ZIA Soars

Friends and Family

2011-08-21T14:27:00.000-07:00


Too cool to fly with Mom.

This was a pretty good week. I was able to give two rides in the Cessna 140. I love taking up passengers. I think that taking friends and family up for a ride is one of the greatest pleasures of having a pilot’s license. Flying is so much more fun when I have someone to share it with. It is discouraging how hard it is to get people to go up with me.

Take my twenty-seven year old son, Kevin, for instance. I have been trying to get Kevin interested in flying since he was in high school. I did persuade him to take a few lessons with the Albuquerque Soaring Club in the Schweitzer 2-33 when he was fifteen. But he was unimpressed, especially by the two hour drive from Los Alamos to Moriarty early in the morning. Kevin is not a morning person.

A couple years later I sprang for power lessons at the Santa Fe Airport. It was an hour closer to home and the lessons could be scheduled in the afternoon. Which meant that early rising was not a requirement. Kevin was enthusiastic at first, but after a few months his enthusiasm waned and power lessons also fell by the wayside.

Two and a half years ago I bought a half interest in a Cessna 140 and learned to fly it. I got my ticket in August of last year. Ever since I have been trying, without success, to persuade Kevin to go flying with me. Not even when I offered to pick him up at the Santa Fe Airport, which is only fifteen minutes from where we now live. So I was ecstatic when he finally agreed to drive down to Moriarty with me early Thursday morning and go flying in the Cessna.

Fortunately, it was a great morning for flying. Blue sunny sky with just a few puffy white clouds floating by. No wind, and no thermal activity even though we took off later than I had planned because Kevin insisted we stop at McDonald’s for breakfast first. I kept the flight relatively short and uneventful. We flew down to Laguna Del Perro east of Estancia. The normally dry lakes were covered with shallow pools of water, thanks to the monsoon rains. I thought about landing at Estancia, but decided against finding out how muddy the runway was. I demonstrated some S-turns along highway 41 on the way home and even managed to grease the landing. Kevin was pretty blasé about the flight, although he did agree to fly with me again next week.

Nyla loves to fly.

Contrast Kevin with twelve year old Nyla. There is nothing Nyla loves more than coming out to Moriarty and hanging out at the airport with her mom, Colleen. When the ASC bought a golf cart for towing gliders, Nyla was in seventh heaven. She quickly learned to drive it and was on the lookout for any excuse to chauffeur people around the airport.

Nyla has been just chomping at the bit to learn to fly. Two weeks ago she finally got her very first glider lesson in the Schweitzer 2-33. Nyla is not very tall and it took a ton of cushions but she was able to see over the nose and reach the rudder pedals. She was thrilled to death, especially when she got to post her flight on the OLC webpage.

The corn maze at McCall's Pumpkin Patch

Sunday morning Nyla went up with me in the Cessna. We scrounged every cushion we could find to get her up where she could see over the cowling. But her legs just aren’t long enough for her to reach the rudder pedals. And the headset was too large for her head, even with a hat. We did finally manage to get it adjusted so she could both hear and talk. The weather was not as cooperative as it had been on Thursday. The entire sky was overcast with low hanging clouds. The AWOS was reporting a ceiling of two thousand feet. High enough to fly as long as we didn’t get above pattern altitude. We departed the pattern to the south and I demonstrated a few S-turns along highway 41. Then Nyla wanted to fly over the corn maze at McCall’s Pumpkin Patch. She was delighted when she was able to make out Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd cut into the corn. The sky was getting darker and the clouds were getting lower so we landed after just thirty minutes of flying time.

Next I plan to get Nyla’s mother, Colleen, and her brother, Kasey, to go up with me. Colleen is eager to go, but Kasey is more like Kevin. I may have to work on him.

The Burning Bush

2011-07-10T17:50:00.000-07:00

The beginning of the monsoon season has finally arrived. It is a time of both promise and peril. The promise of rain, the peril of lightning.

Take Saturday evening in La Cienega for example. Dark clouds overhead and the unmistakable smell of moisture in the air. Thunder and lightning all around. One particular clap seemed especially close. A few minutes later I happened to look out the back window and I could see a bright orange pillar of flame up on the hill across from our house. About two miles away a single juniper bush was burning. Almost certainly a lightning strike.

I called my husband and he grabbed the binoculars while I called 911. I told the dispatcher I could see a very small fire two miles west of my house. His first question? “Do you see flames? Are you sure you’re not seeing the smoke from the Las Conchas fire?”

