a few more newbie's pre-purchase questions

"Ted Wagner" wrote in message .. .
a.. Flaps or no? (I'll be flying mostly in Arizona, more x-country
than local.)
b.. Opinions on the Rigging Innovations P-124 emergency parachute
system? (Yes, I know it's a ram-air parachute. I have much more
experience on that kind of glider.) Mostly looking for feedback on
comfort compared to other products.
c.. What is the most popular solution to the call-of-nature problem?
(A topic conspicuously absent from the x/c portions of my (two) soaring
books!) Are relief tubes offered in new(er) gliders? (No, this will not
affect my choice of glider.)
d.. What is the best L/D of a laden swallow?
-ted

--

African or European?

They have flaps, by the way - no Standard Class for mother nature!

Pee tubes are popular, followed by various baggies or containers
(Gatorade bottles work just fine in a 1-34, but not at all in an LS6,
BTW - cockpit ergonomics is a critical factor here). Not something to
be taken lightly; a well engineered solution will absolutely be the
difference between a fun flight and misery - been there!

We seem to have a pretty even split on flaps vs no-flaps in the ASA,
not a lot of performance difference; some more maintenance with flaps
and more to screw up inflight, but also fun to learn to use properly -
makes for a "busy" cockpit inflight, which I personally enjoy.
Possible exceptions are 90 degree flap ships such as Pik-20, 1-35,
HPs; neat for landouts, most owners love them, some I know never got
used to them.

Given similar costs, condition, performance, and availabiliy (for a
used Std and 15M ship), the trailer is probably more important!

Kirk
Flaps and loving them