Aug 302018
 

Hi everyone,  this is the regular Thursday posting to let you know what is coming up in the near future.

This week

Task week

Unusually we had bad weather this task week,  however in spite of this we managed some amazing tasks and a well-deserved winner Mark Williams.   I thought it might be nice to have the thoughts of Hazel Turner of control who was the voice of reason and the most experienced member of the team:-

“I’m not the world’s best person at coping with change. Task week without JP – unthinkable. Perhaps it was time for a change in control too – a clean sweep. I was persuaded otherwise and tried to embrace the change. However, I missed you JP and your familiar way of doing things. But despite the different format and the less than ideal weather task week took place, people flew and do you know what, they enjoyed themselves.  As the newer members were full of enthusiasm to fly when the more experienced ones were lethargic, FVP won!!! Well done Mark.

Some of the new system baffled me but anyway we had a good time flying most days – but its not all about flying, the social life and the music is worth coming for.

Steve, Simon and Mark did a very good job of running it, although it must have been difficult as they hadn’t done it before and the weather didn’t help.

Please, please come and join us next year. Put it in your diary NOW, it’s always the week in August that ends with the bank holiday. Believe me, the voice of experience, the more gliders that enter the more fun is had, the atmosphere in the bar after a good cross country day is buzzing. It really doesn’t matter what level you are at, there are always seats in two seaters with experienced pilots

Come and join us.

You won’t regret it.”

Hazel

Lost Property (literally)

A tent has been captured in the campsite area and moved to the old MT shed ready to be skipped.  It is not in very good condition as someone has cooked in there and melted the material in places.  If its yours then please could you collect it and dispose of it,  waste disposal is expensive for the club just ask the treasurer and watch the explosion.  We will only keep it for another month.

Autumn projects

Water supply

In addition to the fabulous flying and instruction at the Mynd, we also benefit from good facilities, and famous catering and hospitality. That does rely on such mundane services such as water, and most members will know that the Mynd has its own spring and off-grid water supply system. That system is in constant need of repair and maintenance, and in the background to the flying a number of jobs are being carried out to ensure its continued reliability. Steve Rudge has already done a brilliant job on the electrics in the West Ridge Water Pump House and Denise has been burying the main water supply line. The next major job, planned by Roger and Dave, is to replace the large water header tank, in the hangar and above the clubhouse East wall. It is a BIG job and because it requires the hangar to be completely empty it is best to do it in dry weather (i.e. summer / early autumn) so that the gliders can be emptied out onto the field.

Roger/Dave have not confirmed an exact date to do the work but please be aware that during the tank replacement, which will probably take 1-2 days, the potable water supply will be limited, although the water supply to the toilets will be maintained. Volunteers to help with the preparation, clearance, heavy lifting and other miscellaneous jobs will be welcome, and there is even a job for someone with just writing skills.

Please contact me if you are able to help, and we will communicate when the date is confirmed.

Your team this weekend is:

Saturday:  Nigel Lassetter, Geoff Dailey, Dave d’Arcy

Sunday:  Simon Adlard, Matthew Cook, Geoff Dailey, William Brewis

Forthcoming events

Modellers

There will be a large “fly in” this weekend so please ensure when you are gently cruising up and down the ridge that you give them plenty of space.

Your Club needs you – can you help?

As part of the club’s continuing recruitment drive we will be taking a stand again at the Oktoberfest in Shrewsbury. It runs from 5th-7th October and we will be taking a glider. It was great fun last year and we gained a substantial number of new members, enquiries and trial lessons.

This is a call for volunteers to help out on that weekend! If you can help at all, (even for a few hours), please can you let Sarah know asap on marketing@midlandgliding.club or 07754070357. Many thanks!

Andy Holmes Birthday

Andy will be celebrating his 40th on the 15th of September and he has already issued an email to that effect.  Just a reminder, we can only accommodate so many so if you would like to eat then please let Fay know in the kitchen as soon as you can the list is filling up fast.

 

 

chairman@midlandgliding.club

 

Aug 232018
 

Hi everyone,  this is the regular Thursday posting to let you know what is coming up in the near future.

This week

New  Members

Jonathon Smith has joined us as a junior and  young Louis Browne aged 15 yrs has been at the Club for the last few weeks. He was on a course and then liked it so much stayed on. He has made good progress, going solo and converting to the K8 and K23. Please make yourselves known to the juniors and ensure they are encouraged and leave the club wanting to return.

