Monday, 31 Jan.2011: 

In the morning the trucks were already waiting for the containers  but Phillip’s containers was not yet packed  but at the same time we had a bit of grace, the side - end loader had not appeared yet. We had just literally done the last tie down in Phillip’s container when the side loader arrived, closed the container door and then the loading started. Within an hour all 5 containers were loaded and left. All of a sudden the airfield was dead quiet again.

In the evening the staff had the last get together for the season with a good meal at De Stijl Hotel.

Thanks for everybody’s help: Andrieka, Justin (Mr J), Phindy, Oupa Dirk, Erich and Herman and all the other pilots who gave a hand when needed to be.

So now one week to clean the club house and get the Duo Discus fitted into the Nimbus 4 DM trailer and then take all the gliders back to Orient or work shop to clean them up and get them ready for the next season 2011/2012

See you all then !

Martin Lessle.  Chow

Sunday, 30Jan.2011: 

Again it looked like a good day but the Spanish Pilots where then debating if they should fly or use the last day to go and Visit the Tiger nature reserve and at the end result they went to the nature reserve while it gave the staff more time to help Phillip and also pack up the last glider for the Polish container.

Saturday, 29 Jan. 2011:

What a good day. All the Spanish went flying and came back with smiles. Average 330 km and 3200 MSL.

Friday, 28 Jan. 2011: 

The Germans finished packing their containers while the Spanish, Astrid, Manfred (OY) and Philippe (SM) went gliding.  Though the day started early, they all came back early.

Thursday, 27 Jan. 2011: 

The first pilots arrived just after 08:00 to start packing.  It was a good day for working in the containers as it was not hot and a cool breeze blew from the south.  In the afternoon the Spanish went flying. Things started to slow down for the staff as well.

Wednesday, 26 Jan. 2011: 

The last flying day for those whose gliders have to go back to Europe. 13 gliders went up.  Only Manfred (OY) decided that it was not worthwhile to go up.  Many of the pilots started preparing their gliders for shipment after they had landed.

Tuesday, 25 Jan. 2011:

The day started out bad, but the moment the weather improved, all the pilots were at the airfield and ready to fly!  It was unbelievable how quickly some got themselves and their gliders ready.  The landings happened at a much more relaxed pace.

Monday, 24 Jan. 2011: 

The weather was still not good, but Martin could do check flights with all the Spanish pilots that arrived.  We welcomed Alvaro back as well as his friends that he brought with.  They are: Carles, Miguel, Ignacio, Alexandre and Tomev.  We hope you have brought good sunny gliding weather with.

Sunday, 23 Jan. 2011: 

Martin and some of the staff were sitting on the stoep while it poured with rain, when out of the nature reserve walked a man covered in mud asking for assistance to get his Land Cruiser out of the mud.  They immediately set out to help.  Harry of Nature Conservation also arrived and with the aid of two 4X4 vehicles the Cruiser was pulled out of the mud.  The man’s wife was thankful for the help, but still mad at her husband because if he had listened to her, then they would not have gotten stuck in the first place! The personnel of Gariep Gliding Centre are always willing to help from saving horses to pulling cars out of the mud.

Saturday, 22 Jan. 2011: 

Still more rain! Some pilots are starting to get restless.

Friday, 21 Jan. 2011:

No gliding weather, so Martin sent the staff home just after lunch time.

Thursday, 20 Jan. 2011:

No one flew, because of the threatening thundershowers that did arrive in the afternoon while the Nimbus 4DM of Max was being put into the container.  Fortunately everyone had time to wait out the storm in the club house.  Then the glider had to be dried off again before it could be put into the container.

Wednesday, 19 Jan. 2011: 

The day started with putting the Janus C (AN) in its trailer.  It was the 21st birthday of Jonas Florin and as a birthday present Martin Lessle took him for a day long training flight in the Nimbus 4DM (JR).  On landing he was greeted with a chocolate cake in the form of a glider.  What a way for a young glider pilot to turn 21 years old!  The pilots, who flew, had good flights and three reported flights of more than 800km.

