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Soaring the sky is an aviation podcast dedicated to sailplanes and gliding. Join Chuck as he talks with glider pilots around the globe. You never know who my be the next guest on Soaring the sky.
Episodes
Monday Jan 16, 2023
Monday Jan 16, 2023
On this episode we will be soaring below sea level! In order to do that we will be heading to Isreal where we meet Natan Elsberg. He will be sharing his amazing soaring adventures over the Dead Sea and many other places! Natan has hundreds of hours logged in gliders and has also done alot of towing in Cesna 180s, Piper super cubs, Pawneees and more but, he enjoys flying gliders the most. He currently flies a Janus CM. Natan has visited and flown over 20 glider operations around the world but has been gliding in Israel since 2009. Imedieatly following our chat with Natan, (01:02:35) Sergio The Soaring Master joins us to talk about our soaring goals for the new year and some great ways we can accomplish them.
natan.elsberg@rdvsystems.com
https://www.facebook.com/100001242346488/videos/2050919814959410/
https://www.facebook.com/1560441998/videos/pcb.10216748897345706/10216748892825593
https://www.instagram.com/natan_elsberg
Natan Elsberg Aviation Bio
Age: 53 (Born 1969)
Hours: 1500 total, 700 Glider
Power: SEL, MEL, Instrument Airplane
Glider: FAA Commercial, Israel CFIG
Towed: Cessna 180, Piper Super Cub, Pawnee, *Eurofox
Owned a DA40 in a syndicate
Currently Own a Janus CM in a syndicate
Started flying at age 12, Soloed 172 at age 16
Started Gliders after 250 power hours at Penn State at age 20 (which changed the course of my life)
Visited/Flew at over 20 glider operations around the world
Gliding in Israel since 2009
Instructor since 2014
Sunday Jan 01, 2023
Sunday Jan 01, 2023
Your votes are in! What was the most downloaded podcast episode for 2022? Barbora, The Gliding Junkie joins Chuck to countdown and talk about the best of and most liked episodes on social media. They will also be playing some of the best moments of the past year.
https://www.instagram.com/glidingjunkie/
Monday Nov 28, 2022
Monday Nov 28, 2022
Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, Adriana Barragan grew her passion for life, beauty, science and freedom. During her childhood and teens, she was exposed to disciplined arts and sports that would let her develop her spirit and realize the power of the mind. Raised near the International Airport of Guadalajara, airplanes made her wonder. She had a revelation while learning basic aerodynamics on the internet. She was filled with pure passion and excitement. This was the most amazing applied physics she had ever read and represented the greatness of invention. Her learning and joy for flight only grew from that day.
At age 15, Adriana confirmed her vocation for aviation while feeling reflected in the book “Running from Safety: an Adventure of the Spirit” by Richard Bach. Soon she realized that Flight Testing combined everything she loved, defining her pursuit to become an Experimental Test Pilot. After making her vocation public, her family could only show concern.
Regardless, she took the steps to become proficient in English and applied to MIT, ERAU, and Wichita State University. After receiving letters of admission, she camped on her roof during a clear night where she made her affirmation. This journey promised her everything – adventure, growth, romance, achievement, freedom, joy – and so her family understood this “bug”. Six months before coming to the US, her family supported her to get a private pilot’s license in Guadalajara. Later, she graduated with a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Wichita State University in December of 2014. She worked as a research engineer at the Computational Mechanics Laboratory of the National Institute for Aviation Research for 3.5 years, 3 years as an Experimental Flight Test Engineer at Gulfstream Aerospace, and 2 years as a Maneuver Loads Engineer at Gulfstream Aerospace.
Adriana has been flying since 2010, besides her Private Pilot Certificate, she paid for her Instrument rating, Commercial Pilot Certificate, Flight Instructor Certificate, Glider rating, and a bunch of aviation specialty courses including tailwheel, aerobatics, soaring events, and sea planes. After almost 10 years working as an engineer, Adriana “retired” the corporate world to start ORKA. She currently helps people obtain Private and Commercial Pilot Certificates, Tailwheel endorsements, and supports many students through her remote Online Course.
Her vision is to lead those with a burning aviation desire to the finest flight instructors/coaches/teachers and aviation specialty courses. Because in her aviation journey, aiming for elite training and education, she found most training institutions were leaving gaps of knowledge and experience. ORKA will be the trusted platform to find effective, high quality training and vocation to teach. ORKA shall connect people, specially those new to aviation, to the richness of the aviation community. A network of humble, caring, available and talented individuals with deep knowledge and sharp skills. ORKA shall bring together educators, flyers, engineers, competition pilots, recreational pilots, etc, who have something to teach and want to teach.
Like the flight test of an airplane, Adriana found developing skill and knowledge in a pilot benefits from the disciplined approach we use in Flight Test to expand the envelope. But this time, she was to dedicate her career to develop ”ability” to fly an aircraft to its full capabilities.
Sometimes you are so focused on what you want that you forget what you need.
https://www.facebook.com/flyorka
https://www.instagram.com/fly.orka
Tuesday Nov 15, 2022
Tuesday Nov 15, 2022
On Today's episode we head to Belgium to chat with Wim DeCrooK, a competition paraglider pilot with over 1000 hours. Before finding his sweet spot in the cockpit of a sailplane, Wim competed alot! He was ranked 2nd in the Serial class at the British open in Spain in 2019 and 3rd overall at the Mossella Open in France also in that same year. His best soaring season in a paraglider he flew more than 140 hours. These are just some of his accomplishments. Wim will share some of his adventures & experiences, like the time he ended up being stuck between two thunderstorms and some how managing to escape and land unharmed! Another time he found himself landing in a swamp and soon after standing in his underwear pulling off leeches from his body. Wim has learned alot about soaring and talks about his transition into a glider and what we all can learn from this amazing journey!
Monday Oct 31, 2022
Monday Oct 31, 2022
For this edition of the podcast Scott Manley joins us to talk about how we can use simulation as a powerful tool to learn and also have some fun while we are on the ground. Scott has been an educator and flight instructor for years but recentlry he has been teaching students online all over the globe using condor the soaring simulator. He has so much to share about how we can get the most out of our simulators and have fun while doing it. We also reached out to you the soaring community to find out how you use Condor. Some of you left your coments on social media and some of you recorded your responses on our website and we will be sharing those with you today as well.
