Fancy a cuddle? This cute guy was hanging out about head level. We spotted him while out on a trail ride. Our trail boss Padges kept prodding me to get closer to the little bugger. I got a good look at the claws and figured this was close enough! 

Don't mess with this guy. He means business. It seems the "Bull" aka dominant male runs away last when they are scared. I didn't want to get any closer. He had some seriously overdeveloped leg muscles! 

This is a tribute to my Father, Dookie. Follow me, this way to Dookie

They even named the place after him. 

Here we have the Catholic Church where Dookie was baptised as a wee lad. 

This is where pops learned everything he knows. 

The Dookie Bawls Club.

Sportavia

The last 3 days in a row here have unfortunately been cancelled due to high winds.  Equipment problems kept me from flying the task the first day.  Today I opted to free fly even though the task was cancelled so I could test some equipment out.  That was not such a good idea because the winds had increased during a break in the towing and were quite strong during the short time I flew.  I measured between 20 and 48 kph.  That was just on the quick glances over at the instrument and doesn’t fully represent the range of it.  It was a handful and most of the pilots who flew seemed to agree that it was too strong for a task.

 

Until today the temperatures were an absolute scorcher.  Over 40 Celsius.  Mel and I have retreated to air conditioning. 

 

Kev

Corryong launch off Mt Elliot. 

Glug glug 

I think this valley used to be above water till they damed it. 

Tree Cammo 

This is the sweetest Australian rig. Big van, 4x4, and I think it was a diesel. If it ran on LPG it would be perfect. 

Corryong

No free time between the end of the Bogong Cup and start of the Corryong Cup.   Driving over from Mt Beauty the weather doesn’t look good for flying.  99% cloud cover in all directions.  About midday though it started to open with breaks here and there but there is also a big ugly storm on the other side of the valley.  Under overcast skies a few guys got off and didn’t sink out like the rest of the pilots.  I gave it a shot but could never get much above launch.  The thermals were there but they weren’t strong enough for me to gain much height.   A few guys got good glides to squeak out of the 5k Exit circle.  In the meantime I just scratched my way all the way to the dirt to land with some cows. 

 

Kev

Windy Day

Today’s forecast called for a building southerly wind but the task committee didn’t believe it.  They called a challenging task that had us diving in around Mt Buffalo and then back into the Kiewa Valley.  There were very few clouds and those quickly disappeared.  I got a good climb at launch and since I was so early in the launch order I headed straight to the start circle.  It was a long glide and lots of digging trying to find the next climb.  It finally came together somewhat and some fellas joined me to find the strongest lift.  Good ole Dave Sieb and Jonny jumped in the party and we got the first start just about 2 minutes late.  Dave led to the first turnpoint and across the valley.  He marked the next thermal but I hit a better core and ended up higher.  The wind was now even stronger then on the last ridge and had more west in it (NW).  As I glided towards the turnpoint I couldn’t believe how strong the wind was.  Drill city.  I arrived on the next ridge and couldn’t find anything good.  The valleys were narrow and limited.  Hunt, hunt, hunt.  It sucked being alone.  I dove out the finger puckered and toes pointed towards the closest “bailout.”  At the end of the spur there was plenty of kick in the air to get my attention and I struggled to get some turns in.  Slowly I gained some height in this rough washing machine.  As I drifted back I got body slammed a couple times before pushing forward for the next core.  Slowly I struggled back out of the valley.  It was clear the wind was strong and NW.  The other pilots took a course further south so I was stuck on my own.  Velocities were 20-30 kph and I definitely felt like I needed some good old ballast.  I wish there had been room for some lead when I packed all my gear to get to Australia.  Jonny and Dave got the second turnpoint and were heading back as the second gaggle caught me.  It’s frustrating being the marker that helps them glide around the area that you just fought to get across.  I was so beat mentally that they pretty much flew right through me.  I was not climbing well today.  Too tense, flying much too fast.  Just not in my groove.

