On Aug 5, 4:12*pm, tommytoyz wrote:

I find it amazing that there are not more pilots flying the Diana-2 at
the worlds, since it seems to be head and shoulders above anything
else in the 15M...

Better than average? Sure, I'll buy that. Way better than average? I'd
want to see that quantified.

I guess too many pilots do not like the side stick...

That might be. So far I've sent out several kits for converting side-
stick sailplanes to center stick, and nobody has expressed any
interest whatsoever in going the other way.

or lack of manufacturer reputation.

There might be a little bit of that, too. The majority of competition
pilots count on resale value to step themselves up to the next hot
ship. They might be leery of buying the Next Hot Ship (tm) of the
decade only to find they're out of contention because they can't
unload it for enough to buy the Next Hot Ship of the next decade.

Maybe the Australia fiasco stopped many.

It might be, but I doubt it. I think that most serious competition
pilots are level-headed enough to let one round of he-said-she-said
slide.

Or are there other negative factors?

Well, it is a rather pricy ship...

I think new materials and new structural designs to save weight
will give better results in the future, judging by the Diana-2
approach in the 15M class. Less weight = less required wing area,
higher aspect ration of wing, etc...

That is certainly true. But also, less weight = less structural margin
for crashworthiness + less margin for ground handling loads = less
robust and more easily damaged glider (yes, even with high-tech
materials and processes). All of that stuff is great for cutting-edge
pure racing machines. But one of the things that makes soaring
competition work is that used racing machines get sold off to
recreational fliers, usually at prices very near their original cost,
and the proceeds go towards the Next Hot Ship.

When the cutting-edge ships get so finely optimized that they are more
damage-prone and offer little in the way of crash protection, they
will find less interest in the used market than more conventional
gliders. Less interest means lower resale value, and less money in the
hands of the original buyer for the Next Hot Ship. So, yeah, some
independently wealthy folks with high risk tolerance and good health
coverage stand to totally sweep the competition just by throwing money
at it, and some probably already are. But I don't look towards that as
any huge force in the future of soaring competition.

Thanks, Bob K.