Electrics and our water supply

In addition to the fabulous flying and instruction at the Mynd, we also benefit from good facilities, and famous catering and hospitality. That does rely on such mundane services such as water, and most members will know that the Mynd has its own spring and off-grid water supply system. That system is in constant need of repair and maintenance, and in the background to the flying a number of jobs are being carried out to ensure its continued reliability. Steve Rudge has already done a brilliant job on the electrics in the West Ridge Water Pump House and Denise has been burying the main water supply line. The next major job, planned by Roger and Dave, is to replace the large water header tank, in the hangar and above the clubhouse East wall. It is a BIG job and because it requires the hangar to be completely empty it is best to do it in dry weather (i.e. summer / early autumn) so that the gliders can be emptied out onto the field.

Roger/Dave have not confirmed an exact date to do the work but please be aware that during the tank replacement, which will probably take 1-2 days, the potable water supply will be limited, although the water supply to the toilets will be maintained. Volunteers to help with the preparation, clearance, heavy lifting and other miscellaneous jobs will be welcome, and there is even a job for someone with just writing skills.

Please contact me if you are able to help, and we will communicate when the date is confirmed.

Task week – 18th – 27th August 

So far the weather has been disappointing.  Steve Male, Hazel Turner, Mark Sanders, Nigel Lassetter, Simon Adlard and Fay and Helen in the kitchen have still managed to create a fabulous week.  The final meal will be on Sunday so please do come along and celebrate.  Holly Harris had her first cross country in a Duo and despite her handicap (the P1) managed to come 3rd in the task.  Despite it not being particularly taskable Roger Andrews has got everyone out of bed early each flyable day so members have still been able to fly.

Your team this weekend is:

Saturday:  Clive Crocker, Neal Clements, Stephen Alexander, Glyn Macarthur

Sunday:  Guy Hartland, Stephen Alexander, Charles Page

Even though it is still task week then please don’t hesitate to come along as even if it isn’t taskable, if its flyable we will be out there flying.

Forthcoming events

We have now prepared the Winter lecture series and the calendar for next year so as soon as they are available I will publish them.

Andy Holmes Birthday

Andy will be celebrating his 40th on the 15th of September and he has already issued an email to that effect.  Just a reminder, we can only accommodate so many so if you would like to eat then please let Fay know in the kitchen as soon as you can.

chairman@midlandgliding.club

 

Aug 222018
 

Much better day than forecast. Managed to get 3 club two seaters round the task, though CCW missed the southern sector. Everyone got back – still to receive traces for Rod’s K6 and others possibly? First experience of AAT’s for some – hope the learning curve wasn’t too steep. Be warned and be aware, it’s a racing format I quite like!

You can see the results here … Soaring Spot

Four pre-Broze pilots had a taste of XC (Bob Moss in HCA, Steve Rudge in JGJ, Holly Harris in KA and Holly Rennel in CCW – thanks to all the P1’s involved)  – looking for some (or indeed all!) of you to take it through to a Cross Country Endorsement and represent us at Rock Polishers next year – … so no pressure then!!

TaskWeekTues1TaskWeekTues2

(Pictures courtesy of Holly Harris)

Mark

 Posted by at 9:47 am
Aug 172018
 

Your team this weekend is:
Saturday: Simon Adlard, Liz Adlard, Peter Orchard
Sunday: Chris Alldis, Charles Page, Guy Hartland

Forthcoming events:

Task week – 18th – 27th August

We really need to know numbers of competing gliders now (so we can buy the day prizes etc!). Please can you call the office to pay your £50 entry fee asap.

Task Week is designed to encourage ALL pilots to fly Cross Country Tasks. As such, it is an inclusive activity, a bit of friendly competition – not an occasion for the club pundits to whizz round and take all the points! It is the culmination of the year’s Cross Country Development Programme and introduces an element of competition prior to pilots flying either Rockpolishers or Regional competitions. It is open to any pilot holding a Bronze “C” with a Cross Country Endorsement.

The event is split in to 3 classes so that pilots compete against other pilots of similar skill and experience level. This year we are introducing a new scoring system to try to even things out between the classes and to avoid the skewed results from a single fast flight on a long task.

Please book the week off, ensure this is in your diary, and lets look forward to some wonderful weather. It will help you develop our skills no matter what standard you are at. More info here.

OktoberFest – 5th to 7th October

Last year we took a glider to OktoberFest in Shrewsbury to spread the gliding word, it was a great success raising our profile. We are planning to do the same this year, so if you are able to help, please contact Sarah.

Aug 092018
 

Hi everyone,  this is the regular Thursday posting to let you know what is coming up in the near future.

This week

Simon’s cross country course

They’ve had a mixed week, heading off around Shropshire, and Simon has been showing Geoff Dailey the Travellers Rest from the best angle before they managed to climb away back to the Mynd!  Today they are all setting off into Wales with high hopes for a decent distance task.   These courses are a wonderful way of improving your cross country or just getting you to be more confident.  See task week below.

