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Old April 27th 10, 10:38 PM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Bob Kuykendall
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Posts: 1,345
Default Trying for a Diamond Goal tommorow - water ballast question

On Apr 27, 2:09*pm, Scott Alexander
wrote:
The forecast tommorow looks fantastic down here in Memphis! *Looks
like perfect conditions to load up on water.

I have water bags in my Std. Cirrus that I have never used... *


My advice is to forget about ballast and concentrate on preparing for
your flight. Leave the ballast for another day when you have time to
work through all the issues.

Figuring out how to get the water into the wings, validating that you
got the right amount in, validating that you can get it all out in a
reasonable time, making sure that there are no leaks in the system,
and getting used to the ballasted handling are things that can absorb
days and sometimes weeks of time.

It could be that you get lucky, that your bags fit properly, don't
take you over gross, don't leak, and that the dump plumbing works
properly and doesn't leak. And it might be that you quickly adapt to
the different handling and that it doesn't throw off your thermalling
and decision making. And it might be that your filling system works as
expected and you get all the air out of the bags and the right amount
of water in. I can see that all happening. But the odds are well under
100%, and any issues that arise will take up a bunch of time and
attention, and cause stress and worry that will distract you from what
you are really trying to accomplish.

Regardless of what you decide, good luck for a great flight!

Thanks, Bob K.