Dry Canyon Alamogordo, NM (USA)

[cascpa]

See you guys there.
Charlie

[Bill Cummings]

I received a call today from one of the pilot in the LZ for their XC try for Tularosa, NM, to Dog Canyon and back maybe.
Pilot reports that it should be a good day for flying the course and also that the new wind sock was stuck but a 7 mph wind brought it around finally.
I texted that we (I) will take an extension ladder over next weekend. We may have to flush the dust out of the bearing and re-lubricate it.
I recommended streamers on the north fence for now. Mike E. and I usually put up flags on the north fence when we fly.

[Bill Cummings]

Robinator, Driver Man Extraordinaire.
I used some supposedly corrupt files of our May 12, 2017 XC flight to post another YouTube upload.
Mike has ordered new radios as the two he had along on his 41 mile flight gave him twice as much trouble as one radio will.
This video tells of how to be a good chase drive and how to practice for the event.

Driver duties.JPG (57.84 KiB) Viewed 5900 times

https://youtu.be/Nhdvn-9UTl0

[Bill Cummings]

My look at the weather for this weekend is blown out Friday.
Good Saturday.
Doable Sunday with thermals.
Too ESE Monday. (But the mountain range could block the east push and we could find thermals)
However when it comes to weather forecasters I hold bank tellers and heart surgeons in higher regard.

[Bill Cummings]

Maybe Ann can post some pictures. I'm going to be too busy to spend much time posting for the next three weeks.
Velma Woodcock gave me all of her pictures of this Memorial Day Weekend flying so if time permits I'll put some up.
Robin will post an account I'm sure.

[RobinHastings]

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5, 2017:
It's been over a month since Dry Canyon was flown. Today the temperatures were only in the mid-90's there, so Bill Cummings and I went out that way to see what's what. Bill would drive, I would fly. We got to the LZ at 9:30 am and were up at the launch 45 minutes later. Winds were light and coming from northeast, but by the time we had my U2-160 set up they were coming up the launch ramp about 10-12 mph. I took off about 11:50 am, and went down the ridge looking for lift. Dark clouds were building to the east, but the skies were blue out over town. I found some thermals at the east end of the Bowl, which got me back up to launch height, but after that the next good thermal I found was about 500 ft over the Cox Field LZ. That sustained me for a while, and I could have taken it up pretty high, I think. However, the overdevelopment over the Sacramentos was now dark, threatening, and reaching out to the west (i.e., me!) So I set up a south approach (winds aloft had been southeast in most of the flight) and brought it in more-or-less nicely on the wheels, for a 20-minute, reasonable flight. Bill was down in time to help me tear down, and we then went to the Rockin' BZ Burger for lunch. Bonus: Coming out from there, we had a call from my wife, who had just heard from a visiting California pilot named Arthur. Bill and I met up with him, had a nice time visiting, and decided to go for another flight day this Friday. Today wasn't bad - maybe that day will be better. Join us if you can!
-Robin

[Bob Kuczewski]

Coming out from there, we had a call from my wife, who had just heard from a visiting California pilot named Arthur. Bill and I met up with him, had a nice time visiting, and decided to go for another flight day this Friday. Today wasn't bad - maybe that day will be better. Join us if you can!
-Robin

There's an Arthur who flies regularly at Torrey. Pass along my best wishes if it's the same Arthur.

[Bill Cummings]

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5, 2017:
It's been over a month since Dry Canyon was flown. Today the temperatures were only in the mid-90's there, so Bill Cummings and I went out that way to see what's what. Bill would drive, I would fly. We got to the LZ at 9:30 am and were up at the launch 45 minutes later. Winds were light and coming from northeast, but by the time we had my U2-160 set up they were coming up the launch ramp about 10-12 mph. I took off about 11:50 am, and went down the ridge looking for lift. Dark clouds were building to the east, but the skies were blue out over town. I found some thermals at the east end of the Bowl, which got me back up to launch height, but after that the next good thermal I found was about 500 ft over the Cox Field LZ. That sustained me for a while, and I could have taken it up pretty high, I think. However, the overdevelopment over the Sacramentos was now dark, threatening, and reaching out to the west (i.e., me!) So I set up a south approach (winds aloft had been southeast in most of the flight) and brought it in more-or-less nicely on the wheels, for a 20-minute, reasonable flight. Bill was down in time to help me tear down, and we then went to the Rockin' BZ Burger for lunch. Bonus: Coming out from there, we had a call from my wife, who had just heard from a visiting California pilot named Arthur. Bill and I met up with him, had a nice time visiting, and decided to go for another flight day this Friday. Today wasn't bad - maybe that day will be better. Join us if you can!
-Robin

https://youtu.be/pPRXvRMTjHA

If you are only looking west things don't look dangerous.JPG (32.93 KiB) Viewed 5764 times

[RobinHastings]

Nicely edited, Bill! You have a good touch at building the tension. If you ever put in music for this, "Jaws" would be good...
-Robin

[RobinHastings]

FRIDAY, JULY 7, 2017:
Bill and I met up with Arthur Simoneau in the Cox Field LZ about 9;30 this morning; by 10:15 we were once again at the Dry Canyon launch site. Bill didn't like the easterly flow in the forecast, and so had volunteered to drive this day. Conditions were indeed unsettled. Wind at the ramp was either zero, or downhill, and clouds overhead were moving from the east and northeast. Nevertheless, the forecast was for southwest winds, and eventually we got some, but only after several dust devils went through launch, one of which attacked my glider, viciously and unprovoked. Bill saved the glider heroically, and banished the dust devil to the hell from which it came. Arthur was the first to launch, about 1:00 pm in his Airborne Sting, and it was interesting to watch; he flew well, got into a thermal, got out of a thermal, and plummeted like a brick. But when I spotted him thermalling out past the West Face, I decided I was ready to go. I launched well, as Arthur did, and had a rhythmic, musical flight - in other words, I flew like a piano. I hit a couple of rough thermals and gained a few feet, but mostly I was plummeting downward in the U2-160, clearing Curt's Bluff by about 100 feet and then praying that I'd find some lift and clear the power lines on Scenic Drive. God responded with some lift right then (God is much faster than most government agencies, you'll notice) and I cleared them by 50 feet or so. This was good, but left me with limited landing options - I put it down in the large cutout on Fairgrounds Drive between Cox Field and Scenic. Not bad, for a death-defying sled run. Arthur, on the other hand, had a great time, getting up to 2000 feet above launch height and flying for half an hour. He made a fine north approach to the LZ and put it down beautifully. Bill and Arthur were there to help me with tearing down, and by 3:30 we were all at the burger place, discussing the day's flying and all kinds of other hang gliding experiences. Arthur said goodbye about 4:00; he and his girlfriend have to return to Southern California by Monday. Good times all around, and I surely hope that we see him again. And THANK YOU, BILL! I wouldn't have flown without your help.
-Robin