Despite term being over, there is now an opportunity for a massive amount of flying!
Four Counties GC, the RAF Wittering GSA club, are coming up to Dishforth on 22nd March bringing with them about ten folks, including some fellow student pilots from Loughborough Uni, and a nice collection of gliders. They are camping over at Dishforth for the weekend, before moving up to the ridge at Sutton Bank for Easter week, and returning to Dishforth for the second weekend, 29th and 30th March. I'm intending to be there for the entire week, subject to the weather of course. It would be great if there are some other folks from Leeds around, even if you can't make it for the whole week. I'm also going to need help on the bar...!
The weekends at Dishforth will be catered, i.e. all meals will be available for a small sum. I'm not sure about Sutton Bank, but there will probably be some sort of arrangement.
Please sign up below if you are intending to come for the first weekend. I'll arrange it as though it were a normal weekend. Include phone number, which day you are coming up, whether you are able to drive, and whether you have a tent available. Also use this space to organise lifts during the week and for the second weekend. Unfortunately I don't think I'll be able to co-ordinate things during the week itself as I don't know what access to internet I will have.
This is an ideal oppportunity to make some real progress with some continuous flying. I'm personally hoping to get my Broonze badge done and maybe some of the Cross - Country endorsement. Set yourself an aim and work towards it! We are hoping to have both two-seaters available at Sutton Bank, as well as the Ka18 and the Discus. Sutton Bank also have a Ka8 single seater that is free for students to fly... an offer surely too good to pass up!!!!!!!
22nd/23rd, Hopefully my dads car... if not, then I might be able to bring up a friend who has a car and would be interested in gliding As for 24th-28th, not sure... but hopefully I'll have the car again 29th and 30th.
At the moment then: I'm coming 22nd and 23rd, possibly a car, and I do have a tent.
If I was to get a bus up to Ripon on the friday night/saturday morning with a sleeping bag could I get a lift to Dishforth and would there be space for me in the club house?
Unfortunately, I won't be able to make it to Dishforth this weekend as I have to finish one of my projects by Monday. Good thing is that I have a car now, and will probably make couple of trips to Sutton Bank during the week. Just let me know if you are interested and I could give you a lift.
Also, I brought some beer and booze for the club. Initially, I thought I would give it to the club members for free, but since we often face difficulties with the lack of detergents and cloths for cleaning/polishing the gliders I reckon it would be wise to sell it in our club bar. This little, yet, extra money we make out of it could be then spent on the detergents and other stuff. Doing so could improve our habits of keeping the gliders clean on regular basis (most of you would perhaps agree with me that it is very annoying when you are flying the glider and cannot see a damn thing because the canopy is dirty).
If there is anyone who is going to Dishforth this weekend and is willing to take the beer just give me a shout. I live in Leodis Residences, which is close to Parkinson building, so I suggest, on the way to Dishforth you could pop in and we will load it in the car. If not, I will then take it with me the next weekend.
Any comments and suggestions how much should we sell the beer for? Is it a good idea at all? Let me know anyway. By the way, I read your comments and suggestions some of you made in “Committee positions for the next year”, well done. I like them and support them.
Meet at Parkinson Steps at 9am with the usual gear, plus sleeping bags etc, if you're staying over. I'm going for the whole week. Oh, and it might to snow tonight :)
Ben, how big is your tent? Could I borrow it for the week?
Arrange lifts etc between yourselves here for the rest of the week, and failing that, the #36 to Ripon is the bus to get. Give me a ring to check that there is someone to come and pick you up: http://homepages.see.leeds.ac.uk/~lecmtw/HD36TT.pdf I'm not sure what timetable will be operating over the Easter weekend, but normal service should resume on Tuesday I would imagine.
There is however already a LUUGS cleaning kit. It usually resides in a white box on the bus, but occasionally makes it into the briefing room. I don't think selling the beer in the club bar for the profit of LUUGS would go down too well with Clevelands. The money that is made from the bar goes into the club fund to pay for the repacking of the parachutes.
My tent is supposedly a 4 man, but we fitted 8 people in it over Leeds fest w/e, and it can comfortably sleep 3-4 with big hiking bags. Yep you can have it all week. I'll hopefully be able to make it next Friday, Sat and Sunday (28th-30th).
For those planning to come to Sutton Bank tomorrow (Monday 24th) - if there is anyone else! I am planning to catch a train from Leeds to Thirsk departing at 08:57
If anyone wants to join me, you're welcome to - give me a txt/ring on 07866090942
For anybody who is planning to go gliding at Sutton Bank this week, YOU NEED TO TAKE YOUR MEDICAL CERTIFICATE AND LOG BOOK TO FLY SOLO, without it, you cannot fly solo at Sutton Bank, even if you have flown solo at Dishforth.
I am planning to go to Sutton Bank on Friday, and then Dishforth on Saturday and Sunday, and taking the car. If anyone is interested in going at the weekend, post on here and we can sort out lifts.
This weather is shocking!!! I've only been allowed to fly in the circuit, and even then it's a heavy cross wind!! Managed to get my conversion over to the Pa-28 though.
However, I doubt I will be able to go gliding this week. I have my FRTOL test tomorrow, and need to catch up with all the work I have not been able to do over the past week and a half! :( The weather looks to be pretty miserable anyway though, such a bloody shame!
I am not going tomorrow, so sorry for those who wanted a lift. I have not decided about Saturday yet... I will post on here by tomorrow afternoon, although at the moment the weather says rain and strong wind, so I probably won't be going.