Pavilion Ballots to Membership - Sylmar Hang Gliding Association

June, 2007
Volume 23, No.5
“Is this the world’s greatest sport, or what?”
Pavilion Ballots
to Membership
Deadline for Submittal June 14
Option “C” Gaining Ground
Special Points of Interest
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Pavillion Ballots Out!
Richard Alarcon photo!
Notes from the Editor!
Updated Events Schedule!
Ken’s Brain Twister
Joe Takes a Hike Part 2!
Hungary Joe Cartoon!
Rome’s Ramblings!
Annoying Tidbits!
Still More Inane Quotes!
Board Still Divided on Choice
By Richard Seymour
The months-long Gazebo (henceforth and forever to be
called Pavilion) project has now reached it’s dramatic conclusion, with only the vote of the membership left to decide what, if any, will be the final incarnation.
After receiving continuous input from Club members, the
three versions (A, B & C) recommended by the Pavilion
Committee have solidified. The designs incorporate much,
if not the majority of the desires of the Club. Any of the
three designs will be an improvement over the existing,
slowly disintegrating structure. The ballots were sent out
to PAID UP members, so if you didn’t get a ballot in the
mail you have no one to blame but yourself.
On the Club website, good arguments in favor of the more
ambitious Version “C” were made by Jim Thompson and
Joe Greblo. The absence of any obvious or vocal opposition to Version “C” seems to indicate that an informal,
Club-wide consensus exists for that choice. However, at
this time the Board of Directors itself still has not reached
a consensus on the best proposal, and probably won’t.
This reporter has tried to find out from members of the
Pavilion Committee and the BOD just exactly what would
constitute an electoral victory for any of the three (four,
counting the “do nothing” option) versions. Does the winning version need a majority vote of the ballots cast, or
simply a plurality? Hopefully the election will go one way
or the other in a big way, with a strong mandate for whatever choice is made. Still, from what has been conveyed to
this reporter is that even if, say, Version “C” was to receive 20 votes,
Version “B” 19 votes, Version “A” 18 votes, and “Do Nothing” 17
votes, the BOD would interpret this as a choice for “C.”
There were concerns from some Club members about the look of the
Pavilion designs, with some dialog in the Pilot Forum on the Club
website about the aesthetics of the modular, multi-roof concept. Another last minute appeal came from Larry Chamblee’s wife Kim to
save the wisteria that surrounds the existing structure, and keeps it
upright. Informal promises were made to try and mitigate these concerns.
One interesting omission during the entire discussion period was finishes and color choices. Version “C” for example, has four 12’ by 12’
metal roofs, yet no one to this reporter’s knowledge has brought up
the subject of what kind of metal this might be, or what the finish
might entail or look like.
Another missing component during the debate was the possible construction timetable of each Version. The only time frame mentioned
by either the Committee or the BOD was the desire to aim for a grand
opening in October at the annual Dahlsten Cup.
The BOD will collect the mailed-in ballots, and announce the results
at the July BOD meeting, if not before. The results will also be posted
on the website, and published in the newsletter.
The next step will be an informal approach by the BOD to the local
planning commission to get info on the proper steps to get the project
eventually approved and permitted. Once this happens, actual construction may begin.
—RS
Notes From the Editor
Yes on Version “C”
The editor of High Times believes that a new pavilion needs
to be built to replace our old gazebo, and that of the three
versions listed on the ballot, the arguments in favor of Version “C” seem cohesive and rational. Of the three, Version
“C” is the most ambitious, and gives the Club the most leeway in the future to either expand or improve the Club property.
Version “C”, however, is not a perfect solution to what the
Club needs on it’s property. Version “C” is a compromise,
and like all compromises has built in flaws that are apparent,
or soon will be. Version “C’ was the best choice that the
committee thought would be acceptable to the Club membership. It’s design was the work of our volunteer architect Hiro
Muramatsu, with much input from Jesse Benson. The look is
modern, and when finished will make the rest of the LZ (if
not SIBL and the rest of the neighborhood!) look a tad
shabby in comparison! It will be built to city, county and
state codes, as well as the federal handicap access guidelines.
