SAFA Skysailor Magazine

36 SKY SAILOR May | June 2024 Big clouds, fed by strong thermals, formed above launch, making it easy to stay high, but difficult to stay clear. Start was again across the valley in front of launch and most pilots opted to stay high and glide across just in time for the race start. The first TP was a large rock before the river, and many got very low before climbing out. Then north over new territory with some of the best, but rough, climbs of the day over the range stretching to the north. Pilots topped up before crossing the valley to the other side, TP 2 was out in the flats, a few kilometres past the range. Around here, Honorin separated from the gaggle and pushed on alone in front. The next leg was long, over the flats in the crater, then over the river. The gaggle chose a more direct line than Honorin, catching him at the last TP, but Honorin pushed hard and crossed ESS first. 17 made goal, with another 59 reaching ESS, but landing before reaching goal. A challenging task over very scenic terrain. Top 3 Overall Top 3 Women 1. Honorin Hamard Meryl Delferriere 2. Daniel Tyrkas Silvia Buzzi Ferraris 3. Michael Gierlach Alexia Fischer Friday, 15 March – Task 7 Tricky launch conditions again. Pilots used the entire 1.5 hour window to launch on a 89km task with the start cylinder about 5.5km to the NE. After the first TP, just short of the river, pilots had a long leg to the SW. The lead gaggle opted for a line over the east side of launch, others took the more direct line over the ridge west of launch. After tagging TP 2, the field split, with the bulk gaggle taking a southerly line and the rest taking a direct line further north. The southerly line was faster, but riskier, with many landing along the route. The final TP was far to the west, with a final glide back east to the airport goal. The long glide to that last TP and back turned out to be tricky as thermals were weakening as the day went on. Only 57 made goal with one day left! Top 3 Overall Top 3 Women 1. Baptiste Lambert Meryl Delferriere 2. Julien Wirtz Alexia Fischer 3. Matt Henzi Constance Mettetal Saturday, 16 March – Task 8 The final day began with overcast skies but improved to nice clouds and a light NW wind. The 88.9km task took pilots to the NE for the first TP, passing over the picturesque town of Pancas, also known as ‘Jurassic Park’, before returning to goal at the airport in Baixo Guandu. Start was delayed until 12:45pm due to chal- lenging launch conditions, similar to previous days. As the start time approached, conditions deteriorated and at 11:57am, the decision was made to cancel due to unsafe launch conditions. Honorin Hamard emerged as the winner of the 13th PWC Super Final with 4237.1 points after seven tasks, followed by Baptiste Lambert and Joachim Oberhauser. A repeat win for Honorin! The women’s winner was Meryl Delferriere, followed by Alexia Fischer and Constance Mettetal. The team podium has Ozone on top, followed by Niviuk 1 and Alas del Hombre. Full results can be found at https://pwca. events/pwca-results/