Santa Pola, Alicante, Spain, May 2000

I was at one of Trevor's club meetings last March, when he said, "I've got a place left on my trip to Spain in May, if anyone is interested?" "Hmm, Spain in May", I thought to myself, "sounds good!"

So, there I was on the plane, leaving a dreary Gatwick behind and looking forward to the sunshine. "What sort of a week will this be?" I thought, as I looked out of the plane window and ate my in-flight meal. "How many days flying in the week will there be this time?" (My last trip abroad with someone else had been a bit of a 'blow out'.) The red wine was having its effect as I dozed off thinking of blue skies and gentle breezes.

Trevor met us at Alicante airport with his welcoming grin, in T-shirt, shorts and sandals, and in no time at all, we had the minibus loaded with our gliders etc. and we were travelling off to the accommodation in Quesada.

The next morning dawned looking full of promise, so off we set, this time to meet Nick at his house. Nick was to be our 'guide' for the week and is an amazing guy. We were completely in his hands as far as local knowledge was concerned, and his 'network' of friends around the region was invaluable for wind directions and strength etc. Nick is originally from Belgium, speaks FIVE languages, and now lives in Spain with his wife, Kath, and their 18 month boy, Paquito.

We soon set off in the minibus, with the gliders loaded on to the roof rack and cool boxes stuffed with food and drink, for some of the most stunning flying sites around. After a quick inspection of the bottom landing field and a briefing from Trevor & Nick, we were off up the mountain. The temperature of the valley floor was beginning to heat up rapidly by now, and the thermals would soon be coming through thick and fast. So we laid the gliders out and took off into a 2500' glide down toward the landing field.

"Look for the thermal 'sources' that face into the sun", both Trevor and Nick had said. My glider was pitching back and forth, "some gentle brake Peter ", said Trevor over the radio. "Turn to the left, keep the turn on and into the centre of the thermal again". And up, up, my vario beginning to go berserk, I had never felt 'lift' like it. It was like being in an express lift in a skyscraper. My inexperience was beginning to tell and I was now 'sinking'. Once again Trevor on the radio, "just fly a little more to your right Peter, you should find some lift there".

True enough, there was lift there all right. How did he know that? I was grateful for the advice, but sadly it was all over too quickly and I was now starting to look for the bottom landing field. "Where's it gone?" I thought. Ah! Yes, there it is. Nick's voice on the radio now, "Circle around to your right Peter, to lose some height." "Now 'S' some more height off over the trees, now fly straight towards me" - a few moments later I'd landed. Trevor's voice on the radio now, "great flying Peter, well done."

In no time at all, the minibus was there to take us back up the top and do it all over again! If the thermals were too strong, then a quick visit to the nearest 'tapas' bar would be in order until it settled. Some of the best flying was to be had in the early evening as the sun was beginning to go down. It was not unusual to get more than an hour's flying in towards the end of the day!

The coastal cliff soaring site at Santa Pola is not unlike Newhaven in East Sussex, but it has an expanse of land between the cliff and the sea which makes for interesting flying with the thermals that 'pop-up' amongst the gentle sea breeze.

We were very fortunate with the weather and had 7 out of 7 days flying mountains, coastal ridges and cliff soaring. And everyone's experience levels went up several notches. At least, 30-40 mins 'top to bottom' flights were normal, and a good time was had by all.

The week went by all too quickly, (as it does) and before I knew it, we were touching down on a wet Gatwick runway.

Peter Fox

Trevor - Can I reserve a place on your next trip out there?

P.S. What do you call someone that speaks several languages? Polyglot
What do you call someone that speaks two languages? Bilingual
What do you call someone that speaks one language? English

A note from Trevor

Peter has been on several more trips with me since he wrote this article after his first visit. He has been back on his own a few times with Nick too as he no longer needs any help from me. He has his Pilot rating and is now a coach with the Southern Hang Gliding Club and a Trainee Instructor with a local paragliding school.