After assuring the dispatcher that I did indeed see flames, I gave him what information I could about the location of the fire. I have reported wild fires before. It is difficult to explain exactly where you are looking to someone over the phone. But I did the best I could. I was confident that the firefighters would be able to spot the flames as soon as they got close. Especially as it seemed to be spreading. As I watched another spot flared up as though the fire had jumped to a neighboring bush.

But then, as soon as I hung up the phone it began to rain. Hard. And it continued to rain hard for all of about three minutes. Probably not enough to put out the fire, but apparently enough to knock it down. When the rain cleared I could no longer see flames up on the hill. But I could see smoke, just a tiny wisp playing hide and seek. You had to know exactly where to look in order to see it. I doubted the firefighters would spot it on their own. I sat out on the back patio, my binoculars in hand, and watched the smoke and waited for the firemen to appear.

Then I caught a glimpse of a fire truck in the lower right portion of my field of view. It was huge. Because it was on the street behind my house and not up on the hill where the fire was. I knew they would have to drive back past my house to leave the subdivision so I ran through the house and out the front door and down into the street as fast as I could. I stood in the middle of the street as they came around the corner and flagged them down.

The firefighter in the passenger seat, an attractive young woman, rolled down her window as the truck rolled to a stop. “I’m the one who called in the fire,” I announced as I walked over to her window.

“Did you actually see flames?” she asked. “Or just smoke?”

“What exactly is this obsession with flames?” I wonder. I mean, where there’s smoke there’s fire. Right? Isn’t that what we’ve been taught.

“Yes, I saw flames. But the rain has knocked the fire down. I don’t think it’s out. I can still see smoke.”

“The fire is up on the hill,” I said pointing behind her. She leaned out the window and twisted around to look.

It is so easy to give directions when you can actually point! “See that ridge that runs up to the south corner of the hill? See that outcrop of black rocks to the right just below the summit? The fire is in the center of those black rocks.”

“How on earth do you get up there?” She asked.

“There’s a dirt road that runs up the north side of the hill. Can you see it?” She twisted around even further to see. “I have no idea how you get to the dirt road.”

The fire truck drove off and I went back out on the patio with my binoculars. After about ten minutes I spotted something moving that was too substantial to be smoke. Someone was walking around practically on top of the smoke! I scanned over to the dirt road and, sure enough, there was a fire truck parked there. I scanned back to the smoke. I could only see one person moving around, walking back and forth across the area. He stamped around for about five minutes and then he disappeared. And shortly after that I could see the fire truck inching it’s way back down the dirt road.

Did the firemen not find the fire? They should at least have found a burnt out juniper even if they didn’t see the smoke. Smoke which was readily apparent to me two miles away by the way. But smoke is often more difficult to spot close up. It is sometimes too diffuse to see when you are standing right in the middle of it. But they should have been able to smell it.

Maybe they simply decided to let the fire burn itself out. That hardly seemed likely given how tinder dry it has been lately. The rain earlier in the day was the first precipitation we had seen since October and it was hardly enough to wet the ground. Plus we had the biggest wildfire in the history of the state burning less than twenty miles away.

Whatever their reasoning they weren’t sharing it with me. I was not happy with the turn of events. The fire was still smoldering. Even if they thought it was out they should have drowned it to be sure.

And now I was in a quandary. Should I call 911 again and say I still saw smoke? Smoke but no flames?

Now, as you know the 146,000+ acre Las Conchas fire is currently burning in the Jemez Mountains roughly twenty miles west of Santa Fe. In fact, the burning juniper was on a direct line of sight to the Las Conchas fire. So, while I could see wisps of white smoke snaking around on the hillside, I could also see a huge plume of smoke billowing over the top of the very same hill. And the fire department had already implied, more than once, that I was just seeing smoke from the Las Conchas fire.

I decided to wait and keep and eye on the area. The fire continued to smolder, but did not flare up again. By eight o’clock with the setting sun backlighting the smoke from the Las Conchas fire all I could see was glare. At nine I went out on the patio with binoculars again. I figured it was dark enough to see even the tiniest spark of flame. It took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust to the dark, but then I saw it. A small orange dot on the hillside, probably no bigger than a small campfire. I called 911 again.

“Hi, I called in a lightning strike around six this evening. I just wanted to let you know the fire is still burning.”

“We sent someone up there.”

