The drive home went well on Sunday...Jamie Shelden hitched a ride with Ben Dunn and me in my truck. She had the entire back seat to herself as Ben and I traded driving duties on the way back...a nice drive.
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I'm looking forward to next year's comps, though, already. There was something about Santa Cruz Flats, my last place finish, and what I've learned, that has sparked a little "comp pilot" flame in me. Flying comps really does open personal best doors for a pilot. The key is learning from both the good flights and the not so good flights. I had my share of both at SCF.
One thing I noticed, and is mentioned in Jeff O'Briens blog, is how some people choose the thermal. I found myself wanting to make tighter turns where the lift was more prevalent, but at times was limited by others making consistently wider turns in the same thermal. It was fun to read this in Jeff's blog as it was something I was thinking on my own at various points during the comp. I don't consider myself a strong thermal pilot, but must have some sort of bead on the sport when I can recognize areas of lift that work better for me and actually gain me more altitude. The key may be to simply work my way tighter in these thermals when others are making their wide turns. Working with others in the same thermal, though, entails a bit of responsibility, not only for my safety, but the safey of others. I don't want to be the guy who is pissing off everyone in a gaggle, but at the same time, don't want to be the guy who is continually yielding to others, thus falling out of lift...a fine line needs to be drawn and that will come with experience.
Flatland flying is more fun that I thought it'd be. It is also more challenging than I thought, as well. There were times where a dust devil on glide produced anticipated results, getting me higher, then back on glide to the next. Then, there were times where another dusty would put me right on the ground. What I enjoyed most about flying at SCF was being on glide, recognizing a significant thermal, and timing a nice bank turn while dumping all my VG and simply cranking up in what it had to offer.
Learning how to navigate with my 6030 was another milestone for me, as well. For some reason (Brian Foster stop laughing) I felt I could "eyeball" waypoints from 6000 feet, tag them, then move on to the next. This cost me dearly on points the second day of the meet and won't be happening any more in whatever comps I choose to fly. The damn vario cost me $1500.00, so I might as well use it, right?
Last but not least, Wendy had a great time hanging out and driving for us, as well. Comps like Santa Cruz Flats are stress free when it comes to driving, and the Francisco Grande Resort was a great place to relax after a day of flying or exploring during non-flying days.
Time to practice for next year...