Phew! That was crummy.

Well, the good news is that I passed my commercial glider pilot written exam!  That's one major paperwork detail that had to be taken care of before I could progress to setting a date for my flight exam.

To get your commercial glider pilot's license, you have to pass two tests.  One is a written knowledge test that is proctored by an FAA authorized testing facility.  They're dead serious about it, too.  I've seen less security at an airport checkpoint than at the test facility.  The 100 question test has about 90 questions that don't seem to have much to do with flying a glider in a commercial setting safely but nevertheless it is required.  So, I studied for it and now I have passed it.

Next up is to set a date for my commercial flight check.  You have to have an oral question and answer session with a designated examiner from the FAA and then take several flights with him/her to get their endorsement for your commercial rating.  That's the test that makes the most sense to me.  I'd rather go through an exhaustive Q&A in person than a computerized test that seems designed to trip me up than test my knowledge.

My focus now is to fly with Ron Ogden, my instructor, to brush up on my flight maneuvers, emergency procedures, etc. and get ready for that in-person test with the examiner.

I've been using the Practical Test Standard guide from the FAA lately and trying to fly all my maneuvers in accordance with that guide.  Earlier this week I flew at minimum controllable speed for about 30 minutes in ridge lift, practicing my turns to the left and right without stalling.  I've practiced a few stalls, done some steep turns, and I've also been letting my son sit in the front of the glider while flying it from the back.  It's actually kind of fun to fly from back there.  Definitely more room in the back.

Amazingly, now I'm almost (almost) looking forward to the check ride.  I got some practice flying a passenger last week when one of our club members had a relative visiting and he asked me if I'd take her for a ride as he was busy doing his flying duty.  I had a chance to preview my technique giving a ride to a stranger and I had a good time doing it!

I'll continue studying for the oral test but there's no reason except for the examiner's schedule, that I can't get my rating by the end of July as long as I demonstrate that I know what I'm doing.

Pulling the trigger

I've set a date to take my commercial pilot written exam.  It's two days from now.

I'm really nervous about it because although I've been studying a lot for it, I keep getting high 70's on my practice exams.  It's not that I don't know the material, I do.  It's just that they way they phrase the questions makes me get them wrong -even when I know the right answer.

Anyhow, I'm not improving on my scores so I'm going to resign myself to getting a crummy score and get it over with.  The only thing I DON'T want to happen is to get less than a 70 on it.  The test costs $150 to take and I'd have to deal with the examiner to explain why I failed it.

Funny thing is that I'm pretty good at the oral questions.  I sat down with my flight instructor and he was satisfied that I knew the basic information necessary to pass the oral exam with the designated examiner.  It's different when they ask you the questions because you can ask for clarification or demonstrate that you know the answer by explaining the details around the question.  Even if you get it wrong, it's not usually totally wrong.

I could also rail on about how the questions on the written exam ought to be aimed at making sure the applicant knows how to keep the airplane right side up rather than a lot of stuff you'll never need to know that is competing with space in your head for the stuff you actually need to know.

Okay, one example I'll give you is there are several questions about how to fly a course with an NDB (Non-directional beacon) instrument.  The last time I saw an NDB was when I took instrument training for my private pilot license.  Why in the world I would need to know what heading to turn to to intercept the NDB at a 30 degree angle give my magnetic heading is beyond me.  You don't even fly that way.  First, you match your magnetic heading to the NDB heading, then you make the 30 degree course correction.  Done.  Not to mention there is something called VOR and GPS.

To be fair, you might find yourself in a motorglider trying to fly a course.  Okay, but how about a VOR question, then?  Even the VOR questions use an RMI (Radio Magnetic Indicator) as the display instrument.  I've never actually seen an RMI although I suppose they're out there somewhere.  It just doesn't add up.

But it doesn't matter.  I have to take and pass the written to get my commercial license and that is the end of that.  So, Friday I'll find out if I passed or should have taken longer to study for it.

Kevin flies

My youngest son has become interested in glider flying.  He's just joined our junior program and has taken instruction in 8 or so flights so far.

