The Day, Where were you.!!

A Very Good Day.

The day was long overdue (no more fruitless fishing from JH) and the results were :-

1 x Gold Height ("Long" Steve in JH)

2 x Five Hours (Louis in 971 and "Wide" Steve in 703)

3 x Diamond Heights (JH in a borrowed Discus, "Wide Steve" and Louis)

And no outlandings (but a picture in the local paper www.deesidepiper.co.uk - someone please send to S&G )

And one reply from a text saying "bugger".

The Wait

Still waiting for the wind to blow but the sun is starting to peep through.

Monday sees a new expedition

Given the outlook for the day a walk up Mount Keen to visit the resident Cessna is the plan.

An alternative day

Over optimism saw us rig before breakfast only to then have second breakfast before discovering the local botany on the banks of the Dee. Meanwhile Martin Kicks and Dave took to the sky in 315 for some thermaling, this saw the only flight of the day from our end. A brave attempt at the Tullich fishery followed by John, Louis and Phil. Needless to say it was steak for dinner!

The rest of Saturday

It turned out a great effort in the end, Phil in 971 made 10,200ft, JH with Steve Williams reached 9,500ft over Ballater but due to the call of nature aborted the flight given that the internal plumbing was u/s. Most made 8,000ft+.
The entertainment continued with John looking for new fishing spots in the lee of Morven with -7 knots but his carnivore instincts took him to a field full of heifers as well as one very keen bull.
Needless to say John's landing was a load of old bull and the glider quickly became suitably decorated by his keen onlookers.

Was there anyone left at Booker?

Outside the Deeside clubhouse - 2 October 2007

Saturday wave

Saturday started in true Aboyne style with an easterly on the ground and a westerly on Morven. Many made the rash decision to leave, then a classic westerly wave day developed. Derek unhitched and went to 9k. Nine other Booker pilots flew, although JH (John) landed at Tarland literally aux vaches. Most enjoyed 7knot averages alongside picture-book lenticular wave bars.

Pingu's gold height

Despite various comments such as "Didn't the engine cut out at that height?", Jim got to 14'000ft in 208 to secure his gold height. A couple of people climbed to 17'000ft in the same spot but Jim called it a day after his head felt even emptier and dizzier than normal.

Classic wave day

Lenticulars...

more lenticulars...

...and yet more lentinulcars (taken from 208 at about 7000ft)

Pingu gets above 14'000ft in 208 but even with oxygen he was seeing stars, so decided to knock the five and a half hour flight on the head at this point

Glorious sunset taken from 315 (Dave Byass and Mike C)

Thursday 4th's pictures

Pretty claggy and miserable but still some wave to be had for the keen

A couple of hours spent over the same two lochs

Hard work for not much height but good fun

Geoff (GA) gives a demonstration of his climbing prowess

Weak wave up to 4000ft above the lochs today. At one point the flight was livened up a bit by a brace of Tornados tearing around at about 500ft, when they saw us they disappeared rapidly to the north much to the relief of everyone in the area.


A 'quick walk' turned into a great two hour hike, which included Geoff climbing up a sheer rock face.

Another great day

Today we got everyone into the air, in some cases more than once. It was a bit surprising that any of the Birkelunn crew got off the ground, last night's dinner, courtesy of Geoff Tabbner and master chef Rolf Kern (formerly of the Dorchester and Claridges) was a masterpiece. There was quite a lot left over so we we will be entertaining this evening.

Flying: it was fantastic. Max height around 17000, Pingu got his gold, the rest of us weren't counting. Dennis 370 went to Strathcarron (315k out and return) and Geoff GA did much the same.

Amazing skies, wonderful sunset. The two who landed out near Balmoral (971 and 318-William) don't quite share these sentiments, but beer and whisky are wonderful healers.

Pics to follow...

New personnel

Forgot to mention that Dave Richardson and Bob Davey left on Wednesday, many thanks to Dave for organising the trip and making it all happen. Just as well they went in a way, because by return we got Heggie (Adrian Hegner), so there must be a bit of a shortage of tug pilots down south. Heggie will be standing in for Andras who is leaving shortly for Hungary to try and decide which of the many job offers to accept.