Sergio the Soaring Master has a new & interesting segment for us also today and this one is titled "The Days Script". As always we would be greatful if you hit the subsribe button and tell your friends what they are missing! We greatly apriciate you sharing the podcast and growing the soaring community. Enjoy The Show!
Virtualsoaring.eu
CondorSoaring.com/sceneries/
SoaringTools.org
Cumulus-Soaring.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zboY_f3TzEw
soaringthesky.com
patreon.com/soaringthesky
Monday Oct 10, 2022
Monday Oct 10, 2022
Today we will be hearing from two guest pilots! first we will head over to the soaring capital of America, Harris Hill In New York state and chat with our first guest pilot David McMaster! David comes from a large family with lots of aviation history that he will tell us about and share some of those soaring stories at Harris Hill and other parts of the World. David Also competed at the Junior Worlds in the Czech Republic this past summer so he has a lot to share with us!
Later on this episode we will chat with last years OLC Rookie of the year, Laura Stern, she flies out of the Offenburg Gliderport located on the western edge of the Black Forest in Germany. I really enjoyed hearing her stories and I know you will as well. Stick around after our guest pilots for another super informative segment from our friend Sergio The Soaring Master. Sergio's segment this time is titled "Deviation" Join us now for another episode packed full of great soaring content here on Soaring The Sky!
https://www.instagram.com/mcmaster_99/
Monday Sep 26, 2022
Monday Sep 26, 2022
On this episode we will first head to the great Northwest where we find John Foster, our guest pilot soaring over the rocky mountains in Montana. Now this is in a part of the soaring world we have not heard too much about here on the podcast so I was happy when he reached out to us to share his adventures & journey and how he plans to help build the soaring community there. John also flies a Phoebus that has some super interesting history that he will share with us. Later on this episode we will be talking to Doug Fronius, this years winner of the Dust Devil Dash. This was the 38th year of the competition and its always alot of fun. One of the unique things about this event is that you can compete in any glider and in fact, In years past, Doug himself flew his 1943 LK 10 and won! Today he will be breaking down the competition and also his flight in his ASW 20. Also on this episode we will be hearing another great informative segment from Sergio The Soaring Master and today he talks about Take off Emergencies & how we can be safer & more prepared.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgaFIffpm8-JVKxR-zvKedQ
https://www.facebook.com/john.foster.311
Monday Sep 12, 2022
Monday Sep 12, 2022
On this episode we first join Photographer, Videographer & glider pilot Georgia Schofield of New Zealand! Today she shares her gliding adventures soaring all over the world, recently visiting several glider ports. Georgia also has already competed in a couple National competitions where she placed 1st and 2nd. She also has had the incredible opportunity to soar the face of Mount Cook, the highest mountain in New Zealand. Georgia has recently helped out at the Women's worlds as a photographer & Videographer, her profession. Also on this episode we will jump in the cockpit with our good friend Barbora Moracova and experience soaring in the Women's Worlds as she shares her flights and experiences during that event. Later on this episode Sergio the soaring master brings us another informative segment and this one is about flying gaggles safely in a competition.
https://www.instagram.com/georgiasphoto/
Thursday Aug 25, 2022
Thursday Aug 25, 2022
Western mountain air often generates super-charged thermals, endless convergence lines, and very high cloud bases - epic conditions for epic flights. On this episode we join Clemens Ceipek from Chess in the Air on a soaring journey over the 55 tallest peaks of the Rocky Mountains, and his declared 1000 km FAI triangle flight across the entire state - the first ever such flight in Colorado. But there's also a dark side to such extraordinary conditions: when the air goes up extremely fast, it can come down even faster. Extreme downdrafts can be totally invisible - and when you encounter them at a low altitude, they can be a deadly and sometimes an inescapable trap. Shmulik Diementstein, one of the most experienced glider pilots in Colorado, recently died in just one such microburst accident. Clemens will also discuss with Chuck what may have happended on that day and how we can learn to recognize and better avoid this deadly trap."
(00:44:49) Sergio, The Soaring Master brings us a new segment and this one is about a part of the flight envelope that we don't hear much about, the yellow arc (the caution airspeed range) Join us now for episode 125 on Soaring The Sky.
Friday Aug 12, 2022
Friday Aug 12, 2022
David Krautter grew up flying at a small airport near Huntsville, Alabama named Moontown. He received his private pilot's license at 17. He attended Georgia Tech in Atlanta and studied aerospace engineering. David got into soaring in 2010 after he graduated, flying with the Mid Georgia Soaring Association. During that time he started competing and working on improving his cross country skills. David moved to California in 2018 and purchased a LS-6. He spent the last year completely refinishing and modifying the LS-6 with new winglets and other modifications. Two months after refinishing it he landed in Lake Tahoe during the Truckee Regional contest....David is here today to share his story and the events that led up to that crash. We greatly appreciate David's willingness to share his story so we all can learn from it.
Later on this episode Sergio The Soaring Master brings us another very informative segment about glider polars. All this and more now on episode 124
of Soaring the Sky!
Friday Jul 29, 2022
Friday Jul 29, 2022
Clemens Ceipek from Chess In The Air is joining us from Colorado. He will be talking with Bruno Vassel & Dan Wrobel in Utah about their recent Soaring Safari they completed. You may have followed some of their journey on Facebook. Their adventure included 5 states and approximatly 1,800 miles. With a Ground Crew & a refurbished glider winch from the 1960's. They take us through each leg of this journey and share their experiences along the way. From rope breaks to landing out in a farmers field while cattle surround the glider and a bull standing guard near by. They tackled some of the highest mountains in the United States and some of the most unlandable terrain.
Sergio, The Soaring Master is back with another great segment and this one is about final glides. All of that now on episode 123 of Soaring The Sky.
