Jonny Durand

Brasilia Day 6 Video

2011-09-13T01:27:00.001+10:00

Brasilia Day 5 video

2011-09-13T01:24:00.000+10:00

Brasilia Day 3 Video

2011-09-13T00:51:00.000+10:00

Here is the video you have all been waiting for..:-)

Brasilia Day 2 Video

2011-09-13T00:30:00.001+10:00

2011 Brasilia Day 1

2011-08-22T07:46:00.002+10:00

Well today the comp started with a 123km zig zag to the Esplanada. I did the 1st start with Andre and a few others and was leading the pack for the first 40 kms until I picked one bad line while the others hit a good thermal behind me. I tried to catch back up and nearly landed and just had to survive and make goal. Andre will win the day 35 mins in front of me and I should be around 10th or so.

It was so nice to be back in a country where you take off and the first thermal you get is 1200 fpm to 9,000ft. It was a great day but was easy to pick bad lines and it played to just watch from behind on many glides. I was very happy with the glider I was test flying today straight out of the box a RS 3.5 he will be a happy pilot tomorrow when he gets to fly it..

The weather is looking like a typical Brasilia with wind and clouds predicted for the next 3-4 days so it should be some good fun racing to be had.. I will try and get some photo's up later and unfortunately my GOPRO camera battery was flat today so no video..

Day 9 Photo's

2011-07-28T22:54:00.001+10:00

Worlds Day 10 Cancelled

2011-07-28T22:31:00.002+10:00

Another day of sitting around as we watch big clouds forming all around us. It seems that it may have been possible to fly as there are pilots free flying around us. It is low base and would have been tricky to set a task in the right area without flying into rain though. Tomorrow is our last day and the forecast is only slightly better than today but Im sure they will send us up the hill to try for one more task.

Worlds Day 3 photo's

2011-07-27T06:23:00.000+10:00

Worlds day 8 Task 2

2011-07-27T05:41:00.004+10:00

Finally we get another task with the chance of storms we set a short 115km course with 4 turnpoints. It was pretty clear that you needed to do the first start in case there was a stopped task from the building clouds around us. the 150 pilots were all launched in less than 1 hr and it seemed that there was at least 130 pilots making the 1st start gate. I had a great start nearly at the top of the group with Alex and Christian leading out just above me. We had a fast run down to the 1st turnpoint which was only 17kms from our start. I pushed hard coming back olong the ridge to the 2nd turnpoint trying to chasedown the Icaro boys. I was flying with Franz and Robert resinger and we were leading the big gaggle down the ridge with Alex and Christian just in front and higher. We got to the 2nd turnpoint and I found a good strong thermal which nearly caught me back up to Alex as he seemed to have forgotten about the turnpoint. He had to go back and get the turnpoint before heading back to launch where we climbedup below Christian. I followed the guys out into the valley under a cloud street toward the 3rd turnpoint. We had lots of shade in front of us and it was clear we needed to get as high as we could before making the glide out to the turnpoint in the shade. I came in below Alex and Christian about 6kms from the turnpoint under the last cloud. Christian was just leaving at cloudbase when I arrived below and Alex started to follow but stopped and kept turning. He stayed in light lift and watched Christian glide off as he whited out in the cloud. If only my camera had not run out of battey I would have been able to film it but I guess it was not meant to be. I left just below cloudbase and headed out into the valley behind them. I was about 2kms from the turnpoint when Alex came back past me still higher with Christian lower infront of him. I knew that this was going to make a huge difference as they were able to get back into the main valley below the gaggle who were climbing. I did the turnpoint just in front of Manfred and Franz and we were now forced to stay on the Gubbio ridge in the shade. We hit a light thermal and circled as we watched Alex and Christian climb out good behind us. We spent the next 20-30mins low waiting for the sun to come out so we could climb back up. Unfortunately for us the sun started back near the turnpoint so the whole gaggle of about 70 gliders behind us managed to get high and glide in above us before the last turnpoint. I did a long glide to goal from about 10 kms before the last turnpoint on a 21:1 glide. I was about 40th around the last turnpoint and decided to go straight line to try and beat some of these guys who had over taken me. I managed to overtake quitea few on the final glide and finished about 1 min 30 seconds behind the 3rd place which was Manfred. Alex crossed the line first 1 second infront of Christian and about 7 mins faster than Manfred. Christian will win the day with the leading bonus and 95 pilots will make goal. There was 60 pilots that finished within 5 mins of each other so the landing field was complete chaos but everyone survived. We were quite lucky to get the task in as there was some big over development around the outside of our courseline. It was a very interesting day and I have never seen such a finish in a hang gliding comp before. The weather for the next day or two does not look good but it seems we will fly again on friday. We now officially have a valid comp so there will be a 2011 World champion.

Moyes dinners and no flying

2011-07-27T05:39:00.001+10:00

Photos from task 1

2011-07-27T04:43:00.003+10:00

World Championships Day 5,6,7

2011-07-26T01:35:00.002+10:00

The last 3 days have been cancelled due to rain and wind. It seems the forecst for the rest of the competition is not great and im not sure we will even get to fly again as some people tell me. It is such a shame to have come this whole way for so many pilots and not get the conditions to decide our next World Champion.

We only need one more task to make it an official competition however we all know that 2 days is not enough to found out who is the best pilot. The organisation has been great here and unfortunately you can't choose the weather. Lets wait to see if things change as the last 5 days tick over.

World championships Task 1 Video

2011-07-26T01:34:00.001+10:00

World Championships Day 4

2011-07-23T07:39:00.002+10:00

With another windy forecast they decided to send us to another takeoff where the wind would be less in Asissi. It was quite a drive and many of us got lost getting there but once we arrived it was gorgeous.

The wind was not so strong and the launch was huge with plenty of room to setup the 150 gliders. We set a task which would keep us in the valley with big landings as the wind was forecast to get stronger as the day went on.

It was quite a mess on launch trying to get off but eventually all pilots launched safely and were ready for the challenging 121km task. I was not in a great position at the first start gate so I decided to wait for the 2nd start 20 mins later.

I had a great start with Carl, Balazs and quite a few others. There must have been about 100 pilots who took the first start so there were plenty of markers out there in front of us. I had a fast run to the turn point and was only 8km behind the lead gaggle at the turn point.

After the first turn point we had to fly back down the ridge to launch. When I arrived there the lead gaggle was just leaving on the way to the third turn point. This was the hardest part of the task as we had to leave the ridge and fly into the valley into the strong wind with lots of shadow on the ground.

I had almost caught the front guys and was only a few kms behind but lower. Manfred came in above me and all of a sudden I thought wow life is good I have 20 mins on him and everyone else around me.

We glided 8kms to the 3rd turn point arriving somewhat low and then turned tailwind for the hills to get back up. I hit a low save about 800ft off the ground with a few other gliders. The guys that were following us a bit lower all landed so we just drifted in the wind to stay in the air.

I spotted Manfred he had managed to glide more to our right very low and hit a strong climb but I was unable to reach him as I was lower. As I drift in the wind I see many pilots all landing behind me. It turns out that 60 pilots landed just after the 3rd turn point so it was not an easy part of the course.

I spent the next hour trying to battle the 35 kph+ cross-headwind low trying to reach the last turn point which was 10 kms away. I struggled but eventually made it from ridge to ridge fighting the wind. I soared up to get the last turn point as it was on top of the ridge and climbed high enough to make final glide.

I finished just behind Blenky and will place 16th for the day and will be the only one to make goal from the 2nd start gate. Primoz won the day about 5 mins ahead of Alex with Gerd from Germany in 3rd. 22 pilots made goal with many top pilots already landing out taking them out of the comp.

I did not have the best day but I made goal and only lost 150 points to the winner so I am still in the game.

World Championships Day 2

2011-07-21T03:06:00.003+10:00

The competition put on a dinner for us last night in castle close by Sigillo township. The castle was turned into a hotel for people to stay at. We all enjoyed a smorgasboard of light snacks followed by wine from their celler. We thought maybe if we had a big night of partying it would lead to flying the next day.

We woke up to another day of trees blowing over. This was the worse day we have seen for wind since I arrived 1 week ago. After a quick meeting this morning the day was cancelled and the 150 pilots were free to enjoy another day in central Italy.

I went golfing today to try my luck out there in the 40 knts of wind but have decided that I should stick to hang gliding. It was a great golf course situated around a beautiful castle. I am hoping the we will get to fly tomorrow.

2011 Worlds Monte Cucco Day 1

2011-07-19T22:18:00.003+10:00

Well I am here in Sigillo, Italy ready for the World Championships. There is around 150 pilots here and now we are just waiting for the weather to be good enough to fly. I have managed one quick flight on my new glider a few days ago in the last week. Today we woke up to more wind and after the team leader briefing Day 1 was cancelled.

It seems tomorrow is also going to be even windier than today so

at this point our first flying day will be on thursday. We had an amazing opening ceremony followed by quite a big party night in the small town.

The Aussie team is here and all set ready to combat against the worlds best pilot so stay tuned for some updates as the competition unfolds around us. We will have live tracking so you can follow our tracks online while we fly.

Check out the official website for all of this information Worlds Website 2011

Mid West Championships Task 1

2011-05-22T15:55:00.002+10:00

Today was looking very average with low base and rain forecast. I decided to have a quick tow to see if there was any chance of setting a task. I released at Cloud base 1000 ft agl and was in misty rain. I came down and landed and watch Carl and Dustin tow to see what they thought.

We all had the same opinion and decided to cancel the day. Here is a short video of the flight park and some of the activities that went on.

Mid West Championships Task 1

2011-05-22T15:46:00.003+10:00

After 2 days of no flying and freezing cold condtions the sky opened up and blessed us with a 88km triangle task. Here is a video of the first days activities unfortunately my camera battery ran out so I missed getting Dustins arrival at goal along with the other 5 that made it.. Enjoy.

The Flytec Rally Map

2011-05-19T08:48:00.002+10:00

Here is the track that we flew throughout the 5 days of amazing flying. If you were not there it is very simple you missed one of the best comps in 2011.. Hope to see more there next year.

Flytec Rally day 6

2011-05-18T06:12:00.002+10:00

This wasan interesting day with a 136km task set almost downwind. The climbs were strong and base was up to 8,000ft. It was a very turbulent day and many people had interesting stories. Curt wins the story telling by actually winning the task a minute in front of me but about 50kms from goal he hit strong turbulence and his instrument pod snapped off and fell into the forest. He lost both his GPS's so he was only able to get distance points for the day which took him out of 2nd place for the comp. I ended up winning the day making it 4 wins from 5 days. Watch the video for more entertainment.

Flytec Rally Day 5

2011-05-18T06:07:00.002+10:00

We decided to change our course direction as the weather was turning bad to our north. We decided on a 194km dogleg task to the ENE to keep us in the good flying conditions that we had been having. It was one of the best days I have flown this year with cloud base around 7,000 ft and climbs up to 1000 fpm. I think more than 40 pilots out of 50 made the goal with Dustin winning the day less than a minute in front of me. We ended up in Vidalia which is the home to the sweetest onions in the world. The town was very hospitable and looked after us with wide open arms.

Flytec Race N Rally Day 2

2011-05-11T02:26:00.002+10:00

We had a great racing day with good climbs and base around 6,000ft. More than 30 pilots made the 114km headwind task from Live Oak to Moultrie, GA. After the flight we all enjoyed 2 for 1 magaritas at the Old Mexican resturant in town.

