COMBAT AND COMPETITION.pdf - Lakes Gliding Club

COMBAT AND COMPETITION
weak and narrow. And fortunately the only time that happened turned
out to be a no contest day.
When penetration was needed the laminar flow wing came into its
own and 'speed to fly' began to make real sense. This method of
soaring as fast as possible from A to B, adjusting your airspeed
between thermals according to the average rate of climb in the last
thermal, had been developed by Paul MacCready in the United States.
An excellent article by Nick Goodhart had appeared in a recent issue
of Sailplane and Gliding explaining how to apply the MacCready
calculations to the polar curve of a glider and use it in the air.
That year too the number of speed tasks brought home more than
ever the excitement, and the suspense, of racing to a goal. Our early,
almost intuitive, final glide computations - say four miles per thousand
feet - adjusted for some vaguely estimated tailwind - plus 20% added
height for the wife and child! - were slowly becoming more scientific.
Tony D2 had already followed up Nick's ideas on MacCready and
shown us how to use the Cobb Slater variometer with the addition of
a hexagonal pencil as a speed to fly director. But his Mark I final glide
computer was yet to come.
Until that day those of us who thought about it were guided by
another simple rule which went something like this. Is the aiming point
- that distant airfield you were so anxious to reach - moving upwards
on your canopy as you get closer? - if so you need more height. Is it
moving downwards? - increase your speed. Stationary? - you lucky
chap! - but beware of downcurrents on the way.
However you approached the final glide there were moments of
tension and uncertainty. Perhaps it was late and the convection was
already dying, or a gap in the clouds ahead might indicate a
downdraught area which could force you to land short. Worse still, sea
air penetrating inland on a day with good convection could mean a
complete absence of thermals, and a possible headwind, on those last
vital ten or fifteen miles.
Failure to complete the course, even by a matter of inches, could
be catastrophic. A total loss of speed marks - too awful to contemplate.
And for some strange reason the closer you were to success the more
marginal it seemed. Then came the magic moment when it was in the
bag, when you could start winding up the speed, and there was only
a last long dive to the line.
Sheer pleasure and raw competitive emotion filled those last
glorious seconds. As the speed rose in final crescendo you felt
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