Day 3 Dawns At Omarama

Day 3 Dawns-is it really Tuesday!

Yesterday was dramatic from a Contest Directors point of view.
Lets forget the screw-up in my production of the grid list. Was my subconscious anti Australian when I left our TransTasman friends off the list?

With afull complement of towplanes the launch was going well until one towplane had to wave off a Duo Discus (mechanical problem which was fixed within 15 minutes). We held the launch momentarily while the Duo landed back towards the grid was turned around and relaunched.

The Standard class were to be dropped on the Buscott Hillsto the North. After the first few gliders reported no lift we continued the launch with the remainders going to “Horrible” (the hill to the South). This lead to the dramatic high/low point of the day.
Local landowner rang to complain about towplane going over his house. Then a standard class glider landed at Wardells. Due to some miscommunication the glider was relaunched from Wardells which generated a visit to the Competition office by a hopping mad Landowner who had sheep grazing on the strip.

Certainly a salutary lesson for the gliding movement in how we can really upset our landout “hosts”. Some changes have been made at Omarama in an attempt to be better at handling our neighbours and their concerns. No glider is to be retrieved by either road or air unless the landowner has been contacted, or a rigorous attempt at such communication has been made.

Of course many of the pilots were out having a great day! Unfortunately some had to abandon the task but everyone arrived home safely. One competitor provided some good spectator ogling opportunity by arriving low over the side of the airfield and then landing downwind after a turn at around 50ft….The pilot is still flagellating himself for making a dumb decision to turn at low level rather than land across the field.

Now to the boring stuff:

Open task: Racing, Moven,Glen Lyon,Grampians, Otematata, Clearburn, Omarama 243kms
1st Theo Newfield/Alan Olgate ASH25 150kph
2nd Gee Dale/Texas Bob Duo Discus 142.8kph
3rd Ivan Evans LS6 137.2kph

Standard Task: Racing, Omarama saddle, Glen Lyon, Grampians, Otematata, Clearburn, Omarama 232.5kms
1st Bill Walker Discus2b 138.2kph
2nd Nigel Ackroyd LS8a 120.4kph
3rd Max Stevens Discus B 115.1kph

Club Class Task Racing Omarama Saddle, Glen Lyon, Pukaki, Omarama 150.2km
1st Trevor Mollard Mosquito 98.2km
2nd Landon Carter Std Cirrus 86.2kph
3rd John Robinson Pik20 78.1kph


We are on hold until 12noon to see whether we might get a task. About 20% chance at the moment. Interesting discussions about Aussie Competition experience with FLARM type devices, apparently they are down inprice to around the $600-700 level