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Vince
Endter
'02 Go-For-It
Champ
(2/17/03 3:30:51
pm)
216.103.80.211
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Aero tow flight
reports
The aero towing happened, though with too much carnage for my
liking. On the first day a pilot got too far out in front of the
cart and nosed in before he was ever airborne. He got a small cut on
his head and some bruises. I think he bent his keel with his helmet.
The tows were not happening all that frequently. Due to the narrow
runway, we could not be on the cart ready to go. Paul had to land
first, then we could move into position. There were a lot of pilots
with little aero tow experience. Lots of early releases and broken
weak links. I was being stupid and messing with my harness on tow,
not watching as closely as I should. Paul hit a thermal and was
popped up and to the right. By the time I reacted I was to the left
of tow. I released at only 700’ agl, but found the only thermal of
the day for about 200’ gain (though several pilots reported
maintaining in zero sink). I stayed up for as long as I could. There
was no wind as I came in to land. I was going to over run a glider
on the runway so I chose to put it down in the 8’ deep ditch next to
the runway. As soon as I was over the ditch the nose dropped and I
went in like a lawn dart. I high centered my base tube, breaking it.
I was OK though. They named the ditch, Vince’s ditch.
Mike
Foy was the first to figure out what happened. As I flew from the
runway to the ditch, the sudden drop off caused the glider to fly
out of ground effect. Unfortunately, on Sunday the ditch was renamed
Albert’s ditch when he did the same thing. Luckily he and his glider
came out undamaged.
Kurt will have to tell of his tandem
towing flights, which were quite dramatic, especially the one where
the weak link broke on the tow plane just as they came off the cart
and they got the rope. He did great on is solo tows, and his no wind
landings were superb. I wish I landed as well as he.
On
Sunday a new to towing pilot left the cart without attaining flying
speed. His control frame dug into the ground the he nosed in. He
bent the keel with his helmet. His nose and mouth were badly cut.
Albert used his training to stabilize the situation and a helicopter
was called. I have not heard about the pilot’s status. Once the
helicopter left we started towing again. The Pilots started to get
more organized and there was less wasted time between tows. Some
lift was developing to the SE and pilots started to get extended
flights.
I was the first to try to head that direction. I
had someone tell Paul to tow me in that direction. He headed
straight east. I kept pointing to the south but he headed east.
After 2000’ I released because I was much farther east than I wanted
to go. I headed south and burned off most of my altitude before I
got to the lift. I landed 2 miles south after a ˝ hour flight. Some
pilots after me towed to 3000’ agl and had much longer flights, with
Ben flying 8 miles to the airport in the Panoche valley.
Kurt made the correct decision and headed home on Sunday.
Monday it was overcast without much hope of thermals. I headed home.
I drove home by way of J1 and Hollister. It took the same amount of
time as going over 152. I wanted to look at the XC route to
Hollister. There was plenty of LZs along the way with the longest
stretch without an LZ of about 4 miles. The area has some potential
for foot launched flight. A couple of pilots scouted the area. I
will be interested to find what they found.
The hot tub at
Mercy Hot Spring was much appreciated. The resort is still in the
renovation stage and a bit rough. They did have showers and toilets
and the great hot tub. Even with our ˝ price discount, some of the
pilots were not used to paying so much. If you had guest or kids, it
could get expensive.
I just figured out how to post an
image, so here is the track logs of my flights.
Vince
|
Daniel
Pifko
Member
(2/17/03 9:04:43 pm)
68.164.78.181
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Sunday crash
pilot okay / wheels
The pilot who crashed on Sunday is doing fine. He was released last
night after ok x-rays plus some stitches in his nose and mouth. He's
now back at home and in good spirits.
Not to get into a
religious discussion, but he and I talked about putting wheels on
the glider as we were setting up. I now see first hand the tradeoff.
The thrust of our conversation was whether to put the wheels on the
base tube and the primary (brake-style) release on the down tube or
leave the wheels off and put the primary release in the more
accessible position on the base tube. The potential for the wheels
to snag on the cart also came up.
In his case, the base tube
slid along the ground for a few feet before the lower nose wires
snapped, causing the control frame to fold backward and him to
ultimately slide and nose in. If he had had wheels he might have
bounced into the air or kept rolling long enough for the weak link
to break.
I later flew with the release on the down tube and
found myself taking 2-3 seconds longer to hit it. That could be
dangerous.