Kevin's first flight lesson

I haven't either encouraged or discouraged him to fly.  Becoming a pilot is a lengthy and challenging process.  It requires persistence and will to make it from student pilot to licensed private pilot.  You have to not only learn how to fly, you have to pass your written test and a flight test with a designated examiner.  In short, to be a pilot, you really need to WANT to be a pilot.

No amount of encouragement will make someone who doesn't want to become a pilot suddenly love it.  For that reason, while I've encouraged him to fly with me from time to time, I haven't done anything beyond explain how the program works.  I did have him accompany me to our winter ground school this year but that was more to expose him to the book work that is involved and to let him see how much you have to know to become a pilot.

Last year when I flew with him, he liked it but would get dizzy when we circled in a thermal.  This year, he doesn't have nearly the problem with it he used to.  I think he was a bit frightened during the flights and that made him feel poorly because now that he's the one doing the flying, he has gained a lot more confidence.  When you learn how it is done, you become familiar with it and usually less afraid.

Yesterday he begged me to go to Harris Hill to get some instruction.  I obliged and Tim Welles flew three flights instructing him on the basics.  Everything seems to be going well and he's learning how to fly behind the tow plane, how to set up for the landing and they even got some thermalling in.  When he landed, he was pretty excited about managing to go higher than the tow plane took them.

I'm glad he understands my passion for flight and I'm hoping he'll stick with it and see his training through to his private pilot glider license.  That would make us a three generation aviation family!

Hop, hop, and away!

It's happened twice, now. On takeoff, just before I reach liftoff speed, I horse the airplane into the air and get a bounce, bounce, and airborne.

I know why, of course. The first time, I was rather pleased with my crosswind correction during takeoff roll but wanted to get airborne so I could establish a good crab angle and keep tracking straight. So I took off before I had all of the speed I needed. Bounce, bounce, liftoff.

The second time, there was even less excuse. NO wind but I attempted to liftoff about 5 knots too soon. Bounce, bounce and away.

It is now on my official list of stupid stuff I need to improve on.

Also, after great progress Friday, my thermaling flat out sucked on Sunday. I kept slipping as I circled. Despite paying close attention to it the whole time, I just couldn't coordinate it to my satisfaction. It doesn't help that glider 8 flies "funny" since they repaired it but that's no excuse.

Sigh. More work before I feel confident enough for a check ride.

Woo-hoo!

"We'll be up there tomorrow and we'll have a tow plane.  You around?  It's supposed to be good flying.

Indeed it was.  A couple of our instructors were getting their Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) ratings renewed and arranged for a tow pilot today.  The weather has been nasty or I've been gone and I've been itching to fly, so I was eager to go.  Even if I had to take some time off from work.

After I saw the weather forecast, I was MORE eager.  Plenty of thermals and a north wind at about 15 knots.  That meant the ridge would be working plus I might be able to fly away if I could connect to a thermal.

I showed up about 11 and was airborne by 11:30.  Sean Murphy towed me to a thousand feet where I let go and pointed the nose towards the ridge.  It was working, but it was a little weak.  Often, you will get either zero or positive lift as you fly along the ridge but this time I was getting some sink -about 2 knots or so mixed in with some lift.  The effect was net negative and I was slowly descending with each pass.

I started thinking I *might* have to set up for the landing pattern if this didn't get any more promising.  I was able to find lift on the west end of the ridge, but on the east side, not so good.  I decided I would zig-zag back and forth in the lift on the west side and see what happened.

Zig.  Zag.  A little bit of a climb.  Zig.  Zag.  A little bit of a climb.  Then it hit me.  "You moron, you are zig zagging in a thermal.  CIRCLE and CENTER it.  So I did and up I went.  3 knots of lift, 4 knots of lift, 5 knots of lift, 6 knots of lift.  I worked to center it, fly smoothly and coordinated, and also fly slowly to maximize the thermal time.  Up and up I went.  The longer I circled the stronger it got and a few minutes later I topped out at close to 6,000 feet.  I headed off towards the nearby shopping mall to see if there was any parking lot lift.

