SASS Thermal Duration Contest -- Sept. 2, 2000
by Waid Reynolds

Finally... a flyable day for a club TD contest! I didn't think it was going to happen this year. The weather was cool, actually quite pleasant, and mostly cloudy with no wind to speak of. The lift was abundant during the contest.

Seven guys showed up and enjoyed seven rounds of soaring. Bill Henley grabbed his first win in Sportsman class with the very colorful Magic. Rick Helgeson, whose flying skills are improving rapidly, won his first trophy in his very first contest by taking Novice with his Super V 100. In Expert class I managed to fend off some really tough competition (myself) to take the win.

Billy Henley and his cousin Andy had a great time hammering dad's well seasoned foamie Highlander glider into the ground until the poor wing spar cashed in its chips. It's good to see these boys flying and having so much fun.

The final contest standings follow:

Novice

Sportsman

1 Rick Helgeson 5168 1 Bill Henley, Sr. 5564
2 Andy Henley 1535 2 Lauren Anstead 5482
3 Billy Henley 1083 3 David Anstead 4478

Expert

1 Waid Reynolds 6803