24.12.07 - Day 5
5.23 - Peter Harvey crosses the finish line first today, with Kawa closely behind which give him the points to claim the title of World GP Gliding Champion. Congratulations Sebastian Kawa from Poland. Second place on the final leaderboard is tied between Uli Schwenk (GER) and Ben Flewett (NZE).
4.43pm - First turnpoint: Bruce Taylor is first through the turn. Flewett has lost height and is struggling and searching. Steve Jones is going well, conserving height, flying sensibly. A gaggle with Schwenk and Kawa are running a little behind.
4.30pm - The fleet are making their way north across the Mackenzie Basin, tip-toeing from thermal to thermal, scrutinising the climb rate of other gliders and deciding which direction to take. Erwin Sommer is flying well, Flewett flying a little off track to find the climbs.
4.00pm - 3-2-1 Go!!!! The gliders have all passed the start line and the presitgious title of World Champion will be determined by this race.
2.30pm - The task setters have reviewed the course and the gliders will now be heading in a north-westerly direction to Mt Hayes and return via Clearbur covering 152.3km. Launching is underway with the race to start as soon as possible.
2.00pm - The thick cloud is still sticking around, with the start of the final race on standby.
11.45am - The weather patterns today will make for interesting race conditions. The task will cover 249.7km, heading first to Goodger then south to the Thomsons range. Leg 3 will travel north-west over the Hakataramea Pass, up the eastern edge of the McKenzie Basin to Mt Hayes before heading back to Omarama airfield via the southern tip of Lake Pukaki. Pilots need to be ready to launch at 1pm, start time to be confirmed. You can catch the action live at www.airsportslive.com
The race will be followed from start to finish by a helicopter-mounted camera, in-cockpit web cams offering viewers a unique angle on the race. Viewers can also benefit from the live commentary providing a fascinating insight into the tactics, decisions and consequences of each competitor.
10.00am - Final day of racing.... Ben Flewett, New Zealand's only representative at the FAI World GP Gliding Championships is currently heading the table after four days of racing. With just today's racing left, Flewett has the world title firmly in his sites with 25 points but the competition is fierce. His closest rival, Steve Jones (GBR) is just one point behind him with Uli Schwenk (GER) on 23 and Sebastian Kawa (POL) the world #1 ranked pilot on 22.
The final day's weather conditions and task will be revealed soon.
23.12.07 - Day 4
4.00pm - And from out of no-where.... Bruce Taylor comes through to take 1st place, 7 minutes ahead of second placed Schwenk, followed by Flewett in thrid place.
3.45pm - Schwenk is now circling on tiptoe, breathing deeply, very low, while Taylor at 7000 ft is blasting along, fast catching up to Schwenk.
3.33pm - Nail-biting ... Schwenk has had a very smooth run north, was first through the third turnpoint, well ahead of the rest. Taylor leads the next bunch, with Flewett not far behind.
3.05pm - Flewett has gone for the left route via the Lindis Ridge, while Schwenk has gone for the right route - taking a gamble on better lift. Schwenk has opened up a 13 kms lead - going at 220 kph ground speed.
2.46pm - Kiessling and Schwenk are racing low along the Dunstans while the main bunch are higher. A very close race at present. Running northwards on leg three. We are able to see Kawa in his Diana, working the joystick which in this glider is located on the right of the cockpit, not central is in all other gliders.
2.38.pm - 100 focussed faces in the Omarama Airfield briefing building. In the trucks and portacoms outside are TV, Animation Research, ABC TV and media crew all working flat out. The cockpits are carrying micropones too, so we are right there with the pilot, hearing his vario hum or groan in reaction to the rising and falling air they fly through. Flewett leads through turnpoint two.
2.32pm - Taylor was first through the first turnpoint with Kawa and Flewett close behind. With the onboard cameras, we can now join the pilot and see what he sees from his cockpit, including the black-bottomed thermals ahead. Nothing between the leaders so far. We can tell from their varied tracks that they have options and decisions to make as they fly about trying to find just where the best route lies.