Pingu leads the way

Jim (208 TURBO) Pingu Pengelly led the way today with a lunchtime launch into wave over the lochs, shortly to be joined by Rolf (318) Kern and Steve (JH) Williams. This encouraged Lasham into the air and, after soup, Jane (118) Moore, Bob (279) Smith, William (318 - second wave) Parker, Phil (971) Cumming, John (JH - second wave) Herman to take to the air.
Most flew for a couple of hours and reached around 5,000 feet with John topping out at 5,751.34 feet. Climbs over the Lochs and up the valley to Ballater were reliable but limited by low and mid level cloud, although this did make for lots of interesting cloudscapes and a glorious sunset. Pics to follow....

All rigged up but nowhere to go

208, JH, 971, 703, 370, GA, 318 and 315

We rigged the entire Booker club fleet and most of the private gliders this morning, launched 315 with a couple of expendable test pilots onboard and then derigged them all without flying any of the others due to the bleak weather. However, one pilot from Hus Bos managed to reach 10'000ft and snuck back to Aboyne before the last gap closed! Currently the main source of enterainment is tea drinking.

Still waving...

..but only just. 315 launched this morning with Steve Wiliiams and Dave Byass into good lift which was unfortunately in very wet cloud, so they didn't stay long. Bob Smith gave another brief demo of model aerobatics before we went off for lunch at the usual place. On the subject of model aircraft, the main after dinner entertainment at Birkelunn is now attempting to fly Geoff's helicopter around the room, preferably not into the log fire. With practice we may work out how to steer it, at the moment it's a bit like a demented bluebottle. And we're still waiting for a display from John Herman of his latest jet, hopefully with a happier outcome than last year's.

Booker goes Indian

21 Bookerites and special guest Roy Wilson from Deeside GC at the Derbar indian restaurant in Banchory

Waving in shirtsleeves

Today started with bright blue sky and nil wind on the ground. A couple of small lenticular clouds appeared at high level to the west and everyone started to launch and not come back down. The tally for the day is as follows: -

• Jane 118: 9200' Lochnagar and Balmoral
• Jim 208: 8500' Mount Keen
• Bob 279: 9400' Lochnagar
• Derek 249: 5300' Mount Keen
• Phil 971: 5000' Mount Keen
• Bob 208: 8200' Mount Keen and Balmoral
• Geoff GA: 8000' Feshie
• Dennis 370: 8000' Balmoral
• Mike C & Glyn 3D: 8200' Balmoral
• Mike C & Martin 315: 7700'
• John JH: 8000' Loch Muick & Balmoral
• Byass & Steve Brown 315: Unknown Glenshee
• Rolf (Flugzeugfuhrer) 318: 7000' Loch Muick

Typical view of mountains in Scotland from around 8000'

William in 318 reaching for the moon

If you look closely you can actually see the Queen waving from the balcony of Balmoral

View after de-rigging and before the bar (where we are blogging from)

Post script

Rolf also flew 318 locally and has just gone home to make us risotto! :-)

Images from Pingu and Phil

JH in the foreground followed by GA, 370 and 208

Phil posing in front of 971

Taken from 971 by Phil - clearly Lasham gliders scraping around in the heather

Jim in 208 heading back to Morven having failed to reach Braemar

Jane ready to launch in 118

Phil took this over Glen Tanar from 971

Heather fire north-west of Ballater taken from 208

John allows Steve to de-rig JH in return for a pound of sausages

Can this be October?

18deg C and a sky full of cumulus, unbelievable. Nearly everyone flew, Dennis 370 and Geoff GA went to Feshie and beyond, John JH, 315 with Dave Byass and Martin Kicks, and William 318 explored Loch Muick and Lochnagar. Jim 208 and Bob Davey 208 (but not at the same time), and Steve JH went up the valley to Balmoral and beyond. Phil 971 went over to Mount Keen to see what was on fire, and Jane 118 stuck to the local hills, as did 315 wih Mike C and Mr Kicks snr. The sky is still blue as the sun sets and the boys are now playing with various model aircraft. Last night there was a virtuoso display of model aerobatics by Bob Smith which won applause from the assembled drinkers.