Please feel free to post something and photos about what you are doing in the club or where you have been flying. Please choose at least 1 category, E.g. Activities for your post to help others find it.
Featured Article
Gallery Update
A few photos from John covering the recent Aero-tow have been added to our Gallery & Home page
April 2023 Thermal Gliding Competition at Torbay and District RFC site
Congratulations to Tim and what a result. 1st to 4th positions in the 4mtr for DSSC. Brilliant day.
John
There are some more pictures in our Gallery.
Visit to Truro and District Model Flying Club
From John:
Recently a small group of pilots from our club travelled down to Cornwall on a visit to Truro and District Model Flying Club’s site near Indian Queens. The visit, organised by Felix Marten, was designed to demonstrate to TDMFC members the SW Thermal Competition and Aerotow. A goodly crowd turned up from Dartmoor and Okehamptom despite a fairly dire forecast of blustery wind and showers. However the conditions turned out to be much less severe, in fact the early part of the day was delightful, light wind and sunny intervals. By lunch time the north wind had picked up and a rogue shower caught us out in the open. Nevertheless we pressed on with the day’s demos and were well hosted by our friendly neighbours.
We were able to park in their field and walk a short distance to the mown square which is in the middle of a very large field situated in open countryside….how the other half live! Across the road were two wind turbines but they were not an issue being further away than they appeared and in a no fly zone. Guy Picket took care of the thermal comp demo and Steve, Graham and Martin towed our gliders up. There were occasional strong thermals despite the cool wind. Mid afternoon with some miles to get home most headed off but after a enjoyable and interesting day…many thanks to the organisers and host club.
Chagford Outing report
From John,
Five pilots arrived at Nattadon carpark circa 10:30. Conditions were dry, sunny and a tad chilly. The wind was brisk but NW and bang on the slope. Lift was plentiful as were the buzzards who curiously followed the models around the sky.
Landing was exciting on the top of the hill but no one suffered any damage despite a bit of buffeting, just keep the wings level and ‘ get down Shep!’ All in all a good time was spent by the famous five.
John
DSSC Events 2023
Our events page has now been updated with 2023 events. These can be found on the Events Page, the first event is planned for April 23rd and this will be an Aerotow and e-glider event.
Website Update
I have added the 2023 site rules to our Documents page and added the risk assessment to the pin protected page that also has members home addresses (where volunteered). Also the confidential Page pin has been updated to the same as the 2023 gate code.
The events page now says 2023 although details of events are still to be added.
If anyone spots any errors or has suggestions then please leave a reply after this post.
Thanks and hope to see you at the club meeting tomorrow evening.
Robert
Chris and Martin go flying in the snow
I have posted a couple of pictures onto our home page from Chris who reported a quite pleasant day with gentle winds & a blue sky.
BTW, this Saturday is looking like another potential day.
First Flying day in 2023
We had a good turnout yesterday, 2nd Jan, at Little Haldon for the first outing of 2023. The weather was bright, very calm and sunny which kept any chill at bay. Flying was near continuous for several hours although thermals were practically non existent and even buzzards were seen flapping to keep airborne. Of course the sun was low so our gliders avoided the SSW to keep out of the sun (in my case – tried to avoid flying into the sun). Still, all aircraft have made it back safely to their hangers. The day and gathering provided an ideal opportunity to carry out Dave Malin’s wishes for his ashes to be scattered where he enjoyed flying. Whilst John Harvey scattered Dave’s ashes amongst the gorse and heather, Martin made a low fly pass with his glider. Although there are some photos of the occasion, we will not post any on social media unless Dave’s family give consent.
Happy birthday yesterday to John although unfortunately he forgot to bring cakes or any leftover Xmas fair.
A Concorde flight on MS Flight simulator
There are some incredible graphics on this YouTube clip by Major Tom. Take a flight on BA from Boston to London.
Brass Monkeys on Black Hill Thursday 15th Dec
A flying report from John>
Hi Chaps, Chris and I had a great session at BH today. The last mile to Black Hill on the back road was a little icy in parts but plenty of dry road to slow down on. However it was cold, something like -2 out of the wind, but this was more than compensated for by the stunning landscape and full sun. We did go equipped however with good windproof and warm gear, I had a skiing onesie, my go to when the arctic chill kicks in, under which was a vest, thick shirt, jumper and body warmer. Then there is the woolly hat and full face scarf and gloves. Attending to the call of nature was never going to be easy! We took the less demanding and skiddy route up the hill to the NW to avoid an accident before we even got up to the top. Quite a few walkers and dogs about enjoying the surroundings but not an issue.
I took my Sharp Wind and Chris had a Super Starlight, both pure gliders. Flying was a joy although the lift would not have taken you to the moon, staying up and high was never an issue. The issue was the clear blue sky, you certainly needed to concentrate or lose sight. Landing at times was a little turbulent but nevertheless uneventful. Come lunchtime the wind was weakening but made no difference to the lift. I have to say had the wind been stronger the wind chill would have been unpleasant. Flying times were limited to about 15 mins to allow thawing out of the stick fingers, thank heavens for the thermos of coffee! Funnily enough we had another visitation by an extremely low heli (private) as we did recently at LH by 2 Merlins. It appeared to land near Lustleigh then return later.
Our day ended circa 2.30…brilliant! 😀❄🛩
Regards
John
(The Dartmoor temperature chart from Thursday was kindly provided by Tim, and was obtained from Dartcom at https://www.dartcom.co.uk/weather )