Blog

Wednesday 11th December 2019

December 15, 2019

XC Activities:

• Andy has been busy this week with his X Country Coaching with flights from 300km up to nearly 900km. Andy and Ian Steventon took to the skies for three coaching flights starting on the 5^th where Ian reported having awesome coaching days with a 550km, 607km and a great 817km flight in the Duo Discus.
• Andy and Jason Kath had a brilliant flight of 871km with an average speed of 110km/h. The first leg produced lots of rough bubbles resulting in tough climbs, when after 300km near Burren Junction, the sky delivered as forecast. The flight was both frustrating and rewarding for the pilots.
• Dave Fagan had a couple good flights averaging around 500km mark with 100km/h speeds. Both days provided the blue, one with no hurdles and the other flight had a challenging end.
• Jason Kath scored himself a nice little 350km flight on the 11^th as did James Dutschke who made it home just before the storms hit. Ivo Kalushkov meanwhile wasn’t quite as lucky, having a hard run due to overdevelopment and thunderstorms. He had a very challenging landing in 20-25kt winds seconds before the rain/gusts and hail, but managed to land safely, well done Ivo.
• All in all, it has been a very busy week X Country with the majority of the flights around 500km and average speeds of 100km/h.

Trainees:

• We welcome our friends from Indonesia here on Wednesday. Every two years our Indonesian visitors come here to fly for two weeks, some to expand their solo flying skills further and others are Ab-Initio having not flown before. We hope they enjoy their time here at LKSC.

Other Visitors:

• Club regular and gliding legend Harry Medlicott has been here this week hoping to get some good flights in with long distances and great heights predicted.
• Elizabeth Sparrow flew in from the UK late last week and is settling in well, acclimatising to the harsh Australian heat. Liz is a member of the British Team in the WWGC and has been busy familiarising herself with the local area.
• James Dutschke is visiting from Queensland and is a returning visitor here to do some X Country flying which he describes as “Awesome”.
• This week we extend a warm welcome to our newest recruit to the Tuggie family, Nina Burkardt. Nina is from Gympie in Qld and is here until mid-February. She is only 19 years of age and is already proving herself to be a very competent tow pilot and will be towing in the WWGC.
• Chris Bowman is here this week busily adding the final touches to the organisation of the WWGC. Chris has been working tirelessly on this event and I’m sure everyone appreciates his efforts.

Other Activities:

• Our new water tank is finished and is filling up nicely, the tanks capacity is 240,000 Lts which will hopefully ensure we have an adequate supply for the comps.
• Steve Stewart our groundsman has given the donga a fresh coat of paint and what a difference it makes.
• Lake Keepit Soaring Club is starting to get busy with the lead-up to the WWGC with competition pilots arriving, visitors and trainees as well as our regular members which will ensure there will be very busy but exciting times ahead.

Next weekend 14th December:

• This weekend’s forecast is for very warm to hot conditions which will make for some great flying conditions. There may be some areas of smoke haze. Weekend Instructors are father and son duo, Greg and Nick Edwards and the pilots on the noisy end of the rope will be the Smith brothers.
• If you are looking for that unique Christmas gift but can’t find what you’re looking for, why not give your loved one a Gift Voucher for an AEF (Air Experience Flight) at LKSC. This will be the gift that they will remember forever.

Wednesday 27th November 2019

November 27, 2019

Training:

• This week we welcome John Alexander here to Lake Keepit. John is from Gardner’s Bay in beautiful Tasmania. John is a Professional yachtie and has competed very successfully in the Sydney to Hobart many times and the America’s Cup as well. John thought he would swap sails for wings and learn the skill of motor less flight.

