Glider preparation for a competition

On Wednesday, March 13, 2019 at 6:08:06 AM UTC-4, wrote:
I'm flying in my first gliding competition this year. I've flown a reasonable number of XC tasks over the last couple of years and thought it would be fun to enter a small local competition.

My glider is in pretty good condition and I'll be polishing it before the competition, but what other tips do people have for preparing a glider to try and get an edge in competition?

Thanks

Ash

First you should understand that the glider is only one part of the effort. In general order of importance I would suggest the following:
1 Make sure your instruments work properly and that your total energy system is working right, and most importantly, that you understand what it is telling you. Adding a new fancy instrument you don't understand will almost certainly reduce your performance.
2 Practice with whatever glide computer/navigation system to make sure you understand it and have confidence in it. Contests are no time yo learn new equipment.
3 Get your cockpit comfortable and make sure you have a workable relief method.
4 Go over the glider and make sure controls are rigged exactly right and spoilers close and lock smooth and flat.
5 Check center of gravity and put it in a position where the glider handles well. Rarely does moving the CG behind 80% aft add enough performance to offset the trend toward poorer handling.
6 Get the canopy to seal well without seals lifting it out of position or preventing proper latching.
7 Seal the gear doors and make sure they close right. At least tape the hinge line.
8 Adding external control seals can help performance and handling. This is a relatively quick and easy tune up, though not cheap.
9 Fill and smooth dings.
10 After all that the big thing is sanding and polishing smooth.

Most important If you have a choice of flying or working on the glider- go fly.
Someplace on this list is making sure your trailer and equipment is working well and not a distraction.
Good luck and have fun
UH