Karkonosze Gliding Association (KSS) together with Żar Aero Club extends an invitation to foreign glider pilots to participate in the Glide Challenge Cup (GCC) PRIEVIDZA 2018 project, to be held at Prievidza (Slovak Republic) aerodrome on 12-20.05.2017. The event will consist of the Club Class Competition and the Cross Country Gliding Camp. Low entry fee (EUR 99 Competition and EUR 75 the Camp), excellent infrastructure of the Prievidza airfield, will add to the value of flying in a very attractive area of Mala and Velka Fatra Mountains, extending in the North to High Tatras. You will meet a very friendly enviroment, good organization of the event and English speaking people. Interested pilots may write or call anytime Mr Richard Bendkowski dah@interia.eu, mobile  phone No. +48 601301604.

Registration: web page: www.gcc2018.pl

Watch http://gcc2015.pl (yet under construction). We are about to launch enrollment to Glide Challenge Cup GSS-KSS Prievidza 2015 (GCC PRIEVIDZA 2015), a Club Class gliding competition. Expected start on Dec. 15th, 2014. The project will be run jointly by The Mountain Gliding School Żar (GSS) and Karkonosze Gliding Society (KSS) from Apr. 30th to May 9th, 2015, at the Prievidza Airfield, Slovakia. Enquiries, if any, please submit to Mr Richard Bendkowski, artois@medianet.pl, phone +48601301604.

We have pleasure in announcing of a third series of GSS-KSS Rigde-Wave Soaring Camp "ŻAR 2014" to be run on 4-12.10.2014 and 20-27.10.2014. This event we co-organize with the GSS Żar (Mountain Gliding School) http://glidezar.com/ located on the Żar Mountain slope, 49°46'15.81" N, 019°13'04.91" E, famous for its ridge and wave soaring tradition since 1936.

The Camp is aimed on schooling and training of the people who wish to learn or to improve their glider piloting skills in ridge and wave soaring in difficult terrain of Beskidy Mountains, within the reach of High Tatras. Every year we host up to 90 participant (in two sessions), who attend theoretical and practical coaching sessions, flying with instructors in two-seaters or solo, as soon, as their capability  and weather conditions permit. The Camps are also attended by well seasoned pilots taking an oppoortunity of well organized flying to discover Beskidy Mountains. You may meet, fly and exchange views with famous Sebastian Kawa, multiple World and European Champion.

We invite pilots from abroad to join us and to have fun, flying around Żar and other slopes in the area. Typically this time of year offers high wave reaching FL 175 or higher.

If interested, you may contact Mr Richard Bendkowski phone: +48 601301604 or write: artois12@gazeta.pl for details. GSS offers lodging and board in their hotel located right on the field, with numerous pensions, restaurants and other tourist facilities around.

Entry fee to GSS-KSS Camp EUR 40.

On Sebastian Kawa's Project FB page you can find very nice post about our Society.  We appreciate and thank you :)

" One team was staying out of the spotlight during the preparation activities - Karkonoskie Stowarzyszenie Szybowcowe. They were the first to support the project - the glider, it's high altitude modifications - are all owed to them. It is they who pushed the project from the dreams into the preparation frenzy. Perhaps not an isolated effort of that outfit. Just in the last month KSS had organized 2 training camps for an international group of over 90 people, resulting in about 1000 flying hours, multiple diamond badges and many new ratings for ridge and/or wave flights in pilot's logbooks. Just as one of the camps was in a full swing the news from Australia arrived - Matthew Scutter, one of Spring KSS camp participants, had won 15m Nationals and is coming next year to Poland for WGC representing his country. Again, Spring training with KSS is planned. Remarkably rich record of projects and achievements that the KSS had some share in, just in one year. And the year is not over yet. LBNL, many media interviews/programs concerning the project were recorded or organized with the KSS support. A whale of a gliding community supporter... (Turns out whales do fly)."

Source: Facebook - Himalaya Gliding Project

 

 

 

Second Wave-Ridge Soaring Camp GSS-KSS "ŻAR 2013" has just ended. In two weeks of time, in two rounds, nearly 90 pilots, among them guys from Denmark, Austria, Canada, USA, 64 gliders, totalled over 1167 hours, 678 flights, close to 2800 take-off/landing operations, flying over Beskidy Mountains surrounding Żar airfield. They ware coached by roughly 40 instructors from all over Poland, coming on their own expense, just to have fun and be helpful.