There was.  In fact, there was quite a bit of lift scattered all over the place.  I could hear other glider pilots talking about this cu or that cu but from where I was, the sky was blue.  Blue flying is more difficult because you can't spot the lift, but today I felt pretty brave.  First, if I got low near Harris Hill, I could hug the ridge and ride the lift back up high enough to enter the landing pattern.  Second, the thermals were not only fairly plentiful, they were pretty easy to center up and climb away in.

I could see Seneca lake and Watkins Glen in the distance and considered heading upwind to check it out.  I figured if I would lose the most altitude heading into the wind and could always make it back to the airport in Elmira if necessary.  Alas, work was calling and I didn't have enough time to try it out!

I returned to the ridge and figured I'd spoiler my way down to pattern altitude.  Instead, I decided to point the nose down and pick up some speed for fun.  Whenever I entered lift, I would accelerate to keep myself either at zero sink or a slight descent.  If the wind is blowing hard, this means you pick up a LOT of speed.  I was zooming along at over 90 knots at times.  If the lift stopped, I would raise the nose to slow the descent.  Eventually, after a lot of fun I was near pattern altitude.

The landing was to the North.  I held my pattern close to the field and turned base close to the field.  I carried and extra 5 knots of speed to deal with the gusts and opened the spoilers and planted the tailwheel right on my intended spot - the taxiway that cuts across the grass.  I heard it squeak as it touched down.

Was playing hooky worth it?  Absolutely.  Best flying of the season so far.

What Harris Hill looks like this Spring

  That picture pretty much sums up what has to be the worst and soggiest Spring I've ever seen.  I've only lived here for 5 years so I can't really speak to what Spring normally looks like around here -except for my recent experience.  However, old-timers say it's nothing like this.  Spring usually arrives with clear skies, moderate temps and the promise of outstanding soaring - day after day.  We do get the rains, but they come and then they go.  They don't hang on for a week at a time!

It's getting downright disheartening to look at the weather forecast these days.  Right now, the last good, flyable day we had was the middle of last week.  Naturally, I was on a business trip and couldn't be here for it.  I tried to check in on the webcam but it was mysteriously down for two days then fixed itself before I could head out to the Hill to see what was the matter.

Outlook for the weekend is similar to this week - cloudy, rainy.  We've got a regional contest coming up in June and I'm wondering if the weather is going to cooperate!  Here's hoping the weather breaks - SOON.

A day on the hill

Galo Grijalva shows how you have to keep
flying it until it stops

Actually, this post should probably be titled "A day without rain," with a tip of the hat to Enya's album of the same name.  April has been a miserable washout with just two flyable days for me!  It took me all month just to get in my three takeoffs and landings for currency this season.  It is one of the coldest and wettest months on record around here.  Lovely.

But the skies did part and the sun came out last weekend and I made sure to take advantage of it by heading up to Harris Hill for the better part of a rather eventful day.  The skies started out dotted with small cumulus clouds, indicating thermal activity, but by the end of the day, they dried up leaving just a blue soaring day.

Finally, a clear, sunny Spring day.

Whether you fly or not, just being up at Harris Hill is fun.  Today, there was plenty of activity as private club gliders were pulled out to be flown for the first time this year while the regular club gliders also got a full workout.  The 2-33's, the 1-34, the 1-26 and of course, our ASK-21's were all out on the flight line awaiting their turn in the air.

I took the 1-34 up for a pleasant one hour flight to remind myself that I actually can find and center thermals and to work on my steep turns.  At first, I thought I would be the only one to head up and come back down - after release, I headed into a gaggle of gliders circling a few hundred feet above me, hoping for a quick climb above release height, but today the thermals were more like bubbles -if you didn't get in as it was rising, there was no lift underneath them.  As I passed through the center of the thermal, below the climbing aircraft there was no lift at all, so I headed over towards the ridge searching for thermals that were being blown up the hill.