2.15pm - Getting climbs of 3,000ft per minute. The leading bunch includes Kawa, Flewett, Taylor, McAllister, Schwenk and Kiessling. A few facial grimaces coming our way through the cameras!
2.05pm - Go to airsportslive.com to view in-cockpit coverage, air to air shots, hear expert commentary and watch the race unfold.
2.00pm - The gliders are off heading south to Goodger.
1.10pm - The high pressure system that has been shining on us for the last few days is moving away and declining. A large frontal mass is moving toward us from the south west and the high cloud ahead of it is visible to the west. Winds ahead of the front are northerly 30kts at 10,000 feet, but lighter further up. Wave will be an influence today but difficult to use. The air is likely to be turbulent. Thermals have started but area spread by the wind. We expect rain tonight but clearing by late morning tomorrow.
The task setters have tussled with the problem of changing weather systems and everyone understands the challenge they face. We are now on Task F and an estimated start time of 2pm - the first glider has just taken off. The first turnpoint is Goodger to the south east, south to Thompsons, along leg to the north-east to Grampian, back to Clearburn and then home. The task distance is 236.1km with a maximum start height of 6,000ft.
11.00am - Very different weather patterns for the fourth day of racing. The light winds have gone and a northerly is blowing which will impact the gliders throughout the course. There will be strong winds down the valleys and lakes.
10.00am - briefing is scheduled for 11am with a plan for an early take off at approximately 1pm in order to try and beat the weather system that is heading our way later in the day.
22.12.07 - Day 4
Racing today is suspended following the tragic accident yesterday in which Herbert Weiss died. Racing will resume tomorrow, weather permitting.
Messages of condolence can be sent to messages@airsports.co.nz and these will be forwarded to Herbert's family.
21.12.07 - Day 3
4.50pm - Kiessling wins day three of the competition.
4.44pm - No tea for Krejcirik, he is back on course. Kiessling currently in the lead heading to the fourth turnpoint and clearly going faster than the rest of the field at 235kph.
3.49pm - Kawa was first through the second turnpoint followed closely by Harvey. Now heading North East towards Mount Cook with a complex third leg ahead of them. Krejcirik came through lower and is struggling - heading for a cup of tea on the valley floor???
3.16pm - The pilots have taken a variety of routes on leg one. Galetto, Ruche and Kawa took the Ewe Range direction while Schwenk and a big bunch took the Lindis ridge. Steve Jones pushed out and lost height struggling for a climb, running off track as he searched. Ruche leading the bunch into the first turnpoint, followed by Harvey and Galetto - not much between them.
2.45pm - The gliders are off - a stunning sight with 18 gliders gleaming in the sun and stretched out above the airfield at 5.500 feet, heading out to the south west. Cloud base is predicted at 6,000 feet.
1.30pm - The gliders are lined up on the grid with the first starting to launch. The clouds are clearing. New race start time 2.15pm.
12.30pm - A grey morning has turned into another glorious Omarama day, with light and variable breezes. The flying forecast is another day of thermals, 6,000 feet rising to 8,000 feet and probably the same for tomorrow. Today's task has four legs, taking the pilots south-west to Goodger, then over lakes Hawea and Wanaka to Siberia, across many mountain ranges heading north-east to Glentanner on the shore of Lake Pukaki and back home via the western control point.
20.12.07 - Day 2
4.20pm - Sebastian Kawa (POL) wins day two of the racing, seconds ahead of Ben Flewett (NZE) with Steve Jones following in third.
3.58pm - Getting very exciting! The pilots are gaining height on the ridges, stacking up the energy ready to make the final glide through the final turnpoint and head for home. Flewett, Jones and Kawa head in to the third turnpoint together - an exciting 55km race to the finish, wing-tip to wing-tip. Lead gliders currently travelling approximately 160-170km/h.