This pavilion was also designed to be expandable in the future.
Hang Gliding Association
SYLMAR HANG GLIDING ASSOCIATION HIGH TIMES is published to
chronicle the events and progress in development of the Sylmar Hang Gliding
Association and is published as a service to the members of this association.
Neither the Editor nor the SHGA make any warranties or representations nor
assume any liability concerning the validity of any advice, opinions, or recommendations expressed in this publication. Individuals relying upon the published material do so at their own risk. Subscriptions are available free only
with full or associate memberships in the SHGA.
Editorial contributions, articles, letters, cartoons, and photographs are welcome, and remain the property of the contributor. They may, with the consent
of the contributor, be submitted for publication in other hang gliding or paragliding journals. Submissions should be in one of the following formats: Word,
TIFF, or EPS. Macintosh and Windows files are welcome. Contributions are
accepted in electronic or written format via e-mail or mail. Deadline for contributions is the 23rd of the month. Send submissions to: SYLMAR HANG
GLIDING ASSOCIATION HIGH TIMES, c/o Newsletter Editor, P.O. Box
922303, Sylmar, CA 91392
Or e-mail electronic files to: editor@shga.org
Or e-mail to editor : SeymourNme@aol.com
Board of Directors—2007
President
Joseph Vandertol
(818) 359-3728
Vice President
Larry Chamblee
(310) 854-7268
Secretary
Kate Freemantle
(626) 564-9505
What the Club needs is a Clubhouse with bathrooms, kitchen
area, office space and a central meeting room. This needs to
be large enough for events such as the annual Xmas party ,
the Spring Aire outreach and the monthly BOD and Club
meetings, and available for rental to outside groups with
similar interests. Not to mention more weddings!
Treasurer
Katherine Yardley
(818) 352-6164
Safety Director
Joe Szalai
(661) 799-7349
Activities Director
Chris Wolters
(818) 772-1627
Director-at-Large
Jeff Chipman
(818) 833-4323
Director-at-Large
Joe Greblo
(818) 367-2430
The Club owns property in the community. The community
and the Club need to be tied closer together. By having a
Clubhouse large enough for small groups of people from the
community to gather and use, while surrounded by pilots and
the fact of flying ,would in my mind further identify Sylmar
with Hang and Paragliding. It would be a good thing, for
both our neighbors and ourselves. It would help us clean up
our act.
Director-at-Large
Malury Silberman
(626) 284-0777
Director-at-Large
Ken Andrews
(626) 440-7221
Director-at-Large
Lynn McLaughlin
(818) 421-3251
However, Version “C” has one drawback that I believe
should be stated here and now. It is not ambitious enough!
Not to mention the income having events would bring in. In
fact, if this Clubhouse was only rented out once a month to
outside groups, it would generate more money per annum
than all the glider tube rentals, membership dues, and interest on CDs put together times three.
Other Important Numbers
Newsletter Editor
Richard Seymour
(818) 244-2245
Membership Manager
Jay Devorak
(818) 633-4668
Glider Storage Mgr.
Jay Devorak
(818) 633-4668
Kagel LZ
(818) 362-9978
Kagel Windtalker
(818) 362-9604
Meeting Calendar 2007
Of course, we would have to sell this idea to the city and our
neighbors, and manage these events so that traffic and noise
would be minimal, but this is not rocket science but simple
administration.
Board Meetings (held at 7 p.m., the second Thursday of the month, at the
Windsports House): June 14, July 12, Aug. 19, Sept. 13, Oct. 11, Nov. 8, Dec.
13.
Then and only then, will the Club have the facility it needs.
—CH
One-time $100 initiation fee, $60 yearly dues. Contact Jay Devorak for additional membership information.
