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Dear Paul,
I hope you will enjoy this newsletter.
My goal is to provide:
- Timely information on new soaring
products and services
- Updates on new software version
releases
- Special offers for newsletter
subscribers (see the
coupons below)
- Soaring news from around the world
- Interesting articles
- Tips to help you get the most from
your soaring instruments and software
The plan is to send the newsletter on a
monthly basis.
I use a very reputable e-mail marketing
service called
Constant Contact for managing this
mailing list, so your contact data will be
safe, and you can opt out at any time. |
Vacation |
Out of the Office
I will be out of the office from
Thursday, October 11th through Sunday,
October 21st. I will be back in the office
on Monday, October 22nd. I will do my best
to check e-mails while on vacation, but I
will not have time to reply to every
e-mail. I will catch up on orders and
e-mails as soon as possible upon my return.
I am really looking forward to spending
quality time with my family at Disney World
and on the beaches near Naples, Florida!!! |
CAP Calls off Search For Steve Fossett |
Sadly,
glider pilot and world record holder
Steve Fossett has not been located after
several weeks of intense searching.
Click on the link below to read more
about it on the EAA web site. The site
also includes a link to an interview
(audio only) from July, 2007 regarding
the Perlan glider project and their new
world altitude record. The interview is
very interesting. I have followed
Steve's exploits for many years and
enjoyed reading his autobiography. I
will miss him.
EAA Update on Steve Fossett
|
New Book |
Advanced
Soaring Made Easy
by Bernard
Eckey
Gliding is a fascinating sport
and without a doubt the most
peaceful, most affordable and by
far the quietest form of
aviation. To soar effortlessly
like an eagle has been one of
man's age-old yearnings and many
thousands of pilots around the
world today regularly
experiences exactly this and
enjoy the beauty, challenges and
delights of this unique sport.
Gliding means flying modern machines of
great beauty and elegance for hundreds
of kilometers (miles) in total comfort
and without resorting to engines.
Success depends on the skill of
extracting the necessary energy from the
atmosphere around them. Real
determination to succeed is a good
starting point but good progress and
full enjoyment requires some study as
well. A basic theoretical knowledge is
essential for success and that's what
this book is all about. It not only
covers all sources of energy for
soaring, but it also deals with weather
analysis, flight preparation, mental
aspects, safety matters and competitive
flying. In short, it is a first class
training aid to guide pilots from local
soaring to advanced cross-country flying
and beyond.
More:
Advanced Soaring Made Easy
|
Software Versions |
Are
you using the latest software?
It can be difficult to keep up to date
with software. Check the list below to
make sure you are using the latest
versions. Click on the product name to
go to the download page.
Many of the product upgrades are free -
depending on the version you are currently
using. For example, all Glide Navigator II
upgrades have been free so far, and upgrades
for SeeYou are free for users with license
keys for versions 3.0 or greater. Contact
me if you need help determining whether you
are entitled to a free upgrade, or if you
would like to buy an upgrade. |
Big Wings |
Hot
New Open Class Ships
Check out the
EB28 from Binder Flugmotoren- und
Flugzeugbau and the new Schleicher
ASH-30. They look like fun to me!
|
FAI Sporting Code Update |
Effective
October 1, 2007
The new version of the sporting code is
now available and in effect. The
biggest change is that you can now get
credit for all records achieved on a
flight. For a while the rules specified
that you could only claim one distance
record and one speed record in a given
class and category for a given flight.
For example, if your flight met the
requirements for both free distance and
distance to a goal, you could only claim
one or the other record - not both. I'm
glad they changed this rule back to the
way it was previously. There are other
changes as well.
|
New Book |
Aviator's
Devotional
Those of us who have followed our
dream to fly have joined a special
fraternity of aviators. Pilots and
other airmen have a passion for
adventure and a perspective on life
that others can't fully understand.
Our romance with the skies is a
microcosm of life itself and helps
us celebrate the joys and cope with
the challenges of each day. We can
appreciate the creation and honor
the Creator from a viewpoint not
available to others.
This devotional book gives you 31
short, but meaningful, readings (one
for each day of the month) that
provide rich moments of meditation
on the greater things of life from
the distinctive view of the aviator.
It will:
-
Entertain you with unique insights
into the adventurous world of
aviation.
-
Enlighten you with flying facts and
trivia that you didn't know or had
forgotten.
-
Encourage you with Bible-based
inspirational perception regarding
God's nature relative to our needs.
