Contest Day 1

Day 1 at Dansville was “character building”.

The forecast called for similar cloud base and lift conditions to the practice day but with a shorter working window. High clouds from the south were expected to work into the task area later in the afternoon, so a TAT was set to go southeast first (Avoca) and back to the northwest (Nunda, Hanna Acres) to try and avoid the incoming weather.

The run down to Avoca and back was easy and many maxed out that circle. The Nunda circle was another story. Thick cirrus had moved in by early afternoon and pretty much shut down the lift. There was a lot of groveling and hand clenching as pilots “worked nothing” for a while, waiting for enough lift to move on. Some played it conservatively on the final turnpoint, Hanna Acres, while at least a couple [W3 and JL] drove farther north toward the sunshine, close to the Rochester Class C airspace. There were a few landouts but everyone was back safely before 1700.

Tim Welles [W3] takes first in the FAI Class with a speed of 58.94mph over 125.87 miles. Ed Winchester [H1] earned the lead in the Sports Class flying 51.19mph over 83.96 miles.

The next couple of days look iffy. We are hoping the moisture will stay to the south.

J9