Sunday Flying

[Tony de Groot]

Wow. What an eventful day. I am so glad I went flying today. The lift was so smooth everywhere. I was going to places and turning close to the terrain in the smoothest lift. I fell in love with Cathedral today, kept going back for more. Turning in the middle of the canyons in light lift and slowly climbing skyward. Stronger lift on the sunline. John Lyon and I were flying the single surfaces around and were having a ball. No, I didn't mention you didn't make it back. Whoops....... Aaron and I hooked up at West Bowl and Cathedral then at the Tit I went back for Cathedral and watched John L. come over but there were sink cycles and he got in one and it got really shaded in. Aaron continued on and I'll let him post but he had an excellent flight in his paraglider. Then there is Bob A. the duracell pilot, Rocky, never give up. I'll let him tell the flight, it was AWESOME. I spotted Li'l John in the back range just going wherever he wanted. Kip was out shredding. Well Tom, I hope you got a fun flight in today!! Then there was someone, I don't know who that landed in the snake pit.........twice today. Now c'mon. That's GOT to be a record. Look forward to hearing about everyone else's adventures.

Tony DG

[Marty DeVietti]

Flew the Grade today, and it was off the hook. Some usual suspects were there to enjoy the smooth and strong climbs to upwards of 4000' over the top of launch which is around 900 feet above sea level, putting a mind numbingly cold cloud base at just under 5k msl. XC was possible all the way to Moor Park if you had the proper attire, which we did NOT have, but we all stayed up and did out and returns to just about wherever we wanted staying clear of Camarillo and Port Hueneme airspace as large jets shot approaches below our altitude...very cool. I can feel my fingers again now. Sweeeet. Glad SB didn't dissapoint...I heard the Wilcox was very nice as well...Andy?

[Aaron]

fun day indeed! much cloud playing to be had with buoyant conditions. launched the paraglider at skyport and got up just past the wires. pretty easy going down to no name with an east push. watched bob anderson get flushed from painted cave and land at the bottom of the vor spine(then he hiked back up and he needs to finish that story!). didnt get very high at no name and got a bad glide to the vor(timmy b made it down to the vor! nicely done cracka!), felt a little west being lower and turned tail quick. let it drift me to the power lines below west bowl and sat there until i got back up. then it seemed more south then east and cruised back down the range(way out front) stopping here and there to circle but mostly just dolphin style. got to cloudbase at castle out front and made a line to snowball. stuck there for 15 minutes or so and then got one to 2500 for a nice glide to the hot dog stand. super fun flying with everyone and seeing people hootin around everywhere!!! post your flights crackas and get your fly on!! uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!

aaron

[tom mayer]

Oh Yeah! Ya gotta love playing in the clouds! Lots of bar stuffing to get out of them. I saw 2 falcons with little men in their talons, last time I saw them they were taking them off towards Cathedral, maybe to feed them to the kids in the nest. But I heard one of them got away and ended up on some patch of grass up in the hills. I'm sure JL will post his exciting day later! The beach finally beckoned and arrived with plenty of altitude to burn, so burn baby, burn! The T2C loops so stinkin easy, hardly any bar push out, just speed it up and slide it up and over. Thanks for the instant replay on that awsome digital camera Marge! I think I got it up to about 80mph on Cabrillo Blvd, but didn't get a ticket!

[BobA]

Yeah man she got you with the goods, permier photograghy shots looping twice right over the palms !

[Tony de Groot]

Let's see those pics. Zac's tandem passenger took a nice one of me at Thermal Factory. Please tell her thank you for me Zac.

Tony dg

[andy dainsberg]

congrats to marty, art, chris and steve mcgarva for nailing the Best Day Ever at the grade.

i got up to minimum above skyport to connect the rr. out to the tit and back until lo-viz at 4500 sent me south. by the time viz improved i was on glide w/ Leeside to the training hill. beautiful boating over town in gentle thermals drifing in from ENE. over Wilcox w/ @1200.

killer flight aaron.

[BobA]

Yeah Sunday was fun day.

Great lift over the Bypass to cloudbase early.

Connected to the clouds over the Holy Hills, denied at Cathedral, flushed into East side of West Bowl, rocked around in a strong thermal crossing the canyon, climbed easyily above West Bowl over the rocks, moved onto Noname, arrived low but pulled up and over the front spine and then over the top...

crossed to 3/4 up VOR spine,

a few passes and onto cloudbase that was starting to lower...

went over to Painted Cave with 9 mph tailwind in a blue hole Thought I had it made being the only place left in sunshine...

Big dark clouds out front shading all the foothills Gun Club to the Tee to Rivira.

Snapped a shot of the Windmill but missed Kabir waving up at me.

...flew out along the West ridge out to front points but got denied, should have went for the house ridge farther in back...instead dribbled over the lowlands above San Marcus pass back to the lower portion of the VOR spine. Landed at the powerline crossing at 1250'

...bagged it after a minor tree extraction, then went on my first Hike-N-Fly, up the Fire road to 3250'

...watched everyone fly out west then run back east...

I relaunched easily into smooth ridge soarable upslope winds, was in the clouds 100' later...

flewout south and arced back into Noname...decent SSW drift kept sucking me back into the range...

connected in buttery smooth lift all the way to Romero before flushing out to land behind the ridge from Padaro on the 192.

Should have topped out that last lift spot, the layer cake before the RoadCut...some spots just weren't working under that dark sky. Many thanks to Double D and Marge for retrive !

[Kabir]

From my end of the woods...
(You know, by the windmill place)