Glider Racing in the future

Will anyone admit that they have won a glider race due to having the latest gadget in their cockpit?

Is anyone willing to state that they heard it from a fellow who knew a guy that said he won a glider race due to some new geewhizbang gadget in the cockpit?

SF

On Sunday, February 7, 2016 at 2:42:54 PM UTC-5, SF wrote:
TOPIC: "Racing in the Futu Should We Moderate the Impact of Technology?"

John Godfrey (QT) began competing in gliders in 1984. He was elected to the US Competition Rules Committee in 2008 and has chaired the committee since 2013. In addition he has served as Competition Director for National championships, Scorer for both International and US contests, and US Team Captain for the 2006 WGC.

John's key interest is in increasing participation by making/keeping racing fun and affordable for people like him (i.e., those unlikely to win a National). In addition to presenting a road map for coming technologies and their possible impact, he looks forward to thoughtful and lively interactions with the audience on these issues.

Thursday Feb. 18, 2016 2:30 - 3:15 PM
SSA Convention Greenville SC
www.ssaconvention.org

Flarm on, you flarming Flarmers
SF

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!se...M/DbF55dhoEQAJ

John can speak for himself, but my read is that he admitted to using it tactically, and he admitted to enjoying it. Don't see it credited with helping him win one. We could put John in a G-102 with a compass and a radio and he would beat most of us, without a handicap.

My vision of the future of racing does not involve electronics, its more about increasing the popularity of the sport so much That Hooters decides to offer the Sierra Fox Racing team sponsorship in the form of crew, beer wings, and a brand new glider.

Maybe not so much a vision as a wish list.

SF



SF

My vision of the future of racing does not involve electronics, its more about increasing the popularity of the sport so much That Hooters decides to offer the Sierra Fox Racing team sponsorship in the form of crew, beer wings, and a brand new glider.


....and make america great again!

Soaring of the future is here - a completely autonomous RC glider has flown a 113.4 km (70.47 mi) open distance. It has also unofficially broken the cross-country soaring out-and-return world record by flying 97.2 km (60.4 mi) declared distance over approximately 4.55 hr.

All the details are in the paper from the US Naval Research Lab that you may read he

http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA614555

I admit that I have won contests because:

1. I used electic varios that were better than the pellet varios.

2. I used a GPS rather than relying only on maps.

3. I used a computer with final glide calculations rather than a wizwheels.

4. I have used PowerFlarm to improve situational awareness, especially for gliders behind me rather than rely on see and be seen.

I must be cheating with all this technology and using it for an unfair advantage over all the other pilots that refuse to use modern technology.

TT

In February '96 I had questions about the future of soaring instrumentation.
Had a day off in Montreal, rented a car and drove to Waitsfield. Had coffee in the CAI shop, and talked with them about the glider GPS thing they had developed and tested at Omarama.
My approach was: Why should I let this thing into my cockpit?
Came away convinced it wasn't a horror. Bought their (then) new model 20.
Where would we be without that technology today?
Imagine everyone buys in to new tech, some more reluctantly than others.
The SSA convention would be a good place for technophobes to learn how to embrace new soaring technology.
Jim

On Wed, 10 Feb 2016 06:10:27 -0800, Dave Springford wrote:

Soaring of the future is here - a completely autonomous RC glider has
flown a 113.4 km (70.47 mi) open distance. It has also unofficially
broken the cross-country soaring out-and-return world record by flying
97.2 km (60.4 mi) declared distance over approximately 4.55 hr.

All the details are in the paper from the US Naval Research Lab that you
may read he

http://www.dtic.mil/get-tr-doc/pdf?AD=ADA614555

Thanks for posting that. I've known about ALOFT since about 2006, due to
coverage in model flying circles, but that is the first full description
of how its thermal finding and use algorithms work that I've seen. Its
interesting that ALOFT carried a TE vario but that it was only used by
the pilot when the SBXC glider was being hand flown and was not connected
to the autopilot.

Here are another pair of links about ALOFT:

- the PHD thesis:
http://repository.lib.ncsu.edu/ir/bi...5978/1/etd.pdf

- the competition report:
http://www.xcsoaring.com/contests/mccc/2008/report.html


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
org |

Why must someone either purchase and install the latest technology
or... be a technophobe?

I can assure you that I've been involved with developing and operating
some of the highest technologies, things that you can't even imagine
but, if I don't want to install some technology that you think is the
cat's meow, I'm a technophobe.

There is some middle ground after all. Some call it "diff'rent strokes".

On 2/10/2016 12:58 PM, JS wrote:
snip
The SSA convention would be a good place for technophobes to learn how to embrace new soaring technology.
Jim

--
Dan, 5J

On 2/10/2016 3:08 PM, Dan Marotta wrote:
Why must someone either purchase and install the latest technology or...
be a technophobe?

I can assure you that I've been involved with developing and operating some
of the highest technologies, things that you can't even imagine but, if I
don't want to install some technology that you think is the cat's meow, I'm
a technophobe.

There is some middle ground after all. Some call it "diff'rent strokes".

snip The SSA convention would be a good place for technophobes to learn
how to embrace new soaring technology. Jim

-- Dan, 5J

Dan, you contentious, technophobic, piece of moose...no, wait!!! Once you get
used to "the new normal" ascendant with much of humanity being continuously
on-line, and compulsively texting to the point of having no time for nuanced
communications, you'll be just fine. Embrace your new reality!

Bob - happily cell-phone-less - W.