Slope Soaring

[Radweld]

Slope Soaring the Stryker.

I went to Coombe Hill yesterday to fly my old glider but there was a potential problem with the battery so I decided not to fly it. Instead I flew my Stryker. It's not quite a slope soarer but I managed several 20-30min flights. I found If I just kept enough power to keep the prop turning, the drag was minimised. Because it's not a true soarer, I kept on applying power to regain altitude but it was great and I loved it. I flew for over two hours in the end on 4 batteries.

[ralphp]

sounds like a plan! LOL! I've heard the bods at SL are looking in to 2m class two channel gliders.
Think It'll have to be painted green with invasion stripes!LOL!

[Anthony]

Ooo I've flown a big model glider before (100 inch i think)... I never had the guts to chuck it off a cliff so I used a 400 foot bungee thingy and got it up that way instead, it never worked very well though and last time I had a go it almost got blown by the wind into a housing estate! :D

[ralphp]

Bungee.....now thats fun, i used to do that on Brean beach by WSM.....only don't do this in high wind........I couldn't release mine and was flying it like a kite for ages (was concearned about battery time! (30+ mins before release) and had to get her down sharpish once i got her off! LOL

[Anthony]

Haha unlucky! :D Yeah that's the thing with gliders though, you are at the whim of the elements far more than with a powered model... if the wind catches it then you are going to have a very hard job to make it fly where you want, in the end I was so tired of my glider basically flying wherever it felt like going that I've taken all the radio stuff out of it and am now leaving it in the garage out the way of my nice parkzone planes! :)

[ralphp]

Theres something to be said for the "non powered" as training....

I used it for getting used to minimal input flying practic "nudging it in the direction you want....let go and change when it changes"

I know this isn't "seat of the pants" like our beloved spits, 190, coursair etc but they have a place for training and mentoring skills

[Radweld]

Learning to fly with power makes you a bit complacent because you know you usuallyhave power to get you out of trouble. If you mess up in a glider then it could be all over however Alan, my glider tutor says "if in doubt, fly it out" lol basically if you lose lift, fly away from the slope to gain speed and altitude.

Usually works but there is a reason I bought a tracking device lol

[ralphp]

"tracking device"! is that what the furry string tied to the tail is ? LOL!

there wasn't anything quite so tech when I was a lad.....(no rad im not talking ice age or troglodite!)LOL!

[Radweld]

Is that what your radio was a "Reed Set" with only 1 function lol. My tracker is a GWS locator or a beeper, if it looses signal then it starts to beep, not needed it yet but its nice to have.

[ralphp]

nothing wrong with cristals and valves mate.....wheres my stone hammer and flints?