Local pilots make record soaring flights
On April 7 of this year, Rand Baldwin of Madison, along with his friend Bill Elliott of Huntsville, made the longest sailplane flights to originate in the southeastern United States.
However, his journey in the air began much earlier.
"As a child, when I heard an airplane flying overhead, I would rush outside to watch it until it disappeared."
When Baldwin was 8-year-old, he discovered sailplanes in the encyclopedia and found idea of flying without an engine magical.
"I vowed to learn how to soar when I grew up," he said.
So, keeping that vow to himself, Baldwin began soaring as a freshman in college and has been at it for more than 30 years since.
He is a co-founder of the Huntsville Soaring Club, where he serves as a flight instructor and operations director.
Rand flies an LS-8 standard class sailplane that he races in local, regional, and national competitions.
Flying a sailplane involves being towed behind an aircraft and, once attaining a certain elevation, releasing and gliding using various air currents. Another form of soaring, and the one Baldwin and Elliot used for their record flight, is called "ridge soaring,"-or "surfing" along the upwind side of a mountain ridge to attain the desired elevation.
Early on the morning of Apr. 7, the two sailplane pilots released their sailplane from their towing aircraft from the Marion County Airport and-762 miles later-landed back in Marion County.
The men had set a U.S. soaring record for distance flown in a standard class sailplane, and both pilots earned the "1,000-kilometer diploma" by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale, the international governing body for sport aviation.
Since 1964, only 106 U.S. soaring pilots have qualified for the 1,000-kilometer award.
This was not Baldwin's first attempt at the 1,000-kilometer diploma.
In fact, his feat in April was the culmination of 15 years of effort.
So what is in store for this local astrophysicist after attaining such a goal? Baldwin says he plans to keep sailing, log longer flights, and set more records.
Mostly, he just loves the feeling of being in the air.
"I love the freedom of maneuvering in three dimensions, the spectacular vistas that only pilots can enjoy," he said.
Information about soaring is available from the Soaring Society of America on the Web at http://www.ssa.org or by calling 505-392-1177.
