The Buzzard is flying great and has made a trip or two since the last newsletter article. The North 40 flyin at Daryl Glover’s was an excuse to get airborne once more and all the weather information I could glean seemed like it would be an okay day to fly if I headed out early and got home before lunch. Judy had agreed to take our granddaughters by car, and they would never forgive us if they did not get a chance to go. Maya is only 6 and Keira is 8 (going on 16) but this is an event they look forward to with great anticipation. I headed out to Carstairs and was ready to be airborne by 8:15 or so. The ride up was nice and smooth with a 10-15 mph tailwind and the GPS showed about 85 mph in the nice smooth morning air.

I was the third plane at Daryl’s and he asked if anyone wanted to go for a quick trail ride to check the length of the ride and a see if it was suitable for the young guests that were expected. I had not been on a horse in about 20 years but thought why not. I managed okay, for a city slicker, but I think I will stick with airplanes as my form of recreational transportation. As I got back to the stable area my granddaughters had arrived and I had the horse she had rode last year. I handed over the reins to her, much to her delight and she was off for her adventure. As her ride was coming to an end, she was riding along the road when a combine approached quickly and spooked her horse. It reared back slightly and then trotted off quickly with her screaming and holding on for dear life. The horse settled down and all was fine but it was good that she may have learned that horses can be a little unpredictable. She still loves horses and can’t wait for her next riding opportunity, but I am hoping that she learned to approach this with some caution.

With the rides over and burgers consumed it was time to think about flying back home. Winds at Calgary were predicted to reach 30 gusting to 45 MPH in the afternoon and Red Deer had a similar forecast. There is a site I use that gives some wind predictions for Carstairs and Olds and it was only calling for 10 to 20 MPH but straight out of the south. The Buzzard is quite a bit slower than anyone else at Carstairs, so I decided to get moving and return before I was into high winds. I got a good ride up to the North 40 and lucked out a bit on the return flight. As I left there was a slight crosswind at Glover’s but I made it home with little to no issues. When I departed the North 40, I backtracked runway 16, which seems a little odd for an ultralight as there is lots of runway, but I wanted to be well in the air and above the treeline by the time I got to the trees. It worked out okay with just a slight push from the west as I crested the treed area of the runway. The ride home showed between 55 and 65 MPH on the GPS and the wind was not really gusty so it was a good ride home.

As I listened to Olds’s traffic, I noted a guy call downwind for runway 28 and then announce a go round and a second try for 28. I questioned him what the wind was doing, and he said it was straight down 16 at about 20 to 30 MPH but kept going to 28 for his landing. Not sure if it was a pride thing, if he was trying to practice crosswinds or if he was just scared of grass runways but I think he finally made it ok on 28. I continued to Carstairs and had no problems landing with the wind coming straight from the south. By the Way the wind did lessen as I left the Olds/Didsbury area and got closer to Carstairs. The information I was able to gleam was right with the winds at Calgary and Red Deer brisker than the winds at Carstairs.

Mike, Pat, and Richard landed shortly after I did at about 1:30 PM and Richard mentioned that his GPS speed was only about 80-85 MPH. After we had all put our planes away, we sat and did the normal required amount of hanger flying prescribed in the Calgary Recreational and Ultralight Flying Club Guide. It also includes a cool one or two so this is a very important part of the flying day.

I got a call from fellow club member Bert Lougheed when I got back to Carstairs, and he mentioned that his return flight to Red Deer was quite bumpy and gusty. Not a problem for Bert in his Tiger but not nice for a light plane like the Buzzard. He was curious if I was able to enjoy a ride home or if it was too nasty for the Buzzard.

All in all, in spite of the somewhat nasty winds at Red Deer and Calgary, the air between Carstairs and the North 40 was good. It turned out a great day to fly and enjoy the company of pilots who enjoy flying for the sake of flying. See you Wednesday. Till Next time Good Lies and Smooth Skies.