The dates are 27/28/29 December 2016
December 30th is a reserve day in case a day was missed due to weather.
This will count towards the National Paragliding Ladder
Organiser is Tim Brown: tjbro137@gmail.com, 034425319
Showing posts with label wanaka. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wanaka. Show all posts
Southern Regional Paragliding Comp in December
The dates are 27/28/29 December 2016
December 30th is a reserve day in case a day was missed due to weather.
This will count towards the National Paragliding Ladder
Organiser is Tim Brown: tjbro137@gmail.com, 034425319
SOUTHERN REGIONAL PG COMP
Get some points on the NZ Paragliding Ladder early in the season.
The dates are Sat 7th and Sun 8th November 2015
Reserve dates are Sat 14th and Sun 15th November 2015.
This comp has FAI Cat-2 sanction pending.
The Kai Whakapai Cafe in Wanaka will be the headquarters.
The decision on the location of task 1 will be announce on Thursday night.
Please contact Derek at d.divers@xtra.co.nz
PG OPEN WANAKA DAY 8 & RESULTS
Very happy to get another successful task at Treble Cone. This one was similar to Task 1: down to Shania Spur, back to Crash Ridge, over to Glendhu Hill, back up to Rocky Hill, down to Mid Triangle & back to the bomb out.
No one made goal; Middy was the task winner, with Russell in close second.
We raced over to Luggate for our celebration dinner & the awards. As we suspected, the competition wasn't valid for the purposes of selecting the NZ National Champion & NZ Women's Champion as we didn't have a high enough total task value, so we reverted to the National Ladder to determine those winners.
Well, it turns out that even if the weather in NZ can be unreliable and inconsistent, we can always rely on Grant Middendorf & Eva Keim to be on form.
Middy was the competition winner as well as being top of the Ladder - which makes him NZ National Champion for 2015.
Eva was the top female in both the comp & ladder, so she takes home the title of NZ Women's Champion.
Congratulations to them both - well & truly champs!
Overall results are here.
Good work by the Task Committee of Mark, Louis & Jeff in working with what the weather handed them (it wasn't much, believe me); Tim for taking care of launch, Johnny for scoring, Jan for check-in, Pete for sponsorship & prizes, Bryan, Itai & Louis for their talks, Kris for the photos, and of course Derek for organising the competition.
Anyone else keen for next year? Get your bids in to the Paragliding Competition Committee!
PG OPEN WANAKA DAY 7
It seemed there was a chance we would fly.The regular 9:30 briefing was postponed to 11am so we would have a better idea of what was possible.
The bad news came in shortly after 11 - not taskable.
It did look like we might still be able to get our feet off the ground, so a few keen beans headed over to Treble Cone to have a look.
More bad news. It was immediately clear that safe flying was not an option.
Oh well, get back in to Wanaka to prepare for tonight's talk - Louis Tapper gave a great presentation on planning and preparation for his kite surfing trip (2000km along the coast of Brazil!), and how it applies to paragliding.
Peter Groves also talked about the preparation for his big flight to Mt Cook last year. Actually he sort of talked about how he HADN'T prepared for it because it didn't look like it would be a big day.
One of his key messages was to never write a day off!
It certainly paid off for him that day; Leonardo link here: Pete Groves to Mt Cook.
PG OPEN WANAKA - DAY 6
Come on Mother Nature, throw us a bone!!!
Thursday was another blowout, so pilots took advantage of
the other exciting activities around Wanaka - mountain biking, tramping, motor
biking.
In the evening, Itai Almog gave a talk about some of the
considerations in selecting the right reserve for your size, wing and harness. Great insight in there.
I met up with the competition Technical Delegate, Johnny
Hopper, for a chat about scoring and competition validity.
I zoned out when he started getting into the formulae for scoring - it's pretty complex stuff with loads of variables.
But he left me with an interesting titbit – the PG Open is only valid (for the purpose of selecting the NZ champion) if we get at least 2000 points of task value.
Task 1 was worth 407 points (that’s what Hugo, the winner, scored). So we need at least 1593 points over the remaining tasks in order to determine a new NZ champion – otherwise it’s determined based on the National Ladder.
It’s still possible, but we’re going to need some help from the weather on Friday and Saturday to get big tasks in!
I zoned out when he started getting into the formulae for scoring - it's pretty complex stuff with loads of variables.
But he left me with an interesting titbit – the PG Open is only valid (for the purpose of selecting the NZ champion) if we get at least 2000 points of task value.
Task 1 was worth 407 points (that’s what Hugo, the winner, scored). So we need at least 1593 points over the remaining tasks in order to determine a new NZ champion – otherwise it’s determined based on the National Ladder.
It’s still possible, but we’re going to need some help from the weather on Friday and Saturday to get big tasks in!
For more photos, click here to have a look at Kris Ericksen's PG Open Album.
PG OPEN WANAKA - DAY 5
Sadly not. Wednesday is wet and windy.
Anyone have spare gear for kitesurfing?!
PG OPEN WANAKA - DAY 4
The Paragliding Competition Committee elections were held,
with Cameron Kennedy elected to join Tim Brown & Johnny Hopper on the PCC.
