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FlyBC "Site of the Day December 2017 Archive"
Mexico for the winter!w
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Rate °C/1000' Cloud Base in Meters |
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| 12-27-17 to 12/31/2017 |
 Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High 28C. Winds S at 10 to 15 km/h. 1200 metres We got a late start though and by noon it was quite windy here on Dec 27, so we headed to the pool where it was very windy and the ocean was capping. We did no flying from Dec 28 through to Dec 31 as we were packing up to move condos and head to Lake Chapala for the New Year for a few days, sorry to worry anyone but I was too busy to update this page and there was no flying to chat about. We arrived in Chapala on New Years Eve to a huge rainstorm as it had over-developed near Tapalpa and San Marcos. New snow on Nevado de Colima according to FaceBook posts. 12-26-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High around 30C. Winds WSW at 15 to 25 km/h. 1200 metres  The CUs were popping off El Toro and later the entire top was obscured as the thermals grew. 12-25-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High around 30C. Winds WSW at 15 to 25 km/h. 1200 metres Charlie Brown also called and he wants his tree back!   Brian's Christmas Day Duffey Report - Here was my Christmas present: perfect launch conditions for a solo ski and fly off the Duffey. My favourite and proudest flight so far. What could beat Christmas lunch on a sunny alpine ridge followed by an epic flight back over Joffre lakes to a "blower pow LZ"?  Thanks again for getting me certified in time for winter Jim. Conditions have been amazing up here lately, nice ridge of high pressure keeping storms and high winds at bay. Perfect for mountain flying. Cold though!!! - Brian  12-24-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High around 30C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h. 1200 metres - We got up to the top a bit early and it was leeside. We went to the old north launch and it had been filled in with a new communications antenna facility on the old helipad. What a shame. There is a possible new launch location to the east of the antenna but it will require some manual loading of sand to fill in the holes. Chris was feeling a bit hungover after the local girls took him partying til 3 am, so he decided not to fly and we drove down. We had lunch in Mazanillo Centro before heading to Pelican Bay to try some soaring. We arrived to the gate and my key still fit the lock and we drove in to launch. Chris did some kiting but he was not confident enough to fly off so he packed up as I chopped down some thorn bushes.  We drove back down to the gate and the guard had changed the lock and he was not happy we were inside the gate. This is the same guard that gave us a key three years ago. A couple had just driven up and talked to us and said there had been some thefts from the property so the owners did not want anyone in there, oddly this has never been a problem and the property is not posted but they kept insisting it was "privada propidad". The guard was not going to let us out until the police came and when we explained to the police that we had a key and we flying and not robbing they were happy and let us out. The couple works for the owner and she is going to get us permission to fly but maybe we will just walk in the 100 metres to launch. I did not take any pictures of the 2 loads of police that arrived as they usually don't like their faces publicized. This site is the also local hiking trail and we also see mountain bikers in here at times, so I doubt this is private property at all, but I may go to city hall to check the land titles to be sure. Squamish Adventure Report - Merry Christmas to you!  I had my best flight yet yesterday. I finally felt the wind really well again and flew really nicely.  I went for a big solo hike and fly right behind my childhood house. Took off at 2200m and landed back in my yard at 1000m flew for a solid 1 hr.  Soared a big ridge for a while, and even found some quality small thermals off some cliffs. Take off was hard due to the thigh deep snow but I made a good launch.  Thank you for teaching me and I love the wing/harness combo. I look toward to flying at Woodside again in the future - Cheers, Martin S 12-23-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High 31C. Winds SW at 10 to 15 km/h. 1200 metres We met up with Jonathon and tagged a ride up to La Cumbre. There were three full trucks heading up full of eager pilots and it was Saturday and a holiday.  