Ballooning - Mastering the FON

The “FON” or Fly On Task

Earn Your Competition

Master’s Degree!

by Joe Zvada/BalloonPong

I

f you consider the Fly In, Judge Declared Goal, and Hesitation Waltz as the undergraduate degree of a competition pilot’s education, then mastering the Fly On task is the first lesson of a competitor’s advanced degree. The first task requiring serious plotting and decision making, a Fly On is described as a goal selected and declared by the pilot. A director’s motivation to call such a task may be an attempt to split up the field of balloons to reduce congestion, to simply challenge pilots with a more difficult task, or to continue competition when winds are too unpredictable for other tasks. In current competitions most Fly Ons are scored via gps logger and the methods of declaration are 42 Ballooning

quickly following the electronic pathway by using text messaging or on board data loggers.

Here in the US we are still basically using a couple of different variations for written declarations. At the 2014 National Championship in Longview, TX we flew an interesting Fly On in challenging winds that had pilots attempting several different strategies.

Some strategies paid off while others left pilots with very little to show for their efforts. Ultimately strategy decisions made on this, the second task of the Championship, would shape the final finishing order of the top 10.

The first thing to look for on the task sheet is the declaration method for your fly on. The Director will define

the valid ways for a pilot to declare their selected goal. In the Longview example, there were three different declaration methods. (See task 2, note A on the included task data sheet) A pilot could hand in a declaration using one method or all three methods.

Pilots were scored to the last set of declared coordinates turned into officials. My declaration strategy on this flight was to make a declaration prior to leaving the briefing center according to the forecasted winds, knowing full well that I would most likely change them once the sun came up and winds began to change. I briefed my crew chief to head directly after the launch to the declaration point as described in method #3 on the task sheet and www.bfa.net

await instructions from me on a new set of coordinates to declare to officials.

I would also prepare coordinates on the tail of the previous marker as per declaration method #2.

Choosing the goal for the fly on is really more about choosing the best strategy that will allow you to maximize point possibilities on tasks 2 and 3, all the while keeping in consideration the above requirements for a valid goal.

After watching pibals and again after launch I plot a line on the map that is in the center of the available wind directions. This allows me to see at a quick glance the area I’m traveling toward. I prefer to use a paper map and plotter for this type of work, but you can also use mapping software for your plotting. Theoretically the declaration will be close to this line with possible variations to one side or the other based on wind changes or strategy decisions.

On this day three main strategies played out for the fly on. Longview May/June2015

winds can be described as variably steerable, meaning that you can often find winds to get you where you need to go, but they may not be at the same altitude twice. This day may have been more variable than most, as right after launch pilots were scrambling to find the wind to get them to the first target and re-plotting potential Fly On goals. One group chose their fly on goals several kilometers to the west, which proved to be too far west for them to achieve a good score on task 3. My strategy was to keep the fly on goal close to task 1, hopefully allowing me to ride the lower winds to the goal.. As was the case throughout the day the winds changed, forcing me into a challenging climb to catch the correct wind, then descend quickly for a score. The difficulty of the maneuver ultimately cost me points on the fly on.

The strategy yielding the best results on all three tasks was one manufactured by eventual champion Johnny Petrehn that

Above: The author’s competition map showing a pair of Hesitation Waltz targets, his launch site and projected wind line that helped determine his strategy in declaring a Fly On target.

gave him more time to approach the fly on goal than I had, but not so much time that he couldn’t get back to task 3 for a good score. Petrehn claimed the highest combined point total for tasks 2 and 3.

I approach all fly on tasks with a few basic thoughts. 1. Keep it simple - don’t declare a goal that will require you to make radical maneuvers to achieve a score if you don’t have to.

2. Choose a strategy that maximizes points for all tasks, not just the fly on. 3. Know and understand the rules for declaration, stay organized, and Ballooning 43

communicate clearly with your crew if they are declaring for you.

We only flew 10 tasks at the 2014 National Championship, thus 20% of a competitor’s final score was determined by the strategy they took on the Fly On and how it set them up for the following task. Of course, the best strategy is nothing without solid execution and those that combine the two skills more often than not end up on top of the leader board.

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Top: The author, Joe Zvada, busies himself in-flight at the US Nationals by writing target coordinates on the tail of a marker - one of three means of declaring a “fly on” target during this task.

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