The pilots then met at Treble Cone to check whether
conditions were viable. It turned out to be too strong, so Sam Bartholomew, who
has been running a paragliding-specific first aid course with a group of
pilots, led the group in a few accident scenarios.
It was a great exercise for both the people doing the course, who acted as team leaders for the incident, and the wider pilot group. Feedback is that it was quite realistic (and remarkable, all the pilots in the scenario had very similar injuries!)
It was a great exercise for both the people doing the course, who acted as team leaders for the incident, and the wider pilot group. Feedback is that it was quite realistic (and remarkable, all the pilots in the scenario had very similar injuries!)
I hope all the distributors in NZ have plenty of light-weight
equipment in stock, because after Bryan Moore’s talk last night, pilots are really
fired up about hike and fly and vol-biv.
Bryan spoke a bit about preparing for vol-biv, and did a show and tell of a few of his flights, including several breath-taking photos.
Nick Neynens also talked through some of his recent flights in Georgia, Kyrgyzstan & France.
Hearing about these flights is really encouraging and a few pilots have reported that it's given them confidence to give hike and fly a go themselves.
Bryan spoke a bit about preparing for vol-biv, and did a show and tell of a few of his flights, including several breath-taking photos.
Nick Neynens also talked through some of his recent flights in Georgia, Kyrgyzstan & France.
Hearing about these flights is really encouraging and a few pilots have reported that it's given them confidence to give hike and fly a go themselves.
PG OPEN 2015 WANAKA - DAY 2
On Sunday the task committee took us to Coronet Peak, deemed our best chance of getting a task in.After waiting in the rain at the Flight Park, we set off up to launch. We were optimistic! Until the rain set in again, which didn't take long.
No task, but a few people stuck around to free fly, and the Terraces turned on in the late afternoon. So did the Cardrona Hotel.
Briefing on Monday morning was cancelled, as it was clear there would be no flying.
Let's see what Tuesday has in store for us!
(Thanks Kris Ericksen for the photo)
PG OPEN 2015 WANAKA – TASK 1
Registration kicked off on Friday night without a hitch, but
there has been a lot of rumbling amongst the pilots about the weather forecast.It seems the hang gliders may have used up all the decent weather with the HG Nationals last week, and the next few days are not looking good for us.
However, we are a stubborn lot, so we headed up to Treble
Cone on Saturday morning to sit in the clouds on launch and consider our
options.
The task was set, and everyone hurried up to wait for the cloud to lift & conditions to improve.
The task was set, and everyone hurried up to wait for the cloud to lift & conditions to improve.
Joel Hanlon, on his tandem, was the first to launch. Although
the rest of us admired his bold behaviour as we caught glimpses of him through
the cloud, no one was convinced to join him in the air.
Eventually with the clock ticking to the launch window closing, Peter Groves decided to take action. As soon as the cloud cleared enough for the launch window to open, he was off. That, and only 30 minutes remaining to get around 50 pilots in the air, was enough to get a buzz going.
All pilots managed to get in the air, although Kris Ericksen cut it a bit close, lifting his feet a mere ten seconds before the launch window closed for the day.
Eventually with the clock ticking to the launch window closing, Peter Groves decided to take action. As soon as the cloud cleared enough for the launch window to open, he was off. That, and only 30 minutes remaining to get around 50 pilots in the air, was enough to get a buzz going.
All pilots managed to get in the air, although Kris Ericksen cut it a bit close, lifting his feet a mere ten seconds before the launch window closed for the day.
The task was a run up and down the ridge, over to Glendhu Hill, back to Pub Corner, and goal at Glendhu Bay. Although no one quite made it, it was a bit of a surprise to have a valid task!
Congratulations to the winner of the day, Hugo Robben.
Congratulations to the winner of the day, Hugo Robben.
See the results here:
HG NATIONALS WANAKA DAY SIX
Top of Grandview 5000ft
Light easterly, great conditions.
The task was north to Breast Peak and then west to Mt Maude, south west to Mt Iron, back to Grandview, with goal at Pembroke Park. 63km.
John was first off followed by Tom Kellner. John got weak lift on the southern ridge while Tom scratched low and made his way out front. John flew north to get out from under the cloud building above take off and when Tom hit the sun out in front of the hill he found a thermal to take him to 8000ft.
The rest of us piled off the hill when the sun came back on the hill. Some pilots got good height while others worked their way along the ridge to Breast.
Those who did not leave Breast with good height had a hard scratch at the base of Mt Maude. Lift was found before and around Mt Iron. The 15km glide back to Grandview could be topped up with thermals along the way and patience was needed if the cloud above Grandview had shaded the hill.
John was first into goal with Bill, Dave Austin, Andrew Mc Kirdy, Grant reaching there also along with a few others.
Tom Kellner had a two hour flight and flew direct to Pembroke.
Kim the novice got to 8000ft and Ian Miller kept his first place position in Sport class getting nearly wpt 4.
Dave Austin won the day.
All the novices had great flights and lots of practice thermaling.