Training was based on individual programs suited to a particular pilot's needs and level of proficiency in flying in mountains. How big logistic operation it was, one may imagine, given the number of 678 glider take-offs from a slopy airfield, which were performed in the course of the event. The Mountain Gliding School Żar (GSS), however not a big place, made a tremendous effort to help all the pilots to better their glider piloting skills in a very secure way, because we have noted not a single air or ground incident. Imagine, that vast number of landings had to be performed in down- or side-wind, uphill, in sometimes stormy weather conditions.

Good weather permitted for a variety of gliding exercises ranging from thermalling, through ridge and wave soaring. A number of Diamonds and Badge achievements is a good proof of a high level training received at GSS/KSS Camp. It is worth to underscore a very friendly relations among participants, helping willingly each other, manouvering gliders, pulling out after landings, assisting during take-offs.

See you in 2014.

KSS has just drawn up its plans for the season 2013. Our itinerary includes participation of KSS in the gliding events in Poland, Slovakia and Czech Republic and our own projects as well.

 

GLOSSARY
S	Events hosted by other organisations + training by KSS
U	Events attended by KSS members and their non-member friends
KSS	Events run or co-organised by KSS
EVENTS
U	Pribina Cup Nitra     30.03-06.04
U	FCC Gliding Previdza  14-26.04
U	Club A Competition Leszno 28.04. - 06.05
U	Eurobeskidy Cup 27.04- 05.05 Żar
KSS	4-airfileds Gliding Competition IV - IX 2013
U	Club A Nationals Stalowa Wola        11-19.05
KSS	Mountain Cross Country Gliding Camp Żar (May 11-19)
S	Grand Prix Mlada Boleslav (May 18-25)
KSS	3rd Springtime Cross Country Gliding Camp in Lubin 25.05-15.06
KSS	Polish Gliding Rally "Karkonosze Eagles"
S	Safari Pohar (Safari Cup) Dvur Kralove (CZ)      29.06-13.07.2013
S	PMCR DUO (Czech Nationals in two-seaters) Dvur Kralove 29.06-13.07.2013
S	HOP Hronov (CZ) 10-17.08.2013
U	Open Class Polish Nationals Częstochowa 15-25.08.2013
KSS	Autumn Rigde Soaring Camp Podhorany (CZ) (IX/X)
KSS	Wave-Ridge Soaring Camp Żar (X/XI 2013)

 

It is worthwhile to turn our foreign readers' attention to the events which, as we assume, may draw significat dose of interest by the pilot from other countries.

 

Our flag proposal is the 3rd Springtime Cross Country Gliding Camp in Lubin (EPLU) on 25.05-15.06.2013, co-hosted by the Aero Club of the Copper Basin, AZM Lubin, as a joint venture. The area is the site of the biggest copper mining industry in Europe. Our Camp offers thorough training opportunity for the pilots of every skill level. Thanks to EPLU's geographical position, there are possible flights towards not-too-distant Karkonosze (Riesengebirge) Mountains with extension deep into Czech Republic (no flight plans required), as well as in every other direction of flats of South-Western Poland, with the ease of planning of over 500km long routes. Novices will fly with instructors in our Puchacz two-seaters. Recovery in case of outlanding is really fast, with no unneccessary delay.

In the course of the Camp, KSS together with AZM, will offer a trouble-free despatch in the air, preceded by weather and navigation briefings in English language as well.

Cheap air tows to 500m which will cost around EUR 22, EUR 4 every other 100m will be the other advantage of our Camp.

 

Another event we would submit to your attention is the Mountain Cross Country Gliding Camp Żar (EPZR) scheduled for May 11-19.2013. The Camp will be co-hosted by the Mountain Gliding School of Aero Club of Poland. The airfield is located on the Żar slope right in the Beskidy Mountains in the vicinity of Slovakia and Czech Republic's airspace, close to Tatra High Mountains. It offers a real adventure of cross country flying, entirely in mountainous area of Southern Poland. Novices will be coached in Puchacz two-seaters by experienced instructors, the World Champion Sebastian Kawa among them.

Lodging and catering in the non-expensive hotel on top of the hill and numerous other places around. Ideal place to bring families along. They may enjoy variety of local attractions and marvelous sightseeings.