I've flown on the edge of a thunderstorm in Georgia. My vario went from pegged up to pegged down in one 360 degree turn. Went home in a hurry! The sky overdeveloped and collapsed. One hour later the sky was clear. Flew outside of Albuquerque, NM. This time the vario pegged up and stayed there. Had to pull spoilers at 16,000 ft, oxygen limit. It's an addiction.
Fascinating video and as a video guy myself I really enjoyed the changing perspectives of your camera. Also as a pilot I enjoyed the meteorology lessons. Great stuff, keep em coming! 👏
Nice video Ben ! Just got green lights from my instructor for flying solo. Hope I'll soon be skilled like you and make great flights like this one over France. Fly safe !
What a flight!!!! Well done with the 360 video flying over the Pacific, outstanding👏👏👏👏 Haven't done gliding in nearly 25 years, brilliant informative narration, subscribed for my further education 😀
I subscribed on a whim a couple weeks ago when one of your videos hit my feed. Just want to say i really enjoy how your present and edit your flights. The GPS track stuff you intersperse with other gliders tracks is neat. You've got this flat lander out in Kansas wanting to learn how to read clouds, even though it's probably not worth attempting soaring out in the plains.
Thanks for the encouragement! Soaring is totally possible in Kansas. Here's a couple of glider clubs you could try. www.soarkansas.org/soar/default.aspx www.sunflowersoaring.org/
Well if you give it a try, at least sea breeze fronts shouldn't be a problem! I don't see why the soaring shouldn't be good there; just don't expect thermals every day.
Hi. What does 'close the triangle' mean please. I know nothing about gliders or gliding! I grew up in a part of the UK renowned for gliding, the flatlands of the Fens of East Anglia, England, thermals everywhere in good summer weather. Gliders not making it back to their airport when said thermals did not happen were a common sight in fields, getting picked up later in the day, so the sight of glider trailers being towed through the gates of random fields was also common! Gliders would not have had the fabulous glide ratios that modern ones do back in the 60s and 70s I guess. Cheers.
Glider pilots usually upload their GPS logs to a website that gives the flight a score. You get points for distance, and extra points for flying a triangle. In order to get the points, the triangle must be closed, meaning you flew back to where it started. It's a way to measure your performance and compare it to others who flew on the same day and in the same area.
I grew up flying RC gliders out at Torrey Pines glider port, and of course all of that flying is flying along the coast so seeing this brought back find memories of flying as a kid. Are you able to pull updrafts off the hilltops along the coast like we could with RC or is it completely different at that altitude? I’ve always wanted my pilots license, and my way of thinking is that with my experience flying both RC gliders, powered 3D flight, that it wouldn’t be too much different aside of having a difference in controls, it’s essentially the same, kind of.
I used to fly RC gliders too. I definitely think it helped me when learning to fly full scale gliders. To answer your question, yes we can use ridge lift (called slope in RC).
I know nothing about gliding, but now I know why I never saw any gliders while worked in Salinas. The southeast winds blowing down the valley are great for growers, but can them not being helpful to a glider pilot. Then again, an out landing in Monterey is not far from Hollister and who does not like Monterey :) (though I preferred Pacific Grove, less busy). We are glider less here in Northwest AR as well, I think the nearest clubs are in Memphis and West TX.
Glider pilots usually upload their GPS logs to a website that gives the flight a score. You get points for distance, and extra points for flying a triangle. In order to get the points, the triangle must be closed, meaning you flew back to where it started. It's a way to measure your performance and compare it to others who flew on the same day and in the same area.
So informative. Thank you! I am just getting started ... Do both Hollister and Gilroy have clubs? Is there any gliding out of Watsonville? They are all closest to me (Boulder Creek). Alsoo, I'm making a trip up to see Rex in Williams soon. So excited! 💥
I've flown on the edge of a thunderstorm in Georgia. My vario went from pegged up to pegged down in one 360 degree turn. Went home in a hurry! The sky overdeveloped and collapsed. One hour later the sky was clear. Flew outside of Albuquerque, NM. This time the vario pegged up and stayed there. Had to pull spoilers at 16,000 ft, oxygen limit. It's an addiction.
Indeed! Thunderstorms can generate powerful lift and even more powerful sink. Definitely need to be cautious around them.
Awesome, great insight. Would love more videos on weather and on how to fly gliders / get into it if you've never done it before.
TH-cam recommended your video to me this morning. Fantastic vid! You have a new subscriber here.😊
Very nice. Lots of things we can learn on every flight.
Ben, well produced video, and great flying and when I see this stuff it takes me back to my soaring adventures in Spain.
Great camera work as always! Your videos are top shelf! 👍🏻
Fascinating video and as a video guy myself I really enjoyed the changing perspectives of your camera. Also as a pilot I enjoyed the meteorology lessons. Great stuff, keep em coming! 👏
Nice video Ben ! Just got green lights from my instructor for flying solo. Hope I'll soon be skilled like you and make great flights like this one over France. Fly safe !
