National Vintage Glider Club Rally - Parham

[Sedbergh]

For anyone interested in T21's & other older gliders, the national VGC rally is at Parham airfield, Sussex from 26th May to 2nd June.

Get nostalgic enough about the good old days in the ATC and someone might even offer you a flight!

[shortstripper]

Did you go Sedberg?

I flew in with my T31m on Tuesday. Cracking day! Shame the rest of the week was so poor.

SS

[Sedbergh]

SS
I wuz there. Saw your T31M from a distance but was in the launch queue and had to go. Hoped to get a good look later as it looked very nice.
Then I had some very nice soaring until gross pilot incompetence put myself into a field close to Lasham. Excellent field & farm manager was an ex-glider pilot so no probs. However I didn't get back until late & naturally you were gone. Pity
We had a great session later in the week when visited by some of the people from the RAFA retirement home in Storrington. One ex pilot had an aerotow in a Capstan & discovered to his joy that he still knew how to fly after 60 years.
One of the other guys was given a flight in the Challock motor glider.
One lady (Doris), wife of one of the veterans had never flown in anything in her life. She had a winch launch in a T21! Quite a start and thought it was wonderful. One of the highlights of the week really.:):):)

[shortstripper]

I can understand why you pushed it, it was a fantastic soaring day!

On the way home I throttled back to about 2200 rpm and and flew at 40 knots. This normally gives around 200fpm down, which is about what the T31 does as a glider. Following a cloud street I was getting 400fpm up and then hit what was probably the most powerful thermal I've ever picked up. The old cosin vario was pegged at over 2000fpm (it's max) and I was at cloud base in seconds. Unfortunately I had to get home for work, otherwise I could have played for hours!

It would have been nice to have said hello, maybe another time? What were you flying? A T21?

SS

[Sedbergh]

If I'd been in the T21 I would have had an excuse for bombing out! Unfortunately I was in my Skylark 4 & should have made it back easily.:{

[Sedbergh]

There was an item on the rally on the local ITV news

www.itvlocal.com/meridian/news/?player=mernews26&void=70591

about 14 min into the presentation if you're interested.
I'm the lanky b**** in boots helping to rig the red Petrel (I did get to fly it later)