Worlds Day ... ??

I have lost track of the days and task numbers.
Yesterday we postponed the task call till most of the
day had wasted away. It was frustrating waiting.
There were concerns about the wind strength and it
wasn't that strong. Not nearly as strong as other
days.

Finally a task was called and we had 20 minutes to
launch open! Not enough time at all. I broke my
pitch adjuster right off tow so I had to rush back to
the field to fix it. I thought about flying the task
without pitch but the downward moment is far too much
to overcome for an entire flight. Lots of lift over
the field it was tough to get down. I fixed the pitch
string as fast as I could but still found myself at
the back of the line. With strong winds early
launches aren't as important but time was just too
tight this time. I got yanked up about 4 minutes
before the first start gate 10k downwind. Usually the
leaders wait for the second start but with the 1st
gate opening at 4:15 they all dashed through the
first. I got on course well timed for the second and
did my best to eat up terrain at max speed. I flew
strict speed to fly since I didn't have a group to fly
with. Target lift was 400 fpm and I would linger till
it got to 200. Drift was probably about 20 mph over
the ground. A few pilots flew with me here and there
but they were either climbing slow or didn't want to
leave the lift when it slowed down. There was only
one turnpoint on course and the track stayed
relatively downwind. With different winds at several
altitude layers it was tricky for me to figure out
glide tracks relative to courseline. It was crossing
from the right side up high, but left down low. Total
task length was almost 180k so there was no time to
waste. About 60k from goal the glides started getting
longer and the climbs took more time to turn on. I
slowed down my glide speeds and dialed back my overall
assertiveness. Gliding into lift low about 35k out it
started to get real tricky. Down to 1,500 ft and the
best I could get was zero to 50 up. Eventually it
came together and huslted me to 3,500 (climbs had been
to 5,500 before). My only option (I thought) was to
follow lift lines and track down wind. It was then I
realized that either the wind had clocked, or it was
just crossing harder from the left down low. My
bearing to goal shrunk at an alarming rate. 30k out I
was now 45 cross to goal, down to 800 feet, and
fighting in scrap. Making matters worse I was over
total dinosaur country. Barely any signs of even
ranch activity below. I truly had NO CHOICE but to
stay in the air and hunt for civilization as well as
goal. The wind had pushed me far east of the highway
in a region where just 2k is a huge distance off the
road, I was maybe 15-20k off. Little clues kept me
going, dust picked up in wiffs off the ground, surges
in the wind direction, etc. Flat turns in the light
stuff, cranking it in the bubbles. My heart broke
when I realized the road I was trying to drift to was
actually railroad tracks. At this point I was ripping
off distance and bearing data at about 3 minute
intervals on the radio. I feared I was going to be
the nightmare retrieve.

Finally my gaurdian angel came in the form of a car
ripping up a forest road in the distance towards our
goal town. Since it was a gravel road the dust
clearly marked what I knew to be a good connector to
civilization. As it turns out, that road was the
straight east west road in and out of the goal town.
Convieniently I tracked as far as I could up the road,
in a 90 cross. Upwind until the lines died out, then
crosswind till I found another. Plopped down in an
abandoned farm about 13k from goal. Relieved that my
drivers could find me easy.

Unlike the day I foolishly took the late start, flying
alone this day was easier to deal with. Shit happens
and I just did the best I could. Pretty amazing to
leave at 4:30 in the evening and fly almost 120 miles.
Crazy stuff for a light day.

Kev C