Friday Jul 15, 2022
Friday Jul 15, 2022
On this episode Chuck talks with Amelia, a glider pilot soaring in the United Kingdom. Yes her name fits her very well as you will soon find out. At just 15 years old she is already making an impact on the sport. She loves sharing her soaring journey on Instagram and already has over 60,000 followers! Ameila also recently was ask to be the roving reporter for the buildup to the 2022 Woman's Worlds and she has already interviewed several pilots that will be in that event this year there in the U.K in August. As you will hear today Amelia is always so excited to share with the World this amazing sport and has lots of soaring stories she shares with us today.
(57:00) Later on this episode our good friend Sergio The Soaring Master is back with another very informative segment and this one is about discarding thermals.
Friday Jul 01, 2022
Friday Jul 01, 2022
On this episode our guest pilot is Steve Keltie. Steve's father was an engineer so, he has been around aviation since he was very young. Hanging out at the airport watching test flights and soaking up all the sights and sounds he could. Steve even had the opportunity as a kid to be around aviation royalty Bob Hoover and other well known aviators. Steve sits down with our producer Mitch and shares some stories about catching thermals above pineapple fields in Hawaii, cargo gliders invading Japan? Steve will also share with us a flight that caused him to walk away from the sport for a bit. He talks about some great experiences flying his LP-15, a very unique glider with an interesting history! After Mitch's chat with Steve we will join Sergio The Soaring Master for another new segment. This one is about sailplane improvements.
Friday Jun 17, 2022
Friday Jun 17, 2022
On this episode we head to Las Vegas Valley Soaring where we chat with Jay McDaniel! What's it like soaring in the desert heat and monster thermals? Join us now as we hear some crazy stories and personal experiences Jay shares with us that include, Area 51, UFO's, mid air collisions and Potato Guns? Later on this episode Sergio the Soaring Master is back with another segment titled "Bounced Landings" All this and more on episode 120 of Soaring The Sky, a glider pilot's podcast
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_uS0NF1gEwjT4h6gALQqdBdmcw-resfY/view?usp=sharing
Thursday Jun 02, 2022
Thursday Jun 02, 2022
Today we will first head to the Czech Republic and talk with our good friend Barbora Moravcova, She is a member of the Czeck Repubulic Women's gliding team and has just finished competing in the 15 meter class of the FCC Flight Challenge competition in Slovokia, flying her LS8. Unfortunately the first day of that competition was a rough one to say the least. Barbora chose to share this with us in hopes that we all can learn from it and be better and safer pilots. She will also share with us how she worked through it, since she recived the news while still in the air and had to get her glider safely back on the ground. She will talk about her plans for the rest of her soaring season and take a look at the Women's Worlds she will be competing in later this summer in the United Kingdom.
Later on this episode we join Jack Jenner Hall in Great Britain, a 15 year old glider pilot who just won his first aerobatic competition and currently working on being a flight instructor. Jack has been flying gliders since he was 11 and aviation is his passion like many of us.
Check out Jack's YouTube link below
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC24dczaxHqscIgPG5v-wCzA
Friday May 20, 2022
Friday May 20, 2022
Our friend Zach Yamauchi recently caught up with Gordon Boettger, Gordon has added a whole new meaning to "cross country" soaring as you are about to hear on this episode. He has been soaring pretty much his whole life. He soloed at 14 and has not looked back. Gordon holds 5 US distance Records and has Multiple crosswind and downwind flights beyond 2000 km, including flights done in a Kestrel from the 1970s.
He began his professional aviation career in the Navy, and now flies for FedEx. Gordons true passion for aviation is in the glider and finding the perfect conditions to grab another long distance flight.
Finally, a reminder for us all before we let him tell his story, "Gordan is a highly experienced aviator, and has a lifetime of experience that has enabled him to do these amazing flights safely and legally. The experiences we are about to share with you are for educational and entertainment purposes only and are NOT a substitute for formal flight training or mentorship."
Later on this episode, Sergio The Soaring Master joins us for some great information and advice on speed to fly. Join us now for this exciting episode as we bring you episode 118! Enjoy the show!
You can find Gordon on instagram @grboettger where he has shared some amazing shots from the glider.
If you are able to to help us grow the show please go to www.patreon.com/soaringthesky or www.soaringthesky.com if not please share the podcast with your friends and fellow glider pilots.
Friday May 06, 2022
Friday May 06, 2022
Morgan Hall has just experienced an amazing uncharted soaring route flying wave in the sierras. What an adventure he had! You can open the OLC link below and follow along with us as he tells us about this crazy ride in wave. Morgans family has a deep aviation background that goes all the way back to World war II. So, its not a suprise that he was determined to start his own aviation journey. So, he traded his computer for his first aircraft, an ultralight. Soon after he discovered hang gliders and flew them for over 15 years before discovering sailplanes. Join us now for this amazing soaring adventure here on Soaring The Sky!
https://www.onlinecontest.org/olc-3.0/gliding/flightbook.html?st=olcp&rt=olc&pi=38592&sp=2022#
Friday Apr 15, 2022
Friday Apr 15, 2022
On this episode we chat with Rudi Schlesinger, glider pilot and airline captain. Rudi started flying gliders in 1998 and later flew competitions including the Austrian Junior Nationals in 2002, Junior Worlds In Slovakia in 2003 and later that year he was invited to a training camp with Geaorge Lee in Austria. Rudi flew his first 1000k flight in 2010. He was Austrian National Champion in 2012. He had 2 World Records in the 13.5m class in 2020. On this episode he shares some crazy stories like the time he flew around the tower at the Vienna International Airport in his glider! Rudi also enjoys flying gliders in other parts of the world when ever he gets the chance. He has flown in Germany, Japan, Isreal, Denmark, switzerland and the United states. Stick around after our chat with rudi for another new segment from our friend Sergio The Soaring master as he talks about Cross Country Checks. All This and more now on Soaring The Sky.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCo56UcCP26LxgSVCiHPTbwg
Monday Mar 28, 2022
Monday Mar 28, 2022
On this episode we head to Fayence France to chat with our guest pilot Christopher Fleming. Chris took the opportunity as an airline pilot to soar in as many locations as he could but, found his soaring paradise in the Alps. He decided to move there so he could fly more often. Today we chat about his many adventures and the important things he has learned along the way & what it takes to fly in that kind of tarrain with little to no landing out options. We also get into thermaling, convergence, wave, cockpit updates , exterior glider care, Flarm, and even chat about the new 360 camera that he just started using for his flights on his Feyance Soaring Youtube channel. You can find the link below. Chris is a big promotor of cross country soaring as well . Stick around after our chat with Chris because Sergio The soaring master has another great segment for us and this time its about effective thermaling. So Join us now as we bring you episode 115 here on Soaring The Sky!
