Soaring Hell - Arizona

[Michael Stringfellow]

I'm not going to submit anywhere in Arizona as a candidate for "Best Soaring
Site". At least down here in the Phoenix area, we can only soar reliably
for about nine months of the year. Soaring conditions are a bit spotty from
November through January (we only made about 100 miles cross-country last
Saturday, with cloudbase down low at 8,500 feet - and it was cold, only 72
degrees at the field). When it does warm up, the thermals are big, strong
and nasty. Kind of like flying in surf!

And when you turn up at the field to soar, they make you race!

Soaring is hell here!

Mike the Strike

ASW 20 WA

[Markus Gayda]

Michael Stringfellow wrote:
> I'm not going to submit anywhere in Arizona as a candidate for "Best Soaring
> Site". At least down here in the Phoenix area, we can only soar reliably
> for about nine months of the year. Soaring conditions are a bit spotty from
> November through January (we only made about 100 miles cross-country last
> Saturday, with cloudbase down low at 8,500 feet - and it was cold, only 72
> degrees at the field). When it does warm up, the thermals are big, strong
> and nasty. Kind of like flying in surf!
>
> And when you turn up at the field to soar, they make you race!
>
> Soaring is hell here!
>
> Mike the Strike
>
> ASW 20 WA


eheh... Mike... did you forget the [sarcasm ON] tag in you message?

8500 feet.... holy cow... and ONLY nine months.

Here in Germany we are lucky to get 6000feet AGL cloud base and 6 months
a year for soaring.... :-)

you are a lucky pilot... (especially when you own a ASW20)

CU
Markus

[Shawn Curry]

Michael Stringfellow wrote:

> I'm not going to submit anywhere in Arizona as a candidate for "Best Soaring
> Site". At least down here in the Phoenix area, we can only soar reliably
> for about nine months of the year. Soaring conditions are a bit spotty from
> November through January (we only made about 100 miles cross-country last
> Saturday, with cloudbase down low at 8,500 feet - and it was cold, only 72
> degrees at the field). When it does warm up, the thermals are big, strong
> and nasty. Kind of like flying in surf!
>
> And when you turn up at the field to soar, they make you race!
>
> Soaring is hell here!
>
> Mike the Strike
>
> ASW 20 WA
>
>
Sounds like crap. You should move to Colorado where there's lift year
round.

[Shirley]

"Michael Stringfellow" wrote:

>I'm not going to submit anywhere in Arizona
>as a candidate for "Best Soaring Site". At least
>down here in the Phoenix area, we can only soar
>reliably for about nine months of the year.
[snip]

I was wondering when someone was going to post about how rough we have it here
in AZ! A visitor flying airplanes was complaining yesterday because he's been
here since October and only had a couple of opportunities to fly in IMC. Damn!
:-)

--Shirley

[Ted Wagner]

Since I've only been forced to suffer the soaring in Arizona since I started four months ago today, I can only dread the eight in front of me. Fortunately there seems to be a terrific core of pilots in the state to act as a support group, and I look forward to meeting both of them. Heheheee.

I can't wait for my first visit to Minden (and beyond that sometime, southern France), but until then, this new pilot sees many reasons why he's called the Land of AZ home since 1990.

-el tedro in temp (not at all biased)

"Michael Stringfellow" > wrote in message news:78TOb.20659$zP6.9562@okepread02...
> I'm not going to submit anywhere in Arizona as a candidate for "Best Soaring
> Site". At least down here in the Phoenix area, we can only soar reliably
> for about nine months of the year. Soaring conditions are a bit spotty from
> November through January (we only made about 100 miles cross-country last
> Saturday, with cloudbase down low at 8,500 feet - and it was cold, only 72
> degrees at the field). When it does warm up, the thermals are big, strong
> and nasty. Kind of like flying in surf!
>
> And when you turn up at the field to soar, they make you race!
>
> Soaring is hell here!
>
> Mike the Strike
>
> ASW 20 WA
>
>

[Nyal Williams]

How do you know if you're any good if bricks can climb
to 10K???

Come out east and see how well you can thermal in cigarette
smoke!


At 04:36 20 January 2004, Ted Wagner wrote:

How do you know if you're any good if the thermals
are so good that bricks can soar above 10K????????

Come back east and see how well you can do thermalling
cigarette smoke!

>Since I've only been forced to suffer the soaring in
>Arizona since I
>started four months ago today, I can only dread the
>eight in front of
>me. Fortunately there seems to be a terrific core of
>pilots in the state
>to act as a support group, and I look forward to meeting
>both of them.
>Heheheee.
>
>I can't wait for my first visit to Minden (and beyond
>that sometime,
>southern France), but until then, this new pilot sees
>many reasons why
>he's called the Land of AZ home since 1990.
>
>-el tedro in temp (not at all biased)
>
>'Michael Stringfellow' wrote in message
>news:78TOb.20659$zP6.9562@okepread02...
>> I'm not going to submit anywhere in Arizona as a candidate
>>for 'Best
>Soaring
>> Site'. At least down here in the Phoenix area, we
>>can only soar
>reliably
>> for about nine months of the year. Soaring conditions
>>are a bit
>spotty from
>> November through January (we only made about 100 miles
>>cross-country
>last
>> Saturday, with cloudbase down low at 8,500 feet -
>>and it was cold,
>only 72
>> degrees at the field). When it does warm up, the
>>thermals are big,
>strong
>> and nasty. Kind of like flying in surf!
>>
>
>> And when you turn up at the field to soar, they make
>>you race!
>>
>
>> Soaring is hell here!
>>
>
>> Mike the Strike
>>
>
>> ASW 20 WA
>>
>
>>
>
>

[Michael Stringfellow]

Yes, tongue firmly in cheek!

But at 6,000 feet AGL, you are probably in gliding range of half a dozen
other gliderports with lots of nice fields in which to to land on the way.
And it's easier to find good beer.

Mike

"Markus Gayda" > wrote in message
...
> Michael Stringfellow wrote:
> > I'm not going to submit anywhere in Arizona as a candidate for "Best
Soaring
> > Site". At least down here in the Phoenix area, we can only soar
reliably
> > for about nine months of the year. Soaring conditions are a bit spotty
from
> > November through January (we only made about 100 miles cross-country
last
> > Saturday, with cloudbase down low at 8,500 feet - and it was cold, only
72
> > degrees at the field). When it does warm up, the thermals are big,
strong
> > and nasty. Kind of like flying in surf!
> >
> > And when you turn up at the field to soar, they make you race!
> >
> > Soaring is hell here!
> >
> > Mike the Strike
> >
> > ASW 20 WA
>
>
> eheh... Mike... did you forget the [sarcasm ON] tag in you message?
>
> 8500 feet.... holy cow... and ONLY nine months.
>
> Here in Germany we are lucky to get 6000feet AGL cloud base and 6 months
> a year for soaring.... :-)
>
> you are a lucky pilot... (especially when you own a ASW20)
>
> CU
> Markus