Another flyable day. The forecast was for it to be cloudier today, but we seemed to be just on the edge of the front, so there was potential for a reasonable XC day. It seemed a bit windier at home, but on getting to Long Mountain, it was actually lighter. Over the back we could see the front, but with the wind being off to the N, we would drift into the good sky. Shivering, I got ready and put an extra pair of gloves on in readiness for getting even colder once at cloudbase. People were getting high already, so it all looked good. Kai was the first of the XC brigade to launch and leave, followed shortly after by Dave T., Geoff, myself and Wayne.

I got a climb with Dave and Wayne, but didn’t push upwind enough to get into the strong core they were in and I subsequently drifted over the back lower than them. I knew that cloudbase was predicted to be low until later in the afternoon and I knew it was a mistake to leave low, but went anyway, believing that I would pick something up under the next cloud. It didn’t work and I was downed at Marton (just over the back of the hill), whilst Dave and Wayne continued. Wayne landed at home in Bishop’s Castle and Dave scraped a low save and continued on to near Kington. From my landing field I could see someone doggedly trying (and failing) to get up from Corndon and figured it must have been Kai. It turned out it was. That site has something of a magnetic effect on him and he landed there!

Great retrieve from Wayne and Andrew and people were still flying when we got back to the hill two hours later. Flyable all day again.

Geoff writes: though I left with Judith and the others, I was much lower, and rather than bomb out too far behind, I flew back as far as I could, and landed within walking distance of launch, a couple of fields back. I chose a field with a gate to the road – but the gate was locked, and covered in barbed wire, as was the fence, so I had to pack the glider away, rather than just carry back to launch.

When I did get back, the sun had gone and people were struggling. I set up again anyway, and waited till the sun reappeared, launched, and got away within a few minutes. It was pretty weak, though, and I eventually landed near Corndon. Like Judith, I took a glide to the wrong cloud (and I did some sloppy thermalling too).

I do think the day was actually a lot better than we made it look, and we should have gone a lot further.

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