SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2015

WEATHER
Visibility: Hazy but more than 25 miles most of the day.
Wind: Calm mostly but a slight East crosswind in late afternoon.
Altitudes: Only tow height or maybe a foot or so above.
Time Aloft: Alex Caldwell probably set the time record today of about 30 minutes or so.
Max Lift: Likely about 100 feet per minute but rare.
Temperature: Mid 70's, a beautiful Fall day at Avenal.
Comment: Three solo students today, tying a record set ten years ago, 9-24-05.
Tow pilot:  Dan Gudgel, Julie Butler, for a total of 21 tows, a very busy day.

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TO SEE A LARGE SIZE OF ANY PHOTO JUST CLICK ON THE PHOTO AND YOU WILL SEE A SLIDE SHOW OF ALL THE PHOTOGRAPHS.

Note: All the best photographs were taken by Jim Rickey, the rest by me and one by Joe Anastasio.

It was quite an amazing day for student flying and solo. For the first time in 10 years, three students soloed on the same day. Who were these people? They're from the newest and most active group we have had in the club in years. Cal Poly!!! Yea team!!!

These fine young men and woman are a wonderful asset to our club and to society in general. They are going to be the leaders in technology and community in the not-too-distant future. They bring excitement, ambition, laughter, intensity, brainpower, creativity, and whatever else we can say about them. Each of these great young people are very different from one another but in many ways, so similar. Our club hasn't been this fortunate with such new members as a group in a long time. Of course we have had and continue to have new students that are excellent additions to our club. Lately we've seen Clark Woolf, Tyler Bishop, Roman Franco, Sergio Grajeda, Ed Mandibles, Harry Davies, Jamie Strickland, Steve Valentine, Rick Eason, Philip Gerfaud, Kavin Gustafson, Skip Breidbach, Mario Pauda, and others over the past year join our club and begin their training as individuals. And we're grateful for their presence in our club. But it's tough to beat the group known as the Cal Poly Pilots, for adding members at a torrid pace.

Most soaring clubs nationwide lament the fact that there aren't any young people coming into soaring. But, here at the CCSC, in a matter of just a few weeks, the Cal Poly group has changed all that for our club. We now have seven new members, all but one are solo pilots as of today, and looking forward to soaring together in the coming months. Here they are: Jennifer Bauman, Troy Wollman, Kyle O'Connell, Andrew Palmer, Griff Malloy, Luke Bughman, and Neiman Walker. CONGRATULATIONS EVERYONE FOR ADDING SO MUCH TO OUR CLUB!!!!

We can't forget Harrison King and Ethan Lawton who came out last week. Harrison had his first training flight but Ethan chose to just get acquainted with the club and the flight operations.

The day started off with several people sanding on Big Bird:

Sergio Grajeda also helps out a lot and has done so on the Big Bird these past few months.

Jennifer Bauman always helping out whenever and wherever necessary.

Luke Bughman is hoping to solo today, perhaps thinking about it as he sands Big Bird.

Griff Malloy hopes to solo today so he sands as a way of calming down.

Mario Pauda takes his turn sanding Big Bird.

Big Bird has its final coat of yellow.

We needed weak links in order to begin towing for the day.

Christian Heidgerd, an NAS Lemoore pilot is back again after a lot of fighter flying. He visited us on July 11, 2015, to renew his CFIG and we hope he'll get back current again so he can help out here at Avenal when necessary. He's in the photo above, and below holding the right end of the weak link. Christian worked with Dan Gudgel this morning on towing, and is planning on becoming another CCSC tow pilot.

Julie Butler adds the power to the towplane.

Adding duct tape to the weak links to slow down the rate of wear during use.

All gathered around while Troy Wollman installs video cameras for the upcoming solo flights.

Mario Pauda ready to launch in the 1-26, a glider he loves to fly, and others do, too.

Kyle O'Connell helping Alex Caldwell finish the pre-launch tasks before flying his superb Nimbus 3.