Florida Ridge Day 5

2011-05-06T00:24:00.000+10:00

Florida Ridge Day 4

2011-05-04T14:02:00.000+10:00

Florida Ridge Day 3

2011-05-04T01:55:00.000+10:00

Day 3 video

Florida Ridge Day 2

2011-05-02T12:42:00.002+10:00

Today was looking like a better day but stronger winds than yesterday. The task was a 122km dogleg to the north west which would be a cross tailwind task. A bunch of us decided to do the 2:30pm start as we were getting blown out of the start gate. I was with Dustin, Jeff and Andre for most of the first leg getting some good climbs of 800 fpm to 6,000ft. I got a bit low at the 1st turn point and Dustina and Zac got out in front. I spent the rest of the day with Andre and Jeff amoung a few others who we had caught up along the way from earlier starts. Dustin loks like he will win another day with Zac hot on his tail a few seconds behind. Jeff Shapiro will be next in about 4 mins later with me and Andre about a minute or so behind him. I think around 25 to 30 pilots made the task some for there first time ever. Congratulations Fabiano from Brazil for his first goal coached the whole way by Mike Barber.. The weather looks good tomorow with winds predicted of around 8-10knts. Below is the Video from Day 2

Florida Ridge Day 1

2011-05-01T11:20:00.001+10:00

Tas 1 video..

Budgewoi Dune Gooning

2011-02-15T15:26:00.003+10:00

The weather was looking good for a trip up to the Central Coast which is about 1.5 hrs north of Sydney. There was a group of us from Sydney heading up there along with a bunch of locals. We arrived around 11:30am and it was already on and many were flying. Launch at Budgewoi We quickly checked out the site asked questions to the locals as most of us had never flown here before. I had a quick chat to Cameron about flying my Litespeed RS 3.5 there as I knew he had flown his C4 there before. He told me it would fine except it was off to the south just a little and to be careful. I took all of this on board and quickly set up with Wayne, Rob and a few others who had made the journey up there. Rob has only 10 hrs of airtime is the only grand child of Bill Moyes to ever learn to fly. We made sure he knew what to do and threw him off the hill to watch him fly like a natural. Rob in the Malibu 166 I could not wait much longer and grabbed my glider and jumped off the small dunes. It was amazing to see how well the Litespeed handled the dunes and the possibilities to be had. After a few runs up and down I decided to land and ask about the potential of a XC flight. I talked to Cameron and he said if you can get up to the big hills to the north you could potentially fly all the way to Newcastle. He did tell me that it was something that no one had ever sucessfully done before. That only got me more excited but I knew that there was good odds I would land on the beach before reaching the big hills as the dunes drop down to about 2m high. Looking south towards launch with Rob flying below me. I told the boys where to come and get me from if I did not come back within the next hour. I took off raced down the ridge got to the end with not quite enough height to dive back to the big hills as there was a lagoon I needed to cross. I ended up flying back along the small dunes after comitting to the crossing. I was unable to get back up to the big dunes and landed about 1km from the closest road. I hiked my glider up the dunes as far as I could and managed to get flying again and headed back towards home. I was still not high and ended up landing again before the big dunes started. I walked up again but had a dodgy launch spot and as I took off I clipped a bush and crashed in half way down the dune. Hmm I checked the glider hoping I had broke nothing a tried again with a little bit more care this time. I got off and flew all the way back to the car where I had started from.. It was a great day and about 12 of us enjoyed the monday afternoon flying around. There were lots of Malibu's up there which was great to see. Here is a short video of some of the days activities, unfortunately I did not get my crash on video..:-(

Who took this photo?

2011-01-04T08:43:00.003+10:00

Craig Worth Open day 2

2011-01-03T16:26:00.003+10:00

After checking the weather in the morning it was looking like we were going to have thunderstorms quite early. A rebrief at noon saw us heading out to the field just in case the weather was going to turn good for a late task.

As we arrived at the strip it was clear the weather was not changing in a hurry as another cell moved by us with lightning and rain. The safety committee decided to cancel the day around 1pm.

Bobby was keen to do some filming so I set up and we went for a tow to try out a new camera mount.

Here is some photos from my side of the story.:)

Cranking up behind Bobby Coming into get close with the camera. Giving the crew a haircut.

Craig Worth Open day 1

2011-01-02T21:23:00.005+10:00

The day started off looking good with small clouds popping infront of a slow moving trough line. A 113km task was set to the NE trying to escape the over clouding that was moving in from the SW.

There are about 65 pilots here and many were off and towing early taking advantage of the blue skies. I waited for awhile before towing and when I towed I was dropped off downwind in light lift. I struggled to climb much until I was about 8kms out from Forbes. I left the climb at 6,600ft asl and glided back for the 1st start gate.

Line 2 is staged and ready for takeoff..

When I arrived there I met another later gaggle coming from the tow field with a bunch more really high. We all headed off on track and Blinky who was just in front of me hit a climb and we all stopped including the high guys. The climb was not great so I decided to head off on track for some good clouds in the sun.

I was rewarded with a strong 6-700fpm climb to 8,700ft asl just at the 1st turnpoint. The cloud I was under was just starting to dump rain to my NW so I was off and out of there. I could see the gaggle coming in below me low and looking for lift as I was leaving at base.

This is looking back towards the 1st turpoint with Forbes behind the rain. I could hear Jacko on the radio and he was about 8kms in front of me after starting before the 1st start time as did many others. I figured out his location and glided for him. Once the saftey comittee saw and herd bolts of lightning coming from the cloud the day was stopped. Jacko cranking up in front of the storm cell.

Jacko and I glided out to the closest town to seek a dry landing field with big Jon not to far behind us. Some pilots continued on and flew the task but there will be no score for the day.

Here is a quick video of the day.

Storms

2010-12-16T16:22:00.003+10:00

Here is a picture of yesterdays storm that destroyed many suburbs in south Brisbane. It had hail bigger than golf balls with strong winds bringing down trees and powerlines and deroofing some houses. This afternoon we had more big storms with more on their way. Some were reported to be supercells reaching up to 40,000ft containing more hail and damaging winds.

A day out at Tambo

2010-12-16T13:41:00.004+10:00

After early phone calls from Trev and Flocky saying they wanted to go flying it was off to Tambo. We arrived there and set up ready to go by 10:30am. We waited for some clouds to get closer as there were not many cycles coming through launch. We had just had some rain the day before so things still needed to dry out. Rob launched on his paraglider and had a slow descent to the bombout after scratching for awhile. Another paraglider launched and was also below ridge height when I ran off in Gabor's glider. I was out test flying for the day and flew without instruments for a challenge. I got low below the point and headed out towards the bombout and hit a thermal and worked it for awhile before it kicked. Flocky came in below me and big trev was stuck on launch as the wind was lightly over the back. After we had climbed out Trev took off and spend a long time low near the bombout before climbing out to base which was around 4,000ft asl. Flocky and I headed west towards his house where Ant, Rangi and Gabor were working. Flocky got a little low there and landed in his backyard to make sure the boys were working hard building his house. I flew down the chicken shed ridge half way then turned back for Flocky's. It was looking like a good place to land since Gabor was there to watch his own glider land while he was working away. Barney a usal suspect on the hill. The wind was SW which is perfect for landing there however it seemed to be NE on the windsock. Every now and again it would die down and turn west again. I was above waiting for that to happen and then did a high speed past the boys building Flocky's house. The wind has switched again back to the NE in the middle of the field. So I came in crosswind cross slope for a nice landing. Check the video out below of the days activities.

Flying fun.

2010-12-11T10:58:00.004+10:00

Friday saw good weather with NW winds and cloud streets to the horizon. I talked Wazza and Wilson who had just sailed in from Cairns and they were keen for a fly. I picked the boys up from the Gold Coast Broadwater and took them to Mt Tamborine where we met Reggie, Trev, Gabor, Darren and Xavier. We set up and had a nice XC flight out to the Turf Farm. Cloudbase was about 4,000ft asl and the lift was quite good considering how much rain we have just had. After a nice flight it was time to take the boys back to their boat. Before that we decided it was worth checking out the dunes for a late arvo dune flight. We drove to North Burleigh to check out the cliffs but it was very strong and and to cross from the North. We ended up driving down to Lacey's ave near Currumbin beach and found a small little dune about 1 metre high. The wind was almost straight in but still a little off to the North. We quickly set up the Malibu and 5 mins later we were having a blast. Trevor Purcell was there and after 30 yrs of Hang Gliding finally got to fly the dunes. The smile on his face was one that I have seen before from first time dune gooning pilots. For a small dune a sweet flying Malibu and some wind you can make a average afternoon into some great fun. We played taking turns and flew until sunset before packing up and heading home. I took the boys back to their boat and climbed on board to check out Wazza's Yacht. I lost track of time as we sat on the deck checking out the view of the gold coast glitter strip from the Broadwater. I can now see that I wont be the only Malibu flying the beaches now as interest will start to spread once the pilots realize how much fun were having in the late afternoons. Here is a short Video of the beach flying.

Dune Gooning on the Gold Coast

2010-12-08T09:00:00.003+10:00

I read a club email that said sunday was looking like a potential day to fly the sand dunes on the Gold Coast. It is very rare that we get a strong East wind that will allow us to do this. I have only ever had the chance once before and it sure was fun. As I was in Sydney at the time of reading the email I thought what a perfect way to test my new rebuilt Moyes Malibu. I had stripped it totally apart after taking it for a splash in the salt water at the Red Bull Flutag a few weeks ago. I had managed to get everything done on friday and was set to drive home saturday (1000km) and be prepared for sunday. Just before I went to sleep I saw that the forecast had changed and it was only going to be strong enough on Saturday afternoon. I decided on leaving at 4am after little sleep so that I could make it back to the Gold Coast in hopes of flying late in the day. I was traveling so well in the early morning without traffic until one policemen decided that I needed to donate to their Christmas hamper. He said I was in to much of a hurry and Im sure he would have been doing the same if he had ever tried flying a Moyes Malibu on the dunes before. I was making calls all the way home seeing if the weather was going to hold up and if the rain would stop. Neither was looking good so I made a detour to Byron Bay where I dropped off a hitchchiker and a repaired litespeed. I decided to meet Trevor Purcell at Currumbin to check out some dunes that he thought faced NE for future days. When I arrived there it is was pouring with rain but we had a quick look and noticed the wind was from the ENE today. After having a few looks around we found a dune at 25th ave Palm Beach which was just out of the rain and seemed to be almost perfect facing. I said to Trev lets set up the Malibu it will only take a few minutes and see what happens. Here is a short video of my first flight for the day.

2010 Red Bull Flutag

2010-11-10T21:59:00.007+10:00

I came down to Sydney for the Red Bull Flutag to help out on the ramp and potentially fly. There was a big turn out of spectators up to 30,000 at any given time. I had a quite a few crew helping out Red Bull on the day. Brendan was Flight controller on the ramp, I, my brother, Shannon were also getting the craft up and onto the ramp for thier flights. Dave Seib was organising getting the craft down to the ramp from their hangars through the narrow paths and trees. Being located in the Botanical this task was not easy and the crew all did an amazing job of getting everyone their without breaking anything. Well almost, I managed to pop my knee out of place walking down the ramp very early in the day. I was forced to ice up and bandage and do my job sitting down.. I immediately pulled out of doing the flight as I could not even hold wait on my leg. After a few hours of watching people just falling off the edge of the ramp in style something had to fly. I could see the look on some of the bosses faces as they really wanted me to show the crowd what could be done in a hang glider. I talked to a few of the boys and we convinced each other that I could hop off the ramp with a guy on each sidewire dragging me. I had lots of experience to choose from and grabbed Jonas from Germany and Shannon maggot to run me off the ramp. After a quick interview on the ramp with the Tv crew it was time to see if I could break the world record of 63m in my hang glider. I waited for a little bit of wind and hop we went down the runway towards the edge of the 7m platform. The boys did a great job and off I went gliding on just past the world record marker. It is the 3rd marker on the right of the photo below. CHECK THE FLIGHT OUT HERE ON YOUTUBE. Looking back at the crowd from the VIP boat. The best distance from the official crafts was 20.5m breaking the Australian record set two years ago. The winnner from team SAAA got an all expenses paid weekend away at the final F1 race in Dhubai next weekend.. After the hard days work it was time to board the party boat of a lifetime.. It was full of free drink, food, women and the best DJ and sound system. It was set to be a nothing less than what you would expect from a Red Bull party. We crusied around the sydney habour and even got a fireworks show and then docked all drunk happy many hours later..:-) Big thanks to Red Bull for another fantastic event and party..

