Topping the Thermal

You should be thinking about your thermal average and pay attention if it is getting better or worse.  Seldom is topping the thermal ideal.  Once it drops off you need to think about leaving, actually, you should probably leave before the thermal average drops off. You should get going when your 20-second average begins to drop and not ruin your entire thermal average.

Can you beat your current climb rate? If the thermal is decreasing and you think you can beat it then you should move on. If you think you can only match it, then you need to consider two things. One if you leave you potentially could find a better one. Two, do you have enough options ahead to match what you are in and not get stuck?

Remember the person that wins generally finds the unusually strong thermals and doesn’t get stuck. However, those two things sometimes require different tactics.

Centering

A consideration is that you should be trying to re-center on every turn. It is unlikely that you are perfectly centered. It is probably even more unlikely that you continue to stay centered 4 turns later without any adjustments. To remain centered, you are going to have to make corrections, perhaps every turn.

If you are making corrections on each turn, you should be centered and should catch any shifting in the thermal. So when you lose the thermal, do not lose that precious altitude you just worked for trying to find it again, move on. If you can beat your climb rate ahead, then do it. The fastest one up wins.

HpH Twin Shark

HpH's TwinShark is the next generation 20 meter two-seater sailplane and now in production. This sailplane is already showing strong promise among its competitors; the Arcus and ASG-32. At the 2018 World Gliding Championships in Hosin, Czech Republic the Twin Shark placed 1st and 2nd in daily tasking. The empty weight is 50 kg less than the Arcus and 75 kg less than the ASG-32! The performance will be strong with wing laminar flow up to 95%. The Twin Shark is available as a pure glider, self-launch, and jet sustainer.

Banner Photo by Mika Ganszauge

 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.