Not An Entirely Happy Ending

Whether it’s biking or flying, wind seems to play a pretty significant role in a lot of my activities. The downside to trying to launch a glider from a hill or mountain is that you’re very dependent upon the direction of the wind. Today’s wind, for example, was not exactly promising from a directional standpoint … today I actually WANTED a headwind. That said, Dan felt that the winds were mild enough that we should at least give it a try. I’m glad we did.

As it turns out, it turned into a pretty productive day considering I didn’t pedal anywhere. Much like yesterday, my day started out on the Condor where I did 2 flights from the 40′ hill, two from the bump, one from the corner, and two flat slope launches. The flat slope launches are a bit trickier because it takes longer for the glider to take flight – which means a LOT more running is needed. With the other launches, I’ve typically been in the air after six or seven steps. With the flat slope launch, it’s typically more than twenty – as seen in the video below (assuming the video below actually plays properly).

Dan then suggested we set up the Falcon 195. I managed to take two mini flights on the Falcon before the conditions became less than favourable and forced us to take a bit of a break.

During said break I sat at the picnic table (no, I didn’t take a nap) and did some writing. At one point, I looked up to the corner launch area and there was literally a haze over it as a cloud of pollen blew through. It was a bizarre sight. As I continued to work on my computer I noticed a build up of pollen forming on the screen. That was also a bizarre sight … and probably not entirely good for my computer (although, I don’t think it has allergies).

As we waited for the winds, Dan offered to drive me into town to pick up some provisions both for tonight’s supper and tomorrow’s ride. As I look now at the pile of supplies I purchased, I’m pretty sure I bought too much. Not a huge problem, it just means either a heavier load tomorrow or a lot of eating tonight. Side note: Dan has been great and not just because he has signed off on both my foot launch and flat slope launch ratings. Between driving me to the flight park, grocery runs, and great instruction, it’s been a fun couple of days.

As the winds became slightly more agreeable later in the afternoon, I got hooked into the Falcon once again and managed to get in four more successful flights. Unfortunately, there were only 3.5 successful landings. Nothing serious happened on the 0.5 unsuccessful landing except that I tweaked a muscle in my upper leg area. I tried another flight after that and while it didn’t hurt too much there was definitely something wrong. I’m not going to lie, I was more than a little frustrated. Especially because Dan was going to let me do a launch from the mountain top.

Given how much I wanted to run off the mountain top, I was seriously considering taking the chance and doing the flight anyway. However, with 400 km yet to pedal, I decided to stay on the ground. VERY reluctantly. I think I may have said, “Oh gosh darn.” at the time.

Injury woes aside, I have to say I’ve enjoyed my stay at Susquehanna Flight Park and have really enjoyed the solitude of my two nights here. Very peaceful. Well, I could do without the mosquitos that have found their way into the bunkhouse tonight but other than that, it’s been very enjoyable and relaxing. Oh, and the sky tonight is stunningly clear making for a beautiful star-filled night sky. Yup, today was a very good day – even if I didn’t get to run off a mountain. The question is, will my leg be okay for cycling tomorrow?

Today’s totals:
Training flights: 7 (Condor), 6 (Falcon 195)