Santa Cruz Flats Day 7

2010-09-21T13:58:00.002+10:00

The weather was looking great with lighter winds and climbs to 10-11000 ft. We set a 94 km task with 3 turnpoints then goal back at the hotel next to the pool and Magaritas to start the celebration. We had troubles getting up early and many of us started late on the last start except for me. I had a good start and was above Kraig and Robin by a fair bit. I glided to the first turnpoint and decided to go deep into the brown area to get back up. The whole gaggle apart from the low ones came with me. Robin being one of the low ones went on course line into the green fields. He ended up landing there with a few others early in the game unfortunately. I was in front with Carl and Ben and we were pushing hard. Ben and I got low about 15kms short of the second turnpoint. We scratched for a little while before the gaggle came gliding into us. We all did the turnpoint and headed back for the last one when we stumbled across a 800fpm climb to just under 11,000ft. We were still 45kms out from goal and did not quite have final glide so we needed one more to get in. I went more left after the last turnpoint over the brown and hit a climb and the others came in below me. I left at 12:1 glide and made goal easy. I won the task and made a great finish over the hotel.. Check out the videos below. Day 7 Video Hotel Skimming Hotel Skimming Slow Motion

Santa Cruz Flats Day 6

2010-09-19T04:32:00.002+10:00

Today was a challenging task with only 5 pilots making goal. I am writing this blog when I should really be out getting ready to fly the last task. So sorry it is so short but here is a little video to show you what happened. Joe Bostik won the day 2 seconds ahead of Dustin then Kraig, Carl and Robin were about 10-15 mins behind and the yonly ones to make goal. I landed 200m short of the radius and will drop to 3rd place going into the last task. Kraig is winning, Robin 2nd and Carl is in 4th. Here is Day 6 video..

Santa Cruz Flats Preflight

2010-09-19T01:39:00.000+10:00

Here is a quick look on how things are done around here at the comp..

Santa Cruz Flats Day 5

2010-09-19T01:34:00.002+10:00

A 75 km triangle task wa set out to the east and back. It was a much better day and we found ourselves starting at 9000 ft compared to the other days. It was a great racing day out and many pilots made goal with Shapiro winning Robin 2nd and Dustin 3rd. We finished the day off drinking margaritas by the pool side telling each other how good we were. Here is Day 5 Video.

Santa Cruz Flats Day 4

2010-09-17T04:03:00.003+10:00

Today was a little confusing with similar weather reports as previous days we were hesitant to set a very long task. Just before the window opened clouds starting popping only about 30kms from launch in the opposite dirrection of the task. The task was changed and we had a pilot briefing under the Red Bull tent out in the field. A 83km task was set taking us upwind first to reach the clouds. I started on the last start with Kraig and Robin and a few others and soon enough we had caught the guys in front of us. Looking at the 2nd turnpoint from 9000ft. Just before the 2nd turnpoint we hit the clouds and found thermals of 1000fpm climbs to over 11,000ft. We did the 2nd turnpoint and headed back to the last turnpoint. We hit another good climb topped out to 10,500ft and went on a 36km final glide for goal. Robin was just in front of me on glide and Kraig was behind. Zippy crossed goal first with Shapiro not far behind then Robin and I and kraig just behind me. Robin will win the task 14 seconds in front of me then Kraig will be 3rd 12 seconds behind me with Derreck 4th also making the last start with us. Good day for the Moyes boys.. Here is Day 4 Video..

Santa Cruz Flats Day 3

2010-09-16T02:02:00.004+10:00

After the previous days I was not keen to set a long task and given the wind we decided on a 87kms downwind task. Dustin Launched early and eventually came back and landed again. Thanks to Red Bull who kindly drove out from Phoenix twice to supply us with a nice big tent no one was in a hurry to launch. Just having that shade out there let pilots relax untill the conditions were good enough to stay in the air. We all did the last start gate quite low and headed off towards the first turnpoint. I was leading the pack out as you can see from the video for thie first glide. Zippy hit a climb to my right at the end of the hills and we all climbed up to about 5000ft. Climbing out on top of the gaggle I hung back on the next few glides just trying to make sure I had lots of markers infront of me to find the next bit of lift. Just before the Turnpoint I hit a great climb and ended up on top of the gaggle except for Zippy and Nils who were infront of us after hitting a good climb after a long low glide. Gliding into the Turnpoint High We got really high 7,000ft the highest so far this comp for me and we glided off did the TP and came in above Zippy and Nils. I hit a climb with kraig and Carl and many others. I was now on top with Carl and the thermal stopped so we headed off. Larry hit a climb behind us a good one so I turned back and when I got there I missed the climbed and was left in light lift. Kriag had pushed on with zippy and hit a climb in front so I glided back off to them and I also missed the strong part of that climb. looking SW after the TP. I was now about 2000 ft lower than the gaggle I was just on top of 10 mins earlier with no chance of catching back up before goal. The guys climbed high and went on final while I was still trying to get enough alttitude to do so. Kraig managed to cross the line 9 seconds in front of Zippy with Shapiro just behind them. Carl was next in with larry just behind then I came in about 3 mins later. A total of 17 pilots made goal and there were quite a few happy faces to be there. We all returned home to celebrate Russels 50th Birthday party at the bar in the hotel. Here is Day 3 Video.

Santa Cruz Flats Day 2

2010-09-16T01:39:00.003+10:00

With a better forecast and no high cloud we set a 116km triangle task. Things seemed better straight away with more lift around launch and pilots climbing to 6,000ft. About half the field did the first start and the rest of us did the last start at 1:40pm. We caught up to the guys in front before the 1st turnpoint except for Dustin and Shapiro who had landed in front of us after the TP. I got low with Big Jon at the turnpoint and lost the lead gaggle temporarily. I almost caught them back up after the Tp but arrived low in a cactus area. This was the most scared I have been in sometime looking down and knowing that I have only myself to blame for going so deep into the cactus. It was a great incentive to get up which I did so eventually. Larry was with me but turned back and almost landed just outside the cactus zone. Cactus Land with no where to go but up! I got as high as we had been getting just over 6,000ft and headed off after the gaggle in front to the last turnpoint. I did the turnpoint and was now on top of the gaggle. We pushed forward and all sunk out into the 16kph headwind. I tried to scratch for awhile like many others but soon realised that we were losing ground and gave up. Picacho Peak where Larry managed to glide over. Larry managed to get really high behind us just before the turnpoint which gave him enough height to get over the Mountain and climb again. He got quite high and had 2 more thermals before landing about 15kms infront of all of us. Here is Day 2 Video

Santa Cruz Flats Day 1

2010-09-13T16:17:00.003+10:00

SANTA CRUZ FLATS SCORES What can I say it is great to be back here in Arizona at the Santa Cruz Flats. This year my father has even made the journey out and it will be the first time ive flown with him out of Australia since the Worlds in 2003. There are 40 pilots here and we are set up on green grass next to the pool which is 20 meters from the bar. Pilots Briefing Is this really a hang gliding competiiton? You can set your GPS under a tree have a swim or even walk 20 metres back to your room and relax in the aircondition whist enjoying a film before walking your glider out to the launch line. I was very relaxed today as there was priorty staging and maybe something to do with the Margaritas that were also consumed last night. I eventually made it out there in the 36 degree and was set and ready to go and fly the 96km task. I watched many pilot tow first and many came back down as the conditions were weak and low. I towed up behind Carl and we climbed out to 2500ft agl and spent the next 1hr trying to get a good start. All but one pilot did the last start and none of us were high. We glided into the first turnpoint and got donw to about 1,000ft before hitting a climb. I was on top with Kraig, Robin,Nils and a few others. We left the turnpoint and headed off with a big gaggle climbing below us. I hit the next thermal and we climbed back up to 3000agl before heading off again. After this glide there was only 5 of us Kraig, Carl, Robin Nils, Ricker and I we ended up losing Ricker and Robin as they went more downwind as we got low. We hit a climb and got up to 3200agl with Kraig and Carl on top and NIls and I below. I stayed and topped out a little more while the others were on glide in front of me. Carl ended up flying all the way to the ground and Kraig was also low circling in front of me. I hit a climb with Nils and we waited for Kraig to climb up to us so that we could fly together in hopes that we could get around the course on this difficult day. Us 3 stayed in front all the way to the 2nd turnpoint and got caught up by robin, ricker and Larry before the 3rd TP. I was not doing anything special just trying to stay in the air and fly smart as I knew it was going to be challenging to finish the task. We could have landed on any glide as we were getting low all day and after rounding the last turnpoint we had a headwind of 10kph with some shading to slow things down. At the end we were all still together and I glided out first toward goal on a 14.8:1 and I hit a 300fpm climb and the others came in just below and did not get the climb so they pushed on. Larry and the Rigid came in later and hit the climb below me and climbed. I left on a 12:1 and made the goal just. The others landed a few kms short and Larry came in a few minutes later landing about 20 metres short of the goal. The rigid was the only other pilot to make goal with many landing on the 2nd leg. A hard first day, lets hope the weather gets better as I dont want to spend another 4.5 hrs in the air tomorrow. Here is Day 1 Video.

Brasilia Final Results

2010-08-30T11:05:00.002+10:00

Here is the top 20. The full results can be found HERE.

