Hi Wombat Congratulation! Your contribution summarised the problem very well. I fully agree with what you said and would like to leave it at that.
Bernard Eckey State Sporting Coach for SA & NT Ph/Fax +61 8 8449 2871 mobile 0412 981204 [EMAIL PROTECTED] -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Mike Cleaver Sent: Thursday, 12 July 2007 1:36 AM To: Discussion of issues relating to Soaring in Australia. Subject: Re: [Aus-soaring] Block speeds and wing loadings At 08:33 11/07/2007, Derek wrote: >In light of that Mike, I guess most people would fill it up and hope for >the best :) > > >(In reply to my posting:) > > > > However, if the next thermal is going to give 7 kt climb at 600 kg, > > it will give say 6.7 kt at 705 kg - and at that smaller proportional > > loss of climb, the gain of flying to the thermal at 220 km/h > > outweighs the loss of the lower climb rate. > > > > What is more, flying faster at 220 km/h while keeping the weight at > > 600 kg will give you a greater sink rate of say 9.5 km/h (a glide > > angle of around 23:1 instead of 25:1) so you will lose out by having > > the glider at a lighter wing loading. > > All that shows is that some people don't know enough about their gliders or their own flying. It adds about 15% to the skill level to gain the best in performance out of a 5% increase in real performance. Unless you can achieve the best rate of climb from the thermal when you are flying the glider "heavy", you can easily overload the glider relative to your ability to climb and make use of the better glider performance. It is easier to get the better climb rate from the lighter glider - especially if the thermals are not smooth and large. Most pilots also do not bank enough and so fall out of the sides of the thermal - which is the reason for the 45 degree 'antennas' favoured by coaching clinics. The best performance is gained by using the "right" wing loading for the thermals on your day - and then knowing how to fly at that wing loading. Ask a coach! Wombat _______________________________________________ Aus-soaring mailing list [email protected] To check or change subscription details, visit: http://lists.internode.on.net/mailman/listinfo/aus-soaring _______________________________________________ Aus-soaring mailing list [email protected] To check or change subscription details, visit: http://lists.internode.on.net/mailman/listinfo/aus-soaring
