2006 REGION NINE CHAMPIONSHIP
(March 18-May 29)
2006 REGION NINE YEARLONG X-C CONTEST
January 1-December 1, 2006
The 2006 Regional Championship
will once again be a weekend cross-country contest in which pilots may
fly from any Region Nine site (plus exceptions listed below) during the contest
period. The pilots may fly as often as they like, and their three longest
flights will be totaled to determine the winners. Depending upon participation,
there will be as many as five classes: Open, Sixty Mile, Rookie, Paraglider, and Rigid.
There is no
requirement to formally enter the Yearlong X-C contest. At the end of the flying season I will
solicit flight information from all pilots who might have flown X-C within
Region Nine. My intention is that the
resulting Yearlong article become a comprehensive
record of all cross-country flights within the Region, whether by resident or
visiting pilots.
On-line Scoring: When the details can be worked out, it is my
intention to implement some form of on-line flight registration and
scoring. It is hoped that removing the
enormous time lags in scoring past contests more pilots might be motivated to
participate and fly cross-country.
Use of GPS-derived flight verification:
Competitors are encouraged to save onto their computers gps
tracklogs of their flights. Ideally, they should be converted into an .igc format and then emailed to me. The OZ Report can be searched for
information on how to accomplish that.
Start with the following url,
www.davisstraub.com/OZ/compOnlineXC.php
The only changes
are,
1. The Yearlong
contest will end on December 1, 2006.
2. A clarification
of the class definitions:
Rookie Class is defined as those
who have flown less than 25 miles.
Sixty Mile Class is defined
as those who have flown 25 mile or more, but less than Sixty Miles.
Open Class contains pilots who
have flown sixty miles or better.
XC flying is a special type of flying that
requires specific skills to be accomplished safely. The critical cross-country skills are landing skills. If you have
doubts about your ability to chose and assess possible landing fields, and
safely deal with the unexpected conditions encountered going into an unknown
LZ, don't go cross-country. If you are
whacking landings in your home lzs, places with wind
streamers and familiar approaches, you have no business going XC. Period.
Neither this nor any
other contest is worth getting hurt. Be careful.
1. DATES: WEEKENDS FROM
MARCH 18-MAY 29 including Good Friday (April 14) and Memorial Day
(May 29).
You may enter the contest after March 18, but your flights will only count from the day of the postmark on your entry form.
2. PERMITTED LAUNCH SITES:
Contestants may launch from anywhere in Region Nine, plus from the following
sites which are the principal launches of Region Nine pilots living on the
periphery of the Region: Laughery Creek, IN; the Toledo,OH area tow sites over the
border in Indiana; Redwing Airport in Jobstown, NJ; Santinis, Manukachunk, and Skytop in NJ, and Katydid, NY. Tow launches are limited to
a maximum release height of 3,000 above the tow strip. Distance measurements are from the point at
which the tow starts on the ground.
3. ELIGIBILITY: The contest is open
to any current Intermediate or better
When relevant, the top-placing pilots whose address of record is in Region Nine on the contest's opening day will be considered for the Region's slots in the Nationals.
4. FLYING DAYS AND PERSONAL SCHEDULING:
All flights are to be made on weekends, including Good Friday and Memorial
Day. Pilots who work on weekends may fly on their regularly scheduled
off-days whenever, and however irregularly they may occur up to a maximum of
twenty-four days over
the length of the contest. This implies an honor system for those pilots as I
cannot verify that they didn't change their schedules to get a crack at a good
XC day, or that they didn't have more than twenty-four days off. Expect to hear
from me if you submit three contest-winning Wednesday flights.
Pilots who miss contest days due to
previously scheduled absences may re-schedule make-up days subject to the
limitations below. It is the pilot's responsibility to contact me and make
arrangements for make-up days.
MAKE-UP DAYS must be scheduled
at least four days in advance. In addition, no pilot may have more than four
consecutive days in any seven-day period. After re-scheduling missed days, one
can have the following maximum number of flying days in each month: March (5);
April (13); and May, (11). This means that if you miss days in one month you
will have only the limited flexibility of using one or two extra days during
each of the three flying months.
5. PERMISSIBLE FLIGHTS: Straight-line
distance from launch or the beginning of a tow on the ground to landing
location. With camera, GPS, or witness confirmation pilots may use a remote
start point after hill launches (not tow launches).
6. FLIGHT REGISTRATION: If you have
a gps, I strongly suggest you save the gps tracklog on your
computer. Ideally, you should convert it
to a .igc format and email
it to me. If you can’t do that, note the
lat/lon of your landing and write it in your
logbook. Mail, fax, or e-mail me a
record of your three best flights no later than June 15. I will send all
contestants a reminder/registration form shortly before the end of the contest.
In the event of very
close results, I reserve the right to conduct my own measurements, and they
will be final.
7. WINNER DETERMINATION: Winners
will be determined by the largest total miles accumulated in three flights of
up to a maximum of sixty miles per flight. The first tie-breaker will be the greatest
total distance, and the second tie breaker will be the single-longest flight.
There will be plaques for the first three places in all classes, and I will submit to Hang Gliding an article detailing the results.
8. ENTRY FEE: $15
2006 YEARLONG REGION NINE X-C CONTEST RULES
This contest provides recognition for the single longest flight in Region Nine. It is common that there will be different winners in the two contests. The Regionals, with its three flights and the sixty-mile flight limit, measures consistency, while the Yearlong contest emphasizes attitude. Ya gotta be there, ya gotta go a long way, and, ya gotta be a bit lucky. Winners will receive certificates and achieve immortality in the pages of Hang Gliding magazine. Distances will be measured in a straight line but remote start points may be used subject to the above verification requirements.
ELIGIBILITY: There’s no formal
requirement to enter this contest. All
pilots entered in the Regionals are automatically
entered in this one too.
If you intend to
enter ONLY this contest, please fill out and email/mail/fax me the Entry Form. It is not required that you do so, but it
makes it less likely that I will miss including your long flight in the
results.
SITES: Anywhere in Region
Nine plus the exceptions listed in the Regional's rules.
DATES: January 1-December 1, 2006