Convector
Newsletter of the Mid-Atlantic Soaring Association

Al and I have been friends and partners in the 1-26B sailplane no. 189 for over 30 years. We flew team in three 1-26 Nationals over the years. Al flew his last National contest in 1998, and did rather well, completing several tasks in the sparse-landing areas surrounding Elmira, N.Y. He was 80 years old, then. (He flew better than I did, there.)

Al flew PB-Ys (B-17s) in WWII in the Pacific; where, he once lost an engine and ditched in the surf, saving his crew and plane. In training, at Pensacola, FL, he once had an oxygen supply failure, blacked out, woke up at 11,000 feet in an inverted spin; recovered and pulled out at 500 feet AGL.

Al started gliding in the 60s at Godfrey Field in VA. He was eventually a glider instructor and tow pilot for several clubs. Al was President of the Short Hills Soaring Club (National Capital Soaring Assoc.) at Jan Scott's in the 70s. He flew and instructed at Woodbine, MD Gliderport in the 80s; and, finally, for M-ASA at Frederick, MD Airport in the 90s.

He was a very kind and patient man, helping people with life's problems along the way. Al was always optimistic about the soaring weather. On a cloudy, overcast day, Al would look up and say, "This will probably burn off, in a little while." Al, I know the skies are bright and sunny, wherever you are.

Al died on June 28, 2002, of respiratory arrest in a MD hospital, as I was driving to the 1-26 Nationals in Colorado. He was 84, my best friend, and I'll miss him forever.

Frederick Saturday July 20th. Several M-ASA pilots participated in a round of soaring introductory flghts given in coordination with the International Deaf Pilots Association (IDPA). Twelve flights in all were flown by Paul Rehm, Jean Posbic, Glenn Collins, Scott Petrasek, and Bill Whelan, with Jean and Paul flying 7 between them. Gliders used were the two 2-33s, the Ka7 and 1ET.

Excitement on takeoff and broad smiles on landing clearly conveyed the enjoyment of all the passengers. Grins and thumbs up during the flights easily overcame any challenges in communication. Much credit goes to OD George Constantin, tow pilots Bob Andrew and Ray Scarpulla, and all of the many other M-ASA folks that worked the flight line, moved gliders and did other coordination activities to keep things moving. It all contributed to make this a safe, enjoyable and truly memorable day for all of the family members, and friends of the IDPA.

Here we are with yet another monthly Convector. Once again we had an outstanding ten-day weekend. I think it is safe to say most had an enjoyable time. Best of all it was safe! Speaking of safety some recent events bear some reinforcement. Many have seen the summary of the accident on the first day of the 15M Nationals. A worker got hit in the head by a launching glider. We have to stay alert and keep in mind the risk associated with the launching gliders. I have seen a number of people performing the towplane signalman role initiate the launch then nonchalantly turn their back on the approaching glider. Any of us might lose directional control during the launch. Are you prepared to get out of the way every time you launch a sailplane? Give it some serious thought. Frederick adds the additional factor of the parallel paved runway. When the power traffic is utilizing 30 they are routinely passing less then 10 feet from our staging area. Yet I constantly see individuals and tow pilots crowding the paved runway by parking/sitting along side it. I'm not going to tell anyone here that this is stupid; hopefully you will reach that conclusion yourself. The bottom line is pay attention and be prepared to duck. Anyone with ideas about improving our launch procedures or staging plans, please contact me.

I would like to introduce a new program within M-ASA. Each year we have a considerable number of new members join. Many are students but a percentage comes to us as qualified pilots. Introducing a mentor program where we assign each new member a partner to help "show them the ropes" and integrate them into M-ASA as productive and qualified members of our club community will help improve safety and encourage the legacy of shared workload which makes M-ASA great. Mentors will help tremendously by teaching new members our operations procedures, aircraft hook up and launch and by emphasizing the commitment needed to make M-ASA work. Any member can help. Please let me know if you are interested and we will begin working toward this.