https://www.youtube.com/c/FayenceSoaring
Monday Mar 14, 2022
Monday Mar 14, 2022
Ian Brubaker started his aviation journey in 2006, first flying powered in Cessnas, then sailplanes, and then moving on to hang gliders. Hang gliding has been his primary form of aviation for the past several years and he has been teaching it since 2015, holding a basic instructor and tandem rating. Ian also holds a B.S. in Space Physics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Ian's passion and expertise is to make flying easy to understand and fun to learn by leveraging both his practical and theoretical background of aviation. Ian Joins our Producer Mitch to chat about his adventures flying Sailplanes, Hang Gliders and what he enjoys about each one and what we can learn from flying different types of aircraft.
Later on the podcast our friend Sergio, The Soaring Master brings us another segment and this one talks about the 5 ways we can improve our soaring. Join us now for episode 114 of Soaring The Sky, a glider pilot's podcast.
Monday Feb 28, 2022
Monday Feb 28, 2022
This episode’s guest host is glider pilot and YouTuber extraordinaire – the one and only Bruno Vassel! Bruno joins us from Utah, and even in the small world of soaring, this will be his first time to ever connect with the legendary Stefan Langer. Together their gliding videos already have over 85 million views, and they have inspired countless thousands of people to take up or at least try flying in a glider. In this episode, they share their journeys and the various adventures they’ve experienced along the way. You don’t want to miss this one!
Later on this episode, Sergio The Soaring Master brings us another one of his feature segments., where he talks about the importance of flying new types of sailplanes, and how it can help us be better glider pilots.
https://www.youtube.com/c/StefanLangerVideoBlog
https://www.youtube.com/c/BrunoVassel
www.patreon.com/soaringthesky.com
Monday Feb 14, 2022
Monday Feb 14, 2022
We are excited to have glider pilot and project manager of the AK-X flying wing, Dominic Poppe with us. Join Tom Coussens, our guest host, as he gets the full story from Dominic behind the scenes at Akaflieg Karlsruhe in Germany. What does it take to design and build such an amazing aircraft?
Later on the podcast Sergio The Soaring Master will join us to talk cross country soaring and turn points. Join us now for another soaring adventure now on episode 112 of Soaring The Sky.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtk6WKPD-yeOH4Sl_Bjd4_A
Monday Jan 31, 2022
Monday Jan 31, 2022
On this episode we chat with world famous aviation photographer and glider pilot Tobias Barth! Many of you have seen his incredible images taken all over the World. Since 2019 the "Aviation Calendar", Soaring edition has exclusively used his pictures. His work has also been featured in Magazines and other media. What does it take to get all those amazing shots while flying sometimes only a wingspan apart from the other aircraft? Tobi started flying gliders at the age of 13 and never looked back. He continues to enjoy soaring and many of those flights you will find him with camera in hand looking for that next great shot. You can find thousands of images on his website. (see show notes for link)
(01:05) Sergio The Soaring Master brings us another great segment and this one is titled "Flying Old Timers" Everyone, if given the opportunity should take a flight in these amazing time machines. What can we learn from these vintage aircraft?
https://www.pictrs.com/tobias-barth-photographie
https://www.instagram.com/tobi.barth.photographer
Monday Jan 17, 2022
Monday Jan 17, 2022
On this episode our friend Tom Coussens catches up with Zach Yamauchi who just had a 1039 Kilometer Flight in
mountain wave in the Sierraas. Zach takes us along on this flight so we can see and feel what it's like to experience this amazing flight and what it takes to fly in wave. Stay tuned after Tom & Zach because we have another new segment from Sergio The Soaring Master and this one is titled "Flaps" All this and more on episode 110 of Soaring The Sky!
Monday Jan 03, 2022
Monday Jan 03, 2022
On this episode we bring you several short soaring stories from glider pilots all over the globe & celebrate another exciting year here on the podcast. From Crash landing in the Frence Alps to bailing out after a mid air collision. These are just some of the stories you will hear now on this episode of Soaring the sky.
Monday Dec 20, 2021
Monday Dec 20, 2021
On this episode we bring you a guest host and a guest pilot! Barbora, AKA The Gliding Junkie on Instagram is a member of the Czech National Gliding Team, Flight Instructor and comes from a family of Aviators with both her parents being pilots. Any free time she has you will find her in the cockpit of her LS8. Barbora chats with our producer Mitch about her recent adventures flying at Wave Camp and other interesting flights she has had. We will also bring you a fun new segment where we chat with our guest pilot about some crazy scary soaring Youutube videos and what we can learn from them. You can find links to those videos below. So join us now and get your soaring fix with Barbora, The Gliding Junkie.
soaringthesky.com
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OULQ1yMVclE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkXpJcb3wjM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfCh9tvGSOk&t=49s
Monday Dec 13, 2021
Monday Dec 13, 2021
Hello Soaring community and welcome back to the podcast! This is our second bonus episode from some of our most played interviews and this time we bring you our chat with Stefan Langer! So grab your favorite beverage and enjoy our chat with Stefan.
https://www.youtube.com/c/StefanLangerVideoBlog
Tuesday Dec 07, 2021
Tuesday Dec 07, 2021
Our guest today is Zach Yamauchi a 23 year old glider pilot and Aerospace Engineer currently working for a company foccused on unmanned aircraft. Zach learned how to fly gliders while attending Cal Poly. He also had the oppertunity to work on the Nixus project, The first general aviation project using a 28 meter wingspan glider using fly-by-wire technology. Zach will share with us more on this project as well as other soaring adventures he has had.