In short, in the future I'd most like to fly with
wheels and just the chest connecting AT releases (no brake handle).
On a lower performing craft, like the WW Eagle, that config would
make for a muscle-fatiguing ride up, so I'll have to stay with the
brake release until I get a different wing.
Daniel
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Kurt
Unregistered
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(2/17/03 10:58:44
pm)
12.236.225.171
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Aero tow flight
reports 2/15 2/16
I have experienced two lockouts, had the towrope hanging from my
glider three times and rode the cart off the small runway. Before
this weekend I have never even seen a hang glider tow. I have always
thought it unsafe. Now I have my tow launch rating. What was I
thinking? I flew rigid and tandem, two point and three point bridle
types. I had seven tows in two days, four solos and three tandems.
First two solos were great so Dallas and I went tandem. I was pilot.
The towrope released from the tug when we were one foot above the
cart. We landed not quite square back on the cart and rode it out of
control into the field with the rope dragging behind us. We held on
to the cart and glider until everything came to a stop. When the
cart hit a soft spot of ground the glider came off the cart pinning
Dallas’ legs between the rear wires and the cart. I am glad we had
big wheels on the glider or we might have nosed in. The wheels do
not get in the way of the cart. After freeing Dallas, pushing the
cart back, and bending back the bent tow release on the tug, we had
a great flight. The handling of the tandem under tow was very
different from the rigid. The rigid is a breeze with a two-point
bridle. The tandem with a three-point bridle and being towed at
close to its maximum speed was a handful. The roll and pitch forces
are greater. Next flight we did some p.i.o. recovery training.
Dallas put the glider into oscillation and told me to “fix it”. I
did not respond fast enough or with enough force and the glider went
into full lockout at 90 degrees. I went for the release but Dallas’
hand was already there. We were both too late. The weak link at the
tug broke and we had bridles and towrope all over our faces! I
recovered the glider while Dallas untangled the rope and bridles
from the tandems wheels. I flew over the airstrip for Dallas to drop
the rope. We tried it again next flight. I still did not react fast
enough. The half-second it takes for him to tell me “fix it” and my
taking control was too long. I am a big strong guy. Every bit of
strength I have could not affect the glider. The forces build up
quickly. This time the rope and bridles tangled on my side. The tug
pilot must have thought we were nuts. Dallas took over flying while
I stuffed bridles in my harness with one hand and holding the
towrope in the other. I was impressed by how light the rope is. I
held it between two fingers until Dallas flew us over the runway.
Bombs away! We did some more recovery training before landing but it
was easy when not under tow. Then I landed the glider on its wheels.
Dallas is a very cool headed guy. I will fly with him any day. We
had good clear communication and decisive actions. I am thankful for
his instruction and the unique experience of the glider in lockout
and recovery. If things go wrong close to the ground I will be
better prepared. My last two solo tows were a calmer experience.
Aero towing is not to be done lightly. One must be familiar and
confident in his equipment. Paul the tug pilot is an animal! He was
towing from sun up ‘till sundown. We could not feed him gliders fast
enough. He loves to tow. Ben did a great job putting this event
together. I hope he will do this again. The area looks great for XC,
lots of landing areas, good roads and friendly people.
|
Daniel
Pifko
Member
(2/17/03 11:36:16 pm)
68.164.17.76
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Flight Report,
Feb 15, 16, 2003
I towed 5 times on Saturday under mostly overcast skies, first to
1000', subsequently to 2000'. The wind was 0-5, switching
north-south every couple hours. Day ended with wind northy. Paul
pulls up steeply. As a result, on the first tow I was a bit low on
the tug. On the second I was sufficiently low that when I pushed out
the tow line gave at the tug and I got the tow rope. The runway was
amply long to drop the rope and land again.
The air over the
rolling hills west of the strip felt like ripples in parallel bands.
The ripples reflected the shape of the hills. Might be able to get
some lift off the windward edge of these hills in stronger northy
conditions.
I had the first flight on Sunday, taking off
about 10/10:30 am. Found 100-300 fpm a little further west from the
strip. Low ceilings, but the lift seemed like it was getting
stronger and more widespread. A street formed over Little Panoche
valley going all the way north to the big peak seen from the strip
(name?). I came down only because I had promised to loan my glider
to another AT trainee.
Got one more flight late in the day.