 

Once we hit the second turnpoint behind Buffalo life got easier.  Now we had a quartering tailwind.  Course line followed the way out so I had a bunch of good thermals mapped out already.  They were still there on the way back so the leapfrog went well.  Final glide had us crossing over into the lee of some big hills and I almost blew those calculations.  9 to 1 to goal with a tailwind and I am gliding at 8 to 1.  Haha, not good.  Once in the valley things normalized and I crossed into the goal radius with about 100 feet of altitude.  It was a long walk to the breakdown area!

 

Kev

Bogong Cup

There was a strong west wind today in the forecast and this time the weather services were correct.  Task committee picked a route that kept us in Kiewa Valley on a relative short task of 90k.  Before the start the lift was sporadic and often broken but there were clouds and haze domes to help pick it out.  3 starts a half hour apart.  It didn’t blow in consistently on launch so there were long periods of waiting and watching.  All that waiting around means restless pilots.   A virtual gang of Moyes Boys clustered around my glider looking for any chance to get in cheap shots about this or that.  I could have gotten annoyed but it makes perfect sense after my glider out climbed and outglided one of their top guns head to head a few days ago.  Their fear becomes more obvious with each superficial joke.

 

Waiting for the start was not easy.  I tried the valley, chasing clouds and wisps but that didn’t always pay off.  Scottie Barret joined the hunt with me and we made the best of it.  He is climbing very well in the tight broken stuff.  Most of the pilots took the third start and a few charged ahead assertively.  I was a bit low so I hung back in some strong stuff before pushing ahead.  The route to the first turnpoint follows the ridge as it slowly gets lower and lower.  Timing is important and some of the hard chargers got burned.  With a strong west cross (90 degrees to courseline) they got blown back while trying to work mediocre lift.  I think for my own personal reasons I found the day (or the laziness of the gaggles) frustrating and often had to push low.   I was tight here and there but with some occasional company it was working well enough.  After the first turnpoint I got stuck low on the ridge for a painfully long time until I was able to team up with a few other guys and jump to the next finger.  Once there we jumped in and out of small cores until very high.  Plenty high for the straight upwind glide to turpoint 2.

 

With such a west cross I thought the east side of the Kiewa would be on fire.  As the low guy of the group it seemed like the time to push the pace again.  For the first 10k or so it worked very well pushing hard.  I only lost a hundred meters or so here and there.  The downside was I had gotten below ridge line, but I was still maintaining.  The next gap was not good to me and my entire reserve got blown.  I had been hanging out too low and had to squeak through one of the gaps.  My heart sank when I saw how much higher the valley floor had risen to my level on this other side.  I had raced to the deck. 

 

It may seem sad to come up short so close to goal but it really makes sense given my position in the meet.  I could hang back and play the out pimp game but that only benefits total score.  Instead I get the opportunity to push hard and see all the places where it pays off big, or worse, burns you bad!  Haha.

 

Kev

No pimping allowed

The weather doesn’t look good today.  A front or trough or something is approaching fast.  Jonny is frustrated because the gaggle is pimping so hard, holding back, and he is getting snaked on final glide.  2 days in a row he has gotten the raw end of the deal on that.  He reckons  it isn’t even worth heading up to launch to set up.

 