A few pilots launched and made small climbs and a few did the piano ride. One pilot launched with a cravatte and almost hit the trees. Remember to weight shift and steer the remaining parts of the glider! Then an un-named local tandem pilot brought up his wing with a small tip tuck and flew off with it with a slight turn to the right and instead of using opposite brake, I think he looked up at the tip tuck and it steered him 90 degrees right and they flew into the trees. Ouch! Not a nice place to crash. Huge rocks and cut off trees but they survived without a scratch.  Meanwhile Chris got ready and launched very nicely and started climbing before the ridge crossing. Chris found a nice thermal that Gilles later said was the nicest 300 meter wide thermal he has had lately flown in. Chris topped out at about 300 meters over launch and the winds were pciking up on launch. Just as I was unpacking, Chris started to sink out towards the LZ. Jonathon had launched with a tandem and was hitting pretty good headwinds too adn was heading to the LZ when his driver headed down so I hopped in to retrieve Chris. The HGers that launched after we left were only able to ridge-soar as the thermals got broken up in the wind. An exciting day at La Cumbre! Reports from Tapalpa were mixed with some getting really high and others doing a sleddy? 12-22-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High 31C. Winds SW at 10 to 15 km/h. 1200 metres There was NE wind on the ground but this site is pretty reliable especially when there is development on the antennas like today. We arrived on launch at 1230 pm to find the vultures soaring in front and perfect cycles coming up the hill. Chris got ready fast and was clipped in when the winds switched to SE for a few minutes? After that we had perfect cycles again and Chris launched and started climbing overhead with ease. After awhile it was hard to tell how high he got because he was far out and still getting above launch. When we left the beach to come up after checking the tides, the water was nearly up to Indio's Restauarnt but there was a higher part of the beach in front of the white condos that was usable. By the time Chris had come down the tide had receded. We had lunch and then headed to Pelican Bay but the winds were south there. Then a quick drive to the south dunes but it was too light to kite so back to the hostel for Chris to have a nap. 12-21-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High 31C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h. 1200 metres We got to Costena Hotel but no Jonathon at 1130 so after fueling up we headed straight up La Cumbre to find tailwinds. We waited and the birds were soaring in the lee. Jonathon did show up after 1215 pm with a load of eager pilots and they too waited til after 1 pm. A local female pilot took off and "got really high . . . really fast" and the rest of the pilots raced off to share the lift. Chris got ready and flew off and had about a 20 minute flight but did not get as high as the others headed north. I went to get Chris as Hangy Chris got his HG ready. Apparently he got the "heave-ho" from Casa Beverly and is staying in Colima for now. Chris and another Lumby HGer took off and did some soaring as Chris got ready. Chris had two of the best launches of the day here at La Cumbre. Our Chris "sky-ed out" this time and was doing some nice thermal turns despite the wind picking up. By now all the others were on the ground and enjoying beers I am sure. We got back to Manzanillo by 5 pm and did some grocery shopping before heading home. 12-20-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High 31C. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 km/h. 1200 metres Chris' first launch was so fast I didn't get it on video! But we went back up at 1230 pm and conditions were even better and I got this launch on my camera. Chris landed near Indio's Restaurant both times and we had a nice lunch of seafood there. Then back to the condo for a nap for me, tough day! 12-19-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Sunny. High 28C. Winds NE at 10 to 15 km/h. 3200 metres IBIS and the WeatherUnderground forecasts all said NE winds switching to strongish SW later in the day for Colima & Tapalpa. I did not trust the Colima forecasts. We arrived on Tapalpa Launch at noon and it was +25 kph from the east . . . perfect! While Chris was getting ready, I gave Peddi a new windsock to install on the roof as the AT&T one was ragged out.  Chris had a great first launch and was off trying to thermal but the thermals were quite narrow. He flew for 20 minutes landing at the main Piano LZ.  I raced down to get him and we were back on launch by 2 pm and it was still SE but not as strong. Some locals took off first and climbed out and top-landed quite quickly in the back field. Diego got high and was working under a big OD'ing cloud behid launch and he too top-landed and was packing up as I drove down to get Chris in a field N of the Piano LZ as he missed the good lift.  A quick trip home before sunset with some of the tolls free for us! I checked in with the Colima Pilots and they did not fly after waiting many hours, and Norm went to San Marcos but no reports on how it was there. 12-18-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 28C. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 km/h. 2200 metres The winds were too strong for his first day here so we went kiting on the beach where the wind was smooth and laminar for his first kiting since September when he got signed off.  We waited for an hour but t kept getting stronger and later at 8 pm, I could see the smoke from the Power Plant still laid over as Colleen & I celebrated our 26th Anniversary at a Las Brisas restaurant on the beach. 12-17-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 28C. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 km/h. 2200 metres 12-16-17
