Gliding competition

Large easily seen contest numbers (sometimes in addition to the glider's registration) were, and still are, located on the bottom of one wing, and each side of the fin, to ease identification.

The flight recorder is usually part of the navigational instruments of the glider, but sometimes a separate logger (see picture) is carried, mainly as a back-up.

Modern gliding competitions now comprise closed tasks where everyone races on an aerial route around specified turn-points, plus start and finish points, that brings everybody back to base.

The weather forecast and the performance of the gliders, as well as the experience level of the pilots, dictate the length of the task.

The FAI Sporting Code for gliders sets out the rules and procedures to be used to verify soaring performances in competitions and badge flights.

The main objective of these rules is to ensure that a consistent level of proof is achieved for all flights.

Strong performance at the regional level allows pilots to gain a high enough ranking to enter national championships.

This allows pilots to compete on a relatively equal basis even if their gliders have widely varying performance.

Behind the scenes, the weather forecaster will discuss the local predicted conditions for the day with the task-setter (which is sometimes a committee).

Often a non-competing pilot will make a preliminary flight to verify conditions aloft (known as a "sniffer").

If the pilot is unable to find lift during some part of the task he may be forced to 'land out' in a farmer's field or at a distant airfield.

In some competitions handicapping that is based on the performance of the glider is used and so further factors are applied before determining each pilot's score for the day.

It may seem counter-intuitive, but pilots put water ballast into compartments in the wings to make their planes heavier.

The extra weight of ballast requires the pilot to bank more to stay in narrow thermals and this also increases the sink rate.

If the thermals are weaker and/or smaller, it may be better to continue the flight without ballast and so they may dump it soon after the start or part way round the course.

This results in spectacular images when competition pilots cross the finish line at low altitude.

Using this technique, a skilled pilot can make up several minutes on the earlier starters during the early portion of the flight.

The most important factors influencing the overall speed at which glider can fly around a given course is the average strength of the rising air the pilot chooses for climbing and the directness of the route chosen around the course (no credit is given for deviations, but a detour to reach stronger lift can often more than make up in speed for the extra distance travelled).

However, being too selective runs the risk of getting too low to the ground and being forced to accept any available sources of rising air (no matter how weak) in order to avoid "landing out".

They also are highly skilled as using a wide variety of information (weather forecasts, terrain features, clouds, other gliders on course) to estimate what conditions are likely to be like ahead on course and adapt their flying tactics to maximize their overall speed.

If the conditions are favorable, the glider can gain enough energy from each source of lift and maintain its overall height for long distances without circling.

Days with steady, moderate winds can be good for this, as the thermals often will line up into cloud streets, enabling the pilot to race without having to turn.

One of the last key decisions that each competitor makes is determining when the glider is high enough to reach the finish line.

This is a critical decision because, on the one hand, taking on unnecessary altitude wastes time because there are no points gained for arriving high at the finish.

[2] Innovations introduced in the Grand Prix format include simultaneous starts for a small number of gliders, tasks consisting of multiple circuits, and simplified scoring.

Informal internet competitions are also popular where pilots upload their GPS data files and are automatically scored based on factors such as distance, achieved speed and whether the task flown was declared in advance.

[3] In 2009, 13.424 pilots worldwide participated in a contest sponsored by a German aviation magazine, 'Aerokurier', though other countries also operate their own national 'ladders'.

[4] In this type of competition, the pilots fly a program of maneuvers (such as inverted flight, loop, roll, and various combinations).