Slope Soaring

[Ed Anderson]

If you want to check out slope soaring, these might be interesting
introductions. There are also photo and video links.

How Slope Soaring Works
users.iafrica.com/s/st/stevemac/afc/ssoar.html

Slope Soaring Internet Magazine
inlandsloperebels.com/slopeflyer/slopeflyer.html

Slope soaring Tips for Beginners
www.shallowsky.com/planes/weasel/slopetips.html

Videos of slope soaring - hope you have high speed line

Radian Pro
www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsGkEkDCQdI

Radian on the slope
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq-dsyP24Yk

Easy Glider
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw0tSOundfE

Gentle Lady on the slope
www.youtube.com/watch?v=NHxSTukUPWY

Moldies on the slope
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImGzE9NevRY

Aerobats on the slope
www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwOblMSPYe0
www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2WdIXyzFD0

Foam DG 1000
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez3GFq8xMEc


Slope Soaring - over the rainbow - may favorite slope video ever
www.dwhs.tnc.edu.tw/~andycheng/wmv/200502.wmv

Thread of photos of slope planes being launched. Gives a good view of some slope sites.
www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=350802

[Ed Anderson]

LONG ISLAND SLOPE SITES

Summary List

All sites listed by the optimum angle. Unless otherwise noted, most sites can be flown at + or – 10 degrees from the center angle. I would welcome any updates on the wind angles that are best for the slope. Bring a compass with you and give me an updated reading.

Old Dock Road - Kings Park, NY -
0 degrees degrees

Oak Drive - Baiting Hollow, NY - East side of Wildwood State Park
0 degrees

Callahan's Beach Road- Fort Salonga
10 degrees

Hulse Landing Road, Wading River, NY
20 degrees

Smith Point Beach in Smith Point County Park, Brookhaven, NY
170 degrees

West Meadow Beach, West Meadow Road Stony Brook, NY
about 275 degrees

Sleepy Hollow NY -
About 290 degrees

Mattituck Inlet - Baillie Beach Road on Eastern side of inlet
295 to 320 degrees

Reeves Park, Riverhead NY - East of Wildwood State Park Off Sound ave -
350 degrees

Long Beach Town Park - 556 E Long Beach Rd, Saint James, NY
355 degrees


More detail below.


Old Dock Road - Kings Park, NY -
355 to 5 degrees
Go to the end of Old Dock Road to boat ramps -
Slope is at high parking lot to left. Fly from top or from beach


Long Beach Town Park - 556 E Long Beach Rd, Saint James, NY
plus.google.com/116593680276644092678/about?gl=us&hl=en
350 degrees to 0 degrees optimum
Parking Lot - Beach opposite boat moorings -
park and walk over dunes to beach - slope to the left
Video of Long Beach

Map
mapq.st/h/3-rHJI
Discussion thread
www.rcgroups.com/forums/showpost.php?p=9176196&postcount=99
Video
www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=829880#post9302598


Callahan's Beach Road- Fort Salonga
5 to 20 degrees
The entrance to the park is near, but I don't know if it is actually Callahan's Beach Road. Look for a gated entrance and a sign to the park. We usually fly from the upper parking lot.


Wildwood State Park
Looks like it would be about 20 degreesHave not visited this one my self - take to end and figure it out.
552 N Wading River Rd, Calverton, NY 11933



Reeves Park, Riverhead NY - East of Wildwood State Park Off Sound ave -
I think this one is about 350 degrees
Park Road to end - Gazebo and parking area - slope to left and right
Fly from stairs or beach


455 Oakleigh Ave, Baiting Hollow, NY 11933
East side of Wildwood State Park
about 355 to 5 degrees




Mattituck Inlet - 315-325 degrees
1700 Bailie Beach Rd, Mattituck, NY 11952
Baillie Beach Road is on the Eastern side of inlet
Three is an AMA club about 1.5 miles away on Elija and Oregon road. If you are flying 72 MHz, I suggest you fly with a couple of sections of antenna
down to reduce the range of your transmitter so as not to interfere with the
club's field. We fly the slope planes relatively close to the shore so
that
should not interfere with our flying. If you have a 2.4 GHz radio, that
would be best at this location.
Photos
picasaweb.google.com/dkat864/BailieBeach103011?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCLqq5fyY2-WOWQ&feat=directlink




West Meadow Beach, West Meadow Road, Stony Brook, NY
about 275 degrees
West Meadow - Photos
picasaweb.google.com/dkat864/WestMeadowBeach101611?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCJ26zPbXh8TXFQ&feat=directlink

[Ed Anderson]

Sleepy Hollow NY - About 280 to 310 degrees

Rockwood Rd
Sleepy Hollow, NY 10591
41.117077, -73.863547

Park by the side of the road and walk into a small stand of trees, then up the hill to the site.