XC Activities:

• Andy had to make a quick visit back to the UK and was not coaching this week.
• A few pilots braved the very smoky conditions and took to the skies where even though there were strong winds and very poor visibility, the thermals were strong and reliable.
• A few 300km flights were achieved with speeds of 117km/h

Other Visitors:

• Leo Davies our resident Professor, is here with his good mate Pete Brooks. Pete flew in from South Australia in his rather cute little Allegro.
• A big warm welcome back to Lake Keepit Soaring Club to Ivo Kalushkov. Ivo is one of our happiest, most positive members and has returned from Bulgaria to spend the next 3 months here with us to lend a hand and tame the skies with his gliding expertise.
• All round good guy Ian Sawell has been here for a few days to fly and help out. Ian is going to be Crew for Ayala Truelove in the WWGC, he will be a great asset to the team.
• Our Tuggie this week is the very talented and funny Rob De Jarlais. Rob is always up for a joke and has been making some noise in the E-tug PIJ, getting our pilots safely up into the air.
• Also visiting is our very own Treasurer Chris Bowman and his lovely wife Lyndy. Chris is here to complete his AFR and to continue organising items for the WWGC which is keeping him very busy.

Other Activities:

• There has been some activity around the club with heavy equipment, a 20-tonne excavator to create the foundations for our new water tank which is going up on the hill adjacent to our existing one. This extra tank will ensure we have an adequate supply of water leading up to the WWGC.
• Things are starting to get busy with the lead up to the WWGC with the delivery of the British container. Ayala has been eagerly awaiting its arrival with its precious cargo of gliders.

Next weekend 30th November:

• This weekend’s forecast is for showers and windy conditions. Maybe not the most suitable weather for flying but still an excellent opportunity to come out to the club and meet some great people, have a look around and ignite your interest for the joy of gliding.

Wednesday 20th November 2019

November 25, 2019

XC Activities:

• Another good and busy XC week with 30 flights over 300km and a few over 600km.
• A few pilots took advantage of the high convection (13’500ft) to fly the convergence over the New England plateau, good speeds of 135Km/h over 500km were achieved.
• Andy and Alan did coaching flights in the Duo Discus and ASG 29.

Trainees:

• No trainees this week, Jessica Lee and Audrey Lee have left to go back to Hong Kong with lots of new skills and are super keen to come back & visit us.

Other Visitors:

• We have Milan Petkovic who is a returning visitor and Cathay Pacific pilot, and Brian Thomas also a Cathay Pacific pilot. Both are friends with our dear Casey Lewis and are here to have a friendly, social little tootle around the skies.
• Graham Martin is here to help out with the towing this week as is our funny resident Dr, Al Giles. Our club couldn’t operate without our tuggies and we value and appreciate all that they do to keep our pilots in the air.
• Frances Knowles has left after a week having fun soaring our skies. Frances had a great time is now off to Nelson’s Bay to enjoy the sun & sea before heading back to chilly UK.

Weekend Forecast:

• This weekends forecast is for very warm conditions but with the chance of a thunderstorm so come out to Keepit and you should be able to enjoy some great flying.

Wednesday 13th November 2019

November 13, 2019

Trainees:

• Jessica Lee and Audrey Lee are still here to complete their training, the girls from Hong Kong are progressing well and enjoying their stay here.

Other Visitors:

• Woodley Wong had a great week here and accomplished what he came here to do, he gained his GPC, well done Woodley.
• Club members and all-round good people, Neil & Barb Cameron have been here visiting for a few days. Neil has been here doing general local flying.
• Frances Knowles has arrived here for a week after spending a couple weeks flying at Alice Springs with Jenny Ganderton. Frances lives in the UK and has visited LKSC before and loves to fly across our wide brown land.
• Ayala Truelove arrived on Saturday from the UK. Ayala has spent time here previously instructing throughout the summer months and is here to compete in the WWGC. She has wasted no time getting into the seat of a glider to familiarise herself with the area once again and start training.

Other Activities:

• Andy Aveling continues to provide Cross Country Coaching and his lovely partner Fiona has now joined him for some time at Lake Keepit.
• Work continues around the club to organise for the WWGC and ensure everything is ready to go once the competition starts.

Next weekend 16th November:

• This weekend we have the Air League Cadets here from Tamworth. This is the cadets annual weekend visit to Keepit, where the young cadets use the skill of gliding to add to their training.

