SAFA Skysailor Magazine

14 SKY SAILOR July | August 2023 Great task setting spread pilots out as rarely seen before. It was fantastic to get such a good task after the previous rainy days. Task 2 An out and return 93.2km task north was set. The optimal start point was about 4km in front of the foothills, over the shopping mall on the outskirts of Brasov. A huge cloud allowed everyone to wait for the start to open. The plan was to take the start at 2100m, but then the cloud died and it turned into survival mode. The foothills were too far away, with just five minutes until the start opened. So, pilots started the glide on the flats at about 1800m. Everyone went for the flats, where the clouds guided them to 1-2m/s climbs, getting a little stronger at the tops. There were some quite sinky lines between the lift, so it paid off to top off the climbs and to stay behind to pick a floaty line. Reaching the foothills in the north, pilots encountered a strong headwind. The wind increased during the day, peaking at 6m/s west at altitude close to TP 2 (the furthest one). Pilots who ended up low above the foothills, struggled to get back out to the front with the headwind. This is where gaggles changed places. Staying high was key to avoid the stronger wind at low altitude. Heading back south to goal was tricky, not knowing if the flats would work considering the strong winds. Pilots faced big sink and slow climbs for the final 20km – teamwork was key. The last thermals were scarce and averaged 1-1.5m/s. There was a big blue hole in the sky and only the most patient pilots, 28 altogether, got to goal. Task 3 The day started off promising, with tantalising beautiful blue skies. A 70km task taking pilots PWS Brasov, Romania – 24 June to 1 July 2023