Back to the Malahat and then Dallas

DayTaster for Grant

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Paul and I met up with Grant from Northern BC this morning and had him doing some nice inflations in light SE wind at Dallas before deciding to try our luck at the Malahat (which has been officially closed for about 2 years now as we've had issues with the corporate landowner). Winds were showing east at the airport so I called Charlie and had him join us. The road up was in better shape than we expected as was the launch ramp.

Light rain starting falling just as we arrived on top but it let up, allowing Charlie to fly (welcome to the Malahat Charlie!). He found light lift part way out to the beach and, once he arrived at Bamberton, he was able to soar up and down the tree line for ~10mins before putting down!

Some nice wind starting blowing in just as Grant and I were setting up for the tandem component of his DayTaster course and we had a lifty launch, followed by a cruisy flight down to the beach. You could tell Grant was hooked when the first thing he wanted to do upon landing was go for another flight!

Once back in town, Paul and I decided to check out Dallas even though it was reporting similar light SE winds as this morning. After we each played around with the tandem, I thought the wind was straightening and strengthening so I pulled out the only solo glider I had with me: Simon's old WAVE. Surprisingly enough, I went pretty much straight up from the kiting area and flew the length of the ridge and back a few times before the pilots started coming out of the woodwork (funny how that happens at Dallas).

By the time it was well past dinner, Rick, Paul, Amir (!), Phil, Carlos, Annelies, and Pierre had each flown a few times while Shabe, Trask, and brand new Grant got some excellent kiting practice. A FULL day for sure.

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