Saying, 'Hello,' to the angels. (Gliding in General)

Member Name: NomadSue

Product:	Gliding in General
Date:	29/09/09 (74 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Blissful peace

Disadvantages: Total terror

Saying, 'Hello' to the angels?

British Gliding Association
Derbyshire and Lancashire Gliding Association, based at Great Hucklow, Derbyshire

A short while ago I had the great good fortune to be able to have two trial gliding lessons at the Derbyshire and Lancashire Gliding Club, based in Great Hucklow.

For £80 I purchased a trial lesson voucher at the club (you can buy the vouchers for any gliding clubs belong to the British Gliding Association.) For this princely sum, I was able to have an choice of two winch launches or, at some clubs, one air tow or 30 minutes in a motor glider. The idea was to 'experience the thrill of glider flight.' An experience I had been lead to believe would be almost like transcendental meditation.

Lessons can be bought online at: http://www.gliding.co.uk/lessons/vouchers.php?adwo rds=gliderflight

I would be flying in a two-seater glider with a fully qualified BGA instructor, and have the opportunity to have a go at the controls.

Now all this sounds positively easy, eh? Imagine soaring into the air, in total silence, floating like a bird round and round, admitting the beautiful countryside scenery. Utopia, even.

But first I had to get there. I recommend the use of a Sat Nav, which at that time I did not possess. Or at the very least a good local map. Well, I did have a road atlas, which was better than nothing. The club was based in beautiful, remote countryside, a pleasure to drive through, especially in the daylight. Not as easy for the return night-time journey, especially when travelling alone. (I was meeting other people there.)

Having arrived and parked, I went to the clubhouse, signed up and was informed of my allocated time. I was given a thorough briefing about what to expect, reassurance about safety precautions, and an on-ground introduction to the controls, which included the chance to sit inside the cabin. the cabin was about the same size as the inside of my Ford Ka, though much narrower. The controls looked just like those you see in films.

My excitement started to mount, despite feeling so dreadfully ill with 'flu. Our group went out to the take-off field to watch other novices. Now it was not a good idea to be the last on the list! Too much time to contemplate all the possible dangers. Too much time to watch exactly what happened.

The glider was attached to a giant 'elastic band' which was also fastened to a vehicle to pull it along the slightly bumpy field. It was pulled, bumping and bouncing until finally there was enough momentum to lift it into the air. Up, up, up it climbed. The release button was pressed. The glider hovered, motionless, like a bird of prey, whilst the umbilical cord drop back to the ground. Would it proceed forwards or fall like a stone back down to the ground? After an eternal moment, it gained momentum, going forwards smoothly and silently.

So far, so good. My turn came at last. Well, if I hadn't had such a sore throat, I think I would have screamed deafeningly all the way up, 'I'm going to die!' Instead I screamed silently. Then...then... well, then we straightened up and started to float smoothly, just like a bird. The chance to look down at the fields, trees... oh rather a lot of trees! 'What happens if we crash into those trees? After all, we've got to get back down again!' Round and round we went, turning slowly and soundlessly. I even had the chance to hold the controls, though don't ever call on me to take the controls of a passenger plane based on this degree of experience. Ignoring the stories of gliding mishaps, I enjoyed the almost surreal experience. We sank back to earth again, having a remarkably smooth landing.

But the second lesson wasn't until many weeks again... time for the demon of fear to raise its ugly head again. Time for the throat to heal. Time for the churning feelings of panic to resurrect.

Laughingly, I told the young instructor, (yes, the instructors are like doctors and police, getting younger and younger every day) about how I would have screamed if I could have. Guess what - yes, he left the radio on so that those down on the ground could hear my potentially blood-curling screams of terror.

Now then, ladies, those deep-breathing exercises that we all tried to master prior to childbirth DO eventually come into use and actually CAN be effective for maintaining an aura of apparent calm.

To this day, I'm wondering what they made of those strange breathing noises as we soared onwards and upwards again.

(Cross-posted to ciao)

Summary: An amazing experience that I would recomment to anyone. Would make a great Christmas gift.