How can a glider fly many miles across the country?

By using the energy in the air itself. A skilled pilot can usually pick out the best areas of likely lift - on an ideal day, the skies may be full of fluffy 'fair-weather clouds' (Cumulous) and by flying under them can use them as airborne stepping-stones. The rising air can be so good that the pilot need not always stop and turn, instead simply pull up underneath the clouds giving the best lift and push over at the top to continue to the next one. A cross country glider can cruise between clouds at around 90mph and can easily gain several hundred feet in each 'pull-up' - in fact, it is not uncommon for modern gliders to carry up to 200 pounds of water ballast in the wings in order to be able to glide faster

between climbs while keeping the same glide angle. The penalty is, that if conditions become weaker, it is more difficult to climb with the extra weight, so the pilot may jettison it.

Even if the day is 'blue' without any clouds to mark the climbs, lift can be found by using features on the ground. For instance, towns and villages usually produce thermals, as do sun facing hillsides. A good indication is always birds circling - Particularly buzzards (at Booker we are privileged to share the skies with Red Kites, which often mark the lift for us - sometimes paying us the ultimate compliment of joining OUR thermal!)

A cross country pilot usually declares a 'task' before launching. This task can be anything from 50kms to 750kms (or more) This often involves two pre-declared turning points. The BGA sets these points

- they can be a roundabout outside of a town, a church spire or some equally prominent landmark easily seen from the air. Using a GPS system and an electronic flight logger, the pilot sets off and the trace is recorded to prove that they have actually completed the declared task.

Of course, you can also just go up and fly around the countryside if you wish and admire the superb view. The only requirement being that you carry an up-to-date aeronautical map, are cleared for cross country flying and have a clear understanding of air space and where you are allowed and not allowed to stray.