Walrus in the Wind

...a little too much can be a bit too much

Having recently suffered a lumbar incident by putting the squeeze on a spinal disc, I've been out of the air for a few days with activities limited to devising novel methods of sitting down and getting up without aggravating my back.

Yesterday, however, after a physio treatment and a few days rest, I awoke to finding my back much recovered. Buoyed by being finally on the mend I managed a tentative day at work and, with evening approaching and a picturesque pastel light show developing in the clouds, I headed off to the field for a well-earned fly.

The conditions were breezy, in fact before leaving I had stood at the car for several minutes trying to decide whether things were, perhaps, not a little too windy for comfort. However, having recently flown in quite gusty conditions, and found them quite entertaining, I decided to head off.

I launched the Walrus at almost full power, something I almost never do simply because it's not necessary, however in these conditions I wanted to make sure that Wally was well up into the air before backing off. Just as well, as, within seconds of launch, it was immediately apparent that conditions were more severe than anticipated.

The Walrus, despite being on full throttle, was being pushed by the wind so much so that it was in a nose-up attitude but not climbing at all, just being pushed forward. Fortunately, being generously powered, I managed to muscle the Walrus to a safe altitude where I could assess the flying conditions a bit better.

It didn't take long to realise that, despite the beautifully illuminated clouds and warm glow from the horizon, that this wasn't the best evening to be flying so I brought Wally in on finals. Easier said than done, though. The high winds meant the glider made almost no forward progress on its approach, and I had to power up and climb round for another try. This time too high, as once it reached the field, the protection of the trees meant it floated too far...

I finally managed to bring it in on a decent final, although a bit of tacking was required to bleed of a little height and, after a few sharp wobbles thanks to gusting wind, I put the Walrus down to a nice gentle landing...