This may sound like whining, but it needs to be said. Please bear with me. M-ASA works because each of us pitches in and works for the whole. No single member or subset of the club exists so another group can get a free ride. I have said it before; M-ASA is a good deal. But we must help each other. In the past few months, I have been approached directly and indirectly by a number of pilots complaining that they would like to do cross country in club gliders. I'm not real clear on the issue here since the operations manual outlines the procedure to follow for this and it is relatively simple and easily done if you take some initiative. The main hurdle is the preparation of a trailer. All three of the club single seat gliders have trailers. All need some cleaning and inspection to ensure they are roadworthy and capable of accepting the glider. In every case, I pointed this out to the pilot wanting to fly cross country. Each has sheepishly moved away from the conversation, apparently only looking to have a good time without doing their part in helping ensure we have serviceable trailers.

Personally I am reluctant to go out of my way to assist individuals in achieving their goals if they are unwilling to do it themselves. Maybe I am taking a hard line on this, but very few members do the majority of the work needed so we can all have the enjoyment. Think about the sacrifices our Board Members and Officers make. When was the last time you sincerely thanked an instructor or tow pilot for skipping the finest day of the year and providing tows or instruction? Mechanics and godfathers working on their backs in the winter's cold or sweltering heat of summer changing a tire or fixing a wiring harness. During the 10-day event we had a day where the visibility was very poor and the heat/humidity oppressive. I knew I wasn't in the mood to fly and no one else was making a move to either. In the hope of being productive, I encouraged folks to begin cleaning the FDK clubhouse which should have been declared a "Super Fund" project. You should have seen the looks I got. You would have though I had three heads! No less than 2/3 of the members present ran like hell looking for trivial tasks so they would appear too busy to help. Thanks to Bill Whelan, Mehrdad Bayat and Steve Shelton, the clubhouse got cleaned and looks great. Many of you reading this need to think long and hard about the contributions you make to M-ASA. The club doesn't need a lot, but it needs some. It's a personal decision we all make. But we have gotten to a point where too many are free loading on the rest.

New members:

• Andrew Meston
• Gerald K. McFadden

Notes/Photos Due

The following are completing their provisional year with M-ASA and should send a photo & note requesting permanent membership:

Overdue since June:

• Mehrdad Bayat

Due by Sept. 15:

• Dick Bernstein
• Karanja Patterson
• Richard Wallis

Send articles, news, soaring achievements, ratings or badge legs earned, other significant flights, classifieds, other info the membership will find interesting.

Deadline: 20th of each month.

Unwilling to relinquish their glory from the Region 4 North 2002 contest now one month past, the first and second place winners from the 15 Meter class and the winner from the Standard Class battle for top positions at Fairfield this month. Jonathan Gere (34) is still in first with a score of 4933 points. Jumping over David Pixton (9X) and Val Brain (13) on the scoreboard, Baude Litt (LBL) wins two tasks to land in second place overall with 4787 points. David Pixton slips to third place with 4548 points, but retains that position with a solid win (his first this season).

Regular competitors this month are Val Brain, Michael Higgins (X6), Bill Savory (9) and Howard Banks (1XX). New on the racing scene are George Burns (T8), Christophe Blanchi (A2) and Rick Fuller (CL). This month also saw John Hearn (T1) return to the racing scene and Chris O'Callaghan (OC) race a day with us. Welcome, newcomers and returning racers! Congratulations and keep up the good work!

Every M-ASA member is a member of SSA but, except for "Soaring," the closest contact we have with SSA is with Arleen Coleson, pictured in every issue on the page listing badges awarded. It is Arleen who receives the paperwork we send in with badge-flight claims, and she it is who likes to approve claims but sometimes must deny them.

M-ASA was privileged to have Arleen visit our Ten-Day Weekend and speak to us at the kick-off Pancake Breakfast on Sat., June 29. Jim Furlong videotaped her presentation for those unable to attend.

She told us about common mistakes people make, provided an on-screen display, gave us the newest forms, and then answered questions, both at breakfast and during her time at the field that day and the next.

Gary Baker and Paul Rehm arranged the visit; SSA & M-ASA split the transportation cost, and Paul met her and provided lodging, and local transportation including a flight over Frederick in 1ET. She went out to dinner with the group Sat. evening and we learned that she once ran a soaring operation and also soared when she could - at the less busy ends of the days.

Sunday she got a look at Fairfield, thanks to Preston Burch, who returned her to Frederick in time to flip a burger or two, reflecting her friendly participating attitude during her whole visit as she helped walk wings, put away gliders, do whatever was needed.

