At 04:24 03 August 2005, Eric Greenwell wrote:
I'm sure
that's good advice for Tonopah and other strong areas,
but I don't think
it will work here in the Pacific NW. Tim will need
to experiment some,
and, I hope, report back to us in a year.

Always good to know how conditions develop at your
intended site. There are 'speed sites' where the length
of the day is the limiting factor rather than the strength
of the day. At these sites loading up will help you
get home before sunset.

Apparently there are sites in the northern latitudes
where the conditions develop slowly (e.g. narrow, 1-2
knot thermals for several hours before noon), then
get strong later. In these cases it may be optimal
to go with little or no ballast. I've never seen a
day like this, but maybe that's because I fly further
south where the days 'pop' to a significant portion
of full strength when you reach trigger temperature.
Also, in places like the Great Basin, you'll often
find the high ground working (full strength) an hour
or more before the valleys get cooking, so a well-placed
tow release can help a lot.

9B