WGC Hosin Day 10, Hot today and developing slowly. Launch postponed several times but is underway (12:30 local) 3 Hour Area tasks for all classes. #ussoaringteams

Looking westward prior to today’s launch. Pete Alexander took this pic.

PWR backseat

We made it home. Open class gets to launch last because of runway length. We had 18m and 20m markers on task, not that we saw them, but we could here them. We had an amazing first run and spent more time there trying to avoid going north into the rain. The next leg required a fair amount of deviation. The next leg was short with no climbs in the dead air. Then it was a 80 degree deviation to stay in the lift. We had one climb that might have gotten us home if we took it to cloudbase, but I didn’t realize we could have knicked the last turn from there. But I talked Mike into leaving and continuing down the course. IP3 went home but needed the engine to make it. So our plan worked better. DT found a 9knt thermal to get on final glide and was able to leave from cloudbase about 8 min before us.

From 5E:
I wish the folks back home could see/hear our captain, Pete Alexander in action on a day like today. He’s set up at our team tent keeping a continuous watch of radar, satellite, and live tracking throughout our flights, and is able to divine an impressive understanding of what’s going on out on course. He manages to answer questions, provide feedback, etc with just the right amount of input and without distracting. During today’s dynamic, fast-changing task, he came up with some crucial suggestions to keep us in good air.

Here’s a screen shot from SeeYou–my flight in blue, the winner AJ in red, and overall second place WO in green. I started not long after WO and it looks like we went most of the same places though he avoided the very low point in the second turn area that cost me a lot of time. Meanwhile, AJ was significantly faster with a whole different way of attacking the second and third circles. By just nipping the bottom of the second, retreating to the good air and going due west to nip the bottom of the third, he avoided the showers that washed out most of both circles and gave the rest of us fits. Hmm… wish I’d thought of that!

WGC 2018 Hosin. Day 10
From the cockpit of 20 meter team ARC, Heinz and Karin. Working around and through the storms.

Day 10 Revisited with Erik Nelson