RCSD-2013-03 - Rcsoaring.com

Enter the box, do your three rolls, find the centre line, find thehorizon, complete the manoeuvre and leave the box. Nextcontestant to do the same, then onto the next manoeuvre untilall six statutory moves are complete, then you do your optionalsbased on the same idea, and hence complete a round.Now the ready box is about the scariest place on earth. Onceyou have stepped to the flight-line your fate is in your hands,literally, but sitting in that box is about as nerve wracking as itgets, but does also help you to focus very sharply on the taskon hand.Enter to combatants in Sportsman’s class and there were somewho took to it like ducks to water, opened up a substantial gapin the first round, and were able to defend from there on.Notable at this stage would be Jacque du Toit, who sufferedlock-out on his glider before the contest had even started. Theresulting loss of his Toucan to an untimely impact left him withonly one option. Simply borrow another contestant’s glider andwithout hesitation continue to compete for the rest of the day,and the following one as well.The expert class were next to compete their schedule andshowed signs of brilliance and as the duels intensified,realisation filled the air that once more the competitionhad improved, intensified, and that the entire field wouldbe separated by no more than a camel hair by the end ofproceedings.Round one in the bag!Without so much as a break between rounds, it was deemedsafer to reverse the classes and put up the Expert class first,as conditions did show signs of going a bit South and wreckingthe whole affair.Deteriorate it did, not to the point of being un-flyable, but justnot as great as it was in the first round. And blow me downwith a glider in hand, if the entire set of contestants didn’tjust step up the ante a whole bunch. More time was taken togain altitude, manoeuvres were more considered, accurateand centered, with the scores from the judges climbing inappreciation of this. Thanks to our Contest Director Jeff Steffenfor calling this one correct. Only notable mishap was MarcWolffe’s glider exploding midair as the center wing panel gaveway folding like a tissue and taking him out of the contest dueIn the pits, Kevin and Louis about to commence the round.March 2013 7