(01:11) Listener logbook. Christopher Stevenson returns with a new listener logbook as he chats with some west coast pilots about some recent winter flights they had.
(01:13:50) Sergio the soaring master is back with us with a brand new segment called, should I stay or should I go. All this and more now on episode 107 of Soaring the sky!
Sunday Nov 28, 2021
Sunday Nov 28, 2021
Miguel Iturmendi, one of the pilots from the Perlan project as he answers your questions and shares his adventures flying super high altitudes and what it’s like soaring in the only pressurized glider in the world. Is it possible to fly the Perlan Ship on Mars? You may be surprised when you hear the answer. Miguel is also a test pilot and will also tell us about a very famous solar motor glider he has been flying most recently.
perlanproject.org
soaringthesky.com
patreon.com/soaringthesky
Saturday Nov 20, 2021
Saturday Nov 20, 2021
Gavin McClurg is an, author, adventurer, public speaker and host of the podcast Cloudbase Mayhem. He has flown in Alaska being the first person to traverse the full length of the Alaska range by foot and paraglider. He became the first American to complete the toughest adventure race on earth the X-Alps. Gavin shares his amazing journey with us now.
Later Sergio The Soaring Master joins us for another segment about cloud flying. All this and more now on episode 106 of Soaring the sky!
https://www.youtube.com/user/bestodyssey
Instagram @gavinmcclurg
Tuesday Nov 09, 2021
Tuesday Nov 09, 2021
Our episode today includes stories about getting caught in dust devils, low saves and Space X? Our guest Tom Coussens has experienced all that and more! Tom's aviation journey starts when his Dad spots a P-51 Mustang back in the mid 50's and then learns to fly so he can buy one! After his first solo in a Citabria at 16 Tom received his private powered license at 18. He later starts a career as an aerospace engineer and ends up working with Space X.
(17:43) In 1986 Tom finds his way to gliders and the soaring adventures begin! Being a powered pilot already, Tom also starts towing gliders as well. He currently has over 3,400 tows! Sit back and enjoy this amazing journey as we soar into episode 105 on Soaring The Sky.
Tuesday Oct 26, 2021
Tuesday Oct 26, 2021
On this episode of the podcast we head just outside of L.A and join our Co Producer Mitch! He is going to share with you his interview with Glider Pilot Howie Bohl, Howie comes from a long line of aviators starting with his great grandfather who started flying in the 1920s with the Army ROTC and eventually flying for United Airlines. His Grandfather was also an Airline pilot as well as his father. Howie started flying at age 13 in gliders and soloed on his 14th Birthday. He then started flying Powered and soloed at 16. He later became a tow pilot and continued to fly gliders and then he himself started flying with the airlines. Howie has flown all over the world and not just for the Airlines but also in gliders. Today he shares with us some of those adventures.
Also on the podcast today Sergio the Soaring Master is back with some advice on Blue Days! All that and more now on soaring The Sky!
Monday Oct 11, 2021
Monday Oct 11, 2021
We are honored and happy to bring you our Interview with German pilot Ben Fest! He has made history by becoming the first ever World Champion of an eSport contest in any aeronautical discipline! Ben joins us to share his adventures and journey not only in virtual soaring but in real gliders that he loves to fly as well. He started flying gliders in the real world when he was just 13 years old but had already been flying Condor a year before that. When Ben's schedule does not allow him to get into the real glider he stays connected with the soaring world through Condor wearing his VR glasses where he can fly anytime day or night. Join us now to hear Ben's aviation journey and adventures now on soaring the sky.
https://esport.sgp.aero/news/44-ben-fest-world-champion-of-the-1st-virtual-sailplane-grand-prix
Tuesday Sep 28, 2021
Tuesday Sep 28, 2021
Today on this episode we head to the 36th World gliding Championship in Montlucon France as Chuck interviews one of the Pilots who competed in this years event. All eyes were on France since the Worlds in Germany was canceled. Our guest Daniel Sazhin shares his journey that starts in New Jersey as he heads across the Atlantic to fly in one of the biggest contest of his souring career and what it's like flying with the best in the World!
Flying Simon also returns for another segment as he returns from the National Junior Competition in the netherlands. He has been there before but this time as a coach. Join us now for this and so much more!
Tuesday Sep 14, 2021
Tuesday Sep 14, 2021
Today on this episode we have a guest host and guest pilot! Chuck hands the microphone over to Clemens Ceipek as he interviews glider pilot Tim Bromhead of the famous youtube channel Pure Glide! Tim is an active contest pilot and Flies out of Piako Gliding Club in the north island of New Zealand. The site is also close to the famous Hobbiton where Lord Of The Rings was filmed. How did Tim got hooked on gliders? What is it like flying in one of the most amazing soaring sites on the planet? All this and some great stories Tim shares with us as well.
(44:38) Flying Simon brings us another Simon Says segment and some stories about some gliders you probably never knew existed and the people that flew them.
(48:45) Sergio The Soaring Master shares a lesson in cross country and checkpoints.
Tuesday Aug 31, 2021
Tuesday Aug 31, 2021
Join us now for our 100th episode celebration! Bruno Vassel helps Chuck & The Team Celebrate this podcast milestone! We will have some laughs, hear some great stories and even hear from some of our previous guest pilots from all over the globe.
(56:30) Our Listener Logbook returns with a story from the famous Harris Hill about a young passenger who accidently releases the tow rope way too early.
(01:02) Sergio The Soaring Master is back to give us some advice on buying a sailplane.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEFlKFCFhuoacr_qCYu1I5Q
Tuesday Aug 17, 2021
Tuesday Aug 17, 2021
On this epidsode we had the priviledge to catch up with Clemens Ceipek, Competition Glider Pilot, Blogger & Youtuber to chat about his recent experience competing at the 18 Meter Nationals in Nephi! He talked about the crazy terrain transitions & strong thermals and dealing with a wild fire in the area during the contest. Nephi is a majestic place to fly. So Get ready for big thermals, big sink and some tough competition!