3.40pm - Impressive gaggle of gliders all stacked and circling together on the top of the available airspace. Kawa, Galetto and Flewett are heading the bunch out on the leg to the north. The pilots need to make a tactical decision on this leg. There are several choices of ridge to run on the northward journey and this choice could be critical. Kiessling has selected the Dingle route, most others are heading further east.
3.30pm - Kiessling led through the first turnpoint, followed by Russian pilot, Vladimir Panafutin, flying an LS6, the oldest glider in the fleet, making his performance so far even more impressive. They are now about to click the southern turnpoint with Kawa coming through first and well-positioned, but Kiessling is following with extra height. Panafutin is coming through a little lower but going well.
2.40pm - The gliders are flying out west in a bunch, using the lift of bubbling thermals - not turning but dolphining upwards. Kawa and Kiessling have around 9,000 feet over the mountain tops. Giorgio Galetto is out in front, running the ridges but is 800 feet below the others....
2.00pm - The gliders have all been launched and reached the start line altitude and speed and are on their way All the action is available live at www.airsportlive.com - sign up and check out the real time 3D graphics together with expert commentary.
11.00pm - Weather report: Good soaring conditions for the day. Light south easterlies which should become lighter as the afternoon progresses. Moderate thermals.
Gavin Wills revealed the second task, an enlarged version of Day 1 and will be 'lots of fun'! The 282.2km course will head towards Mt Aspiring National Park with three major mountain ranges to contend with. Travelling over Lake Hawea and the top of Lake Wanaka there will be some tough challenges for the pilots as they need to rise above each of the peaks to reach the first turn point at Siberia. The efficient pilots will be well set up for the rest of the course..... With the cloud developing on the second section, pilots must choose a good route between the cloud and the mountain on their journey to the most northern part at Huxley. And then the final stretch over Lake Ohau back to Omarama airfield. Take off is scheduled for 2.00pm.
10.30am - With an earlier race start time and briefing, the gliders are now on the grid, ready for Day 2 of the World GP Gliding Championship. A high pressure system is building in our area and should keep us flying for the next two days.
9.00am - Clear morning - looking forward to a great day or racing
19.12.07 - Day 1
Post Race - Uli Schwenk described himself as lucky! He flew without reference to the other gliders and on the northern leg found a great climb on the Maitland Ridge just when he needed it to gain the height and steam home ahead of the rest. Erwin Sommer sadly went from hero to zero... leader to the ground, landing halfway down the last leg - the only landout for the day. However, another German pilot, Herbert Weiss was not happy with his journey, getting stuck in Timaru Creek with a paddle (as the locals say) and struggling a long while before finding an excellent climb and making his way home - "I was too impatient," he said! South African, Oscar Goudriaan, flew without GPS, simply following the other pilots and gaining 8th place. Spectators and media lined the fence to watch the leaders sprint in. The sound made by Steve Jones' glider as he pulled full brake and flap to slow from 250kph to 0kph along the airfield impressed us all!
5.30pm - Unofficial results are that Uli Schwenk (GER) was first home, closely followed by Steve Jones (GBR). Full results available soon.
2.00pm - The gliders are getting airborne with a start time of 3.30pm set. All the action is available live at www.gpgliding.com - sign up and check out the real time 3D graphics together with expert commentary - compulsive viewing!
12.30pm - The sky is clearing with the curl of cloud from the east dispersing and the temperature rising. Gavin Wills revealed the first task of the world championships as 254km long taking the pilots to the top of Lake Dunstan, up to the northern corner of Mt Aspiring National Park, heading across to the head of Lake Ohau before returning to Omarama. On the first leg, the pilots will need to make a decision - if the lift is working they can fly direct to the first turnpoint; if the area looks too stable, they will need to keep to a hill line to the north. Wills described it as "an interesting task covering the brown, tussocky country to the south before heading into the sharp, pointy snapping peaks of the Siberia." Given the current weather conditions, pilots are expected to reach a maximum altitude of 8,500ft while negotiating the remote alpine terrain. Take off is scheduled for 2.00pm.
