Reflecting on the season .....

.... that just flew by

Its been an year since I acquired the then newly introduced Sprint from Gin and my flight log tells me that I have accrued 50 hours (49.7 to be precise ;) on it. What, a measly 50 hours in a whole damn year? It is nothing for an aspiring PG whatever (it feels funny to be called a pilot). In a moderately-ideal world, Nandi would have beckoned all weekend flyers, but not having it for any useful stretch of time meant that I had to travel to log some hours (well, obviously, not just to log). As most of these were weekend trips, these hours came at a cost, not just monetarily, but with the stressful late night and early morning travel involved. The past year was accommodating in a way as there were quite a few holidays which coincided next to a weekend. And it didnt help that the Bangalore airport (which incidentally is next to Nandi) is a pain to travel to. Of course, the alternative (the much better alternative), Yelagiri takes just 40 mins longer than to get to Nandi, albeit in a different direction (or bearing ;) - could not fly there much though ....... or as much as I would have liked. But thats life and I am pleased with my 49.7, which came off 63 flights from 17 different takeoffs.

So, where have I taken the Sprint to? Yelagiri, Bali, Bahau, Kamshet, Vagamon, Bir, Panchgani, Varkala and Pokhara. Of these a few were special - Varkala, as its just a little more than an hours drive from my real home; Pachgani, for its amazing teaching potential and its ability to force me to focus on the flying, specially afternoon flying in April; and Pokhara, for the varied possibilities and the vibe among the PG folks who land up there. The Pokhra trip felt like on steroids with the SIV course (and a li'l acro) and the flyable weather for all the days spent there. And yeah ... for the interesting people that you meet at all of these sites. The big disappointment of the year was Bir, with flying possible just for 3 days before the site was shut down due to (the incomprehensible) politics.

Great, so whats up? Though I have no clue on whats ahead, cant help but feel lucky for having finished the season without any physical damage to me or the glider, but as anyone who follows this particular sport knows, I am just delaying the inevitable - accidents will happen, more when the boundaries are pushed, conscious or not. Though keeping in mind these rational thoughts, I look forward to nail the big wing overs, yeah the really big ones, thats the plan :)

Cheers
Arabind