Tracking down to 2.5 minutes. Prices for the Gen3 and is there extra cost for the better tracking? Couldn't find anything on the website. From SPOT: Having initiated over 2,300 rescues around the world, SPOT is solidifying its place as a leader in satellite communication

I don't usually look closely at the OLC scores for flights but on a recent flight I was given a very short triangle that didn't make sense. When looking closely, I noticed that some legs were scored shorter than they should have been by several km. The triangle was scored at about 15 km rather...

Like first ascents in climbing, first ridge traverses in soaring can be challenging. We had the pleasure today to do a first traverse on the Wyoming Range in western Wyoming, just south of Jackson Hole. Many years ago I pioneered the ridge run on the Salt River Range, it took several years to...

I am looking for a LXNav FlarmView 57mm to try the PEV function with the PowerFlarm. Contact me directly at TTaylor07 at gmail. Tim

This is an unofficial statement reporting what I can so far. Right now the contest officials are very busy as would be expected so have patience and understanding. What we know: About 2 pm Arcus MM impacted terrain on a ridge about 50 miles from Nephi. The pilot, John Weber, and the co-pilot,...

Amazing flight Rick! Last few days have seen task speeds over 100 mph by many pilots. 4th and 5th today by the kiddie gliders ;-), nice flights Eric (5E) and Tim (KT). Tim (TT)

Amazing wave yesterday, the best defined I have ever seen running for several hundred miles north and south. I had to work and had to just look at it from the ground. Several gliders flew out of Morgan. 2KA covered 600 km with a launch after 3 pm at 164 kph (102 mph). Hopefully we will get more...

Seven days of soaring, over 46,000 km (28,000 miles or a little over going around the earth) of cross country flying, amazing views, interesting landings, outstanding hospitality, many new friends, and lots of smiles. That in one sentence sums up the Nephi, Utah OLC and Cross-Country camp. Utah...

I have had two flights in a row come back with Purple Validation rather than green. So far no explanation from the OLC guys why this is happening. Very odd thing is that OLC is changing my file names each time they are uploaded. Tonight I uploaded 36GG8E1.igc and the OLC site renames the file...

Two comments/questions: 1. I had purchased a panel mount extension USB cable to allow me to plug the USB drive into the panel for upgrades and flight downloads. I didn't think anything about the cable type but after doing the install I can not download flights. I started looking at the cable and...

I am working with a potential supplier of a replacement for the Bosch CDI electronic ignition units for the Rotax 505 engines used in many early motor gliders. He would like to be able to look at an engine to determine the exact specifications for a replacement CDI module. He is located near...

In response to a request for a wiring diagram for a cable for the LXNAV V7 to the Oudie to build cables that connect to my panel (pass through connector on the panel), I got a very poor response and no help (see below) from LXNAV. I have never seen a supplier in the soaring field in twenty-five...

There is a coupon out that expires today. Call the Spot company directly and tell them you have the coupon for the free unit with service purchase. Pay for a SPOT Complete Service Certificate (12 month) ($149 US) and you will get a unit for free. They are open until 5 pm PT, but the hold time on...

For those Pez fans out there the plot of Doon worked in Uvalde today. http://www.soaravenal.com/pez.htm TT

It is time for a major overhaul of the US Nationals system. With time constraints and cost it is making the single national approach outdated. We have discussed the idea of super regionals or multiple nationals. I think it is time to seriously look at these alternatives. We have to recognize...

I am working with a fourth printing (1988) and the equation presented for Optimum Average Cruise Speed does not make sense. It is equation VI in the book, but it gives a very slow speed to fly compared to the graphical approach of just finding the tangent to the line. Plugging in zero for the...

I am working though some calculations and need the sink rate as a function of speed with the spoilers fully extended. Does anyone know of such data for a glider? How do spoilers extended affect sink rate as a function of speed? Thanks, Tim

I was thinking we really needed one to test fly flights. Did a search and found this: Google Earth's Hidden Surprise: A Flight Simulator Duncan Riley http://www.techcrunch.com/2007/08/31/google-earths-easter-egg-a-flight-simulator/ We've always known that Google has wanted to challenge...

As the cold weather is appraoching in the northern hemisphere what antifreeze can be used safely in integral water ballast tanks such as in my Ventus? Also where do you buy it at a reasonable price? I am guessing the maximum use would be about 25% v/v at any time. I think I could often use 2gal...

Background The 700 km flight on October 3, 2007 was the result of several years of experimentation and planning that allowed the first flight exclusively in ridge lift from Salt Lake City, Utah to Pocatello, Idaho a distance of 145 miles (233 km). The flight planning began several days earlier...