Site is about 1/2 mile north of the intersection of Route 9 and Route 117 in
Sleepy Hollow New York. This is about 1 mile north of Phelps
Memorial Hospital and just south and across the road from the
Sleepy Hollow Country club

www.phelpshealth.org/
www.sleepyhollowcc.org

You are about 5 air miles from www.maawrc.com/
An AMA RC Club that is located to the North at Croton Point Park.
Should be far enough away to avoid any problem on 72 MHz.

SIMPLE ROUTE but not fastest ( better routes below )

About 70 minutes from Syosset

LIE to Cross Island North to Throgs Neck Bridge Head for the Cross Bronx
Expressway to the NYS Thruway (87) North to Route 9 North in Tarrytown. Go
about 5 miles north on route 9. Once you pass Phelps Memorial Hospital you
are about 1 mile from the site. See below from Route 9 and 117.

FROM SYOSSET - Faster Route - About 50 minutes

LIE to Cross Island North to Throgs Neck Bridge
Head for the Cross Bronx Expressway
Cross Bronx to Bronx River Parkway (BRP) North
BRP becomes Sprain Brook becomes Teconic State Parkway
Take Teconic to Route 117 West to Route 9 North
See below from Rte 9 North

FROM NJ - 15 minutes from Tappan Zee Bridge

Cross Tappan Zee Bridge
Take exit for Teconic or Sprain Brook North.
Take this to Route 117 West
Take Route 9 north
See below from Route 9 North

FROM ROUTE 9N AND 117 Sleepy Hollow

Once you are on Route 9 North From 117, you are VERY close.
Slow down and watch on the left!

Travel North on Route 9 till you see a small road on the left and a stone
house. Enter the road and continue across the little bridge. You will then
cross a small road on your right. Pass the road and pull off to the side
about 100 feet to the left of the little gated road entrance. In the woods
you should
see a 50 foot path that goes up up to an open field. Walk up the hill about
150 feet and you will see the site.



This is a park, not part of the office building property.

You have to hi-start the planes to fly over the trees at the bottom of the
hill. Or you can use an e-glider. Once you cross the trees you will be
in the lift zone. I have used my upstart ( 25 feet rubber and 125 feet line)
to hi-start my Zagi and 2-3M gliders.
As long as we are quiet the park officals don't bother us but if they hear
a whining motor they will kick you out.

LANDING AREA

There is a large grassy landing area about 200 wide by 400+ long plus a
grassy down hill area, so 2M and even 3M planes can land here safely.


LOOK AT THE ATTACHED PHOTO (click to enlarge the photo)

Go up route 9 to intersection. Pass NY Life on the left
At the intersection, see brick house, turn left there as if you were going to NY Life.
Go over little bridge, around the bend past the road to about where the purple dot is shown.
That should be about 100 feet from a locked gate that crosses the road. That road goes to the
NY Life parking area.

Park on the right side of the road. Walk through the small stand of trees to the clearing
and up the hill. At the top of the hill is where you stand to fly, just before the trail shown
on the left side of the photo. You will be flying out, over the trees in front of you,
over the tracks and the Hudson river.




This photo is of the flying area. The gray area in the center is a large rock patch. You will be flying from that location to the left, over the trees, over the tracks and out over the water which makes for very smooth air. Notice the large grassy area you have for landing. That is what makes this sit suitable for large gliders. I have flown 3M gliders here many times.

I usually anchor a hi-start down by the trees, to the left, near the water. Then stretch it back, past the path and launch to get the glider over the trees. Great slope site.

Attachments:

[Ed Anderson]

Dimitri has located two new slope sites for us.

SOUTH FACING SLOPE SITE – About 160 to 180 degreesSmith Point Beach in Smith Point County Park, Brookhaven, NY
To view the map, click on the link or copy and paste it to your browser: mapq.st/ibHY4O

maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=40.945198,-73.143185&spn=0.009295,0.017134&t=h&z=17


Driving directions from LIE, exit 68 south (William Floyd parkway) all the way to the end. The dunes are facing south at about 160 degrees, so flyable winds should be roughly 160 +/- 20 degrees (140 to 180). .