#	Id	Name		Nat	Glider	Sponsor	T 1	T 2	T 3	T 4	T 5	T 6	T 7	Total
1	204	Jon Durand	M	AUS	Moyes LS RS 3.5	RedBull / Moyes	877	892	968	983	911	971	960	6562
2	27	André Wolf	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS 3.5	Ondas do Ar	991	924	935	739	788	988	971	6336
3	183	Carlos Alberto Schmitz	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS 3.5	novapetropolisweb.tv	843	771	932	938	931	943	889	6247
4	43	Glauco Pinto	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2C	Ford Caminhões	801	844	786	793	919	951	858	5952
5	6	Eduardo Oliveira	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2	Dust Devil	712	847	862	795	913	708	973	5810
6	26	Marcelo Andrei Gomes	M	BRA	Aeros Combat L	Aeros/Dust Devi/Mundo Art Global/Ford	762	483	849	739	858	942	944	5577
7	17	Alvaro Figueiredo Sandoli	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2C144	WillsWing/Rotor	728	868	793	740	689	776	959	5553
8	3	Michel Louzada	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2C 144	Cellep/Rotor/Teleatlantic	893	870	327	916	703	660	994	5363
9	15	Marcio Rosadas	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2	WillsWing/Rotor	820	840	802	753	831	377	859	5282
10	25	Eduardo Fernandes	M	BRA	Aeros Combat		818	779	497	754	801	764	838	5251
11	1	Marcelo Ferro	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS4	Ondas do Ar	838	857	327	600	867	734	981	5204
12	53	Carlos Niemeyer	M	BRA	Aeros Combat L		755	867	319	970	850	725	698	5184
13	16	Konrad Heilman	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS3.5	www.riohanggliding.com	444	652	801	907	760	860	708	5132
14	20	Cedrick Vils	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS 4	WebSoftware / Spot	710	769	813	576	773	595	876	5112
15	8	Max Turiaco	M	BRA	Aeros Combat L		508	864	830	348	839	773	926	5088
16	4	Mario Andre Felske	M	BRA	Aeros Combat L		393	745	804	774	832	650	882	5080
17	51	Alan de Moura Morrison	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2		693	797	732	732	634	578	814	4980
18	10	Alexandre Trivelato	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS		500	886	322	551	905	728	893	4785
19	2	Dorival Agulhon	M	BRA	Moyes LS S	Deus	718	859	691	776	65	708	955	4772
20	203	Hakan Andersson	M	SWE	Moyes LS RS3.5		702	668	184	784	865	625	861	4689

Brasilia Day 7

2010-08-30T09:26:00.005+10:00

The final day and conditions were only getting better. A short 105km tas was set to ensure that everyone made goal. Cloudbase was again nearly 4,000m and climbs of 5m/s were seen throughout the entire course. Was a sensational day to leave a place like this with good memories of fantastic flying.

I had another good day finishing in 5th place my worst result for the comp, but I only had everything to loose and nothing to gain. I was less than a minute behind the winner and just a few seconds behind Andre.

I won the comp followed by Andre in 2nd and Betinho in 3rd. It was a great result for Moyes winning all but the last day but with 3 in the top 5 still.

Here is a quick video of day 7

Brasilia Day 6

2010-08-30T09:24:00.001+10:00

Another fantastic with cloudbase at 3800m a 126km task was set. Again many pilots were very happy to see the normal Brasilia conditions had returned.

Here is Day 6 video

Brasilia Day 5

2010-08-30T09:20:00.001+10:00

Today was an amazing day with good climbs high cloudbase and many in goal.

Here is the video.

Brasilia Day 4

2010-08-26T20:52:00.006+10:00

Today was looking better again so a 133km task with 5 turnpoints was set. There were many crosswind and headwind legs so an early start may have been a good choice. Andre and I decided to launch early as we had a 10km entry to the first turnpoint and we wanted to fly around the other side ro get upwind.

I got up high and headed out into the valley and it seemed a whole gaggle was following us with the same idea. There was a gaggle of about 15 or more at the 1st start and noone left they all turned back.

We waited for the next start and I managed to not be in the best position so I decided to wait and Andre turned around to join me. Most others started apart from about 6 of us. We finally started and glided all the way to the first turnpoint and hit a slow climb there.

Andre and I dove off onto the platau to some other gliders turning and hit a 2m/s climb. I left it early as we had been getting much stronger climbs and found a 3 m/s climb further along. 13kms out from the second we hit a boomer and a whole gaggle of us climbed up in a 4m/s climb to 2800m.

Just before the 2nd TP we hit another good one and topped out as we had a headwind leg of 21kms to the 3rd TP. I rounded the TP and glided a little to the right and got a good line and hit a another strong climb.

I managed to gain a little height on the guys I was flying with here and pushed on catching most of the starters in front of me. I rounded the 3rd TP not to far behind Betinho and Boca who were leading the pack.

I got slowed up near the forest and the others caught me back up again. We all then headed off and hit a climb under Betinho about 8kms before the 4th TP. We topped out there but not as high as we should of.

Once we did the 4th TP we had a long headwind glide which put us very low and we spent some time trying to get back up. It was getting late in the day now and good thermals were getting harder to find.

We all pushed low into the forest and I spotted a bird circling downwind so I headed there and called Andre over. We hit a 3m/s climb which got us back up to about 2500m. I was now just below Betinho with Andre and Nene below me a little.

We all glided off to the last turnpoint and hit a lot of sink. I went a little more upwind just before the turnpoint and hit a light climb which I called Andre back to. Nene and Michel were lower and hit a light climb downwind of the turnpoint.

I decided to leave my climb and get the turnpoint and then dive back in on top of Michel and Nene. This worked well as Andre and Hakan stayed and when the arrived into our thermal they were low.

Betinho and I left once the thermal died and Nene and others had to fly back headwind to get the Turnpoint. Betinho and I hit a 3m/s thermal and I stayed in it untill I reached 3000m.

Climbing out in my sexy Moyes Matrix Race.

It was now 5pm and I wanted to stay high as we still had a crosswind of 35kms to go. Betinho kept pushing and I just sat high and turned in any reasonable lift I could find. We both got low just before crossing the lake 13kms from goal.

Betinho found a light climb which was enough to get us into goal. I was second into goal behind Carlos who had gotten high before the 4th Tp unlike us and went past us without us knowing.

I will win the day 7 mins faster than Carlos and betinho will be 3rd about 20 mins slower than me. It was a very tough day and only Michel and Konrado were the last ones to make goal. Andre and many others landed about 15kms short which was easy to do at this time of the day.

I will move into 1st place and Andre will got to second and Betinho will stay in 3rd. The weather is improving everyday so hopefully tomorrow will be another good day.

Here is the video from the last 2 days.

Brasilia Day 3

2010-08-25T11:49:00.002+10:00

Another blue day and the task comittee calls a 122km task with 3 turnpoints the goal at the Esplanada. The wind backed off a lot from the last 2 days and people were actually getting low off take off.

I launched and hit 4m/s to 2000m and headed down to the start 5km down the ridge. I was in great position for the 1st start and headed out about 4 kms on course then turned around as some key players were not with us.

When the 2nd start came I was low in the valley and missed the start which all but Betinho and I took. We waited for another 15 mins then started and did a long glide coming in below the stragglers from the 2nd start.

We were pushing hard and by the time we reached the 1st turnpoint we were below the main gaggle. I went low towards the platau by myself as the main gaggle had gone off course line a little. I hit a 4m/s climb and Betinho came in and joined we topped out to 2400m.

We were more upwind and just a little behind the main group now. We got low near the forest and had to take a slow climb which allowed the others behind to catch back up to us. Andre was in front pushing hard by himself as he did the 2nd start.

4kms from the 2nd turnpoint Andre came in below me on his way back to the 3rd turnpoint. I made a little mistake there by not topping out in the thermal as I wanted to just come back and chase Andre down.

There was 20kph winds and many of us got drilled after the 2nd Tp which put some of the key boys on the ground. I eventually got a good climb and pushed forward with a big gaggle to the last turnpoint.

We rounded that and now we were 40kms out from goal with a cross tail wind. We hit a good thermal and we topped out to 2750m highest thermal of the comp so far. Betinho and I had not been more than 1km apart the whole flight and now he had 100ft on me.

I needed to do something to ensure I beat him into goal. 23kms out the gaggle stopped and I kept going low towards goal and was rewarded with a good climb to get me to final height.

I will be 2nd into goal behind Andre and will win the day being 7 mins faster. Betinho will come in 3rd for the day a couple of mins slower than me.

Moyes boys take out the top 3 places again..;-)

Andre is winning, im 2nd and Betinho is 3rd overall.

No video as I left my camera in the car, so you will have to wait.

Brasilia Day 2

2010-08-25T11:40:00.008+10:00

Task 2 was 114kms long with 5 turnpoints before heading back to the Esplanada. Andre and I ended up doing the last start as we were not in good position on the 2nd start.

We flew fast and arrived at goal only 15 mins behind the guys that started 30 mins in front of us. Andre will win the day again about 1 minute faster than me then Alex will be 3rd finishing just behind me.

Moyes boys take out the top 3 for the day and all happen to be flying one of Andres gliders. All the same colour and all..

1	27	André Wolf	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS 3.5	Ondas do Ar	14:00:00	16:07:21	02:07:21	50,3	113,64	404,5	63,7	416,8	32,4	917
2	204	Jon Durand	M	AUS	Moyes LS RS 3.5	RedBull / Moyes	14:00:00	16:08:40	02:08:40	49,8	113,64	404,5	56,8	391,4	30,5	883
3	10	Alexandre Trivelato	M	BRA	Moyes LS RS		14:00:00	16:08:59	02:08:59	49,7	113,64	404,5	56,0	387,5	28,9	877
4	3	Michel Louzada	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2C 144	Cellep/Rotor/Teleatlantic	13:30:00	15:54:36	02:24:36	44,3	113,64	404,5	104,2	275,5	74,4	859
5	17	Alvaro Figueiredo Sandoli	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2C144	WillsWing/Rotor	13:30:00	15:54:36	02:24:36	44,3	113,64	404,5	102,1	275,5	74,4	857

Here is a short video of the day.

Brasilia Day 1

2010-08-23T11:21:00.008+10:00

Today was looking good with clouds staring early but dissapearing by the time we launched. There are 90 pilots entered in the comp and a 114kms task was set with 3 turnpoints with goal at the Esplanada.

The wind was strong at launch measuring upto 45kph but that did not stop them just wait for a lull and off you go. Once in the air the wind was about 25-30kph and the crosswind zigzag proved difficult for many.

We were only getting 1400m maximum above the platau so many pilots were landing between the first and second turnpoint. I was doing well leading out from the 2nd start but got low on the platau and had to drift downwind to stay in the air.

Andre was above me higher and pushed on for a good climb that I missed and he managed to nearly catch the lead gagle at the first turpoint. He reported getting down to 100m off the ground at the 2nd turnpoint but hit a 4m/s climb, which won him the day.

I was flying with Betinho who has not flown for 5 years and it seemed he has not lost his edge. We were pushing hard trying to catch back up but also got low at the 2nd turnpoint and did not get the strong climb out of there.

I eventually got up and got away from the guys I was with and managed to catch the guys in front of me. Andre and Michel were far infront and I could not see them anymore.

We rounded the last turnpoint and hit a lot of shade which slowed our last part down a little. I eventually hit a good thermal 13kms out from goal topped up and came in 4th across the line.

Andre will win the day 13 mins infront of me and Michel is 2nd only 4 mins slower than me but on the 1st start. Betinho will be 4th and Ferro 5th making 4 moyes boys in the top 5 for the day.

Only 23 pilots made the goal out of 90 so maybe tomorrow the will make a slightly easier task to get more pilots in.

Day 1 winner Andre with his baby girl Valentina.

1	27	André Wolf	M	BRA	Moyes Litespeed RS 3.5	Ondas do Ar	13:45:00	15:49:25	02:04:25	52,5	114,09	554,8	68,9	311,6	55,6	991
2	3	Michel Louzada	M	BRA	Wills Wing T2C 144	Cellep/Rotor/Teleatlantic	13:30:00	15:51:26	02:21:26	46,2	114,09	554,8	77,9	206,1	50,5	889
3	204	Jonny Durand	M	AUS	Moyes Litespeed RS 3.5	RedBull / Moyes Ondas Do Ar	13:45:00	16:02:15	02:17:15	47,6	114,09	554,8	52,7	224,2	41,6	873
4	183	Carlos Alberto Schmitz	M	BRA	Moyes Litespeed RS 3.5		13:45:00	16:07:54	02:22:54	45,8	114,09	554,8	52,2	200,2	30,8	838
5	1	Marcelo Ferro	M	BRA	Moyes Litespeed RS 4	Ondas do Ar	13:30:00	16:02:06	02:32:06	43,0	114,09	554,8	66,8	165,7	45,9	833

For more results and news CLICK HERE

Day 1 Video.

