US SSA/SRA Contest Rules Poll

On Nov 2, 10:40 am, BB wrote:
I think it is simple.

Here is my language: "Your start is scored for distance and time when
and where you exit the start cylinder the last time"

As Larry points out, the issue of separating pre-start and post-start
traffic is fairly easy to solve. As one minor addition, if you do slip
back in to the cylinder, you can then start again if you stay under
for two minutes, or take your original start, but scored in the old-
fashioned way. The scoring program already knows to look for multiple
starts and take the best one. The scoring program already finds the
"start fix" so the change is not hard to program.

Previous discussions of this option at SRA meetings focused on a
different issue, highlighted in the pro/con of the poll. In no wind
the "start anywhere" option is great, it's like a start line because
all parts of the start circle are equally good. But in significant
wind, the optimal start point is at the upwind edge of the cylinder,
rather than at the wind-triangle upwind point under current rules. If
in addition, it's a crosswind or downwind, the optimal point is 90
degrees away from the courseline. Now, as currently, it's not a huge
big deal to start 30 degrees away from this optimal point, but it is a
bit worse than currently because you start and then make a sharp
course change. Still, the US RC wisely decided not to use a start
line, because in a significant crosswind it funnels all gliders to one
point in space, the upwind edge of the start line. There is some
concern that the "start anywhere" option would have this same effect.

The most important question, I think, for the poll, is how do pilots
feel about this? Are the obvious advantages of "start anywhere" on
days without much wind offset by the potential disadvantage of this
scenario? In your experience, how often is there enough cross or
downwind on the first leg that this would be a problem? The RC is
pretty good at thinking through traffic issues, but this really is a
pilot preference issue, and hearing opinions on the poll will be very
useful.

John Cochrane

I see the effect as somewhat different.
Now, a pilot chooses between the optimum start point based on wind
and thermal distribution relative to
shortest distance to first turn. In fact what most do is try to find
the "fast gaggle(KS, DJ etc) and get with them.

With exit point start, the tradeoff no longer exists. The pilot simply
goes to the best cloud in the windward quadrant- just like everybody
else. They then collect around the same guys, and the result is pretty
much the same.
I describe this from experience in the WGC where we saw the same
thing.
The gaggle collects at the best cloud, and tries to go 30 seconds
after the Brits!

The start method that pretty much stops all of this and drives pilots
to make "soaring starts" is the multi-point start where the fleet is
randomly divided into 3-4 groups each with their own start cylinder.
With this one, there are no big gaggles and you have to go based on
your assessment of the soaring conditions. We put this into place, but
it died due to lack of interest. It worked very well in Oz in 2001.

The biggest benefit to exit point scoring is that it makes your flight
match the result generated
by See You.
Interesting debate.
UH