Lake Placid Wave Camp 2011

Weather

Radar. National Weather Service Enhanced Radar Image.

The Weather Underground forecast for Lake Placid.

Saranac Lake forecast by USAirNet. This is a graphical aviation forecast showing lots of interesting parameters.

AccuWeather.com forecast. Note that the hour-by-hour forecasts are only valid for shorter term predictions. Further out, the hour-by-hour forecast is a sample.

National Weather Service forecast.

METARs and TAFs. Use codes KSLK (Saranac Lake), KMSS (Massena), KMAL (Malone).

Aviation Weather Center winds aloft. You can change the date and altitude.

Why

The event is a celebration of the season. By this time of the year, many of us want to meet some new friends and see something a bit different. Flying through the mountains in the autumn colours is a fantastic experience. As you wave to the picnicking hikers atop Mt. Marcy or Whiteface, you'll understand what a true privilege it is to soar.

attachment:grid.jpg

Who

All members of RVS are invited. In fact, we need you to show an interest due to the effort involved in transporting our equipment to and from the Adirondacks each year.

If you're new to the club, or have been around a while but haven't yet made it down to Lake Placid, it doesn't matter at all. Just come and join in the occasion - we need your enthusiasm to keep this happening.

What

Members have not organised to transport our Grob 103 to Lake Placid for 2011. However, there is at least one 2-place glider from another club on site. Although members of the other club have priority, there is opportunity to fly for pleasure of for checkout.

The goal of your flight is to experience mountain wave lift. If you're lucky, you'll hit silky-smooth rising air and will be carried up to an altitude you could never encounter at Rideau Valley. From this height, it's often possible to make a radio call all the way back to Kars to remind the others of exactly what they're missing. In the wave, you rise above the clouds to fantastic vistas in all directions and hear the excited radio chatter of the other soaring pilots exploring the region.

Where

The Lake Placid Municipal Airport is one mile south of the village on Route 73.

attachment:lkp.jpg

It takes about 3 hours to drive to Lake Placid from Ottawa. The trip is scenic and day trips are common, but camping at the airport or taking a room at an inexpensive motel are other options. Car pooling is the preferred mode of travel - there is usually a lot to discuss in each direction of your trip.

Check Google Maps for driving directions from downtown Ottawa.

Don't forget to bring appropriate documentation to enter the United States.

When

Weekend of September 24 and 25. Ten days of flying hosted by GGC during Oct 1 to 10.

Charts

The US Sectional chart is freely available. The relevant chart is the Montreal Sectional. The file is 30 MB and is in tiff format.

Adirondacks computer info package

Download this attachment which includes

waypoint file in .cup format (works with many glide computers)
Google Earth file with markers for every waypoint in the .cup file
terrain and map files for LK8000 flight computer

The Google Earth kml file is great for at-home familiarization. Loading the .cup file into certain glide computers is a good way to learn or validate the setup of your equipment prior to arrival, especially if the glide computer can replace .igc files recorded in the Adirondacks or can simulate flight directly.