Alphen aan den Rijn    December 16 2009     ritzdeluy@hotmail.com

Thanks  for the many , phone calls, emails and sms messages  I received for my birthday today! It feels fabulous to receive them from all parts of the world. THANK YOU!!!!! Was busy for nearly 2 hours to read them and react quickly on a few already!!!! And it is only morning! Will leave soon for Amsterdam for Birthday cake with the family, sushi in a great Japanese restaurant in the early evening and the Farewell Performance of River Dance  with Inge in the Heineken Hall after.
“Heaven ” might send us some fresh white snow as well today, it is cold enough  [-8 tonight ] and…. it is predicted!
Heard that they expect 41 dgr. today in Tocumwal , with  strong wind and as I heard as well Victoria and NSW are on high fire alert today. Tomorrow it seems , a cold change  with some rain will bring some relieve

To be honest , I must say that I do have respect for Klaus Ohlmann. Not so much for the distances he flies up and down over the ridges, but more for the duration of the flight and the motivation he gives to other pilots , for sure the ones who did training with him, to fly long distances. He “did it again ” in Argentina in a Nimbus 4 DM, where he flew a 2593.7 km . with a speed of 175.31 km./h. and had to sit and concentrate for 14 hours and 47 minutes and 42 seconds  and that is not nothing, certainly not with an oxygen mask on your face [over 7000 m.]!!!!!On November 30 he did about the same [the mountains know him by now!] but with an even longer and higher flight; 2831.15 km.  with a speed of 186.17 km/h.  soaring the skies for 15 hours, 12 minutes and 26 seconds. [over 8000 m.]Not my cup of tea!!!!
Even…new challenges are there! What about 3000 km.???!!!! He will do it one day!

It is getting a bit boring but on December 13 30 flights over 1000 km.were flown. Then 26 on December 14 and  another 12 yesterday.
It is good that not everybody is interested in flying those long distances. Enjoying your soaring, that is the most important!!!!! If your goal is a 1000 km.[ set ] task, that is ok for you , but if you are happy with your first 50 or 300 or 500km. flight that is as important. And…for some is ONE 1000km. enough. That is, if it was an FAI triangle as that is still “cooler” then a jojo. And an out and return is not bad either , even more flying it without an engine! So I am impressed with all the 1000 km flights but I do see the fun in great set other distance tasks as well maybe, even more.
For that reason I mention the flight in the SZD55 a nice triangle of 843.13 km. [750 FAI] flown in Western Australia and as the pilot , James Cooper claims, with no cu’s and under total overcast all flight!
And knowing Anton Horrill from Austria , I am very impressed with his great flights in Corowa. Another 608 km. all the way up North to Forbes and back.
On December 12 , I nearly missed a flight between all those African  1000 km. tasks , flown in New Zealand , in fact the wave paradise. Vaughan Ruddick flew in LS 6 a nice and very interesting 547 km flight with a speed of  151 km. /h. He writes that his plan was to fly a 1000 km. distance but due to a late start , caused by the weather [high wind on the ground and a slower then forecast cold front]  he enjoyed a “shorter” flight with pressure wave, lee wave, primary wave, ridge soaring ,climbs up to 9.5 kts. reaching fl.175 and a nice 50 km. final glide with a 60 km. headwind and the first 45 km. flying over full cloud cover with tops up to 12.000 ft. [look for his full story on the OLC news]. I liked it!!

What about a Greek ATR-42 nearly landing on the wrong Greek Insel!?The Olympic pilot started his descend to the  island of Paros but the “friends” on the tower just were in time to convince him that he had to go the another island Naxos. There are so many small Greek Isles ……!

We had – 8 , so the skating-fever starts again  here in Holland. Ice skates are sold like ” sweet bread-rolls” and many will find them under their Christmas Tree. Even the ” 11 steden-tocht ” , the famous trip over ice visiting 11 towns in Friesland ,the Northern part of Holland , was mentioned in the papers this week.One more week of -8 and the canal in front of my house will be full with colourful skaters,  stead of ducks and swans.

Narromine has been pretty busy  over the last weeks and they had mostly good weather. Yesterday Mac {Japan}  flew a 1119 km flight in a Ventus 2 CM /18m. Hans Raschke [ Germany] who flies as long as I know him in Unterwoessen and Narromine, flew 579 in an LS 4! Not bad either! Great weather yesterday in Narromine. But also in the rest of Australia as Benalla, Corowa and Tocumwal all claimed nice flights.
Bitterwasser and Kiripotib added more 1000 km flights and Bostjan is enjoying himself VERY much in Bitterwasser ! 1225 km .And…what about Alexander!!?? A 1250 DECLARED FAI triangle with a total scoring distance of  1401 km. AMAZING!!!!!!
And then the comment of German pilot Matthias Hoelzl; A dream comes true , a very hard fought-for  and declared FAI 1000 km. and flown now![Bitterwasser DG 800b/18m.]THAT is what it is all about!!!!! Dreams coming true, feeling free and happy with your sport !
Felt sorry for Josef today as he nearly flew his 1000 km. from Corowa, but  missed out on 53 km on this very nice and very far out and return.

Thanks again and now I am going to eat cake with my friends here in Alphen . CU on Sunday! Ritz