Welcome To Brasilia

2010-08-23T07:21:00.001+10:00

Here is a movie from the Practice Day.. Enjoy...

Rio De Janeiro

2010-08-17T10:58:00.002+10:00

Well it has been one hectic week having spent 55hrs on aeroplanes been in 3 countries and have had little sleep. The only good part is that I am back in Brazil one of my favourite places in the world for many reasons.

The weather has not been great the last few days since I arrived here and today was the first flying day. Dave and I are here for the comp in Brasilia and today finally got to test our gliders at the famous Sao conrado.

It was raining a lot of the morning and we were thinking it was not a great day for flying but it changed fast.

I took off after many did not want to go as it had been awhile since pilots were staying up. The rain had cleared and I was keen to get in the air. I launched along with a stream of pilots as I hit a light climb in front of launch.

I got up a little and crossed over the valley towards the east heading for the Cristo. I climbed on the other side and waited for the others.

Dave had decided to go the other way to Pedro Bonita to try and climb out but arrived low and did not get the climb.

The others climbed up to me and soon we were at base and heading to a place that only a few people in the world have seen by hang glider.

The rest you can see on the video below as It is to hard to describe in words..

Enjoy.

pre Worlds Task 2

2010-08-03T17:55:00.002+10:00

A 101 km task was set more or less an out and return landing in the goal field in Sigillo. I did the 1st start on top of the gaggle and was leading out with Manfred and Alex for the 1st few glides.

I got to the 1st turnpoint just behind manfred but we were low and I hit a light climb so I stopped. him and others kept gliding low into the hills and hit a climb. When I got there I missed it and had to scratch to stay in the air for about 15-20 mins.

I lost the lead guys and spent the rest of the day chasing from behind. I had a good 2nd leg pushing hard with Andre and Carl but was not enough to close the gap. The last turnpoint was in a crazy spot with no landings and many pilots were not happy with the task.

I finished 15 mins behind Manfred and lost 140 points to him but will only loose 1 place to Andre who finished not far in front of me.

80 pilots made goal and the Italians took the top 3 spots for the day as local knowledge played a big part in the task.

Here is Task 2 video

Follow me live on spot.

2010-08-03T01:32:00.000+10:00

Here is the link to follow along the courseline..

http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=09d3XgeEIO8fr2h80txlF7got6UK7K6Cq

Pre Worlds Task 1 Video

2010-08-02T17:34:00.004+10:00

Here is the Video of Task 1. I hope you enjoy it. Dont forget you can always donate money to Jonny durand at paypal..:-)

Pre Worlds Task 1

2010-08-02T17:34:00.001+10:00

Pre Worlds Task 1

2010-08-02T08:31:00.003+10:00

WIth moderate NE winds they set a 103km task with 5 turnpoints ending up back in Sigillo goal. There is 145 pilots in the competition and an open window with 4 launch lanes. I took off mid field and climbed out after some passes on launch and headed out to the big gaggle. I climbed up and then got scared a little so I headed out onto the flats with Carl and Flocky. We were in goo dposition for the 1st start but the day did not look good enough and not enough pilots did the start. I waited for the next start 20 mins later had a good start with quite a few others getting a good run to the 1st and 2nd turnpoint. I then went down the valley straight line to the 3rd TP which caught me a lot of time and we caught the 1st starters at the 3rd turnpoint. I was then in front a bit with Manfred as we glided back past launch along the ridge without stopping. The gagle hit a 700 fpm climb behind us and could see us groveling low infront. Manfred pushed on one more valley and I was happy to stay with what I had as there was not so much landing and I did not know what was around the corner. He hit a climb so I quickly dove off there with Blay who did the 1st start and we climbed up in a 300fpm climb. The gaggle came gliding in on us some above and some below and then the thermal kicked to 600fpm. We did the 4th turnpoint at 6,000ft and then headed into the the airspace which was set to 6,000ft. Mario was infront with Andre wolf going into the last turnpoint with Manfred and I not far behind them. They glided back towards goal and hit a thermal I saw Manfred just keep gliding past them and I did the same as there was like a convergence line. I picked a good line and was slowly realing Manfred in on final but could not get him before the goal cyclinder. Manfred was 1st in 13 secs infront of me then Andre about 30 seconds behind followed closely by Mario. Many pilots made goal probably about 100 which made for a good first day.

Europeans Day 5

2010-07-17T16:54:00.003+10:00

Today was looking brillant with strong climbs and high cloudbase. We decided on a long task of 197kms with 4 turnpoints taking us over the breath taking views of the Sierra Ferrera ridge.

The launch is always so hectic since it is an open window with 100 pilots so I have just been waiting untill last to takeoff to avoid unneccessary stress. Yesterday it probably did not work in my advantage as we had to fly more than 8kms to the start circle and I only had 25 mins to climb and do that.

Needless to say I had a bad start on the 1st gate but I had to go since it was such a long task and everyone else was going. My first thermal was 1000fpm climb but the lead gaggle was about 5kms in front and much higher.

I rounded the 1st TP and pushed hard and hit a good climb as I watched the lead gaggle detour upwind. This was good for me as I knew that this would give me a chance to catch up on the Racing ridge(Sierra Ferrera).

I left the thermal I was in when I knew that I could make it to this fast ridge and glided off after the lead guys. I arived just at ridge height about 7th pilot to the ridge just behind Gerolf. I just kept gliding fast and did not make the big detour in deep like the guys in front of me did.

I stayed on the front ridge and cut the corner and eventually hit a 800fpm climb. I did about 5 circles and then headed off again around the corner and hit a 1000fpm climb which now has put me into the lead with Martin and Tom above me.

Attila joined me and we all raced down the end of the ridge to the turnpoint leaving Gerolf behind. coming back to the ridge from the TP sucked as the wind was funneling down the valley. We arrived above the low ridge and hit good lift and kept gliding.

I once again went more straight line not going deep in the hills like Attila and others did. I had a good run and hit a 600fpm climb at the end of the ridge and the others joined back up. Tom was pushing hard along with Attila and we all flew together for the next bit.

The Racing ridge(sierra Ferrera)

I pushed on low after not stopping for a climb that Attila and Tom got off to my right and had to take a light climb. They went over my head high, but soon enough my thermal kicked to 800fpm and I climbed to 9500 and soon went gliding over Tom and came in above Attila 15kms from TP 3.

I was now leading with gaegu and Martin into the 3rd TP. I hit a good 900fpm climb on the big mountains and skyed out. Attila somehow must have hit a good climb behind and soon came gliding into us.

Some of the others went straight line and almost caught us back up at the 3rd TP. I left the thermal early rounded the TP and headed back down the ridge for the last TP.

I ran into Alex about 8kms back and hit a 1000fpm climb and the others came in below me. Alex was blowing kisses at me in the air and I could not resist but to blow one back to the World Champion.

I left on a 9.8:1 to goal side by side with Mario and Attila and Tom hot on our heels. Gaegu must have stayed in the climb untill he could not see and as we hit lots of sink around the last TP I could see him coming high behind us.

I rounded the turnpoint and was not in position to be flying flat stick to goal and over the next few kms just before Goal Gaegu over took me. I managed to ground effect and then cross the goal line with no height to spare.

Mario will be next in followed by Attilla and Tom less than 1 minute behind. Gerolf will be next in about 7 mins behind us. There was a gap of about 10 mins more before the next gaggle arrived.

About 55 pilots made the 197kms task and I completed it in 3hrs 25mins 11 seconds behind Gaegu. This was one of the most spectacular flights I have ever had, with good conditions and scenery that you will never forget.

Here is task 4's video.

Europeans Day 4

2010-07-16T08:25:00.007+10:00

After some low clouds early this morning they lifted and weset a challenging 112km task. I was nearly last to launch again and climbed out but did not take the 1st start as I was not in a great postion.

I waited for the next start gate and was in an even worse spot but I had no choice but to go as I knew we would struggle with the seebreeze at goal. Just about everyone did the 2nd start. I flew only 13kms downwind in the first 30 mins of my flight. I started low and just had to scratch my way to the first turnpoint.

Heading back to the hills from the 1st turnpoint. I eventually met up with Carl, Primoz and a few others and we pushed hard trying to catch the lead gaggle. Just before the 2nd turnpoint we hit a good thermal on the flatlands which allowed us to go straight line. We caught up a lot of time on the pilots that did the 1st start gate. I managed to come gliding into the lead gaggle now at the 2nd turnpoint and we all climbed slowly as we were in high ground. I started pushing with Carl and a few others to try and get my leading points up as I had been so far behind for the first half of the flight. We ended up in a gaggle of about 30 pilots 40kms from goal. The gaggle spilt into 2 as we broke away from the others. My glider was going well in comparison to others in the headwind. Gerolf was gliding the best like usal and he had control of the gaggle. I heard that there was quite strong wind headwind at goal so I was conservitive on final and that cost me some places but I still finished 8th 46seconds behind Gerolf who will win the day.

Gerolf 1st, Mario second, looking happy at goal. Pilots kept slowly coming into goal for the next hour or so and a total of 44 pilots made the challenging task.

Here is Day 4's video

Day 3 cancelled

2010-07-15T17:51:00.002+10:00

Here is a little letter from Gerolf as he had to much time off yesterday.. Freaking Bloggers! Why don't they give us the real news? (Ager, Spain) Gerolf writes: Woke up early this morning shook awake by some kind of strange nightmare, that maybe yesterday’s task didn’t actually happen and my current lead in the Comp was nothing more but a sweet illusion. I quickly grabbed the laptop to check for scores as I hadn’t seen any last night – but of course there was no scores to be found on the official site YET AGAIN (we are in Spain, for those who read the Oz Report infrequently, “manana”-country so to speak). So I decide moving on to the Oz Report for clues (always my next source of wisdom), but all I find is numerous blog links with no results but just a short Jamie comment that the conditions and task were similar than the day before, and so were the issues with the scoring. Yeah, and also the mountains were still in the same spot as the day before :-) I’m all in a frenzy now. I click onto her blog hoping at least to learn some more on how Carl is feeling these days and find out quickly that him and Gordon where the first in from the Brits. What a relief – at least the Brits did well! I log onto the DHV blog. The DHV site usually covers very well the life and times of Primoz Gricar, and as he often ends up in the lead gaggle, I am thinking I might even learn something about my own flight this way. But this morning Regina is more focused on the important fact that Life-tracking isn’t a very reliable technology – at least in the hands of hang glider pilots - and it basically works only in one of six cases on average. I had a hunch about this all along :-) I’m surfing on. On Matjaz’ site we learn that the nights are acceptably cool but the bugs are unacceptably nasty here around, especially at the campsite. Did you know? Matjaz is also a big fan of Primoz and reveals to us how they started low but got up and high and then low and then high again and … and to spoil the whole story … in the end both made goal including all the other Slovenians. And what about ME? I got to find out now, I got to move on. But Daphne is still reflecting about the opening ceremony where she met nice friends and all, and there is also a cute video of her boyfriend being sprog-tested – I quickly realize I might not find much about task flying on here. I move on to Corinna’s World. If you’re into facts, this site isn’t for you. But, it’s got some surreal quality to it. Corinna has this rare talent to present the reader with an “alternative reality”, if I may word it this way. But this morning I’m desperate enough to give it a peek. And, as if I knew it – drama, drama. Air had come in the camel bag and as if that was not enough already it turns out a dextrose bit – I’m not making this up - carefully taped to her helmet, came lose - just before landing. Can you believe it? And, you guessed it right: no dextrose, no good landing. The cruel reality of hang gliding! If this isn’t grabbing you right away, what is? But then there it is - thank you Corinna - just as I was about to click you away, a little side comment of a side comment so to speak, kind of a by-the-way thing: Gerolf won the day, followed by Blay and Johnny. Finally it’s out. And I can go back to bed… …wondering what this blog world has come to? Hey, you reporters, writers and part-time poets: this Comp isn’t about YOU and your friends. This is about ME, ME, ME and Balazs (and Gordon to some extend) Well, at least as long as we top those lists. After that it will be about the Blays and Johnnys, the Attilas and Christians, Alex’ and Primoz’, Martins and Marios or who else will make the story of the comp in the days to come. So please, give us a lead story here for crying out loud. Try to cover at least some of the plot of the day – tell us, what really matters for the results to finally come out the way they do! Don’t get me wrong. We all love you interest in personal side shows. Your gossip stories and odd looks at things. But such “coverage” should be done in ADDITION to the main plain task facts, not in EXCHANGE for it! Clearly Gerolf does not read my blog otherwise he would have seen himself on video and all with the words clearly written Day 2 winner..:-) Not to mention videoing him while flying in his last thermal before winning the day..

