Raglan

Went to Raglan on Tuesday after stopping off in Hamilton to let the ladies go shopping for the day. We travelled around the Whanga Coast road to a windswept site overlooking the sea. Ralph just had to try it out and here's a pic of him getting airbourne with the MH64 plank.



He certainly cuts a lonely picture in such bleak terrain.



Later, we went round further to another spot on the coast. To get to the hill we had to cross a stream with only a couple of dodgy logs to walk across - and yes, I slipped off and collapsed into the water. Ferkin cold it was too, but worse, it drowned my camera, so no photos from this spot :-(

But what a great flying site : I had the JW racing around the sky revelling in the strong lift, even pulling up inverted after an aileron roll - yeehaaa! Must go back there again, but we need to find a better way across that stream!

Kaimai Fly

On Sunday, Ralph and I went to Matamata for a fly off the Kaimai Range. Weather was very cold but with a perky 12 - 15kts SW we were assured of some flying after too long beside the fireplace.

We only managed a short fly before a shower came over and forced us back into the Safari for a hot drink. Mmmmmm.




After the rain Ralph spent some time thrashing around the sky with his MH64 plank, before switching to his Patriot plank for some more testing and tuning. This is the fastest, heaviest plank he has built and it certainly retains momentum.



Meanwhile, I was struggling, first with the JART and then my Karwai, both being too light for the conditions and not getting any penetration. A shortage of lead ballast was finally solved when Ralph suggested we tape a pair of pliers (!!!) to the top of the Karwai. That certainly helped, and only a small adjustment of trim enabled me to whiz around at a faster clip.

Here's a closeup of the pliers attached to the fuselage - not pretty but it worked!

Paper Darts

On Sunday, I hooked up with Ralph and Cliff in a cold southerly at the top of the Bowl on the Mount. I was flying the JW plank and enjoying some high speed for a welcome change.



Later on Ralph pulled out his paper dart release contraption and taped it to the underside of Cliff's Fusion. This simple mechanism allows the dart to be carried under the wing and released by simply flying upside down.





After many attempts we ended with a tally of 3 darts making it back over the top of the Mount summit - last seen heading off to Karewa Island. Three more (mostly my designs) plummeted into spiral dives immediately after release :-(

Obviously they weren't in proper trim!