Tuesday, 18 Jan. 2011: 

Again all went up, but this time Martin joined them for a close to six hour flight in PM.  The wind was very light in the afternoon, but varied so much that the active runway was changed all the time. 

Monday, 17 Jan. 2011: 

All went gliding and most reported flights of more than 500km.  Cloud cover was only 1/8 but cloud base was up to 4000msl and average thermal strength reported 2, 2 m/s.

Sunday, 16 Jan .2011: 

The weather was not great, but this did not deter the pilots. Sadly on this day we also had to say good bye to pilots; a sure sign that the gliding season at Gariep is coming to an end.

Saturday, 15 Jan. 2011: 

This was a busy Saturday morning: 20 gliders went up.  The cloud base was 4500m with cloud cover of 3/8 and an average thermal strength of 2.5m/s. The Dutch flew 880km.  During the day 7 power planes also landed.  The afternoon was even busier, because this was the last day for some pilots and final accounts had to be paid and gliders de-rigged and put away.  The pilots who left were: Nori, Matsu and Chuzo from Japan, Eric from France, Yanez from Slovenia as well as Daniel from SA.  Jonas Florin arrived from Germany to fly with Torsten.

Friday, 14 Jan. 2011: 

Only four short flights were undertaken. 

Thursday, 13 Jan.2011:

Only  Holger Lentschig was brave enough to go flying.  The rest went sightseeing in Graaf-Reinet, the dam wall and local power station.

Wednesday, 12 Jan. 2011:

All pilots flew extremely safely and returned well before sunset.

Tuesday, 11 Jan. 2011:

The day started again early with check flights before 08:00.   12 gliders went up, but the weather turned and both staff and pilots got soaked to the skin, getting the gliders off the runway and into the hangars.  The rain came down in buckets and even some small hail fell, but the sun shined and two rainbows of all seven colours could be seen at the same time!  FM landed at exactly at sunset which was 19:24!

Monday, 10 Jan. 2011:

The day started early (07:00) for Martin with two check flights.  Then there were 20 launches. Some pilots landed in the rain but it was Daniel who flew Mannie’s glider, who provided the most excitement for the day by first landing almost straight after takeoff and then later by landing out! Yanez, his friend from Slovenia, joined him in the out landing to keep him company.  The retrieve crew only arrived back in town at about 01:00. Max arrived in the afternoon with his new co-pilot Rolf.

Sunday, 9 Jan. 2011:

What a day!  9 aircraft from Bloemfontein, including Gary Player, arrived to look at the water overflowing the dam wall. The fact that they arrived just as Martin was about to give the daily briefing, put a real spanner in the works and he became an air traffic advisor.  The visiting pilots complimented him on his good work.  The pilots then had coffee and breakfast on the stoep.

Saturday, 8 Jan. 2011:

Another busy day with 23 launches and 5 power planes landing and taking off in between. Arie and Baruch arrived late afternoon from Israel and were disappointed because the documentation of the glider they were hoping to  fly was not in order.

Friday, 7 Jan. 2011:

The weather had improved and all pilots went up.  27 launches.  It was a long and busy day for the staff, especially as Peter Robinson landed out at his lodge.  Maybe it was because he concentrated too much on taking photographs and then got so low that he had to land in the veld.

Thursday, 6 Jan. 2011:

Most pilots flew; each according to his own plan.  Some just flew around the airfield while others set out to achieve personal goals.  Matsu from Japan flew his 750km and Max & Martijn did a Dutch record for 900km. 

Wednesday, 5 Jan. 2011:

After the rain just about all was eager to be in the air.  23 launches were done.  New arrivals were greeted and we sadly said good bye to others.  But the aid rendered by Martin, Steve Clark and others to rescue a mare and her foal from the river was the highlight of the day.  It was very late when Martin returned to the airfield.