More:
Aviator's Devotional
|
Training |
Let me Help You Get the Most from
Your Soaring Instrument or Software
I offer training over the phone on many
soaring software and instrument topics for
$40/hour. What we cover is up to you. It
includes free web conferencing
features which allow me to view your PC
screen on my PC. This has been very popular
and the feedback from customers has been
extremely positive. I often walk customers
through the process of setting up Glide
Navigator II or SeeYou Mobile or
pocket*StrePla on their PDA. I also help
customers download or create waypoint and
airspace files for their region.
Customer Feedback
"Thank
you, Paul, for your marvelous
support. Not only is your website a
fabulous source of information for
glider pilots, but you've been
unfailingly responsive to my
hardware and software needs. Last
but not least, I've gotten much more
out of my equipment as a result of
our remote-tutoring sessions by cell
phone and computer hook-up. Thanks
again!"
Mitch Polinsky
DG-400 "SUN"
More:
Training Over the Phone |
Safety |
PDA Mounting Tips
I sell a lot of PDA cradles to glider
pilots - so I've talked to many
customers about mounting options. The
most important consideration is keeping
the installation safe. Below are some
overview points on the subject. They
may sound obvious, but I have heard of
installations that were problematic due
to missing these points.
Mounting Location Tips
-
Keep Clear of the Control
Stick and All Other Controls
Keep in mind that gooseneck mounting
arms are friction devices that
become less stiff over time. You do
not want the gooseneck and PDA to
sag and interfere with the control
stick or any other controls. I
include steel stiffening rods with
all the long goosenecks I sell. I
don't think they are necessary in
most installations, but they are
nice when needed.
-
Do Not Mount the PDA Cradle
to the Canopy Rail
Often it is difficult to find a good
location for the PDA, cradle and
power/data cable. The most popular
locations are on the instrument
panel and on the cockpit sidewall.
I offer good mounting options for
either location. However, some
customers have mounted the cradle on
the canopy rail. If the cradle has
a cable connecting it to the GPS
then I do not recommend that
location. In an emergency you would
not want to eject the canopy only to
have it stay connected to the glider
- dangling by the PDA's power/data
cable. It is debatable whether or
not this would be a real problem -
but I would rather be safe than
sorry.
Food for Thought - My best
guess is that 90% of the PDA and GPS cradles
I sell are mounted to the instrument panel
using a 3" or 6" gooseneck. It is a very
elegant and reliable solution. The
Nimbus
cradle is by far the most popular PDA cradle
I sell.
Related Links
- Mounting Arm Selection Guide
- PDA Cradle Selection Guide
- PDA Cradle Comparison
- Mounting Arm Accessories by Cumulus
Soaring, Inc.
- Nimbus Cradles
- RAM Mounting Arms and Cradles
|
SSA Convention |
Join
the Fun
I'm already looking forward to going to
the SSA Convention in Albuquerque in
2008. The convention floor is open from
Thursday, February 14th through
Saturday, February 16th. In 2009 there
won't be a full sized convention - so be
sure not to miss this one. It is a
great time to catch-up with friends in
the soaring community, learn about
interesting new products and sailplanes,
listen to interesting speakers on a wide
variety of soaring topics, and much
more.
Training Sessions
None of the details are worked
out yet, but I do plan to offer group
and/or one-on-one training and support
on Wednesday, February 13th - the day
before the start of the convention. Let
me know if you would like to schedule
one-on-one training or if you would like
to recommend a topic for a large group
training session.
Help Needed
I am looking for volunteers to help me
at the SSA Convention. I need soaring
pilots for the tasks listed below.
- 2 or 3 soaring pilots to drive to
and from the convention with me in
either my minivan or perhaps a mobile
home. The trip is much more enjoyable
when when chatting with other glider
pilots.
- 4 to 5 people to help with setting
up and tearing down my tradeshow booth.
Setup will be on Wednesday, February
13th and teardown is after the
convention hall closes on Saturday,
February 16th. Setup takes a few hours
and teardown usually takes about 1 hour.
- Multiple people to work in the
tradeshow booth with me during the
convention. You can sign-up for 2 hour
time slots before or at the event. The
work consists of processing orders and
pulling together the desired items from
inventory. It is a great way to meet
glider pilots from around the world and
often you get to meet soaring legends.
