Youth Glide 2017 Taupo Mini Camp

BY CAMPBELL MCIVER

L to R: Josh Ferguson, Mat Shields, Campbell McIver, Laura Wagstaff, Terina Wardley, Allie Thompson, Jono Wardman, Sam Tullet, Uma Tuffnell, Rakesh Allen and Akira Peterson

During a successful Youth Soaring Development Camp in Omarama last December, a few North Island friends had an idea to find a way to go flying together in Taupo during January. This idea quickly caught on and with a large amount of interest, it then developed into a Youth Glide Mini-Camp. The camp was limited to 10 students and with Taupo being central to those from the central North Island (mainly from Matamata, Hawkes Bay and Tauranga) and a beautiful holiday spot, we decided to meet there mid-January. Hugh de Lautour, Taupo’s President was delighted to hear of our interest and was very enthusiastic about hosting a Youth Glide Mini-Camp.

With an outstanding contribution from Kirstin Thompson from the Hawkes Bay Club who came to supervise, cook and generally mother us to keep us on track, we had what it took for a camp to go ahead.

On arriving at Taupo on Sunday evening, we rigged Auckland’s Duo Discus, set up camp and headed for the Thermal Spa Park. An opportunity for everyone to catch up and meet some new faces. This spot proved to be incredibly popular in the evenings after flying.

DAY 1 Despite day 1 being blue with an inversion at 4500 feet, the south westerly wind allowed Mt Tauhara to provide reliable lift to 4000 feet with weak thermals rising to 4500 feet and later to 5500 feet. It was a good opportunity to give the students area familiarisations at Taupo (Centennial Park) and continue with A, B and QGP syllabus training. It turned out to be a long day with the Duo Discus landing well after 7 pm in the evening. With everyone buzzing after their first day, we enjoyed a fantastic dinner and headed down to the Lake front for a look around and another visit to the Thermal Spa Park.

DAY 2 Proved to have similar conditions to Day 1 so, to stop those when not flying having a game of pool, we scheduled some lectures for radio, emergency procedures and various other exams. We continued with training students towards QGP and began briefings on single seaters. We managed to get all pilots in the air for at least an hour each and progressed with signing boxes off their syllabus.

DAY 3 Though conditions had barely changed we had several students flying solo which allowed them to get their 30-minute and 60-minute solo soaring flights signed off. There was also lee wave behind Mt Tauhara which allowed both Duo Discus (TT and DX) to climb to over 6500 feet.

DAY 4 Was a write off (apart from a 1 hour gap between 3:30 pm and 4:30 pm) so the morning was dedicated to signing off everyone’s A & B Cert questions while the more advanced students

focused on further exams. Once everyone was tired of the classroom and the weather was still clagged in, we went for a trip out to the Huka Honey Hive and the AC baths to relax.

DAY 5 Proved to be a very interesting final day. We had a light south westerly wind with storm fronts coming in from the east overhead Kaingaroa Forest. DX went out towards Mangakino before heading back towards Kaingaroa and running the storm front. During the flight, Allie and Campbell got down to 1000 feet AGL twice, once near Mangakino and once at Ohaaki Power Station on the way back from the forest, however they managed to get home. A great exercise in paddock selection and flying in overdeveloped skies. Trev Terry took Sam Tullett nearly to Whakatane however he had to motor up due to over-development and rain.

By the end of this day, we had managed to get all pilots who had previously soloed, re-soloed and all pre-solo pilots to nearly solo level. Rakesh and Laura both completed their 60-minute solo soaring flights as well.

Having a youth run camp was amazing and we have learnt huge amounts to better structure them in the future. This camp couldn’t have happened without the support of the amazing Kirstin Thompson who, with the help of Jana Thorrman, kept us going with amazing meals, three times a day. We truly cannot express how grateful we are for the hard work Kirstin put in behind the scenes, not only with cooking, but with organisation to make the camp such a success.

Also, a big thank you to Hugh and all the members and

instructors of the Taupo Gliding Club, including but not limited to, Tom Anderson, Bill Kendall and Trev Terry for the contribution of their aircraft and services towards the camp. Also to the Auckland Gliding Club for the use of the Duo Discus. Another message of thanks to Simon Peterson for his assistance on the ground.

On behalf of Youth Glide New Zealand, we would like to thank all those across New Zealand that make these camps happen. We run these camps to help our members progress towards QGP and beyond, and increase youth involvement in clubs.

We encourage as many people as possible of any age to join Youth Glide New Zealand as a social member. With greater membership numbers, it allows us to present ourselves as a larger organisation with a strong backing and gain fantastic sponsorship for these camps.

To conclude simply, what an amazing week! Bring on the next camp!

A Great Start to the Year BY RAKESH ALLEN

My name is Rakesh Allen. I am 16 and a youth glide member from the Piako Gliding Club. I recently went solo and completed my A certificate in Omarama on the YSDC there. I am over ¾ through my B certificate and hope to have achieved my QGP before the end of this year. My long-term goal is to be a commercial pilot. I believe gliding has been a great entry into the marvellous world of aviation. I have met many great people along the way that have helped and supported me with my aviation endeavours. Through Youth Glide I have gained many great experiences that I would never have dreamed about, if I hadn’t joined up. Youth Glide has given me the opportunity to do some pretty awesome stuff. It has been made possible by the a hardworking group of individuals who spend hours out of their already busy lives gaining funding, support and putting together some pretty sweet camps for us young aviators to enjoy.

The 2017 Taupo Mini-camp was a great start to the year. One awesome thing about Youth Glide is that we can experience the best that New Zealand has to offer through gliding with the help of many generous people. Taupo was no different. I thoroughly enjoyed flying amongst the beautiful scenery of Taupo. During the camp, I was able to achieve a solo in a Twin Astir, a good flight on the ridge therefore further honing my ridge skills. I had an awesome flight with Campbell McIver in the mighty Duo which was generously given to us to use by the Auckland Gliding Club and I got a type rating in the PW-5 which will come in handy back at my home club. The camp’s time was limited so when we didn’t fly, we were involved in ground lessons and were able to complete QGP exams. I was able to get my radio and human factors exams done, which was a pretty solid feeling, getting me that much closer to QGP.

Youth glide members all have one thing in common: we all love to fly and have a common passion for aviation. I find it so awesome that I have a group of people that I can talk to about flying and they actually understand what I’m talking about. They are a great bunch of people and many friendships were made over the course of the camp. I think it’s so awesome how Youth Glide and Gliding in general, brings together people from around the country, from all walks of life, that all have one common passion, a love for the skies. No matter where you come from, or who you are, if you have love for gliding then there is a space for you in Youth Glide. I guarantee it.

I must not forget the people that actually made the Taupo camp possible. The Taupo Gliding Club have been long-time supporters of Youth Glide and we sincerely thank them for letting us teenagers loose in their expensive gliding machines. We can’t thank the team of great people at TGC enough for providing us with very cheap rates and world class service. I have so much good to say about TGC and their exceptional group of dedicated instructors, tow pilots and helpers. They truly made the camp that much better, sharing their vast knowledge about gliding with us newbies. Pilots have to eat to survive and every day you would find Kirstin and Yana in the kitchen cooking up a storm; providing meals every day for up to 20 people is not an easy job and we all commend them on their great cooking skills too. Being the first ever youth driven camp, the key person that made it all possible was Campbell McIver, an instructor from Drury.

I would like to say one last thank you to the people that made this camp possible, especially the sponsors which we are always seeking more of, to help with funding. It makes it a lot easier for us younger pilots to pay for flying.