Blow outs, Blowups, And Flying Granola Bars

(Going for the Silver Distance)

By Mac McKain

The trip out to Salida was uneventful and fun. Having a blowout on a glider trailer tire has become pretty much an expected event. Not having the right tools on hand is a bit new for me. I was able to call the lead vehicle by cell phone and have them pick up a four-way lug wrench. Before Bob Craig, Perry and son could get back on the interstate I had managed to change the tire(fingers of steel). I purchased a new tire and we pressed on. We spent the night within walking distance of where we had stayed one night on the first of our trips to Boulder back in 1997. I think we did well to go through Denver and Colorado Springs early on a Sunday. The traffic was not all that bad. By early afternoon we were on the Salida airport. Which by the way, must be named after our own Jaime Alexander for that is the name of the Salida airport.

With much hammering, gnashing of teeth and dangerous metallic sounds we soon had the 1-23 and one L-13 built. This seems to amuse the fiberglass pilots to no end. I think our club will soon be good enough to book a few road shows. We are after all and not to say the least, an event!

Jamie showed up just as we tossed the last pin in the dirt. Sometimes you end up with to many parts. Being very proud of ourselves we tied down the birds leaving the 1-26 for the next day. Some of the order in which events occurred has been lost, due to lack of oxygen I’m sure. Did I mention the airport is 7,489’ MSL and the campground is 8,200 plus feet MSL? Jamie gave me a neat little map on how to find the camp ground so I drove off by myself thinking of two things. One, will I be able to find it? Two, what am I going to do about dinner? It was easy enough to find and when I stepped in the office I was asked if I had eaten dinner. I said no but I needed to check in. Jerry, who seems to run the place, with the help of a very nice lady, says, "Well, grab your self a plate back there and eat then we’ll talk about checking in." Both of my major questions in life had been answered!

I think I took the first tow, of our bunch, on Monday. Climbed right up to 17,999’ MSL and after flying off in two or three different directions I saw both of our ships climbing for the sky. I positioned my bird over them to provide a target. It was not long till all three ships were at 17,999’. Jamie flew off towards the north and I gave chase. Something is wrong! I can’t catch him and he is flying the 1-26! I know it can’t cruse at 80mph like I can. Well I lose sight of him and soon turn my attention to other goals. Later I find out he was cruising at 100mph! Such are the lift conditions around there, sometimes. I log 3 hours and 12 minutes. I decide to stand down on Tue. And just help wherever I can. By late Tuesday Bob Craig has convinced me that I should fly the distance requirement for the Silver badge. I download the needed paper work from the SSA web site and decide to go for it. Only one problem, the afternoon cu soon blow up into a number of thunderstorms putting my goal of Leadville, 50 miles to the north out of reach. Over development puts our valley in shadow shutting down the thermals needed to climb to cruising altitude. I launch anyway. Well, I’m a glider pilot, so there. I log 1 hour and 22 minutes.

Thursday passes by as I watch the other club members takeoff and land. They are soaring and getting good flights. I don’t fly because the same thunderstorms are kicking off to the north. So comes Friday and my last chance at the Silver Distance. The night before I spent hours looking over the Denver sectional. There are three airports to the south that are Silver distance. Leach field at a town called Center is close and over the required 50 kilometers. That would do it, but wait, it is 25 nautical miles away from the mountains out on a flat plain. Thursday evening I drive half way to Center over that high plain country looking for landing sites. I don’t care much for the unknowns. The sagebrush can hide a lot of things I don’t want to hit with the 1-23. Ok that leaves Alamosa and Blanca. Blanca is only 12 miles off the south tip of the Sangre De Cristo range. And there it is again, Alamosa is 25 miles out! I’ll figure it out when and if I get that far. Time for bed.

I wake up during the night thinking about the flight. Back to sleep. Morning. Get out of the sleeping bag; freeze while making coffee then drive to town. Bob and I have breakfast and then to the airport. Jamie does an outstanding job getting the barograph loaded, sealed and tied into the 1-23. He makes sure I have my application in the sailplane and he briefs me to not turn the barograph off till I’ve been on the ground for 15 minutes. Everyone is going out of his way to help me. Rich, Perry and Bob help in every way they can. Bob reminds me to load up a tie down kit in the event I land out. I stow a left over slice of pizza and Jamie gives me two Granola Bars, for feeding hungry bears should the above land out occur. I let the L-13 and the 1-26 go before me. Now it’s my turn. Oxygen on and checked. Canopy latched, rope release checked. Off we go. I get off tow at 10,800’ MSL and work some weak lift NW of the airport to 14,600’. High enough to head south to the start of the Sangre De Cristo range. I’m looking for the up slope wind to set a good thermal off. I work up a little of what I’ve lost till I move over East a bit and hit the boomer. I look down at a state of the art brand new glass ship wondering if he can catch me in this climb. He does not. I climb at 1,000 fpm and more up to 17,500’. Now or never, I head South down the range. Funny, I only get a glimpse of the beauty all around me as I charge along. Most of my time is spent looking ahead at the bottom of the cu.

