Saturday 5/5/12 rides

Clear sky after a late spring rain made the ground green and beautiful.  Jared and Teresa had a little picnic lunch and then jumped in the back seat of our Schweizer 2-32 to have me "chauffeur" them to the Monterey Bay shoreline behind our Pawnee towplane.  After releasing, we made a few sightseeing turns and headed back to Hollister.  On the 40 minute return we did a few nice maneuvers while flying over the San Juan Valley.

in the air at 7500':

after landing:

a little refreshment:

Percy had flown primary gliders in England and periodically taken instructional flights while working and raising a family in MA and CA.  He said he soloed a glider but hadn't flown in a "few" years.  After we released from the towplane at 4750' on a Silver Hawk ride,  he took the controls and flew for the next half-hour as if he were the pilot giving me the ride!  He said he didn't use the instruments but just flew by "feel" or as some say, "by the seat of your pants".  After landing, his smile tells all: