Alphen aan den Rijn Sunday September 4 2011 ritzdeluy@hotmail.com
Nice quiet weather in Holland with balloons passing by!
Finally some weather-improvement,that means, for the last couple of days! Today we will have rain again but still 24, after we had thunderstorms during the night, tomorrow we will back to 18, so I enjoyed the last couple of days!!!Yesterday was an old-fashioned summer day, not only for soaring but also for swimming, as at some places it was 30 dgr.
Best flight yesterday here in Holland; 265 km. in a DG 800/18m. It was a bit stable and later during the day we could see cumulus-clouds and thermal-activity started . Just over the border in Germany, somebody flew 484 km. in a Hornet from Aachen, with a good 300 FAI in it.
On Thursday the best flight was a nice 300 FAI triangle in a Mosquito. Yes those “oldies”
are still going strong.
Best OLC- [wave] flight yesterday was in the USA with 941 km. in an ASH 26 E. Someway I thought they had MUCH better weather this season in the USA, as we here in Europe , but Tom who flew the ASH 26 wrote in his comment; ” Summer is FINALLY here”. So it might not have been THAT good either.
Very pleased to see that Carsten Bauer ,[Germany] who flew with us in Tocumwal in the past flew a nice 300 km. FAI triangle in his Carat, on the last day of August. Finally a good day again with some after-summer weather/conditions. By the way a Carat is an aeroplane and a glider more or less based on the discus. The motor is based on the old 4 cylinder horizontally VW air-cooled engine. It has a folding prop and a special undercarriage.
The German juniors are still enjoying themselves in the mountains from Puimoisson in France, with flights just under and above 700 km. last week.
I guess , kilometer -eater Alfredo Giretti loves his new ASH 31 /21m. as well , making long flights in Rieti; another over-800 km-flight was added to his total on August 31.
I heard a few more friends have ordered an ASH 31/21m.
Great to find out that 100 years after Mr. Fokker, flew his first plane, a Spin, which was pretty daring, over Haarlem -town , the Fokker 100 will be back in production. NGA [Next Generation Aircrafts] before their name was REKKOF, the other way around you read FOKKER, has announced that within 2 years the prototype should be ready. The 120 -passenger-plane should be most economical and environment-friendly.Good luck!!!
The 2d Belgian Masters at Saint Hubert, sponsored by Glider Pilot Shop, started on August 28 but had only one day till Thursday September 1. They went , at least a few went , for a speed task of 139 km. but the best flight was from one of the organisers Yves Jeanmotte with 32 km. So an invalid day!
A pity as high level pilots from France, Belgium and Holland mix here and devote their energy to be on the highest places. Goal; who proves to be the best pilot from Belgium?!
On Friday the weather there was most probably as “milky” as here, bad visibility but nice temperatures.
Patrick Stouffs [picture from archive]
Yesterday they finally could go into the air. A task of 285 km. and 12 from 19 finished. Best was Yves Jeanmotte, putting 955 points in his pocket. Runner up was Jean Luc Colson and Bert Schmeltzer was 3d.
When the weather is the same as here they might have a window in the afternoon, when all rain and thunderstorms have passed by.
Season is more or less over, GOOD, let’s concentrate on the 2012 summer now with the 2 WGC’s in Uvalde and Chaves and hopefully exciting- good- soaring -weather, so CU on Wednesday, and….the overseas season starts soon too, so no time to worry anymore about rain and wind, we just go on, cheers Ritz