Picture;courtesy Joop Everse.
Alphen aan den Rijn Sunday November 6 2011
ritzdeluy@hotmail.com www.glidinginternational.com www.soaringcafe.com
The weather here is still very soft for the time of the year. Yesterday I saw a calf in the paddock and I also noticed a duckie with a brandnew family behind her. Butterflies should be “sleeping” but they still hang around in my garden. Some of my plants think it is spring instead of autumn and have popped up their “heads”.
Hope they all survive when the weather changes. It was between 15 and 20 dgr. here over the last couple of days.
For your information, new forms and updated information about how to submit candidates for the next prize for the Prince Alvaro de Borbon Orleans Fund will be provided later this year . Got that news from the brand-new secretary -general from the FAI , Jean-Marc Badan…. who “after almost 30 years activities in air sports and commercial aviation'” finds it ” a honour to take up this position” . I have great admiration for people who spend SO much time and dedication to such jobs.Good luck Jean-Marc!
You can read it all on the- still- under -construction- site of the FAI. www.fai.org
Africa is slowly starting up the operations. Flights have been already on the OLC from Gariep Dam, Bitterwasser, Bloemfontein , Pokweni, Kiripotib and Worchester.
Australia started earlier as well with some good flights from Kingaroy, Jondaryan, Tocumwal, Benalla, Temora, George Lees Airfield, Lake Keepit [where G Dale from the UK gave as I heard an amazing coaching week , ] Raywood , Beverley , Gawler, Narromine and from Waikiri and I hope soon also from the new airfield in Coober Pedy [will tell you more about that when it is so far!! A Stemme left there this week for a 637 km. long flight to Forrest in Western Australia , that is a lot of flying over NOTHING!!!] and of course the biggest center in Australia for overseas guests Corowa , where the gliders arrive today or tomorrow. If all goes well , unpacking from the containers and the check by the quarantine people, will start on Tuesday.
“Let the show begin” is he device from Francesco , Grietje and their staff, so look for all the news at ; www.australian-soaring-corowa.com
On November 3 the BIG ones, ASH25EB 28 flew already over 750 km. from Pokweni and Kiripotib, yes it has really started now!
And what a great wave flight from Tomas Suchanek in the ventus 2 on that same day here in Europe; 890 km.from the airport of Krnov in the Czech Rep.
Yesterday more good flights in Australia even 603 km in a PIK 20 by Geoff Pratt flown from Mareeba, a little town on the Atherton Tableland in far North Queensland.
Another good ridge flight in Europe from Unterwössen;705 km. in a DG 1000/20m.
And talking about good flights……what about young Bert Schmelzer [Belgium] ….who flew on Friday 720 km. in the Discus 2A, from Hausen am Albis in Switzerland. Bert lives and works in Zürich. Very kind of him to allow me the use of all pictures I need .
For a great line-up of pictures from this flight look at; https://picasaweb.google.com/101367179377196465151/04112011700KmFohnflug
A bit further however, in the North West of Italy the weather is terrible. Heavy thunderstorms and rain have caused soo much trouble / floodings in Genua, that more people got killed again, even parents [4] waiting for their children[2] to take them home from school.Happiness and sadness …. it can be so close.
Sadness due to the weather as well in the UK where the worst accident on the road[ M5] in history happened due to wet weather and heavy fog on Friday night. 7 People got killed, 51 injured from pretty bad to very bad!Straight after all cars[ trucks included] , collided a huge fire , some called it a “fire ball” started. Absolutely no hope for some!
News about Australian National comps by the competition director Tim Shirley.
—The period for early entries to the 31st Club and Sports Class Nationals ended on the 31st October. The event will be held at Benalla from 2nd to 13th January 2012.
At the close of early entries we had 64 entries of which 62 have paid their entry fee. These 62 now have confirmed places at the competition. Since we can accept up to 70 entries, there are 8 places available, and these will be filled in order of received (and paid) entries. The entry fee from now on is $360. I’d like to thank all the entrants for their support.
If the numbers remain like this it will be the largest Club/Sports class Nationals ever held, and one of the
largest fields at any Nationals. There are currently 34 confirmed entries in club class, 22 in Sports Class and 6 in 20m 2 seater. We will not be able to run a championship class in 20m class unless we have 8 entries, so to encourage entries we will extend the early entry fee of $300 until the end of November for this class only. Hopefully at least another two entries will appear. If we don’t get the necessary 8 entries, the 20m class will be combined with Sports Class but we will also score them separately and there will be prizes – but unfortunately no Australian Championship.
The competition website, and online entry form, can be found at www.deltaone.id.au/Benalla2012
So go, go friends find 2 more 2 seater gliders with pilots and you have a National Championship in that class as well. I heard from Swaantje Geyer [ member of the German National Female team]she is participating as well.
A shocking accident in Holland this week !!! A young mum parked her car on the quay of a big canal in Utrecht. She stepped out to take out her 2 little boys sitting in the back in their maxi-cosies, when the car started to roll. She tried to stop it hanging on a door , cried out to get more help, but all failed, the car rolled in the water with the 2 little ones [2 and 3]. Mum and several other people jumped in the canal, but in vain. The 2 died! As a grand ma I find this TOO sad for words. When you then hear, who the grand parents of these children are and you find out you know them from the past as they were part of our aviation world, it feels like being in “HELL”. Could not sleep.
And….. EXCUSES for writing Qantas wrong ,should have known better. SORRY!!! Corrected it all. One of my friends wrote me that it is ” pretty stupid”, which it is of course.
Qantas stands for Qeensland and Northern Territory Airlines, just to let you know!
Busy times ahead, [ guests; my Australian guest left on Friday my new guest from Munich arrives on Wednesday, birthdays, Sinterklaas, Christmas, New Year] so blogs might be shorter or without pictures but keep reading, there is always something interesting….I hope. Of course on November 26 I will attend the NZD and I get a lift from some soaring mates, I travelled with last year. Just got the confirmation by one of them, from…. I guess an iPad, …..from his car ,…. on his way back home from Slovenia with an ASH 25 behind the car. Not everybody is home on a nice Saturday afternoon , not necessary either, as the social media take care that we keep in contact where ever we are. I still find that fascinating. I am on skype now as well !!!
Cheers Ritz