Just wrapped up 2 days with Team Polecat at NATS XC. Got to observe a
number of very well crafted XC ships, some great flights by some great
pilots and 3 (yup, that's THREE) LSF 5 Goal and Returns on Sunday. (In
addition to several IIIs and IVs). I'm sure those directly involved will
post more on that. Although the weather on Sunday was great, the
distance tasks were well earned and the smiles on the Level V qualifiers
were both for the satisfaction of the task and probably some relief at
making it around the challenging Nats course.
But what started as a 'fun' attempt at 1.5m XC wound up being a really
interesting task and merits further consideration. Entering a 1.5m ship
(DLG) in XC was an idea hatched up by Ed Franz and Denny Maize. Shane
Spickler, Doug Harnish and I took the bait and helped out. Saturday was
too windy to effectively use the course (pretty much the same for the
large ships as very few even made it on the course). Sunday was much
more favorable and Denny was one of the first on the course in the AM.
Didn't quite make it to the graveyard but we were encouraged with the
.35mi distance as a starting point - at least we weren't going to be
skunked!.
During the day, the lift continued to improve and the experience gained
by the team was invaluable. Ed went out on a run to guide us through
some of the details and wound up achieving 0.9mi. Later in the morning,
Shane and Denny made1.1 mile goals. Right after lunch the lift looked
good so Denny, Rob Glover and I took off for what turned into a 1.75mi
goal (past the graveyard, around the corner of the HQ building, through
the 'valley of sink' by the hobby shop, around the second way point and
down the road towards the tree tunnel before getting downed by the wind
shadow behind the tree line around the first farm house).From that
experience we learned that a DLG had to cut the 2nd way point corner a
bit to miss the wind shadow. Last flight of the day was with Shane at
the helm, Denny coaching and the whole rest of the crew in the bed of my
Ranger going pell-mell down the road to try and beat the closing bell.
Cutting the corner and cruising over the bean field helped as we got
1.9mi down the course. Certainly not trophy class distance but we will
claim that as the new XC record on the NATS course for a limited wing
span (1.5m) ship.
Although perhaps seen as a humorous entry, we were all quite serious
about the attempt. After experiencing XC with this class of ship, we
would all probably agree that the setup of the plane, flying skills,
teamwork and perhaps even the plane design set this apart from both
conventional XC flying and DLG contest flying. The skills needed to get
down the course are very different from the launch and timing skills in
a DLG contest. The teamwork needed to make the whole effort come
together is very satisfying and is also quite different from the
experience of a DLG contest. The way the pilot (and team) has to work
the course is VERY different from that of the open class XC ships.
A 1.5m ship simply cannot achieve the altitude of the XC planes.
Consequently, ground effects that large ships cruise above become the
most significant parts of the 1.5m experience. Wind shadows from tree
lines and houses, the roll of a hill and the pressure/downwash sides are
critical encounters for a small ship. Cloud shadows and sunny hillsides
can make or break the run. Cruising the cloud base is inaccessible to a
DLG. Diving at 80+mph is so far off the polar profile for the smaller
ship that it's simply not an acceptable alternative even if the altitude
is available.
Guys, flying a DLG on a XC course is a really significant challenge.
Flying open class XC certainly helps with the team, driving, spotting
and other operational skills. But flying below 800ft brings on a whole
new set of XC flying challenges. It also brings on a whole new set of
challenges as compared to those needed to effectively fly DLG contests.
Driving that ship all over the map over different terrain with different
contours producing different effects each time you come by is really
tough to figure out. But it's really satisfying when you've got it. Each
run got longer based on the experience learned by the previous team
pilot on the course. I'm not sure how much farther we could have gone
but with some more time and experience 4 miles or so on that course
would be quite possible (not past the tree tunnel - no way we could have
run the plane over that element).
Based on this experience, I would certainly encourage others to enter
1.5m ships in XC, especially at the Nats. After Friday's DLG contest,
participating in XC was an equally satisfying experience. 1.5m XC flying
is so very much different from open class XC that it may merit some
additional discussion and development. Since we launched from a hi-start
both days, a non-discus rated ship would work equally well for this
event. I think our conclusion would be that the launch method and
initial launch height really doesn't matter. You simply can't launch a
1.5m high enough by any means to effectively do the course. The
advantage of a really booming hi-start launch will be gone in the first
0.4mi or less. After that, it's work and terrain reading and pilot
skills and teamwork. The pilot is so focused on running the plane while
bouncing around in the back of the truck that the other team members
HAVE to spot effectively for him.
Team Polecat isn't the first to try 1.5m XC. But I can't imagine another
group having more fun than we did. You've gotta try this. It really works!!
- Dave R
(BTW, the 1.75mi run was from a hi-start launch while the 1.9mi was from
a discus launch).
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