Big Sur: Bringing in the New Year

Made the trek down to Big Sur this past New Year's Eve / Day to meet up with some flying buddies for some camping and flying. I had new H2 Mike Owens (see video at bottom of this post) in tow to introduce him to Big Sur for the first time. Mike had two great flights both days we were there to stoke the fire a little more.

New Year's Eve I flew off Knob Junior with KM, Will, Brian Horgan, The Big Guy, Mike, and Victoria. KM, The Big Guy, and Brian flew to the "Magic Bush" along the ridge between where we launched and the Wild Cattle launch. It is an uphill top landing along the ridge that overlooks Hwy 1. In my mind, this was one of those "right of passage" flights where I even got to sign in on a sheet of paper to join the numerous other gatherings that have occurred up on that hill. There is a stash of Jagermeister, too. It's hard to explain, but you're getting the idea.

This day, I was last to launch as conditions had begun to trickle over the back...I was confident I had the legs to pull off a safe launch, so I backed the glider up a bit from where everyone else was launching and gave it a go. The launch was no problem despite the slight downwind component I had off my left rear wing. In fact, the terrain was perfect for such. Once in the air, I could see the 3 other guys along the ridge...I pulled in VG and went on glide. The approach reminded me of some of those bush pilot landing strips you see in Alaska or other areas...high on a mountain top and uphill...no room for error type of landing. If you break a downtube up there trying to land you're screwed. Anyway, I had a good landing.

We then all relaunched after going through the usual top landing "Magic Bush" rituals and made our way to the primary LZ...this was one of my shortest flights at Big Sur, but by far one of the most enjoyable. A great way to wrap up the past decade and bring in the new decade that lies ahead.

The New Year's Eve "crew" on the ridge...(L to R: Chris Valley, The Big Guy, Brian Horgan, Ken Muscio)



Sunday, I opted to drive for Brian Foster, Diev, Ryan Goebel, and Mike Owens. They all had great flights off Wild Cattle to toast the New Year, as well...everyone had a great time. Weekends like this are so much fun and the magic of Big Sur cannot be beat.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Here's a video of Mike Owens enjoying Big Sur for the first time...

Mike Owens Flies Big Sur from Chris Valley on Vimeo.

Good job Brother!