10.30am - With the opening ceremony complete, the gliders are now on the grid, waiting for the early morning low cloud base to lift. Briefing is set for 12.00pm New Zealand time.
9.30am - Official Opening saw everyone gathered in the terminal building. Welcome speeches were made by George Rogers, president of Gliding New Zealand, Bob Henderson, president of IGC and Alex Familton, Mayor of Waitaki District. Accolades went to our top 18 international pilots, to Gliding New Zealand and the local gliding clubs for the excellent facilities.
18.12.07 - Practise Day
The competitors launched into a 50/50 sky and worked and waited for the heat to push back the residue of the previous day's gloom. We sent a "sniffer" who reported most the task area to be fine but difficult air and low cloud over the mountains to the north. Eventually the contest director decided to cancel the task but have a practice start. The pilots then headed off to enjoy themsleves as and where they wished. Peter Harvey (GBR) and Ben Flewett (NZE) returned hours later glowing with pleasure about their flight out to the west. Sebastian Kawa (POL) said of his flight, "I decided to kick my own ass! I flew as far and as low as I could. I had to climb long and slow with full water in an area with no radio contact back to base. But I got back........... at 8.20pm!"
26.11.2007 Giorgio Galetto – Looking ahead to New Zealand
Three weeks to go, finally! I am working like a dog to end all the pending business before my departure. November is a very hard time for my trade, but that’s life.
Am I flying at the moment? If only! Here in the Northern Alps it is mid-autumn, which means, rain, rain, and rain again.
Also, I am very much busy with my job as Chief Instructor of the Italian Gliding Federation. There are some new rulings that need my close attention, to avoid severe restrictions for the future. And then, well, try to share your everyday life with a wife that thinks gliding matters 24 hours a day! It’s a nightmare, believe me.
In addition, as current Standard Class Italian Champion, I will have the huge responsibility to defend my country at the 30th FAI World Gliding Champs in Rieti in July 2008, where she will be the Italian Team Captain (i.e.: my boss ...).
I’m seriously taking into consideration to escape somewhere else!! Maybe I can come again to New Zealand, to relax in this astonishing country.
Giorgio Galetto
Italian Team
20.11.2007 – Uli Schwenk - Spreading the word about Gliding
What have you been doing Uli? We work hard now to get the time off for the trip to New Zealand. Most of the gliders are shut in containers, so no flying unfortunately.
Are you getting practice with other gliders? I sometimes fly with the tow-plane to continue good landings.
What is your mind focusing on? I read books about mental training to focus the mind for the upcoming World Championship.
What are you doing? Working in our clothing shops during the day. I present a lot of talks and DVD shows about the GP in New Zealand. I have had about 3900 visitors in the past 20 months. I show the DVD in different towns to people not involved in the gliding movement to show how beautiful and amazing this kind of sport is. It’s the first time in gliding history that I can show our sport in this professional way. People are very interested and hopefully some day we will reach the break even point to become well reported in the mass media.
20.11.2007 – Herbert Weiss – studying the maps in preparation
Herbert who is the owner of a Standard Class Discus 2, was offered the use, by a friend at his club, of an ASW 27 to train for the Grand Prix. In August and September he flew a lot of hours on this glider. The flying characteristics and performance were close to the ASG 29 which Herbert will fly in Omarama. Herbert was offered the ASG 29 for the Grand Prix by "Alexander Schleicher Sailplanes", Germany’s best known sailplane manufacturer.
Unfortunately weather conditions in Germany turned bad very early this year. Since mid October they have had low clouds, fog, drizzle, rain and everything what makes gliding impossible. And since the end of October a snow layer covers the South of the country. Winter has just arrived. So Herbert's preparation activities now focus on ground training. He is studying New Zealand's maps to familiarise himself with the territory and the mountains. And he is studying his flights in Omarama during last January’s championships, trying to find out the failures he made and what could have been done better. The igc-logger files are playing an important role for this work.