Task 5 Results
Provisional After 5 Tasks
Mark Alton
Reporter
HG NATIONALS WANAKA DAY FIVE
The forecast was for light easterlies and to come on at 13:00 and build to peak around 16:00 with late afternoon showers.
One News turned up at take off in the car park of Treble cone and interviewed a few of the competitors and the novices.
The task was set with a 2km start gate at pub corner with three start gates.Out to Mt Roy then on to Mt Maude at the south end of Lake Hawea then head up the isthmus between Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka to where it narrows and then back to Pembroke Park in Wanaka.
Hagen was first off followed by John but they had to work hard to stay up and as they slowly wound down it did not look a good time to follow them.
The conditions got better and a few pilots took off but most stayed on the hill.
Cloud was building behind us at the top of TC and some paragliders were getting height so the rest followed to find tight broken thermals.It was working to the south of the waterfall and persistence paid off with pilots climbing out above TC to over 8000ft after a hard fight.
Those who did make it above TC had a good glide out to Mt Roy to top out and a buoyant glide to Mt Maude.
You needed to stay high on the range along the isthmus as it was a long glide out to the road and no good landings on the east side.
The day had developed well by this stage and those who had made it this far had a good run back to Wanaka with plenty of height to burn off over Pembroke Park.John Smith was first into goal followed by Clint and Angus. Four other pilots made it into goal to make it the best day so far.
Watch One News on Thursday or Friday for coverage of the event.
The showers did come around 8:30pm when the midweek BBQ as in full swing.
Task 4 Results
Provisional Results After 4 Tasks
TV One News Item 30th January 2015
Mark Alton
Reporter
HG NATIONALS WANAKA DAY FOUR
High cloud with patches of lower cloud and light SSE winds.
After tracking down the owner we got up the hill and set up on all three sides of the ridge.
Clint got away off the hill first under overcast skies and found a nice thermal to take him drifting down the ridge towards the first turn point at Mt Maude.
Others soon followed but we could see that they were not getting the luck that Clint had.The sun was on the ground over towards Wanaka and slowly moving our way, so when it hit the hill Grant got off and climbed out on the lee side getting good height.
Others followed as the shut off time of 5pm was not far off.
Tight lee side thermals made it hard to get enough height but some persisted and they were paid off and made their way down the Hawea range.
John and Bill got to goal at Pembroke Park in Wanaka to show that it could be done.
Adriel Kind in sport class made it out to the D.O.C camp ground and showed the more skilled pilots how it was done.
All the novices got off the hill, picking up the thermals on the lee side of the hill to land out on the flats below the range.
Wednesday is looking like its going to be a boomer day.
Task 3 Results
Mark Alton
Reporter
HG NATIONALS WANAKA DAY TWO
The novices were keen to get off before the task started and we could see that there were light thermals down at Pub Corner.
The course was up around the corner to Crash Peak and then out to Cromwell.
John Smith, Hagen and Shane Mackay took off to find it was very light and scratchy. Other pilots followed and those on the hill could see that it was hard work to get up.
After a while pilots could be seen getting high further down the ridge so the rest of us piled off and found lift to the south of the waterfall at the Pyramid.
Those who got high headed up to turnpoint 1 but did not find any lift to get us above the wpt and reach the turnpoint. Lots of gliders in the bomb out but to our surprise we found out that John Smith and Bill Degan were on their way to goal.
John and Bill made goal, but due to no other pilots getting to wpt 1 it was a low scoring day.
One of the free flyers, Niall Mueller texted in to tell us he had made it down 60km past Alexandra and had flown 130km, a personal best. It goes to show that an average day on the hill can lead on to a great cross country.
Task Two Results
Mark Alton
Reporter
HG NATIONALS WANAKA DAY ONE
The event attracted 24 pilots registered and 5 novices turned up to learn from the more experienced pilots.
The task was down to Long Gully and back up into a light NW wind to Breast Peak and then out to Wanaka with the possibility to land in the park in town.
Take offs were a bit rough due to the bowl facing west and the wind NW with clear blue skies, but everyone got away. One novice I meet at 5,500ft above Grand View later told me that he had used the more advanced pilots to show him the way, so much for wind dummies.
The second leg into wind was difficult with light lift, so a few pilots where lost on the way. Turn point two need large cajones if you were not above Breast Peak.
Light lift above the Hawera Flats got you a good glide into Wanaka.
Three pilots made it into goal, J. Smith, B. Hagen, and M. Alton.
Mark Alton
Reporter
FERRY DISCOUNT FOR NATIONAL COMPETITIONS
Pilots heading down from the North Island to the mainland for either the National Hang Gliding Championship, or the PG Open in Wanaka are eligible for substantial discounts with Blue Bridge Ferries. Apply early!
Hangies should contact Mark Alton
Paragliders should contact Derek Divers
Hangies should contact Mark Alton
Paragliders should contact Derek Divers
PG OPEN 2015 - REGISTRATION OPEN
Registration is now open for the 2015 New Zealand PG Open in Wanaka
Please register here www.pgopen.org.nz
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