Gordon Boettger Glider Record Attempt - Mon 03/21/2016

Posted by Walt Rogers - WX

As flight dispatcher/weather support I once again will be commenting on the flight through my twitter feed: @wrogerswx

My blog is NOT active this year. However, I'll post graphics and occasional longer discussions on my Dropbox account "Weather Board":

http://bit.ly/1pv30VS

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On Monday 31 Mar, I'll be making another record attempt in the Duo Discus glider with Hugh. If you're interested in following along, you can click on the link below which will provide you with my position, altitude, and speed throughout the flight. Select the arrow next to MAP FILTERS on the left and then by DATE AND TIME RANGE select CURRENTLY TRACKING to follow the flight. On the map you can click on the blue dots which will show more detailed position at that point. There is also a CENTER button on the left side that shows current position on the map. Altitudes and speeds will vary throughout the flight, but we will have a clearance up to 28,000 feet.

My main goal is to complete a straight line distance record with a goal of Rapid City, SD, however excessive upper level moisture along the route in NV might not make it possible to fly that route safely. We will make that call at launch time (sunrise). Our other option would be to fly north and south along the Sierra Nevada range and attempting a 3 turn point distance record, so I'll likely aim for flying from Minden (launch point) down to Inyokern, then up to Susanville, back down towards Mojave, and then back north to Minden or the northeast in NV. As you know, there are so many variables with this stuff, so who really knows where we'll end up, where we go, or when we land. Bottom line for me is to have fun and keep learning.

Click below to track our flight:

https://share.delorme.com/GordonBoettger


I'm not sure how this twitter stuff works, but Walt Rogers' (expert weather guy tracking our flight and in communication with us during the flight) has a twitter feed going.
Walt's Twitter feed:

@wrogerswx

Cheers,
Gordo

The very best of luck Gordo. If you pull either of those options off wx dependent of course, they will be equivalent to a 400 mile flight in a 1-26 but with a whole lot longer retreave especially SD lol. Good luck again.

Doesn't Gordo mean 21 March and not 31 March??? Good luck...

Gordo meant... 21 Mar 2016. He corrected it shortly after I posted in his email.



On Monday 31 Mar, I'll be making another record attempt in the Duo Discus glider with Hugh. If you're interested in following along, you can click on

Go man go!!

Making Rapid City over the Rockies is in my opinion a WAY bigger flight than 400 in a 1-26. A good long thermal downwind post frontal dash in a 1-26 is nothing to sneeze at but its been done. The risk, breadth of knowledge, and logistics of a big inter-mountain wave flight is in a completely different league.
MM

Looks like he is on "Plan B", whatever that is. Looks like KRAP is not the destination of choice today for B&B Airlines.

On Monday, March 21, 2016 at 11:59:47 AM UTC-6, Steve Leonard wrote:
Looks like he is on "Plan B", whatever that is. Looks like KRAP is not the destination of choice today for B&B Airlines.

They had an ATC conflict with DT and had to divert and descend for a bit.

Yep a long distance wave flight ingenders an entirely different set of challenges, but I would not say they are greater. Yes 400 miles in a 1-26 via thermal (charles shaw et al) or wave (bob speilman) has been done but its a rare comodity. My point was slightly tongue in cheek, but the degree of skill required in an historic 1-26 flight is imho a good measure above that needed for long distance in an ultra performance ship.

A 400 mile 1-26 flight is equivalent to an 800+ mile flight in a duo or for that matter, a 1,000 mile fight in an arcus or js1. The same degree of meteorologic experties and prep is needed for both classes of flight, but the 1-26 or other very low performance driver is always one decision away from a land out, while the higher performing ship grants its pilot a wonderfull L/D "cushion".
They are two very different but both very challenging endevores.

With all due respect, rather than debate the merits of past deeds and which is more difficult, the real point is Gordo is actually planning and flying flights to push boundaries. It matters not the stead or the goal, it is doing something that others don't dare, and therein is what matters.

On Monday, March 21, 2016 at 11:03:15 AM UTC-7, wrote:
Yep a long distance wave flight ingenders an entirely different set of challenges, but I would not say they are greater. Yes 400 miles in a 1-26 via thermal (charles shaw et al) or wave (bob speilman) has been done but its a rare comodity. My point was slightly tongue in cheek, but the degree of skill required in an historic 1-26 flight is imho a good measure above that needed for long distance in an ultra performance ship.

A 400 mile 1-26 flight is equivalent to an 800+ mile flight in a duo or for that matter, a 1,000 mile fight in an arcus or js1. The same degree of meteorologic experties and prep is needed for both classes of flight, but the 1-26 or other very low performance driver is always one decision away from a land out, while the higher performing ship grants its pilot a wonderfull L/D "cushion".
They are two very different but both very challenging endevores.