The Jet Stream seems to have been parked over the S of France for the last 3 and a bit months. Although I've had plenty of hour-long practice flights, nasty winds have severely limited XC flying. The European Championships will be held here in Sept, and I certainly hope things improve by then.
Today, winds gusting to 55 K/h were predicted and I decided a long bike ride was in order - even if the winds would make things tough, they would keep them cool. It was a lovely ride, climbing for the first 25K, then a wonderful 33K descent with a tailwind, a brutal short climb in the noon sun and then a fight home into the howling wind over some cols. Just over 100K, but it felt a lot longer than that. The highlight was passing through Entrevaux, a fortified town defending the ancient frontier between France and Italy. I've included a pic taken today, but it really is worth a google.
I will have (non-flying) visitors for the next 4 weeks, so inevitably the flying forecasts have improved, starting tomorrow...
