Gerolf Heinrichs <<email>> writes:

So it’s all over now, and people seem happy about it. Three tasks in twelve days is not a lot in return for the hefty entry fee, and a rather mediocre performance of a meet conductor (I wouldn’t call him a meet director), who just isn’t up to the job of running a big CAT-1 meet.

Yesterday’s task again got cancelled way too early and – aside from Corinna falsely reporting to see rain at the first turnpoint – for no apparent reason. Unless you wanted to accept for a plausible “reason” that just too many people involved in the decision making process here saw no more reason to risk their current position in the overall standings.

Bear in mind that both task- and safety-advisory committee were composed of an Austrian, a German, and an Italian, each. Then, as you check the scores, you will find that after three tasks all the medals, team and individual, were in the hands of pilots from exactly those nations – what a funny coincidence, isn’t it?

As the Moyes-Litespeed designer I should say: “perfect!”. Top four Guys, top Girl – who can ask for more? We’ll I wanted more flying. More commitment to actually go for it. Seriously go for it, not just play the competition task game. If we would have acted the way we acted yesterday, we would have had not one single task last year.

Thinking back, the last two weeks very much looked to me as if we were just kept busy on take off every day. Show up at 9am, hang around for hours and hours, cancel tasks for various false reasons, then go and fly around for hours and finally debate it all with a beer at the camp ground.

In saying that, I have to make one exception: Elio Cataldi! The overall leader and now European champion was not shy to fly another task. He willing to compete and did not engage in urging the organizers to cancel.

Congratulations Elio: good flying - good attitude!!

He also answers my question about why would it be that twenty nine pilots on the third day got altitude penalty points:

I suppose some pilots just take the altitude limit without allowing for any margin of altitude error. Also some less competitive pilots maybe just don’t take it so serious with the altitude limit. They don’t mind to take a few penalty points in return for a little higher start. Note, that the penalty is set so progressive that it does very little damage in the beginning and only kicks in once you are higher then about 50 meters above the line.

If twenty nine out of ninety eight pilots were too high, it still means that sixty nine pilots did manage to get it right, right?

What is more surprising to me is that twice an Italian pilot – who would actually have won the day otherwise - would be caught losing points like that. What was even more surprising is the reaction to it. While most other team leaders would probably have talked to their pilots and instructed them to stay well below the limit, the Italians just started bitching about the new rule. “Hey officer, it’s not me driving too fast, it’s the speed limit that is too high, and your radar pistol is probably not calibrated accurately” – you got to love those Italians :-)

I was going with the strategy to stay about 100 meters below the actual limit, knowing that if things come out not in my favor, the error could be this much. I figured 100 meters lower then some others, and probably only 50 meters less then most of my direct competitors, was really no big deal if you have a task of 150 km ahead of you. Think about it. Is it wise to run the risk to lose some points for such stupid reason, just to be first in the first thermal?

Some pilots think 100 meters of max error (the reality is more 20-30 meters in fact) is too much. Again, I would not compare it to the perfect situation where the error is zero. I would compare it to what we get otherwise, with pilots taking up to 300-400 more altitude advantage into the task. Be a bit more reasonable and a bit less Italian here, guys.

Gerolf follows up:

Needless to say, the weather was really good on Saturday. Despite it being our spare comp day in case the weather WOULD HAVE BEEN no good throughout the meet, our organizers had decided no more flying days were needed :-)

Instead, a marathon prize giving ceremony was held, starting 1 pm, in the middle of a greatest heat of the day, in a closed tent - and it lasted for about three hours, even longer then the tasks would.

Speeches, speeches, even a mass was held, performing kids, music, more performances, endless announcements about sponsoring and local support, and of course how well everything was organized - you got to accept where the focus is at here. Well, for sure not on flying.

The flying gods - if there are any - must have been killing themselves laughing at us.

Meanwhile talk is getting loud once again that we simply can’t go on like that. While semi-professional CIVL officials stand beside and look without ever intercepting, we have amateur organizers mess up our top level meets. The call is for a professional meet director, a rules- and flying-wise competent person who is up to the job of decision making in critical moments, can speak understandable and reasonable English, does understand our game, doesn’t serve self interests, and most of all doesn’t need constant coaching on dealing properly with the obvious.

But who could that be? Heather’s name was mentioned. Well, we’ll see. She’ll have a chance shortly to show how well she can do in Laragne. Some thought I should be the man, but I quickly convinced everyone that we wanted a popular person, or at least someone who wants to be popular.

Then we had a brain wave: How about that Davis Straub. He is nearly too old competing himself anyway, he is quite smart, knows the game really well, and has totally failed to screw up the most recent World’s meet – he seems almost perfect!

Think about it. Travel the world, all expenses paid, getting a chance to have arguments with the highest CIVL officials on one side and some famous and infamous pilots on the other almost on a daily basis. Who would not want to have a dream job like that ;-)

I'll be available in about twenty years. I did like running the 2007 Worlds in Texas (with David Glover as the organizer and Belinda getting all the details right and making sure that CIVL personnel were kept happy). I can operate under pressure without taking it personally. I do have an idea of what the pilots want as the Oz Report sees it as its mission to support the pilot's agenda. I very much appreciate your kind considerations here (I know that tempers will flare in actual situations).

CIVL has asked me to be a CIVL official (I have taken the "training"). I would be happy to be a meet director for the Worlds if I am not on the US team.