2025 Sailplane Grand Prix

The pilots meeting this morning was tame. After covering all the normal items, you see in every meeting, John Godfrey our CD, introduced the Affenpinscher of the day. Today was Theo’s turn to be shown off to the group. One day I will have to bring in Regal, my trusty Jack Russell Terrier. We did have some issues about how we conduct a contest in the USA vice in Europe. When you are separated by more than 4,800 miles from your other sailplane family, procedures tend to be different.

The weather for today was expected to be challenging but definitely a contest day. Watering and weighing went well and we stopped training early to give us the entire airfield for the Grand Prix. We launched the sniffers around 1:00pm and the first reports were not encouraging. Just 15 minutes later the sniffers reported good climbs and the fleet was launched.

Our task today was a start line overhead the field with a maximum start altitude of 3,700ft. We went south to Frostproof, west to Streamsong, northeast to Gore, then the south steering point and Finish. This was a 210km racing task.

The start was easy with two groups heading to the start line at the same time. Some pilots were a little low, but everyone made it through the gate without penalty. The first leg had three groups, one east, one west and the middle group. I was in the east group, and we all fell into a hole, getting very low just south of I-4. The western group had to go over a large area of water and that never seems to work well. Sometimes, indecision in itself is a decision and works out for the best. The middle group, which contained our winners, chose correctly. The next leg was into the wind, and you could get a nice run on the blue streets if you were lucky. Some of the pilots got low on this leg also. Going to Gore had you crossing over Winter Haven and all the lakes. If you did not get enough altitude before reaching Bartow, you were in for a rough ride. At Gore, the day was getting weaker and climbs harder to come by. Some went north up Highway 27 and the infrastructure to get a climb, and others went directly to the steering point. Either path was good, and the results were mainly the same. Gintas flew a very nice final glide and was able to pass Fernando Silva before the finish.

The day was a culmination of a lot of hard work from all the volunteers. Mihaela is the orchestra conductor and keeps us all in line. Dewey Clawson runs Operations and keeps everyone safe on the flight line. Tiffany Fidler is our scorer and has more patience than anyone I know. John Godfrey is our CD, good friend and fellow dog lover. John can always come up with a challenging task that is fair but safe. Billy Kerns is the task advisor that helps John in this difficult endeavor.

Today’s scores were posted shortly after landing due to the format of the SGP. In third place garnering 7 points with a speed of 95.5kph, 4:44sec behind the leader was Fernando Silva. Second place went to Gintas Zube, 3:42sec behind the leader getting 8 points at a speed of 96.2kph. Winning the day was Sean Fidler with a speed of 99.0kph. This was his first contest day in his brand new AS-33Es. Keep it up Sean!

Tomorrow is another day and we expect to fly every day this contest. Still more great flying coming from the Sunshine State of Florida.

Cheers,

Rich

We are at the halfway mark of the 2025 FAI Sailplane Grand Prix, hosted by Seminole-Lake Gliderport. Yesterday we had a weather cancellation for Day 4 but today looks great! The field is humming as the pilots are preparing their ships after a day of rest and relaxation.

On the score sheet, the race is tight at the top. Sean Fidler has a good lead with a perfect score of 30 points, with a tie between Gintas Zube and Fernando Silva with 18 points. In third place with 11 points is Robin Clark. We have three pilots with 10 points each, Jim Frantz, Nelson Howe and Sergei Morozov. The top 2 pilots will receive an invitation to the FAI Sailplane Grand Prix finals in Saint Auban France in late August 2025. With the nature of the scoring in the SGP, it isn’t beyond the realm of possibility a big shakeup could happen anywhere on the score sheet. The pilots are flying well and the weather is……….I’m not going to do what I did 2 days ago. Anytime you say the weather is going to be great, something turns, and we are on the ground for a day. We will just say, we will have weather today. Watch us live on sgp.aero with the virtual leaderboard and root for your favorite pilot.

See you around the airfield,

Rich

Today was “bring your dog to the pilots meeting” this morning. One of my fondest memories from my early days in sailplane racing were the Perry pilots meeting and Curtis. He was a huge dog, but just a puppy at heart. When the winner was getting his applause, Curtis would add his congratulations with a distinctive bark. His parents, Heinz and Karen, took him everywhere. Curtis, sadly, is no longer with us but that pilot meeting memory will always bring a smile to my face. So here is to you Curtis, thank you for all the love that made a landout more tolerable.

The ”timed grid approach” that we have been using for the past couple of years is working out very well with the Sailplane Grand Prix. Even though we water the ships, getting the gliders into their final spot has been simple. No more pushing gliders onto the runway in a line up position. No more wing or tail rash from your neighbor. Everyone was happy and maybe we should do this at all contests. If you are a contest manager, call me and we will give you the details on how to do it.

Today’s task was a 358km run that went from Seminole Lake, south to Frostproof, southwest to Myakka Head, east to Avon Park, northwest to Bonny Plant, northeast I-4 & Hwy27, northwest to Green Swamp, northeast to Steering South and then Finish. Our original start altitude was 4,500ft but it was soon evident that it was way too low. It was changed to 6,500ft and that was perfect. Cu were laid out in front of us and all the pilots were ready to go. Once the flag was dropped, it was off to the races. Strong climbs and nice energy lines were a real treat. The first leg was very fast. The second leg, the forecasted convergence did not show as well as expected but several clouds marked the way. The lines were a little different, but most everyone made this leg fast also. Avon Park had two different routes to get there, but neither were a task maker. Jarod went across in the blue and connected with a great climb in the cloud field that gave him the win for the day. Sean and I were chasing him down, but we did not have enough distance to close the deal.