Well the weather report was more grim then reality.  High clouds threatened to block the lift.  Strong winds loomed on the horizon.  I got lucky and it turned out pretty good for me.  2 starts a half hour apart and very strong lift outside the start gate.  With the forecast calling for the day to fall apart I headed out for gate one after Dave Sieb, Big Jon, and a few others.  I wasn’t able to top out the lift in time so I took a more conservative line into the Mt Buffalo area.  Dave charged ahead between the first fingers and got VERY low.  I don’ know how he does that and still stays off the deck.  The confidence he flies with is just amazing.  By the time I got to the fingers those guys were getting above ridge height on the other side.  I opted to hang out on the opposite side and establish myself before searching for stronger lift.  The air was broken, angry, rough, and hard to core.  At least the bubble that ripped through were strong.  Dave quickly outclimbed the others and punched ahead against a stiffening headwind.   I topped it out about 5 minutes later and pushed on as well.  The next few thermals were easy to find but I needed far too many of them before a turnpoint so close.  At the second start time I was only 7-8k into the course and it was at least a half hour before passing the first turnpoint.  The weirdest part about it all was the lack of a gaggle back at the start gate.  In fact I couldn’t more then a small handful of pilots even in the air.  The high clouds still persisted but courseline had good sun.  With a quartering tail wind it wasn’t so stressful hunting out the best line and thermals.  Ovens Plantation delivered as expected so I topped out there.  Best glide to the Pinnacles because I was worried about finding the next one.  The lone ridge half way gave me no love, only some turbulence.  I suppose I just missed it but couldn’t waste time searching.  At the Pinnacles I couldn’t find it where I expected and was getting low on the ridge.  I had picked out a few possible triggers plus some bailout fields to land in.  Search search search.  Some strong turbulence but nothing to climb in.  Dammit, it felt very much like a lee side area and I had expected it to be in the wind.  After a couple minutes of searching I finally figured out the shear and some strong broken lift.  Just as it came together for me Lukas and Steve Moyes  glided in over my head.  I knew we had been slow but getting caught by guys who left a half hour after you is pretty demoralizing.   Not to mention the got to glide right into this core I had worked so hard to find.  Oh well.  Three is better then one at finding the best climbs.  Lukas headed into the Kiewa first and got a bad line.  I went to the left, and steve to the right.  I thought I was so tricky taking my line.  That is until I watched him get higher and higher once we crossed out into the flats.  Whoops.  You can’t out Ninja Steve.  He is the Ninja Master.  Lukas hit the ridge low so Steve and I just raced each other for the last 25k or so.  We have different thermalling styles and the surging stuff on the ridge suited me just fine.  I climbed right back to the top before leading out…..and getting smacked with another dose of humility.  I went left, Steve right.  I ended up about 500 feet lower.  Score:  Ninja Master 2, young grasshopper 0.  Outfoxed again!  The next thermal I used a tight core to get back on top ( and hopefully for good).  This time leaving lift I took another roll of the dice and it worked out for me.  Score Ninja 2, Grasshopper 1!   We had good numbers for final although they weren’t very big.  I pushed ahead and snuck into goal second about a minute ahead of Steve.   Since he took the second start Steve smoked the day.  As first in goal Dave was second, and I was third.  The rest of the second clockers came in much later.   Jonny was pretty happy such a tough day weeded out so many pilots.

 

Fun day.

 

Kev

Bird Story

I left out the coolest bird story from the first day of this meet.  I was racing hard with Jonny on the second leg of the task when we got in a rough spot north of Mt Jack.  He went deep and I searched on the shoulder further North.  There was some strong turb but I couldn’t quite find the lift.  My concentration was broken by a loud shriek.  I looked around but there was nothing.  I thought it was my imagination.  But again, a loud shriek.  The second time it didn’t stop.  It just continued, right in my ear.  I craned my neck around and saw that just off my trailing edge was a very lare Wedge Tailed Eagle Talons out and very pissed.  He was taking up the space between the end of my keep and the trailing edge!  CRAAAAAAWK!   I obviously couldn’t outrun him so I just tried to circle for some lift and pray that he didn’t take a chunk out of my sail.  I have heard many stories from pilots about Wedgies attacking their gliders and putting small tears in the leading edges or tips.  I was lucky because this guy just wanted to issue a warning.  It must have been pretty funny for the other guys to watch this bird chasing me around while I ran hopelessly.

 

Kev

The Roller Coaster

Yesterday was great for me, and today was a total bust.  The air over launch was really rough and I left to cross to the next finger lower then usual.  Not a slick move at all.  The air was really rough because the wind velocity had increased far more then predicted.  It should have been obvious not to cross unless I was really high but I had other gliders to go with.  I was the lowest and got rotored really hard before getting there.  Its very ironic because I gave Chris a tough time for pulling that same more during a day of fun flying. 

 

So there I was, low on the ridge, strong winds, downwind of another finger, and fighting totally shredded lift.  I stuck it out for awhile but when a hard sink slammer put me below the lowest part of the ridge I had to give up.  I thought about heading downwind to try and make the official bombout so I could refly legally.  That move seemed crazy so I swallowed my pride and accepted my mistakes.  It was the shortest flight I have ever flown in a comp.