Tuesday, 4 Jan. 2011:

No gliding!  But more work, a new bench for the stoep in the making. Thanks
Doris, Karin, Petia and Herman!

Monday, 3 Jan. 2011:

Another rainy day; so those who have not been there went to the dam wall for a visit.  Others spent the day doing admin and getting gliders in tip top shape. During a short break in the rain, Nori went up for two very short flights with his Japanese co-pilots.  Daniel Rodic went for a test flight in the Lak 17, X. And Alena flew about an hour in CX.

Sunday, 2 Jan. 2011:

The weather improved slightly and six gliders took off.  Benno Beesten (BAT) landed out again.  This was his third outlanding in a week!  Even though it was not far, it took quite a long while to get him back, because of the poor road. The following pilots arrived throughout the day: Steve Clark, Holger Lentschig, Max & Martijn and Axel Weissert.  Unfortunately some pilots also had to leave, but they promised to come back to Gariepdam.

Saturday, 1 January 2011 :

The day dawned grey, because it rained and it rained the whole day!  Sorry for the pilots, but it did mean a day of rest for the staff.

Friday, 31 Dec. 2010:

No gliding weather!  The staff prepared for the evening’s festivities.  A whole spread was prepared: braaivleis, chips and dips, drinks, etc.  The meat was just done when it started to rain and all the chairs and tables had to be moved into the hangar.  It looked quite festive with lit candles and a paraffin lamp!  We wish everyone a very prosperous 2011 and excellent gliding.

Thursday, 30 Dec. 2010:

The weather improved, but during the briefing Martin warned the pilots about the thunder storms.  Even so Philippe Rapp (CX) and Benno Beesten (BAT) still landed out.  Martin and Justin went with Marc to retrieve CX and Scott, Phindi and Erich went to retrieve the BAT from close to Victoria Wes.  No storm reached Gariepdam.

Wednesday, 29 Dec. 2010:

The sky was completely covered by low rain clouds and the wind blew at more than 50km/h at times.  The result was that no-one flew and all went home early.  Light rain fell during the night.

Tuesday, 28 Dec. 2010:

A very early start and those who were not ready had to wait very long to get to the launch point.  Just about every glider pilot at Gariep went for a flight. Flight distances varied from very local to 1012km by Peter and Andreas in KG and a 1000km done by Gert Kalisch NX. Scott Sinclair, the new tug pilot arrived in the afternoon and was immediately roped in to help and get gliders off the runway as they land.

Monday, 27 Dec. 2010:

New pilots for PK arrived:  they are Christoph Matkowski and Piotr Pawlowski.  Eddi & Koen from Belgium finally arrived from Europe to fly the Janus C (AN). Alena from the Czech Republic (AR) and Peter from the UK (PJ) were the other pilots who arrived.  A warm (sic) welcome to all. Philippe (CX) was prevented from flying, because he had to fix the flat main wheel of his glider.  Most pilots flew locally but UFO did 880km and JF did 830km.  Matsu in a Ventus flew 670km and last but not least Adam from Poland flew 888km in his Discus CT.  The best reported flight for day was that of Hans & Karin Wiesenthal who flew 910km in the Duo Discus (4Y).

Sunday, 26 Dec. 2010:

What a good gliding day!  Hw (1030km), SM (1000km), 9X (1028km) and six (KG, 9A, 3T, BAT, SA & OY) flew more than 900km.  Only Ulrich (U(Y)S) came short because and landed out after about 200km).  In the afternoon Petia went to fetch Adam (ECC) from Bloemfontein airport.

Saturday, 25 Dec. 2010:

24 gliders took to the air and returned very late.  They all had good flights and were in great spirits.

