The Gliding Piccies Page (2009)

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Photos 26th May 2009

I took cloud pictures during a challenging flight. There were some strong thermals around, but the wind was blowing 30kts at cloudbase (5000 feet above Lasham) and that distorted the thermals a lot making it hard to centre. It was very slow pushing upwind. First time upwind it wasn't streeting very well and it was difficult. After I came back from Ashbury to Kingsclere, I pushed upwind again, this time under a huge cloud street that was starting to spread out. On the way back I practiced a couple of cloud climbs. At one point I climbed all the way to 6000 feet above Lasham, which was FL65. I came back as the overdevelopment started to get worse and showers started to form. A pretty good day considering it was pouring down earlier in the day and an associated cold front didn't clear until 10:45AM. Then it took only an hour to get decent soaring conditions. I launched at noon and was up for over 3 hours.

AboveCloudbase1.jpg	Smoke.jpg	AboveCloudbase2.jpg	AboveCloudbase3.jpg	AboveCloudbase4.jpg	AboveCloudbase5.jpg
Peeping through a gap in the clouds as I fly around following a cloud climb.	Back at cloudbase, I see a large puff of smoke. It came from the complex to the left of the picture (probably Welford). The road in the foreground is the M4.	Following another cloud climb, I took more pictures from above cloudbase.

AboveCloudbase6.jpg	AboveCloudbase7.jpg	AtCloudbase1.jpg	AtCloudbase2.jpg	AboveCloudbase8.jpg
More pictures from above cloudbase.		Pictures from cloudbase as I travel along a large overdeveloping cloud street.		Another picture from above cloudbase.

Spreadout1.jpg	Spreadout2.jpg	CloudHole1.jpg	CloudHole2.jpg	CumulusAndSpreadout.jpg
Looking at the spreadout around me as I scamper back to Lasham.		To the south a mysterious hole appears in a collapsing cumulus cloud like a bite has been taken out of it.		One last cloud shot before my flight ends.

Photos 24th May 2009

During a walk near Henley On Thames I managed a long range shot of gliders from Booker (to the north) local soaring a wisp-capped thermal. They were probably about 3000 feet up.

BookerGliders.jpg

Booker gliders soaring.

Photos 3rd May 2009

I flew DG1000 776 again today. This time I sat in the back and a fellow junior pilot in the front. We managed to get round a 251km task, Lasham - Birdlip - Bicester - Lasham. There are no pictures between the Birdlip area and the Benson area going home as during that middle part of the flight the cirrostratus top cover thickened up enough to almost kill the thermals. We hung on for ages near Enstone in just 1kt of lift, and eventually got across to better thermals closer to Bicester. We tip toed our way round staying high until, around Benson, the cirrostratus cleared suddenly and the thermals started booming again. It was then that we knew we would finally get home. In the end I was a bit conservative with final glide. The plus side is we had enough energy to push close to VNE during the competition style finish.

This is the first time I have managed to photograph the river Severn. And for Alex this was his longest ever cross country. It was my pleasure to share some of my experience, and good fun given neither of us got a single seater in the ballot. In the end it was a good day to have big wings so it wasn't quite such a bad thing that!

Clouds1.jpg	LookingAhead.jpg	Soaring.jpg	Event.jpg	WoodInField.jpg
Cloudshot showing the variability of cloudbase.	Looking ahead from the back seat.	Soaring near Membury.	A gathering across the motorway from Membury.	A curious field with a circular wood in the middle.

Lambourn.jpg	Membury.jpg	Clouds2.jpg	Shrivenham.jpg	SandhillFarm.jpg
Lambourn from the WSW.	Membury from the West.	Another cloudshot. Looking northwest from Membury towards Swindon as top cover thickens.	Shrivenham from the Southeast. Sandhill Farm visible near the left edge.	A closer look at Sandhill Farm.

Severn.jpg	SevernBridge.jpg	BaldHill.jpg	Goring.jpg	FinalGlide1.jpg
Looking over the Cotswolds ridge towards Stroud, Nympsfield and the river Severn as we get near Birdlip. By now the thickening cirrostratus is quite ominous.	A distant hazy view of the Severn Bridges.	Now on the way home, a view of the M40 as it descends from the Chilterns, and Bald Hill (Silver Spotted Skipper country).	Goring from the North.	Alex in control as we make it onto final glide.