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|  Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 80% Precip. / 3.41 mm AM Thunderstorms. High 28C. Winds SE at 10 to 15 km/h. 700 metres I hope the rains don't wash the road out as it was already looking dodgy on some of the corners. I will go up later to check it out but the good news is that they are building a new antenna installation and the crews need the road open to finish the project. We had lightning and thunder here at the condo but I missed most of it as I slept in.  12-15-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly cloudy. High 28C. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 km/h. 2000 metres We had morning clouds but by 1230 pm the clouds had thinned out and we had the best launch cycles of the tour today.  The new carpet is working well for keeping the tangles away, big enough for tandem gliders now.  Nelson got off and started thermalling and got above launch a few times. I would have beat him down to the Beach except for a stuck truck on one of the corners that I had to wait for. When got to Indio's Restaurant Nelson was having a lemonada with Stefan who is recuperating from a motorcycle injury and not flying for a few weeks. This is Nelson's 14th and last day here and his tming is perfect as it is supposed to rain for the next two days. He flew everyday during his visit with FlyBC. 12-14-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly cloudy. High 28C. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 km/h. 2000 metres The drive to Colima Launch takes an hour from Manzanillo, about 80 kms on the Cuota Toll Road. The trip from Manzanillo to El Toro Launch takes about the same time, so it is up to the clients where we fly as the Launches point the smae direction and are influenced by the same airmass. Nelson was the third pilot off and he had a good flight managing to eke out some good thermals.  In this shot Canuck Jonathon is getting higher on the black Ozone Alpina 2 and he managed to get at least a 90 minute flight. 12-13-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High around 20C. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 km/h. 2250 metres We arrived at launch at noon and it was blowing down and all the smoke in the valley was also from the NE. Nelson was getting ready when a dusty took his wing for a flight but local pilot Warenka helped to keep it on the ground - Gracias! A few local pilots took off and were soon climbing as Nelson launched. Nelson climbed up high with Warenka who was doing a tandem and they were above launch when Warenka headed north with Nelson following. Nelson was soon above Warenka and they were both orbiting over the Soccer Field that is the usual XC waypoint. Nelson was the only one who landed in the soccer field as the others took the bigger field to the north. I drove to get him and had a beer waiting in the shade for him to pack up. Nice flying Nelson! No more pianos for you! 12-12-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High around 20C. Winds ESE at 10 to 15 km/h. 1250 metres We ended up on El Toro at 330 pm, to install the new fabric after cutting more grass and brush. The new launch area is perfect now and at 500 pm it was launchable so Nelson flew off.  He got above launch but flew straight out to the beach for a very smooth landing! Pemby Snow Report - John & Brian (our latest signoff) went to the mountains north of Whistler for a ski/fly trip and had some nice flights.  This is Brian flying on his new SupAir Leaf Light ahead of John. 12-11-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High around 20C. Winds ENE at 10 to 15 km/h. 1250 metres 12-10-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High around 20C. Winds ENE at 10 to 15 km/h. 3250 metres Nelson had not been here for three years and he had two great flights of 20 minutes and 40 minutes length. The lift was spotty and most pilots sunk out early, except Normando who scratched his way back into a top landing.  