I thought it would be a bit windy today, although others, like Mick, assured me that it wouldn’t be. When we woke up it did seem breezy, but it then dropped. The Peaks and Pennine guys went to Llangollen where the it was briefly flyable, but then made their way to Long Mountain where we had also decided to go. The sky looked good, but once in the air it was clear that the wind was going to make going XC a little tricky. I just couldn’t push out far enough, and the thermal strength was too weak, to be able to drift back comfortably low. The two times I did get any height, I was drifting back over the hill fast and in 0.7m/s lift I wasn’t confident that I wouldn’t get into the rotor behind the hill. The only one to get away was Kai, who had declared a goal 110km away and managed to fly 85km of it.

The rest of us had a very pleasant day playing in the air, some pushing out into the valley, getting high and generally enjoying the beautiful scenery. Once I decided that I wasn’t going to be able to go XC I landed for a comfort break and then went tandem with Mick, which is always fun. I really like being ballast; you can just sit, enjoy the views and it’s really interesting to see someone else’s flying decisions.

See photos of today.

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