Flying is coming to an end as the club and
private gliders wait their turn to be put away

No luck.  I'm getting down to decision time to begin my entry into the landing pattern, so I lined up over the hang glider field and suddenly felt the whoosh and saw 2 knots of upward lift with signs that it was stronger than that.  I calculated what would happen if I circled and lost 100 feet of altitude and decided that wouldn't be a problem.  I turned sharply and was rewarded with 3...4...5 knots of vertical speed!  I feebly tried to ascertain where the lift was strongest and weakest the last time around and moved my circle slightly...6 knots of lift!  After just two circles, the field was looking LOT smaller than it did when I was contemplating landing.

I stuck with the thermal and really concentrated on centering it and getting as much lift as I could out of each circle and pretty soon I was climbing through 4,400 feet after starting at 2,500.  The thermal topped out with a nice 2,000 foot altitude gain.  I headed off to search for more thermals, fat, dumb, and happy.

Andy and Stefan preparing to search for lift

They were out there and an hour later, after a number of climbs and descents, I decided to open the spoilers and come down so others could enjoy the flying.  It was actually a little difficult because that same thermal was cycling again in the same spot, so I had a chance to see what happens if you get caught in an updraft underneath a thunderstorm - full spoilers, still climbing.  Pointing the nose down fixed that and I was back on the ground in a few minutes.

What do you do up there besides fly?


Often, when I'm up at the hill for quite awhile, I get that phone call asking me, "What are you doing up there?"  There's all kinds of stuff that just burns up the afternoon.

First of all, there's something about Harris Hill that is a little bit like a time machine.  You get out of your car and you enter a DIY world where it's up to YOU to take care of everything.  Launch, retrieval, even routine maintenance is all up to you.  I think it is related to the fact that most pilots aren't required to assemble their aircraft before they fly them!

Louis and Bryan replace a flat tailwheel

Our club ships stay put together in the hangar, although they can and do come apart for transportation or maintenance.  But the private gliders are stored in trailers, which means each time they are flown, they are put together by their pilots.  Wings are attached to fuselages, horizontal stabilizers are connected to tails, controls are connected to control surfaces each and every time they are flown and the whole process is reversed after flight to store them safely in their trailers afterwards.

Naturally, it helps to have some assistance to assemble and disassemble, so we all get familiar with the process.  That seems to breed the DIY mentality that permeates the atmosphere up there.  Tailwheel on the tow plane is flat?  Replace it.  Tow rope needs swapping out?  Go ahead.  Need a little lubricant on the hinges?  It's over there, go get it.  Add oil to the engine?  Okay.

Chris Butler tows in the Super Cub

Now, to be clear, we don't do anything that isn't allowed under the Federal Air Regulations.  Several of our members are mechanics and they do the inspections and maintenance that can only be done by mechanics.  But the DIY spirit is prevalent everywhere on the hill and it's something that I really appreciate -especially around an airport.  Most people are used to the commercial airports where passengers are routed like cattle through the terminal and onto the aircraft and restricted areas and special badging requirements abound.  Not at a private airport like Harris Hill.  I like it, and it contributes to the free and easy atmosphere that makes it fun to be there even if you aren't flying.

The unexpected


Sometimes you end up doing a little DIY duty for some unexpected tasks as well.  After my first flight, as I got back to the flight line, several members were watching a glider as it sank out of view below the ridge line over the valley.  After a few minutes, it was obvious that this glider was not climbing back up in a thermal which meant that the pilot must have landed in our alternate field in the valley below.

A call on the radio revealed that he was in the field and okay, having been out to test his sustainer engine but had been unable to start it and was forced to land in the field below.  The alternate field is for just this purpose - if you get low out on the ridge, you can land in a field down in the valley.  I've done it, as a matter of fact, and it's a great resource to have as it gives us a 'second chance' if things don't work out the way we'd planned.

I volunteered to drive down and see about him while others hooked his trailer up to a truck and brought it down.  It is possible to tow out of that field, but the torrential rains made it soggy and we figured it was best to simply disassemble the aircraft and tow it back up to the hangar.  An hour later, several of us had managed to get the trailer into the field without getting stuck in the mud, disassembled the glider, and brought it home to Harris Hill.

Between swapping stories, hooking up gliders, making minor repairs, and even retrieving landouts, there's plenty to do up at the hilll, even when you're not flying.  The only thing there's not enough of is...time.