Herbert, is an enthusiastic mountain biker when he does not sit in a glider, he spends a lot of time in physical and also mental training. But bad weather does limit this activity presently to jogging and training in the studio.
Now, just one week before we leave Germany, the "stage-freight" starts to rise. Collecting all the items which are needed in NZ, checking the luggage and packing the suitcases is remaining for the next few days before we leave.
October 2007- Airbourne in Oz by Bruce Taylor
No gliders in containers for us... it is the soaring season.
We have already flown one of our national championships - that of the club class, which was in Kingaroy, Queensland, during October. My wife, Anita and I have not long bought a new (old!) glider for the club class. It is an ASW19 that came from the US. It was damaged and we spent a lot of time through last winter repairing it. Now it is OK to fly with all repairs done and a nice cockpit, but is sadly in need of a refinish, which we plan to do next winter - we simply ran out of time! So off we went to Kingaroy with our "shabby" old glider, much to the amusement of all the competitors, as they know me as someone who usually only flies gliders that are looking pretty tidy. After ten days of really tough competition our new "X6" was in the top place. There were many outlandings and (unusually) a lot of really weak weather to deal with. I was happy with the result, and the competitors were not so rude about the '19 afterwards!
Then last week we had a state championship at my home club at Lake Keepit. I was the task setter, as well as flying... yes, the good old ASW19 again, but this time in the standard class. Due to still having no time we did not have the chance to check all the water ballast system, and, as expected, when we tried to fill it up there was water everywhere except in the bags! So, it was a dry comp for me, and hard going against fully ballasted LS8s and the like. However, once again the weather gods threw up a couple of tough days, which grounded a number of my fellow competitors, while the old '19 quietly sneaked home. Fortunately the many fast days we had were not quite enough for them to catch up the points they had lost, and I finished in second place to an LS8 well flown by Lisa Trotter. Happy again! But I do look forward to flying a glider that has more performance than an empty ASW19.
Bruce and Anita at the recent Lake Keepit competition.
12.10.07 Precious Cargo
26.9.07 A news update
This weekend pilots from around Europe hitch up their trailers and head out on the motorways taking their pristine gliders to the container packing depots. Some will drive for many hours deep into the night and through the dawn light. They come from Poland, Czech Republic, Italy, France, heading for the Cobra factory in Germany, where Alfred and Agnes Spindelberger will oversee the loading. IN England the loading point is in Ledbury. Here, four gliders will be loaded, all preened for New Zealand's strict agriculture screening, but, more importantly, for competition flying. In mid-October the containers board ship and head for the port of Timaru in New Zealand's South Island.
14.9.07 Welcome to first edition of the FAI World GP Gliding Championship Finals race diary
Preparation and plans are on the move here in Omarama in New Zealand’s South Island. We are hosting an international group of top pilots from Poland, UK, Australia, France, Czech Republic, South Africa, Germany, Russia, Italy and New Zealand. Three containers will soon be carefully loaded with gliders for shipment from Europe to complement those already here. One that will draw attention is the controversial 'Diana’ with its slimline fuselage and side-mounted joystick.
Pilots are booking their flights and reservations at the Countrytime Hotel on the airfield are mounting. Most pilots are coming with an entourage of family and friends to help assist and cheer them into the sky.
The gliding event is part of the new Air Sports Live circuit and you will be able to view gliding coverage (both live and delayed) on the internet at www.airsportslive.com.
Omarama currently has temperatures of 10°C by day and a freezing -2°C at night. In the background are the beautiful Southern Alps with snow down to 6,000 feet. The airfield is a busy building site with extensions being added to the big hangars. Preparation is well under way and the excitement is building.
