Winter continues to drag on, and the rain shows little sign of letting up — but spirits remained high as the team gathered for our first formal training camp of the year at Nympsfield, hosted by Bristol & Gloucester Gliding Club.
Friday was dedicated entirely to ground work. Neil, Laura and Dan Welch spent the day tackling a list of essential equipment jobs, including work on the SZD trailer to replace the gas struts and improve weather sealing. While not glamorous, these are the sorts of tasks that quietly underpin a successful season. Having access to a heated hangar made a significant difference, turning what could have been a cold and miserable day into a genuinely productive one.
With cautious optimism for a possible weather window on Saturday, the evening was spent in the bar designing sequences, refining ideas, and once again immersing ourselves in the finer details of the CIVA rulebook — a familiar but necessary ritual at this stage of the season.
Saturday morning brought a real highlight, with the team joined by Peter Mallinson, co-author of the Handbook of Glider Aerobatics and one of the defining figures in the development of modern glider aerobatics in the UK. While Peter isn’t currently flying, it was a genuine privilege to spend time with him, and particularly encouraging to hear that he has a clear plan to return to the air later this year.
Moments like this neatly underline the continuity of the sport — the accumulated experience of those who helped shape glider aerobatics being shared with a new generation preparing for international competition. We very much hope Peter will spend more time with us as we work towards WAGAC 2026; his insight, perspective and deep understanding of the discipline remain as relevant as ever.
With flying still uncertain, the rest of the day focused on progressing technical work. Alex joined us at breakfast, and after the customary teas and coffees, attention turned to completing the annual inspection on the SZD. Jobs included adjusting control deflections, improving the fit of the aerotow hook cover, upgrading the battery installation, and installing the new impact-foam seat cushion.
Alongside this, Neil fitted a new microphone in the Fox and completed the build of the custom wing triangles for the SZD — a small detail, but one that makes a big difference visually and practically. They look excellent.
It was a long but satisfying day, finally sitting down for dinner well after 9pm. Conversation inevitably turned to Sunday’s forecast, dominated by the sheer variability between models. Despite everything, optimism lingered that the rain might ease late morning, opening the door to a possible flying window in the afternoon.
Sunday brought low cloud but, mercifully, none of the forecast rain. That may simply have been a quirk of Nympsfield sitting at around 700 ft AMSL, with any precipitation falling below us. We knew from the outset that both gliders would need to be derigged today, but with a slim chance of flying later, we set about keeping ourselves usefully occupied.
The time was put to good use with a mix of practical and preventative jobs: washing out the inside of the SZD trailer, checking tyre pressures, and refitting the ASI in the SZD following its recent calibration. With those tasks complete, we retreated back into the warmth to work on sequence design—trying to refine the optimal programme for the next window of flyable weather.
As hopes of flying gradually faded and dusk began to close in, we finally derigged both the Fox and the SZD, finishing the day by installing dehumidifiers in both trailers to keep everything dry and protected.
A disappointing weekend from a flying perspective, but still a productive one, with plenty of long-standing “I’ll do that later” jobs finally ticked off.
