Some flying today including Tom Claffey for the first time. He seems very happy with Al Tylers ASG29. Bruce and Anita's host family, Rick and Elaine Lutton put on a dinner for the team tonight. The spirit of Uvalde friendship in operation brings back all the great memories of the '91 WGC won by Brad Edwards in the LS6 (Yankee Leader).

Peter Trotter, Bruce Taylor and David Jansen, flying for Australia today. The other gliders will arrive shortly and the rest of the team will be in the air soon. Some minor tweeking here and there but otherwise all running smoothly so far..

Team Captain hard at work

All the team pilots have arrived. Some are still waiting on gliders. No flying today as no tug pilot available however not a bad thing as the ground needs to dry out a little. Warmer and dryer from tomorrow on....

Thunderstorms again today. Next week promises to be dry with temperatures in the high 30's all week.

Now we have hail.....

Another day of thunderstorms with VERY strong winds and rain this evening. I managed to get in a quick 500km flight. The thunderstorm activity should start to abate from here on so I'm looking forward to the ground starting to dry out as the temperatures start up towards 37 degrees. More gliders are starting to arrive however I'm still the only one flying here so far.

Team Taylor has collected the empty trailer from Baltimore and we are now heading 1500 miles to Houston to collect the JS1 from the container... Starting to get excited!!!

Had a couple of days flying, mainly to the northern part of the task area. Challenging as the ground rises more that 1500' above the Uvalde elevation and it takes a bit longer to kick off up there. Left the glider in the hangar today and I wouldn't say it was flooding however the streets of Uvalde are awash after some fairly heavy and extensive thunderstorm activity through most of the day.

Three days of Monsoonal weather conditions. Straight to thunderstorms. No flying. maybe tomorrow?

Practice begins

Three flights so far.

P51 at Uvalde

4D keeps good company courtesy of the Huff Air hangar whilst the rain and thunderstorms keep Uvalde humid...

A poem, written by one of the crew to the Aussie team (well, to Brad) in Uvalde in 1991.

THE MAN FROM THE NEW ENGLAND RANGES - BY WARWICK KENNY
APOLOGIES TO “BANJO” PATERSON.
DEDICATED TO BRAD EDWARDS-WINNER 1991 WGC UVALDE USA

There was movement at the glider-field, the word had passed around,
That the next world comps were in Texas USA.
A racing challenge, for top ranked pilots, and a victor must be found,
So, all the cracks had gathered to the fray.
All the tried and noted airmen, from nations, near and far
Were mustered, by their skill, to get it right,
For pilots love hard flying, where soaring battles are,
And these aces snuff the battle with delight.

And Tony Tabart, was to lead the team, manage and, backup,
The old man, with his hair left long for show;
But few could glide beside him when his blood was fairly up-
He would go wherever plane and man could go.
And Ingo Renner, came round to lend a hand,
No better pilot ever held the reins;
For never was, a task, beyond him, and his mighty records stand,
He learnt to fly while soaring on the plains.
And one was there, Brad Edwards, a tall and gangly bloke,
With thinning hair, suntanned skin, and shoulders oversized,
His glider, Yankee Lima, was a well-bred, but proven hope;
And, as such, are by mountain pilots prized.
Brad, was hard and tough and wiry - just the sort that won’t say die -
There was courage in his quick impatient tread;
And he bore the badge of gameness in his bright and fiery eye,
And the proud and lofty carriage of his head.

But still so tall and lanky, one would doubt his power to stay,
And the old man said, “I want to let you know,
It’s a long, hot, and tiring contest lad - what have you to say?”
“Texas is hot, but so am I - let’s go-
I’m as ready as I’ll ever be” -then Ingo, spoke for his friend -
“I think we need your spirit here,” he said;
“I warrant, he’ll be with us, when he’s wanted at the end,
For both his crew and he are mountain bred.”

“He hails from the ranges of New England, up by Lake Keepit’s side,
Where the hills are twice as steep and twice as rough,
And the Western plains that go forever, must be taken in a stride,
The man that holds his own is good enough.
And these New England pilots on the ranges make their home,
Where giant gorges carve those rugged hills between;
I have seen full many airmen, since I first commenced to roam,
But nowhere yet, such pilots have I seen.”
So he went – for their speed, gliders had, on board water, to dump
Therefore, faster through the skies, they could plough,
And the old man gave his orders,” Boys, go at them from the jump,
No use to try- for fancy flying now.
Stay forward in the rankings, and keep your soaring tight.
Fly boldly lads and gain a good start,
For never yet was pilot that could keep the mob in sight,
If once they got ahead, by the half-way mark.

So, they all took off to hold them; they were racing on the wing,
Where the best and boldest pilots take their place,
Then alas, Brad was slowed, when he lost, his vital yaw string
The mob, now from the back, ahead of him they raced;
Charging, past Yankee Lima, with a sharp and sudden dash,
As the whole field shot, to reach the top, by half- way through.
Then, on day four, a life was lost, when two gliders had a crash.
-All pilots are in danger, when they flew.

