RC Gliding (F3B National) in Sitterdorf

On August 8, 1981, we met on a beautiful day at “Kreuzstrasse.” “We” consisted of Fritz, Roger, Albert, and Hans, along with a small support crew. More than half of the team that the region could field was already there. Of course, Albert was flying for the Bülach group, and the rest of the regional team consisted of Andreas Dähler, Hans Dürst, and Hans Huber, who were on their way directly to Sitterdorf. We arrived at the airfield around 11 a.m. We got right to work, which really just consisted of assembling our models. “Oh no!!!”—the first mishap already. Fritz had brought the wrong wings. They were packed so neatly, after all. So off we went—back home again—and it took a while for Fritz to return. But we still had plenty of time—the organization wasn’t exactly running at full speed, so we were even able to cut our lines to the right length. Ruedi Schaub had kindly lent us his electric winch, which saved us quite a few meters—both in distance and altitude. Everyone realized that high-launch takeoffs with a winch take practice—practice, practice, practice—and then you’ll be ahead of the rest. Flying began around 1:00 p.m., starting with Discipline A. Thirty-five pilots were at the starting line, and six were able to take off together right away. The first round was completed in just under an hour. Weather-wise, conditions allowed for the full 6-minute flight. Discipline C then took two full hours; however, the organization didn’t handle it optimally—the whole process was a bit too slow. Yes, speed flying has its pitfalls, especially for those pilots who load up on ballast and are making their first flight attempts at a Swiss championship. In our group, no one had experimented, so everything was still in order after the first round. After 4:00 p.m., another Discipline A round was added. This time, too, it was still possible to complete a full round, but every time it was my turn, the paraglider took off from a different spot. In that run, I was particularly unlucky—I had to make four high launches within the discipline time limit; I managed to fly for 135 seconds and force a 7-meter landing. All of this with a model I’d hardly ever flown, which was on the electric winch for the first time, and whose launch hook was still too flimsy. Fritz pulled off his second perfect run. Albert was still in the running, too; only Roger and I, with 134 and 135 seconds respectively, were trailing by a second and languishing at the bottom of the standings. So on Saturday evening, two of us were still within the range of finishing under

Water is still dripping out of the plastic bags today—the ones we had to use to protect the models again. But we’re used to that. I had just one consolation: the run-through will start from the back of the stage, and I have start number 4. After two hours, the rain finally let up a bit. But then came the first elimination. Roger flew past the safety line—a zero—so he could pack up right away. Albert, despite these lousy conditions, managed 14.4 seconds. Fritz and I then flew our safe 20s and above; the main thing was to avoid a crash. Since it went so well, we did the same “C” run again. Now it’s Albert’s turn; he can’t get his glider to fly either, and water is pouring out of his fuselage by the liter. The rest of the story is actually told in a flash. Then we did Discipline A again. With 336 seconds and

With a landing of 2 meters, Fritz scored another 939 points and finished in a respectable 15th place.

Hans Dangelmeier