Welcome to PASCO!
--- COMING EVENTS CALENDAR ---
Jul 3-7: First U.S. Libelle Gathering, Air Sailing, NV.
Jul 5: TAGARS - Truckee Air Race
Jul 20-25: Air Sailing Sports Contest
Aug 9: Air Sailing Gerlach Dash
Sep 6: Truckee TAGAR Race
Sep 16-20:Reno Air Races (FYI)
Oct 10: Williams Soaring Center Oktoberfest
Quick Links:
- Important Safety Alert:
» Reno-Tahoe ATC Rules - Safety Page
- Soaring Promotional Materials - Spread the word!
- Wave Rules Nevada
OLC - On Line Contest
PASCO Sawyer Award
Post your flights on the OLC and join the Region 11 Sawyer contest. Read more about it on the PASCO Sawyer Award page.
Where's The Egg?
PASCO Egg Capture Trophy
2/23/2009 Air Sailing, NV
Rob Stone (Stoney), flying his 1-26, captured the PASCO egg from its winter hibernation in the SoaringNV hangar at Minden, NV.
Note: June 26, 2009 - still at ASI).
The Alby
Traveling Across America
Where is Alby?
06-25-2009 - Hobbs, NM: Ted Wagner in 2NO (ASG29) flew Alby from El Paso, TX to Hobbs, NM. Next stop ???
Follow Alby's voyage:
albysvoyage.blogspot.com
Region 11 News
2009-06-25: Alby in Hobbs, New Mexico!
Follow Alby's voyage: albysvoyage.blogspot.com
2009 May: Crazy Creek Soaring Re-Opens
Crazy Creek Soaring has reopened as "Crazy Creek Air Adventures". Same location, just north of Middletown, CA. I (YE) had the opportunity to fly there on Monday, June 22 and it was terrific. A 1500 foot tow to a 6 knot thermal and then flew for over 3 hours, returning to Crazy Creek at 100 knots and still going up, my trace showed a vario reading of 7 knots up at one point! It was a good day, and a nice place to fly. They are open from Friday through Monday. Give them a call. Better yet, plan on flying there for a few days this summer.
Sawyer and Distance Awards - OLC
Pasco Members:
With the soaring season in full speed, I would like to remind everybody to keep track of their soaring achievements and submit their flights to OLC so they can be counted towards the Sawyer Award, as well as the distance awards. New XC pilots are especially encouraged to submit their flights to olc since the Sawyer award is based on olc score multiplied by a generous factor based on pilot experience, so traditionally this award is usually won by relatively new XC pilots. More information on the various awards are available here:
http://pacificsoaring.org/awards/awards.html
Also you may want to bookmark the following url to follow the current region 11 olc ranking: www.onlinecontest.org. After adjusting for pilot factor I believe Rich Parker is currently leading the Sawyer Award.
One thing to note about olc submission is that occasionally olc does not recognize the release point and scores flights from takeoff instead. Pilots are responsible to verify that the start is correct, and adjust it if not by clicking on the edit link and manually adjusting the start time to release time.
Other than the Pasco awards, there are many US and state records which are easily beatable - check out the current records on the SSA web site
http://www.ssa.org/members/badgesandrecords/usrecords.asp
as well as records held by region 11 pilots
http://pacificsoaring.org/awards/nat_records.html
Please contact me with any questions related to Pasco Awards.
Regards, Ramy Yanetz, ryanetz@yahoo.com, Pasco Award Chairperson
WestWind Newsletter
June 2009 (2.2MB) 2009-06-WestWind.pdf
- PASCO Egg captured by Air Sailing -Pg 5
- Wave Soaring Safety -Pg 5
- Where did the Canopy go? -I Broke Something Pg.7
- Region 11 at Crazy Creek -Pg 9.
- Check Rides and Solos happening everywhere!
- Alby is on the move - ten flights - Texas or?
- April 21, 2009 - Incredible Soaring day to long remember.
- Extraordinary PASCO meeting focused on Reno Airspace issues and strategy
- PASCO Board meeting notes
- .. and more...
Student Scholarships
PASCO supports up to 4 students a year with rating exam cost support – but no-one is applying!! Instructors – please review the PASCO Scholarship page for details of how you can take advantage of this program to encourage youth soaring.