But fast the oz-team rallied, where, out on the desert track,
Were rounding up the gaggles overhead,
From low, over nodding oil-rigs, they climbed both up and back
To the cliffs of white, that beetled overhead.
But upward ever upward, the others held their way,
Over large corrals, and rolling tumble-weeds;
And the old man muttered fiercely “we may bid the mob good day,
No man can fly them down, from such a lead.”
When they reached day five in the comps, even Ingo took a pull,
It well might make the boldest hold their breath,
The wild salt- scrub grew thickly, and the ground was full
Of armadillo holes, and any slip was death,
But, the man from the New England ranges put his glider out ahead,
He wheeled his aircraft round, and gave a cheer,
And he raced them across the prairies like a torrent down its bed,
While the others stood and watched in very fear.

He scorched across the Texas hills, at speed, that was a feat,
He cleared the rugged canyons in his stride,
And the man from New England never shifted in his seat -
It was grand to see that mountain pilot fly
Now, streeting high above the desert, it was time to make up ground
So flying down the sky, at a racing pace he went;
Skipping past gliders out on track, to boosthis ranking up this round,
And, from the bottom, he began, a bold assent,

Climbing to top, of the leader-board, with two days to the end,
And the watchers with their scorecards, standing mute,
Saw him ply his talent fiercely, as others set out to contend;
Among them, Doug Jacobs, of the U S A, in full pursuit,
He thought he had the jump, by starting late, and then to lead.
And along the ranges, his cunning tactics were concealed;
But from the dim and distant hills, to the finish line at full speed,
Still in front, Brad, in Yankee Lima, was revealed.
He had run them single–handed, and in the scoring it was shown-
As if the mob were being hunted, by a dingo, out on track.
But they faulted, tired and beaten, then he turned and headed home,
And alone and unassisted led them back.
Hailed as yankee leader, Brad was hoisted up on shoulders for a trot,
And that name, they plastered on his car, was no slur.
His pluck was still undaunted and his courage fiery hot,
For never yet was mountain man a cur.

And down by Lake Keepit side, where the pine-clad ridges raise
Their torn and rugged battlements on high,
Where the air is clear as crystal, and the white stars fairly blaze
At midnight in the cold and frosty sky,
And where around the Lakeside the reed beds sweep and sway
To the breezes, and the rolling plains are wide,
The man from the New England ranges is a household word today,
And the pilots tell the story of his ride.

Hello Darlin'

Southfork Ranch TX. As the new series of "Dallas" begins here in Texas, 4D finally gets a customs clearance in LA after some "special" attention. The glider will be collected from the importer today and I will begin the 3 day drive from LA to Uvalde on the 24th or 25th with the anticipation of beginning practice around the 29th June. The weather indicates temperatures in the high 30's to low 40's a month out from the contest...

Preparations

 4D gets a polish before shipping to the USA on 18th May.

Yes, these are the undercarriage doors..:)

Great day yesterday: The 15m team did a fantastic job of sticking together and came home the winners. Really good exercise in team comminication and focus! Everyone is heading home now. Many thanks to all: our Team Captains, our Squad organiser Greg Schmidt, to Jan Dirks, (we are all very well fed and happy) and to Lake Keepit for a fantastic welcome! Next stop, Uvalde!

Saturday - last day

Some of the pilots left last night to head home. The remaining pilots have been set a Grand Prix task in teams of 3 with the score of the slowest pilot being counted. So we have a team of Allan Barnes in GG, Lisa Trotter in IIC and Peter Trotter in PNL. The other team is Brad Edwards and Bruce Taylor in JS1s with Adam Woolley in an unballasted Cirrus. Adam is allowed to turn 15km short on the turns - so the team strategy will be interesting to see. There is also a third team of locals who are here for the friendly GP which starts on Monday.
Heading home to SA tomorrow - it's 24C and sunny here, 20C and raining at home :-( Mandy

Friday

Today they have set a Grand Prix task with a 3000' finish to allow a second lap.
Gliders are gridding now and we expect the first launch around noon.
Overheard on the radio yesterday I think we should leverage that street - had to be a banker :-)
Also heard today that the first practice day in Argentina is on 25th December poor guys,

Day 3 Squad Week

All of the gliders have launched into a blue sky with Cus in the task area for a 2.5 hour AAT.
Overheard at the Argentinian meeting this morning "Is it a condition  of entry that someone on the team has to have an Australian Passport?" They have 2 kiwis, a pom and a smattering of others.

Squad Week

The team are currently at Lake Keepit for Squad Week. The schedule is very full with morning discussions, a task briefing, a competition task, a debrief and an evening discussion.
The Australian pilots who will be competing in Argentinian next January are also here training.

Early in the week we were joined by Helen and Holly from TMS consulting who facilitated discussions on a range of topics such as arousal, fatigue and managing stress.

The week started on Monday with mass outlandings and some late night retrieves for both teams. Tuesday was more successful with everyone home for tea and a debrief.
Today we had a lot of cirrus over us, with some blue holes. We also had channel 7 TV here filming and interviewing pilots. We gridded and launched Adam Woolley as a sniffer, but when he called 2kts in an empty Cirrus and then joined circuit the day was cancelled and we retired to the briefing room to discuss Start and Finish tactics.
Tonight we had a "nuts and bolts" logistics session to sort out accommodation, entries, insurance, uniforms etc.
Tomorrow is looking good so there should be a task.
There is also a Team Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Australian-Gliding-Team-Uvalde-2012/144054625668825
and we hope to link it to the Blog page shortly so that people can choose whichever format they prefer to read updates.