Lumpy Paterson and Joergen Thomsen flying from Tocumwal
by Terry Cubley
Photos Jenny and Sarah Thompson
Ahead of the Two-Seat Nationals, scheduled for 8 – 15 March 2026 at Narromine, Matt Gage suggested that we fly together. It was a timely invitation as, after finally conceding that my sore back was no longer able to handle the glider alone, I had just sold my glider. I had decided to sell and look into doing some 2-seat flying.
We booked a Duo Discus from Narromine Gliding Club. The Duo from our own club is more expensive, and by hiring locally, we wouldn’t have to derig and transport the glider. Meanwhile, Beryl Hartley at NGC put us in touch with a local home owner who was prepared to rent out a granny flat. Matt and I had previously rented her main house at a comp a few years ago, and knew it was in a great location. Caroline and Vicki enjoyed trips to Narromine and Dubbo, while Matt and I enjoyed some good, challenging conditions.
Into the Mix – Gliders, Pilots and Tasks
The solid entry list of 17 gliders comprised four Arcus, two ASG32, six Duo Discus, three DG1000, a DG500 and a DG505. Seven of the competitors were previous national champions. A few clubs use the event as a means of providing coaching for some of their pilots, whereas others just want to fly with friends.
The DG505, with a wingspan of 22m and therefore a much higher performance and handicap, was flying Hors Concours (HC), but the Bennet/Bennet team enjoyed every day.
A large number of women pilots were competing – Lesley Scott, Amber Davison, Ella Campbell, Kylie Bennet, Jo Davis, Sarah Thompson and Jenny Thompson. All had good days and enjoyed the racing.
The tasks assigned were a mix of AAT with a number of Distance Handicap Tasks (DHT). DHT is a recently introduced format where the distance to be flown by each pilot is prescribed by the task setter, based on the glider’s handicap. Each pilot is given their own task file, which tells them where to turn.
Jenny and Sarah Thompson on the grid
Fair and Accurate
I was a bit sceptical of the accuracy of the tasks, but the experience at Narromine showed that the tasks are both reasonably accurate and fair. The best pilots were typically the winners (who would‘ve thought?), and although the higher performance gliders still had a small advantage, they were not winning every day.
Day 1 was a 335km fixed task – 74km out to Parkes – 90km to Tullamore – 70km to Nevertire. 335km was assigned to the ASG32 and Arcus, and 307km to the DG1000 and the Duos.
Lumpy Paterson and Joergen Thomsen finished in 1st with 134.61 km/h scoring 788 points. Brad Edwards and Bruce Taylor came 2nd at 134.74 km/h, earning 776 points, and 3rd place winners were David Jansen and Lesley Scott with a speed of 129.30 km/h gaining 717 points. Lift was to 6,000ft with maximum climbs to over 7,000ft with a 5kt average.
Class Divisions
On Day 2 we flew a 3.5 hour AAT via Tooraweenah and then on to Wellington, Peak Hill, Trangie and Narromine. Cumulus ran up the first leg, followed by occasional cu from there. All gliders started within 15 minutes of each other but thermal heights of 6,000 to 8,000ft provided enough separation, giving us only occasional glimpses of other gliders.
Matt and I turned just south of Tooraweenah and then flew downwind directly towards Wellington over the edge of the scrub. We found excellent glides and had a great run along the ridge line next to Wellington, which meant fewer climbs. Some wisps of cu encouraged us to continue to the western edge of Peak Hill. Heading north to Trangie, we flew into wind, but by carefully selecting good air we were able to complete the task without taking another climb. We finally completed the task, winning the day at 128kph over 448km.
David McIlroy in the front seat with Ed Marel in a DG500.
A clear division formed between the Arcus’ and ASGs, which included the top list of finishers, and the DG and Duos representing the bottom scorers. Matt and I took first place followed by David Jansen and Lesley Scott finishing 2nd, followed by Paterson and Thomsen in 3rd place.
Vicky and Terry Cubley enjoy the Narromine evening with Brad and Kerrie Edwards.
Microwave Tower
The Day 3 task was a DHT in which the high performing gliders were to fly 460km, while the others flew 430km, travelling to Forbes and then out west to Bobadah Road, coming home via the microwave tower. The wind was 15 to 20kts from the west and made the second leg rather slow, but the trip home was very nice with a good tailwind. Climbs went up to 9,000ft at 5-7kts.