Europeans Day 2

2010-07-14T07:22:00.002+10:00

Today's forecast was for slightly stronger winds and lower ceiling. We set a 91km task and as it turns out was far to short. I waited on launch for a long time as it was not so great and pilots were even landing in front of us. I finally took off and climbed out and did the 2nd start with just about everyone. I went left of course and had a good run with Martin, Primoz and others. We were in the lead gaggle and I was pushing hard but made a mistake after the 1st turnpoint. I tried to head more headwind to get under some clouds but never got the lift and the rest of my gaggle went on courseline and hit some good thermals. I spent the next 20 mins catching back up and finally caught then just after the 2nd turnpoint. I was with Gerolf and he kept going on glide for the last turnpoint and I detoured to the others as they were climbing but not fast. As soon as I got there Blay saw Gerolf flying past and followed him and I was very indecisive on what to do. I stayed for awhile but the thermal never kicked and soon left for the last turnpoint. The others stayed back and climbed untill they saw me climbing just before the last turnpoint. I topped up and went on final glide at 10:1 and made it easy. Gerolf will win the day with Blay coming 2nd and me 3rd. 70 pilots made goal and about 50 or more were within 20 mins of the winners score. Was a great racing day and tomorrow it is supposed to be even better. I will move into 4th place behind Gerolf, Balazs and Gordon. MOyes boys are going well having 8 in the top 10 after 2 days of flying. Here is todays video.

Europeans Day 1

2010-07-13T05:56:00.003+10:00

The task comittee consisting of Gerolf,Pedro and I came up with a 134km task with 4 turnpoints. The task took us back into the big mountains and gave us some breath taking views along the course. The flying around launch was difficult and many times I found myself way below the gaggle and launch. We waited for the last start at 3:30pm hoping for the weather to get better. At the time of the last start I was no more than 200m off the ground infront of launch and thought my day was coming to an end. I hit a dust devil over the landing field and climbed back out to around 6,000ft. I was now 15 mins late in the start and could see the others in outer space about 10kms in front of me. All of a sudden a gaggle joined me which had Attila, Martin,Primoz and few other good pilots. I was now a little happier knowing that we had a good gaggle to push along with. I was flying with 2 sets of instruments and a camera on my basebar and I felt like a tourist all day. I was thinking half way along the course that I was coming about 60th for the day and I was just trying to push with Attila and Martin to catch up. I made a good moove 3/4 of the way along doing a long glide and not stopping untill I hit a good thermal. I rounded the 3rd turnpoint with 20kms to go I could see the first pilot crossing goal below me. I thought Ohh my ive really been flogged. I did a glide out in the valley and was rewarded with a 500fpm climb with Attila. Alex and many others came in below us and we left on final at 11:1. We rounded the last turnpoint then headed back for goal and our glide was now down to 8:1. I manged to cross the line I think 11th but there were a few that had started 30 mins before me. I should finish up somewhere in the top 10, which is a great result considering the bad start. I think Balazs will win the day finishing about 15 mins in front of me. I believe there were about 30 pilots in goal with some very good pilots not there. Blay did not make it or Christain Ciech. I flew for 5 hrs and at this rate I will be dead by the end of this 12 day comp. Unfortunatley My camera was flat so there will be no Video for today but I promise you that you will see some amazing videos this week.. Stay tuned.

Cloudbase Foundation update.

2010-05-13T13:45:00.000+10:00

Update on the Cloudbase Foundation progress. The new non profit organization made up of all Hang Glider and Paraglider pilots is in full swing. Our first group of Board Of Directors has been busy establishing processes and procedures allowing the organization to better define projects where children are in need, organize event unity for the two sports and raise money from sources that are outside of the direct pilot community. Our 501c3 status will assist the organization in receiving funds and allow donators the proper tax credit documentation. However, this will only be the case if there are donators. We are in great need of your assistance to spread the word and to raise money. (100% of the money donated goes to the children) Please become an active part of this organization. This is a wonderful opportunity to give back in a way that makes such a huge difference for so many children. How can you help? You can help by letting any of the Board Of Directors know about your idea on how we can help children in an area that is close to where you may be flying, ask others for their donations or by being an ambassador for the organization. Please go to our website, www.thecbf.org for more information about the organization and to learn more about our latest project. Faithfully, Ricker Goldsborough / President "The CloudBase Foundation" www.thecbf.org 985-845-7901 Office 985-845-7902 Fax 985-373-7289 Cell

White Sands National Park

2010-05-10T13:15:00.005+10:00

Today I went for a little trip out to the near by White Sands national park. It is an amzing place and full of history.

Although from the average person's eye it may just look like sand dunes that never end. The park was made from the rising heart of the Tularosa basin making it one of the world's great natural wonders.

The sand is so fine that in places it is almost like quick sand and in other places it is hard as a rock.

The wave like dunes of Gpysum sand have engulfed 275 square miles of desert creating the worlds largest gypsum dune fields.

It is amazing to see that the plants and animals have adapted to suit this ever changing environment.

Dry Canyon Flying

2010-05-09T02:33:00.003+10:00

Well I am here in Alamogordo, New Mexico with my Grandparents and noticed this beautiful flying site.

I went to the Lz yesterday and checked it out nice green grass with a big windsock. Notice board. The launch is located just behind the house on a huge long ridge that runs out into a wide open desert valley.

Looking up towards launch from the LZ

Ive been watching dust devils ripping through everyday and can only imagine how the view is up in the sky as my hang glider is far from me.

Grandma took me up to see the space museum which is located right below launch.

Looking out into the valley from the Space Museum.

Cloudbase Foundation is Raising money.

2010-05-07T09:27:00.004+10:00

Hey all. The Cloudbase Foundation has accepted the challenge to raise money to purchase a water tank for the children of Ghana. This is an amazing organization that raises money for children in need of help. Many of us pilots are supporting the foundation as this money is making a difference tto children around the world.

You can help by donating just a little money or stop donating to those big charities that eat all your money up in expenses without giving much away to the kids that need it. Instead you can donate to this site with great pleasure knowing the hang glider pilots with the support from you are helping the kids in this world.

Can anyone help us raise the money? Please spread the word and ask for donations. There will soon be more information on the Cloudbase Foundation site about this new project.

I will endeavor to keep you up to date with the latest projects that the foundation is helping with. This is my Cloubase foundation Sticker on my glider in Florida. The Non-Profit organization named "The CloudBase Foundation"was formed by a group of Hang Glider and Paraglider pilots to support children in the United States and around the world and wherever we fly. We encourage you to join in our efforts.501 (c) 3 certified

Photo's From flytec Race and Rally

2010-05-03T07:49:00.002+10:00

Here is a link to a guy that was taking photo's of both ocmps here in Florida.

He did a fantastic job so check them out. HERE

2010 Flytec Race and Rally Champions

2010-05-02T23:41:00.002+10:00

The Rally came to an end in Moultrie, GA after not being able to fly the last day due to strong winds. We were all set to go but after a couple of scary tows by very experienced pilots the safety comittee decided to cancel the day. We then headed to a resturant and had the prize giving. After a challenging day on Day 6 I moved into the lead by 9 points over Dustin and will be the Grand Champion. Open Class Winners. Rigid Wing Champion, Ollie Gregory

2010 Flytec Race and Rally Pilots and Crew Video

2010-05-02T23:27:00.002+10:00

2010 Flytec Race and Rally Pilots and Crew Video

Rally Day 6 Video

2010-05-01T10:37:00.001+10:00

Here is Day 6 video.

Flytec Rally Day 5

2010-04-30T12:47:00.003+10:00

With a light SE wind predicted a 109km task to Williston was called with blue stable conditions things were going to be hard. I went up just as launch opened in the Dragonfly to see if there was much lift and I did not find much above 2,000ftagl. The task comittee decided on adding 2 more start times so that we could wait for the low inversion to break. I flew for nearly 1 hr in the start gate before taking the last start at 3,500ft agl. I was on top of the stack and was trying not to lead out but I had drunk a Red Bull shot just before I launched. I soon found myself out in front and pulling the gaggle for the next 50kms or more. I had one bad glide getting low with Carl and had to stay in the air as the huge start gaggle caught up. We climbed up slowly and soon found ourselves in the same gaggle that I had just been trying to get away from. I soon figured out that leading out was not working for me but as I fly around staring death in the eyes in this out of control gaggle I soon leave again. It was pretty much a gamble on the finish and it was a matter of being in the right spot at the right time to win. Jeff O,Brien seemed to be on final some 1,000ft higher than the rest of us and landed 5 miles short. Ben Dunn was also high and had a good chance and got very low nearly landing just before goal. Dustin, Zac and a few others were below Ben and stopped in light lift to avoid getting low. Filippo and Carl were above me and glided off and hit a 200fpm climb about 12kms out from goal and soon they were on final. I was lower and chased after them but had to stop also before goal and climb. Filippo crossed the goal line first with Carl just behind then James Stinnett. I will come in 5th and Dustin will finish 17 seconds behind me and Zac another 10 second behind Dustin. About 30 pilots made goal which was quite amazing given the challenging conditions. Day 5 Video

Flytec Rally Day 4

2010-04-29T23:32:00.004+10:00

Today was looking very difficult with the prospect of light lift and thermals to only 4,000ft max. We had nearly full cloud cover and a 109kms crosswind task of 18kph winds. I waited untill nearly the first start had gone before I towed as I wanted to make sure that I was in good position at the start. I did the last start on top of the hige gaggle and flew the first few glides in front pulling the gaggle along. I soon realised that it was a day that leading out the whole day was not going to give e any advantages and only increase my risk factor of landing. I then tried to relax and just follow for awhile letting others share the work load. This worked for awhile until I get impatient and just charge off on my own. After 2 hrs of flying I had only flown about 50 kms and still had 60kms left in the day. It seemed that we would not make goal at our current rate of flying but none of us were prepared to give up. Lakes on our courseline. I spent most of the time out in front with Carl and Richard Lovelace and even Ben Dunn turned up along the way. It was evident that you needed to have many friends to complete the task today. I was in no hurry and was trying to be as patient as I could to eliminate taking risk. Carl and Ben Dunn climbing tip to tip with me half way through the course. Dustin slipped behind for awhile and I thought we had nearly dropped him off but he said that he found a 700fpm climb which was about twice as strong as most thermals. We eventually ended up in a good group of pilots and we battled the hard conditions to advance metre by metre towards goal. About 15kms out I got low and ended up at the bottom of the gaggle and struggled to stay in the air. I saw Fillipo turning and I headed for him only to hear that Carl who was right next to me hit a better climb behind. After a few circles with Fillipo I headed back to them and climbed up below Carl, Zac and Dustin. The guys above me topped out and headed on a 10:1 glide for goal as I was still climbing lower. The thermal stopped and I had no choice but to leave on a 12:1 glide for goal. The last 5kms before goal was not landable so I was not really happy with my final height. I flew slow and maximized my glide and ended up making goal with about 100ft to spare. I will arrive about 3 minutes after the guys who all arrived at the same time within 3 seconds from 1st to 3rd. Only the 4 of us made goal along with 2 rigid wings, Ollie and Millar from the TTT club. Everyone was so tired trying to pack their gliders up after spending 5 hrs in the air in very challenging conditions. Happy goal boys on Day 4 Here is Day 4 Video. \