(58:35) Also in this episode Sergio The Soaring Master is back with another lesson to be learned. This one is focused on the mental battle we go through before landing out. All this and more now on Soaring The Sky.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzq-jHW8EupBpGaDgapsDvw
Tuesday Aug 03, 2021
Tuesday Aug 03, 2021
Kempton Izuno is back from the 20 Meter 2 Seater Nationals in Montague California and will share his experiences flying a contest with another pilot in the cockpit. He will also share some super interesting experiences he has had in the cockpit. Like the time he actually was sucked up into a Thunderstorm and flying blind for two and a half minutes!
(52:00) Sergio The Soaring Master is back with a unique story about soaring in the Olympics?
(59:25) Christopher Stevenson, our on the road soaring reporter heads to the Soar Safari in Lone Pine California and interviews some of the pilots about their flights.
Tuesday Jul 20, 2021
Tuesday Jul 20, 2021
8x Brazilian Champion Henrique Navarro, Glider competition pilot, Instructor, Aerobatic instructor and author joins us today. He also has competed several times in the World Gliding Championships in (France 2006, Argentina 2012, Finland 2014, Lithuania 2016, Czech Republic 2018) Henrique has broken 33 national records in Brazil has over 5,000 hours in gliders, over 500 in airplanes (mostly towing gliders) & has flown 64 different glider types He is also a Sales agent for Schempp-Hirth gliders.
(43:35) Sergio shares a story about a glider pilot crossing The Andes in 1964 with no working Radio in The cockpit! Join Sergio The Soaring Master as he tells this amazing true story about the first successful crossing of the Ades in a glider. All this and much more on episode 97 of Soaring The Sky!
Tuesday Jul 06, 2021
Tuesday Jul 06, 2021
Tony Condon has recently won The Club Class Nationals in Tennessee! He will take us with him in the cockpit as we experience what it's like from start to finish and what it takes to soar all the way to the podium. Tony has competed in many National gliding competitions as well as the 13.5 Meter World Gliding Championships. When he is not competing he is teaching others how to Soar!
(44:00) What is Dolphin Flight? We find out on this episode as we head to Brazil to hear from Sergio as he explains it in our new soaring master segment titled Soaring With Sergio the Soaring Master.
(50:00) Flying Simon joins us from the Netherlands with some soaring advice about landing out and how his crew found him near a small German village enjoying a beer with the locals after one of his landouts. Hear his new segment that we like to call Simon says! All this and more now on Soaring the sky.
Tuesday Jun 22, 2021
Tuesday Jun 22, 2021
Contest Flying, scary landouts, hangar stories, Waco gliders & world war II and more! Our featured guest pilot today is Dave Reilly joining us from Merlan Soaring center in Virginia.
Like many of us From the time he was a kid he wanted to fly. Dave discovered gliding in 2005 and progressed from the 2-33 to the 1-26 and on. He now enjoys flying in is very own LS8-18 Dave shares some great stories with us like the time he was not sure if he was going to make it back to the glider port but remembered he had been in this situation before in the same area during simulation flying in Condor what happens next may surprise you?
In mid May Dave did a 240 mile flight that completed the altitude and distance requirements for his Silver Badge, as well as the requirements for his Gold Distance and the Diamond Goal. On a fun note, he recently flew a 114 mile run to the North west ridges and retrieved the Boomerang plaque from the Front Royal club after they landed at Merlin and claimed it on 5/15. He will better explain the Boomerang during our chat.
Dave's only regret? he wishes he would have discovered this amazing sport earlier!
We will then head to the Netherlands for our new segment "Simon Says" as Flying Simon talks about one of his favorite soaring activities...flying contest.
Our Listener logbook is back today as we head to the Hangars in Tehachapi California and dust off the pages of some vintage glider logbooks that hold some amazing stories from World War II and more. Christopher Stevenson chats with Doug Fronius a vintage glider owner and enthusiast.
Have you ever been bored in the Cockpit while in the air? Is that even possible? Dale Masters will bring us another soaring Tale and this one is titled Stir Crazy! All that and much more now on episode 95!
Tuesday Jun 08, 2021
Tuesday Jun 08, 2021
On this episode we head to Brazil to chat with Sergio Lousada, he is 35 years old and is a Soaring Pilot, Cross country Coach, and Flight Test Engineer. Sergio has been flying sailplanes since 2007, but for as long as he can remember he has been addicted to aviation. Interesting enough, soaring made it possible to fulfill his dreams.
As his gliding activity was decisive when he was selected to become a flight test engineer of military aircraft and he got to fly a good number of them! What he learned in the flight test environment he found to be very useful to soaring. And What is the Soaring Master Project? we will soon find out!
Sergio has flown in many parts of the world (Andes, Alps, and Brazil and since 2018 has been acting as coach for the Brazilian AF soaring team! So many great stories like the time he depended on his motor glider engine to start while he was getting dangerously low!
(52:40) Dale Masters Brings us another Soaring Tales With Dale, and this one is titled A Half Second Later Is A Second Too Late!
(55:40) We are excited to bring you a new segment on this episode called Simon says. One of our previous gust Flying Simon has a brand new story and some very important advice from a flight he experienced early in his soaring journey. All that and more now on Soaring The sky!
https://www.soaringmaster.com/
Tuesday May 25, 2021
Tuesday May 25, 2021
Don Ingraham was living in Minneapolis when he was bitten by the soaring bug in 1993 at age 39. Thanks to the tutelage of Bob Wander, by age 40 he had soloed, earned a PPG certificate and purchased a Jantar Standard.
Over the next couple of years he flew the Jantar to more than a dozen MN State Soaring records and kept busy during the winters refinishing it in gelcoat (with much phone advice from George Applebay). Don started flying contests in it in 1996 and moved up to a Discus in 1999. His wife, Kathy, was always willing to track him down, trailer in tow, when he couldn’t make it home from a XC flight. He won the Hilton Cup in 1999 and got to make a dream come true - meeting top pilots and flying different gliders from the Hilton Ranch for ten days straight.
