26 July - Nordic Open - TASK4

Today's task

Although the weather didn't look all that good, a 90km task was set to land in a village past Organya.

Scratching along the ridge before take-off

 Conditions were very weak at the start, and many of the pilots went down either before the start or just before TP1. Scratching around in weak lift before the start gate opening, I got so low I thought my race was over before it began. Clawing my way back up from a very low save on a tiny rock jutting out from a ridge 200m above the ground, I made it back up to ridge height, by this time the conditions had kicked in.

Back from TP1

Late for the start, the story of Robbie Whittal at Le Grand Bornand World cup task I recently read in Mads Syndergaard's book went through my mind. "Don't give up just because you get a late start. Get into the right mind set". And this was to be my mantra until I caught up.

In fact, I caught up rather well after that, blatting down the ridge on bar like I am used to doing at home, my head space was completely different today.

Over taking pilots thermalling up on the ridge, I reached the final point before crossing and caught a strong climb, not taking it to the top but just enough to cross and connect at the highest point the other side.
Pushing forward into wind, easing on and off the bar and on brake to slow the glider in lift, I continued in a straight line, again to reach the final point before taking a climb which would get me over the back and onto the flats
Taking a strong one which tracked way backwards, I was safe, over the flats.
But the air went quiet, then, blips, then many blips as I looked over my shoulder at the growing cunims behind me and a wall of rain approaching from the East and South.
Talk on the radio of conditions deteriorating, I was going up at more than 4.5m/s and the valley was lifting everywhere.
Spots of rain on my pod and vario started at about 1850m and still going tup. Pushing full bar to fly out into the blue, I heard that the task was cancelled. Damn!
And I felt that today I was flying so much better - something had changed in my flying today and although the task would not score, I had won!