Must be nice to enjoy flying that long-winged bird, the Nimbus 3.

Distinct shadows in the dust.


Up first for solo flight is Kyle O'Connell who took two training flights before this solo.


Kyle is ready now and looking forward to being back in the air solo after a long layoff.

When Kyle finished his solo flight, Griff Malloy was ready and willing to go for it.

A crowd gathers as Griff Malloy is about to takeoff on his 1st solo.

Liftoff on 1st solo for Griff Malloy.

Alex Caldwell watches the proceedings from overhead in his beautiful Nimbus 3.

Still on tow as Griff Malloy passes overhead on his 1st solo flight.

Very first solo flight and a tractor crosses the threshold with Griff on short final

Nice touchdown on runway 13R.

Griff Malloy is all smiles after his 1st solo.

Jennifer Bauman ready for launch in the 1-26, a glider she loves to fly. Troy Wollman running the wing.

Jennifer Bauman launching in the 1-26.

Jennifer lands after her flight in the 1-26. Following her is the Orange Crush and behind that is the tow plane.

Harold goes up with Luke Bughman for one last flight before soloing.

Now Luke is ready for his first solo, having done very well on the previous training flights.

Luke Bughman's 1st solo takeoff has begun.

Luke Bughman is airborne on his 1st solo.

Short final approach for Luke's 1st solo landing

Touchdown.

Congratulations are handed out after Luke Bughman's 1st solo flight.

Luke is on his second solo launch as the sun just about sets below the West Ridge.

Harold is in the back seat again for another training flight, this time with Andrew Palmer.

Harold watches as Andrew takes off on his sixth dual flight .

Now it's Neiman Walker's turn to fly. He soloed last week and is now taking advantage of the cockpit-absent CFIG.

Neiman begins his takeoff roll in late afternoon after all the other solo flights.

Neiman is light on the gear as he lifts off on his solo flight this afternoon.

The three solo pilots today, Kyle O'Connell, Griff Malloy, and Luke Bughman. This is Kyle's second official solo, the first at Lake Elsinore many months ago.

Kyle's shirttail comes off for the first time because it didn't happen on his long ago first solo.

Griff Malloy loses his shirttail after a good day of training flights and the three solo flights.

Luke Bughman said he never dreamed even a couple of  months ago he'd be learning to fly and now he's a glider pilot.

We headed to the burrito place for a celebratory dinner, Alex Caldwell and Jim Rickey at the table on the right.

Luke Bughman, Troy Wollman, Neiman Walker, Jennifer Bauman, Kyle O'Connell, Andrew Palmer, and Griff Malloy.

It was a great day for all these fine young people from Cal Poly and they have started on a path in their lives that one cannot predict how far and how embedded they will be in the world of aviation. Becoming a pilot changes one's life in ways that are positive and with a whole new way of viewing our world. At the Air & Space Museum, some years ago, they had a documentary film titled, "To Fly", not shown any longer but I have a copy. Here is some of what was narrated in the film*:

"...Throughout human history we have struggled to move ever more freely about our world. Our conquest of the air began with the first balloon. These flights suddenly gave us a whole other way of seeing. It was like the opening of a new eye.

Our new vision has changed our very comprehension of our land. From up here, we see a country different from anything known at eye level in the world of the horizontal. This development of mobility and rapid transport has no parallel in all human history.

... We first flew in dreams. And the dream of flying has become real. We have extended our limits and seen our world from a new angle in a way that once would have seemed god-like.

We have come a long way from the time when people gazed enviously at the birds in flight. Today we look upon our planet from afar and feel a new tenderness for the tiny and fragile earth. For we know now that even as we walk upon the ground we are ever in flight throughout the universe.

And so we begin to realize that human destiny has ever been, and always must be, To Fly!"

Today was fast and furious and most of all, fun. Thanks everyone.

Harold Gallagher and Jim Rickey.

*Copyright 1976, a National Air & Space Museum IMAX movie.

The Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.

A Presentation of Conoco, Inc. , a Du Pont subsidiary.