On Arleen's last day, Cathy Williams invited her to come along for an effort to set a Maryland State record for feminine two-place altitude gain. But it was late in the day and in spite of two tries, it wasn't to happen. "You'll just have to come again," she was told. "I'd love to" was her enthusiastic reply." Then we said goodbye as she left to return to her home in Hobbs, N.M.

Day 1. Friday June 28. Dee Torgerson was volunteer tow pilot and Hope Howard kept the board - for not more than a half dozen flights before the downpour.

Day 2. A big improvement, and probably the best day of the ten for Mark Carlisle, a transition pilot who made his first glider solo flight.. (Does that call for dousing with a cup of water instead of the bucket used for first-first solos?) In spite of a slightly late start after breakfast with Arleen, we had about 30 flights.

Sunday, Day 3, was special for Ed Breau. Flying GB, he made his first landout ever, and did it quite successfully. Steve Shelton, Mark Carlisle, and Cathy Williams retrieved him - first retrieve for Steve & Mark. There were 42 flights, some 3, 4, 5 hours.

Monday, Day 4 may have been special for Mike Grinder, the volunteer tow pilot who was checked out early in the a.m. to tow in the Pawnee. Marly van de Ven, volunteer OD, recorded about two dozen flights.

Tuesday - (non)-Day 5. Hazy, hot, humid, the ridge was invisible, but volunteers - tow pilot Ray Scarpulla, and OD Bill Kerns were on hand. Students had the 2-33 on the line hoping for improving visibility or at least pattern flights. It was decided the haze was too bad to fly, so Gene Wilburn, Scott Petrasek, and Bob Dutilly went to Fairfield and towed the Ka-8 back. Meanwhile Glenn Collins gathered those present and put them to work doing a major cleaning job upstairs and down. One reluctant conscript was heard to ask, "Do we get a badge for this?

Wed. Day 6. Signed-up tow pilots were Sam Harry & Poul Hansen, Hope Howard keeping the flight record - a dozen or so flights.

Th. Day 7. July Fourth. Hot & humid but promising. Carlos Reyes tried for 5 hours, Tom Jones declared 500 K. Neither made it this day. With people staying up, about two dozen flights.

Fri Day 8. Dee Torgerson towed. A not-very-successful attempt was made to share OD duties. However, this day was notable because we had a visit from the only person who responded to our invitation to other clubs. He was the president of Skyline Soaring, George Hazelrigg, who came with his LS1 and two sons. He and one son flew with us as Temporary Members and it was a pleasure to have them.

The Ka-8 was towed back to Fairfield. Glenn Collins in the Nimbus was towed back from what he said didn't count as a land-out because it was at an airport.

Sat. Day 9. Carlos Reyes did his five hours and then some - only two minutes short of the longest-duration flight of the Ten-Days.

Sun. Day 10. The soaring forecast was super, members arrived with great plans - but smoke from Quebec's forest fires brought a subdued end to the flying aspects this event with about 8 student flights and rides.

July Fourth 9 a.m. Nine open soda cans, each with a brown straw stood on the table. "Half-time refreshment?" wondered one attendee at David Schober's class on Basic Thermalling. But late arrivees more likely wondered, "is this the wrong place?" as they were greeted by the scent of incense - a demonstration of thermals as the brown incense sticks were lighted and the smoke thermals rose in surprisingly varied directions, even in that small space, with the air conditioning on, then off. David provided handouts, and also had good suggestions such as visualizing a thermal in quadrants to aid in centering in the core of lift. A good class, both for beginners, and for transition pilots who may not have much thermal practice before they solo.]

"If only we could do this class outdoors on our backs, looking at a sky full of cu," was the thought at Bernie Paiewonsky's class on Reading the Sky. But as we all know, cumulus clouds can't be scheduled, so Bernie showed photos of clouds in various stages of development as he explained how to recognize a cloud that's growing and one that's decaying. Clouds have a short lifespan, but that's not so obvious as they may merge with one another.

Bernie also referred to computer sources for predicting the soaring weather and then gave us some "home work" - he suggested keeping a log of what we expect before takeoff and what we actually find. And, looking up is fine - but clouds look different when you're in the air - learn to adjust to that.