Thanks! Best of luck on your solo flight. What an exciting time in a glider pilot's journey.
I love this video and as a new student to gliding gives me excitement for future XC adventures!
What a flight!!!! Well done with the 360 video flying over the Pacific, outstanding👏👏👏👏
Haven't done gliding in nearly 25 years, brilliant informative narration, subscribed for my further education 😀
Phenomenal narrative and camera work!
Wow that is absolutely insane 10:21
Bravo.Go Ahead.
Wonderful😍, thx for this video😊 and another follower then, apg pilot from Tunisia 🤞🤗🇹🇳
I subscribed on a whim a couple weeks ago when one of your videos hit my feed. Just want to say i really enjoy how your present and edit your flights. The GPS track stuff you intersperse with other gliders tracks is neat. You've got this flat lander out in Kansas wanting to learn how to read clouds, even though it's probably not worth attempting soaring out in the plains.
Thanks for the encouragement! Soaring is totally possible in Kansas. Here's a couple of glider clubs you could try. www.soarkansas.org/soar/default.aspx
www.sunflowersoaring.org/
Well if you give it a try, at least sea breeze fronts shouldn't be a problem! I don't see why the soaring shouldn't be good there; just don't expect thermals every day.
Spectacular, Ben. I’ve been waiting for your video of this one, and it was even better than I anticipated! I’m hungry to go fly. Thank you!
Thanks Sara! See you in the air
Hi. What does 'close the triangle' mean please. I know nothing about gliders or gliding! I grew up in a part of the UK renowned for gliding, the flatlands of the Fens of East Anglia, England, thermals everywhere in good summer weather. Gliders not making it back to their airport when said thermals did not happen were a common sight in fields, getting picked up later in the day, so the sight of glider trailers being towed through the gates of random fields was also common! Gliders would not have had the fabulous glide ratios that modern ones do back in the 60s and 70s I guess. Cheers.
Glider pilots usually upload their GPS logs to a website that gives the flight a score. You get points for distance, and extra points for flying a triangle. In order to get the points, the triangle must be closed, meaning you flew back to where it started. It's a way to measure your performance and compare it to others who flew on the same day and in the same area.
I grew up flying RC gliders out at Torrey Pines glider port, and of course all of that flying is flying along the coast so seeing this brought back find memories of flying as a kid. Are you able to pull updrafts off the hilltops along the coast like we could with RC or is it completely different at that altitude? I’ve always wanted my pilots license, and my way of thinking is that with my experience flying both RC gliders, powered 3D flight, that it wouldn’t be too much different aside of having a difference in controls, it’s essentially the same, kind of.
I used to fly RC gliders too. I definitely think it helped me when learning to fly full scale gliders. To answer your question, yes we can use ridge lift (called slope in RC).
I know nothing about gliding, but now I know why I never saw any gliders while worked in Salinas. The southeast winds blowing down the valley are great for growers, but can them not being helpful to a glider pilot. Then again, an out landing in Monterey is not far from Hollister and who does not like Monterey :) (though I preferred Pacific Grove, less busy). We are glider less here in Northwest AR as well, I think the nearest clubs are in Memphis and West TX.
That's right, the marine air kills off the thermals. Only on the rare days when the wind blows offshore do we fly over the coast.
@@BenHirashima Gotcha, Marina always seemed to foggy except for a few hours in the afternoon.
What a magical experience! BTW, what does "Closing the triangle" mean? Thanks!
Glider pilots usually upload their GPS logs to a website that gives the flight a score. You get points for distance, and extra points for flying a triangle. In order to get the points, the triangle must be closed, meaning you flew back to where it started. It's a way to measure your performance and compare it to others who flew on the same day and in the same area.
What do you mean by the triangle?
What is the song named during the shelf clowd scene?
It's just TH-cam stock music. Not sure if you could find it anywhere else.
cool stuff.
what pole do you use for your 360 camera , seams pretty stable
It's the 1 meter pole that came with the Insta360 X3. Works fine.
cool , our season over here in Australia is just about to start , looking forward to trying out the 360
I have no idea whats going on in this video
Get thee to thy nearest gliding club for a trial lesson and the path will start to become clear.
Love your videos!
So informative. Thank you! I am just getting started ... Do both Hollister and Gilroy have clubs? Is there any gliding out of Watsonville? They are all closest to me (Boulder Creek). Alsoo, I'm making a trip up to see Rex in Williams soon. So excited! 💥
Just Hollister has a club: BASA. Great club with nice ships.
This has been killing me, so I have to ask. Is orange pants your brother? I follow both of you. 😃
He's my bro, for sure :)
@@BenHirashima Awesome!! 💥 Hope to meet both of you someday.