"F.L. Whiteley" wrote:

Having ground looped once on a winch launch (inexperienced wing runner and
tall grass) I doubt I would ever consider this on grass or dirt. A paved
surface might be okay with a very experienced pilot. A wings level assist
would be good, but might be moot if the up slack just pulled the glider off
the leveler. Holding a glider with airbrake/wheelbrake combo level doesn't
seem prudent. The more bothersome aspect is the lack of another set of eyes
to visually check the launch zone for encroachment.

Think I'd prefer to file this in my never do list (from a winch driver
perspective).
'Never winch launch unassisted'
'Never winch launch downwind'

Frank


By us there is no wing runner for winch launch, only a wing holder. The
acceleration is so that nobody would be able to follow the glider,
nor any vehicle whose propulsion relies on friction on the ground, since
the friction coefficient will never be sufficient to provide such an acceleration.
So the wing holder could easily be replaced by any object (wing stand, tyres heap,
etc.) having the same function, although we never do it because we want to
keep the watching capability of the wing holder.