SAFA Skysailor Magazine

13 SPRING 2026 | September-October-November SKY SAILOR doesn’t mean it is all just fun. That day, I forgot my own advice, I went for an ‘easy’ flight – mistake #2. I wasn’t counting yet.… Once conditions started to improve – the wind got stronger and some pilots were staying up – I decided to get ready. I checked the weather-station upwind and the readings were perfect. The wind was finally coming our way, and the forecast called for it to get stronger in the afternoon. It all matched. The conditions were still marginal for soaring (light and inconsistent), but I wanted to be in the air when the stronger winds arrived to get the most of the dwindling day. I was planning a sleddie as the worse case scenario. I never fly in very light conditions like that day. There’s always another day to fly. But people were staying up, so I overrode my own rules. Last check before take off, the wind socks on both take-offs are SE – perfect. Someone just took off, but I didn’t watch. Why? Distracted mind, tunnel vision, carelessness… I checked everything that could be checked, but the thing that mattered in the end couldn’t be checked. Photos: Pawel Olas Don’t be complacent – there are no flights that deserve to be treated as ‘easy’. Each one should be planned and executed the same.