Four gliders did not finish. Dave Boulter and Jenny Thompson landed near the first turnpoint at Bogan Gate and called on the help of Stewart and Tam, who were on holiday at Narromine on their way back from Tahiti and stayed for the comp to help on the ground – great work, guys!
The other three gliders – Jacob Bloom/Richard Frawley, Ed Marel/McIlroy and John Jurotte/Dominique Brassier – couldn’t get enough height as they came home and missed out on getting to the microwave tower – very frustrating after a long day. Top scorers for the day were David Jansen and Lesley Scott.
Too Blue
Day 4 took us on a 3-hour AAT via Gilgandra – Wellington – Cumnock Road – Control point South – Trangie. We had a blue day that was not going very high as we headed north into the higher country.
Jacob and Richard visited some airspace. Marel/McIlroy found a paddock southwest of Narromine, while Jacobsohn/Steventon flew over Marel/Mcilroy and decided to return to Narromine as the day died. Paterson/Thomsen got too low SE of Gilgandra and had to fire up their engine and fly home.
In contrast, Brad Edwards and Bruce Taylor had a good day, winning the task at 114kph, well ahead of the opposition. They had a couple of climbs to 7,000ft but got down to 1,500ft AGL just south of where Marel /Mcilroy landed, but a good climb saved them.
Alan Barnes/White placed second in the DG1000 at 104kph, and Dave and Lesley were 3rd in the ASG32 at 108kph.
Day 5 was another blue day with lift to 6,000 to 7,000 feet. A 2-hour AAT sent us to Peak Hill, Albert and Trangie. All pilots started between 1,440ft and 1,458ft, as no one wanted to get caught by another early finish to the day. Lumpy Patterson and Joergen Thomsen won the day at 128kph. Barnes/White were second and Gage/Cubley came in 3rd.
Excitable Crowd
The final Day 6, Sunday 15 March, brought an expectation of cu and a 3-hour AAT set to Nyngan, north along the highway, then south to Tullamore before heading back to the highway at Trangie and then home to Narromine. The cu started just before 2pm and gradually got higher and stronger.
The pre-start conditions were quite congested, as some pilots found a short lived thermal and climbed well above others before slowly sinking down to the same level. This excited the crowd when they suddenly saw people higher and didn’t want to miss the opportunity to start.
At 2.06, first to start was Dave Jansen who was in the lead overall but only 130 points ahead of Bruce and Brad. Most people started between 2.30 and 2.35 with thermal heights above 6,000ft, which then increased to 7,000 and then 8,000ft by 3.30pm. Thermals were still difficult to work resulting in a few people getting lower than comfortable.
Matt and I were with Jenny and Dave at 3,000ft when Jenny pushed to a couple of willy willies and we were rewarded by 6kts, which took us to 7,000 and then 8,000ft. The line of cu heading south were looking good so we turned a little earlier and headed that way. This was very reliable and resulted in good climbs.
The aim was to avoid climbing but not come home early. As it worked out, the higher performing gliders finished a few minutes early whereas the Duos and DGs were 1 to 3 minutes over time. Winners for the day were Lumpy and Joergen at 141 kph, again lamenting their engine start on Day 4. Alan Barnes came second at 128kph, and equal 3rd were Taylor/Edwards and Jansen/Scott at 133ph. Worth a mention are the two ladies Amber and Ella in the DG1000 at 119kph.
Delicious Finish
The Presentation Dinner, held outdoors at the clubhouse, featured great food prepared by Beryl and Arnie, and a chatty group of participants. The unanimous opinion was that the comp had been a huge success with great flying.
The overall winners were David Jansen and Lesley Scott, with Brad Edwards and Bruce Taylor in 2nd place and Alan Barnes/Harry Medlicott/Andrew White coming in 3rd.
Two Seat Nationals
NARROMINE
8 -15 March 2026
1 Jansen & Scott Kingaroy SC ASG32M 5,001
2 Edwards & Taylor LakeKeepit ASG32M 4,873
3 Barnes & Medlicott & White LakeKeepit DG1001 4,814
4 Gage & Cubley GCVBenalla DuoDiscus 4,616
Full results at soaringspot.com tinyurl.com/2seatnat