Nelson just after launching and following a tandem out to find some lift. 12-09-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: Partly Cloudy. High 21C. Winds E at 10 to 15 km/h. 3250 metres We arrived to light cycles and Nelson got ready and then it went lame. He waited and waited while I cut more brush back to expand the launch area. After about an hour the sun came out and we got a nice round of cycles and Nelson was off and climbing!  He flew out over the shipwreck and made 5 passes of the beach trying to figure out the winds as they were very light and he landed to the SE, an odd direction for here. We saved many hours of driving and later Bev said they decided not to fly as it was very windy in Chapala. 12-08-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 29C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h 2750 metres  We installed this sunshade mesh to protect the lines from snags and it worked well. The launch was in good shape after last years many work parties. At 1 pm, Nelson launched and we almost waited too long as it got quite cross from the NW and it was windy in the air.  Nelson had to land at the Country Club Golf Course where he packed up and walked to El Indio restaurant. 12-07-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 29C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h 2750 metres He had two quick sled rides, as there was minimal lift. The locals got away but they have 20+ years experience. We packed up and headed to Pelican Bay and Nelson got another flight there, but he was a bit too early in launching and ended up on the beach. He came up and woke me from my nap and said "Now it is your turn to show me how to do it." I unpacked my Ozone Zeno and kited it up and it was much stronger than when Nelson went earlier. In fact, I had trouble moving forward and was getting popped off the ground all the ays to the edge. I was soon at 400 metres and having to use speedbar to stay out front. I topped out at 495 metres from this 20 metre launch! The whitecaps did not seem any stronger as i was flying but it was windy, if I relaxed the bar I was parked. I flew out over the ocean and south to the lighthouse and northeast to the Cross and was still at 450 metres. I was not going down even way out over the water.  I did get down in a sinky area just in front of the beach and it was gusty and strong as I came over the toplanding area. I had to push bar several times to cut through the wind ans stay forward and then a 50% collapse on the left tip caused me to drift back. I corrected it and pushed bar again and landed just near the back edge of launch and as I killed the wing I got pulled over the edge. I slid down the dirt bank and was now on a ledge. My wing was above me but not under tension so I was somewhat tied in but the dirt was loose and not much to grab on to so I waited til Nelson grabbed a rope from the Van and got it to me to help me scale back up. Lesson Learned: DO NOT try to top-land here in strong conditions . . . land on the beach where if you get dragged you will just be in some bushes. Much safer. 12-06-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 29C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h 2750 metres He is killing his launches and climbing well on the new Buzz Z5. 12-05-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 29C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h 2750 metres He launched right after the locals had flown and outclimbed them all and landed at the Soccer Field again for another XC flight! 12-04-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 29C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h 1750 metres Jonathon and others were already set up on launch at 1230 pm but had not flown yet so we were in good timing today. One by one they launched and clmbed out, leaving Nelson to try out the Ozone Buzz Z5 I brought down for him. After a nice kiting session, Nelson launched and headed out towards the LZ and he found a nice thermal by the last hill and was soon way over launch.  He was making the air look smooth, smoother even than the pros before in ther climbouts. He soared around for 35 minutes and then drifted too far back and lost the thermal and was headed to the LZ. I thought he was too far west when I saw he was over the wrong field but he managed to avoid the trees and brush in the very small field he picked. After packing up and a quick snack, we headed back to Pelican Bay for a soaring session. The wind was straight in but a bit light as Nelson flew off and tried hugging the slope and he ended up on the beach, just out of sight in the picture below where he was packing up.  A good first day and he loves the new Ozone Buzz Z5. 12-03-17
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| Manzanillo Mexico Manzanillo Forecast: 0% Precip. / 0.00 mm Partly Cloudy. High 29C. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 km/h 1750 metres I will organize some workers this week to get it cleaned up through Solomon the owner. |
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