Santa Barbara Challange 12/15/07

[Robb]

Mr. Hunt,
Your mission, should you accept, is an out and return task. Any SB mountain launch is fine, but you must hit the following points:
1. Start is the R+R, 0.5 mi raidus
2. Turn point is Snowball (or the power lines)
3. Thermal Factory is the third turnpoint
4. Finish is East Beach (unless you are not a P4, then finish is Parma. But if you hit the first three points, make an appointment to take the test...)

Extra points for hitting west bowl between points 3 and 4. Pilots who get the extra points will be lauded with cold, frosty beverages by the group!

The westbound leg is likely to be quite challanging; take your time and be patient.

Many people will be cooped up with relatives in the next weeks, this is a great time to get your spouse out to watch you fly. Even if they only watch you launch and then drive the truck down to the T or Parma, they get out in the sunshine, and are loved by all.

Note: The day is short, and the nights are cold. Do not push your luck! Stick with other pilots and watch out for each other. Last time out I saw three wings in trees at Parma - Pay attention to your landings!

Game On!

[Jeffy]

Congrats go out to Dr. Andy D...
He Won, then he had to buy the Beer? !

[faoro]

What a week to fly! Saturday topped it off with dozens of pilots - zippy hang gliders and colorful paragliders dotting the skies from West Bowl to Carpinteria. New SCPA president, Robb Milley, made a prescient call for a task that turned out to be a real winner. We had a relatively small crew at Skyport of OJ, Bob's H & P, Robb, Art, Andy D. and myself - all the rest of the paragliding community was at Alternator with the Eagle crew. We arrived at launch at 10:30, cycles were already coming in fine. By 11 AM I was soaring over La Cumbre Peak with Bob H., watching the Alternator gang lay out. Tops of thermals were about 4,200 to 4,600 feet and we started spreading out downrange on our long eastbound leg.

There weren't any cumis, but the weather was fine and sunny, the lift abundant and the competition good all the way to Carpinteria. We had a little tailwind all the way. Bob H. specked out on the northwest corner of the Thermal Factory and smoked me and Art until his exuberant - better than usual - flying drained every molecule of glucose from his body. He made his apologies from the leader's position and took his 140 pounds of dominance out to Santa Claus Lane to get a bite at the Padaro Grill.

Art was still ahead of me and it was quite a sight at every thermal turn to see the other four pilots as specks on every peak back to the Thermal Factory. Soon, those specks were right on top of me. As luck would have it, we all ended up at the powerlines at the same time. We thermalled together, around and through each other before we started the serious race back to Santa Barbara and goal.

I was struggling to change the batteries in my dead radio. I don't want to complain, but doing that with a glove in my teeth in cold, rowdy air with other pilots zipping by dropped me from the lead as Andy and OJ had made up all the distance between us and disappeared off into the distance with Art. We had a fun moment on Castle Ridge as the eastbound hangies did pirouettes around and between us.

Bob P. flew out to join his namesake on the coast. Robb, pulling up the rear, landed in Montecito. Despite the fortuitous absence of a headwind on the return leg, the day lost its strength a bit early and we had some struggles on the jump from Montecito Peak to the Thermal Factory. Art and OJ made East Beach as well as Andy who won the race with a dominant performance inbound. I landed on Gibraltar Road at the hairpin turn below the powerlines (not the recommendation of safety experts).

A great party and meeting followed at Benson and Yee's house where there was plenty of good food and drink and a video and sound system to rival any theater. Robb - with his leadership and ideas for all kinds of activities in the new year, and Magic Mike - with his ability to make anything and everything disappear and reappear at will, kept us all fired up.

What a way to welcome in Santa Claus this year!

[oj]

I thought the task was doable, if we had six months or so to complete it.

The lapse rate looked pretty flat for the day but knowing it was going to be another beautiful day in S.B., I told Robb we should just go and turn circles over the Antenna Farm. On the ride up to launch the task was talked about and some felt the turnpoint was too far, maybe Romero was more realistic.

Ron was the first to go (surprise) and made a run at the RR, arriving with about 3100. He found good lift there and climbed into the low to mid 4's and disappeared towards La Cumbre. That set the tone for the day and the rest of us (Bob, Art, Andy D, Robb, Penguin) followed. Andy also tagged La Cumbre but the rest of us were content to hit the first turnpoint and head East.

I was last to launch and by the time I topped out at the RR the leaders were stretched out from Montecito Pk. to Castle Ridge. I felt like I was thermaling well and flying fast, but I couldn't catch the pack. Robb got stuck at Montecito for awhile and I caught up to Bob P (the flying penguin) around Castle.

I think Bob H. was the front runner going East but they were too far ahead to tell who was who. Near the Powerlines Bob reported he wasn't feeling well and opted to head out. Andy, Art, and Ron were waffling at the turnpoint trying to decide whether to go for Ojai or continue the Challenge, which gave Bob P. and I a chance to catch up.

The thermals were strong but the heights achieved didn't bode well for a risk-free run through the Pass so we turned and headed back. Andy was taking a deep line along the back ridge and Art was using the front points, with me splitting the difference. Bob P had headed out and Ron and Robb were bringing up the rear. Flying back, we went through a pack of hangies headed East. Quick waves were exchanged as the jets flew through the gaggle of dirigibles.

The return leg was easy until I got to Montecito Peak. The jump from there to the Thermal Factory on a paraglider is tough when you're topping out at 4K. I was hoping for a skip off Shadow but didn't get it and came in way low on the East side of the TF.

I was even with the powerlines on the North side of them and feeling trapped as I headed SE down the canyon. The road does a 180 at the shooting range and looked like a good spot to bail to so I headed for it. When I got there I realized the lines run due South down a ridge that still had full sun on it so I continued down the ridge until I found a thermal that popped me over the lines.

Robb had left for the school in Montecito, Andy had rung the bell over the Thermal Factory and went on glide for the beach, Art was topping out getting ready to do the same, and Ron was finding himself in the same spot I had just gotten out of.

The AF was still cooking and boosted me back up to 3k. Andy was gone but if I could get high quickly enough I could race Art to the beach. As he went over my head, a quick check of the gps showed a 7 to 1 glide would get me to East Beach. I turned and got on the speedbar but my glide was bouncing between 5 and 10 to 1. Not wanting to risk a low pass over the freeway, I gave up and headed back.

Ron had landed at the shooting range and everyone else was gone, so I took my time and caught what felt like one of the last late-day thermals before taking the glide to the beach.

Thanks to Bob P. for picking us up (and to Bob H. for picking him up) and taking me back up to the truck at launch. That was a fun task Robb, what's next?

Vario log: 900 fpm up, 760 dn, max alt. 4620, aprox. 25 miles o&b, 2 hrs. 45 min.

[andy dainsberg]

this was the best adventure i've had in the sb range. the out and back was so much fun. i had never flown in a gaggle of such good pilots before and now i can see why comp pilots get drawn into the game. can u believe we get to do this?

[Robb]

Andy "I don't fly XC" Dainsberg has been first to goal so many times, he owes everybody on the south coast a beer. I say we give him a Team Topa t-shirt and send him off to the Rat Race to give those guys some schooling!

[Robb]

OJ, I thought your avitar was funny, untill I saw your sig line.


The funniest thing is, it's true!