The dunes change shape every year. Currently, the sea has eroded their base and made them good for flying.

Dimitri’s Photos
picasaweb.google.com/dkat864/SmithPointBeach030511?authkey=Gv1sRgCNqq5vT-psGILw&feat=directlink



The second is westerly in direction, facing about 275 degrees
West Meadow Beach
West Meadow Road
which turns into Trustees Road
Stony Brook, NY

If you have a GPS use:
95 W Meadow Rd
Setauket, NY, 11733-1530

This takes you right to where West Meadow changes to Trustees road which takes you to the Parking lot.

www.nwpli.com/photo/locations/location.php?data%5Blocation%5D=westmeadow.php

Directions
Coming from the LI Expressway, take exit 62 onto CR-97-N (Nicholls Road) to its very end. Turn left onto Route 25a and right again after 0.5 miles onto Quaker Path. Follow Quaker Path for 1.2 miles and turn slightly left onto Mount Grey Road. After 0.7 miles turn left onto West Meadow Road which turns into Trustees Road after about half a mile. The parking lot is now on your right.


www.longislandtraditions.org/westmdw/west.html


Slope starts ~300 yds. from parking lot, but you can even fly in front of the parking lot if the wind is strong enough!

See pics for more- The last frame is a sat photo with compass directions
picasaweb.google.com/dkat864/WestMeadowBeach031311?authkey=Gv1sRgCI-878DqyNOAzwE&feat=directlink

[Ed Anderson]

I started slope soaring on a Zagi 3C. This EPP foam flying wing is tough as
nails, easy to fly and easy to build. It uses a 3 spar system which gives
it a nice solid construction. It is suitable for combat flying as well, but
that is not something I have tried. While I would readily recommend it, it
is no longer available. The current Zagi is the Zagi THL.

Any plane that can be flown at the LISF field can be flown on the slope, but
you can also fly planes on the slope that would not be legal at Stillwell.
On the slope you can fly fast and aerobatic. While you can use a motor, it
is usually best to keep the planes quiet so as not to disturb the neighbors
or to get on the wrong side of police or park rangers. The sites we fly
are not officially sanctioned for slope soaring. But if we are quiet and
courteous, they typically don't bother us. So an F27 Stryker would be
fine, but leave the motor turned off or you will bring the authorities down
on us.

Slope gliders can be made of anything but foam is very popular as many slope
sites have rough landing areas. EPP, Elapor, Zfoam, EPO and even EPS foam
are used. I have listed them in the order of toughness, based on my
personal experience. Any material can be broken but foam is usually pretty
easily fixed. Just be sure to use the right glue as some glues will eat
some foams.

Note that some are made for very light lift conditions, such as the Boomer,
while others are made for much stronger wind conditions. Some, like the
Easy Glider Pro, are easily ballasted to handle higher wind conditions.

Rudder/elevator gliders, like the Radian, are excellent on the slope.
I fly my Radian on the slope all the time. However aileron or elevon planes
tend to be more popular, allowing you to engage in more aggressive turns and
aerobatics. Since the lift is right there, you are not as concerned about
smooth energy conserving flying. Go ahead and get crazy in your flying. The
lift is all around you.

While one might normally think of slope gliders as having no motors, there
is no reason why you can't fly an electric glider or even an electric
parkflyer type plane on the slope. The motor can be convenient for getting
the glider into the lift at some sites and it can be a safety feature that
can help you get out of a bad situation that would put a pure glider on the
ground, in a tree or worse.

While our thermal planes tend to be large, in the area of 75 to 150 inches
in wing span, slope gliders are often much smaller as they tend to be flown
much closer to the pilot. Slope gliders in the 36 to 80 inches probably
are the most popular. You need less room to land them and they are easier
to carry to the slope sites.

Below are a spread of sources for foam slope planes for your consideration.
Many can be flown with a simple 2 channel radio. Some may need Elevon or
Vtail mixing which is available in almost all modern radios. If you radio
doesn't have this mix, you can buy a mixer for about $20.

