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New Years Eve - we were headed to Marshall to fly when we stopped at the Proud Bird Restaurant to check out what was happening there for New Years. | What a great place for an aviation nut! Static displays of war birds from WW I thru to current fighter jets all around. By the time we finished lunch we ran out of time to head to Marshall and it looked very stable despite the rains. P-38 in front of the Proud Bird Restaurant - photo by JPR We had New Years Eve dinner there and had a nice time for New Years but could not get a cab home so we hitch-hiked. Colleen in front of the Proud Bird Restaurant trying to get a ride - photo by JPR
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San Diego Report - we headed to Torrey Pines and hoped for some nice soaring as it was post-frontal and along the way I started hearing a weird sound in the rear axle. Yikes! | We stopped at a Tire & Brake place and they determined it was just the rear brakes rubbing on the drums and we got that repaired. No FlyBC trip is complete without a stop at a repair shop. I knew the brakes were getting low but ran out of time in Canada with Christmas and all the other chores. Suburban in Oceanside CA - photo by CMV We didn't miss out at Torrey as the winds stayed pretty North and probably not soarable as we went to the Oceanside pier for lunch and it was not soarable there and we were 20 miles from Torrey.
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Shopping Report - with the weather turning ugly we went on a hunt for a movie and shopping. Gulliver3D was pretty funny, and we got to shop for some post Christmas deals in LA. |
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Marshall Report - we headed east towards Marshall and after a mall visit and an oil change we were at the LZ mooching a ride. We arrived on top at 3:30 pm and had a nice 45 minute soaring flight landing just before dark to a beer supplied by Rusty. | Tomorrow is rain and a mellow day. Valle Gloat Report - Normando reports 2:30 soaring at Valle and making it to the Lake LZ on his Delta. Not missing the rain I guess???
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Road Report - In Sacramento I decided to pick up a new paramotor from Paratoys as I have several new paramotor pilots coming to Mexico to train this winter. | I selected the Black Hawk 120 as I have some bigger dudes coming down . I haven't flown it yet but there are great reviews on it, some are even doing tandems with it! I made it to LA in time for dinner with Colleen but the roads were packed with holiday travellers. The new Suburban (1994 model is getting 20 miles/US gallons) is running well.
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Road Report - heading to LA down the I-5 was fast until I started getting sleepy around Sacramento, where I stopped at a rest stop and slept til dawn. |
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Santa Report - we must have been very good as Santa brought us a haul of gifts! and lots of folks over for dinner too!
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Road Report - 320 kms of drivig today for last minute shopping and to get Aaron moved into his new house. |
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Coquihalla Report - I drove up to Kelowna to get the grandkids and it was ugly on the 5 and 97C. |
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Valley Report - Derek & Martina drove up to launch and it was launchable but the road was pretty icy at the top. |
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Valley Report - great day for shopping and no flying locally. Even California is getting rained out!
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Woodside Report - NE Winds all day and strong. Snow in the late afternoon. | Mexico is calling as soon as Christmas is completed! Air Canad Flash Mob at YVR - flying related New Ozone Ad for those of you that don`t get USHPA Mag - photo by Ozone
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Paramotoring Report - I left Curt and Peter in San Diego to continue flying after they had 15 flights and were doing well, as they had a few more days of vacation planned. | I was in the Cottonwood Mall when I received a call from Peter that his Dad was flying the Paratoys Quad on the 30 meter wing when the engine died (it turned out it ran out of gas), and he was having trouble coming down. Despite the drag of a stopped prop, cage & Quad he was climbing wherever he flew over Ocotillo Airport. It was smooth but lifty and he thought pulling brakes would get him down, unfortunately he didn't read the part of the manual about minimum sink brake setting! After they called me I advised heading away from the airport area to a treed area, and he found some sink over a trailer park and he descended into the airport (deadstick) after 45 minutes. Great way to save fuel! Apparently the landing was not into the wind as he flipped the Quad after he touched down and broke an axle. Learning how to fix a paramotor is part of the fun. Dan's Report - stolen from FaceBook, Danger Dan flew with his pal in a Cessna 170 from Boundary out to the Valley and got some great shots of Woodside. Apparently the outflow winds made a few low passes near Woodside a bit "dicey". Dan's view of Woodside Launch today - photo by Danger Dan Dan's view of Woodside Launch today - photo by Danger Dan
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Motoring Report from CA - after a marathon drive that took 20 hours, Peter & I were in San Marcos, CA but we arrived too late to make it to Salton Sea so off to dinner and drinks, to prepare for an early morning. | We planned to head to Salton Sea as rain was forecast on the coast, and sure enough we were in rain all the way to Palm Springs, nad arrived to light winds and blue skies at Salton Sea. After a careful pre-flight, Curt was clipped in to the 30 meter Paratoys glider and Quad and he had a few aborts, but then he got in the air and did 3 passes before landing. Peter was much calmer on the ground and had 7 flights by the end of day, to Curt`s 6 flights. I even grabbed a footlaunched motor flight on the Paratoys MZ34 powered unit mid-day when it blew too strong for students. We left at 5:30 pm, tired and dusty but all smiles. Paramotoring at Salton Sea on a Paratoys Quad - photo by JPR
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Valley Report - snow and rain. |
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Valley Report - monsoons. |
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Monsoon Report - it rained hard most of the day and night. Huge lakes have formed all around Agassiz and there appears to be some damage to homes below Woodside as debris came down the mountain. I haven't driven up to assess the road yet, perhaps later Monday. |
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Valley Report -Woodside rained later in the day, it was possible to fly but I was busy working on a wood working project indoors. Snow line is just above Bridal Lower Launch but expected to lift to 2000 meters as the pineapple express hits in the next few days. |
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Woodside Report - I was resigned to not getting to fly the motors today, as the forecast was grim. I headed to the bus depot at 10 am, and it looked nice in Chilliwack, light winds and a bit of blue sky. By the time I got back to Harrison Mills . . . it was raining hard and that lasted most of the day. | Martina, Rob & I teamed up to do the West Coast Soaring Club "Turkey Run" dropping off "thank you turkeys" to landowners that graciously allow us to land on their fields. Martina is going to post a Google Earth file of all these fields for the XC folks for next season.
