Run 2

I'm back from Norway and in Frankfurt now. Will be heading to Switzerland tomorrow. Here's what happened on Run 2:

Later on the first day, we were able to do the 2nd run. Now this is unusual as acro comps will have only 1 run per day, usually so that wet equipment will have time to dry, but also due to the number of competitors. But since we're in Norway, the sun's still out at 10 p.m., there are only 13 pilots, and we had 2 boats running, it's possible to have multiple runs.

This run is announced by the pilot, so here's what I had planned and how I did:

1) Tumble - bad entry which gave me a collapse right from the start. Had a line slacker when the wing was below me and I fell right past it. (I think the lines whizzed right by my head.) Luckily, the wing re-opened w/a small cravatte that I got undone quickly, allowing me to continue.
2) Infinity - bad entry which only gave me the energy for 2 turns, plus a bad exit. Have to do 3 turns with a fully open wing and a smooth exit for max points.
3) Helico - nailed it again. 3 rotations flat and open.
4) Helico - SAT - nailed this one too. I basically held the helico for 3 more rotations before transitioning to the SAT, which required 3 rotations of its own.
5) Misty Flip - good by normal standards, but not enough for a very high score. I needed to be at 90 degrees before spinning the wing 360 behind me, then exit in the same direction as I entered.

Landing - WATER!

My program was just way too ambitious this early in the comp, particularly going for the Infinity when I've only done a few "FAI" ones previously. What Pal Hammer Rognoy, a respected Swedish acro pilot who has a high world ranking, told me was "practice is practice but a competition is a competition - you want to show the judges what you can do, not what you're working on."

Note to self: Do what he just said.

Because my routine was too aggressive, I received no points for the infinity, low points for the tumble and misty, and good points for the helico and helico-SAT. Guys who did easier tricks, such as the dynamic full stall, SAT, asymm 360, etc., scored better than I did. But because I did tricks with high difficulty coefficients, I think got 6th or 7th for the day even though I only received points for 4 tricks.

Still in 6th overall and more importantly . . . . we have a valid FAI acro comp! Even if the comp ended today, I'd still earn an FAI ranking. Goal #4 . . . . CHECK!