FinalGlide2.jpg	FinalGlide3.jpg	LashamApproach1.jpg	LashamApproach2.jpg	Launchpoint.jpg
A rare chance for me to take pictures during final glide, approach and landing. This phase of the flight is too critical to risk taking pictures and fly simultaneously. But with Alex in control I am free to take pictures. The final glide finishes with a fast competition style flyby. Then round we go onto final approach to land on runway 27, going long, past the launch point, to land by the hangar.

Photos 26th April 2009

Some decent weather today. I went 2 up in DG1000 776 and enjoyed my first decent cross country of the year with a fellow pilot. Together we flew Lasham - Oxford South - Market Harborough - Chieveley - Lasham for 301km. With cloudbase topping 6000 feet between Silverstone and Didcot it was stonking for much of the flight. Only top cover back at Lasham spoilt the end of the flight, as we struggled to get home. But we made it in the end despite getting very low at Basingstoke. Having climbed to over 3000 feet in the Basingstoke thermal Sage in the back treated me to some aerobatics to finish the flight off. Thanks Sage!

Buckingham.jpg	CorinthianArch.jpg	CorinthianArchZoom.jpg	Akeley.jpg	Soaring1.jpg	StoweSchool.jpg
Buckingham from the Southwest.	The Corinthian Arch to the NW of Buckingham.		Soaring over Akeley, North of Buckingham.	Soaring in a thermal.	Stowe School, NW of Buckingham, from the ENE.

FoxcoteResr.jpg	Clouds1.jpg	SyreshamBrackley.jpg	Silverstone.jpg	Towcester.jpg	Clouds2.jpg
Clouds mirrored by Foxcote Reservoir, seen from the North.	Gorgeous conditions!	Looking SW along the A43 from near Silverstone past Syresham to Brackley in the distance.	Soaring with 424 over Silverstone.	Towcester from the West.	More lovely cumulus clouds ahead!

CloudsNorthampton.jpg	PitsfordWater.jpg	424.jpg	Clouds3.jpg	HollowellRavensthorpe.jpg	MarketHarboroughApproach.jpg
Clouds above Northampton as we pass over the M1.	Pitsford Water from the Southwest.	A closeup of glider 424.	Cruising along track through bootiful skies. Gorgeous clouds with gorgeous thermals under them.	Hollowell (Foreground) and Ravensthorpe reservoirs from the NE, with Guilsborough on the right and Hollowell on the left.	Approaching Market Harborough from the SSW. Clipston at the bottom of the picture.

MAH1.jpg	MAH2.jpg	Clouds4.jpg	HusBos.jpg	Clouds5.jpg	6370.jpg
Market Harborough turning point (MAH) from the North (Closeup) and from the West.		Climbing up the side of a 'low' cloud above Market Harborough.	Looking at Hus Bos gliding club from the East as we head South back to Lasham.	Another gorgeous cloudscape.	Accidental shot when we got up to around 6400 feet. (LNav is QNH.)

Clouds6.jpg	FinalGlide.jpg	232.jpg	Lasham.jpg	LashamLennie.jpg	Clouds7.jpg
Lower clouds ahead as top cover and sea air make their influence felt as we start final glide.	On final glide with 232 alongside us.	Closeup shot of 232 as he pushes ahead of us.	Back to Lasham after 3h50m on task.	Curious lenticular cloud in the vicinity of Lasham.	Looking towards the low pressure to the West.

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A lone local cumulus cloud.	Finishing the flight with some aerobatics before we land.

Photos 31st January 2009

My first flights of 2009 today, which culminated in a wave flight! The South Downs were generating weak wave in the brisk Southeasterly wind. I missed the best of it as the wind was dropping but caught enough to extend a 2500 foot aerotow flight to almost an hour (and climbed slowly to 3000 feet before I lost the wave). Today was also noted as my new car's first trip to Lasham, and a chance to test the towbar too.

JazzTowingGlider1.jpg	JazzTowingGlider2.jpg	Jet.jpg	BuggyTowingGlider.jpg	LaunchPointQueue.jpg
Using the Jazz's towbar for the first time, to take a Discus to the launchpoint.		A large jet sitting on runway 09 after having just landed.	Towing a DG1000 back to the launchpoint after landing.	The winch queue at the launchpoint.