“Yes, I know. I sat on my patio and watched them. But now that it is dark I can still see flames on the hill. Something up there is definitely still burning.”

Flames! The magic word. Their response time was commendable this time. In two minutes, maybe three, I could see lights at the bottom of the hill turning onto the dirt road. Of course, this time they knew exactly where they were going. I checked again a few minutes later and I could see work lights set up around the spot where the fire was. They were still there at ten when the evening news started. By ten-thirty they were gone.

Before I went to bed I stepped out onto the patio with my binoculars one more time. It was pitch black. The hill was just a blacker shape outlined against the dark sky. I scanned the hillside with my binoculars. Nothing but blackness. No trace of fire. I went back inside and went to bed happy.

2011-06-23T14:03:00.000-07:00

The Numbers Tell the Story

Almost everyone would agree that the hellishly windy spring New Mexico experienced this year has significantly cut into flying opportunities. And the number of flights certainly reinforces that empirical finding. Below is a comparison of the number of olc flights logged in March, April, and May of this year compared with the same months last year. Whether you look at the total number of flights out of the Moriarty Airport or at the number of flights by Albuquerque area pilots, the story is still the same. There were half the number of flights in Spring 2011 as there were in Spring 2010.

	OLC Flights out of Moriarty Airport
	Mar	Apr	May	Spring Total
2010	28	53	103	184
2011	16	34	44	94


	OLC Flights by Albuquerque Area Pilots
	Mar	Apr	May	Spring Total
2010	22	49	68	139
2011	7	18	37	62

The good news is that numbers recover dramatically in June, helped no doubt by the recent SSA Moriarty Super-Regional Club/Modern Class Competition. Albuquerque pilots logged 96 flights thru June 20, 2011 compared with 98 for all of June 2010. And the total number of flights logged was 191 thru June 20, 2011 vs. 123 for all of June 2010. Let’s hope this bodes well for the rest of the soaring season.

2011-06-22T11:14:00.000-07:00

Flew the Cessna-140 today. I felt really rusty, which isn’t surprising given how little flying I’ve been doing lately. It has just been really windy this year.

The last time I flew was June 1. That day conditions were dead calm on the ground but above 500 ft agl the turbulence was terrible. I did four take-offs and landings, none of them great. I would have liked to have done more since it was obvious that I needed the practice. But I was afraid that the turbulence would mix down to the surface as the day heated up. So I put the plane away and went home.

I did not have high hopes this morning even though the forecast called for light winds. Diana, my partner in the Cessna, flew yesterday and reported conditions much like June 1rst. Today the winds were out of the east at about ten mph. I hit a few bumps off the east end of the runway but that was about it. The rest of the pattern was smooth sailing.

I flew six patterns. Four of those I would not have made the runway if the engine had quit, one I was too high and had to go around, and one I had to slip like mad to get down. I definitely need to fly more often. The first four touchdowns were adequate. The last one was perfect. I decided to end on a high note and put the plane away.

Now if the winds will just let me fly a little more often….

I flew in a contest!

2011-06-21T17:15:00.000-07:00

I flew in the 2011 Moriarty Club/Modern Class Super Regional Soaring Contest! O.K. I didn't technically compete in the contest. But I got to fly with one of the competitors, Barton Tate, in his DG-500M motorglider. Thursday, June 16, Barton's partner in the competition, Bob Hudson, was suffering from dehydration and heat exhaustion and he was unable to fly. So I basically cornered Barton while he was towing out and all but demanded he let me fly the with him.

Barton Tate

He was very gracious about it. After some discussion, it was decided that I should fly from the back seat. The motor can only be started from the front seat. And while we didn't plan on getting low, it did seem prudent to have someone in the front seat who could start the motor if necessary. It would be awful to land out because we couldn't start the motor.

My sailplane of choice is usually my little thirteen meter Salto. When I bought it, about three years after I got my glider license, I chose it because it was small and simple. I can easily put it together with just one other person. And there is no chance of landing gear up because, guess what? It doesn’t have retractable gear! Or flaps. Or water ballast.

The DG-500M, with it's twenty-two meter wingspan, is absolutely huge in comparison. One wing weighs more than my entire sailplane. Getting it in and out of the hangar is a bigger production than assembling and disassembling the Salto.

And it has all the bells and whistles. In addition to the liquid cooled Rotax motor, which stows completely when not in use on an electrically retracting pylon, it has retractable gear, training edge flaps, and can carry up to 220 lbs of water ballast.