Your team this weekend is:

Saturday:  Mike Greenwood, Walter Baumann, Peter Orchard, John O’Reilly

Sunday:  Mike Witton,Walter Baumann, Guy Hartland, Glyn Macarthur

Forthcoming events

Task week – 18th – 27th August 

 We really need to know numbers of competing gliders now (so we can buy the day prizes etc!). Please can you call the office to pay your £25 entry fee asap.

NB: £25 is the early-bird entry for those booking & paying now. The entry fee for entries confirmed or paid after 16th Aug will be £50.

Task Week is designed to encourage ALL pilots to fly Cross Country Tasks. As such, it is an inclusive activity, a bit of friendly competition – not an occasion for the club pundits to whizz round and take all the points!   It is the culmination of the year’s Cross Country Development Programme and introduces an element of competition prior to pilots flying either Rockpolishers or Regional competitions. It is open to any pilot holding a Bronze “C” with a Cross Country Endorsement.
The event is split in to 3 classes so that pilots compete against other pilots of similar skill and experience level. This year we are introducing a new scoring system to try to even things out between the classes and to avoid the skewed results from a single fast flight on a long task.

Please book the week off, ensure this is in your diary, and lets look forward to some wonderful weather. It will help you develop our skills no matter what standard you are at. More info here.

New members

 You will be aware that we have a range of packages to encourage new members. Sarah is planning to do a 15min pre-dinner chat (date tbc), to inform members about the packages and how they work. In the meantime, if you see Sarah, James Moore, or Steve Male at the club, please do take a moment to ask them about the packages, so that when a member of the public asks you about flying, you can ask them specific questions to find out whether a trial lesson really is best for them, or whether they actually want to Learn to Fly (in which case, the better option for them would be one of the new packages, maybe booking on to an upcoming Saturday Tour, or even full membership).

 

chairman@midlandgliding.club

 

Aug 072018
 

Rasp says yes for a discus starting at 11am , and yes for a duo starting at 12

MYN-BUB-BOZ-HAB-MYN 502K

However far you want to go it looks like yet another day of the year!!!

Dave

Aug 022018
 

Hello Everyone,  this is the regular Thursday posting to let you know what is coming up in the near future.

Your team this weekend is:

Saturday:  Mark Sanders, Matthew Cook, Geoff Dailey and Laurent Couval

Sunday:  Guy Hartland, Charles Carter, Geoff Dailey and, fresh from Hus Bos, Dave d’Arcy

Forthcoming events

Simons xc soaring course week (6th to 10 Aug)

BOOK YOUR PLACE NOW! (Limited places) This popular course includes daily weather & cross country briefings, and is run in a Lead and Follow style. Suitable for all levels even those who have not flown cross country before.

If it’s suitable for cross country, Simon will set a task for a lead and follow, designed to stretch you in a comfortable environment.

If it’s not suitable for cross country, then appropriate ground / air trainings will be offered to match the attendee’s skills and experience.

Book your place now via the office!

Task week – 18th – 27th August 

Book your place NOW – please call or email the office asap.

Task Week is designed to encourage ALL pilots to fly Cross Country Tasks. As such, it is an inclusive activity, a bit of friendly competition – not an occasion for the club pundits to whizz round and take all the points!   It is the culmination of the year’s Cross Country Development Programme and introduces an element of competition prior to pilots flying either Rockpolishers or Regional competitions. It is open to any pilot holding a Bronze “C” with a Cross Country Endorsement.
We will also have 2 seat gliders participating, to give ALL pilots the opportunity to experience cross country flying, even if you are not yet solo, or don’t yet have your Cross Country Endorsement. This is an excellent training opportunity to fly with some top class cross country pilots in top class gliders. Please book your place ASAP by calling or emailing the office.

The event is split in to 3 classes so that pilots compete against other pilots of similar skill and experience level. This year we are introducing a new scoring system to try to even things out between the classes and to avoid the skewed results from a single fast flight on a long task.

Please book the week off, ensure this is in your diary, and lets look forward to some wonderful weather. It will help you develop our skills no matter what standard you are at. More info here.

A friendly reminder & request:

Whether you want to do some pre-solo training, your annual check, or something else specific, it always pays to pre-book via the office or online via the email shown here https://www.midlandgliding.club/club-duty-rota/

We strongly encourage pre-booking so that:

  1. A) you get what you need on the day
  2. B) we can plan to have sufficient instructors to cater for the day’s demand
  3. C) it avoids those who have taken time time to pre-book getting over-run and missing out to people who turning up on the day expecting a flight
  4. D) it avoids the possibility of you turning up on the day expecting to fly and perhaps leaving in the evening disappointed.
  5. E) you can see availability on the website and plan your visits accordingly – here’s the link https://www.midlandgliding.club/club-duty-rota/

Happy soaring!