Finally got to fly White Mountain

White mountain is a private site that the UHPC has permission to fly. It is a peak the the Sperrin Mountains that looks over the Glenshane pass (A6) which is the main route from Belfast to Stroke city. It isn't the tallest mountain in the Sperrins but it is still rather a big lump. Fortunately the private road goes all the way to the top so there isn't to much climbing to do. I have been to this site before but never flown it.

I wasn't too expectant to get off the ground today as it was a typical April day with showers coming and going and the threat of rain was always in the air. However I got a phone call early afternoon from Ian who lives about 2 miles away from me to see if I fancied chancing a trip out. Ian is the club coach that I have been assigned to. I had been looking longingly out of the window all day so it didn't take much to make my mind up.

 I managed one flight as the wind was only just strong enough to maintain height if you know what you are doing and it seems I do not. I launched off the hill into a lull then tried to soar back and forth but bombed out pretty quickly.

After a hard climb back up to the launch site and a few minutes getting my breath back Ian came over for a chat. It seems that after I take off I fly out from the hill too far before I make a turn to fly along the ridge. This means that I fly through the strongest lift which is closest to the hill so that is why I loose height quickly in light conditions. I do this because I have difficulty in getting sat back into my harness and need to push forward on the risers just above where they attach to the harness to be able to push myself back into the seat correctly. Next time I will try to turn along the ridge before I get back into the seat, it maybe uncomfortable for a little longer but it will be worth a try to see if it helps extend my flights in light conditions.

I also think I will have to hang the harness up in the garage again and practice getting from an upright position into a seated position. Fortunately I have used some of the recent non flying days wisely enough to clear the garage out so this shouldn't be as hard as it normally is.