Soaring
I'm currently a member of a club called the Soaring Tigers. Click on this image to visit the club's website:
Video showing me Thermaling in the club's 1-34
Taken by my friend Noriko Schneiderman from our club's two-seat glider being flown by Marty Schneiderman.
My LS-4a Glider
For twenty years (1979 to 1999) I was a very active glider pilot. I got my pilot's license (with a glider rating) shortly after soloing at the Ithaca Soaring Club in the summer of 1979. Four years later, I got my instructors rating. From 1990 to 1999 I was chief flight instructor at the Central Jersey Soaring Club.Here are some pics of my sailplane, Three Yankee (3Y). It is an LS-4a made by Rolladen-Schneider, a small company near Frankfurt Germany (see https://www.sailplanedirectory.com/ls.htm). I actually owned only half of 3Y. The other half was owned by my partner, Keith Ashfield.
Here are some more pictures of me in 3-Y taken at Solberg Airport in NJ.
Balloon Festival
BTW, Solberg Airport hosts the annual NJ Festival of Ballooning:Soaring at Van Sant Airport (Aug. 2, 2015)
Click on image for more pics and a few videos
For a few high resolution videos, click here
Cornell Daily Sun Article
Here's the article that sparked my interest in soaring:
Brad Donahue, shown above pushing the tow-plane, taught me to fly.
Sadly, he was killed in an accident off Martha's Vineyard in 1987.
Click here to read
his obituary in the Cornell Alumni News.
My Two Favorite Hobbies Depicted on the Cover of SSA's Soaring Magazine
Some Other Pictures and Videos to See
Here's an excellent video showing what soaring in the French Alps is like
Here's a picture of an LS3 in flight taken by Chris Caselli
Here's a picture of multiple-world-record holder
Steve Fossett
in
his beautiful
Schleicher ASH-25 Mi
- 1981, Serial #4008, 1200 Hrs., Experimental.
- Refinished 1986 by George Applebay with Poly-Lux.
- Glass Teck Unlimited canopy seal, mylar seals, turbulators.
- GTU vented ballast bags.
- Pneumatic 200x50 tailwheel.
- Dual Tost hooks (CG and nose).
- Blue canopy, blue trim.
- Dual 14 Volt battery system
(5AH tail and 10AH baggage compartment).
Spare 5AH battery. - Becker radio w/ Dittel boom mike.
- Cambridge S-Nav 3.5, G-meter, remote, ternpoint and hold switches.
- Winter mechanical vario, ASI.
- 35,000' altimeter.
- Hamilton compass.
- LC-2 clock.
- Av-Ox constant flow system with 22' bottle and Nelson flow meter.
- 5-point Pacific Scientific Harness.
- Cushioned seat.
- Relief tube (rerouted aft of main gear).
- Tie-down harneses for wingtips.
- Komet trailer
- Wing stand
All images on this website are licensed under CC BY 4.0 unless otherwise noted.