Originally Posted by solentlife
But ... what may look good may actually be a death trap for a sloper .. ie a sharp vertical rock face .... the air rise of it is often violent or not smooth.
Long ridges / slopes are best to smooth and have wind as a more uniform rise along a longer length.
Best slopes are those that curve up from the flat to an angle of 60 - 80 degrees - this then has smooth air. Trees at base can be a pain as they disturb the air before it hits the slope.
One of the worst is in fact a closed valley or gulley leading to a slope ... the gulley funnels the wind great IF direct on ... but any angle to wind and it can create rolling air ... where it comes over the ridge into the gulley, drops and then gets pushed up ... and can if strong get pushed over ... death to the soarer ...
Last comment on this - using seagulls, hawks, other birds as indicator of a slope is to be honest not a good idea - they've been playing this game for centuries .. millenium ... !!
Let me respectfully disagree with much of what you have said.
I don't disagree with your assessment of the perfect slope site, but if I only flew those, I would not have had hundreds of hours of soaring joy. I don't believe I have any sites that you would consider suitable, but I have 7 that are lots of fun to fly.
Those verticle walls and rock faces make great slope sites, especially if there is water or a large grassy meadow in front of them.
Following birds who are slope soaring is, in my opinion, one of the BEST ways to identify a slope site. If it works for the birds it can work for you.
I say, fly what you have. Give it a try. You might fail, but you might succeed. If you don't try you are guranteed to fail. If you do try you have the opportunity to enjoy a wondeful experience.
I have sloped my house with my Parkzone Vapor!
Just a different approach to things I guess.
Always use a foam bird for your first attempts. Assume you will crash and plan your escape before you launch.
Make sure the wind is directly into the hill on your first try. It doesn't have to be raging wind. In fact if you are flying something light like an Easy Glider, 4-10 is perfect. If your winds are typically higher than that you might want to ballast the plane first.
The Weasel is also a good one for lighter conditions.
I like e-gliders for slope soaring as well as pure gliders. And I usualy start new slope pilots with e-gliders. Saves a lot of time looking for and getting gliders out of trees, water and other bad places.
I like e-glider for testing out slope sites. You have the motor to help you get out if the site turns out to be unsuitable or if you got into a bad place.
I once sloped a construction site where they had dug a BIG hole in the ground and piled up the dirt on one side. It was about 20 feet high for about 50 feet. Great lift but wild turbulance. But I used my Easy Glider electric so the motor allowed me to get out of there and find a suitable landing spot.
To repeat myself:
I say, fly what you have. Give it a try. You might fail, but you might succeed. If you don't try you are guranteed to fail. If you do try you have the opportunity to enjoy a wondeful experience.
If you avoid failure you will never find success. All success rises out of failure.