Lift had entirely dissipated. Towed to 2200ish near the big peak
west of the strip. Only took about 10 minutes. This is where I'd
want to be dropped in a morning/midday sun.
Got 200 fpm at
500 ft over the Mercey hot tub for about 500 ft gain. Did it again a
couple of times. Hope the bathers didn't think I was spying.
Daniel
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Vince
Endter
'02 Go-For-It
Champ
(2/18/03 12:06:09
am)
216.103.80.211
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Re: Aero tow
flight reports
Nancy took a picture of all the locals who showed up to see what
all the excitment was about. I landed about 2 miles south of our tow
strip at Mercy Hot Springs.
Click on: locals.jpg
Vince
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ben
Unregistered
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(2/18/03 10:23:21
am)
209.11.125.12
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aerotowing
report
I'm not in the mood for typing much so this will be short.
Overall, the event was a success in that it provided an
opportunity to scope out the valley for the first time. Even though
we did not expect much in the way of soaring, I think it was clear
that the even in mid-February the thermals were trying hard. I left
feeling that this is going to be the bay area's premier xc site my
the end of March. My eight mile flight wasn't a major feat as I
towed to 3k agl, though I did work lift between 3800 and 4500 for 30
minutes. The last 30 minutes was a battle to extend the flight
timewise. Could have coasted a few miles farther but the airstrip
next to the bar was the only logical choice.
Foot launch: We
will have a foot launch site soon.
Towing. Pat may do some
scooter towing there the second weekend in March (expect only 1k
agl). Paul wants to come back. I think he's a good pilot. His cart
needs work. He'll have to handle the money and registration as I'm
not interested. However, I would help him get the pilots, build him
a web page, and set up pay pal for him. He needs to have a full time
ground person though. We could have a smaller daily fee for which
you get a big orange sticker. Non-registrants could get in another
"stickerless" line and fly if the sticker pilots were all gone. Just
an idea, but this will be less of an issue as the thermals get
bigger. I'll try to get something going the 4th weekend in March and
set an April and May date as well.
Attitude: overall the
pilots were great and keeping things friendly and moving was pretty
easy. The only hitch was unregistered pilots showing up and
expecting to fly before others. The issues were minor. By the second
day things were moving pretty fast as the organization level
increased.
Accidents: It might be a good idea to skip the
tow clinics, though the best instruction I received was watching
other people's mistakes. Constant accidents could jeopardize the
site and even flying in the valley altogether. You can bet the cart
was lifting of the runway 75% of the time after the Saturday
incident. Aerotow launches are dangerous in my opinion. I did not
find the towing itself to have a much higher risk factor than
regular flying.
Mercey Hot Springs. Was great. Larry wants
us back. 10.00 is cheap no matter how many wives and kids you have.
The point is, it's someplace they would want to go. Larry wants to
have a use fee of 10.00 which includes camping, use of the airstrip,
hot tub. Gives him something for day flyers that flush his toilets
and fill up his garbage cans. That's fair.
Sonoma Wings
pilots: maybe more of you can come next time. As I flew 4 times
farther than Vince, there's not much challenge.
ben
|
Greg
Sugg
Club
Secretary
(2/18/03 7:23:40
pm)
66.81.120.7
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Re: aerotowing
report
Ben, The only reason you flew farther than Vince is because of the
type of glider you fly.
;)
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Lori
Unregistered
User
(2/18/03 9:41:56
pm)
12.81.165.166
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Releases with
wheels
Hey guys, this is my humble 2 cents worth about aerotowing safety
and having a good release that's easily accessible, even with
wheels.
I've been aerotowing since 1994 and I find that the
release that LMFP in Georgia makes (and markets) is a lot better
than the bicycle handle release. It operates on a string loop that
you loosely slip your fingers into. You can have big honking
training wheels and you can still have this release on the basetube
and all it takes is a little flick of the fingers to the left and
it's a done deal. I got into a lot of trouble with the bicycle
handle release because it's hard letting go of that basetube when
trouble happens because my first instinct is to keep flying the
glider. I think wheels are a good thing when aerotowing due to the
increased risk of premature weak link breakage and finding a release
that you can operate from the basetube and having the added safety
of wheels is a good thing for aerotowing.
Lori
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Kurt
Unregistered
User
(2/18/03 11:12:08
pm)
12.236.225.171
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Mercy Hot Spring
The trip from my house in Petaluma to the airstrip was exactly three
hours! Compare that to St John, four hours to launch. Hull is 3:15.