Wednesday 6th November 2019

November 6, 2019

Next weekend 9th November:

• This weekend’s forecast is for beautiful flying weather so come out to Lake Keepit and try your hand at the peaceful but exciting sport of gliding.

Trainees:

• Sammy Yau from Hong Kong has left Lake Keepit after gaining her B Certificate and enjoying her stay here.
• Other trainees who have arrived this week from Hong Kong are, Eric Wong, Audrey Lee and Jessica Lee who are all excited to be here and learn the skill of motor less flight.
• Sammy Lee is still here and is proving to be a very keen and valuable student, she is making amazing progress.

Other Visitors:

• Arriving at the club are some of the women in the Australian team for Squad Week here to do some training.
• We also welcome back Woodley Wong, from Hong Kong. Woodley is one of our returning visitors and who is a Cathy Pacific pilot. Woodley is hoping to gain his GPC whilst here.
• There are lots of members here this week for the finish of the GP, there were 3 days flying and the leaders were: Day 1: David Fagan/Andy Aveling, Day 2: David Fagan and Day 3: Peter Trotter.
• A big warm welcome this week to Mike Birch from the UK. Mike is here for his annual summer instructing period and so he can escape the harsh UK winter.

Other Activities:

• The club has been extremely busy with members here lending a hand with the Working Bee to get our club in top shape for the WWGC. All of the jobs on the list were completed, many thanks to all who helped out. 😊
• Our X Country extraordinaire Andy Aveling has been kept busy coaching members the finer skills of x country flying.

Wednesday 23rd October 2019

October 23, 2019

Next weekend 1st November:

• The next Lake Keepit GP starts on the 1^st -4^th November, so far there are a good number of registrations for members to battle it out in the skies.

Trainees:

• We have a trainee from Hong Kong here this week, Sammy Yau. Sammy would like to gain her A Certificate and will be spending a year in Adelaide as part of her training to become a Cathy Pacific pilot.

Other Visitors:

• It’s always nice to welcome back one of our happiest members here, Ning Shen. Ning completed some flying with Kerry and then went X Country with Andy for a very enjoyable 4 hr flight, he said it was one of the most enjoyable experiences he has had.
• We have also had the pleasure of having around 8 lovely ladies here for WIG Week. The ladies have had a great time sharing their skills and knowledge and bonding socially after the flying day ends.
• Daryl & Jarad Speight arrived at the start of the week and have enjoyed soaring the skies of Lake Keepit and going X Country with Andy.
•  Terry Kingsley arrived here from Kilcoy in QLD to pay us a random visit. He flew here to do some sightseeing and absolutely loved it here.

Other Activities:

• The Club has been a hive of activity with lots of visitors and members here enjoying the flying conditions as the temperatures heat up.
• A Working Bee is planned for after the GP to assist in getting some jobs completed to make sure everything looks sparkly for the WWGC.

Wednesday 9th October 2019

October 9, 2019

Next weekend 12^th October:

• Lake Keepit is host to the Vintage Gliders from the Hunter Valley, an annual get together to share the joy of gliding.

Trainees:

• No trainees at Lake Keepit this week.

Other Visitors:

• Lots of members here through the week enjoying the great flying weather and participating in the club GP over the long weekend.
• The Vintage Glider Flyers arrived on the weekend bringing with them a Ka6, Nymph, Cobra, Mozzie and a Dg202.
• Val & Pete have been staying at Keepit for a couple weeks for some towing duties before setting off again into the wide blue yonder.
• A big warm welcome back to Lake Keepit from the UK to our Cross-Country extraordinaire, Andy Aveling. Andy is the man to see for any pilot wishing to increase their cross-country skills.

Other Activities:

• The one & only Bernard Eckey has been here this week to assist and sign off the pilots with learning the skills to fly UCJ – the glider owned by Christian Werner, Chris Bowman, Leo Davies and Lynn Anderson.