Flytec Rally Day 2 and 3

2010-04-28T07:44:00.002+10:00

Day 2 The forecast of strong winds slowly picking up as the day went on to around 25knts did not encourage me to set up early. I waited to see if the forecast was right and sure enough it was slowly picking up every hour. The task comittee called a 67kms crosswind task and everyone else was out staging their gliders. Just before the first pilot was about to launch they decided on movig the times back 30 mins and see if the winds would continue to strengthen. I decided that I should go and at least bring my glider out to the east end of the runway on top of the car incase things improved. Eventually after some discussion they day was cancelled and freeflying was even called off. Day 3 I set up early in the morning with forecast of lighter winds and the plan to doing some video shots with Bobby. After I set up I soon found that my harness was eleswhere and that I could not fly early to do the video's. The task comittee came up with a 87km cross-headwind task to John Travolta's airstrip to our north. As the window opened up the wind was quite strong very smilar to yesterdays condition but we were flying. About 30 pilots towed up and flew around for sometime trying to stay upwind in the start circle. Most of the priorty pilots were still on the ground as we could see that it was going to be an adavtage to tow just as the start gates opened in hope of stronger lift and better positioning. After about 30 mins of some wild towing and the lack of pilots in the air being able to go forward all but 2 pilots returned to the field. It was quite evident at this point that pilots were not keen to fly as the task was impossible for the conditions we had. Unfortunately we had no other choice as Orlando airspace is downwind in a strong west wind. The pilots that flew away landed 7 kms from the airfield inside the start circle. I just spoke to them and they said it was very turbulent and the glide was around 3:1 all the way to the ground. It was decided after a vote that we stay here and fly tomorrow as the forecast is for lighter winds again from todays. Lets wait and see if this is the case. I also have misplaced my camera here in the clubhouse so at this point I have nothing to use for filming anymore. It looks like you might have to live without video's and photo's from me for the rest of the rally. It is a sad day for Jonny..

Podium From Rob Kells Memorial Competition

2010-04-27T13:43:00.003+10:00

Jeff O,brien 3rd, Jonny Durand 1st, Dustin Martin 2nd

2010 Flytec Race and Rally day 1

2010-04-26T12:09:00.004+10:00

Day 1 video

Today was looking quite average with strong winds up high but not to strong down low. Cloudbase was only 3,000ft and it was nearly full cloud cover.

They decided on a 67km downwind task to Okeechobee airport flying up the west side of the big lake. It was a very difficult day and many stuggled to avoid the lake and the surrounding swamp lands.

I did the 2nd start with Carl and a handful of others and had quite an easy run for the first 40 kms. We then hit lots of shadow and not much lift under a cloud and Carl and Max flew out towards the road.

They landed 20kms short as I drifted slowly downwind in light lift into the middle of the swamp lands. I lost the lift and glided striaght down courseline into what I thought was landable areas. Once I got low I realised that the green areas were actually water as well and not dry green grass.

I made a low save of around 600ft and eventually got back up to 1200ft agl 12kms out from goal before losing the thermal. I dove off downwind towards goal and made another low save from about 700ft agl in strong winds drifting in 50 fpm lift.

I circled for what seemed to be a lifetime and soon saw Dustin flying past me well upwind on final to goal. I was still 6kms out and less than 1,000ft agl and now almost downwind of goal.

I had to thermal up 3 times to get enough height to make the glide back into the 30kph headwind to goal. I arrived about 10 minutes after dustin and started maybe 10 mins before him.

We were the only two to make goal and I think Zac was nect closest at 2.5 kms short. There has been many stories of people landing out and having to walk or swim their way out in waist high water.

We are now all at Quest Air enjoying a pizza party and watching a huge lightning storm out teh window. Not sure if we will get to fly tomorrow.

Dustin and I enjoying the bar at goal as we wait for our retrieve drivers. Some of the planes were huge here at the airport we landed at.

florida Ridge Day 7 Video

2010-04-25T23:14:00.001+10:00

Here is the last days video sorry for the delay in getting uploaded. It seems that the partying got in the way of the video making yesterday.

Florida Ridge Day 7

2010-04-25T03:24:00.004+10:00

Well it was quite a disaster with the task setting today having 4 task changes prior to takeoff. We had to enter in coordinates prior to takeoff and many pilots were very stressed. I was nice and relaxed and just chilled out under my glider watching everyone tow up. It was quite windy so I was not to keen to get up and try to stay in the start gate. I was ready to go at the first start gate with O,brien and many others but no one went so I hung out untill the 2nd start. I was in good position so I started even though some of the others did'nt. I glided all the way to the 1st turnpoint without hitting a climb and rounded it nice and low. I drifted low for about 5 mins and waited for the guys behind to come help me out. Eventually Dereck found a 400fpm climb and we topped out to 4,500 ft agl. Carl was now on top and leading the gaggle along with Dereck, Shapiro and I hot on his toes. We had a couple more good climbs before arriving low in shade and nothing but swamp and no roads in front of us. This part really slowed us down as no one wanted to leave the light 100fpm climb into the alligator infested swamp. Eventually a cloud formed to our west so we all headed over there and climbed out to base again. Davis and a few others came in high above us after hanging back in the previous thermal. They were now out in front with a few rigids wings. After 2 glides I was back on top and leading out to the turnpoint with Davis and Shapiro right behind me. I got a good climb about 8kms before the last turnpoint and we topped out to about 5,000ft agl. I lead into the turnpoint with Cambell and Shapiro hot on my toes. We now had a 30km cross headwind leg to finish the day off. It was not that easy and we got a little slow and soon found Dustin gliding in just below me from the last start. I was quite happy to see it was him and not Jeff O,brien as I still had 200 points on Dustin. I knew at this point that all I had to do was make goal so I did not try for anything stupid on final. We all left for final at around 10:1 but Dustin hit a thermal and we both stopped and let Shapiro and Dereck Turner go on glide for goal. We waited untill we had 8:1 before we left and it turned out that we made it easy 2 mins behind Shapiro. Dustin will win the day in 2hrs 17 mins and Shapiro will be 2nd about 13 minutes slower than Dustin and Dereck will take out 3rd. Gliders packing up at goal. I will place 4th and will keep my overall lead in the comp taking out the 2010 Rob Kells Memorial Comp. Zac and O,brien will be slow for the day arriving about 30 mins later. It was a very challenging day and many of us had some low saves and long stories to tell on the way home to the flight park. Ricker makes another goal. The awards will not be untill this afternoon as it was to late to score last night due to some late retrievals. We enjoyed home cooked pizza's lots of Alcohol and even a private sreening of the Morning Glory video.

florida Ridge Day 6

2010-04-23T13:41:00.003+10:00

Today was finally a good racing day with cloudbase around 5,000ft gal. A 125 km out and return task was called and about 17 pilots completed the task.

Here is day 6 video

florida Ridge Day 5

2010-04-22T18:52:00.000+10:00

Here is a quick video of Day 5 to show you what it was like.

florida Ridge Day 4

2010-04-21T12:57:00.003+10:00

We had a great day with low base with many people making the 105km task. It is late here now but here is a video which should pretty much explain the day for you all.

Jeff O, brien won the day taking the 2nd start and just beating us into goal. Zac will be 2nd also from the 2nd start and then Dustin, Shapiro and I.

results are up on www.soaringspot.com

Here is the video from today.

florida Ridge Day 4

2010-04-21T01:38:00.002+10:00

Just set a 105km task with 1 turnpoint here are some photo's from today's briefing.

My New Cloudbase stickers helping kids where we fly. Sport class goal virgins Jamie doing her part for the kids.

florida Ridge Day 3

2010-04-20T09:38:00.006+10:00

Well after thinking we were not going to fly today we woke up to low cloudbase and sun shining through. I arrived at 11am to find a 48km dogleg task called cross downwind. I was the last to set up as usal and towed 20 mins before the 1st start was to tick over. I released and climbed up with Jeff Shapiro to cloudbase which was only 3,400ft agl. It was very wet after so much rain the last 2 days that I was not sure which would be the best start. Being such a short task I knew that arrival points would be a huge advantage and th etask would be devalued due to time and distance. I decided on doing the first start and Shapiro was smart and followed me leaving his Wills Wing crew behind. I did a long glide and hit a 400 fpm thermal the best climb of the day and topped back out 14kms from TP 1. Shapiro was just below me and we headed off getting low and groveling for awhile just before the turnpoint with Larry Bunner who had also started with us. I eventually found a 300fpm climb got the turnpoint and headed off crosswind to a cloud and hit 400 fpm again. I nearly topped out but left early thinking I would need another thermal as my Final glide was still set to Brasil heights. Jeff went more downwind under the cloud and got a better line and came in above me. I stopped for a climb about 13kms out hoping that Jeff might stop and turn which might give me the chance to catch back up. Instead doing the smart move he kept going and hit more lift in front leaving him on final glide. I followed from behind but a bit lower and will finish 1-2 mins behind him. Larry was the next one into goal about 15 mins later then Dustin who did the 2nd start will be 4th in 10 mins slower than our elapsed time which was around 52 mins. Carl walbank will be next in just in front of Zippy and O, brien, they all did the last start and will be a similar time to Dustin. About 15 pilots made goal in the end and those that outlander Im sure at least a handful of them will be very wet. Here is a quick video I made from Dustin's camera at goal as my mine was flat. UNfortunately he had it on the low resolution so the quality is not that great. CLICK HERE FOR RESULTS.

Dalby Big Air 2010

2010-04-19T23:00:00.003+10:00

It is always hard looking on at other compititions from the otherside of the world. Back home they are having the Dalby comp and unlike us here they are flying.

I left home nearly 1 month ago and after 2 days of the Dalby comp they have nearly done as much flying as I have. As I sit here in the rain they are talking about flying a potential 3-400kms task the next days. Lets wait and see how the weather pans out for them all there.

For stories you can check out THEBOMBOUT.COM and for the full RESULTS CLICK HERE.

Photo from day 1 thanks to Cameron Tunbridge.

florida Ridge Day 2

2010-04-19T22:59:00.001+10:00

We wake up to the sound of rain and the day is cancelled early. It was off to Fort Meyers to watch a movie and go for dinner. Weather still looks average tomorrow but hopefully after that it will become flyable.

