I agree.

Given that you are in an area of likely lift.
Training stage 1 seems to be how to stay in the thermal when you are
already in it.
Training stage 2 seems to be how to centre in the thermal when you have
found it.
Training stage 3 seems to be how to decide which thermal to centre in
when you are in a likely area.

I have flown a number of legs with Justin Wills on Competition
Enterprise and it is interesting to see our different responses when we
reach the same cloud to climb. I find a good thermal and start centreing
like mad, whilst Justin seems to wander off exploring the area. When I
approach an area already full of other gliders, I will often look around
before joining their thermal.

I often wonder when I meet a thermal whether my first reaction should be
to concentrate on centreing or check that I am in the right place, often
I do the daft thing of first centreing then exploring then re-centreing
which is probably not very efficient.

As for the Immelman, this seems to result from a pull-up from 80kts+ in
neg flap to 50kts in positive flap and a near stall in order to roll the
glider rapidly into the turn. Difficult to achieve in the company of
others.

I am increasingly concerned at my own ability even to manage stage 1.

Rory

Author: Bill Daniels bildan@comcast-dot-net
Date/Time: 20:00 06 September 2006
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Or, as I've seen in OLC .igc files by top pilots, fly straight through
the thermal to evaluate it, then turn 270 degrees AWAY from the side
where they think the thermal is and then reverse turn direction thus
placing the final

circle two turn diameters back on track offset to the side where the
strongest lift was. The emphasis seems to be good thermal selection vs.

fast centering.

Alternatively, at least one pilot will sometimes perform what must be a

modified Immelmann since the course reversal, as seen on SeeYou's map
view,

is a zero-radius turn while gaining 800 feet in the pull-up. This entry

showed an 80 knot IAS reduction in 12 seconds.

However, it's more likely these guys don't use any specific maneuver -
they just KNOW where the lift is and they're not shy about going for it.

Bill Daniels