A few years later, in 2003, he asked Kathy what she thought about the idea of going into business running a commercial glider operation. He explained the six-figure salary would be gone and there was a very steep and potentially perilous learning curve. And it would take a big chunk of money. And he had no idea how to do it. And they had two toddlers, Chase (2) and Ali (4). Kathy paused for a moment, then asked how he would feel, years from now, looking back,
if he went back to the stable-yet-now-soul-crushing computer world and never tried to start his own business. Don said he’d feel like a frumpy cowardly wimpy loser. Kathy said she didn’t want to be married to that guy, so game on! Don and Kathy built a website, bought a tow plane (Socata Rallye 235E) and a glider (Grob 103 Twin II) and opened the doors of Cross Country Soaring in Faribault Minnesota in 2004. They now operate a second Grob 103 and a have a winch. He is beginning his 17th year in operation. Check it out crosscountrysoaring.com
Bob Wander was a key factor in Don’s success in pursuit of life in the sky and they have remained good friends. Bob asked Don to write a book based on a talk he delivered at the Sport’s Aviation Conference in Minneapolis in 1996.
That book is now available at bobwander.com for a song! It is called, “The Final Four Minutes - Landing Out”. Bob wrote the second half.
(57:02) Soaring Tales With Dale, Dale Masters brings us another soaring Adventure and this one is titled "Totemic Polemic"
crosscountrysoaring.com
bobwander.com
soaringthesky.com
patreon.com/soaringthesky
Tuesday May 11, 2021
Tuesday May 11, 2021
On this episode we first talk with Miguel Iturmendi, one of the pilots from the Perlan project as he answers your questions and shares his adventures flying super high altitudes and what it's like soaring in the only pressurized glider in the world. Is it possible to fly the Perlan Ship on Mars? You may be surprised when you hear the answer. Miguel is also a test pilot and will also tell us about a very famous solar motor glider he has been flying most recently.
(52:52) Dale Masters is back and has another Soaring Tales With Dale and this one is titled Eagle Eyes.
(56:58) Contestants David Hart and Daniel Sazhin chat with us on location at Chilhowee Gliderport in Benton Tennessee as they get ready to compete with others in the Club Class Nationals! What is it like flying a contest? How is the course? All this and more now on episode 92 of Soaring The Sky!
perlanproject.org
soaringthesky.com
patreon.com/soaringthesky
Tuesday Apr 27, 2021
Tuesday Apr 27, 2021
Flying Simon is a glider pilot joining us from the Netherlands and a few years ago he started his YouTube channel 'Flying Simon'. He has captured some of his amazing flights. Simons goal is to share the excitement and the wonderful perspective of gliding and this year he hopes to share adventures all over Europe from flights in new gliders to the Junior European Championships in Lithuania! Simon chats with us today on the podcast and shares some of his aviation adventures including the story about one of his YouTube adventures in an open canopy Vintage glider!
Staying on the theme of vintage gliders we will join Bob Armstrong for our Tips & Techniques segment in his hanger where he keeps a 1946 Schweitzer SGU 1-19 that has been flown over Oshkosh! Dale Masters brings us another soaring Tales with Dale and this one is titled "Feathered Avatars" We will bring another Soaring Safety Segment as well as our Brand new Listener logbook Segment where you get to share your soaring stories! Click The link below now to record your soaring story and hear it on an upcoming episode! All this and more now on episode 91 of Soaring The Sky, a glider pilot's podcast.
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https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9EBe57bs62VdCq1Lntalog
https://www.instagram.com/flying.simon/
patreon.com/soaringthesky
Tuesday Apr 13, 2021
Tuesday Apr 13, 2021
Today our featured guest flies out of southern California. Casey Scholz is a 650 hour commercial pilot flying in airplanes and gliders. His ratings include, multi-engine land, single engine sea and land, instrument rating, as well as AGI/IGI ratings. He is currently Working towards his CFI-A and CFI-G. He has approximately 200 hours in tow planes and has about 1,000 tows in the Tow-plane. Casey shares some great stories and also some lessons he has learned flying both ends of the rope that have helped him to become a better and safer powered and glider pilot.
(1:10:30) We then head to the Czech Republic For our Soaring Safety Segment and catch up with Barbora Moravcova. You may know her as the Gliding Junkie on Instagram. She currently flies with The Czech National gliding Team. She will bring us some great safety tips and talk about what she has been up to since we last spoke to her. She also has some pretty cool stories she will share with us.
(1:43) Dale Masters, author and glider pilot will be bringing us another Soaring Tale with dale and this one is Titled "We Hadn't The Foggiest"
(1:44:45) We are then going to head over to Blairstown NJ to catch up with Daniel Sazhin, He brings us our Tips & technics segment on this episode. He has been up in the air and most recently had some super interesting flights with Bald and Golden Eagles. You can click on the link in the show notes to his blog to check out some awesome shots his girlfriend took from the glider. He will share that story from that flight with us as well.
This is our first episode with our brand new segment where we hear from you the soaring community! Chris Stevenson shares one of his soaring adventures about landing out. To share your soaring adventure just click the link below and click on the microphone near the bottom of the page. We want to share your soaring adventure on the next Soaring The Sky, a glider pilot's podcast.
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soaringeconomist.com
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Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
On this episode of the podcast we first head to the Philippines and talk with Rolf Dunder, He originally learned to fly in Hamm-Lippewiesen Germany but is currently the only glider pilot soaring in the Philippines. Rolf started soaring in 1979, soloed in 1980 at the age of 15. He received his PPL in gliders in 1982 and his CFIG in 1989. In 2000 he picked up his Ultralight rating and in 2001 his Paraglider as well as his single engine in 2002. In 2008 he moved to the Philippines where he started glider operations Nampicuan and now Tuy. Rolf has flown many gliders including the
ASK-13, Ka-8, Ka-6, K-7, Twin III, ASK-21, DG-505, ASW-15b, ASW-19b, LS-4, Standard Libelle, IS-28,
Schweitzer 2-33, Puchatek, Duo Discus, SZD-55, and the Nimbus 4DM.
Rolf has also experienced soaring all over the world and will share some of those exciting adventures with us. He has flown in Japan, France, Australia, Italy, Spain, The United sates and even had the pleasure to be a guest on a 985 km triangle flight in a Nimbus 4DM in Kuruman South Africa. Ralf has logged over 900 hours in gliders that includes over 2,500
flights. He also has over 100 hours in Single engine aircraft with 300 hours in ultralights and 100
hours in paragliding.