Florida Ridge Day 1

2010-04-18T04:54:00.003+10:00

Today was one of them days where it was hard to decide on whether to set up or just keep my glider in its bag. The task was set which consisted of a dogleg to a goal at Shell. I decided to program my GPS and get my harness ready and wait to see how the weather was looking. The window opened and pilots started towing so I had no choice but to set up and get ready to fly. Davis was up early and was reporting lift and cloudbase at 2400ft. It was looking more and more like rain as teh minutes ticked on. I decided to move back over to the tie down area as it seemed things were getting worse. Moments later it started raining and many pilots that were in the air came back and landed in the rain including Davis. I then decided to go for a fly after the rain front has passed to check out my glider and see if conditions were improving. All the pilots had landed so they moved the start times back 30 mins and I was first off. I towed to 700 feet checked my gps on which direction the first turnpoint was and saw that it was not going to happen as a huge wall of rain was moving in. I released and flat spun my glider down to the ground and quickly started packing up. Many pilots were looking at me like I was crazy because pilot were still towing and they day had not been cancelled. 5 mins later the safety commitee decided to call the day which was to late for some pilots who were now being sucked up infront of the rain. The tandem glider was up there and about 15 mins later landed in pooring rain as people on the ground were running around trying to pack up their own gliders. Dustin and Max a brazilian pilot could not get down and were forced to outrun the storm downwind. It turns out they landed safely about 30 kms from goal 1 hr later after the storm has passed us. Dustin reported 500 fpm lift all the way to the 2nd turnpoint flying with the basebar to his knees. The rained cleared and 2 girls were here for tandem flight from Orlando 3 hrs away. James had a great idea, sense there were so many tandem pilots here at the comp that he would line us all up and let the girls pick their pilot. So we lined up and when they came out of signing paperwork they had to decide on their pilot like it was a game show. They were asking us questions and soon enough one said who is the best pilot here.? Hmm I could not help myself so I mention the world ranking and that won me the birthday girl. Jamie whispered something into the othe ones ear and soon Alex was picked. So we both went up for an instructional tandem flight with the girls. We are now just chilling at the Ridge doing what pilots do whe there not flying. Tomorrow

Test Flying at marshall's

2010-04-15T14:57:00.003+10:00

We had a great day out test flying some gliders today at Marshall's. Kraig and I had a couple of flights and it was nice to get back in the air again after 2 weeks of not flying. I am off to Florida tomorrow and will hopefully get one day of practice flying in there before the comp starts on saturday. Here are some photos and video of today.

Looking out towards the LZ. Setting up on Launch Lone soldiers.

USA 2010

2010-04-11T11:20:00.004+10:00

Well after a very long journey I arrived in LAX airport to find Ben Dunn waiting for me. I had a somewhat relaxing day helping Ben tune his new Litespeed RS 3.5 at Kraigs work shop.

This morning Zac Majors dropped in to drop off some gliders to go to the Florida comps. After that it was off to Tanner's Birthday party.

Tanner decided on going to the Go kart center with is friends so it was race time.

Kraig loves competition and was destined to win. Somehow I managed to beat him on our first race by 2/100's of a second getting the fastest lap.

I knew that this result was not going to last and sure enough Kraig came through and won the last race. He had the fastest lap of the day just slighty faster than my lap from the first race.

Tanner in the front with his friends behind.

We then went to CICI"S all you can eat pizza,pasta and dessert for $4:95 what a bargain.

Im off to Florida on thursday and will be ready to fly on friday at the Ridge if the weather is right.

Rio De Janeiro

2010-04-10T11:57:00.006+10:00

I arrived back in Rio and had one week to hang out and do some flying. I never actually got to fly as I was more interested in just chilling by the beach and watching the tandem pilots in action. Here are a few flying photo's. Klaus landing tandem. A few Caparinha's at Gugga's. Some artwork at the beach A perfect launch. Packing up at the beach.

Andradas Day 6

2010-04-10T11:35:00.004+10:00

Well it was the last day today and the weather had not changed to much from previous days. The day was cancelled before we even went up the hill. They had the prize giving up at the Pousada so that everyone could make there way home early. Results will remain the same as day 2. For full Results CLICK HERE 1st Jonny Durand (Austrália) - Moyes Litespeed RS - Red Bull / Moyes 2nd Dustin Martin (USA) - Wills Wing T2 3rd Marcio Rosadas (Brasil) - Wills Wing T2 - Wills Wing / Rotor Here is a photo of all the gliders on launch. For more photo's CLICK HERE.

Andradas Day 5

2010-04-01T12:39:00.003+10:00

Today was looking a little better this morning and everyone was keen to get up the hill. We arrived early for a change and just about everyone was set up or setting up on the north launch. I was tuning a few gliders and saw the clouds starting to tower as the the sun warmed the ground. I told Alex and a couple of others they might want to stop setting up as it was not looking promising in my eyes. My glider was still firmly on top of the car and I did not plan on moving it in a hurry. Well I was right about 1 hr later the rain hit us hard. We waited hoping that it might pass by like it did yesterday and clear up behind. It did not instead it started sending lightning bolts down on takeoff where there were still like 40 gliders setup. There were a few very close hits on launch no more than 100 m away and I think very close to some gliders. I was waiting for a glider to get hit and just explode with carbon fibre everywhere. The rain continued and the rest of my car were still set up so there was no way to leave until the rain stopped. We waited all of us for about 4 hrs on launch before it stopped enough to start packing gliders. Our next problem was that you need to cross a river and we were told that it was not passable now due to the flooded river. Once the rain stopped Dustin managed to dry his glider and actually fly off and land back at his hotel on a glide. He was the only to fly and the rest of us drove slowly down the slippery wet road. The river had come back down and only the 2 wheel drive cars had problems getting across. One car I think destroyed its engine trying to cross it and had to get towed all the way back to town. Tomorrow is the last day and unfortunately I don't have a good feeling as the ground is very very wet around here. Even if it is flyable I don't think it will be very good but lets wait and see.

Andradas Day 4

2010-03-30T21:42:00.003+10:00

Well today is looking even worse than yesterday as the front is approaching. As I sit here in my hotel room I see the sky closing in around us and am wondering if we will make the 1 hr drive to takeoff. Looking out my window. It seems like it is not worth it to me but unfortunately they only way to find out the decision is to go there and see what they say. This is the view I am seeing out of my window at 9am this morning. This is looking up towards launch which is at the end of the ridge.

Andradas Day 3

2010-03-30T20:28:00.003+10:00

Today was very unstable and clouds were developing early. When I arrived on launch most of the pilots were setup and waiting. I kept a close look on the weather and could tell straight away that we would not fly today as it was going to overdevelop. Gringo's on takeoff. They set a 82km task and had every thinking we would fly except for me who still had my glider sitting on the roof of the car. Eventually just before the window open a big cu nimb dumped in front of us and they decided to cancel the day. Moicano thinks he can fly in the storm without his glider. Here is a quick video at launch.

Day 1 Video

2010-03-30T06:44:00.002+10:00

Sorry for the delay the internet is slow here and it takes forever to upload a video.

Andradas Day 2

2010-03-29T12:12:00.003+10:00

Flying on a sunday in this country should not be allowed as the parties are just to good and before you know it the sun is coming up. Today the forecast was similar to yesterday with over development expected later in the day. A 104km task was set with 3 turnpoints and goal back in the landing field on the south side of launch. The launch conditions were tricky today with a north west wind it was cross on two launches and left most people trying to takeoff the ramp. Dustin and I stayed on the north launch while most others went and lined up at the ramp in a single file. After about 20 mins we got a cycle and ran off and climbed out. I went upwind of the course line to start and waited around until the last start gate. I was flying with 2 others or should I say they were flying with me as I was leading out getting the thermals. After about 45 mins on course I realised I had no phone no phone numbers and no map so I was a little scared of outlanding today. The task was quite difficult as the conditions were changing a lot during the day and it helped to be in the right place at the right time. It was just the case that I was in that spot and managed to make goal in 2hrs 27 mins. I was the only one to make it as the others got shut down from a rain cloud that was dumping on the last turnpoint. The next closest was about 7kms short of goal and Dustin was about 12kms short. Dustin will move into 2nd place 240 points behind me and the next one is another 100 points or more behind Dustin. The weather is not looking good for the next days as it is supposed to rain most of this week. Lets see if we can get another round or 2 in before the comps finishes.

Results for Andradas

2010-03-29T12:04:00.003+10:00

For all the latest results look HERE Click on Resultados Superrace for over all results and day results under Superrace for the open class.

Andradas Day 1

2010-03-29T11:25:00.003+10:00

After a long journey overnight in the car we arrived in Andradas at 6am on the first day of the comp. I had a sleep in the hotel and woke up at 11am to the sound of Gugga saying come on we have to go otherwise we will miss the day. He was right we arrived on launch and pilots were already taking off and we had only 40 minutes until the first start gate. I quickly set up and tuned my glider that I had just brought over. I managed with the help of some others to get everything done set the gps and ran off the hill 5 mins after the 1st start. I climbed up and headed out to the edge of the start circle 7 kms away and just made the last start gate with Dustin and a few others. We had a good run and caught the 2nd start gate pilots after 2 glides at the first turnpoint. I just followed the gaggle along for awhile trying to recognise everyone in the air and soon found Andre. I managed to get a good climb just before the 2nd turnpoint and Andre came in just below me. We then headed off towards goal and only needed a couple of climbs to get there. I arrived 4th across the line but will be faster than everyone else completing the task in 1hr 42 mins. Dustin was 2nd fastest 3 minutes behind me but will come 3rd for the day behind Davide who started on the first startgate.

Brasil

2010-03-27T04:55:00.002+10:00

After a long flight on the plane I arrived in Rio De Janeiro last night cleared customs and made it home by 2am. Today I have spent the day re assembling the gliders and talking to all the pilots who are stopping by to pick up their new toys. I am now just waiting for Gugga to arrive soon so that we can make the long 6 hr drive to Andradas tonight to party. Well lets see about that part as I am still jetlagged and the comp starts in the morning. I believe there will be lots of pilots in the comp this year as they are having big problems in Rio with Tandems. Apparently all the Tandems have been closed down this week as the Brazilian Casa has said no more commercial tandems only instructional flights. This has affected many pilots as there is about 70 Tandems pilots that survive on this money to feed their families not to mention enjoy taking people flying for there first times. The comp will only go for 6 days finishing on thursday as there is a big PWC paragliding comp starting there next weekend. I will be back in Rio for 1 week before leaving for America.

Manilla fun 20th March.

2010-03-20T18:24:00.002+10:00

Today was more stable than yesterday so we planned to head north and see what happened with the weather. To add to the fun Dave and I decided to fly without our instruments and tune into the sky. Dave was first to take off and I was soon after and we both climbed out with Marty and Gabor who took just after me. Trev got off a little after us as it was not that great on launch. We all climbed out and headed down the valley except for marty who was out in the valley climbing. Gabor was in front and Dave and Trev came in above me half way down the ridge to the north. We all ended up together right at Tarpoly at the end of the range low. I kept going low and hit one in front while the others climbed behind me. Gabor joined me lower and then I headed off down the valley toward Barraba and got another good thermal and dave who had climbed high behind came gliding in and joined me. We topped out and flew north towards town and Hit another good one just before town and we both climbed high. Trev and Gabor got low and landed just below us so we decided to turn around and fly back to Godfrey's place. I had a great glide and did about 15-20kms before getting low and trying to sort out a climb. After trying to figure out if I was climbing or not I could see that I was after lining up Mt Borah with the horizon. I got high enough and went on final glide to Godrfey's place. Dave came in a little while later as we got separated on the last leg coming back into a slight headwind. It was a fun day out and great practice flying without the instruments and if you have never tried it you should cause it is a whole different sensation. We flew about 65kms out and return and now we are back eating home cooked pizza and telling stories about flying. Here is todays Video.