On Mon, 14 Nov 2005 12:06:28 -0500, "Capt. Geoffry Thorpe" The Sea
Hawk at wow way d0t com wrote:

"Jose" wrote in message
m...
[Power pilots - whenever you see
the glider port symbol on your chart, remember that there may be a winch
there. They are less common in the US than over here, but they are used
in the US, and the 1/8th inch steel cable will not be kind to you if you
run into it. Never directly overfly gliderports below 3000' without
talking to their radio operator]

How is this cable used, and why would it extend up three thousand feet?

Jose
--
He who laughs, lasts.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.

Think of running with a kite to get it up. One of the cable is hooked to
the glider, the other end is at the winch (4 or 5 thousand feet away) which
winds it in at 30 - 60 mph. 20-30 seconds later, the glider is at 2000 feet
or so over the winch and drops the end of the cable.

Ok I'm trying to visualize a winch sucking up cable at 88 feet/second
(60 mph) and 2000 feet of cable accelerating toward the ground at 32
ft/sec^2. And I'm thinking of my experience fishing with cheap
bait-casting reels. Does it ever get interesting? Anybody on the
ground ever lose significant body parts? How is the behavior of
synthetic rope going to differ from metal cable?

Don (Not asking snidely, but more in awe.)