1-Day Thermalling Seminar ($297)
The first essential step in becoming a true intermediate pilot is to learn to hunt for thermals and be able to swiftly identify thermal sources including a comprehensive understanding of:
- lapse rate and the affect on thermal formation and evolution
- solar delivery and its affects on the landscape including season, time of day and surface feature orientation
- terrain shape and how different shapes produce different thermals
- materials and how different colours, textures, porosity, density, and specific heat capacity affect thermal production
- thermal wicks and triggers
We cover these key topics in our thermalling theory module.
Once able to find thermals effectively, pilots learn to optimize their coring techniques and engage thermals. For a safe progression, pilots first learn to do this in larger thermals that are situated further out from the mountain, away from terrain. Once in a thermal, pilots must learn how to optimize their turn radius, turn rate and bank angle to find the thermal core and ride to the thermal apex, without falling out. Being able to do this in a repeatable manner is essential before progressively engaging thermals closer in to the slope.
We thermal coach pilots with ground-to-air radio on a progression to help them hone these thermalling skills.
1-Day Thermalling Seminar: $297*
*Price includes theory and ground-to-air coaching of thermal flight. Rides up mountain paid extra and separately to driver.