Santa Cruz Flats Race 2014

Santa Cruz Flats Race here I come. I had so much fun last year I just had to come back again and actually compete this year. After watching my friends fly incredible flights at Big Spring last month, I am antsy to ascend the Arizona skies.

Harness all buckled in

Harness all buckled in

Sun Armor

Sun Armor

Packed with a car full of hang gliding gear, and the Arizona essentials of sun screen and bug spray, I leave dark and early tomorrow. Not that I’m superstitious, but I’m also happy to announce that my peace lily just bloomed, which can’t be a bad sign. The flower rose quite high above the rest of the plant (more than previous blooms) seemingly flying near the cloudbase of my living room.

My peace lily just bloomed!

My peace lily just bloomed!

Though I’m still flying my Wills Wing Sport 2 135 glider (possibly the last comp with it), I’ll be flying with a new-to-me single suspension harness—all buckled in and ready to go. My generous friend has loaned me his old competition Aeros Myth harness and I’ve replaced the zipper, cleaned it up, and adjusted it’s fit. So far I am loving the harness and the feel of the glider that a single suspension harness provides. How much extra glide it gives we’ll find out.

Sadly, this year’s event will be in memory of Mark Knight. I only briefly got to know him at last year’s race when he helped me with my aerotow rating. I will be forever thankful for that help. His passion for the sport, love of life, and selflessness toward helping others attain their dreams goes beyond words, and I am one of many affected for the better in life by him.

Follow me live at either:

Live Tracker or Air Tribune (if we create an event page—at the time of writing none has been setup)

I hope I have time for updates from the race, at least some Tweeting. Wish me luck!

Goodbye July: Flying high on new gliders, landing short on old ones

July started with a bang, and ended with a whimper. All said and done I flew over 15 hours, had quality time on both the Moyes Litespeed RX 3 and the Wills Wing T2C 136, enjoyed a few cross country flights, and flew a new site. But my last flight of the month fizzled out and sank me back to terra firma for a big fat reality check. I’ve been flying so well lately I nearly forgot that gravity still applied to me.

All setup on Garlock. Bruce would ultimately fly back to Andy Jackson Airpark. I landed after two and a half hours of yo-yo up and down flying. Should have followed Bruce!

All setup on Garlock. Bruce would ultimately fly back to Andy Jackson Airpark. I landed after two and a half hours of yo-yo up and down flying. Should have followed Bruce!

The month left me with an appreciation for where I need to go to grow as a pilot. Weekend warrior is great, but not enough to take my flying to the next level. August will be a month of decisions: decisions on my next glider, decisions on training, decisions on life. What I love about the hang gliding community is so many have reached out to me to help me learn and grow, and still more form a foundation of support.

Starting tomorrow is the Big Spring Nationals race. I’m wishing I was there flying, hanging out with friends, learning, racing. Maybe I should have just said screw work and headed out there. Next year I’ll be there. The Santa Cruz Flats Race in Casa Grande, AZ in September will be my next big race and I can’t wait. Just a month and a week to go. After that it’ll be fly fly fly until the season starts up next year…hopefully on a slick new ride.

Beyond flying, I’m happy to report that I biked 300 miles in July. I find cycling an excellent complement to flying for whole body fitness. Mostly I bike to work 16 miles each way, though in August I’m going to add a few longer rides.

Follow my rides on Strava.

Good luck to all my friends at Big Spring. See you in Casa Grande!