ADVENTURES IN THE MONARCH SAILPLANE

It was the 8th of May when we began our spring soaring season in the Monarch ultralight. At noon it was cool with a surface wind blowing in from Lake Michigan 3 miles away at 10mph. down to a steady climb at 50mph without any difficulty maintaining position we quickly arrived at release altitude, I reached down and pulled the release knob and we were free of the tug. I made a few turns to the left and right to check my coordination and then sat back and relaxed a bit, being in the open breeze I can judge the craft's speed very effectively by feel and sound. I could fly hands off, even dangle my feet over the side, for an indefinite period of time attesting to the Monarch's inherent stability. We glided along at a steady 32 mph.

Turning now into the direction of a small cumulus cloud I passed over a large freshly plowed field same 1,500 feet below but Only found downdrafts. Pushing forward on the control stick I speeded up to 40 mph and aimed at a smaller plowed field next door, Down to 1,000 feet as I passed over the field. Suddenly the air began to toss and turn indicating that a thermal in nearby. Now the variometer needle began to swing from 500 feet per minute up to 500 fpm down followed by a sudden surge upwards at 1,000 feet per minute! Again slowing down to 32 mph I set up a 30 degree bank to the right. At this slow speed the turn is tight making the thermal seem enormous in size. Sometimes I would indicate a climb rate of over 1500 fpm and the turbulent air required generous amounts of control to keep us in the center of lift.

>As I looked over the side to the earth below and watched it wheel about, I pondered over the power that must be thrusting me skywards. Yet only a few humans realize that all this power exists. My thoughts were suddenly diverted by a pair of hawks which came over to join me in my elevator excursion to the clouds. Now I really felt like a bird as we soared information through 4, 000 feet. At times the hawks were so close that I could almost touch them, There was no fear between us and I would talk to them as I would my pet dog.

As we soared higher the air became noticeable colder and my hands had turned red, I looked up to see how close the clouds were, perhaps another 1,000 feet, I thought. At 4,500 feet my hands were now purple and my legs would not stop shaking. My light jacket would no longer keep out the cold wind. The desire to climb still higher into the even colder air was quickly dimming. Finally, we were at 5,000 feet and I could almost reach up and touch my cloud. But the cold was unbearable. My hands were numb and I was chilled down to the bone. At this height the air temperature had to be well below freezing. However, the next time I wheeled around towards the sun and felt warmth pour into my face. I could not turn away from it, and flew a straight course into it's inviting rays, During the next ten minutes I relaxed and enjoyed the panoramic view from my aerial lawn chair. Flying open cockpit at a leisurely pace is a total experience. I could hear, feel and even taste my environment with a much greater sensitivity than I had ever experienced in closed in cockpits of standard aircraft. I was free as a bird. Bird? Where did my friends go? I'll bet they are among the clouds by now, Oh well, maybe next time, The warmer air closer to the earth was most welcome as we slowly descended and provided the opportunity to thaw out. Down to 1,400 feet, better head for home.

About half-mile out and at 800 feet I was suddenly driven upwards by a strong thermal. Instinctively, I wrapped into a tight spiral and within a few minutes I was again at 4,600 feet, Recalling my plight of some 30 minutes earlier I broke off and headed upwind following a cloud street for several miles. Lift was plentiful and there was no problem staying above 4,000 feet, even without circling. Slowly the cold crept back into me and that was enough. So home we went despite numerous tugs from several friendly thermals. Despite flying the Monarch over three hours that afternoon I did not feel stiff nor exhausted from fighting the rather turbulent air. Wonder where my bird friends are now?>