How Low to Spin??

Eric,

Well said.

To reemphasize, contest pilots do not put their aircraft or lives at
risk for the sake of points. They make balanced decisions. If they
appear to some to be "dangerous," it probably points to a difference
in skill and experience between the performer and the observer. Don't
get into the habit of assuming that the only way to win is to take
unreasonable risks. Such thinking can get you into far more trouble
than you (or any other pilot) could hope to handle.

Eric Greenwell wrote in message ...
Ted Wagner wrote:

Thanks Shawn, I'll take a look.

Btw, so say "It's *safe* to say everyone should land (blah blah blah)" is,
well, stating the obvious (kinda like saying "It's safe to stay on the
ground"). The pertinent question is whether it was *unsafe* for me to
continue the turn in the precise circumstances in which I found myself. I
remain open to the possibility that it was not, but in the same spirit,
being over tiger country out of reach of landable points is questionably
unsafe, yet I hear regularly of pilots doing this as a matter of routine,
especially in contests,

We must know entirely different groups of pilots, because I sure don't
hear pilots talking about this, unless it starts out "Boy, did I screw
up today...". The story often ends with "... so I ended up ground
looping (or "scaring myself sh--less", "hitting the fence", "breaking
the tail", etc)".

and if I continue flying contests long enough (and I
hope to be doing them for many years), I will have to take that step many
times myself.

No, you certainly don't have to. Pilot's choice, you know. It some areas
in some conditions, the lift can be so reliable that you can actually
count on it, but if done regularly, you will find the times when you
misjudge the weather.

I want to err on the side of safety, but at the same time, I
want to be reasonable and competitive.

Take a look at the flight traces from the top pilots. See if they are
really taking these chances. The ones I've flown with didn't seem to
take these kinds of chances. I think the philosophy for many of them is
"there is always another day and another contest, and if you break your
glider, you won't even win this day or this contest".