Mercy Hot Springs = less driving and more airtime. What do you all
say we ask Paul to come up to Crazy Creek? What about buying our own
trike? This could be a step in the Dragonfly direction to get things
started. We would then have two tugs!
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Matt
Unregistered
User
(2/19/03 7:18:16
am)
12.149.141.14
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Flight
Challenge!
If you want competition Ben, the club has three comps just waiting
for you to sign up! Vince and I are in all three, how about ewe?
;)
Matt
|
WMichelsen
Member
(2/19/03
11:05:58 am)
209.157.111.66
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Crazy
Creek
Kurt,
I've started discussions with Paul about Crazy Creek.
He's absolutely willing. Tentatively, we are looking around May. The
good thing about Paul is that he seems happy to tow recreational
pilots (as opposed to Hungary Joe). So, I think CC in May is close
to a sure thing.
I'm still a bit gun shy after my failed
attempts to get Joe up to CC last year. So, if you want to take over
this effort with Paul, I'd gladly hand it off. Or, does anyone else
want to take it? I'll certainly help out all I can.
Wayne
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Greg
Sugg
Club
Secretary
(2/19/03 7:47:37
pm)
66.81.75.153
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Trike
Towing
What do you pilots who have towed both behind the Dragon Fly (sp?)
and the trike think about the differences? I've heard that trikes
tow faster, and that is a problem. Is that right, or is it all just
tow jamb?
:\
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buzzett
2002 Service Award holder
(2/19/03 7:58:23 pm)
66.52.180.166
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Re: Trike
Towing
I heard that the tow pilot was excellent. He knew what he was
doing. That, in it's self, makes a big difference when deciding your
preference.
Linda
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Daniel
Pifko
Member
(2/19/03 9:48:19 pm)
68.164.79.65
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Strings 'n'
Things
Thanks for the info, Lori. I may have to stock up on one more
release.
That being said, I've thought about this a bit more
and think the problem could be mitigated by:
- putting the
brake release on the down tube
- orienting it with the metal
handle pointing up (making a loop of the brake cable sheath)
-
rotating the brake handle inward so my hand's path doesn't interfere
with the nose wire cable
- practicing hitting the release (good
tip, Dallas)
- installing wheels
Accumulating more gear by
the day,
Daniel
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WMichelsen
Member
(2/20/03
2:46:46 pm)
209.157.111.66
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Re: Trike
Towing
I'm reluctant to answer because of the different circumstances of
each of my experiences:
Crazy Creek
- Tug Craft:
DragonFly
- Tug Pilot: Hungary Joe
- Glider: Falcon
-
Bridal: 3-pt shoulders/keel
- AT Experience:
Neophyte
Mercy Hot Springs:
- Tug Craft: Trike
- Tug
Pilot: Paul Splan
- Glider: Fusion / MRX700
- Bridal: 2-pt
shoulders
- AT Experience: Intermediate
But, if I had to
conclude anything, I would say the following:
- Towing on a
high performance wing is *way* easier than I was anticipating. And,
it was *way* easier than the Falcon. Mostly this was because the bar
pressure was significantly less even though I was towing without the
keel attachment. Perhaps the keel attachment on the Falcon needed to
be farther forward?
- The tug craft has very little impact.
Mostly, the tug pilot was the most important factor. Joe was very
smooth on take-off. Paul likes to rocket off the ground. So, if you
are 1 second lagged after seeing Paul lift off, you are pushing out
and chasing for the first 200' to catch up. Otherwise, I don't
remember enough about the Dragonfly towing to be able to judge any
other differences.
Well, that's my opinion anyway.
Wayne
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Vince
Endter
Unregistered
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(2/20/03 6:27:03
pm)
209.247.143.218
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Trike vs
Tug
I'm no expert in towing but my experience says the tow pilot is
much more of a factor than whether they are flying a trike or a tug.
Paul tows faster then any of the trikes I flew behind in Florida. As
Wayne said, Paul likes to do an aggressive pull up on take off. The
first time he caught me off guard, even though I had seen him do it
on all his tows. When you are on the end of the line it is much more
dramatic than it looks. My second tow with him I pushed out with my
arms almost fully extended just as I saw him pull up and I was just
able to stay up with him.
