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	Up to now, Southern California Soaring has been published on a bi-monthly schedule. Accordingly, this issue originally was going to be labeled "May/June." However, our contributors have provided us with a wealth of excellent material, and this has created an ever-increasing backlog of articles. One possible solution was to add additional pages to each issue. However, many of our readers have slow internet connections, and already face very long download times. We have decided that the only workable solution is to publish an extra issue. Thus, this issue is not May/June, but May. In a month, we will publish a June issue. After that, we will return to our bi-monthly schedule with our July/August issue. As always, we encourage the submission of articles and photos. Contact the editor with your ideas at editor@socalsoaring.com. Thank you.


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	Region 12 Soaring Calendar May 28 through 31 -- Soarfari travels to Lone Pine June 12 through 25 -- Soarfari travels to Parowan, Utah July 3^rd through 11^th -- Soarfari travels to Bishop July 10^th through July 25^th -- High Country Soaring's Ely Soaring Camp July 17^th to 25^th-- AGCSC trip to Lone Pine July 31^st through August 8^th -- Soarfari travels to Ely, Nevada August 20^rd through 22^th -- 2004 Arizona/Southern California Race August 28^th and 29^th, September 4^th through 6^th -- Region 12 Contest Sept 3^rd through 6^th -- Soarfari travels to Warner Springs For more information about any of these events, go to: http://socalsoaring.com/calendar.php


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the memory - Cool!

Can be used for navigation - holds lots of waypoints and tasks, and beeps when you are in the turn sector/cylinder - no more missed turnpoints!

Can display ground-speed and wind-speeds while in use (GNII does not display ground speed on the main screen so the Colibri fills this gap for me).

Comes with all the cables you will ever need - Professionally constructed and documented.

Good manual, full software package, and very good manufacturer support.

As a bonus, the Colibri comes with a nice carrying pouch and excellent software stability, and worked flawlessly the first time I tried to download an IGC file. The Colibri 3.0 firmware has been bug-free for over 3 years. Others users have commented that the unit interfaces well with many systems with few problems.
The standard Colibri (as sold by Wings & Wheels) does not come with a GPS antenna. I purchased a very small one (1-inch square) for about $55, and mounted it with velcro to the top of one of the "high in the panel" instruments. This works in my glider because the instrument panel shroud is fiberglass. If it were metal or carbon-fiber, the GPS antenna would have to be mounted above it, or elsewhere in the glider.
Here are a few things I have learned about the Colibri after using it in my glider:

It begins recording once you are moving swiftly for a continuous 20 seconds or so at the beginning of the tow - no start buttons to push.

It stops recording about two minutes after you have landed. You must not shut it off during this two minute period or the IGC file will not be saved properly. You can easily check the status screen to assure that recording has stopped.

It beeps continuously when connected and communicating with your PC - this indicates that the connection is good. The tone changes as data is exchanged, such as when flight data is downloaded, or tasks are uploaded.

It allows the user to specify the units to be used, including MPH, kilometers/hr, or knots for ground speed.

The Colibri does not support statute miles for distance - only kilometers or nautical miles.

The Colibri does not support feet-per-second for climb rates - only meters/sec or knots.

For other information on the Colibri, see:

LX Site: http://www.lxnavigation.si/colibri.htm

Filser site: http://www.filser.de/index/?language=e&dat=e_ger_colibri&kat=e_variometer

Colibri Manual: http://http://www.lxnavigation.si/manuals.php

Tom flies his 1-35C with the Minnesota Soaring Club.


	OLC Standings As of May 2, Warner Springs Gliders was number one in the US standings in the Aerokurier On-Line Contest. It had 17,580 points, and was roughly 20% ahead of the second place club. Other Region 12 clubs reporting flights are Soarfari, Lake Elsinore, Caracole, Santa Ynez, and Hole in the Wall (huh?). For the club scores, see http://www.onlinecontest.org/olcphp/2004/ausw_verein.php?olc=olc-usa. In the individual standings, a number of Region 12 pilots have more than 1000 points. All fly from Warner Springs, except for Brian Iten who flies from Caracole, and Kevin Wayt who flies from Elsinore: Dan Ladd 6^th, Mark Korvick 9^th, Doug Levy 10^th, Don Finnell 16^th, Chuck Deerinck 18^th, Kevin Wayt 19^th, Sean Franke 21^st, Carl Czech 24^th, Chris Ashburn 25^th, Brian Iten 26^th, Mike Webb 27^th, and Garret Willat 31^st. For the individual scores, see: http://www.onlinecontest.org/olcphp/2004/ausw_klassen.php?olc=olc-usa. For help with using SeeYou to post a flight to the OLC, see http://www.soarhollister.com/user_guide_olc.htm. At times, SeeYou does not accurately determine the time of release from tow. Since the OLC contest starts scoring at tow release, this can have two undesirable consequences. First, SeeYou will not score any portion of your flight during which it thinks you still were on tow. Second, since your finish altitude cannot be more than one kilometer below your release, the end of your flight may be truncated if SeeYou thinks you released at an altitude higher than your actual release. To correct any problem, go to Edit, then to Flight Properties, and insert the correct time of release under Flight Begin.

