Presented by Gordon Boettger at the February, 2012 Soaring Society of American (SSA) convention in Reno, Nevada.

1. WHAT THE SIERRA AND GREAT BASIN
OFFER US FOR MAXIMIZING MILEAGE IN
MOUNTAIN WAVE

2. STARTED FLYING AT 13
Wave fascination early on
NAVY PILOT
AIRLINE

3.  MD11 PIC

4.  EXPLORATION
 OUT AND RETURN
 YO-YO
 TRIANGLE
 DOWNWIND
 SPEED

5.  UNKNOWNS
 CAN COVER GROUND
 WORKS DAY/NIGHT
 NEEDED FOR RECORDS
 EXPLORE NEW ARENA
 GOOD SUCCESS RATE
3 2000K +
3 1500K +
3 1200K +
5 1000K +

8.  What’s within your experience level
 What do our geography and wx offer
 How much are you willing to risk
 Do you have the right equipment
 Do you have the time
 Are you fit

9. CANOPY ICING

10. NOW WE CAN SEE

11. Minden looking North

13. THE REWARD
Bishop Looking South

14. Mono Lake looking South

15. BISHOP LOOKING SOUTH

16.  O/R, YO-YO, TRIANGE NEED SAME WX
 DOWNWIND MORE COMPLEX
Susanville looking South

23. OUT AND RETURN
PROS
- Can stay in primary wave system
- Fairly well known terrain and easy
retrieve
CONS
- Somewhat limited based on terrain
and wx
- Typically a headwind component on
one leg
- North and south sectors can be tough

24. NORTH SECTOR
SUSANVILLE
SOUTH SECTOR
IYK-GORMAN
DISTANCE
~1250 KM

29. Pros
 Covers many miles in relatively confined area
 Same as O/R
 Having multiple legs gets you used to wx
Cons
 Same problems as O/R
 Winds can change on very long flight

30.  DAYLIGHT (UNLESS LIT)
 NORTH/SOUTH
 DISTANCE UP TO 3000 KM (OVERNIGHT
FLT)
 WX CAN CHANGE OVER DAY

31. 20 April 2011 – 2200 KM
Gordon Boettger/Hugh Bennett
Duo Discus

34. PROS
 GREAT GEOGRAPHY
 2 LEGS AT HIGH SPEED
 STRONG LIFT ON LONGEST LEG
 LIFT WORKS ALL DAY AND ALL NIGHT
CONS
 BRUTAL HEADWIND ON FINAL LEG
 MOISTURE DOWNWIND
 NEED HVY WINGLOADING

35.  TERRAIN ADVANTAGE OVER ARGENTINA
 HARDEST TYPE OF TASK
 UNEXPLORED

36. Sample 1500 KM Triangle

38. Looking East

39. PROS
TAILWIND COMPONENT
LONGER GLIDES
SLOWER SPEEDS
FULFILLING A DREAM
CONS
LONG RETRIEVE
MOISTURE
AIRSPACE RESTRICTIONS
TOUGH TO FIND RIGHT DAY
DIFFERENT CONTROLLERS
DIFFERENT AIRMASS POTENTIAL

42. Salt Lake
Minden

43. WY NE
UT
CO

44. SD
ID
WY
NE
UT
CO

47. LAST 500 KM FLOWN IN 2 HRS 2 MIN = 153 MPH

50. THE PERFECT PLATFORM
•HIGH WING LOADING
•GOOD GLIDE
•ROOMY
•SPACE FOR BOTTLES/BATTS
•STRONG

51.  HUMAN LIMITATIONS
 SAFETY
 EQUIPMENT LIMITATIONS

52. MY WIFE MELISSA
HUGH BENNETT
DOUG ARMSTRONG
RICK WALTERS
ATC
ROLLIN HASNESS
KEMPTON IZUNO
SOARING NV
RICK ANDERSON
TOM STOWERS
ALL OF YOU