Trikes are effected more by the
air texture and if you try to stay right behind them they are more
work. If you let them bounce around and just stay in a cone behind
them, they are just as easy to tow behind. Trikes take about twice
as long to descend after they release you than a tug (dragon fly). A
good tug pilot can slip the tow plane to get you back centered where
a trike can not slip.
Really good tow pilots map out the
thermals on every tow and as they return to land. After 3 or 4 tows
they can put you right in the good lift. Some tow pilots just tow
you up and it's up to you to find your own lift. The best pilot Rich
or I had in Florida was flying a yellow trike, we never did learn
his name.
Vince
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davemerriman
Unregistered User
(2/20/03 10:51:16 pm)
12.246.68.36
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plow soil
mitigation- a little more to report, short & s
Two aerotow students from the valley had excellent first tows on
Monday in their Falcons.
I disagree with a new tow pilot
concluding that dolley launching is more dangerous than mountain
launching. In our progression we learn that a glass-off flight can
be a handful for a student and lunch-time in the desert can be a
breeze for the H-5 local guy. Its more than exercising good “risk
assessment” its flying with-in bounds for one’s skill level. The big
step of aerotowing from scratch is like skiing out of bounds. If you
want to encounter non-experimental aerotowing go to the east coast
tug parks or attend Kenny Brown’s formal clinic. Last weekend was’nt
a clinic, it was an experiment. The result was some really talented
pilots consumating their first aerotows on a skinny runway in a
crosswind with minimal ground school and no training. Most of you
are very experienced pilots and that’s what saved all ‘uv yur necks
in the absence of the usual systematic progression of a tow school.
I think we’d all conclude that any carnage was a result of pilots
tackling too many new sensations and unknowns at
once.
<< the cart is your friend, embrace it for as
long as possible>> I’ve enjoyed your incident reports, a true
synopsis is that Johnas burbled off the cart at flying speed,
skimmed the ground due to mental misconception of avoiding a stall,
got 3’ in the air, got back down near the ground - for the longest
time - then plowed dirt with that naked basetube. It’s an unnatural
feeling for a veteran pilot to begin flying then push out when he’s
concerned about mushing. When uneasy feelings arise (from having too
much on your plate) during a launch you have to unlearn that skill
that prevented you from mushing into the trees and bushes below you
over the years.
Mistake #1 : pushing out (slightly or a lot) –
result: leaving the cart earlier than necessary.
Mistake #2 : not
pushing out (near stall) – result: touching terra firma.
This
pilot performed prompt and perfect judgments for the unpowered
flying he was familiar with. He knew the ground was too close but
his mind has been trained to pull in in this instance – “it always
used to work on those shallow launches”
Hats off to Wayne
Michelsen for driving Jonas’s truck to Fresno, then Silicon Valley,
then taking a freezing motorcycle ride back to Mercey Hot Springs at
6:00 am.
As Ben said, the best tows came afterwards when
most pilots lifted the cart 12 inches into the air each
time.
The other extreme: << never never push off the
cart – unless you’re about to go in the ditch ! >>
On my
first tow behind Paul last October we decided to roll downwind as we
had the delusion that I was a seasoned towee. I felt I was on the
cart twice as long as normal ( tow dolley was steerable, of course)
and ground speed encouraged me to rock back off the cart near stall
speed. The wing then told me I was in mush-mode. I naturally pushed
out to make sure and get away from the ground – right? Isn’t that
normal launching procedure for a mountain hangglider pilot? And
quickly found myself 50’ above and, lets say: 50’ right of the tug.
Rocketing towards the fringe of lockout, roll control was restored
as I pulled in and air speed increased, I dove it back to the deck,
then Paul left the ground. Yes, I should’ve released.
Oh, a
few winters ago the camcorder was on the keel the time I forgot to
hold the white rope under my fingers and burbled off the cart way
too early. Again just pushing out in a stall afforded me a good
launch. I guess I’ve got lots of camera footage of “stuff
not-to-do”.
The next tow you get, take one hand off the
basetube (on the rare occasion when Paul isn’t turning). If its
smooth and straight enough, remove the other hand . . . . what’s
happening? You’re about to see a full profile view of the tug’s sail
from above and you quickly have to stuff the bar to get him back up
to the horizon. I guess we all learned by example or first hand that
the same thing happens on the cart once you get up to
speed.
