Sailplane Ground Handling Mishaps
I fought the light and the light won...
Fine, don't sing it with me, just sit there and cringe, it's understandable.
With open class gliders it is common to see a wing wheel on each wing.
This really helps when you have to make a turn with strong wind and the wing wheel is no longer on the downwind wing.
When the wind is gusty or strong it is important to place the wing wheel on the correct wing, not just the side you do out of habit.
Most of us have seen a wing wheel get picked up, most of the time no damage occurs. However it can be costly when it does. Worse is when you loose a month of the flying season.
Pilots prefer a light wing wheel for carrying around. Often they will hang a milk jug or parachute over the wing wheel to add weight in an attempt to keep it on the ground. But please remember our previous emails regarding UV and parachutes.
No line-boys were harmed in this aileron modification.
Towing Rules of Thumb
Only taxi as fast as you want to hit something.
Only taxi as fast as you can break aggressively and not have the tail of the glider in the trunk of the car.
Towing your glider to the grid is NOT like NASCAR.
Remember the wingspan is wider than your tow vehicle.
A walking pace is recommended
• Easy to Use
With ON/OFF and pilot event switches device is extremely easy to use. A few minutes before flight turn on the device and when a valid GPS position is detected device will start recording your flight.
• Secure Recorder
The device will record standard IGC files which can be viewed with any IGC viewer. Together with the device you will get the flyWithCE Logbook software which can be also used to view downloaded flights.
• Certified Position Recorder
In several countries device is certified as FAI position recorder and there pilots can use recordings to claim Silver and Gold FAI badges. It is also certified for online competitions (CIVL and OLC).
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With internal rechargeable battery you will not be dependent on planes power supply.
• Small Size
flyWithCE is one of the smallest and lightest flight recorders on the market.
• Low Cost
flyWithCE price is much lower than any other flight recorder currently on the market.
Garret Willat holds a flight instructor rating with over 8000 hours in sailplanes. His parents have owned Sky Sailing Inc. since 1979. He started instructing the day after his 18th birthday. Since then, Garret has represented the US Junior team in 2003 and 2005. He graduated from Embry-Riddle with a bachelor's degree in Professional Aeronautics. Garret represented the US Open Class team in 2008 and 2010 and the Club Class team in 2014. Garret has won 3 US National Championships.