Friday, 24 Dec. 2010:

The weather was not brilliant so not many pilots flew.  But those who flew took off throughout the day.  Carsten Heinrich arrived at last with his family from Germany after being stuck there due to severe cold weather.  A good Christmas Eve dinner was enjoyed at Waschbank and following tradition small gifts were exchanged.

Thursday, 23 Dec. 2010:

The morning was quite busy with new pilots registering, people booking for the Christmas Eve dinner and eager pilots requesting permission to back track to the launch point.  We welcomed Ulrich Messmer who will be the first pilot to fly the new JS1 of South Africa at Gariepdam.  Peter and Andreas arrived to fly the Nimbus of Georg and Oliver Benirschke came to fly JF (Ventus CT).  Gliders took off in two batches:  one in the early morning and one early afternoon.  Benno Beesten arrived late afternoon with another JS1 (BAT). Garth and Sue Row arrived from Natal with the JANUS C (AM).

Wednesday, 22 Dec. 2010:

Most pilots took off, but very strong winds caused some to land early.  The wind was up to 50km/h.  Martin did a check flight with Atsushi, the new Japanese pilot.  Christine Bürki went up after 15:00 and still had a good flight. Bart and Frans from the Netherlands arrived.  They are going to fly UFO.

Tuesday, 21 Dec. 2010:

THUNDER CLOUDS AND WIND.  No one was able to fly.  Some maintenance was done and a bit of a welcome rest for the staff.  Walter and Christine Bürki arrived.  They will be flying in VY and MW.  By lunch time all pilots have gone home.

Monday, 20 Dec. 2010:

Martin went with Nori for a check flight in the Nimbus before giving the daily briefing.  It seemed to be a good day and some pilots took off before 10:00.  Gert Kalisch who flew alone in the Nimbus PK, had the misfortune to land just as the wind turned round and it started raining.  Gert and the staff got quit a soaking when they pushed the glider to its parking spot in the rain.  Then the rain went away and the other pilots landed in calm conditions.  Not all were fortunate enough to get back to the airfield.  Aleksandar landed out on a farm in JF 15 km and to be retrieved by car. All went well and they were back at 21h00.

Sunday, 19 Dec. 2010:

The weather had improved and 21 gliders took off.  Harald in PK flew a thousand km and 6 pilots reported distances of between 700km and 900km.  Four new pilots arrived:  Marc & Philippe from France and Nori & Chuzo from Japan.  Quite a few pilots also said good bye. We wish them good flights back to a freezing cold and snowy Europe( that is if they can fly home).

Saturday, 18 Dec. 2010:

It was again a day to play “Change the Runway”.  First they went up to runway 10 and then before anyone took off wind changed and all had to go down to runway 33.  In the end it was nearly midday before launching started.  The gliders landed at various intervals throughout the afternoon.

Friday, 17 Dec. 2010:

The weather had improved and just about everyone went flying, but most had returned by early afternoon.  Only PK flew till sunset.

Thursday, 16 Dec. 2010:

The ground was soft after the rain and some gliders got bogged in at the starting point and had to be pulled out by car and manpower.  Martin went for a short flight in PM, a Ventus 2CT, and flew tag with FM (Steffen & Fritz) until he was recalled to the airfield. Chris Way from South Africa arrived in the late afternoon and went for a short test flight in his Ventus CM (TT).

Wednesday, 15 Dec. 2010:

RAIN – The rain was a welcome relieve for the sheep farmers of the area, but the glider pilots had to visit the Dam Wall or one of the many game parks and nature reserves in the area.

Tuesday, 14 Dec. 2010:

Hans Wiesenthal went up for about an hour and Harald and Tobias for about 40 minutes.  Then thunder and lightning sent everyone home.

Monday, 13 Dec. 2010:

Ondrej’s glider was rigged and washed after its excursion of the previous day.  Just about everyone went flying.  The new pilots of the Duo Discus (SK), Eckhard and Eiko arrived and after the check flight went gliding.  Markus and Tobias (4Y) only took off at 15:45 but Manfred and Steffen of 3T went off even later at 17:00.  It seemed as just about everyone took advantage of the unexpected good gliding weather.  Lift of 3m/s and a height of 4500m were reported.  Rain is forecasted for the next few days.

