Lake Keepit is over and out and was , as the QSGP in Potchefstroom, an exciting edition! 5 Out of 6 days is good , as they did not have really top weather! Best speed was 139.6 km./h. and 133 km./h. both flown by Graham Parker on the last 2 days and he won those days .Graham finished 2d in this QSGP with 41 points , 2 less then winner Tom Claffey and 4 ahead of Bruce Taylor.
The last comment from Bruce about the flying was ;
—“Friday turned out to be a no-fly day, with solid cloud cover all day. Saturday however there was a good window and we managed a task in between some sea air and overdevelopment. We did 326 km SW to Tambar Springs, north to Edgeroi silo and home. The start was slightly challenging, with no lift for some distance around the lake here, so we had to climb well away and glide back to the start line. There was a bonus point about 35 km out on our first leg, at Curlewis, and 2T was determined to take it. With just a little jostling for position and some good air, I managed to get there first, and was greeted shortly after by a 6-7 knot climb that took me all the way to cloudbase. The rest of the leg down to Tambar Springs was along the edge of some rapidly moving sea air, but we all stayed up and most of the crowd were close together at the turn. From here there were some changes in fortune. Graham, Tom and Andy found good climbs and really stayed in front from here on. The rest of us had some struggles. I successfully found a savage area of sink that very nearly ended my flight, and after losing some time getting up I never got back in touch with the leaders. Everyone complained about the difficulty of finding climbs, and avoiding the sink. The Edgeroi and Kaputar area was well overdeveloped, but everyone found a way through and made it home. For today it was Graham, Tom, Andy then me. Overall it was Tom, Graham then me. Tom has really flown well; fast, consistent and cool! The weather was not always easy, but it was a super week.–”
In my last blog I wrote enthusiastic about the open day in Holland and guest speakers as Tijl and Bert Schmelzer jr. It seems, as I heard from an observative reader, that my interpretation of what they said was not totally precise.
My mistake , nothing to do with the boy’s!!!
Here you can see how a blog is inspired by a comment. As Baude said:
” What were supposed to be a few little corrections have turned out to almost a full article. That was not my intention.–”
I wrote that Tijl’s flight was the very first 1000 km. from Belgium, but that must be the very first 1000 goal flight from Belgium.
So with the reaction I got from Baude who lives in the USA already since 1997, I can tell you now who had the very first 1000 km. flight from Belgium.
—“The first ever Belgian 1000 Km starting from Belgium was an FAI triangle of 1041 Km achieved by Yves Jeanmotte and Baudouin Litt in an ASH-25 on May 29, 1990. Other OLC 1000 Km flights have been achieved in single seats from Saint Hubert in the past few years by Yves and Michael Jeanmotte and Hugo Paepe got his 1000 Km FAI Certificate flying a Discus C last or the year before.–“
I also wrote ….Tijl “ invented” long distance flying with the help of cloud-making-machines over Germany” . He recently shared his written theory on FB with many and also on this open day in word and with pictures .
“re-invented”, might have been more appropriate.
Of course flying from “smoke” to ” smoke” happened, already in the long ,long past as well, German pilots did it as well as pilots from Holland and Belgium.
In Australia they did/do it over stubble- field-fires, totally different but still…they produce lift as well and can bring you “just” home or help you on the way to the first clouds popping up.
Specially, as I noticed, the young ones are happy to read and hear such a way of soaring now as well, by somebody from their age explaining it.
Here is what Baude had to say more about it;
—” Numerous German pilots use those power plants years before Tijl; as did I. Among some other long flights I did a flight of 937 km. on July 20 1996, using those power plants on the way back, landing at Verviers at sunset, after 11h06 in the air. I had been testing those power plants for the previous 10 years with the aim of using them for a big flight. It was not a 1000 K, but for an old standard class Discus B, without engine and GPS, it was not too bad. All Tp’s were rounded by pictures at that time. Then I left for the USA in 1997 and nobody in my club took over the project.”—
AND, :– “Tijl has really publicised their value for us, glider pilots, especially for the ones flying engine or turbo equipped gliders at the beginning or end of big flights.–“
And last but not least Baude had an other point, as I wrote that the boys gave their Uvalde-places away to other Belgium pilots,that was incorrect,…. they did not go, though they were selected, but found as Bert jr. mentioned on the open day , the cost too high and choose instead for Morocco! A too free interpretation from my side.
—“ Thanks to his excellent ranking in Hungary [Pierre de Broqueville] and Lithuania (the Schmelzer family), Belgium had 6 available spots in Uvalde, but only 4 pilots elected to go. Bert and Tijl could have come if they wanted, but they chose otherwise.”—“
There you are, never too old to learn and I really appreciate a good comment on something which I think is correct, but is not precise enough! So THANKS!
With the comment I received some great pictures with a story. As you see I can fill a whole blog with it, so I am grateful for that. Thanks Baude!!!
—“incidentally, regarding Morocco, I never went soaring there; but did report about the fabulous soaring conditions I witnessed as early as 1987. The Belgian Air Force used to deploy units to Morocco for very low level flying training. Sorry for the quality of the following pictures, but here is a picture taken not far away from Ouazarzate in 1994, flying F-16’s. It shows high cumulus cloud base topped with a spectacular wave cloud. The other is from a Mirage V in 1987 showing what low level means (100 feet) at 500 Kts .—“
And while talking about the power plants. He flew over them with his famous mother and glider pilot Georgette “Geogeo” Litt, who is more then well known in Belgium, France and Holland, because she flew WEGC’s and was p.e. 5th in 1981 in Cherence France [Mininimbus] , 3d in 1983 in St. Hubert Belgium [Mininimbus] and 2d in 1985 in Bikova- Subotica in the former Yougoslavia [Ventus].
She did so till 1991.[ source; book “Zweefvliegen in Vlaanderen ” by Bert Schmelzer sr.] ;
–“The last flight I did with my mother was in July 2010 on her Janus C. It was during a visit to Belgium and it was… a run to the Rhine River using the Power Plants. The accompanying pictures are from that flight, where you can really see the cloud producers.–“
Baude [Baudouin] flew in Uvalde’s last WGC together with his brother Emmanuel both in 15 m. class and both in Ventus 2BX.
About the WGC he said:
–“Yes, we do some nice OLC flights along the Appalachians, especially during winter, but I kind left that on the side for the past 2 years for my WGC 2012 preparation. It did not work out exactly like I wished, probably because the weather was not as I was accustomed to. You might be surprised with this assertion, as for many this weather was just exceptional. Not for me and the US team as it looked like. We never got the true amazing Uvalde weather and I really messed up many of my finals. On the other hand, winning a day at that level was more than I could expect; so, the result is positive.–“
The brothers Baudouin ” Baude” and Emmanual Litt and the Belgium team in Uvalde!
With Patrick and Pierre and their co-pilots.
And with mum Georgette “Geogeo” in her Janus C.
“Notice how blue it was at Verviers. The Power plants were the only cloud producers to the north that day.”
Baude.
For all the other news , also more detailed about Lake Keepit, links in German and English to the Antares flights in Uvalde from Pete Harvey, you are welcome to look at www.soaring.eu
CU next week, cheers Ritz