Page 2
Saturday Club Meetings (held in the LZ): July 15, Sept. 9, Nov. 11.
Membership
Ken’s Brain Twisters
Relativity
This is the first installment of what could be a
regular column, supposing there's interest and
the newsletter editor doesn't edit me out. ( Editor’s NOTE: Not much chance of that!) My intent is that each column will have a theme, with
questions that range from straightforward to unusual (or misleading) enough to require thought
by most pilots. Somewhere else in this same issue are my answers, but I can't promise to get all
of them right. I'm always interested in discussing these topics, either in person or on the pilot
forum.
• • •
Here’s Ken Andrews again, trying to make us all think
Photo by Wayne Yentis
“Windspeed is the ground’s airspeed.” It's all
about perspective, and these questions explore
the theme of relative motion.
d) It doesn't fall; it just stays where it is
3. After a cross-country flight, you are landing in the barren
desert with no wind indicators. As you fly straight and
1. George flies over the SIBL baseball fields
level, you notice that your path over the ground leads to the
and drops a baseball on a parachute from his
glider. He has a 5 MPH tailwind at the time; that left. In order to land upwind, you should:
is, there is a 5 MPH north wind and he is flying
south with a 20 MPH airspeed. Which direction a) Turn right
b) Turn left
does George see the baseball go?
c) Turn right if you're flying nearly upwind, or turn left if
you're flying nearly downwind
a) Nowhere, because it gets caught on the
d) Turn your airspeed indicator to the right, to see if it reads
glider’s rear wires
b) It falls directly below him all the way to the higher or lower than when facing straight ahead
ground
c) It falls ahead of him and then get swept back
behind
d) It falls behind him from the moment he releases it
( See Answers on page 7)
2. You are standing in the LZ when a pilot performs a loop low overhead. While inverted and
at the moment when he’s at the top of the loop,
he tries to take a picture, but instead he drops his
camera. Which direction do you see his camera
fall?
a) Up
b) Down
c) Up and then down
Page 3
Malury Silberman, his wife, L.A. County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky and Ken Andrews. Are we connected or what?
Photo submitted by Malury Silberman
Joe Takes a Hike; Part Two.
By Richard Seymour.
( Our story continues from last month as our hero,
SHGA pilot Jrans “Joe” Petrosian, a 21 year-old
Armenian Christian from Iran attempts to illegally
escape from his homeland to avoid religious persecution. It is the summer of 1986. Joe’s family has paid
a “coyote” (human smuggler) to get Joe to Pakistan,
where he hopes to apply for United Nations Refugee
Status, the first step on the way to America. After
leaving Tehran Joe meets Andre, who becomes his
good friend and fellow fugitive. The coyote gets them
to Zahedan, a border town, and there they wait for
the right conditions to try and cross the border into
Pakistan. Finally, the coyote gives the word. Tonight’s the night!)
The driver of the car that was hired by the coyote
takes Joe and Andre as close to the border as he
dares, and then let’s them out and drives away. Now
the three of them must follow an old, tiny trail that
the coyote has used before. They start off across the
desert, barely illuminated by moonlight. After a few
miles, they begin to see ahead the Iranian Army vehicles and positions covering the border. The coyote
leads them down gullies and ravines as they get
closer to the soldiers. Finally they are right amongst
the tanks and armored vehicles, and can hear the soldiers talking. By some lucky chance the three of
them evade detection, and cross the invisible line
separating the two countries. Now they have to perform the same miracle and sneak past the Pakistani
Army guards. The dawn is approaching, and they
have to be clear before it gets light and they are spotted. If they are caught they will be interned (if not
shot!), and eventually sent back to Iran, where prison
awaits them.
They walked through the desert sand in tennis shoes,
and by this time the sand had abraded not only their
socks but all the skin on their feet. They were bloody
raw and hurt like hell.
Six hours and many miles later, they finally pass the
last of the border forts. They made it! They are exhausted, but can’t stop yet. Now they have to hide in
the daylight, and later try and make their way to a
small village in Pakistan where they can rest and get
ready for the next step.
