Pioneer Day

Pioneer Day is to Utah what Fourth of July is to the United States.

We celebrate the 'founding' of Utah with fireworks, BBQ's, and the like. Well... in the spirit of Pioneer Day, Shadd Heaston and I decided to head over to a 'new' site we've been scouting. The forecast was for big lift, but a Northerly winds aloft forecast didn't bode well for our West/South West facing prospective site. But it's Pioneer day, so we went...

We found this site because Shadd had been looking for a site on Google Earth, and found a dirt road that would lead to what looked like on Google Earth to be the perfect morning mountain site. Long story short, it was too shallow of a launch, and would require a quarter mile glide in ground effect before getting away from the terrain... just a bit too risky to be a regular site.

While exploring, I spotted another dirt road that looked to have good site potential. We found the road and explored... and we found a site!!! The launch is fantastic. Absolutely no trimming or maintenance needed. Room for 50+ gliders, easily! Steep smooth grassy slope with some rocks, but nothing that would trip you up while launching.

We also found an LZ... it's about a 4:1 glide out, and big. It's got some sage brush, it's not a heavenly grassy field (this is a desert, after all), but it's a good, safe LZ with a road right to it. If you're feeling cocky, there's a 6:1 grassy field next to a hotel, gas station, Burger King, Subway, etc... plush.

Well- on Pioneer Day, we headed down to the site to give it a go. Since I'm still nursing a post-shoulder-surgery arm sling, I was the designated driver. Conditions looked great, so Shadd set up. I brought my Zagi to 'wind dummy' this unknown site... finding a couple 'house thermal' locations. Shadd launched, and was 200' over before making his first turn. He spent some time playing/exploring out front, before hooking into a MONSTER thermal and getting up over 13k. He called on the radio that he was headed over the back... it was on!

He was awesome at giving me the play by play of where and how high he was, when he was going on a glide, etc. I followed as best as the roads would allow, most of the time keeping visuals on him (no easy task when he's at 15,ooo ft)!!!

Due to some radio difficulties I lost track of him North East of the town of Fairview, as he was headed toward Route 6. His cloud street had dried up and he was forced to land. It took me a while, but I finally tracked him down and picked him up.

Rumors are coming out that this was a site long ago, and was abandoned (no one knows why)... I sure can't imagine why, unless it's because the road WAS bad (it 'aint now, thanks National Forest Service!). It's, in my opinion, one of the best mountain sites in the Wasatch.

Shadd's pioneering flight, and subsequent 32 mile XC on his Sport 2, is a testament to the potential of this site.

Shadd also flew with my video camera, so look for some footage to come :-)