I don’t mean to sound condescending about the Mercey
Experiment. The event was a success while it helped us all remember
that hanggliding without instruction and/or beyond our skill level
can be fatal. It appeared everyone was cognicient that they
personally were undertaking new risks. Let us count our many
blessings that good luck was dished out in mass quantities. Just
remember that the air-air pioneers did all the R & D for us a
decade ago. They’ve worked out the bugs for us so no more accidents
need to be showing up in our magazine. Did anyone ask to read that
page in the air-to-air chapter of TowingAloft where Pagan shows us
how to launch the cart in a cross wind on a wide runway? (Ben did
good to run under the upwind wire for a lot of guys) I read that
book a couple of times before my own self-taught indoctrination
behind a new tug pilot (BFI; no towing experience) which is probably
why I am still breathing.
No one is more guilty of performing
the flight first and then learning all the proper techniques second
than me. It’s the American way; “ when the assembly don’t look
right, crack open the direction booklet afterwards.”
“I had
someone tell Paul to tow me in that direction. He headed straight
east. I kept pointing to the south but he headed east. After 2000’ I
released because I was much farther east than…..” >>> Gee,
when my tug pilot watched the video of last weekend his first
comment was, “why are you using hand signals?” (who’s helmet isn’t
wired?)
btw: this has'nt been the first event of its kind,
the next one is near Lodi on a Saturday, 9 days from now. There’s a
website to check and see if its happening : weather and tug pilot
permitting/look for it on Monday eve. Its doubtful Paul will be
there, but he might.
-- SafetyDave (the artist formerly known as
DD) asaceu@softcom.net
|
Vince
Endter
'02 Go-For-It
Champ
(2/21/03 10:57:17
am)
216.103.80.211
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Re: Aero tow
flight reports
Dave wrote
>If its smooth and straight enough, remove the
other hand . . . . what’s happening? You’re about to see a full
profile view of the tug’s sail from above and you quickly have to
stuff the bar to get him back up to the horizon<
This is
true for your glider at the speed Paul was towing. It is not true
for all speeds or all gliders or all possible hang points. Rigid
wing gliders can adjust their flap setting so they will tow without
bar pressure. If Paul was to tow slower or you were behind a tug
that could fly slower (or you hang point was more forward) you may
also be able to fly hands off without getting above the tug. With my
initial flap setting, flying hands off made me fly BELOW the
tug.
Dave wrote
>Gee, when my tug pilot watched the
video of last weekend his first comment was, “why are you using hand
signals?” (who’s helmet isn’t wired?)<
Because the tow
pilot was not on our agreed frequency of 147.495,? I was! Maybe
because hands signals are the agreed upon method of signaling the
tow pilot (and tow pilot signaling the hang glider pilot) by most of
the tug pilots in the United States?
Vince
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asaceu
Unregistered
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(2/25/03 2:02:01
am)
12.246.68.36
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flt rpts
hey, I was out there doing the circular hand motion with the best
of them at Mercy Springs. When at home, my UL instructor prefers
radio contact as we slowly progressed out of the stone-age, that's
all.
For those flexies and rigids rolling down the crowned
road on a cart:
Okay so you've set me straight that some
hanggliders may trim right level or even downward in relation to the
tug. I totally overlooked the possible trim settings on many rigids
and the Sensor. I also was'nt meaning to include any of those pitch
sensitve joystick operated milleniums in this exercise of lifting
off the cart. If a pilot is on his first dolley launch ever, and his
trim / bridal configuration / hang strap / etc. is such that his/her
wing does'nt outclimb Paul's trike at flying speed: does that
basetube stay on the wood all the way down until the pilot see's
(and reacts) to the tug climbing off the ground? By now we know my
wing likes to climb, even with the spinnacker release of the 3 point
system - halfway out to my nosecone! Paul has enough power to make
me leave the cart well before I get close to drifting into the
Mercey ditch. With my recent enlightenment I now wonder; will 100%
of dolley launches raise the cart wheels off the ground like
everyone was hoping (and instructing)? Just playing devil's advocate
here in hopes that every future new towee pushes out and pulls in
when theyr supposed to, and noone ends up rolling off the side of
the runway.
For those of us w/out flaps, I'm thinkin: towing
off your shoulders (2 point): you're going to climb.
The 3 pt
("Skyting criteria" way)
- off your biner and shoulders: climb
for sure.
- Keel and shoulders : always near the hangstrap first
before adjusting release towards the nosecone of that bladewing....
right?
-dave
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