Good morning! We’re checking back in after days two and three of seven.
Day two again brought unfavorable weather for flying – this meant that Rob (and the entire field) was pounding pavement for most of the day, although he did manage to get in five short flights. Each of these was a welcome (albeit brief) respite from the monotony of walking and jogging the road systems. Some of his flights had shallow, sporty launches, but Rob did a great job navigating these and pressing forward down course. Both by air and on foot, he charged hard and managed to gain ground on those in front of him. In the evening, Rob tagged TP2 in Accous, France, hiking up to launch and gliding out to the main road to walk a few more miles and end the day in a great position.
Day three was a tough one. The weather was better and Rob was feeling good when he set out, aiming for a nearby ski resort from which to fly. Rob and Keith hiked up, found a good spot, and Rob set up to launch. However, they ended up having to backtrack and find a new launch, as it turned out that they were just inside a no-fly zone. Once back in flyable terrain, Rob launched and tracked east, but ended up back on the ground. He hiked up and took a couple more flights from other spots, but once the west wind set in, Rob found himself in a tough position and it was difficult to climb out. He ended up gliding out of that zone to meet back up with Keith and I at the van.
Although he didn’t make as much progress down course as he would’ve liked, Rob’s still in good spirits and morale is high. There are still four more days of the race and we’re confident he’ll get some excellent flights in the days to come.
