On Monday, February 18, 2013 1:52:01 PM UTC-5, Steve Leonard wrote:
On Friday, February 15, 2013 1:21:54 PM UTC-6, wrote: "Herb Knowing the fleet at Bermuda High, I suspect the plane will be a PW-5 or SGS1-26. The round trip might be a bit of a challenge for a beginner! Herb is right. Plan a round trip to a point 50km away. The 1% rule is computed on the entire flight, so as long as you make it back you are allowed 1000m for the release altitude. You do have to fly a 50km leg for the Silver distance. There are lots of cross country and badge savvy people at Bermuda High. They will have lots of good advice on how to make the flight and what is the best direction for a beginner. E.g. the straight line from BH to BBP crosses some tiger country, and the only airport in between (Wild Irish Rose) isn't recommended for glider landings. Matt" Careful there, Matt. A LOT depends on just what is declared. Flying to a point 50 KM away and saying the flight ends there is a whole bunch different than flying to that same point 50 KM away, saying you are starting your flight there, and then flying home. One way, the 1% rule applies to the total flight from release to landing, the other way, only from release to turnpoint. I am not a fan of allowing the out and return for Silver Distance. Sorry, but I am really old fashioned. You should plan a flight to another airport. Make sure that airport is far enough from home that you are not worried about the 1% rule keeping you from towing to your normal release altitude. As to weather sources, many have mentioned their favorites. They are all nice models to use to help you decide "do I want to try this today", but the best weather model you will ever find is waiting for you outside. See what the forecast says, then look outside and see what is really going on. Consult with some of your local cross o****ry flying pilots. Some may tell you they just go take a tow and if they stay up... However you accomplish your Silver Distance, above all, have a fun time doing it! Steve Leonard

The best advice I can give is to read the sporting code before making the flight.
There is an ad on TV that says "they can't put anything wrong on the internet".
This could not be further from the truth, especially on RAS.
At the risk of comitting the same sin, my last read was that you can do a Silver distance using a remote start. The distance scored is from the remote start to the landing point. Altitude loss is from release to landing.
Now that one more recollection is out there, go read the rules.
Good luck and have fun
UH