That night they limp into the village, and go to the
safe house that the coyote has used before. There Joe
Page 4
Joe Petrosian at age 21.
Photo by Andre Fredany
and Andre stay until their feet begin to heal, and their guide
arranges a truck to take them on to the next stop. They climb on
board, and head east.
Unfortunately, the Pakistani Army has found their tracks in the
desert, and now are on the hunt for them. While driving east,
the escaping three realize that they are being followed by soldiers in army vehicles. Soon they are being chased. This is not
good, because even if they can outrun the Army vehicles, the
soldiers can radio ahead and block the highway.
The escaping truck manages to lose the pursuers, but they are
not out of the woods yet. While changing roads and directions,
the coyote sees a bus headed west on the highway. He orders
the truck around, and they chase and pull over the bus, which is
full of Baluchis heading to the border area. The coyote has a
quick talk with the bus driver, money exchanges hands, and
then Joe, Andre, and the coyote board the bus which turns
around and heads back into Pakistan, the opposite direction in
which all the other passengers want to go! This bus is full of
goats, chickens and other stuff the passengers want to sell at the
market. The coyote grabs a hat off one of the farmers and sticks
it on Joe’s head as camouflage, and “borrows” a coat from another for Andre. The first hired truck meanwhile hightails it
outta there out, racing back west.
A few miles down the road the Army vehicles zoom past the
bus, still chasing the now empty truck! Eventually the bus is
stopped at a roadblock, where it is searched by soldiers looking
for the fugitives. They pass up Joe and Andre, who by now
blend in perfectly with the locals. The bus is let go, and eventually arrives in Quete, the coyote’s destination, and where the
( Continued on page 5)
( Joe’s Hike continued from page 4)
main safe house is. This was to be Joe and Andre’s home
for months.
“We only had bananas to eat the entire trip. Once we got to
Quete, they gave us each a Fanta (softdrink). It tasted so
good!” remembers Joe.
The plan now is for Joe and Andre to arrange interviews at
the United Nations Refugee office in Karachi, and hopefully get official Refugee status. That way they have a
chance to apply for exit visas to either Europe or America.
Joe and Andre fly to Karachi, and get the interviews. Then
they have to wait for the results. Unfortunately, Joe is rejected, because he foolishly mentioned he left Iran partially
to avoid the draft! Joe has to return to Quete to await the
time interval before re-applying.
Upcoming Events
Spring Aire Festival! Saturday, June 9.
Contact Chris Wolters at (818) 772-1627 or
e-mail him at efxartist@aol.com.
Board of Directors Meeting! Thursday,
June 14 @ 7pm at Windsports house.
Father’s Day Bar-B-Q June 17. Contact
Chris or Joseph Vandertol.
After more weeks in Quete, Joe gets anxious and decides
his chances are better if he stays in Karachi. The coyote
arranges for a taxi to take Joe to another safe house inside
the Clifton area of Karachi. There he waits with 30 other
refugees, all in the same boat. Eventually Joe gets another
interview, but is turned down again! It’s now been 6-7
months since he entered Pakistan, and he’s no closer to escaping!
Hurricane Utah trip July 4-9.
All this time, Joe has been able to communicate with his
family by sending letters by regular post and also hand carried across the borders by smugglers who make a living by
providing this and other services to the millions of people
world-wide who are on the run or are simply trying to get
from here to there. By this same system, Joe’s parents in
Iran sent him money in bits and drabs. Joe says “Don’t ask
where they hid the money.” This money allows Joe enough
money to eat, barely. Joe does have access to more money
in an emergency, and he decides this qualifies!
Big Sur Windsports Trip September 29.
Joe and Andre realize that they cannot leave Pakistan legally, so they search for and find another Iranian coyote,
with Afghan partners. The coyote agrees to get them into
India for five thousand bucks each. He wants one thousand
up front, and the rest just before they reach the border.