MARKETING SOARING: REGION 12 MEMBER SURVEY

Several Region 12 pilots have been developing a strategy to market soaring nationally, regionally, and, most important, for the SSA Convention that returns to Ontario, CA in 2005. To better direct marketing efforts, Paul Love (a glider pilot in San Diego with a background in marketing), needs to better understand just who glider pilots are, and what makes us "tick." Once this is known, we can look for new converts in an organized manner. Please take a moment to participate in Paul's survey online at:

http://206.168.3.4/survey/soar.php
Note: Enter the code word "thermal" when requested.

Both SSA membership and soaring in general have been in a steady tailspin for 20 years. We need all Region 12 members to help correct this decline by taking part in this effort. Results will be posted in a future issue of this newsletter. Thanks for your help.

Outlanding Areas by Peter Kovari

I bought my glider to fly cross-country. Outlandings are a part of cross-country, so four years ago fellow pilot Steve Smith and I started visiting potential landing sites. We used the several-year-old Crystal Squadron database, keeping in mind its disclaimer: "If you haven't seen it, don't use it." As expected, some of the listed sites were marginal or downright unsuitable for landing. Also, we quickly learned that some were difficult to find from the ground, or simply didn't exist.
I want crewing to be a pleasant experience for my wife and friends. I don't want my crew driving a deserted dirt road with a glider trailer, not knowing which way to turn, or getting lost or getting stuck. Thus, Steve and I decided that in addition to descriptions of landing sites, we needed to provide an accurate database of driving directions. At first, I just jotted down some hand written notes. Later, these became more detailed. Recently, I looked at the handwritten directions I had given my crew on previous cross country trips, and had a hard time reading my own handwriting. Not a good sign! To make my notes more legible, I decided to create a database on my computer. I now print out the database, and place the information in a three ring binder with photos of landmarks, entrance gates, and so on.
Our scouting trips have turned out to be fun, and have been a good way to learn about the areas we fly over. Of course, there are risks to these trips as well. When driving on some bad roads, I have wished I had a 4WD. A couple of years ago, I was coming back from a business trip in Las Vegas with my wife, Teri. There was a dry lake on the way that I had not seen previously, so I got permission from my better half to go a few minutes out our way. A few minutes turned into six hours, as I managed to get us stuck in sand on a dirt road about ¼ mile from the lakebed. Teri was not amused. I was not happy, either.
The important thing to remember about these sites is that they change. So do the roads leading to them. Ideally, we should revisit these spots periodically. As this may not always be possible, the next best thing is for us all to share information and help update this database.. Please send information and corrections to me at p.kovari@sbcglobal.net.
It is probable that there are some errors in this data. Thus, use at your own risk. Also, this database does not contain any information about the advisability of landing at the sites. That can only be obtained in person.
The information Steve and I have gathered is at http://www.socalsoaring.com/landout.php. Each landing site has several sections. "Notes" outlines some basic airfield and landmark information. "Map" indicates the location of the field on my map, and the page of the map in my road atlas collection. The road maps I use are available in most bookstores. They are:

California Road and Recreation Atlas by BenchMark

Nevada Atlas & Gazetteer by DeLorme

Arizona Atlas & Gazetteer by DeLorme

Steve and I are planning at least two more road trips this year. One will be north of Bishop, and one north of Las Vegas. We also may make one more. We will keep you posted.

Peter flies his Libelle with the Crystal Squadron.


	Soaring News On April 17th, Sailplane Enterprises threw a Bon Voyage BBQ for 30 year employee, Galen Fisher. Sailplane Enterprises' owner, Larry Howell, catered for approximately 70 people, including several of Galen's relatives, who came to wish Galen and his bride Christina "goodbye" as they prepared to leave for an extended stay in Denmark. The two met and married last year when Christina joined OCSA to continue soaring. She had been an active pilot in her home of Argentina and in Denmark. Galen solo'd at Sailplane Enterprises at age 14, worked as a lineboy, and finally for many years as the local FAA Designated Examiner. Thirty years, one job, all soaring. The entire Region 12 soaring community wishes them both many happy flights together!


	Sailplane Enterprises BBQ for Galen Fisher. Photo by Larry Tuohino.

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Southern California Soaring


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	Thanks to everyone who helped with this issue.


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