Alphen aan den Rijn        Sunday March 29 2009

And…the day  of the opening of the Grand Prix season with as usual ,the first race in Melbourne.
Sorry but I have to start with this as it was just fantastic to see this first race.
Jens Button from the UK was the winner and for half a year,  he thought he was out of business when Honda , due to the financial crisis in the world gave up.
Ross Brawn, the guy behind the 7 world titles from Michael Schumacher bought it with “some help of his friends-one is Virgin , with Richard Branson!] and called the new team Brawn GP.
With Rubens Barrichello as team mate in runner up position , this BRAWN GP team wrote history, to win as new team, in remarkable one-two-style its FIRST Grand Prix.
They drive with a Mercedes Benz motor, so they deserve credit too!!!!
In the end the numbers 2 and 3 Kubica and Vettel,were fighting for best place behind Button, collided, tried to continue but had to give up loosing a certain 2 and 3 position!!!
” I am a fool’, was what one of the drivers cried out loud on the radio!!
The race ended behind the safety car,but even with that it was a spectacular first race of the season.

Great fun also for pilots  who went to the wave camp in Norway. One of them Robert Danewid , director of the WGC in Eskilstuna.
He went to this Vaga Wave Camp in Norway and just had a fantastic week.
He was so kind to send me some of his pictures and I will share them with you; it looks VERY cold to me , but it seems to have been  super!
look at ;  www.wavecamp.no  for info about the week and to 
 pisaweb.google.com/robert.danewid/Vaga2009  for the pictures! Thanks Robert!
  Enjoy!!!!

Wave in the mountains  is still fantastic, all pilots seem to be happy with it.
Another 2 1000 km. flights were flown by 2 German pilots last Thursday from  Vinon. 
Both flying a Discus 2/18m. one with turbo, setting their task up North passing places as Saint Auban and Serres la Batie.

Luckily still some flights  in warm areas too,  as Australia , far in autumn, stilll enjoys good soaring on the East Coast with great triangles up to nearly 600 km in an LS 1 f.
Even the “good old Mosquito” made a very nice triangle of 554 km. from Jondaryan.
But…also South Africa still enjoys good weather with a 371 km flight from Orient flown in an Astir CS.
Those “oldies” still do a great job.

For the first time  in 19 years a plane from Iraqi Airways has flown to Europe. It flew from Baghdad via Athens to Stockholm.
In the future they seem to start a co-operation with Air France-KLM.

The sun is shining,  the rain has disappeared , huge white …and some dark clouds in the sky, time to enjoy some fresh air on this sunday.
Still a bit tired from the time difference, ONE HOUR, so I better be careful the next 5 days. You remember heart problems and accidents!!!???Just be careful too!!
 Still NO news from the EAC!!!

Cheers Ritz