Royal Dutch Handover !May 1!Still enough Libelles in the air !

May 1 today, April went to quick.Day of Labour, certainly for those who are cleaning Amsterdam after the celebrations. What a day it was yesterday, SUNNY AND DRY for all national and international visitors in Amsterdam.
After more than 100 years we have a KING and were/are grateful for what the Queen has done in the 33 years of hard work. Now she is not going to sit behind the geraniums but still will deal with official visits , as princess now.
The International press was here in Amsterdam with over 1500 and EVERYBODY except a handfull of republicans LOVED the Royal Dutch HANDOVER as CNN called it.
Historic and traditional ceremonie first during the morning and afternoon and….than ,…party time with world-best DJ Armin van Buuren ,and Andre Rieu and many other artists, as well as sporters Epke Zonderland with a demonstration and our famous speed skaters.
Before all royals went to dinner , a group of F 16 fighters with one ORANGE F 16 in the middle, “raced” over Amsterdam in a perfect formation and one pilot had a dashcam aboard!!!! A great final of an awesome day!

koninklijke+familie  Royal family

Our royal family and the “old” generation Beatrix, the new generation Willem Alexander and Maxima and the furure generation Crown Princess Amalia in the middle.

Not all people looked at the TV all day,[ fabulous presentation  by the way by the NOS] ,  like I did as the weather here was AGAIN , too beautiful to NOT fly!!! Several over 600 km. flights with good lift. Spring is just so good in Holland!

Jeroen Beeke
Flying was more important but the orange feeling was also in the glider.
Courtesy;  Jeroen Beeke.

I wrote you earlier about the 600 km. flights from the N. of Belgium to nearly the N. of Holland [Hoogeveen]  by pilots from Keiheuvel and Diest last Saturday. It happened on Sunday as well !!!!
2 Of them are practising/team flying for the Leszno JWGC; Jeroen Jennen and Niel Deijgers.
Jeroen made some pictures from Neil in the Libelle, while flying the 560 task .

Neil in Libelle  Neil in Libelle3

Courtesy Jeroen Jennen
AND
MORE LIBELLES

Neil gliders ready to go  Neil libelles 4

What a great , good looking and still perfect performing toy the Libelle is!!!!!
Courtesy; Niel Deijgers at the Airfield AEROCLUB in Belgium[Brasschaat]
Look for Neils story [ in English] at http://nieldeijgers.blogspot.be/

And more “Libelle-news” this time from a young Dutch pilot. As he shares with us, ” he was not allowed to sleep with his girlfriend when he would not fly over 300 km. ”  To be sure he would not be cold and alone , he flew his first 500 k in a Libelle . Is n’t that a sweet story,….. talking about support!?

In Holland we had 119 flights on Sunday with as best distance 638 km. [509 triangle] from Texel one of the islands up N. in a DG 400/17 m. Not bad, certainly when you see the pilot flies over water and close to the coast, but also S. direction Terlet in the middle of Holland!
On Saturday 107 flights so lot’s of fun for our Dutch pilots in springtime. Yesterday 90 flights were added, 12 over 500km..
Belgium had 17 and 18 mostly in the N of Belgium. On Sunday even 819 km. from Weelde, [Ventus 2ct/18 m] all the way to the N of Holland and even the N. of Germany.

Also on the AERO last week; an Art exhibition by Katrin Wötzl from Pilotessa Desing .com . She was very succesfull and you could even win one of her paintings.

Kathrin

as shared by her on FB.

 

First flights in Finland with Duo Discus XL(T) OH-1017 “EIK”.” , I read on FB.
Good to see this glider in Finland as well. Schempp-Hirth is pretty active with the ARCUS , QUINTUS , Duo Discus and Discus.

A late day, but a day, at least for 2 classes,  last Sunday in KLIX, as the first pilots left on track around 4!!!!
Pretty marginal flying though in club class with a B task of 123 .7 km. and 5 pilots from 25 managed to finish. The girls, Sabine and Swaantje started together, managed to fly 90 km. and both got 80 points for doing their “job”. The winner must have been happy with 129 points.
In 18 m./open some action as well; 136.44 km. [B task]  and here 16 from 24 finished . With late starts at 16.07 [some left at 17.47!!]  the 2 Swedish pilots one of them well known Börje Erikkson, won the day in their ASG 29;393 and 392 points.
Europe is not THAT big, but you see the difference in weather, with Belgium and Holland on that Sunday.

Some problems with my blog, so I better quit now, more news in the weekend.
Cheers Ritz,….on Wednesday May 1 2013. By the way the first day of May started in the night with MINUS 3. That nice dry, cold but great soaring air is still here.

ritzdeluy@hotmail.com     www.soaringcafe.com      www.glidinginternational