The two boys now fly to Lahore, and meet the coyote’s Afghan partner, who’s named Ashraf. Ashraf says that they
must pass as European tourists, and that they will travel on
a bus that leaves Lahore and heads for the border once a
week. They agree to meet the next day for the trip. Unfortunately, when they do Ashraf informs them that it’s too risky
for them to travel together, and that one of them will have
to wait a week until the next bus. Andre gets on the bus,
and waves goodbye to Joe.
( Continued on page 7)
Page 5
Yosemite trip in August 11, 12.
Dockweiler Beach Party Saturday, September 8.
Dahlsten Cup in October. Date TBD.
Xmas Party December 8.
Want more Sylmar HG/PG news?
Visit the website!
FOLLOW the Pavilion Madness progress!
SEE photos of what happened to Phill Bloom’s glider after it
got tumbled!
READ about the best Kagel flights in history!
HATE Vrezh for getting that new glider!
ADMIRE Cutter’s perseverance on trying to predict the unpredictable!
GET ALL WORKED UP about something!
COME UP with an entirely new discussion point!
WWW.SHGA.COM!
Just Another Day at Sylmar
“Cabbagehead! Where haf you ben? Ready “You are not going to blow yer lan-dink “He is comink in too slow! He is goto fly today? Throw yer gli-der on!”
today, are you?”
ing into da rotor! He is…..”
Whack!
( The sound of breaking aluminum tubes)
Joe & Caitlin
Page 6
“I told you once, I told you twice. What
ist WITH you goofballs?”
photo by Cindy Benti
“Where’s da beer?”
When Andy realized we’d set him up for this blackmail picture, he quickly grabbed his tandem
passenger’s boyfriend for another shot! Smart man. Very smart man! Photos by Jeff Carlisle
( Joe’s Hike continued from page 5)
Ashraf tells Joe that he is returning to Karachi, but will
be back in a few days.
Joe waits in Lahore a week. Ashraf never shows up.
Days go by. No Ashraf. Weeks go by, no Ashraf.
While Joe is waiting he’s living on the second floor of
another safehouse with three room mates, who just happen to be Afghan Mujahadeen fighters. These guerrilla
soldiers spent part of the year fighting the Russians (and
each other!) in Afghanistan, and part of the year resting
up in Pakistan. They all like Joe, assuming he’s another
Muslim like them. Joe decides not to correct their mistake!
Because Joe is now (mostly) broke, he can only afford to
eat once a day.
“There was a market vendor who would roll by outside
our window everyday. He would call up, and we would
yell down what we wanted. We would lower a little bag
on a rope with some money in it, and he would fill the
bag with bread, bananas and hashish, and we would
wheel it back in. This went on for 6 weeks!”
Joe now decides to return to Karachi, and hunt down the
elusive Ashraf. After a 2 day train trip that Joes says was
a hellish experience of dirt, heat, and unwashed people,
Joe arrives back in Karachi. Joe goes to the restaurant
where he originally met Ashraf, and there eventually
learns that Ashraf had been arrested. Joe then tracks
down the Iranian coyote who was Ashraf’s partner, and
blackmails him into giving Joe a refund. The coyote
would pay Joe 500 bucks one week, and then 300 the
next. This went on for weeks. Finally he gets all of his
money back, or at least as much as he thought he could
get.
Back in funds, Joe now needs to find another coyote,
and go through the whole process again. While in Karachi, he got a letter from Andre who had made it across
into India, and was now in New Delhi! Andre says that
if Joe can get there, it is a simple matter to get the coveted U.N. Refugee status! In fact, Andre has already
made an appointment for Joe for an interview!
Joe has now been in Pakistan 11 months.
Joe finds another Afghan coyote, pays him, and joins a
group of a dozen other refugees for the attempt. Again,
Joe is to attempt to pass himself off as a European tourist. The group boards the bus, and heads for the border.
