Oz Report

Phillips launch in Jackson Hole (from issue 10.183)

A great short time flying in the mountains (Phillips Launch, Wilson, Wyoming)

On Sunday, Bart, Walt, and I went up to the south southeast facing Phillips launch right above Wilson, Wyoming, in Jackson Hole, five miles west of downtown Jackson.  It's on the leeward side of the Tetons and you go there when you want to foot launch, it's unstable, and the winds from the west haven't come down to be over the back.

The valley was fog filled until noon.  A good sign of light winds.  When the fog cleared there were a few cu's that promised lift.  We headed up before noon, going up the road that is a 10% grade over the Teton pass.  We took the dirt road turn off 3/4 of the way up and followed it the the launch which was reasonably well maintained.  The paragliders had their separate launch right next to the hang glider launch.

The cu's had thickened up, the lift was coming up the launch, and there was no over the back action, although we could see the cu's coming from the west.  By the time we were ready, it was shaded and there was no rustling of the leaves on the trees around us.  We had to wait for a break in the clouds to get enough sun to get a little wind in our faces.

I took off (in my borrowed Wills Wing Falcon 3 -170, the same glider I flew on Saturday at Alpine) right after Bart (in his earlier version of the Falcon 195) and the next dark cloud came right over us as we scratched along the hillside.  I was able to hang in there in light lift having a great time flying in the mountains, but wasn't able to hang out long enough for the sun to return.  I landed about five minutes after Bart at the Fish Creek LZ, near Bart and Tiki's home.

Walt waited for another hour (hoping it wouldn't go over the back) and was rewarded with a couple of low saves and then scary strong lift east of Wilson as he headed out in the valley to go to the east side and the hills over Jackson.  He didn't quite make it as he kept running from lift.

We heard from one of the local paraglider pilots who had been at Sun Valley when I was running the Nationals there, that paraglider pilots had been getting to 20,000' over the Grand Teton the Sunday and Monday before (as we arrived in Jackson).  No oxygen used, as this altitude is rare, except in late August and early September.

We'll be towing again on Wednesday.  It was in the eighties here today, with a clear blue sky.

I prefer flying the Falcon in this mountain air and with the skinny launches at 8,500'.  in light winds.  It's great to have a 50 pound glider, instead of using my 105 pound ATOS VR.  Hopefully we will get up over the Grand Teton, but not land in the park.  Bart says that if we do land in the park, land on a road, as we are using a vehicle, and might get off because of that clause.

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