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Valley Report - another wet day in the Fraser Valley. Winter is upon us fully now. Just counting down to the trip to Mexico soon. |
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Woodside Report - magically the sky went blue around 10 am, and there was no wind. You could see the upper level winds were strong and that blew the clouds away. | New Paratoys Quad ready for test flight, running it up against the fence - photo by JPR I decided it was now or wait over a week to fly the Quad and new Paratoys wing for Curt. I taxied the Quad out to the field and got all clipped in and was off and flying! as I climbed to tree top height the wind was strong from the SE, so I stayed close to the field (always a good practice when testing a new motor). I did some circuits and had a nice landing right where I took off from. Nice unit, with excellent stability on the ground and in the air. I taxied the Quad back and then took the Paratoys footlaunch unit out to the field and I was assessing the winds and they had switched to SW. As I was getting ready to lay out the glider, I heard some noise coming from the road? Mower? Train? Vehicle? Then I noticed the fir trees starting to sway as the first gust front hit the Harrison Mills area. As it got stronger I rethought the plan to test the paramotor and headed back to the barn. Soon it was raining with hail embedded! At least I had one safe flight today.
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Woodside Report - a bit gusty at times. I got the Paratoys Quad built and was running it around the field for 15 minutes running in the MZ34 motor. I even ran it down Kilby Road to Burt's and the horses found it amusing as I cruised past. Brakes would be nice on pavement! When I got the footlaunch unit ready, I was going to take it for a flight but it started to blow strong from the NW. | Neat video from Havana, Cuba
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Woodside Report - it looked flyable when Martin N dropped by, but I was busy building Curt & Peter's Paratoys Quad & Paramotors in the barn. A lot of parts in many boxes eventually looked like the finished product - weight and balance hang check completed, now we just need a dry day to test fly them before heading to San Diego to train them both.
| Elk Report - Tom Chromy reported an icy hike up and a soarable flight above launch (on Facebook).
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Woodside Report - another strong outflow day, not as bad but not flyable at Woodside. I spent the day cleaning up after the party and storing all the extra beers that didn`t get emptied. | Thanks again for all the dishes people brought, all the food got eaten rapidly! Pictures from the FlyBC/WCSC Extravanganza here from Cynthia . Martina`s Pictures from the FlyBC/WCSC Extravanganza here . Some folks having fun on speedwings in Hawaii
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Party Report -Woodside was blown out all day and night. We lost the door on the bathroom for some time as a gust blew it off the hinges. I did a hasty repair and had a 45 gallon drum filled with water placed to catch it for the rest of the evening. | It was frickin' howling from the North, but toasty in the barn as we kept the fireplace stoked and the propane heater running upstairs for the band. Pictures from the FlyBC/WCSC Extravanganza here from Cynthia. Martina`s Pictures from the FlyBC/WCSC Extravanganza here . A few folks didn`t make it out due to scheduling and health issues, and we missed you all!
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Woodside Report - Woodside was looking beautiful today although we were in Chilliwack getting food and supplies for the Party. | Louise called and we saw her car at the bottom but didn't see her in the air, but if she flew it looked quite nice with thermals and small CU developing.
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Woodside Report - Derek and I drove past the icy part another 1/2 km and the road looks better. Someone drove on the ice with chains and broke up the ice. It rained again last night so maybe it has iced up again, so we will check later on Friday for an update on the road situation. |
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Woodside Report - Chris B and I were headed up to launch at 1 pm, and at 3 kms the road got icy (like a skating rink) and as we went further we finally spun to a stop. We carefully backed down the hill to turn around at Lower Launch. Please be careful going up there if you don`t have chains! We drove back down and I am organizing chains for the fleet for the weekend. |
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Valley Report -heavy rains all day. | FlyBC JDC Porosimeter - we purchased a JDC Porosimeter for required DHV Glider testing. Many pilots retire their gliders after a few years as they suspect the fabric to be porose. The JDC Porosimeter does a scientific test on the fabric and determine the degree of porosity by measuring the time it takes to pull .25 litres of air thru a 35 c/m area. New glider cloth - 400 seconds. If a glider reaches 10 seconds it is considered unserviceable. We are offering a free porosity test during December 2010, extended due to the weather. A full Paraglider Testing Service with porosity testing, line stretching and cell cleaning and inspection will cost $100. This should be done annually, best in the spring after wet winter flying is completed. Testing Lee's new SkyCountry Discovery III with the JDC Porosimeter - photo by JPR Inspecting Tonya's SkyCountry SCorpion on the FlyBC Glider Rack - photo by JPR |
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