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Dear Wings of Rogallo club members,
We have several important updates to share with you. This is a fairly long email that covers multiple topics:
Topics
The good:
- New Ed Levin site procedures
- Mission keyholder applications
- Updated Mission COVID-19 protocols
- Mission Electronic sign-in now supports key sign-out
- Election results next week
The Bad
- Ed Levin issues this past weekend
The Ugly
- Mission Peak illegal launches off the East side of the landslide
Ed Levin Site Procedures
We are very pleased to announce the introduction of new and improved Ed Levin Site Procedures! These new procedures have been many months in the making and are effective immediately. We would like to thank all of the executive board members, Ed Levin Site Chair, and all of the instructors and observers who provided input throughout the process.
Before flying at Ed Levin next, please ensure that you read and understand the new procedures.
Here is a summary of the main changes that have been introduced:
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Updated pilot proficiency requirements.
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P2s and H2s may fly off the 600 and 1750 launches, with some restrictions (altitude is your friend!)
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The number of required sponsored flights has been reduced.
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A “Site introduction team” is being established for sponsoring flights for lower-rated pilots from the higher launches.
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Updated pilot identification requirements. No more helmet stickers required! You must, however, be able to display a copy of your electronic WOR membership card, which shows your pilot rating and sign-offs. It is recommended that you keep an offline copy on your phone, or a printed copy on your person, in areas where there is poor signal. Membership cards can be downloaded by logging into your account on the website. If you have issues, please email [email protected].
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Merged separate Emergency Procedures document into a new section within the site procedures.
What has not changed:
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Santa Clara Parks sticker and waiver requirements remain the same. The current guidance from the park while COVID-19 restrictions are in place is to keep a signed paper copy of a Santa Clara Parks waiver on your person when flying at Ed Levin. We are (slowly) working with the park to further reduce bureaucracy and try to make this an electronic waiver, but this has not happened yet.
If you have any questions about these new procedures, please ask them at the club meeting next week on December 15th, since others may have the same question. If your questions aren’t answered at the meeting, feel free to reach out to the board or Ed Levin site chair.
Mission Keyholder Applications
Mission Keyholder applications are open now. If you are interested in obtaining a key to access Mission with a vehicle:
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Read over the Mission Keyholder Application
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Fill out an Application.
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Submit it to Steve Welch (Mission site chair), at [email protected]
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Initial Keyholder Application processing deadline is February 1st, 2021. After this date, keys will be allocated on a monthly basis until all keys have been distributed.
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We are planning a key exchange near the second week of March.
Updated Mission COVID-19 Protocols
We have reached an agreement with the East Bay Regional Park District to simplify the COVID-19 protocols at Mission Peak. Rather than following a custom set of guidelines specifically for the activities allowed under our special use agreement, pilots who are flying at Mission Ridge must simply adhere to the health orders and guidelines of Alameda County regarding social distancing, specified on the following website: http://www.acphd.org/2019-ncov/health-officer-orders.aspx
This means:
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You are responsible for keeping track of changes to the health orders.
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No more capacity restrictions at launch (please use good judgement and space out appropriately).
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Pilots may carpool to and from launch at their discretion (please wear masks, keep windows open, limit vehicle capacity, etc.).
Please note that these updated restrictions apply only to Mission Peak, and not to Ed Levin, which is in Santa Clara County, and still has more restrictive protocols in place.
Mission Electronic Sign-In Service Now Supports Keyholders
Mission’s Electronic sign-in form now allows keyholders to sign out keys. https://wingsofrogallo.org/mission-ridge-electronic-sign-in/
When you sign in, an option will be presented to you to select whether you are a keyholder. If you are, you specify which key number you are signing out.
All pilots at Mission should now be using electronic sign-in. The paper log should only be used as backup.
Election Results Next Week
The annual officers’ election is concluding today, December 8th, at 11:45pm. Results will be announced at the next club meeting on December 15th. If you haven’t voted yet, today is your last chance to do so!
Ed Levin issues this past Saturday, Dec. 5
This past Saturday, Ed Levin park was very busy with hikers and picnickers, and was nearly at capacity. There were also a large number of pilots out. There were a number of issues that occurred:
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Ride sharing. ride sharing between non-household members at Ed Levin due to COVID-19 restrictions is still prohibited by our special use permit addendum, yet club members continue to blatantly violate this rule. Please stop doing this, regardless of how you may personally feel about these restrictions. You are putting everyone’s ability to fly at risk by violating the terms of our agreement with the park.
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Parking. The staging area adjacent to the LZ entrance is to be used for loading gliders, not for long-term parking. There is a 15-minute loading time limit. Last weekend, there were many vehicles blocking the loading area for much longer than 15 minutes.
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Dogs off leash. Dogs must be on-leash in parking areas and on trails, according to the park rules. A club member’s dog was running around uncontrolled off leash, ran in front of a park ranger vehicle that was driving on the main road, and then ran onto the lawn area.
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Large number of pilots in the LZ. There were a significant number of pilots lingering in the LZ, namely a large group of HG students that were practicing assembling and disassembling gliders. Under normal times, this would not be an issue, however our current permit addendum restricts the number of pilots in the LZ to 12 at a time. Please use the LZ only for landing and packing up or disassembling gliders, and exit when finished, in order to keep our capacity numbers at least somewhat close to the limit that our permit allows. Glider assembly and disassembly practice should be done in small numbers, or elsewhere while COVID-19 restrictions remain in place.
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Non-commercial instruction is still not permitted under WOR’s permit. This includes instructing students on how to set up and break down gliders within the park boundaries. We recognize how frustrating this is, and have asked Santa Clara parks multiple times to allow us to resume limited instruction, similar to other commercial instructors, however we still have not received permission from the park.
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Non-pilots entering the LZ and launch areas. In spite of signage that the park has posted regarding the LZ and 300 being accessible only to permit holders, non-pilot park users continue to enter the LZ area and hike up the 300 trail. This presents a risk to pilots and to our special use permit. If you witness any non-pilots entering the LZ, kindly remind them of the park regulations and ask them to spectate from behind the fence in the LZ. It is ultimately up to the park rangers to enforce this, so if a simple verbal reminder is ineffective, please do not escalate the matter.
Mission Peak pilots launching off the East side of the landslide ridge
The following note was sent from the Mission Peak park supervisor, regarding an incident that happened on Sunday, December 6th:
Park staff reports having observed paragliders launching outside the designated launch site. I don’t know if these are WOR members or rogue pilots, but regardless, staff have been instructed to call Park Police when such incidents are occurring. Below is the ordinance section for which pilots could be cited.
SECTION 409. MISCELLANEOUS REGULATED ACTIVITIES. No person shall engage in any of the following activities within the District except in areas specifically designated and set aside from time to time by the Board for such activities.
409.5 Hang glide, parasail or paraglide, parachute, rope swing; or launch or land a hot air balloon, except by permit.
Please share this information with the WOR members. I know that 99% of WOR activities are in compliance with the Special Use Agreement. I do not wish to see 1% ruin it for everybody else.
The area in question was the East side of the landslide ridge.
We suspect that the pilots were non-WOR members. The conditions on Sunday were unfavourable for Mission (moderate East wind), and no pilots were signed in to fly.
If anyone has any additional information about this incident, please reach out to Steve at [email protected]. Needless to say, pilots should not be launching from anywhere except for the approved launch area. Paraglider pilots should also not kite their wings anywhere outside of the launch area.
Thanks,
The Wings of Rogallo Executive Board and Site Chairs |