I could not raise either of the club ships on the radio but did tell one of the glass ship pilots to pass the word that I was heading for Alamosa. I run at 80 mph slowing in zones of lift speeding up when in sink. Now and then I circle long enough to regain altitude lost crossing areas without clouds. Never more that five turns. I try to look at my chart now and then to mark my progress down the range. It sure is easy to do when you have an engine up front, not so easy now. I do pick out landmarks along my path that confirms that I am making progress. I snap a few pictures in the mountains and of the Great Sand Dunes National Monument sliding along my right side. What? Why is the Rico vario saying 500 fpm down when I’m climbing? Check the battery voltage, nine volts. Maybe that is why I could not get out on the radio an hour ago. I knew the gel cell was crap before I started out but it had held up for Monday’s flight. Oh well, That leaves two varios still working. I press on.

I notice that I am getting sloppy working the lift. Bored? Maybe, but lets check everything. Oxygen is still flowing but I crank it up a bit. Set it at 20,000 feet flow rate. I pinch my nose so I get a few good shots of straight oxygen. I chose to use the canula over a mask on this flight.

I see rain to the East over the last group of peaks. A storm is in the making and I aim for the West edge of the build up. Over time the sun has moved west starting the heating of the West side of the range. At the start of the flight the lift was on the East side of the mountains. The oxygen helps one think these things through. I get down to around 14,500 feet looking for a climb before heading out to Alamosa. I had decided the ground crew would have less distance to drive if I could make Alamosa over Blanca. But I need more altitude, now. I find what I later learn is up slope lift from a west wind. Climbing at 200 to 300 fpm I take my time, smooth flying is the answer. Ok, gained six or seven hundred feet, no longer three hundred feet over the rocks. I move around a little. There! 1,000 fpm right up to17,800’.

I now use the compass in the 1-23 for the first time! The airport is not in sight but the chart says it’s WSW so I head away from the Sangre De Cristo range. Flying at 80 mph I’m making good progress towards some cu that has formed ahead of me. I circle under one for two turns and press on. Airport in sight now and I’ll need spoilers to get down. I tune in the ASOS station to get the wind speed and direction. 320 at 10, sounds good. Over flying the airport I chose runway two for my landing. I think I touched down with more than ten knots cross wind and I was just along for the ride the last 100 feet or so. However, through very careful planning of the touch down point, speed and runway, as the sailplane came to a stop it had turned up the taxiway in front of the FBO. Soon a tug and two surprised young men showed up and towed the 1-23 up to a hangar out of the wind. Pizza time! I ate one of Jamie’s Granola bars and I’m saving the other one looking for a hungry bear.

It was a very fulfilling flight and I encourage all soaring pilots to set some goal along the badge path. It does not have to be Diamond or Gold or Silver but please do set a goal and go for it. I will try to repay all the wonderful help given to me by offering my support for anyone in our club that needs help. I can drive for a ground crew or whatever. Oh, did I mention there is still one share open to someone that wants to fly the 1-23 to Gold?

Colorado Trip 2002

By Robert Craig

Five OSC members ventured out to Salida Colorado for the Annual Colorado soaring trip – and we weren’t disappointed. Besides myself, Jaime Alexander, Perry Mitchell and son Sean, Rich Nicholson and family, and Mac McKain all made the trip.

The trip out was interesting to say the least. Strong south winds pounded us all the way across Nebraska. The L-13 tail assembly had to be re-enforced to handle the strong conditions. We ended up wrapping a tarp around it and this provided the needed protection. Mac with the 1-23 was following Perry and Me with the L-13. Approaching North Platte, Mac disappeared from behind me when I wasn’t looking. It turns out he had a blow out on the 1-23 trailer which took time to fix plus required buying a new tire. This led us to only get to the Denver area around night fall where we spent the night. The next day we drove on to Salida arriving there about noon on Sunday.

We were initially a little disappointed to find that smoke was obscuring the mountains around the area. Rich Nicholson was already at the airport when we arrived so the four of us assembled the 1-23 and L-13. Jaime arrived that evening with the 1-26. Monday morning we assembled the 1-26 and installed the new O2 equipment in the L-13. Then Mac in the 1-23, Jaime in the 1-26, and my self and Perry in the L-13 all got towed into wonderful soaring conditions. Perry and I climbed from release to 17999 ft were we joined Mac and the 1-26. Lift was great every where so we toured the various peaks in the area flying between 17000 and 18000 ft. What a start for our trip.

Typical site on the altimeter
(click the image to enlarge)

The rest of the week saw good soaring conditions each day eventually ending with over development and thunderstorms. One day we even saw lightning start a fire on a near by mountain. The helicopter pilot who put out the fire took a glider ride with us the next day. Everyone got several opportunities to soaring in the great conditions and over the beautiful terrain. As the week progressed, the smoke cleared and the mountains came back into full view.

View south along the Sandre De Cristo Mountains
(click the image to enlarge)

Mac, Jaime and me camped out in the mountains near the airport. The rest of the crew stayed in local motels.

Jaime, Mac, and Me at our mountain camp ground.
(click the image to enlarge)

Friday turned out to be a special day for Mac. He flew the 1-23 for Silver distance down the Sangere De Cristo mountains to Alamosa Colorado. More from Mac on this. Friday evening after retrieving Mac we took apart the L-13 and placed it on the trailer. We were also treated to a wonderful meal from Jim and wife Helen. They were wonderful hosts to us the entire week, which by the way, is there last week of operation. Jim and Helen are moving to North Dakota so no tow service will be available at Salida after this week. There is some talk however of them coming back to next June to provide tow service for a month to glider pilots wishing to soar over this beautiful part of the coumtry. We can only hope.

The trip back to Omaha for Mac, Perry, and me was done in one day with no trailer problems. The trip was a great success and will provide those who attended with some lasting memories.