 

Tomorrow is another day.

 

Kev

Bogong Cup Day 2

The lesson for the day:  If you are going to try and outsmart 40 other guys, you better have a dam good plan, and a backup!

 

I thought the best plan this day was to wait for the third start with Gerolf.  Before the start gates all of the pilots were playing the cloud dodging game over Mt Buffalo.  The day didn’t look turned on yet so everyone hung back for the second start.  I thought the third start was the way to go and it looked like Capt Moyes felt the same way.  I say “looked like” but that only counts when you could actually SEE him.  ;)  Someone was playing hide and seek.  I got a little low trying to dip around the edge of the cloud and at that point the last of the pilots took the start.  I had no choice but chase after the group a few minutes behind and much lower then I would have liked.

 

The leaders were already at least a thermal ahead and climbing fast.  I did the best I could to fly hard and try to make up ground.   The lift was good for the most part.  There was heaps of strong lift to be found, just a bit hard to find it by myself or with just another pilot or two.   The second turnpoint was nestled in the valley in front of Clear Spot and thankfully some pilots marked a good one for me going into there.  I came in low and climbed out a bit slow.  I was still only about a thermal behind the leaders but I just couldn’t close that gap.  Gliding into the Pinnacles I didn’t find it where I expected and instead got lots of sink and a few small thermals that felt lee.  Fighting up through those I noticed a cloud form and dissipate a couple times to the north west on a higher part of the ridge.  Since there were few clouds today that was a good sign.  If there was strong lift there it would also explain why the area I was in was so difficult.  I pushed in that direction and found a nice string of very strong cores.  This line put me in striking distance of a couple pilots ahead of me.  I charged hard after them through the last turnpoint and into the Kiewa Valley.  I was always a little below them but I pushed a bit harder and made it to goal faster.  It was nice having this smaller target to work towards since loosing the leaders had me a bit demoralized.  For the second day my aggression put me into goal very slow and outside of the top 15.  Not good at all.

 

Kev

Tony sent me this great picture from the Team Challenge. 

I am a Bonehead!

Today was the first day of the Bogong Cup.   I was a real bonehead trying to tune the small turn out of my glider a “different” way.  I finally decided to go traditional in the setup but missed my chance to test fly it before the meet.  We were all standing on launch taking our sweet time when the wind started to rip over the back.  Everyone broke down and no one flew.  I blew my chance to test out the different setup. 

 

I was so nervous about flying today I couldn’t even sleep last night.  I tossed and turned from about 3am on.  Finally at 6:30 I just woke up and set up my wing.  Got her looking sweet, and went up the hill.  Forecast was for an increasing afternoon southerly like the day before and it did deliver, only not as bad as we feared.  Most pilots took the first start and raced hard.  Task was 114k north up the Kiewa, then west to the Ovens, then returning back to the Kiewa.  I started very conservative and had some trouble keeping up with Jonny.  The glider was thermalling great and I took every climb as a chance to make up ground for my hesitation and slow decision making.  It worked well most of the way around the course until we approached the last leg.   I had been climbing well so I charged ahead when I thought the thermal the group was in wasn’t good enough.  It paid off once but the group caught back up, some even higher then me.  I got impatient when that last thermal mellowed so I charged towards the Kiewa Valley hoping to find something strong along the way.   It didn’t work out and I went into survival mode.  I struggled hard to stay off the ground finally catching a lee thermal south of the turnpoint.   My gamble cost me tons of time but at least I tried.

 

The weather is supposed to improve a step tomorrow.   I can’t wait!

 

Kev

Sometimes it is necessary to state the obvious. 

Tugging on the Zip getting ready for a good flight. 

Jack Jack scoping like a hawk, sniffing for that nice cycle to punch off in. Since we have been taking late flights we have been waiting for cycles to launch in. 

One of Jack Jack's launches those loose pant's ankles tripped him up on a launch. Now he always zips em up. 