DG Glugzeugbau G-500M motor-glider

So I was stoked about actually getting to fly in the DG. Barton handled the takeoff, using negative flaps to keep the sailplane on the ground and build up an extra margin of airspeed before allowing it to lift off. Towing behind the Pawnee, it took what seemed like forever to climb the first thousand feet even with an eighteen knot headwind. Then Barton raised the gear and we began to climb a little more briskly. Contest tows are only to two thousand feet agl, so we were still pretty close to the ground when we got off tow. After climbing another five thousand feet in the first thermal we found, Barton spotted three gliders working a thermal within the start cylinder. We headed over to join them.

Now, I am not a big fan of sharing a thermal with other gliders. Especially not three other gliders all circling at the same altitude. I was really glad that Barton was flying and not me. Two of the gliders were in front of us where it was easy to keep an eye on them. The third was behind us, and I only caught sporadic glimpses of him even though I nearly twisted my head off craning around to look. Three additional gliders joined the thermal at a lower altitude. Six gliders! We were sharing a thermal with six other gliders! I was giving myself whiplash trying to keep track of them all.

See details of this flight on the olc website

Fortunately, the contest director called on the radio and announced that the start gate was open. Billy Hill and Vern Rayburn were ahead of us in the thermal, and when they peeled out and headed for the first turn point, Barton quickly followed. He turned over the controls to me and we headed for the first turn point over the little village of Abo, NM. Our plan was to get high and stay high. We had left the start gate at only fourteen thousand feet msl, so we had to stop and work several thermals along the way. We were down to about three thousand feet agl when we got to Abo, but immediately hooked into a ten knot thermal and quickly climbed to sixteen thousand feet msl.

"Leave it to Billy Hill to arrange for a ten knot thermal at the first turn point!" Barton commented.

After leaving Abo we ran parallel to the Manzano Mountains until we hit another ten knot thermal. This one took us up to seventeen thousand feet msl. From there we were able to make it to the second turn point at Clines Corner and beyond without stopping to turn.

Working our way towards the third turn point at Gallette, near Santa Fe, I found another thermal and tried to work it. But I just could not get it centered and spent as much time flying in sink as in lift. Recognizing that I was getting tired, I surrendered the controls to Barton. With him at the controls, we quickly gained enough altitude to make Gallette where we found yet another ten knot thermal waiting to take us back to seventeen thousand feet.

Barton returned the controls to me and we ran for home. The smoke from the Wallow fire had drifted into the valley and bathed the entire valley in haze. I greatly appreciated all the electronic navigation gadgets in the DG keeping me on course and even telling me what speeds to fly. We were 1500 feet above glide path the whole way. Barton took the controls once again as we approached the finish cylinder.

We flew one hundred and eighty two miles in three hours and two minutes. I've had longer flights, but never been that far away from the airfield and made it back. It was a great experience!

Entering the pattern, I received yet one more reminder of just how different flying the DG was from flying my little Salto. On downwind, Barton called out "Gear down and locked."

Gear! Oh yeah, the DG has retractable gear. That means you have to put them back down before you land!

A flawless touchdown and it was all over. What a great experience! Thanks Barton for a wonderful flight.

Overview of 2011 Moriarty Club/Modern Class Super Regional

2011-06-18T12:19:00.000-07:00

GPS tracks of all the flights can be viewed on the OLC website. Pictures of the event can be seen on the ASC Facebook Page. A list of contestants can be found on the Contest Web Site or the SSA Contest Page.

Moriarty Municipal Airport was abuzz with activity last week as Sundance Aviation hosted the 2011 SSA Club/Modern Class Super Regional Sailplane Contest. Pilots came from as far away as Elmira, New York, Peculiar, Missouri and Redmond, Oregon to compete in this event. In all, nineteen teams competed in the Modern Class, including four teams from the United States Air Force Academy. Sixteen pilots competed in the club class.

They all came to take advantage of the Estancia Valley’s legendary soaring conditions. And they did not leave disappointed. In spite of smoke from the Wallow fire in Arizona and uncharacteristically windy weather, the competitors were able to fly four out of the five scheduled contest days. Thursday boasted 10 knot thermals that lifted the sailplanes to over 17,000 feet in altitude.

The weather did not always cooperate. Saturday’s practice was cancelled due to strong gusty winds. Only eight competitors chose to brave the conditions on Sunday with sustained southwesterly winds of 28 mph and gusts to 34 mph. Sunday evening, the contestants were treated to barbequed hamburgers, bratwurst, and chicken provided by the Lobo Wing of the Commemorative Air Force at Hangar 80.

Monday, June 13: Winds were calmer, although still gusty, on the first contest day. All thirty-five competitors chose to launch. Ground operations director, Robert Mudd, devised an efficient launch grid layout that took advantage of Moriarty Airport’s newly improved 400 foot wide taxi-way. The Air Force Cadets performed with the precision of a Formula One pit crew as they pushed the gliders into position on the runway and hooked up the tow rope. With four powerful tow planes working, the entire field was airborne in just over an hour. Contest director, Mike Carris, declared a turn area task (TAT) with the turn points Tierra de Dios (15 mi) and Corona (25 mi) and a 2.5 hour minimum time. Wide turn cylinders around the turn points allowed pilots to adjust the course distance they flew from a minimum of 80 miles to a maximum of 233 miles depending on course conditions and their own personal bravado. Pilots reported challenging conditions with very chopped up lift due to the wind. Thirty-one pilots were able to complete the course. Three sailplanes landed out and had to be retrieved. Geoff Aiken landed at Estancia Airport, Ron Leonard landed out at Zorro Ranch, and Richard Pfiffner landed out south of Willard. Most pilots carry a SPOT Satellite GPS Messenger which allowed the retrieve crews to locate the downed pilots quickly. Wind speeds increased in the afternoon which made for challenging landing conditions back at Moriarty. But thanks to the skill of the pilots, the only mishap was a blown tire, which was quickly repaired by Applebay Aviation.

David Leonard finished the day in first place for the Modern Class posting 1000 points with a handicapped speed of 67.39 mph over a distance of 167.88 miles. Rick Culbertson finished in second with 998 points and Thomas Clay in third with 908 points.

In the Club Class, Mitch Hudson took first posting 1000 points with a handicapped speed of 66.24 mph and a distance of 178.69 miles. Kathy Fosha finished second with 915 points and Tim McAllister third with 879 points.

Tuesday, June 14: Contest day 2 saw winds were from the northwest, which is unusual for Moriarty. The task was a TAT with turn points at San Cristobal (15 mi.) , Palma (10 mi.), and Mountainair (15 mi.). Pilots reported everything from really great climbs to bad sink. Never the less, all but one pilot managed to return to Moriarty at the end of the day.

Brian Resor, the contest weatherman, took a considerable amount of ribbing from the rest of the field for landing out at Clines Corner.

Bill Hill had the best results of the day in the Modern Class posting 1000 points with a handicapped speed of 63.11 mps over a distance of 166.39 miles. Miguel Iturregui finished in second with 923 points and Rick Culbertson, the overall leader, in third with 913 points.

In the Club Class, Franke Sean took the day posting 1000 points with a handicapped speed of 64.59 mph over a distance of 162.22 miles. Mitch Hudson maintained his overall lead by finishing second with 981 points and Kathy Fosha came in third with 949 points.

Wednesday, June 15: Contest day 3 saw the calmest winds of the week. It was southwesterly at the surface switching to almost due west at altitude causing a convergence line. In Club Class, the task was Las Vegas (20 mi), Gallinas Peak (15 mi) and a 3 hour minimum. In Modern, the task was Watrous (20 mi) and Lincoln Station (15 mi). Pilots who found the convergence had it made. Those who missed it, had problems. In fact, only four out of nineteen Modern Class pilots were able to complete the task. There were three landouts, Steve Hill, Miguel Iturregui, and one of the Air Force pilots landed out at the Las Vegas airport and one of the Air Force Pilots landed out at the Anton Chico racetrack. In addition, Bob Hudson and Barton Tate had to deploy the motor on the DG-500M in order to get back to the airport.

The day was devalued for the Modern Class since only four contestants finished the course. David Leonard took the day for the Modern Class posting 733 points with a handicapped speed of 69.78 mph over a distance of 232.88 miles. Bill Hill was second for the day with 667 points and Clay Thomas came up third with 655 points.

In the Club Class, Sean Franke posted 1000 points for the best finish with a handicapped speed of 71.95 mph over a distance of 215.76 miles. Mike Westbrook finished second with 954 points and Kathy Fosha brought in third with 930 points.

A tired but mostly happy bunch enjoyed an enchilada dinner catered by Shorty’s BBQ at the Southwest Soaring Museum. Thanks to Bob Leonard and his helpers for setting up the museum for us and to George Applebay, museum founder, for allowing us to use this great space!

Thursday, June 16: The winds returned on Contest Day 4, but at least they were straight down the runway. Mike Carris declared an Assigned Speed Task for both Club and Modern classes, the first speed task in Club Class racing in the U.S. A number of pilots had never flown a speed task in their racing careers! It was a 185 mile task from Moriarty to Abo, Clines Corners, Gallette and then home. Pilots reported some spectacular climbs in 10+ knot lift to over 17,000 feet. But where there is lift there is also sink. Bill Lemon and two Air Force pilots landed out at Mountainair early in the day.

Rick Culbertson finished first for the day in the Modern Class posting 1000 points with a handicapped speed of 78.22 mph. Dave Leonard came in second with 981 points and Bill Hill brought up third with 944 points.

In the Club Class, Mitch Hudson posted 1000 points with a handicap speed of 79.50 mph. Steve Leonard finished second with 939 points for the day and Cliff Hilty brought up third with 937 points.

Friday, June 17: The day was scratched due to high surface winds. Winds were 18-22 mph with gusts to 30 out of the west at launch time with gusts forecast to exceed 35 mph later in the day.

Friday evening everyone reconvened at the Southwest Soaring Museum one last time to enjoy BBQ brisket, potato salad, and coleslaw once again catered by Shorty’s BBQ. Trophies were given out to the winners. The Air Force Academy presented Susan McAllister, the Contest Manager, and Bob Hudson, president of the Albuquerque Soaring Club with an autographed photo and a unit patch in appreciation of all their efforts in putting on this contest. Then it was time to say goodbye.

Final Results:

David Leonard finished first in the Modern Class with a final score of 3593 points. Rick Culbertson finished in second place with 3539 points and Bill Hill brought up third with 3508 points.

In the Club Class, Mitch Hudson took first place with 3708 points. Sean Franke came in second with 3666 points and Kathy Fosha took third with 3563 points.

Acknowledgements

A contest like this cannot be held without the help of numerous individuals and organizations and who volunteer their time and services. Thanks to Contest Manager, Susan McAllister, and Contest Director, Mike Carris for organizing the event and to Sundance Aviation for sponsoring the event. Morning pilot briefings were held at the Southwest Soaring Museum where pilots were given the task for the day along with accurate soaring weather forecasts prepared by Brian Resor. Ground operations went flawlessly thanks to Ground Operations Director, Robert Mudd owner/operator of Composite Aircraft Repair LLC, the Air Force Cadets, and Frank DeBacker who came all the way from Highlands Ranch, Co to relay signals to the tow pilots. Tow planes and pilots were provided by Sundance Aviation, the Albuquerque Soaring Club, and Jeff Campbell. Thanks to Wright Brothers Aero LLC for getting the ASC tow planes up and running in time for the contest. Thanks to Terry Bryan, chief tow pilot and to all the tow pilots for their excellent service. A big hand to Stan Roeske for scoring the contest. Mark Hawkins set up the SPOT share page so retrieve crews could keep track of their pilots. Not one pilot or crew was lost thanks to Connie Buenafe and Kimmine Pierce who coordinated the retrieve office. Fidel Romero of Applebay Aviation provided on the spot repairs for some minor damage. Thanks to Bob Carlton, Howard Banks and all the other non-contest pilots who were pressed into service as sniffers. Sunday’s welcome dinner was provided by the Lobo Wing of the Commemorative Air Force at Hangar 80. Thanks to George Applebay for making the Southwest Soaring Museum available for the Wednesday and Friday evening festivities, both of which were catered by Shorty’s BBQ. Thanks to Albuquerque Soaring Club president, Bob Hudson, for opening the ASC clubhouse to pilots and crew. A big hand to Kevin Buenafe, Carol Roeske, Bob Leonard, and all the others who came out, pitched in, and helped out. And special thanks to the city of Moriarty and Airport Manager, Bob Hudson, for the use of the Moriarty Municipal Airport and all its facilities. And finally a big thanks to all the contestants and their crews a great contest!

Contest Personnel

Susan McAllister Contest Manager

Sundance Aviation Contest Sponsor

Terry Bryan Chief Tow Pilot

Connie Buenafe Retrieve Coordinator

Mike Carris Contest Director

Robert Mudd Ground Operations Director

Kimmine Pierce Retrieve Coordinator

Brian Resor Weather

Stan Roeske Scorer