To "Mothball" or not

[Ou Man]

How do you “mothball” a Trike?
I have been sensitive for the Cape weather since ever. More so since I’ve been flying a Trike.
Can’t stand it any more.
This is what my schedule looks like
Set alarm for 4h15. Lie awake from 3h00 in anticipation. Get up at 4h15.
Wash, spit and polish and drive to the field. (5h00)
Trike out of hanger , re-fuel , preflight check, taxi to holding point 14 (5h30)
Take off…. Wind, 5knts South Easter.
Plan to fly out to Wintervogel.
No!!!! 5 min. up…. wind 8knts at 1000ft.(experience tells me it will get worse)
Rather practice crosswind landings (6h00) (At least getting very good at this!)
Wind picks up 10knts plus. Banged out of the air. (6h10)
Full stop (6h15)
Taxi back to hanger, postflight, lock up(6h40)
Drive back home and give coffee peace-offering to little one for waking her up at 4H15 .
Being the only plane at the field makes it even worse. When more than one, we can at least stand and look at the windsock with a mug of coffee and make intelligent remarks on what is going to happen next(Hangertalk). Tried it on my own once. Believe me, it’s not the same.
So, must I go on and ” mothball” my plane until the winter?

[saraf]

My mornings:

Wake up at 06h00, shit shave, jump into bakkie. Drive to Fisantekraal , there at 06h30, wind 5knots, take out RAF 2000 Gyro copter. Preflight, start, taxi to holding point, take off 06h50, wind 8knots, fly to paarde berg or melkos, wind 10knots, or so they say, fly around , return to fisantekraal, wind 15knots, land, or no, do couple of low levels, land, 08h30. nice flight...........lol

My hart bleeds for you tike okes in this Cape Town weather, realy , I am trike pilot myself and there is nothing "lekkerder" as to fly your trike if the air is smooth.

[Smiley]

Ag nee manne

Please please please don't let wind upset your flying. The only thing the wind does is increase your ETA.

Gusty winds are kak to fly in, but strong non gusty winds aren't necessarily bumpy!!

[The Agent]

I agree with Smiley and dont let your wing go faster than you.

[Harlequin]

Slow down....
Hi there, never ever break rule No: 7, your trike must be flown.
I am spending Dec/Jan near your spot and would like to meet up and fly with you, in the wind ! see you in the air in a few weeks.

H

[Bacchus]

Ou man!
Lekker by jou gekuier die ander dag!
Jy het n "mental Block" van daai dag wat jy die turbulensie gevang het toe jy oorgevlieg het na jou plek toe. Ons sit maar almal met die windprobleem die tyd van die jaar hier onderkant die berge. VLIEG daai trike van jou. Ek meen nie jy moet onder alle omstandighede vlieg nie, maar glo my, daai trike kan baie meer vat as wat jy dink. Ons Wintervogel gang het ook al uitgegaan en dan na die windkous gestaan en kyk sonder om te vlieg ( dit gebeur ), maar ek moet erken, dis seker lekkerder om SAAM met iemand te staan en kyk. Die weer sal jou genoeg gaps gee, maar moet net nie ophou vlieg nie, want dan gaan jy versigtig begin raak vir 2 knoop winde!
Ek voel nes jy, die wind maak mens die moer in hier langes die berge!
Moet net nie daai mooi trike van jou "mothball" nie!!!!!!

[GR8-DAD]

It's them blerry south-easters and easters that spoils the party can only fly from 06:00 to 09:00

[Smiley]

Ou man!
Lekker by jou gekuier die ander dag!
Jy het n "mental Block" van daai dag wat jy die turbulensie gevang het toe jy oorgevlieg het na jou plek toe. Ons sit maar almal met die windprobleem die tyd van die jaar hier onderkant die berge. VLIEG daai trike van jou. Ek meen nie jy moet onder alle omstandighede vlieg nie, maar glo my, daai trike kan baie meer vat as wat jy dink. Ons Wintervogel gang het ook al uitgegaan en dan na die windkous gestaan en kyk sonder om te vlieg ( dit gebeur ), maar ek moet erken, dis seker lekkerder om SAAM met iemand te staan en kyk. Die weer sal jou genoeg gaps gee, maar moet net nie ophou vlieg nie, want dan gaan jy versigtig begin raak vir 2 knoop winde!
Ek voel nes jy, die wind maak mens die moer in hier langes die berge!
Moet net nie daai mooi trike van jou "mothball" nie!!!!!!

Can't agree more!!!

You are going to become so sensitive for wind, if there's a 2 knot wind, you won't fly...!

Some advise: Nextime it's bumpy, look at your wingtip, it's almost not moving up and down. It's the pendulum effect of the cart that's throwing you around!!!

[parafanaylya]

The problem with mothballing is rust - Rusty pilots, rusty jets, rusty float bowls, rusty bores.

No option. Keep flying

[Low Level]

Agree with Saraf - still a gyro student - but even with my inexpierence have flown and landed in quite heavy crosswinds.
Must add that is Gauteng crosswinds - maybe a different story.

[Morph]

Ou Man

Where is your airfield?

At that time of the morning you won't be getting thermal turbulance, just rotors due to the winds. Fly away from anything that can cause the problems, either higher or away. If the SE is blasting then I get thumped quite a bit between Morning Star and Altona, due to the mountians to the south. In these cases I choose to fly west, through Delta 200 and away from the mountains.

Once you have got away from the source of the rotors it is quite comfortable to fly in even heavy winds.

The strongest I have flown in is 30-35 MPH when I took GR8-dad to Saldanha to do his conversion on the Challenger. We flew from Nooitgedagcht (1000ft ALT) near Clan William which is in a deep valley. We were thumped quite heavily by turbulance. I climbed to 4000 ft and it smoothed out nicely. Except for registering 95mph GS on the GPS and 60mph IAS we did not feel any other ill effects from the wind. Saldanha has no major mechanical turbulance issues so you can land and take off in failry heavy winds

It might be worthwhile moving to an airfield like Wintervogel for a while so you can fly with others and learn to tolerate the wind.

[Bacchus]

Ou man is situated between Malmesbury and Hopefield on a private strip. Beautiful gravelstrip, but crosswind like Altona.
Can understand that he can feel lonely there.

Kom speel by ons , dis 20 min flip weg!

[John H Arnold]

Ha Ha Ha hoor wie praat

Ouman as jy jou trike wil "Mothball" vra maar vir Bacchus hoe doen jy dit, hy het mos SATERDAG syne Ge-mothball,

[Ou Man]

Ek glo aan "Murphy".
Maar dit wil vir my voorkom asof daar 'n ander outjie is wat ook sy ding doen. ...lekker dinge.
Net toe ek Sondag dink dit is maar net weer BDD wat gaan opstyg daag die Wintervogel eskader daar by my op. (Volgens John moes Bacchus weer sy Trike uit die bolle gahaal het )
Baie dankie manne Dit was nou wragtag lekker.
Wat die "mothballing " betref. Julle het my oortuig. As ek moet terug sit en wag vir die winter sonder Suid-Oos, gaan ek maar min vlieg. So...ek gaan vlieg . Self die sagte eenetjie hier agter my sê sy is in!
Now you all know were my patch is. 33°19'58 S 18°36'31E Elev. 370ft

14 Right, 32 Left ± 800 meter.
Come and pay me a visit.

[Morph]

I know that strip, wasn't it called "Sandkloof" Last year we did a breakfast flyin to there