Sunday, 12 Dec. 2010:

New pilots arrived and check flights were done. We welcome Ari from the USA,   Aleksandar from Serbia and Zsolt from Hungary.  Gariep Gliding Centre is now really international!  Gliding operations started about 10:30 and the last one to land was Astrid (AR) at 19:24.  Then the staff had to get ready to retrieve Ondrej (PM) who had landed out near Philippolis in a veld with thorn bushes. Not a scratch on the glider, but it was very late when they returned. This was the second retrieve of this season.

Saturday, 11 Dec. 2010:

It was so cloudy and rainy that only some of the Austrians (JR & TT) ventured out.  This meant that Jason, the tug pilot did not get to fly. We said good bye to the pilots of JR, TT and SK.  These pilots from Austria are now going to explore the Kruger National Park and other scenic spots of South Africa.

Friday, 10 Dec. 2010:

We welcome the following new pilots:  Gert Kalisch (NX), Jürgen Müller (9X), Peter Scheyer (9A) and Jean-Luc Vernay (CX).  Peter Riha said good-bye.  His friend Mike (MB) had already left yesterday.  For some pilots it was not a good day, but for other it turned out very well.  It seems that Hans & Lodewijk of Holland came to Gariep with the sole purpose to break records seriously.  They bettered Jan Reitsma’s speed record for 700km.

Thursday, 9 Dec. 2010:

This was for some a good day and for others not so good.  This time it was Ondrej Dupal from the Czech Republic that needed to be congratulated.  He flew 1035km in PM, a Ventus 2CT. (This included an FAI triangle of 1010km.) Well done. Rudi & Thomas flew 960km.  Most pilots flew around 400km.  Marek from Poland took some beautiful pictures from the local area from the air as did Ondrej.  The day ended with some relaxing drinks in the dark on the “stoep” of the clubhouse.

Wednesday, 8 Dec. 2010:

An impressive and busy day.  We have to congratulate Hans and Lodewijk again:  this time they bettered the Dutch speed record for an 800km out and return.  Mannie (133) showed that it can be done:  He flew over a thousand in his ASG29.  Well done Mannie! 7 reported flights of more than a 1000km.  Andreas (JF) had some bad luck.  When they wanted to push him onto the runway for take off – disaster – the glider’s mail wheel is flat!  But Everready and helpful Martin ran around, found a new tube and fitted it on the runway while Justin filled up big cans of water to refill the wings.  Finally at 12:53 Andreas was on his way to also enjoy the good weather. Rudi and Thomas did an 880km glide back from Potchefstroom.  Landing time around 19:00 was a mad rush as usual with just about everyone trying to land at the same time. 

Tuesday, 7 Dec. 2010:

Congratulations to Hans and Lodewijk in UFO for flying 1020km.  Some flew more than 900km and others just about 200km, but all enjoyed it.  This is what is great about Gariepdam:  you may fly a serious task or just go out and fly to your heart’s content for as long as you want.  The sky was blue with very little wind and an average lift of 2.4m/s.  Both Martin and Jason did towing in order to get everyone up as quickly as possible. Mike (MB) just made it back in time to have a legal flight.

Monday, 6 Dec. 2010: 

Not a very exciting day. Very few pilots flew and those who flew did mostly local fun flights. Lift was at 2m/s and thermal tops at 11 000ft.  There were no clouds and very little wind from the south. Rudi and Thomas planned on flying with the Nimbus 4DM to Potchefstroom, but had to postpone it because of a technical problem.  Hopefully it will be sorted out by tomorrow.

