High flight

In article ,
Stefan wrote:

Ross schrieb:
Underneath the wave, below the laminar layer, you get a turbulent
layer of rotor which can be incredibly violent, like frequent negative
gees causing various loose items to get all floaty in the cockpit
violent. The really fun thing about wave flying in a glider is that
you often get to TOW through that region,

Why don't you release there? In the Alps, the upward side of the rotor
is usually used as the staircase into the wave. Saves a lot of money, as
towing directly to wave altitude tends to be expensive.

Depends a lot on conditions. If the wave is low, then you might as well
tow into it. (I released at only 3,300ft above the airport in wave,
wouldn't have released below 3,000ft to climb in rotor probably, and
passed through another region of wave that I was too chicken to try out
at only about 2,000ft or so.) Climbing in rotor can also be unreliable
in my experience. We had several flights which attempted to climb in the
rotor on Saturday and who couldn't make it work out. Lastly, being in
rotor is unpleasant, so I figure if you can get out of it quickly by
towing to the wave then that's a good thing to do.

It really all depends on the wave altitude. If it starts at 2,500ft, tow
right into it. If it starts at 7,000ft, you're probably better off
releasing lower and making your own way up to that altitude.

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon

Mike Ash schrieb:
Depends a lot on conditions. If the wave is low, then you might as well
tow into it. (I released at only 3,300ft above the airport in wave,

I see, this makes sense.

Lastly, being in rotor is unpleasant, so I figure if you can get out of
it quickly by towing to the wave then that's a good thing to do.

I dunno... call me masochistic, but I somehow like that being thrown
around. Plus, I find it much more rewarding to fight my way up and being
rewarded by the smoth wave.

In article ,
Stefan wrote:

Mike Ash schrieb:
Depends a lot on conditions. If the wave is low, then you might as well
tow into it. (I released at only 3,300ft above the airport in wave,

I see, this makes sense.

Lastly, being in rotor is unpleasant, so I figure if you can get out of
it quickly by towing to the wave then that's a good thing to do.

I dunno... call me masochistic, but I somehow like that being thrown
around. Plus, I find it much more rewarding to fight my way up and being
rewarded by the smoth wave.

OK, you're masochistic.

I see where you're coming from, but if it's practical I'd rather bypass
that phase of things myself. Different tastes for different people, I
suppose.

Another potential difference: how often do you get to fly in wave? Here,
I've averaged maybe twice a year so far, and with that rare opportunity
I really want to make sure I can take full advantage of it when it
occurs.

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon