Tow Patterns

[SamKellner]

http://willswing.com/pdf/manuals/Scoote ... attern.pdf

I found this on WillsWing.com

There is a lot of good info here.

Can someone help me put the patterns on 49R I could make some copies.

The layout is similar here except we have a runway on the right side. Our max useable distance is more like 3,000ft. than the 3,500 in the Hollister example.

With the ~500' difference to the pulley, how much will that change the altitudes and release positions?

Official FAA records recognize "ultralight activity adjacent to runway" at 49R.

How hard would it be to get a HG icon in sectional maps. The paragliding assn., u$hPa, advertises this service. I should contact them. Surely they will be more than happy to help.

turnaround pulley location

IMG_6427_23[1].JPG (64.7 KiB) Viewed 13519 times

49R hangars

IMG_6425_22[1].JPG (77.45 KiB) Viewed 13519 times

SAM_0070r.JPG (260.34 KiB) Viewed 13036 times

[Bob Kuczewski]

49R ?

I thought runways were numbered with the compass heading divided by 10. So a runway running east and west would have runways 9 (for 90) and 27 (for 270). So runway 49 would be 490 degrees - which is more than 360 and would end up being 490-360 which is 130 or runway 13. Is the runway designated as 49 to avoid the unlucky number 13?

Here's the layout from that PDF:

Runway_Setup.png (48.55 KiB) Viewed 13513 times

[Bob Kuczewski]

Ahhhh ... 49R is an airport designation not a runway designation.     

Here's a view of the airport. Where would you conduct your flight operations?

[SamKellner]

Thanks Bob,

Yes the airport is 49R. The scooter and glider launch position is at the south edge of the tarmac, in front of the hangars. Sometimes over toward the segmented circle, depending on breeze direction.

Most often the wind direction is straight down the rwy.

The pulley is down near rwy 33, south end. I think that distance is ~3,000ft.

The turf strip/rwy is directly in front of our 52'x52' hangar. That heading is a few degrees more north and south.

The entry road, Jim Scott Rd., is off hwy83, near threshold rwy 33, south end.

[Bob Kuczewski]

Hi Sam,

To help with the discussions, here's a picture with a grid.

With that notation, I think the hangar would be at G8. The segmented circle is halfway between D8 and E8.

Can you give me the other key locations using similar notation?

[Bill Cummings]

I thought Sam’s hanger is the brighter roof to the left of the cross hatch marked G8.
I would prefer to refer to the squares like on a map Range and Township areas.
I would guess described my way (or the hwy way buddy) would be the brighter colored hanger roof is in the SE corner of area (square) F8 and the NE corner of area (square) F9

The segmented circle described in map lingo might be the southern half of area (square) D8 and the northern half of area (square D9.

This assumes that a person standing on the numbers “15” (150 degrees) looking down the length of the runway is looking SSE (magnetic). What is the mag. Declination at 49R? What are the grid degrees. I’m too lazy to check google earth.

[Bill Cummings]

Towing Aloft by Dennis Pagen if I remember has some figures for towing altitude expectations.

I once told a pulley car tow (Tomah Wisconsin Airport) that due to the brisk wind I would be weaving left and right to maximize my tow up and not to consider me locked out by the looks of things but instead listen to the radio. If I stopped talking for any longer than three seconds to slow to a stop. If I didn’t talk and didn’t release and was straight on line with the pulley to speed up and break my weaklink (220 lbs) for me.

The left and right maneuver follows the concept of a water skier that can pick up speed by cutting left and right of the boat.

As I cut left or right I can slow down the truck. As I transition back the other way I have the benefit of greater wind speed at altitude while I milk across to the other side past the middle.

I learned this while kiting my hang glider behind a stopped snow machine above a frozen lake.

If the wind died a little rather than radio to the snow machine to start up and move forward to keep me from sinking out I would cut out to one side and gain altitude. The higher wind speed farther up would allow me to climb up to where the weak link couldn’t take it and broke. Or I could hold it down and not climb out with the snow machine stopped.

This weaving path allows the truck to slow and allow me more time to get higher with less truck movement. The higher I get usually the greater the wind speed which helps me top out even more so than other competition tow pilots that tow straight toward the pulley.

To make this work I tell the tow vehicle not to watch and maintain the tension gauge but only adjust speed by my radio commands.

This has me spending more time on the line by slowing the tow vehicle down, climbing slower and more efficiently with less parasitic drag and at release having more rope between myself and the pulley than everyone else towing straight toward the pulley.
I doesn’t seem to me that this weaving back and forth during a no wind day would accomplish much although it might --- I just haven’t thought it through.
Does anyone have an opinion on a no wind pulley tow day?

[SamKellner]

Thanks Bill for the story. I do have 'Towing Aloft".

The Southwest Texas Hawks hangar is F-8 and F9. 52'x52', yes the one with the newer roof.

The scooter is set up in E-9 or F-10, just off the edge of the tarmac.

The glider starts off in that same area when we use the pulley with the predominately SSE or calm.

If there is any North in the airflow, no pulley, the glider starts at ~E-14.

Hopefully this will not take much time adapt the example to 49R. It doesn't have to be on an actual google view. Even if it is like the Hollister example, animated?, that's fine.

Substitute Hwy 83 for Quien Sabe Rd.

Substitute runway for Hollister entry Rd that originates at gate.

Substitute Airport Rd. for Hwy 25

49R segmented circle is near shed,

Our hangar is near the other flag at bottom of example.

If you can make these substitutions and change the angles a bit, it will be fine.

Thanks,
Sam

New member....

Name: Anthony Benetti
USHPA #: 95893
Membership Class: Pilot
Membership Exp Date: 1/31/2016








I

[Bill Cummings]

Hi Sam,

To help with the discussions, here's a picture with a grid.

The attachment composite_smoothed_with_grid_numbers.jpeg is no longer available

With that notation, I think the hangar would be at G8. The segmented circle is halfway between D8 and E8.

Can you give me the other key locations using similar notation?

WHERE IS THE PULLEY?

49R.JPG (39.15 KiB) Viewed 13497 times

[SamKellner]

uh
D-23 I was gonna measure it with my gps today but the batteries were low.

That's the location Dave Broyles used for the pulley when he did scooter towing ops here at the Fly-in. I have some really good video of Dave towing PG with D. Prentice instructing the students. They were getting high enough at ~D-17 to release, turn on downwind, do a base leg and final, landing back at the start D-9, similar to the Hollister example #7, down wind, base and final.

At this time we have the pulley at 1,000ft.~ E-13 on the grid That's what Mel had me do in Albuquerque at the balloon park.

The OkieSpool is maxed out with 2,200+ft of 1100lb? Spectra. So I can install the new anchor at D-23 but still need more Spectra.

I'm thinking this graphic can help some new pilots understand their objective.