Just shy of the border they stop, and await the coyote to
take then to another safe house. That night the coyote
takes them to the border in the middle of the night, and
the begin their trek….
To be continued !
Page 7
RS
Expired Memberships
Name
Austin, Tom
Cheng, Peter
Coomber, Kraig
Dykstra, Pat
Gonzales, Reynaldo
Grigsby, Rich
Kendall, Greg
Kuczewski, Bob
Lamper, Michael
Loudenback, David
Peden, Eric
Pressley, Seth
Schwartz, David
Susko, Dave
Urbina, Pedro
Wagner, Jaromir
SHGA Expiration Date
4/30/07
3/31/07
3/31/07
2/28/07
4/30/07
3/31/07
4/30/07
2/28/07
3/31/07
3/31/07
2/28/07
3/31/07
4/30/07
3/31/07
1/31/07
4/30/07
(Ken’s Brain Twisters continued from page 3)
Answers
1.D
This question is entirely from George’s perspective in the air, so the fact
that there’s a north wind on the ground is irrelevant. Possibility A hasn’t
happened (yet). An object with no air resistance, or drag, would fall
directly below George. But a baseball on a parachute has a lot of drag,
and it will rapidly lose its initial 20 MPH airspeed. When George lets go
of the baseball, it immediately gets swept back and disappears from his
view.
2.B
When this pilot is at the top of his loop, he’s not going up or down; he’s
flying horizontally. The glider and pilot are upside down at that moment, but the camera doesn’t care. It falls downward, just as anything
does when dropped from level flight. Interestingly, Dino is hanging
above his glider at the time. What’s really happening is that the wing is
generating lift, and this lift is pulling the glider and the pilot downwards
faster than they would fall with gravity alone.
3.A
I find this easiest to think about with an example. Suppose I’m flying
due north, but my ground-track is actually northwestish. This means the
wind must have an easterly component in it. There’s not enough information here to know if the wind is E, NNE, or SE, but the east part is
for sure. Whatever the situation, I should turn right to point more nearly
upwind. Moreover, I can keep turning right until my crab angle is zero,
and then I know I’m flying directly upwind. There’s one catch to this
system: if I’m flying directly downwind, my crab angle will also be
zero. My logbook records a bad whack from a cross-country flight in
Utah as proof of that possibility.
-K.A.
Rome’s Ramblings
•
•
•
This from the Monterey Herald: “Three Condors
found dead in a week.” Biologists have found three
dead condors in the Big Sur area, and what killed
them remains a mystery. All three birds were part of
the California Condor Recovery Plan started in 1985.
The three carcasses have been sent to laboratories in
Ashland, Oregon and the San Diego Zoo. At these
labs the birds will be examined and dissected to
determine the cause of death. Condors have wing
spans reaching up to ten feet and weigh up to 25
pounds. Biologists have long suspected that lead from
hunting ammunition was the primary cause of condor
mortality. Especially elk hunting. A study released last
year by scientists at the University of California-Santa
Cruz found a definitive link between the two.
California condors are curious, which contributes to
the difficulties in protecting them. In the mid-1980s
there were only 22 condors left. As of April 30 2007,
there were 138 in the wild out of a total of 286. The
goal is to have 150 free-flying condors each in
California, Arizona and Utah, and a reserve of 150 in
captivity. There is also a program to re-establish
condors to their historic range in Baja California.
It sure seems that the money is burning a hole in the
BOD’s pocket. They are talking about spending 30-40
thousand dollars on the new gazebo. I remember when
the Club was lucky to have 3-4 thousand as income
for the whole year. But whatever. It’s only money.
Think how much fun we will have criticizing the
Board if something goes wrong. One good thing is
that if we have a nice new pavilion thingy we’ll have
to get a nice new lawn to go with it. Without gophers.
Yes, I said gophers. Did you expect a Rome’s
Ramblings WITHOUT me mentioning the @#$%^&*
gophers? KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!
