[Amigo] > [Ron's flight index] [Sunday's Article Set]

Ron Meyer

Pine to Lockwood Valley
8/7/05

Like Hansford, I left for Lockwood Valley a bit late to the party.  Had we launched 30 minutes earlier, it's very likely we would have found ourselves in great position and well into the desert.  The window to get through to Frazier seemed to shut as we arrived...

I flew the southern most edge of the cloud street and made easy work of the glide to Lockwood Valley, stopping only a few times to tank up along the way.  My line took me directly to Grade Valley, which is about 2 miles south of Lockwood Valley Road.  I tanked up to 11K there and waited, hoping for the rainfall (and lightning) to subside.  The rain stood in the way to Frazier and blocked all forward progress.

I felt pretty good about my position being on the outside of the development, but didn't feel comfortable pushing further eastward along the edge of the development line as that would have taken me much further south to Alamo mountain.  The rain boxed me out of the run to Frazier and into the desert, so I boated around in the sun line for an hour or so, enjoying the buoyant lift and taking in the views.  The lead gaggle were reporting that they were connecting in the desert and believe me it was killing me I couldn't join them.

After about an hour and 15 minutes of waiting it appeared the rain had subsided enough in Lockwood Valley.  I then drove off to Frazier at cloudbase and about a half mile into the glide ran into a wall of hard rain.  I turned around to back out of it and wait some more but found myself retreating further and further back while the heavy rain cell advanced toward me.  It was maddening.

By this time I had enough.  Too much uncertainty and too much frustration.  I cried uncle!  I actually entertained the thought of diving into Bakersfield over Mt. Pinos but thought better of it and decided to set it down at the edge of Lockwood Valley in light wind.  I packed up my wet gear and hitched a ride to NHS with the first car that drove by (Talk about luck!).

Congratulations to Bo, Dean, Forger, Tom T. and Sharon for their monster flights.  They all set new personal bests for themselves, so you have to be impressed by that.

And let's also give Darren S. a big high five for finally getting off at Pine for the first time.  He landed in Rose Valley, which is damn respectable for a Pine rookie.

Now here's something I'd like to figure out...what happened to Randall?  Where did he end up landing?