Big Day for Team USA!!!

Hello Everyone,

Team USA had a great day of flying yesterday.  The organization was providing live tracking and chase support for pilots wanting to stay and free fly.  The winds were over the back when we turned the corner as launch came into view.  As we pulled into the parking lot and grabbed our gear out of the van it started blowing in nicely.

Everybody got their gear ready, and Steve and Calvo held a pilots meeting.  Steve talked about the light south winds which were expected, and pilots picked up their live trackers.  Yassen and Raul Penso called a 60K triangle, which Brad decided he would use for training.  The rest of team USA was looking at doing some distance since the Team America van was dedicated to the chase.

Josh was first off followed by Jack, Melanie, and Brad.  Huey and I had a full tank of gas and were ready to see what kind of distance the team could get to the NE.  There were a few pilots who had some bad luck in the first pass and ended up getting low and missing connecting, and Melanie was one of them.  Huey and I were better off at this point because as we learned on day one of the competition, chase is way better with Melanie on board.

Meanwhile back toward Piedrahita a good size group of pilots were running the 60 triangle. Yassen was telling us all on launch that the boys from the Balkans were going to take the day on the task.  We explained to Yassen that Team America would not be letting the Balkan Bombers succeed in this mission.  Yassen is a great guy, and did a load of work before they cancelled the competition trying to develop a plan to present with many others here that would allow us to continue.   Brad ended up winning that task, and had fun giving Yassen a hard time about it. 

The Team America chase van saw Jack about half way between Avila and Segovia as we continue to the NE.  Josh had tagged Avila and decided on doing the out and return, and he was the only pilot to make it all the way back  to the main LZ here in Piedrahita after tagging Avila.  The head wind was significant coming back to Piedrahita especially though the final pass, but Josh pulled it off.

Jack and Luxembourg pilot Greg Knudsen had hooked up on the way to Segovia on course line, and ended up flying together the rest of the way.  I’m going to let Jack blog on the flight, and give you the exact distance and details.  I will tell you they landed together at 9:21pm and had flown about 245K. Greg Knudsen was nice enough to buy the chase crew dinner on the way home.  We rolled back into Piedrahita at just after 2:30am. The site record from launch here in Piedrahita heading that direction is 255K so they almost got it.

I have some photos I will post later on today.

Rob Sporrer

Co-Team Leader