On Monday, 28 July 2014 15:33:09 UTC-6, John Cochrane wrote:
Why I prefer time-limited tasks -- MAT, long MAT, TAT -- to assigned tasks:



AST's are great tests of tactical skill. Start gate timing, watching the gaggle, start late, catch them...but not too late; pass one gaggle, get on top maybe jump to the next one...or maybe just sit on top of your gaggle and coast home. Time limited tasks are better tests of pilot skill, reading the weather and the terrain. I prefer to focus on those skills.



Time and landouts. If there is a spread in pilot skills, CDs will assign much shorter tasks so the slow guys can get home. That means fast guys fly less, maybe a lot less. Tasks are already too short.



Land 'em out, you say. Back to the good old days when the target was 70% completion and often a lot less. Indeed, the only thing that breaks up the gaggle and gets people to actually start is fear of the end of the day.



Now think hard about racing with routine 30% handouts. (Sean, since you seem to have time for data collection, get the number of land outs at nationals in your sample. I'm willing to bet it's way less than 30%). This means a dedicated crew is a necessity. Or a motor. There is a reason Europe is full of motor gliders.



How many pilots are really going to go take their gliding vacations racing, if racing means lots of high traffic gaggle flying, shorter flights, lots and lots of land outs, needing a crew or a motor? How many new pilots are going to stick with it if they land out day after day after day?



Not for me.



But, as others have pointed out, this is not about rules. It's about CDs. It would be a very good idea at the safety meeting for a CD to poll the pilots about how much they want pure AST, long MAT, MAT, or TAT. And, specifically, in less than perfect weather. When there are storms, blue holes, cirrus, etc., y'all really want to be sent to specific airports?



John Cochrane

What John wrote 8-)

I would like to reemphasize that the contest management folks and task advisers should get input from the pilots. If a certain class wants AT's then let them have em. IMO these tasks put much more pressure on task selecting and understanding the weather and the tasking area