth landing of an R/C glider at a full scale operation. It was an appropriate and thrilling way to finish off the 2010 Thermal Safari. While everyone had a great time, the Dust Devils have the lone distinction of completing the Sunday course and doing it without a re-light. Rich Beardsley adds;
"I had the opportunity to drive for Dudley and Scott on Sunday. Because of my eye surgery I was not able to fly this time, this is the first XC event I have been to and not been the pilot. It was a real good experience. It lets me know what the crew has to go through. After having a difficult time getting off the field, Dudley and Scott shared the flying duties, and trundled down the course. For the first two thirds of the course they stayed between 300 and 600 meters drifting down the course with the wind. Then it got sketchy, they struggled to stay in the air. It looked grim, down to 150 meters and no indicators anywhere. Then the sniffler started to beep, next thing you know Scott tops out at 1050 meters. What a thermal, I think that was the one that Dudley recorded to put on his answering machine. The wind started to come out of the south hindering our progress, but the lift stayed good. I think that it might have been a shear line, not sure as I was not flying. We made steady progress toward the finish. When we got about 10 miles out, I suggested that we try to make it all the way to the Williams Glider Port, where we left the boxes. I called Rex (the owner) and he told us to come on in. Dudley bucked a strong head wind but made it to the field. All the full scale pilots were on hand and watching as Dudley made a high speed pass and looped around and landed in front of the hangers. Later, I talked to a couple of the full scale guys I know. They thought we came from Willows about 10 miles north. When I told them we came all the way from Orland, nonstop, they were amazed. I had a great time crewing for Dudley and Scott, but did miss the flying part." Rich Beardsley
On May 22nd & 23rd, we have a Cross Country contest scheduled at our filed. Come out and join the fun.