Flying the ridge

One of the great things about soaring is discovering that other people are just as much in love with it as you are.  Today I went out to Harris Hill to give some support to the members who are in training.  Turns out there weren't that many students there and the tow pilot was only good for another 1/2 hour or so.

BUT.  The wind was practically straight out of the north at about 12 knots.  That means RIDGE flying, boys and girls!  I grabbed a glider and just before I got into it, one of our members, Graham Hall, joined me for what turned out to be a delightful flight!

After we cleared the edge of the ridge on takeoff, the expected elevator-o-lift kicked in and we were climbing out with the vertical speed indicator pegged at 10 knots!  The whole tow to 2,000 feet took just one circle.  Graham was flying and we cut loose and headed for the nearby ridge.

The lift was there, just as expected.

When wind blows against a tall hill, and particularly a ridge, it will strike the ridge and continue upward.  As long as the wind continues to blow, the lift from that ridge will continue upward.  If your glider descends at 200 feet per minute and the wind blows upward at greater than 200 fpm, you will go UP.

That's where we found ourselves on this particular day.  We shared the ride along Harris Hill and the ridge with a 1-34 and a Duo Discus as we flew back and forth along the ridge.  Graham flew some, then I flew some.  Graham found some lift at one edge of the ridge and circled in it, at one point getting us up to 3,500 feet - just 200 feet below where we let off to begin with.

The setting sun was beautiful, the day was crisp and clear, and we could see the all the way down to Mansfield, PA where the windmill farm is.  It was just gorgeous.  Landing was uneventful and was a perfect end to a perfect flight.  Best flight of the year, I'd say!

Here, Graham's expression sums it all up as he maneuvers us into the lift: