Mission From Moir's

It looked a goer, so off to the hill. Arrived at launch, light SW, nice looking clouds, hawks thermalling in front. Got set up, and launched. Glider yaws to right, I correct but touch down. Steady the wing then run for launch, glider yaws to right again, I barely scrape over the gorse bushes. Had previously decided to swing round to the right face below where the hawk was soaring, nothing there. Turn left to fly along the ridge and hopefully get some height. Nothing there, at the left hand end of the ridge I turn right, (something weird happens) now below the ridge I find myself flying straight at the hill. I react by turning left just in time to plop into the flax and rata bushes just below ridge height. Not a mark on me apart from the brown stain on my underwear. I spend the next half hour untangling the glider from the bush, and then another hour untangling the birds nest I have created and checking the glider over. Now my adrenalin has calmed down and I am ready to go, the Easterly...

It looked so promising. Nice clouds, sunny day, wind in the right direction. At launch it was nice clouds, sunny day, wind in the right direction. But thermal activity was next to nothing, the occasional puff came up the face, but barely enough to launch. When I finally managed to go I only got 30m above takeoff before I had lost any lift and was below the hill heading for a slope landing half way down. After a climb back up, and a rest, it hadn't improved, I gave it away. Only for Jeff Ripley to arrive, launch and fly 13km after I had left. Poo!