What's your goal for your next, or your first, cross-country flight?" Silver distance? It doesn't have to be Frederick-York. Cathy Williams class was the last, and the most advanced. She taught how to choose a cross-country course for a badge flight, either today, or when you reach that stage. Consider the weather where you start and where you're going, the terrain, and of course avoiding prohibited areas. Learn to use computer resources for weather enroute. With demonstrations and a chart for each student, Cathy provided paticipatory instruction as each person planned a flight for his/her own individual goal, whatever and whenever that may be.

"An Eating Group With A Soaring Habit" That was co-chairman Gary Baker's comment at the fourth & last feast of our 2003 Ten-Day Weekend.The first feast was something new - a Sat. kick-off Pancake Breakfast, ably managed by Carlos Reyes, who stepped in when announced manager, Phil Scheel had to be out of town. But Phil was there in spirit - in the form of grills and utensils he loaned us. The breakfast was held in the FCC hangar (where we have our March meetings) - thanks to Tom Judkins for arranging this with FCC's Carl, who asked only for food for himself and his dog - gladly provided. Gary & Caroline Baker and Sonia Reyes and John Thornhill set up, spread tablecloths, made coffee & decaf in urns loaned by Ray Watson and Hope Howard. Then they poured orange juice, and dished up strawberries and nuts to accompany the whipped cream and/or syrup available to top the pancakes. These were made from scratch by Carlos, and flipped by George Simms, Mark Carlisle, Steve Shelton, and Garv Garvin. Everyone pitched in after breakfast to restore the hangar to its proper state.

Feast Number Two wasn't something new, but a repeat of last year's immensely popular lunch-thru-dinner cookout behind the shade canopy. Caroline Baker again provided us with hamburgers, hot dogs and all the trimmings plus fruit and veggie salads, watermelon, and home baked cookies including some trimmed with an Independence Day theme. Tho this was scheduled to end at 6 p.m., Caroline kept the grill hot until dusk to feed those returning from a retrieve.

July Fourth - Kids with ice cream cones set a happy note. There were cakes and cookies, and BBQ ribs and deep-fried turkey with Glenn Collins handling the fryer, Wendy Coulton on hand to help. This was Judy Whelan's traditional Independence Day offering and included all her usual trimmings of grilled corn-on-the cob, mac&cheese, salads, & rolls, with plenty of leftovers to be snacked on later by all who could stay to watch Frederick's fireworks display. There was so much food that a leftover watermelon stayed in the refrigerator untouched.

On Sat., July 6, the Awards Cookout replaced the scheduled awards dnner which was cancelled lest bad weather leave M-ASA holding unused food and the bill for it. Elizabeth Judkins offered to fill in with a "simple" cookout - which grew. It was a balmy evening when we moved KW & the Nimbus outside to set up tables in the hangar, covered with table"cloth" left over from the pancake breakfast. Tom Judkins ran the grill, cooking teriyaki chicken, burgers handmade with onion soup mix, and hot dogs. Elizabeth made cole slaw and crunchy-top macaroni. Sandy Petrasek brought German potato salad, and a cake with decoration noting M-ASA's Fiftieth Anniversary.

Gary handed out "I'd Rather Be Soaring" license-tag-frame awards to Carlos Reyes for a 5-hour+ badge flight, to Ray Scarpulla for the most tows, Glenn Collins for the most instruction flights, Mario Piccagli for the longest-duration flight. Tom Jones won the longest-distance flight for his 380k -which he called "3/4 of a 500k" flight.

Thanks to all the people who helped including ODs & tow pilots scheduled by the club, those who hopped in the tug to relieve others, and especially to those who signed up ahead of time to tow or OD.

If enough people want to do another Ten-Day, we're looking at Labor Day Week - Friday Aug 30 through Sunday Sept. 8 - no classes, no awards, any cookouts will be impromptu. But this will happen only if 5 volunteer tow pilots and 5 volunteer ODs sign up to help.

SSA's Badge Lady Arlene Coleson, with Gary Baker, Co-Chair of 10-Day Weekend (Photo by Vern Chapin)

Condolences to these members who have recently lost loved ones:

Bill and Judy Whelan with the death of Bill's father.

Jim and JoAnne Trygg with the death of JoAnne's father.

Gary and Caroline Baker with the death of Caroline's father.

