SRS Piedrahita: rain fails to halt play

The weather was challenging but the SRS BGD edition finally managed to lay on three tasks after which the Portuguese pilot Carlos Lopes emerged triumphant to win the overall. Deonir Spancerski (BRA) placed second and Tomas Hallengberg (SWE) came third. In the female category Martina Centa (ITA) took the win, Adel Honti (HUN) was second and the third spot on the podium went to Magdalena Janaway (GBR). The top teams were Gin 2, Airtribune and BGD.

The first task – after three non-flyable days – was a difficult 59km route. “A 20km leg into a westerly wind made for extremely hard going,” organisers said. “The thermals, weak at lower levels, became strong and turbulent at altitude. The arrival of a veil of cloud caused a change in pace that put many pilots on the ground. “Having bagged the first turnpoint, the rest of the flight consisted of small thermals and being pushed by a tail wind. As conditions deteriorated, the last pilots in the air were forced to land less than 10 km from the goal.”

What followed were two further non-racing days as rain came to Piedrahita. But organisers said it turned into a masterclass on trimming gliders with talks from Bruce Goldsmith and Brett Janaway. “The atmosphere in the hall was fantastic,” Ruth Jessop said. “Nobody noticed it was pouring with rain. Buses were organised to Salamanca, an amazing town. The icing on the cake was to have two tasks at the end to try newly trimmed gliders.”

These gave the opportunity to explore the whole Pena Negra ridge. The second task was 77km and task three 109km – both “classic Piedrahita”. The pilots flew up and down the ridge to the corrals and towards El Barco, before the real action began.

“There were lots of decisions to be made. Was the valley working sufficiently to venture out into the flats and straight-line it, or stay on the ridge with its reliable thermals before tackling the Villatoro pass, the gateway to the Avila flatlands? The pass showed its teeth to some pilots, but most were waved through to be faced once again with the choice: mountains or flats? Most chose the mountains, but, unsurprisingly, the fastest route was straight down the middle of the plain with its long glides and booming thermals,” organisers reported.

On the last day, the penultimate leg provided a sting in the tail, and the final leg into goal proved treacherous, with its headwind and weak end-of-day thermals putting many of the leaders on the ground.

Having won the first task, Carlos Lopes maintained his lead throughout the competition and despite coming into goal behind the leaders in task three, kept his top spot on the podium. However, the best moment in the whole competition for Carlos was yet to come – he won a BGD Cure 3 in the prize draw! In the female ranking, Martina Centa and Adel Honti battled it out for the whole week, with Martina winning two tasks and flying away with the women’s trophy.

The SRS was also a showcase for BGD’s Sports Class wings, organisers said. The BGD Golden Oldies (40 plus) and The Young Ones (under 30s) flew a mix of Tigras and Cure 3s. Abel Varga, flying the Tigra won two out of the three tasks.

Results

Overall:

1. Carlos Lopes (PRT), GTO 3/Genie Race 5, 2502.1
2. Deonir Spancerski (BRA), Photon/Submarine, 2467.7
3. Tomas Hallenberg (SWE), Scala 2/Calixte, 2238.9

Female:

1. Martina Centa (ITA) GTO 3/Submarine, 1989.0
2. Adel Honti (HUN) Photon/X-Rated 1713.7
3. Magdalena Janaway (GBR), GTO 3/Genie Race 5, 1626.3

Teams:
1. Gin2
2. Airtribune
3. BGD

Full results