Oz Report

Broken HOLC?!

Trouble with the HOLC

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5257

Neither the DHV nor the Segelflugszene version (yup, there appears to be two versions now) are working (at least for me).  The 2007 HOLC was supposed to start on September 15th, 2006, but nothing shows up after the end of September on the DHV version here.  Clicking the "2007" button last week showed no scoring on the DHV version, but now goes to the Segelflugszene HOLC version.  Here is what the DHV has to say.  Here is what the Segelflugzene has to say.  I say that it is too bad that these two groups can't agree and improve the HOLC for all of us.

I have been approached by Reiner Rose at Segelflugszene to help them make their version of the HOLC appealing to hang glider and paraglider pilots.  I haven't heard from Rudl at the DHV, although I've asked him what's up.  I am more than willing to help, but the Segelflugszene needs a lot of help to make it work for me.  The DHV version of the Segelflugszene (in previous years) had a lot more going for it, but it isn't supposed to be working until January.  Who knows what happens now.

I'll keep you all informed.  I have a bunch of questions into Reiner.  Some times he writes back.  You can find some pilots who have been able to put their flights up here.  An Australian was able to put up his flight here.

At the moment there is no provision in the Segelflugszene for direct uploading of flights from SeeYou.  You have to create an OLC file, which you can do in SeeYou (or other programs).  There is an open discussion going on between the parties here in German, of course.

SeeYou is using the Segelflugszene web site to upload sailplane flights although it doesn't appear to work with the HOLC.  I'm working with Andrej at SeeYou now and trying to get information on this from Reiner.

Reiner is asking for a volunteer to handle the HOLC for Segelflugszene.

Thanks to Andreas Ernst Becker

Discuss HOLC at the Oz Report forum

Are rigids hang gliders in Oz?

No rigids at the Bogong Cup (Mystic Hill)

The Bogong Cup is a class 1 competition.  No rigid wing pilots may fly in the meet.  Toni Ramauf from Austria wanted to fly in the meet but he was way too late in applying.  Carol Binder <binder_carol> writes:

We have been telling pilots over the last few months to get their money in because the Bogong Cup was going to fill.  Now we have a wait list of over twenty pilots and desperate pilots trying to pay to nudge their way in still!

Toni simply waited too long.  But we had already knocked back two rigid wings before Toni as the Bogong Cup is a class 1 event.  We just don't have the number of rigid wings in Australia to have a separate category.  We have tried it.

It also takes of lots more space on launch which is the reason that the Bogong is full.  There is limited set up space.

Toni also couldn't get into the Forbes meet.  I couldn't tell if he was late or if there was some other reason.  Peter Dall is flying his ATOS in that meet.  Toni wanted to fly against Gerolf to shut him up about flex wings having the same performance as rigid wings.

Now I really love it when Gerolf says this because I've beaten him (and everyone else) twice on my ATOS C (and earlier version) for the Australian National Championships.  This means I must be better (or luckier) than all the other pilots, as my rigid wing ATOS isn't any better, according to Gerolf.

So I don't know why Toni has to go and beat Gerolf again.  I mean it didn't stop Gerolf from saying that flex wings were better then, why would it stop him now?

Competition is great fun.  I look forward to flying a Moyes Litespeed this year in Australia.  Thanks to both Moyes and Airborne for providing me with gliders when I compete there in trade for ad space.

Discuss Rigids at the Oz Report forum

Lufthansa

Game for kids

Steven Cuypers <stevencuypers> writes:

Lufthansa has this game: http://www.jetfriends.com/jetfriends/teens/spiele_dragon  on their site for children.  First showing a clip starring Corinna on their flights and now a game on the website.They sure want to promote the sport!

Discuss Lufthansa at the Oz Report forum

Wombats

A paraglider pilot in Oz. (Mystic Hill)

Brett Hardin <cloudbase> writes:

I have been here for a month and have been getting some good airtime, but Mystic Hill is getting closed a lot due to fire danger.

I have taken an interest in wombats and got some pictures and a story about my adventure with a wombat today.

http://skypuppet.blogspot.com/2006/11/are-wombats-for-real.html

Discuss Wombats at the Oz Report forum

FAI World Air Sports Challenge

Some kind of event in New Zealand in December 2007. (Wanaka, New Zealand)

Thanks to Kris Ericksen.  I haven't figured out exactly what is going on here:

World's largest multi-air sport event launched

The largest multi-air sport championship to ever be held in one location was today (29 November) launched at New Zealand’s Parliament with the promise of groundbreaking media technology and a new era in spectator sports.

The FAI World Air Sports Challenge incorporating the FAI World Series Gliding Finals will take place in Wanaka on 27-28 December 2007.  The event will feature elite pilots from around the world representing all of the official Fédération Aéronautique International (FAI) sports including gliding, hang gliding, paragliding, fixed-wing aerobatics, helicopters and parachuting.

Designed for global TV and spectators, the event will be filmed using the latest Sony High Definition technologies together with real time graphics by Animation Research Ltd and specially designed in-cockpit camera systems.  These images will then be broadcast live to spectators on the ground on a giant screen as well as computers around the world through a specially developed live Internet streaming platform.

More here: http://www.airsportschallenge.com/

Discuss FAI at the Oz Report forum

Off Topic - the craving

(This topic is in: <- Mar.5'07 Dec.21 Dec.1 Nov.30 Nov.15 Oct.26 Oct.25 --> )

The environment of desire. (Los Angeles)

We've just spent six days in Los Angeles over the Thanksgiving holidays and received a big hit of urban madness from a real world class metropolitan area.  While waiting for the trailers to run at the movie theater at Century City in Beverly Hills I saw a commercial that really summed it up (and in the most appropriate place).  It was an ad for http://crave.honda.com.  You can read about their ad campaign here and here.  The second site states:

The crave-themed campaign celebrates the essence of consumer desires.

Of course, the whole point of advertising is to create those desires, or to build hard wired desires into more specific and monetarily useful desires.  LA is a cauldron of desire, especially for cars, but for houses, and the stuff that goes in houses, and clothes, and just stuff and more stuff.

The assault is relentless and pitiless.  You must constantly maintain your vigilance against this desire producing machine just to stay on an even keel.  Just to be happy with the super abundance that you already have you have to deny and ignore the pleas of so much of the LA environment that says that there is so much more that you need.  It wants you running just to keep in one place.

I go to LA to visit my brother and my mother and I certainly enjoyed the wonderful flying at Kagel (and hope to do more there).  I have to really fight hard in my head against these evil influences, that want to stick noxious memes into the machinery.  Not always successfully.

Human beings (all of us) are driven so strongly by their desire for the good opinion of their fellow beings.  The status that all these goods provide is inordinately seductive, as well as a false god, of course.

I fight hard to convince folks that flying a Wills Wing Falcon 3 - 170 is as cool as flying a Wills Wing T2 or an AIR ATOS VR.

Discuss The Craving at the Oz Report forum

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