Sunday, 5 Dec. 2010:

The day started early with check flights for some of new pilots.  New arrivals are:  Harald Dornberger, Michael Bohlen, Fritz Meyer (back again), Steffen Mehnert and Bianca - these pilots are all from Germany. Ondrej Dupal from the Czech Republic, arrived after competing at De Aar. Hans Wisselink & Lodewijk de Beukelaar from Holland arrived.  They have become regulars here at Gariep.

Saturday, 4 Dec. 2010: 

Keith Ashman from the SSSA had arrived late Friday night and during the briefing explained the process of local validation of overseas glider pilot licences.  Furthermore he will during his short stay at Gariep also expertly do some repairs to those gliders that have scratches.

Friday, 3 Dec. 2010:

About a dozen gliders flew.  It was a late start and not many felt inclined to struggle in the blue.  We said good bye to Max and Tjeerd from Holland and it was also the last day for Gerd Wandel.

Thursday, 2 Dec. 2010:

The decision to fly or not to fly was a difficult one to make for some pilots.  11 decided to try and fly despite the threatening thunderstorm. The rain won and they had to hasten back.  Jason, the tug pilot, and Max in UFO were the only ones to have a decent flight of over 4 hours.

Wednesday, 1 Dec. 2010:

This was fun watching!  First some went up to runway 15 and others to runway 10.  Then the wind turn and down everyone went to the other side.  That took some time, especially for those pilots flying different gliders but sharing a car.  Then those who went to 28 realised that the wind was most appropriate for 33 and so again they hooked up and moved.  Still by 12:15 all were in the air. Herbert Lackner and his wife arrived from Austria just as most of the pilots were landing.

Tuesday, 30 Nov. 2010: 

All 24 gliders went up.  When everyone had left it was very quiet at the airfield.  During the afternoon they came back one by one, some happy and some not so happy.

Monday, 29 Nov. 2010:

It was a very busy day. No less than 5 new pilots from Austria and another Polish pilot registered to fly:  Thomas Algner, Rudi Fraisl, Arno Hutter, Gerhard Mayerl, Thomas Strausz and Marian Skop.  Gunther von Versbach and Astrid Roberg arrived from Germany.  The many new arrivals meant gliders to be rigged and check flights to be done.

Sunday, 28 Nov.  2010: 

16 gliders went up.  Andreas Braun (JF) arrived.  It is his first time at Gariep and we wish him some very good flights here.  Martin Huber and his friend, Bernd Uschnig, arrived to fly the Nimbus 4DM (PK).

Saturday, 27 Nov. 2010: 

The weather did not look promising and with a good possibility of another thunder storm, most pilots decided to take the day off. Max Leenders went around helping to fix all kinds of small problems on gliders.  Steve Clark went back to England, but promised to be back in January 2011. The two Ulfs also left, but Georg and Sigi from Austria arrived to fly the Nimbus (KG).

Friday, 26 Nov. 2010: 

Some pilots decided not to fly as the weather forecast was the same as for the previous day. Others did take off.  The landing time was just about as hectic as the previous day.  Almost all at the airfield got soaking wet while holding gliders down and putting them away in the hangars.  Andreas Kessler (LV), a new pilot, was the only one to land after the storm had passed. 

Thursday, 25 Nov. 2010: 

Not all managed to return before the storm. First some had to land on the taxi way because of the strong cross wind.  Then some got caught on the runway by a very strong wind blowing, what seemed to be all the sand of the Sahara with it.  Pilots and staff got blasted while trying to hold down gliders and other equipment and then came the rain that soaked everyone.  Poor Gerd Wandel was on the wrong side of the storm and then had to land on the “beach” within sight of the runway.  He was seriously teased about landing on a beach with no ladies.  Gerd, Martin and the rest of the ground crew were frozen when they at last returned to the club house.

