Central Plateau Soaring Competition

Written By Kim Manunui

At last! We had our first competition in two years. Much to the relief of pilots and organisers.

Day One was fine but overcast. The briefing was led by a welcome from the Mayor, David Trewavas, who said what a great asset the Taupo Gliding Club is, and welcomed our visitors from all over the North Island as well as Australia and Germany.

A task was set, but the cloud base stayed low, and the thermals were unreliable, so after an hour's wait the task was cancelled and the day set aside for free flying. Most pilots enjoyed a good local flight, but hoping for better things in the following days.

Day Two had a task, but it proved to be a difficult day which limited the scoring opportunities with a number of landouts and engine starts.  

Day Three was great, and one pilot (not the winner!) said it is the best day's gliding he's ever had! It was very satisfying to at last get a good day in. The task setters had it right.

Day Four had us fooled! We gridded optimistically under blue skies not expecting a great deal and sent up a "sniffer" who surprisingly reported thermals, and recommended a start. There were no immediate land backs, but it tough going. A good day to put down to experience! 

The weather then deteriorated and it was up to the final day to determine the winners. In both classes, there was only a couple of hundred points separating the top three pilots.

 Day seven promised much, and delivered - well.......quite a lot, but made the pilots work for every kilometre. We went for an early launch so as not to get too late at the end of the day. There were four land backs, but each pilot relaunched, and at the end of the day there was only one landout. Pilots had to work hard for the first leg or two, but those who got further into the task were rewarded with a good convergence and some good flying.

In the end we had a contest, we had fun with great camaraderie. A HUGE THANK YOU to all the volunteers for your help and support. Without you, we pilots would not get off the ground. Another HUGE THANK YOU is to Trev Terry for his support in sponsorship. Thank you all.

The next Central Plateau Soaring Competition will be in November this year.

Champions

Open Class                                                     

1st – XB - Brett Hunter 2,372pts                   

2nd – DK - Tony Van Dyk 2,182pts                

3rd – HW - Jason Shields 1,807pts                 

Racing Class

1st – OZ - Anton Lawrence 1,474pts

2nd – ZD - David Moody 1,349pts

3rd – NM - Trace Austin 1,280pts

Kim Manunui

Hi, I’m Kim and I work with a great team to help individuals, as well as small and not so small businesses get their message, product and services to the world using digital media and creating wonderful websites that don’t cost the earth.

I was born in Canada, and grew up around Vancouver and the mountains of British Columbia. My love of pristine environments led me to New Zealand and eventually to the mountains, lakes and rivers of the central North Island which is home. My family’s heritage is here, and it’s from here that Korio traverses the planet.

The digital world is never static and neither are we.

And I say ‘we’ because I work with an awesome group of talented people who I gather together as required to complete a project.  Whatever your business, not-for-profit or individual needs are we gather the best team to get the job done.

Collaboratively we are creative, share sustainable values and work hard for great outcomes because that’s the buzz of satisfaction that drives us.

If you have an audience and market to reach, we can make that happen. Creative design, words that work and smart behind the scenes stuff that cuts through the online noise. We’ll design your website and then build it. We’ll manage the content as well as all your hosting needs. We can handle your online advertising so you get noticed,
and we’ll manage your social media presence so you get the clicks, likes and engagement to grow your business. All within the budget you set, because none of this needs to cost the earth.  And the job doesn’t stop when your website goes live. We are your virtual business partner.

https://www.korio.co.nz
Next

Club Open Day - 13 Nov 2022