(45:45) Also on this episode we will hear another exciting soaring adventure from Dale Masters on Soaring Tales With dale and this one is titled "Go Fly A Kite"
(49:45) For our Soaring safety segment CFIG Ben Mayes joins us from Williams Soaring Center in Williams California for some great advice and some interesting soaring stories.
(1:15) Our Tips and technics segment Monette Beers joins us to share her experience attending the recent Seniors Soaring Championship in Seminole Lake Florida.
All this and more now on episode 89 of Soaring The Sky
Tuesday Mar 16, 2021
Tuesday Mar 16, 2021
Bill Palmer is our first guest pilot we will hear from on this episode.
Bills soaring journey started in 1991 when his wife gave him a glider flight for his Birthday . It was with the now famous Bob Wander in Minnesota. Bill had recently qualified as an A320 captain with Northwest Airlines at the time, but had not flown gliders before nor had any exposure. He started with The 2-33 northeast of the Twin Cities. With the private check ride approaching squashed by winter, he picked up the following May (as Minnesota melted) and decided to simply push for the commercial, which he then completed.
He continued to fly with the Minnesota Soaring club until 1995 where he flew an ASK 21, ASK 7, K8, & an SGS 1-23. Some pilots would do cross country trips with their own gliders, mostly downwind dashes with
a crew to follow in a trailer. Not having access to a crew, Bill put that out of his mind and enjoyed taking friends for rides and working through the A through Bronze badges, and completed the silver 5 hour
duration and 1000 meter gain flights. Bill would have to wait 23 years to complete the silver distance.
Bill moved to San Diego California in 1995 and didn’t seek out soaring there until 2012, after a couple of moves he realized that Sky Sailing was only about 40 minutes away. He checked out in their Grob 103,
102, and SGS1-26 and 1-36 and had a fun time being able to climb to 12,000 feet and play the how-
long-can-I stay-up game, while stretching his goals all within gliding distance of the airport.
Bill is also the author of the book "Understanding Air France 447" Its About An A-330 that crashed into the Atlantic North of Brazil in 2012.
His Soaring goals are to Learn to use the water ballast in his ASG29, for longer and faster cross country flights and hopefully a 750K. Bill also wants to continue to share his enthusiasm to
current and future soaring pilots to fan their aviation flames and ambitions.
(38:00) Soaring Tales with Dale. Dale brings us a story on this episode about bow wave. Have you ever experienced this?
(41:30) We also have a very special Tips & Techniques segment for you on this episode!
Eric Carden has an exciting journey ahead of him this coming summer as he attempts to cross the the entire United States in a glider! Eric started flying hang gliders in 1993 while a sophomore in college, he briefly flew paragliders, and started flying sailplanes in 2015.
He also owned and operated a powered ultralight business for several years, flying and teaching in weight-shift and three-axis aircraft. He has taught others how to fly hang gliders and powered ultralights. In 2011, he started giving beginner to advanced coaching of paraglider,
hang glider, and sailplane pilots in thermaling and cross-country (XC) flying. He has created a free online thermaling and XC course and He's passionate about soaring (especially cross-country)... and about helping others have more fun soaring!
To pay for his fun, he works as a mechanical/aerospace engineer.
For our Safety soaring Segment we go back to Oshkosh 2019 Where we interviewed Riley Speidel live on location under the wing of her aircraft for the 50th Anniversary Celebration. All this and more now on Soaring The Sky!
http://soaramerica.wordpress.com/
https://sites.google.com/site/thermalxc
Tuesday Mar 02, 2021
Tuesday Mar 02, 2021
Dan Johnson is a retired AME and internist, living on the west coast of
Wisconsin, close to the airport from which he flies sailplanes and airplanes.
He's flown airplanes since his father bought a Cessna 150 with observer doors
in 1962, and has flown gliders since 1986. He's been speaking and writing on aviation physiology for 30 years and is also the medical advisor for the Perlan Project. Today he will share with us his journey as well as chatting with us about his most recent article in the February issue of soaring magazine titled "Secret Whirlwinds"
Also on the podcast Dale Masters, author and glider pilot brings us another Soaring Tale with Dale and this one is titled "OMG"
For our tips and techniques s segment We will hear from Kempton Izuno who has been flying gliders for over 45 years.
Jim Zombakis joins us for our Soaring Safety Segment. All this and more now on Soaring The sky episode 87.
Tuesday Feb 16, 2021
Tuesday Feb 16, 2021
Today our featured guest pilot is Patrick McMahon, Patrick is a Canadian cross country soaring pilot and flight instructor located in Alberta Canada. Today he flies at The Cu Nim Gliding Club, having learned to fly with the Royal Canadian Air Cadet Program, and learned to soar in southern Ontario at York Soaring Association.
During the week Patrick manages various energy efficiency programs across Canada, with an emphasis on residential retrofits. Soaring is an extension of this work as he considers it "energy efficiency as a sport".
He is an advocate for the sport in Canada, maintaining the social media properties of the Soaring Association of Canada, has served for over a decade on the volunteer boards of his respective gliding clubs, and is a co-founder of the Proving Grounds - an automated task scoring and ranking platform intended to turn glider pilots to soaring pilots in 3 simple steps.
Patrick co-owns an LS6-b "EH", but will fly anything he can when the weather is pleasant and there's a willing tow pilot!
Later on this episode we hear another great Soaring tale from author and glider pilot Dale Masters.
We than head to Blairstown New Jersey for our Tips & Technics segment and catch up with blogger and CFIG Daniel Sazhin. Today we will talk about the importance of being trained on how to handle landing out and one of his recent interesting experiences when he had to do just that.
We then wrap up the podcast with our soaring safety segment with Gary Kemp. Gary has flown gliders for over 40 years and has logged more then 4,000 hours in the cockpit. He will share with us some personal experiences that he has learned from that can help you stay safe to fly another day. All this now on episode 86 of Soaring the sky.
instagram.com/glidecunim
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