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Getting Out Of The Paddock
by Bomber (updated Sept 99)
This article is my thoughts on "Getting out of the paddock". The purpose of this article is to present my views on things that can help you get out of the paddock. It presents no secrets; it just points out how to increase probability in your favour. The article consists of six mind-boggling sections:
1. Expect to get out of the paddock
2. Thermalling
3. Finding a thermal
4. Take off when thermals are evident
5. Things to do when climbing in the first thermal
6. Things to do on the glide
My rational behind this is as follows. To get out of the paddock you need: to be in the right frame of mind; you need to be able to climb in a thermal; you need to know how to find a thermal before you can climb in it; you need to take off when thermals are evident to find the thermal - no rocket science.
1. Expect to Get Out of the Paddock
Setting goals has been my biggest improvement in flying. If you don’t expect to get out of the paddock, guess what - you probably won’t. However, if you set a goal to get out of the paddock it will only increase the probability by making you think about how your going to do it.
Rehearse getting out of the paddock in your mind then when your actually doing it your body will follow, you’ll find yourself noticing things that previously you wouldn’t have (eg what wind socks are doing, bits of stuff in the air, birds, other pilots). It may sound like strings and magnets but I’ll assure you it works.
2. Thermalling
To climb out of the paddock you need to know how to thermal - obvious statement. If you hit a nice big thermal, that you can get full turns in, this is easier. However, most days down low thermals aren’t like that so you’ll need to consider how can I climb in this situation.
Often you’ll find you’re in and out of the thermal down low. Some basic guidelines you can use are:
If your vario averager says your gaining height with each turn, then your going up. If you going up stay in your current circle. When you get higher (above 2000 feet) you can try and find the best bit. In contrast a more experience pilot maybe able to find good lift down low - this comes to all pilots with more air time;
If you going up don’t level out to move you circle - you’ll probably lose the thermal. A safer method is to high side in the best part of the turn. This allows you to extend your circle in the best area of lift;
If other pilots are flying with you and they look like they are climbing quicker - check their position relative to the horizon. Don’t go to them straight away - watch for a while (remember your still climbing yourself). When your at a comfortable height (say 2000 feet) go over to them;
Expect to need more bank angle in your turns when your low; For more tips on thermalling from a flying legend, see Dennis Pagen’s book "Performance Flying" Chapter 5; Practice thermalling in you mind any time you can - it makes a difference.
3. Find a Thermal
The best way to find a thermal off the tow is to pin off in one - another obvious statement. Below are some tips on how to do this:
Your flight starts the minute you say GO, GO, GO not after you pin off. As such you should have worked out in your mind what towing into a thermal will feels like. Typically its lots of sink, followed by some rough patches of lift, then a bit more sink then the elusive core. If you don't know what the air should feel like as your approaching a thermal you decrease the probability of knowing when to pin off; Know your normal climb rate on the tow so you can judge what lift you are going through. I climb at about 400 - 600 feet/min so anything more is generally lift.
Have an effective pin off procedure. If you take your time to release, tell people your locking off the mic, put your feet in your harness and start to turn your probably travelled 50m past the core (5 seconds delay at 30 Km/h). 50 m past the core below a 1000 feet and guess what your in - big sink. With practice you should be able to anticipate when your going to pin off (because you have some idea of the air your about to fly through) and do it more effectively.
Don’t have a mindset that you will pin off at the end of the tow and then find a thermal. If you go through a good one above 600 feet it might be worth a go; If you pin off and you’re not in a thermal you can try and find one. Not easy when your low but here is some tips: keep you glider as level as possible - if the air rolls you one way oppose it, if you glider yaws, let it go - you maybe getting sucked to a thermal. If you have not flown through lift on the tow DON’T fly straight back down the strip (you have just flown through this air on thew tow), instead fly off to one site of the strip (preferable the side which is higher, or has thermal sources).
4. Take Off When Thermals Are Evident
If you can climb in a thermal and pin off in a thermal the last things that has to be around are thermals themselves. When you’re in the paddock here are some indicators that thermals are around:
A fellow pilot has towed and is climbing - obvious one; Clouds are forming and dissipating above the paddock; Gust cycles are coming through launch; The experienced pilots are running round like chicken with their heads cut off - good idea to start towing early so when the thermals do start working your in tune with the day. Don’t wait for the more experienced guys to start flying - your reducing your probability by starting late; The experienced pilots via a temp trace and thermometer can predict within an hour what time thermals will start – so ask (they love being made to feel important).
5. Things do when your climbing in the 1st thermal
By now your vario is hopefully chirping away and your climbing out of the paddock. Your initial reaction is to think thank god for that and relax. Sorry to disappoint you but now is when the real work begins. Before you’ve got to the top of the thermal you need to have decided how you’re going to get the next one, if not the next one after that.
As you’re climbing look along the course line (which you should have drawn on your map) to see were you might get your next thermal. Number one on your list is another glider circling, number two is clouds that are forming, and last on your list is ground sources.
I’m not going to go into detail because I’m no expert and Pagen can provide more insight than I could ever hope, however you do need to know what your going to do before you get to the top of the thermal.
My approach if I can’t see another pilot or clouds (seems to be the case 9 times out of 10) is to find the darkest route long the ground, that has the most hills and the most tree lines.
6. Things to do on the glide
Once you start gliding you should know something about speed to fly, again see Pagen for this as he’s the expert. Now here’s for my tip on how to find the next thermal.
Although I look at the ground for the general direction to fly, he most important indicator to me is the air that I’m flying through. Just like the tow and I need to know what the air will feel like as I’m approaching the next thermal.
My two golden rules are if the glider yaws let it go but if the glider rolls oppose it. The first rule regarding yawing is due to the glider being sucked into the direction of a thermal just like a boat into a whirlpool. Any yaw is generally accompanied by an increase in ground speed, which you can sometimes detect. The second rule concerns trying to keep the glider as level as possible during your flight. If you keep levelling the glider you should always be moving yourself into better air.
A good model for this that Gordon "Flatch" Marshall came up with is to imagine a cut out of a glider sitting on a tablecloth on a round table. Picking up the tablecloth from the centre of the table can simulate a thermal. If the glider is on the edge of the table the first thing that happens is the glider is drawn towards the centre of the table (eg the centre of the thermal). As the tablecloth is lifted higher the glider is rolled away from the table much like a glider when it nears the centre of a thermal. We can conclude that yaw is a good way of detecting thermals from a distance. I have found this to work up to 3-4 paddocks away. Whilst roll is used to indicate a thermal in close quarters.
Parting Thoughts
The most effective place to practice flying is up stairs in your head. You can tow any time; you never have to drive the car and you always land on your feet.
Each time you go flying before you take off for the day spend a few minutes quietly to yourself thinking about your goal for the day, how your going to out climb the rest of us, pin off in a thermal off the tow and start flying at the right time. If you do any of these things you’re only going to improve your chances of "Getting Out of the Paddock".