First recipient of NCSA Cunningham Youth Scholarship
The Northern California Soaring Association (NCSA) also supports students with the Dave Cunningham Youth Scholarship.
John is shown with his parents, John and
Katherine. He was about to pre-flight
NCSA's
Blanik L-13 glider.
The NCSA had their annual Safety Seminar this spring in Byron, California - with 58 in attendance. Five of our Junior members were present, aged 13 to 21.
One of these was John Pericich, aged 13 who is the first recipient of the NCSA Cunningham Memorial Youth Scholarship, (in honor of Dave Cunningham who died last year). John is passionate about flying and very serious about his flight training with us and we fully expect him to solo on his 14th birthday. He will apply to receive PASCO support for his Private Pilot Glider checkride when he is ready two years later.
Low Cost launching
SSA Regional Governor Marc Ramsey is spearheading a small group of folks interested in starting a Winch Launch Club to establish winch launch training and lower cost launches in the region.
View Video
– the goal here is to create critical mass of winch launch access and training to lower the cost of soaring and encourage more of the public to soar. Check out: The Winch Launch Forum
Hudson River Landing: SSA driven glider publicity on AOPA
There has been a lot of interest in gliders, triggered by Hudson River landing, see article at: www.AOPA.org
View the Hudson Landing Video by Cactus 1549. A very well done graphical video dramatization with the actual audio recordings of the flight.
PASCO funds ALBY trophy costs
This beautiful Trans-American trophy, (photo in the left column of this page) the brainchild of Sergio Colacevich, has been funded through a significant PASCO donation. Follow Alby's voyage at: http://albysvoyage.blogspot.com/
Nationwide transponder code for gliders
Local FAA contacts expect this to happen this year - We’ll update as soon as we find out.
Unmarked wind energy site testing towers
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has authorized (and will in future authorize) wind energy site testing towers on a number of mountain peaks in Nevada and California. Most of these towers are a metal pole 6" in diameter rising to a height of 180' above ground, and guyed by an array of wires coming down at an angle. The towers might have a flashing red light on top, or no marking device at all. PASCO will try and ascertain the coordinates of these masts, to help improve local pilot awareness.
Planned and approved areas for these testing towers is available at http://www.geocommunicator.gov/blmMap/Map.jsp?MAP=Energy
Click the box on the right labeled "Wind Energy Rights of Way", then zoom in to see the colored areas on the map.
Sad News
Region 11 (Hawaii) pilot and Hawaii State Altitude record holder David Bigelow was killed in a January 2009 altitude record attempt above Mauna Loa, Hawaii. http://www.hawaii247.org/tag/david-bigelow/
PASCO membership..
AGM, seminars and Awards banquet significantly up from 2007
See West Wind for details of the AGM (Annual General Meeting) and PASCO goals for 2009 http://www.pacificsoaring.org/westwind/westwind.html.
PASCO web site visits UP 43% in 2008
More and more pilots are taking advantage of the PASCO website and the wealth of information it contains.
Region 11 Record holders and World Team members now on the PASCO Awards page
Thanks to Larry Roberts! View the PASCO Awards page.
Important - Review Reno ATC rules!
Do you fly the Reno - Tahoe - Minden area? When is the last time you reviewed the rules. Please take a look at our Safety page and review these 3 documents:
- Reno ATC - Traffic Briefing Document (PDF 234KB)
- Reno ATC - Traffic Detailed Cockpit Card (PDF 120KB)
- Reno ATC - Traffic Procedures "Talking to ATC" (PDF 15KB)
Staying Safe in Wave
Wave season is upon us in PASCO-land, and it's time to review some considerations of flying at high altitudes for extended periods of time. The first consideration, because it can kill, is hypoxia... (~ by Fred LaSor -- More ...)
Have You Heard? California Sky Ranch
This will be a Member Owned and Operated Gliderport! Just as we are all concerned about the future of soaring in Northern California, Rex Mayes has a project West of Williams, CA, and near the Mendocino Mountains, to build a member owned and operated Gliderport.
Interested? www.californiaskyranch.com