I’m getting a little frustrated at not getting to goal, when everyday at least 90 others do… Today was the day, I hoped. Problem was that the forecast was for more wind. They couldn’t send us into the mountains, so the task was a turn point flight to Tolmin, Kobarid, part way back to Tolmin and back to Kobarid.

I got a great start and was off. I got stuck on the first ridge, but then managed to get up and glided most of the way to the turn point without having to turn much. On the way back, I hit the headwind… I managed to get a thermal with DT and we got to cloudbase at 5500′, but it had drifted us back over the mountain and going forward I was only getting 8km/h on speedbar. So I lost all the height I had gained in the first place, and it was just wasting task time. I was on bar most of the way, but had to top up with height sporadically (always thermalling away from the next turn point). Everyone else just overtook me, until there was just a little group of us stragglers left at the back. I eventually got back to Kobarid, bagged the two turn points there and jumped onto the ridge to go back towards Tolmin. The lead gaggle had landed ages before, when the conditions were still very sunny. When I got back to Kobarid, the high cloud had come over and I thought that would be it. However, I did get back up and flew out towards the turnpoint. I missed a climb others were in, and that just allowed me to collect the final turnpoint, but then I was too low to get back to goal.

I tried to get another thermal, but it wasn’t to be. A flight over four hours, 7km short of goal and landing 10 minutes before the land by time, so I wouldn’t have made it in even if I had got the thermal. Ruth got in with 2 minutes to spare, Malc Davies with 28 seconds!

BBQ at Scottish/Northern Irish lads house later and then I collapsed into bed completely exhausted and with aching knees from using my speedbar so much.

See photos of today.

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