I agree with those that think this is a useful article (actually two) -
as it does a fine job of working throught the thought process that led
to the accident. And I think it shines a big spotlight on some
problems in our training process in the US.

To me, the whole point is that Mr Skydell was totally unprepared for
the unexpected - he had not been trained for it, and had not thought
about it much. His description of himself as a "conservative" pilot is
a big clue - I'm sure he would never think of a wormburner double pass,
or an L/D max GPS glide to an airfield he's never seen before. By
being "conservative", he thought he was safer. But the unexpected is
exactly what we as glider pilots must think about and prepare for.
From a canopy coming open on takeoff, to the spoiler handle coming off
in your hand turning base, to the herd of cows on the runway - it's the
unexpected that usually cause problems. Endless practice rope breaks
at 200 ft are fine - but how about a rope break at 10 ft - just when
the glider gets airborne?

It takes guts to make a mistake that your peers will jump on and say is
stupid - but we often learn more about those moments of inattention or
confusion - and when our time comes (and trust me it will!) we may just
remember some little fact that saves the day.

I remember being shown high energy patterns (as described in the
article) at Estrella back in the early 90s - along with patterns that
started by diving to redline just above the desert out at the IP and
flying the whole pattern in ground effect, pulling up to make the
turns. They both worked, were a lot of fun, and were useful for
showing what the glider COULD do, not what necessarily should be done.
One can never have too many tricks up your sleeve!

Anyway - I hope Soaring gets more articles like this (I can think of a
few I could write...)

Kirk
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