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Dave K and I had planned to take a trip to South Dakota this weekend and so he had a couple of days off from work. It is hunting season in SD and rooms are few and far between. Our favorite motel in Chamberlain was all booked so we decided to stay local. With the opening of our new site at the Omega Hills landfill it was a safe bet that we would get some flying in if there was wind.

Thursday Dave and I met at Omega Hills and found a due east wind at 8-10 mph. We flew the face that faces Northeast and while it was not spectacular it was very flyable. Dave flew his Spyder and I few my Pixel. After about 45 minutes the lure of the east wind prompted us to head to Concordia.

Dave’s Lumberjack - North Bowl at Concordia

At Concordia we found that even though the coast of Lake Michigan is only about 15 miles from the landfill site the wind was more northeast. We did fly some at Concordia. Dave had his Lumberjack out and I flew my LEG P-51. The wind was off the hill by about 35 degrees but the lift was OK. Much smoother than the inland site. I always knew that coastal sites are smoother but it really drives it home when you fly both on the same day. We did a bit of Weasel flying too but with the northeast wind direction we knew there were better slopes down the coast a bit.

Guys, Michael from AstroWings sent in this report from a flying session at the new Omega Hills slope soaring site in Germantown, WI.

Astrowings members flying: Dave Kraemer, Mirko Bodul, Greg Smith,
Michael Davidson

View From the Top of Omega Hills; About 190 Feet Up.

Strong and gusty winds greeted Dave and I around noon at the new Omega Hills slope site on Saturday. Winds were out of the northwest around 15-20 mph. Not sure of the temperature, but it is definitely time to start gearing up for our year ’round slope season with plenty of layers and warm gloves.

Dave flew a number of planes; a foam wing called a Lumberjack, his composite 60″ Spyder, and the always impressive Opus. I had my recently recovered Pixel up. My Pixel has had several different designs, but I think it’s a sign of our often overcast Midwestern skies that it has gotten brighter and brighter! Fluorescent yellow, silver, and black helped it stand out in the overcast gray skies. Later, Dave’s PSS P-51B was out and looking awesome making low runs through the valley. (more…)

Howdy slope pilots! The long wait is over. Things turned out a bit differently than we’d originally planned but our friends at AstroWings of Wisconsin helped us finally gain access to one of our local “Holy Grail” slope spots. Thanks to AstroWings, and especially Roger Zahn, as well as the folks at Waste Management for this opportunity.

On Saturday, October 6th Mirko, Greg and Tracy made a preliminary venture to the Omega Hills Waste Management site in Germantown, Wisconsin for some test flying of what promises to be a great venue for slope soaring action in Southeast Wisconsin. On this particular day the wind was about as poor a direction (SW) as we could have and we still had many flights of 10-15 minutes. I had on at least 20 minutes. Remember this was in the least favorable wind direction!

For those of you who have been looking forward to flying at Omega hills please mark your calendars for Sunday, October 21st at Noon. We will meet at the Omega Hills gate on County Line Rd. and be given an orientation by the site manager outlining the few rules that we need to be aware of. After that we will be free to fly!

If you will be attending the orientation please RSVP greg@slopeflyer.com. I need to get a head count for the site manager.

Also, please remember, to fly at this site you will need to be an AMA member and an AstroWings of Wisconsin member too. I will have membership applications for AstroWings at the site.

FYI, this has been over 5 years in the making and we are really looking forward to making this relationship work. Your help as responsible pilots and people will be greatly appreciated!