I will be offering significant
incentives to make it worth your while -
such as store credits ($100+), free
lodging and free meals. The size of the
incentive will be proportionate to the
amount of time donated. Please contact
me for details.
|
Kids and Airport Safety |
A
Day at the Airport
I love bringing my kids to the
gliderport! It is fun to see their
excitement for the airplanes and their
desire to go soaring with me. My 10
year old son Adam is learning to
thermal, my 7 year old daughter Elle
loves executing a short series of small
up, down, up, down, up, down "roller
coaster" bumps. My 5 year old daughter
Sara enjoyed her first glider ride this
summer. I just love being a Dad!!!
However, I have just recently realized
that it is not a good idea to bring the
kids to the gliderport on days when I am
scheduled to be the club's Field
Operations Officer (F.O.O. - there has
got to be a better name for that
role...). In the Minnesota Soaring Club
the F.O.O. is in charge of running the
flight line for the day. It is an
important job and when done well it
increases the safety level
dramatically. Some F.O.O.s are good,
some are great, and some are just OK.
I've always felt that I have done a
pretty good job as F.O.O. in the past.
In recent years I started bringing one
or more kids with me on day when I am
the F.O.O. My thinking was that I could
encourage my kids' interest in aviation
while doing the F.O.O. duties. In past
years I don't think this was a big
problem - but I could be wrong. When I
would bring only one child I could keep
an eye on him/her while running the
flight line pretty well - but not as
well as I would have if they were not
there. But a few weeks ago I found that
I could not keep a good focus on my
F.O.O. duties while chasing the three
kids. There were no safety issues
caused by my being distracted, but there
could have been. I was not able to
watch the traffic pattern and keep an
active eye on safety as I should have.
Fortunately, other club members at the
flight line helped out a lot that day in
many ways. As I left the airport that
day I realized that it did not make
sense to have the kids there while being
the F.O.O. I just didn't do as good a
job at F.O.O. as I would have liked.
And I wasn't able to give the kids as
much of my attention as they deserved.
They were bored, and I was distracted.
A few days later a soaring club member
called me and (in a very friendly way)
suggested that perhaps the kids were a
larger distraction than I realized.
So... I will never again bring the kids
to the gliderport when I am the F.O.O.
I will definitely bring my kids to the
gliderport to go soaring! ... just not
on days that I am the F.O.O.
Paul Remde
|
Photos From the Albert Lea Soaring
Contest |
Long
Lens, Fast Camera, Beautiful Gliders,
and Lovely Weather
Those ingredients all came together for
me at the Albert Lea Soaring Contest in
May/June 2007. I took hundreds of
photos and some of them turned out quite
good. You can see them here:
Albert Lea Soaring Contest Photos
|
New HP iPAQ Pocket PCs Coming Soon |
iPAQ
100 series
The iPAQ 100 series units will probably
not be of interest to soaring pilots
because it does not have an RS-232
serial port or BlueTooth radio or CF
GPS card slot - so it can't be used with
an external GPS. It may be OK for
soaring when used with an SDIO GPS but I
have not tested that solution. It
utilizes the small 3.5" iPAQ screen
size.
iPAQ
200 series
The iPAQ 200 series may be very
interesting to soaring pilots
because it uses the same large 4",
high-resolution (480x640 pixel), bright
(relatively) screen found on the
previously available iPAQ hx4700 series
that is popular with glider pilots.
However, the 24-pin connector is
different from the connectors used on
all previous iPAQs - so existing soaring
data cables will not work with it.
It is not clear whether or not RS-232
serial communications are supported.
The rumor so far is that it is
not supported. That means that
it cannot connect to soaring GPS units
through an RS-232 serial data cable.
However, Larry Goddard and I are working
on a BlueTooth connection option. More
on that soon... My cradle vendor says
that a cradle will be available a few
weeks after the units are available.
|
Coming Next Month... |
- Update on the NK ClearNav Display
- Update on the JS-1 Revelation 18
m sailplane from South Africa
- Tip - How to clear the flight log
memory in your Cambridge 302 - and why
you should do it every year.
- Why the new EW microRecorder is so
popular
- Favorite soaring magazines from
around the world
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Thank you for taking the time to read
this newsletter. I hope you have found
it interesting. If you did, please
forward it to your soaring friends using
the link at the bottom of the page.
I consider myself a servant. Please let
me know if there is anything I can do to
help you find the right soaring
instruments for your needs, or help you
learn how to use an instrument or
software product. Also, let me know if
you have any suggestions for products or
services to add to my web site, or ways
that I can serve you better.
I feel blessed because I love my job. I
enjoy serving the soaring community.
Like you, I am passionate about
soaring. Thank you for your business, I
sincerely appreciate it.
Sincerely,
Paul Remde
Cumulus Soaring, Inc.
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