As with thermal gliders, I recommend an e-glider as a first slope glider. Also, some sites will be easer with a motor as it can be tricky to get into the lift when flying off the beach or at Sleepy Hollow. While there is risk of damaging the motor on a hard landing, that motor will get you out of trouble if you need it. Once you are comfortable on the slope, you can move on to pure gliders.

E-Gliders - Foam

Radian Pro
www.horizonhobby.com/products/radian-pro-pnp-PKZ5475
Video
www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsGkEkDCQdI

Radian
www.horizonhobby.com/products/radian-pnp-PKZ4775
Video
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxCIfF8Va8Q

Phoenix III - RTF
www.hobbypeople.net/index.php/phase-3-phoenix-ii-epo-glider-rtf-bl-w-2-4ghz-radio.html
Kit
www.hobbypeople.net/index.php/rc-planes/airplanes/rc-gliders/phase-3-phoenix-ii-epp-glider-kit-w-bl-motor-and-prop.html


Pure Gliders for the Slope


Zagi THL and Zagi 5C - These are similar to my older Zagi 3C but lighter. EPP and tough
as nails.
This can be very aerobatic
www.zagi.com/zagi-gliders/zagi-thl-the-light-lift-small-hill-thermal-hand-launch-glider
www.zagi.com/zagi-gliders/zagi-5c-epp-flying-wing-combat-glider
Video
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Om3p7ln_rvs
www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCYBU7-Bszw

The Weasel Pro -
www.dream-flight.com/weasel.html
Review
www.slopeflyer.com/artman/publish/article_338.shtml
Video
www.dream-flight.com/moviefiles/movies/weaselmaiden.wmv


California Sailplanes - Nice selection
www.californiasailplanes.com/


Easy Glider Pro
www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXVEN8&P=7

Slope
video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2895289904446915326
video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8624215605816521429&q=%22jooEasyGlider1%22+playable%3Atrue


Sky King
www.skykingrcproducts.com/rcplanes/DAW_kits.html

If you have a high speed link, take a look at these videos of beautiful
scale sailplanes being flow off the slopes of Taiwan. Magnificent!
www.dwhs.tnc.edu.tw/~andycheng/wmv/200502.wmv
myweb.ncku.edu.tw/~n2893166/wmv/kenting_dragon_cliff.wmv

Introduction to Slope Soaring
home.att.net/~charles.french/CASA/JEF_SlopeIntro.html

[Ed Anderson]

Don’t Get Discouraged – Things are going to get windier and colder – but we continue to fly!

As we move into winter, you can keep on flying, but the trend will be for it to become more and more windy, making it harder for newer guys to fly at Stillwell. But good news, slope season is here and slope improves with wind. The Radian, Radian Pro and Easy Gliders are great for slope soaring as are other gliders. We just need the wind to blow from the correct direction. See this link on the LISF forum for more info on slope soaring including the wind directions for our slope sites and directions to the slope sites. www.lisfsoar.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=novice&action=display&thread=22

If you are new to slope, I know you are going to LOVE it. In some ways it is much easier than thermal soaring because you will be much closer to the glider and we KNOW where the lift is. Most flights we won’t even use the motor to launch.

But since this is a winter activity we will be flying in colder temperatures so gloves are needed. I like to use winter golf gloves on most days. They give you excellent feel on the sticks. So stop by the golf store and pick up both left and right hand WINTER golf gloves. They have a thin palm, just like a regular golf glove, but the backs are insulated. Here are some examples.
www.golfbuyitonline.com/Gloves-Winter.php
I use these:
www.golfbuyitonline.com/Footjoy-mens-wintersof-pair-Gloves.php

I also use the little heat packs if it gets cold enough. You can put one in the palm of each glove. They sell one specific to feet, but they are all basically the same, just different shapes. I was out there one day, 15 mph winds and 7 degrees. ( yes I am crazy.) I had one in each palm, one in each boot and one in each side pocket. I was nice and warm. www.target.com/s/hand+warmers

Watch the videos. You are going to love this.

Slope Soaring Radian Pro
www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsGkEkDCQdI
Slope Soaring an Easy Glider
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw0tSOundfE&feature=related
Slope Soaring a Radian
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kq-dsyP24Yk
Slope Soaring Aerobatics – This looks like fun!
www.flyinggiants.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74680

[Ed Anderson]

I regularly update this information or can add new sites if someone makes me aware of locations that are good for slope soaring.