Wonder How a Contest Works
Well, the 20 Meter and Standard Class contests are done and the final reports should be in soon. This is my 5th contest this season and I just want to share with you how these entries in the racing calendar come to pass. The first thing you need is a club or commercial operation to volunteer to support a regional or national contest. This group of people do it for a number of reasons. They might enjoy the comradery of the soaring pilots that attend the event. It is a way to make a little money for the club and to get some publicity for the operation. You attract some of the local public and they bring their kids with them. This is a great way to get juniors into a soaring life or at least help out around the field. In fact, it’s all of the above. No one makes these volunteers put on contests, they do it for the love of the sport.
Once a club asks for a contest, the Site Selection Committee looks at all the contests and tries to deconflict dates and the classes so pilots have the option of participating in a couple of contests if they desire. Some Open Class gliders also have the ability to fly in 18 Meter Classes just like 15 Meter ships can put on their big wing tips and fly in 18 Meter Classes. The Contest Committee reviews the schedule and submits it to the SSA Board of Directors for approval.
The overall head of the contest is called the Contest Manager. They must put together a team that includes, ground personnel, Operations, launch crew, retrieve office, food vendors, tow pilots, scorer and the Contest Director. In one contest the number of volunteers can range from a dozen in a small event to over 20 in a large contest like the Senior Soaring Championship where 60 competitors meet for the first contest of the year.
In Hobbs New Mexico, where we are doing the Open Class and 15 Meter National Championships, our Contest Manager (CM) Michelle Sorenson is operating from a site that has no glider operation at all. It is the home of the Soaring Society of America and the contest is ably supported by the SSA staff. Michelle has already been a volunteer at the Seniors, Region 5 North, 18 Meter Nationals and now in Hobbs. She will also be CM for the regional contest at her home field later this year. Running a contest from you home field is a little hard, but running one from a remote site takes a lot of help. One thing that she had to deal with this week was the withdrawal of the Operations head due to Covid. The other magical thing about contests is the number of volunteers from the competitors who steep up to help. Oxygen is a necessity at Hobbs, so Ken Sorenson filled in and trained a volunteer in filling the O2 bottles. Ken was also on the line every morning weighing the gliders with help from pilots not flying that day. When the line needed help training a green launch crew, pilots who weren’t flying on the practice day were out to help. Wing runners were made up of locals and contest crew members. The launch was executed safely, efficiently and the kids had a great time in the 100-degree heat. We have also had people show up from far away to lend a hand. Roger and Janette Clark were a large influence in west coast soaring for many years. They stopped by to lend a hand and it is very much appreciated.
We will be introducing more of the staff in the coming days together with all the flying and ground stories that make up a contest. But we are here to talk about flying so let me share a little of our flight today. After arriving from Yoder Kansas, where we flew in the 20 Meter Nationals, Pete Alexander and I worked on the ship yesterday to fix a few nagging problems. Today was a test flight and crew practice for the Open Class Nationals these next 10 days. Marshall McClung is the Contest Director and he sent us out on a 447km Assigned Task from Start A, Muleshoe, Lamesa, and Finish. The weather was provided by Richard Kellerman and told of a great day with cloud bases at 12,000ft and lift in the 5-8kt range. This was going to be a Chamber of Commerce type of soaring day. We were towed by the Red Barron from the soaring club in Dallas (TSA) and was dropped off in 5kts of lift that took us to 9,000ft. We are not in Kansas anymore Toto. From there we waited a short time and left on task around 11,000ft. Our goal was to return before 4:30pm so we could get a good meal and fly a nice task. The run to Muleshoe was fast, linking clouds to maintain our altitude and only taking the best climbs. We only got below 9,000ft once during this leg. Clouds were plenty and the good ones provided lift in the advertised 5-8kt range. After turning Muleshoe there was a good line off to the west of the rumb line and we were able to stay high and cruise with few thermals even though it was into a 16-mph wind. At about the half way point we reached our time determined return home point and the final glide was so good, we passed up an 8kt climb because we didn’t need it. It was a fun day that was capped off with a dinner at Texas Roadhouse and the Mandatory Safety meeting at the Junior College meeting room.
Well, it’s time to get ready for a great contest. The ground crew is trained, volunteers have filled in the staffing holes and the ships are ready. Let me know if you have any questions about this contest or want different information in these reports. Sylvia Granstaff is helping me report on the 15 Meter Class or what we call, the “Kiddie Gliders”. I do have to say that Robin Clark did complete the task in 15 meter with a winning speed of 155kph to John Lubon’s winning speed in Open Class at 143kph. So, until tomorrow evening, stay high and go fast!
Cheers,
Rich Owen
Team 98 backseater