In the end, I finally made it to the podium in third place 49 seconds behind the winner. Sean Fidler was 20 seconds ahead of me due to a nice bump he got on final glide to pass me on the way home. The day belonged to Jarod Granzow winning the day with a speed of 128.2kph over the 358km task.

Tomorrow is the final day of the 2025 FAI Sailplane Grand Prix US. As we said, the first place was Sean Fidler with 42 points and is out of reach from the rest of the field. Three first place finishes in a row will put you in that enviable position. Second place is Fernando Silva with 25 points with Robin Clark in third, just 1 point behind. Gintas Zube is just 2 points behind Robin at 22 points. Erik Nelson is at 21 points. If you are a math wizard, you could figure out all the permutations that could pick the second pilot to get offered a spot In the FAI Sailplane Grand Prix Final in Saint Auban France this August. Where is Michael Mashall when you need him. Remember, first place tomorrow is worth 12 points. The difference between first and second tomorrow is 4 points in the final race. A big move by several pilots could see the score sheet get shaken up. Join us again on sgp.aero and watch the race in real time. Expect a launch around 1pm. Tomorrow morning, I will try and give you a look into the background of all the volunteers it takes to put on a contest. We are lucky to have so many pilots, friends and family members to help us out this week. Until then, stay safe, keep high and come home.

See you around the airfield,

Rich

As the sun came up for the last time at Seminole Lake Gliderport during the FAI Sailplane Grand Prix, it is always appropriate to acknowledge the countless volunteers who have made this event a reality. When you host one of the largest single class contests (The Seniors) the week before, you tend to run out of volunteers. The young fledgling pilots from Lakeland Aero Club are all back in school, spring break is over. Most of the Seniors packed up and went home for preparation for the next premier contest in the area, Region 5 North in Perry, South Carolina. We do have snowbirds who stepped up to lend a hand. Lee Lauder is a quiet man who is most known for towing his glider (55 is his contest ID) with a motorcycle. Lee and Monica live with us during the winter. Lee ran the weighing station, getting up early to support the weighing of every glider, every day. Monica assisted everywhere. Lending a hand, setting up dinners and cleaning up afterwards. Glen Betzoldt was our scrutineering czar. He checked the weight of every glider in the hangar to avoid any wind effect on the ship. He checked paperwork and everything the FAI rules called for. It was a lot of work and Glen came through for us. He also helped at the weighing station. His wife Laura came to our rescue when we were short on launching crew. Glen and Laura are always with us from November to April and we always look forward to their company. Robert Sweeney is a new addition to our volunteers. Robert is a hang glider pilot who is the Contest Director for the Hang-Gliding National Championship at Paradise Air Sports just down the road. He came to see how we ran contests and stayed for both. He was a critical volunteer during these last 3 weeks. Sean Fidler is a great friend, and he volunteered to do the race analysis every night and post it on You Tube. The commentary he provides can give anyone, pilot or not, a good look at the Sailplane Grand Prix. Our tow pilots, Ray, Tom, Jet (yes that is his real name) and Izumi are the best! Ray Smith (Seminole-Lake Chief Tow Pilot) was here for a couple days while the Iron Man of Towing, Tom McLinsky, wrangled the pilots for most days. Tom works harder than almost anyone on the property, making sure all the Pawnees and equipment are kept in top-top shape. From towing, donut runs to fixing the kegerator, there isn’t anything this man cannot do or fix. Bill Batesole and Ryszard Krolikowski were very capable sniffers that launched themselves into the air to check out conditions before we launched. Jan Driessen, the most experienced glider instructor in the US, arranged training before the pilots meeting. He stopped when the contest pilots needed to grid. His coordination of the flight training at our gliderport was key to having a safe event. During this event we had a professional videographer/photographer, Ken Walton and our own Bo Michalowski providing all the photos and videos documenting all the action at the contest. A person that needs no introduction at Seminole Lake is Billy Kerns. He is the man you go to for almost anything. Your glider lost a gear door during the contest, he will be out there with a head lamp to get you flying the next day. For this contest, he was the task creator with our CD, John Godfrey. We flew for 6 days, and each task made the most of the day, even when the weather was not the best. It challenged every pilot, and in the end, the best rose to the top of the scoresheet. One of the most important positions to ensure safety during the launch and recovery phase is the Operations Head. Dewey Clawson has been with us for many years working the Seniors in the same capacity. With new members of the ground crew almost every day, Dewey made sure each person knew their job and performed it safely. Trying to keep track of the 3 tow planes, a contest launch crew and all the friends that came out to watch, Dewey kept us all safe. We also love his wife Nancy and their two Golden Retrievers, Roxie and Katie. We will talk about our core contest staff this evening for the final report. For all those volunteers that help at contests across the globe, thank you for your service to our soaring community. Without you, we could not enjoy this sport we so love. Until later today, see you around the airfield.

Cheers,

Rich