[Chris McKeon]

You know when I take My first Flight since Sunday March 28th 2010. Yes, oh Yes as the Harness Straps grow. as Istride forward into the Wind I will be in Euforia. no make that Ecstasy.. To Fly once again at this Post supper Pound in My Life will Mean more to ?You Guys than I can say. Yes when I regain My status as an Aviator. an Aviator

Sine this is this Guy returns to Free-Flight. My Life will be correct once again.

A of Question If we fly after Subset is it legal for us to fly at night providing that we have lights on our Gliders? Also what color lights, should they be Strobes? I went to the FFA.Gov Website but got no information. Does anyone know the Lay pertaining to nocturnal Flying Laws?

[Bob Kuczewski]

Does anyone know the Lay pertaining to nocturnal Flying Laws?

I am not an expert, but I think you can only fly 1/2 hour before sunrise and 1/2 hour after sunset provided that you have a strobe light. There may be other restrictions, and I am not sure which definition "sunrise" and "sunset" are used. But that's a rough guideline of what you can do.

Maybe someone else can add more detail for you.

[Chris McKeon]

When I think about Future Flights that I hope to have. I think about flying a Wills-Wing Condor down at Dockweiler Beach. I told Bob that; "Do not worry, I can Whack with the Worst of Them"

[Chris McKeon]

So this idea that I have been mulling around; Nocturnal Soaring. I am just wondering if it would be possible to have a Thermal that was triggered by the Moon's Rays? A Thermal Strong enough so that one could gain Altitude. I would just love to explore the possibility of trying to gain altitude after the Sun has gone down. I Imagine if it would be possible to climb in a Moon based Thermal. If it were even possible, it would be akin to gaining altitude while flying at the Coast. |I have experienced some altitude Gains while I was Flying at My Local coastal site Fort Funston California. I remember oh about 28 Years ago my Wills Wing Dealer, friend Dan Fleming told me a story that he was once at Funston and had gotten a little thermal action.

Well My Predator 158 has served Me so well over the Years. But I imagine if even if I was flying at the optimal site, flying on the optimal S=Day for a given Day, on a Given Year it would very hard to climb while working a "Lunar Thermal"

[Frank Colver]

Not much solar heat is reflected by the moon. But, since thunderstorms can form at night it means there can be strong thermals created at night by air mass movements causing instability. Tornados come at night many times. The problem is, do you want to fly in thunderstorm conditions?

There can be residual heat being released by ground objects that can cause night thermals or even warm water bodies. How about volcanos? Burning trash dumps? Wildfires? But the moon? I think not.

One time after ballooning I needed to burn off my remaining propane because i needed to replace the tank valve when back in my shop. It was a lightly foggy early cool morning so very stable air, no thermal activity. Shortly after I started my burner (no balloon attached) a hawk flew over, started circling, and climbed out in the thermal my burner had created.

Frank

[Craig Muhonen]

Here's a Pilots mind experiment , the body comes later, for night flying, not in a thunder storm.

Take off from higher altitude, in good conditions, and fly as far as you can and get picked up by the ground crew, and mark how far that flight. only rule is, no 360's, complete sled ride.
"gliding" straight and doing a dead stick landing is not done much any more of course, but the "Old Guys" really did know what 'best glide', was all about, and how important it was. You can learn how to fly ALL the way to a crash Landing, whenever need be.

Now do the same thing, but take off in La Palma and glide very high over the volcano,
erupting huge amounts of very hot lava ( take videos and " mask", ) and see if you could find some lift,
(or would it be too hot and turbulent, but whatta ride, and video later, all night long, if not, just land on the beach somewhere and camp out. PELE' is having it her way, as she always has. ha.

[Chris McKeon]

La Palma, Volcano? Hugh, What where? Are you talking about Hawaii?

[Craig Muhonen]

The Cumbre Vieja Volcano on San Miguel de la Palma Island
Pele' is the Hawaiian Goddess of Fire and volcanoes, but islands are islands and magma is magma, and ash to ash and dust to dust for us all.


wonder how high the bubbles of hot air go into the atmosphere, and could you ride them?
A Hawaiian saying is, ""If It Swells, Ride It"
My dad said that it would be easier to go way straight up from LAX, and just turn the engines off, and glide to NY.
Frank could probably get a world altitude record in his 'hot air' balloon, over this thing, it's been going off for 50 days now.
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Music to Volcano By

[Chris McKeon]

That was some great Acoustic Guitar Playing. I believe that Angus would approve.

[Chris McKeon]

Wow no More S-I-I'S for Me no Sir. I dislocated My Left Shoulder a Month ago. This really sucks. All the ground that I has gained getting back My Left hands dexterity was lost because when I fell forward because of spasticity that was a result of My Pounding Myself by falling forward while I was walking out My Back door. instead of using My left hand to stop My fall. I drilled My left elbow into the ground. Thus dislocating my left Arm at the shoulder. Well My Sister drove Me to Kaiser where a Woman Doctor named Doctor Malpractice along with two Thugs who assisted Her wrangled, and forced My Arm back into Place.

I have some advice for everyone. First do not Pound Yourself into the Ground when You are Flying. Also trust Me with this thought. Do Not dislocate you rm. The correct way to spell Dislocation is; "PAIN".