Wednesday, 24 Nov. 2010: 

The cold wind from the south blew the whole day!  During the day there were indications that it would change direction, but it never did!  By late afternoon it was really coming at us and it was most unpleasant.  True glider pilots were not deterred by all of this and flew locally, despite the wind. In the afternoon Mike Barenbrug and Peter Riha of South Africa arrived and quickly rigged their gliders.

Tuesday, 23 Nov. 2010: 

Sometimes glider pilots are like over eager beavers.  Early morning all had their gliders parked and ready at the start of runway 33.  Then they returned to the club house and waited.  By lunch time all had their gliders back at their parking spots and home they went.  Gerd Wandel however decided to wait and took off at 15:30.  He did not go far but had a good flight (up to 2800m above ground) and landed just before 19:00.

Monday, 22 Nov. 2010: 

When Hans Wiesenthal took off, all the others followed like little white ducklings.  Just about all said the day was wonderful.  Norbert Schlafke (SA) flew a thousand.  Congratulations Norbert! Edo came back all smiles after flying a Ventus.  Mannie McLauchlan (133), who had arrived late on Sunday, gave up for the day after two launches.  Gerd Wandel (9X) arrived but sadly we had to say good bye to Edo Kwant and Klaus Melchinger. 

Sunday, 21 Nov. 2010: 

The weather forecast posted on the board predicted good weather but failed to predict that it would get as strong as it did.  By 14:00 Andrieka arrived at the airfield to take over radio duty and soon preparations for the evenings’ BOERE BRAAI was in full swing.  Pilots returned early to make sure that they will not miss out on the fun.  And fun it was.  Candles and a bright full moon provided a very romantic background.  Ice cold beer was available!  Tables and chairs were put in the big hangar and the gliders outside. The meat was excellent but we do feel sorry for those who were looking for “Salad” or vegetables.  In this part of the country vegetables do not grow well.  Phindi did fry a big pot of chips.  Furthermore there were only forks, plates and a “jammerlappie” provided, no knives or napkins.  A big thank you, to all who helped to set cleaned up afterwards.

Saturday, 20 Nov. 2010: 

During the 9 o’clock briefing Martin urged the pilots to go and glide as it was such good weather, but they were reluctant and sluggish.  So it was nearly 11:00 before the first ones went up.  In the end all went up and by 13:30 they all were flying. 

Friday, 19 Nov. 2010: 

What a good day! and because of it no briefing was given.  Everyone went up, except Steve Clark whose glider had a leak in the fuel tank.  Ulrich Hakenbeck arrived with co-pilot Thomas Sternagel to fly FM.  They quickly got through the administration, got the glider ready and took off.  Congratulations to Max & Edo (UFO) and Klaus Engelhardt (EE) who flew more than a thousand km.   These were the first 1000 km flights for this season at Gariepdam.  Congratulations also to all the other pilots who flew.  You did Gariep proud.

Thursday, 18 Nov. 2010: 

During the morning briefing, Klaus Melchinger was the first recipient of “The Order of the First Match” (Match box with one match in it), for his late landing yesterday. He has gained his “night rating glider pilot licence”. Only HW and SK went up, because the weather was not great.  In the morning Jason, the tug pilot, collected three spark plugs from Peter (we now have some spare ones) and soon the tug plane was again in fine working order. Later the wind blew strongly and in the afternoon it started to rain slightly.

Wednesday, 17 Nov. 2010: 

In the morning it was very cloudy with a southerly wind.  The weather improved and everyone went up.  Unfortunately the Cessna developed some illness and it took some time before a dead spark plug in the most awkward position was diagnosed as the problem.  Martin phoned Peter How, who then just happened to be in Bloemfontein on his way to Gariepdam and he kindly agreed to go out of his way to pick up the spark plug.  Klaus Melchinger (LV) landed in Phillippolis and Martin towed him back with the SAMBA.  More Polish pilots arrived.  We welcome Bogdan (BN), Zdzislaw (KO) and Marek (HD).  The average distance for this day was 600km.  This was good considering that it looked very gloomy in the morning.