Preston and Martha Burch with the death of Martha's mother.

	Frederick			Fairfield
Day	Operations Director	Tow Pilot	Assistant OD	Operations Director	Tow Pilot	Assistant OD
03	Gary Miller	Sam Harry	Brain Arnett	Arlie Long Jr	David Pixton	Steve Shelton
04	Urs Thierstein	Tom Judkins	ackary Thornhill	Mike Vore	Elmer Mooring
10	Tonas Kalil	Craig Moen		Sarah Macpherson	Pete Welles
11	Garv Garvin	Dee Torgerson		Elliott Blitz	Don Robb
17	Frederick Air Show (no M-ASA operation)			Bruce Andrews Jack Beavers	Rich Horigan Max Ullmann	Peter English
18	Frederick Air Show (no M-ASA operation)			Jonathan Gere George Burns	Mike Smith Keith Newins
24	Holland Ford	Poul Hansen		Leslie Bell	Jim Trygg	Gary Goldberg
25	Dan Meyer	Bob Jackson		Darrel Shiles	Chuck Forrester	Robert Dutilly
31	Joe Birkenstock	Ray Scarpulla		Bob Schott	Phil Burgess

	Frederick			Fairfield
Day	Operations Director	Tow Pilot	Assistant OD	Operations Director	Tow Pilot	Assistant OD
01	Ralph Wentzel	Craig Moen	Karanja Patterson	Kai Rasmussen	John Hearn
02	John Allingham Dick Mott	Dee Torgerson David Schober	ansoor Ahmed	Peter Blacklin	Buddy Denham
07	Dave Weber	Hans Jorgensen		Richard Latoff	Jim Chick
08	Mike Vance	Jan Steenblik		Bob Kryzstan	George Green
14	Dimitrios Stamatelos	Scott Petrasek	Mark Carlisle	Guy Pfeffermann	Bill Savory
15	Marly van de Ven	Bob Andrew		Frank Benson	Mike Grinder
21	Tom Jones	Jane Robens	Steve Shelton	Jay Dickhoff	David Pixton	Brain Arnett
22	Peter Kern	Lance Nuckolls	Zackary Thornhill	Mark Segall	Pete Welles
28	Jim Homer	Sam Harry		Christophe Blanchi	Don Robb
29	George Simms	Bob Ball		Kai Rasmussen	Rich Horigan	Janet Frank

	Frederick			Fairfield
Day	Operations Director	Tow Pilot	Assistant OD	Operations Director	Tow Pilot	Assistant OD
05	Steve Silverman	Robert Robins	Andrew Meston	Claude Blanchi	Max Ullmann
06	Baude Litt	Jane Robens		Mehrdad Bayat	Mike Smith
12	Steve Kinsley	Poul Hansen		Luis Fernandez Howard Grundland	Keith Newins Jim Trygg
13	Maurice Deland	Tom Judkins		Gyorgy Fekete Pete Zawadzki	Chuck Forrester Phil Burgess
14	Bruce Andrews	Ray Scarpulla		Wilmar Sick	John Hearn
19	Gary Miller	Craig Moen		Michael Hearn	Bob Jackson	Karanja Patterson
20	William J Judge	Dee Torgerson		Chris O'Callaghan	Buddy Denham	Mansoor Ahmed
26	Andy McCarter	David Schober		Gigi Gere	Jim Chick
27	Dennis Petersen	Hans Jorgensen		John Mitchell	George Green

M-ASA Duty Notes: Members assigned to operations duty must be on site in enough time to start operations by 10:00AM and stay at the field until operations are concluded. Each person listed on the duty roster is responsible for that day's assignment. In the case of "no-shows," the person acting as OD should indicate this fact on the flight sheet. "No-shows" will be fined $100.00. M-ASA's training process requires all new members to serve as Apprentice OD (AOD) at both M-ASA operating locations. This is to familiarize new members with the operating practices at each field. Any member who joined the previous year and who was not scheduled for AOD duty at each field, will be scheduled for AOD duty at each field in the current year. Note that AOD scheduling is done independently of duty preference information submitted on the member's duty preference form. After the AOD cycles have been completed every effort will be made to accommodate the new member's stated duty preference whenever possible. M-ASA Scheduler: Ray Watson 410-484-0333.