Open Class

On Friday, February 13, 2015 at 7:29:03 PM UTC-5, Jonathan St. Cloud wrote:
I have been away from soaring for 12 years and have noticed the open class now has long wing and much shorter wing birds (JS-1C) competing. I am curious how do the 21 and 23 meter new ships keep up with the ASW-22BL's and Nimbus-4's. Are the new shorter wing gliders better overall (better L/D, better penetration ) or just better on strong days when wing loading counts more than the ability to stay in the air?

I think a lot depends on where you"re flying. Strong conditions may favor higher wing loading, weaker prefers lighter wing loading/higher aspect ratio..

On Friday, February 13, 2015 at 8:11:29 PM UTC-6, Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot) wrote:
On Friday, February 13, 2015 at 7:29:03 PM UTC-5, Jonathan St. Cloud wrote:
I have been away from soaring for 12 years and have noticed the open class now has long wing and much shorter wing birds (JS-1C) competing. I am curious how do the 21 and 23 meter new ships keep up with the ASW-22BL's and Nimbus-4's. Are the new shorter wing gliders better overall (better L/D, better penetration ) or just better on strong days when wing loading counts more than the ability to stay in the air?

I think a lot depends on where you"re flying. Strong conditions may favor higher wing loading, weaker prefers lighter wing loading/higher aspect ratio.

the JS-1C seems to have done pretty well and run with "the big boys" at both Uvalde 2012 and Leszno 2014.

http://soaringspot.com/wgc20112/resu...ay-by-day.html

http://soaringspot.com/leszno2014/re...ay-by-day.html

On Friday, February 13, 2015 at 6:42:17 PM UTC-8, Tony wrote:
On Friday, February 13, 2015 at 8:11:29 PM UTC-6, Charlie M. (UH & 002 owner/pilot) wrote:
On Friday, February 13, 2015 at 7:29:03 PM UTC-5, Jonathan St. Cloud wrote:
I have been away from soaring for 12 years and have noticed the open class now has long wing and much shorter wing birds (JS-1C) competing. I am curious how do the 21 and 23 meter new ships keep up with the ASW-22BL's and Nimbus-4's. Are the new shorter wing gliders better overall (better L/D, better penetration ) or just better on strong days when wing loading counts more than the ability to stay in the air?

I think a lot depends on where you"re flying. Strong conditions may favor higher wing loading, weaker prefers lighter wing loading/higher aspect ratio.

the JS-1C seems to have done pretty well and run with "the big boys" at both Uvalde 2012 and Leszno 2014.

http://soaringspot.com/wgc20112/resu...ay-by-day.html

http://soaringspot.com/leszno2014/re...ay-by-day.html

My (limited) understanding is that span loading is a significant factor. If you can make a lighter glider with a high aspect ratio, the span can be reduced as the weight is reduced without sacrificing un-ballasted performance. With a smaller wing area the wing loading can be increased without busting the overall weight limit for the class.

I know of at least one pilot that has passed on the Quintus or EB-29 to go with the JS-1c. As a Nimbus3 driver I can't help but be envious of the lighter empty weight, shorter span, better handling that comes with better performance to boot.

Cheers,
Craig 7Q

The smaller the wing (area, not span), the bigger the relative drag of the fuselage becomes.

On that note, what happened to the 18 meter Diana II that was rumored to come out?

On Saturday, February 14, 2015 at 1:57:36 PM UTC-6, J. Nieuwenhuize wrote:
The smaller the wing (area, not span), the bigger the relative drag of the fuselage becomes.

On that note, what happened to the 18 meter Diana II that was rumored to come out?

Maybe the same thing that happened when someone asked Greg Cole (Duckhawk designer) if he was going to make an 18 meter version. He said "Why would you want to make it slower?" :-)