Tuesday. 16 Nov. 2010: 

Cloudy skies but some check flights were done.  It rained in the afternoon and in the evening everyone went for a typical Karoo meal which Martin organized at the B & B, Karoo nights.

Monday, 15 Nov. 2010: 

This was a flyable day but not many flew. Hans & Karin flew 495km and Max & Edo flew 425km.  We welcomed the following new pilots: Piotr and Aleksander from Poland who will fly the Duo Discus (SK) and Tjeerd from Holland who will fly the Ventus (PM).

Sunday, 14 Nov. 2010: 

Ulf Grundman & Ulf Gothe , hence forth known as Ulf squared, arrived from Germany to fly the Nimbus from Georg Kirchner (KG). They were the only ones to go up.  Norbert Schlafke and Steve Clark also arrived. This will be the first year that Steve will fly his own glider, a Ventus 2 CM (FN) at Gariep.

Saturday, 13 Nov. 2010: 

6 gliders went up.  Fritz & Hagen (FM) had to go up twice because they forgot their pitot tube “Did we say that”.  They made up for the lost time by landing last at about 18:30 local time.

Friday, 12 Nov. 2010: 

No gliding!  An unfavourable chilly wind blew and high clouds cut off the thermals.  Some pilots went home early and other pottered around their gliders.

The morning started well with the warm wind from the “right” direction, i.e. from the north.  All took off early and as the thermals lasted later than predicted some flew till sunset.  The wind was strong.  Hans (HW) encountered wind of more than 60km/h at some places.  Saskia, Max’s wife arrived to keep him company.

Wednesday, 10 Nov. 2010: 

The day started with low clouds and a cold southerly wind.  Later it improved and by 14:00 everyone was in the air.  The pilots came back late with smiles on their faces and most flew around 500km.

Monday, 8 Nov. 2010:

No gliding!  When the wind started blowing and the clouds got dark, there was a general scramble to get all the gliders under cover in the hangars.  It was a good thing because soon it was raining and even some small hail fell.  It rained intermittently the whole afternoon and night.

Sunday, 7 Nov.  2010: 

8 gliders took off.  6 of them reported a total of 2 750km flown.  Hans went up to 15 000ft.  In the east cloud cover was about 3/8 but in the west there were thermals even though it was blue.  Average climb rate was 2,5m/s.

Saturday, 6 Nov. 2010: 

The weather was not so good but again Hans (HW) took the lead at just before 2 pm local time and some others followed.  Fritz Meyer & Hagen Mosij (FM) as well as Max Leenders and Edo Kwant (UFO) arrived in the afternoon.

Friday, 5 Nov. 2010: 

First gliding day of the new season (2009/2010) at Gariep!  Hans Wiesenthal was the first to test the thermals.  He was followed by Uwe & Willie in 3T and Markus & Peter in 4Y.  Martin took his brother Erich up in SK.  All agreed that that they have had good flights.  Jason had his first to tows here at Gariep and it went well.  Klaus Engelhardt with his glider (EE) is also back for gliding at Gariep.

Thursday, 4 Nov. 2010: 

Still not gliding weather.  Markus, Karin and their friend Peter arrived from Germany.  They are going to fly 4Y, a Duo Discus XLT.  The day was spent rigging and cleaning more gliders.  Jason Everard (Eveready), the tug pilot arrived with the tug plane.  We wish him some good flying at Gariep.

Wednesday, 3 Nov.2010: 

The wind blew very strong, but fortunately the pilots were still getting gliders ready.  Hans & Ute Wiesenthal arrived from Germany.  In the late afternoon we had a short but severe thunderstorm.  Justin also again joined the camp crew.

Tuesday, 2 Nov. 2010: 

No flying!  The wind is very strong, but some clouds are developing, so maybe they will fly tomorrow.  In any case the pilots need to register and get their first briefing.