Speaking of critter-cide, a group of pigeon fanciers
got caught up in a sting operation, where they were
caught red-handed killing hawks who they claimed
were after their beloved pets. The Fish & Game
people estimate that these nuts killed up to 2,000
raptors, mainly Cooper’s Hawks and Red-tails, over
the last five years. They even had custom-built 12gauge shotguns with six foot barrels (to work as a
silencer) to do the dirty deed. Now they are in trouble
with ATF authorities as well. I hope they throw the
book at them!
It is not the thief who is hanged, but the one caught stealing.
—CZECH PROVERB
We enact many laws that manufacture criminals, and then a few that
punish them.
—TUCKER, Instead of a book
Whoever profits by the crime is guilty of it.
—FRENCH PROVERB
Page 8
Tidbits
•
•
•
•
•
•
Tuesday, May 8 was a convergence day. Vrezh Tumanyan says
that it was the best day at Kagel this year so far. He should know,
because he flies more than anyone else in the Club. More on this
later. Anyway, Phill Bloom, Ron Wiener, Sebastian “Seabass”
Lutges, Vrezh, and Jeff “Chippy” Chipman all took off, got up
high to 11,000 feet, and were tooling around a couple miles north
east of Kagel when out of the blue Phill hit some mean
turbulence and tumbled, then had to deploy his parachute. He
landed safely, but his glider was nearly totalled. There are some
good eyewitness accounts from Jeff Chipman and Jim Shaw in
the Pilot Forum on the Club website. Doug Martens also flew
that day and had a great flight.
Speaking of Vrezh. Who in the heck IS this guy? For the last
couple of years he’s been at the site flying every chance he gets,
winter, spring, summer or fall. He’s always accompanied by his
faithful wife Flora, and her pet goat Benji. He takes off, flys all
over the place and for hours, and then sets up and has nearly perfect landings. Well, except for that one time. Then there was that
OTHER time, well never mind. Now this guy has done two
things that he will never be forgiven for. First, he gets the
USHPA “Safe Pilot Award, Gold Level.” This award is given to
pilots who rack up 500 safe flights without an (injury) accident.
Then, to add insult to injury, he goes and buys the best, most advanced (flex-wing) glider on the market today. It’s the new Moyes Lightspeed RS 3.5. It’s got a carbon fiber frame, crossbar,
sprogs, battens, and basebar. It’s got a “Smoke” PX10 top, with
his name on it. The colors are yellow, black and blue. As of this
writing (May 29), he still is expecting delivery from the Moyes
representative Craig Coomber. ( Editor’s NOTE: Vrezh first flew
his new glider on Thursday, May 31. He launched at 4:17 pm).
This glider will be lusted after by all the other hotshots, and we
expect some frenzied domestic disturbances as they inform their
significant others that instead of a college education for the
sprouts that 7 grand is gonna have to go to buy a new hang diver.
Yee Ha!
Joe Greblo had an unusual critter encounter a couple of Saturdays ago. Joe had just watched one of his students, named Todd
Bloomer, land way short in the wash. While Todd was slowly
walking his glider up to the grass area, Joe noticed what appeared
to be a coyote slowly stalking Todd, about 50 yards behind him.
Suddenly the stalking turned into charging. Joe starting running,
waving his arms, and this made the coyote sheer off. Joe speculates that maybe it was a female coyote with a litter of pups in a
den in the wash, and was provoked by Todd’s nearby landing.
The Flying Circus trip to Dunlap was a huge success, with 14
pilots and their families showing up. The only good gossip we
heard was that Hungary Joe had a screwy landing because of the
shifting wind directions in the Dunlap LZ.
Long-time pilot and Club booster Erica “The Red” Koesler has
announced her retirement from hang gliding, and is moving away
and giving away all her old equipment. Boo hoo. Tears, sackcloth
and ashes all around. We’ll miss you, Erica!
Is this the greatest sport in the world or what?