We had another of those amazing days today. Tuesday, when we were bumming around, we saw a sign for “Windy City Soaring.” Dear Husband was immediately interested, and we looked them up on-line. This is an association which gives rides in gliders, the planes that have no propellers or motors.
We headed out to the farmland west of Chicago for the headquarters of the group, and asked if it would be possible for the two of us to have a ride. Gliders come in one seat or two seat versions. Since neither of us is a pilot, we would need to go up with an experienced flier. Both the front and back seat are equipped with the controls needed to fly the plane. The pilot explained what we were seeing and then told us not to worry, we wouldn’t do any of the flying.
Dear Husband went up first, not because I was afraid, but because I wanted to see how it was done before I tried it. It was about 10:00 in the morning. The tow-plane started up, and moved into position so that the tow line was straight and taut between the planes and then they were off. Toward the edge of the field there was a fountain of leaves in the air as the tow-plane lifted into the air, and then it was just a matter of watching as they circled up into the sky.
It was cloudy this morning, and I lost the glider in the clouds for a few minutes, but could watch for the rest of the flight. They were up for about 25 – 30 minutes, longer than I expected. When they came down, DH was smiling, and had obviously enjoyed the flight. Unfortunately, I had to wait for a bit. Someone had booked the 10:30 appointment. I got to watch them go through the same pre-flight experience and take off.
When the glider came down, it was my turn. I got into the plane, (like stepping into a bathtub) and was secured in the seat with straps much like a baby in a car seat. Once they were satisfied that I was secure and the equipment was working, we took off. It was a little bumpy over the field, but we were up in the air right away.
Dear Husband had been towed to almost 3000 feet in the air. We were towed to roughly 2500 feet. Those clouds that I mentioned had continued to move in, and the pilot was concerned about the lack of visibility, so I had a shorter ride. It was fabulous! There were no thermals to provide lift, so we circled around as we lost height. I enjoyed flying over harvested and un-harvested fields, over farm houses, creeks, roads and train tracks, farmland churches and cemeteries. I’m eager to go again, but it will probably have to wait until next summer. We’ll choose a clear day, so that we can stay up longer.
Our pilot timed it just right. Ten minutes after I landed, and paid our bill, the first rain drops came down, and DH saw lightening to the west. Scot can be my pilot any day!
Wow! That’s given me a great idea for Mr BW’s special birthday next year. Now all I have to do is find a similar place…
If he’s comfortable flying, he should love it, BW. I highly recommend that you book a flight for yourself, too. I can’t wait to go again!
What is so nice about soaring is the quiet. I’m glad that you and your DH had such a good experience. Were you going, “Whee!” during the flight?
I’m guessing that the glider was not equipped for instrument flying (and probably didn’t have a radio?), so was prohibited from entering a cloud. Too, when you soar above a cumulous cloud, your glider loses lift – the cloud marks the upper boundary of the up-draft.
Way to go!
I loved it, CC! I think I must have gone “Wheee! as we lifted off, but I just sat and marveled at the view for the rest of the ride. It wasn’t silent, as I thought it would be. I could hear the rush of the wind past us, but it’s ever so much more quiet than a flight in a plane with a motor!
The glider had an altimeter and and air speed indicator. Fred says it wasn’t set up for IFR. There were microphones so the pilot could speak with the ground. Our pilot definitely wanted to be under the clouds. We thought it was that he couldn’t see what might be coming at him, but your explanation of the lack of lift above the clouds makes sense. We’ll soar on a sunny day next time!
Now that you are retired, why not go get your glider rating? You and your DH could have a blast!
It’s been many years since I was in a glider (or even a tow plane), so I don’t trust my memory; but, the glider probably had an additional instrument – a length of cord on its nose to help the pilot keep the aircraft in coordinated flight. [Airplanes, and more highly equipped gliders (such as motor-gliders which, if properly instrumented, are allowed to fly in clouds), have ball-and-needle (turn-and-slip) instruments.]
Actually, CC, Fred is thinking about selling the boat and having both of us get glider ratings. He’s been looking at gliders for sale. I don’t know if we will buy one or rent air-time in the association’s gliders.
I didn’t see a length of cord on the nose, but there were “tell-tales” taped to the canopy over both seats. Fred uses a “tell-tale” on his sails to keep track of the wind, and I thought these might be used the same way. They were just three or four inches of blue yarn.
Excellent analysis, Buffy; but red yarn works better. *laughing* Whether it is a length of cord, a tuft of yarn, or whatever – the intent is the same: to show the pilot the airflow. As someone on Nova said, the other day, “A sail is just a vertical wing.”
Short lengths of yarn are placed in a grid over the surfaces of any object that goes into a wind tunnel for testing. Yarn is so much easier to see than is the air!
You are such a goose, CC! Don’t you know how difficult it is to read teasing into words on a computer screen? If anyone other than Frankie, Bogie and BW read these posts, they would be rushing out to get RED YARN! lol
I should have written that the yarn MAY be placed on an object. Obviously, while frequently used, there are other means of accomplishing the testing aim.