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Higley, Ken Ridge Soaring Gliderport 19881005 STYLE

20221224GHLn-
STYLE IN FLIGHT WEDNESDAY,OCT.5,1988 16
Soaring
Up in the clouds
without an engine
By LAUREN YOUNG
Collegian Style Writer

Gliderportcontainsamishmashofglidingparaphernaliaincludinga licenseplatethatreads:'Glider pilotskeepituplonger.'AreliefmapoftheAppalachianMountains,whichextendfromSouthern CanadatoNorthernAlabama, coversonewallalongwiththe certificatesandtrophiescollected bylocalandvisitingfliers. Formorethan17years,gliding greenhornsandexpertshavebeen enjoyingthenaturalflyingchuteoftheAppalachianRidge."Wehavepeoplefromallovertheworldcomeheretofly,"Higley said. SOMEWHEREOVERTHEAPPALACHIANMOUNTAINS,Pa. Onacleardayyoucansee forever.Well.maybetoLockHaven. BeaverStadiumlookslikeasaucerandtheUniversityAirport isaPlayschoolsetwhenyouare soaring2.000feethighinaglider. ThesmallplanemovesincirclesaswefollowthreebabyGoldenEaglesmigratingSouthenroute toMiamiorwhereverbirdsgofor thewinter.Thepilotpointstothe mountainridgebelowus.Only fromthisheightcanoneappreciatethesurprisenestledontheridgeofthegreenmountainsa rockgardenreplicaofPennsylvania. Andtheydo.ThepageIlogged intointhevisitor'sbookwasalso signedbyflyersfromIndia,Brooklyn,LockHaven,NewZea-land,MaineandTexas. ???Themountainridgeisthemainattraction."Whenthewindblows outoftheNorthwestandintothe ridge,theairgetsdeflectedupwards,"explainedDavidFilberkleit,agliderenthusiastandthe port'spublicrelationsspecialist. Mostglidersdonothaveanengine.Instead,thesesmallplanesutilizeMotherNaturetostayinflight."Theridgehookstheairupwardandcreatesalittleareaofrisingair.Youcanride thatlittleareaofrisingairfor greatdistancestoWilliamsport, toTennessee.That'swhatridgesoaringisandwhyit'sworld-famous,"Filberkleitsaid.

When Ken Higley, owner of the Julian Ridge Soaring Gliderport, harnessed me into the front seat of this two-seater glider, the caterpillars in my stomach turned into butterflies.
A thin metal ring and a 200-foot rope connected our glider to the tow plane. As we sailed down the runway, the glider began to lift before the plane had even taken off.
When the glider reached about 1,500ft., Higley told me to release the glider from the tow plane. I pulled at a yellow knob and we began to soar toward the ridge at our right as the tow plane went to the left.

Almosteverydayisagoodflying day.Even"inthewintertimewhenyougetupbelowtheclouds, thewindishowlingandtherearelittlesnowflurries,weareoutthereflyingtheridge,"Higley said.ThebestpartoftheflyingseasonbeginsnowandwilllastuntiltheendofMay,hesaid. "Thisiswhypeopleinthespring Itwasnotuntilaftertheglider wasreleasedthatIrealizedwe wereupintheairwithoutanen•IN. Downontheground,themain officeoftheJulianRidgeSoaring andfallcomefromallovertheworldtoflyhere.IfyouliveinIndiana,Ohio,NorthernMaine, youmaynotbeabletofindtheconditionswhichenableyoutoflygreatdistances,"Fliberkleitsaid."It'sadifferentkindofflying,"headded."Ridgerunningisnot necessarilyrepresentativeofsoaringinthatitisaverysmall componentofwhatthesportisallabout. "Actuallywhensoaringfirststartedbackmany,manymoons ago,that'sexactlywhattheydidridgesoaring,"Higleyinter-jected."Thentheydiscoveredthermals." Thermalsarethenaturalbub-blesofhotaircreatedbythesun,hesaid.ThisheatingoftheEarth'ssurfaceallowsaglidertofloatupwards. "Youcanfeel(thermals).Alotoftimeswhenyouareflyinginabigairplaneandyouhitabump,
???
Multipleexposureofatwo-seatertrainersailplanebeingtowedaloft wellmanypeoplethinkthat'sanairpocket.Butit'sreallynotanairpocketatall,itisrisingairwhichisathermal." Notallthermalsarenatural,humanshelpmakewarmairtoo."ContinentalTrailerparksisagreathousethermal,"Higleysaid. In1968,KarlSteriedieck,alocalresident,"rediscovered"ridge soaring."Hewentoutandflewadistancetheysaidcouldn'tbedonewiththetypeofgliderhehadandhedidthatbecauseoftheridge," Higleysaid.

Now the glider port boasts six world soaring records, 23 national records and all of the state records, said Higley, who set the state altitude record of 14,000 feet in June. He has owned the glider port since January.

Allsortsoffriendlyflying-typeshangoutatthegliderport.Mike Ledet,aretiredTWAflightengi-neer,frequentsthegliderportreg-ularlyinhiswhiteaviationsuit.OthervisitorsincludeDorisGrove,aformerownerofthegliderportandholderofthewom-en'sdistanceworldrecord. FlyingtheridgefromWilliams-porttoKnoxville,TN.,takesabout10hourswhenthegliderismoving160mph.Longdistanceflightslikethisaretheresultyearsofflyingexperience,Filberkleitsaid. Soarerscancompeteatdiffer-entlevelsinregional,nationalandworldcompetitions."Alotofpeo-plecomeheretoapplytogettheirdifferentbadges,"Higleysaid.Thesportextendsitselftovaryinglevelsofdifficultyandbadgesreflecttheaccomplishmentofdif-ferenttasks. Althoughtherearearenomorethan20commercialgliderportsintheUnitedStates,soaringisgainingpopularityacrossthenation. CollegianPhotoICharlesBreiling TheSoaringSocietyofAmericahas20,000registeredmembers, Higleysaid.Buttherearemoresoaringenthusiaststhanthat."InEuropeeverythreepeople outoftenflygliders,itseemslike,"Higleysaid. ?IN? NowPennStatershavetheirclassesandsoartoo.ThroughthecooperationofJohnCampbell,aprofessorattheRo-chesterInstituteofTechnologyin Rochester,NY,thePennStateSoaringClubwasfoundedthis year.Campbell,aphysicistbytradeandasoarerbynature, spentthesummeratthegliderportasaflightinstructor.Camp-bellalsostartedsoaringclubsattheUniversityofMichiganandPrincetonUniversity,saidSteve Scott,presidentofthePennStateSoaringClub. OtherschoolsliketheUniversity PleaseseeGLIDER,Page17

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