Yesterday I thought up a clever, cheesy middle name for the bookings, going with the classic "Wave Bird". An easterly wind was forecast, although only 2 notches on the little weather arrow, so I wasn't expecting anything too amazing. I thought an overly optimistic booking name would be good for moral during this 'bad patch' of weather.

When I woke up this morning the first thing I noticed was the lack of wind. "I'd better wait it out a bit and see if it's worth it" I thought to myself. Later in the day the weather probe at Matamata said 10knots gusting to 20, yet in Hamilton everything was as still as could possible be. Almost didn't bother going out although figured I'd go and worst case, do a circuit.

Anyway long story short, it was an absolute rip snorter of an Easterly wave. When we were pulling the gliders out of the hangers a small patch of what looked like rotor had started, but by the time we were in the air there was a distinct line of thickening cloud running from Te Aroha down to the waterfall. Throughout the day things picked up, and at it's peak there were 3 distinct lines of rotor.

It was rough as guts, big downs, but oh so amazing ups to go with them. GSN, GXP, GPC and GPK all flew today. Here are some pics from GXP.

A big thanks to Jeff for towing on a day he described as a "tow pilots nightmare" :) Hopefully tomorrow will pull off something similar, although it may be raining...

The gap.

Is that cloud giving the finger?

5 seconds later it was different.

Looking along the primary and secondary rotor. Ridge on the right.

Ian Hector, one of our intrepid tow pilots, had a starring role tonight on Campbell Live. The segment was about JetStar's pilot training programme through CTC.

See it on the TV3 website if you missed it. Well done Ian!

"The ultimate goal for all pilots is to become a glider tow pilot" explains Ian.

We'll be aiming to fly all weekend including this Queens birthday Monday. The weather isn't looking too good for Sunday & Monday, but we'll see how we go. Hopefully Sat and Mon will be clearer.

Well I'm glad the weather isn't picking on us or anything...

A note that if we cancel any day we will aim to put a note on the calendar on the homepage so it's a good idea to check it before you go out, or ring the instructor of the day.

Garmin releases new handheld GPS's

Garmin has released the new GPSMAP 62s which may be of interest to glider pilots. This device is the ultimate handheld GPS, and has a number of features that mean it can be used for gliding:

• Sunlight readable screen (assuming it's the same as the previous model, it's one of the best around, see it easily in direct sunlight. To be confirmed).
• 20 hour battery life, so no need for power from the glider battery.
• Barometric altimeter so your 3D trace is accurate.
• Ability to add a scan of a map eg. our Aviation charts (a useful upgrade over the previous version).
• Glide ratio to destination (giving a very simple final glide calculator).
• Proximity alerts, so you know when you've reached a turnpoint
• GPS track from Garmin's accepted for competitions.
• Can be used to give road directions on a retrieve!
• Has serial port to connect to our clubs IGC loggers, and USB port to connect to SeeYou easily.
• Simple & Reliable. Turn it on, and it's recording.

Disadvantages

• Not IGC approved, so you have to use another IGC logger with it for badge flights or world records.
• Not as good for navigating competition tasks as a PDA.
• Small screen.
• Glide ratio doesn't take into count wind, so not a real final glide calculator.
• Expensive at $450USD. You can get almost get a PDA with SeeYou Mobile or an iPad for that!

Check them out on the Garmin website. Also there is an equivalent model, the 78s that floats incase you're planning on landing in water. There is also the Oregon 450, which does much the same stuff, but with a bigger screen, unfortunately it's hard to see in sunlight.

The new garmin 62s

It was good to see a full house for our Gliding Safely seminar in April. From the feedback that I received, the message was well received. Our three speakers went through the recent accident record in NZ, then personal safety awareness and finally Landout decision making.

We also welcomed glider pilot visitors from Taranaki, Tauranga and Thames and also Don Waters, the regional CAA Safety officer came along for the seminar and had a few words for the group.

I know that some pilots could not be there because of commitments elsewhere and for those there is a copy of the written presentations available as well as video of the proceedings which is available to club members. If you would like a copy of these, please send me an email, or phone call. I’ll be looking to catch up with those that couldn’t make it personally over the next couple of months.

I will be aiming to provide at least two opportunities each year - at the beginning and the end of the season - for safety and currency theory training for all our glider pilots. Our next session will be at the start of next season, mid September, where we will be talking about dehydration and Motor Glider operations, as well as general pre-season information on Club and Local Operations and update on Airspace for the season.

Also go along to the CAA AvKiwi Safety Seminar – the next one is in Hamilton at 7.00pm on 31 May Waikato Aero Club. See CAA website for other dates and locations.

Remember – the pilot is the last line of defence against an accident, think safety and fly safely.

Bob Gray - CFI

Hi All Glider Pilots

Gliding Safely Seminar

 Saturday 24 April, 10am to 12noon, Clubhouse.

Reminder notice of our Gliding Safely seminar for all of our glider pilots.  This is mandatory for all current QGP Glider pilots. 

 This seminar is for you!

Also come for Jan Mace’s famous morning tea beforehand and free lunch after the seminar. 

Fly safely,

Bob Gray - CFI

All Glider Pilots

Gliding Safely Seminar – Saturday 24 April, 10am to 12noon, Clubhouse.

There is increasing concern within the Club and throughout our sport about the number of accidents and poor safety record involving gliders.  One way of raising awareness of safety issues and improving glider pilot’s ability to deal with the risks that we face each time we fly is to provide safety training and ongoing safety discussion among our pilot group.

The Club Instructors Panel and Committee have organised a Gliding Safely seminar for all of our glider pilots.  As for our last Start of Season Briefing, we feel that this message is serious enough to be considered mandatory for all current QGP Glider pilots.  One of the recognised problems we have is more experienced pilots with a lack of ongoing training and monitoring by peers. It is very easy to become a complacent pilot with infrequent flying and virtually no checking of your competence to deal with things such as an unexpected landout.  This seminar is for you!

I know that holding this seminar on one day only and expected ALL of our pilots to be available is optimistic, but please make the effort as the message is for YOUR benefit, and attendance will be recognised as ongoing training.

As further encouragement Jan Mace is putting on a free morning tea beforehand and free lunch following the seminar.  Worth attending just for that!

All this is hoped to improve your safe enjoyment of the sport rather than be a hassle and imposition.  We’ve held safety sessions at each of our last two Start of Season Briefings, the last one was mandatory and we had 100% attendance of QGP pilots.  It is intended to continue these with another mandatory must attend session at the next briefing in September 2010.  There is also a series of CAA AvKiwi Safety Seminars which I encourage you all to get along to one– the next one is in Hamilton at 7.00pm  on 31 May CTC Aviation Training Room.  See CAA website for other dates and locations.

Fly safely,

Bob Gray - CFI

Easter is upon us! We're flying Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday and it looks like the weather isn't going to be too bad at all.

A few members from Auckland Gliding club are visiting Matamata this weekend with their ASK 21 and a Club Astir.

Aero towing, instructors and club flying will be available all weekend. Public flights and trial flights will be available all weekend.

The Auckland winch will be available, so if you want to get your winch rating, this weekend would be a great time to do it.

So pack your gliding gear, tent, and maybe even golf clubs (for before flying that is) and we'll see you out there.

Some of those special gliding eggs