Free Flying in Bright

The last 2 days we have been free flying late afternoons here in Bright off Mystic.  2 days ago it was looking pretty strong through the mid day so we waited till about 5 pm to launch.   The air was a little rough but the lift was good.  Wind was OTB about 10-15kph and lift was around 300fpm to 6,500 feet.  I cruised around the valley and just had fun with it.   Things started to look less consistent in the LZ so I hustled down to make sure I landed before it got weird.  Winds down low had been up the valley although they were the opposite direction a few hundred feet above that.  Not much later those layers mixed up and the wind in the LZ switched back and forth a few times.  It’s much more enlightening watching that happen while you are on the ground then when you are circling overhead trying to guess which way you should land.

 

Yesterday we took our time and headed up late as well.  Launch was really crowded and it was blowing in light to nil.  It looked like the winds up high were much lighter then they have been.  Much of the morning was overcast so everything looked softer in general.  The no wind conditions on launch suckered in more blown launch victims then I would have expected.   I got to launch in a nice easy puff.  There was a nice fat strong thermal straight out front that beamed me to the moon again.  It was the nicest thermal I have climbed in since coming down this year.  I was getting a bit demoralized that maybe Oz didn’t have thermals friendly thermals anymore.   It gets old feeling like the air is trying to kick you in the balls every time you find something worth circling in.

 

Today we are going to free fly again and then head over to Mt Beauty for the Bogong Cup.

 

Kev

The air was extremely rough this day so most pilots were pinned in the valley. Landing early meant we had time to hit the swimming hole while it was still hot out. I am a cold water wimp so I had time to shoot photos while creeping in to the cool water. 

Even wearing sunblock I have been getting too much sun so I got an Aussie hat. I think it makes me look rugged, for a tourist. 

Kevin is spoiled 

AFFF Day Three

Pre frontal means we won’t be flying XC today.  The forecast looks really bad for later in the day.  The morning isn’t so bad so we all do our spot landings again.  I coast over the spot again to land just past the bulls eye.  That dreaded German Master Ollie nailed it head on so I had to settle for second.

 

Kev

AFFF Day Two

My buddy Jack Simmons arrived from America yesterday so he has joined our little traveling circus.  I know he gets worried about his glider surviving the trip intact so he was very relieved to get it together 100% unscathed.  Peter, Jack, and I all move a little slow in the mornings and didn’t quite have the pep of the other pilots about heading up to launch for the spot landing competition.  By the time I was done tinkering with my glider it was really too late to get a spot in and be ready for the day’s XC briefing and flight.

 

The conditions were like yesterday, only a bit stiffer.  Strong Northerly winds are forecasted for the whole day as a front gets closer.  On launch the wind was quite strong and gusty.  It reminded me of some days that we passed on flying at Mystic in other meets (but not as bad).  I spooked everyone present with a horrendous launch.  Wing dipped hard right, I threw it left and then chilled out.  It went a touch past level and the next gust turned it hard back towards the hill.  The turb really delayed the glider rolling back out of that undesired turn (and away from the trees) and I am sure I will get teased about that for awhile.

 

In the air I found the thermals to be pretty rough but most other pilots didn’t seem to mind as much as I did.  I flew into the Kiewa Valley and Ollie did agree that the air over there was pretty messy.  I have my glider trimmed very slow but now realize that is no good for rough air.  I changed that after landing.  Corinna, Davis, Phil Schroder and I crossed into the Kiewa Valley together but only Phil and I continued on to Mt Bogong.  In the last 2 years of flying in this area I have never had a chance to climb up this huge feature.  The view was well worth the wait and reminded me that I am a slacker for leaving my camera on the ground.  After leaving some meaty lift over Bogong I pushed hard north up the Kiewa Valley.  The headwind was 25 to 30 kph and the lift was shredded.  I pushed too hard and landed a few K’s north of Coral Bank.  It would have been much smarter to turn back sooner and close my triangle rather then just heading out one way.  It was still good for 60 k or so but it sure didn’t seem like it should have been to me.  I picked out a nice field near a caravan park (campground) and a swimming hole.  The temp has been a real scorcher this week.  Its hotter then I have ever seen in the mountains topping out over 40 Celsius.  That is over a 100 F.  The air is very dry though, nothing like the humidity of the eastern US.  If you stay in the shade and it isn’t so bad.

 

Kev