This article, written for Sailplane & Gliding in 1977, became a classic and was referred to for many years. We have reprinted it by kind permission of the British Gliding Association in memory of Alan who was killed in a mid air collision on April 26, flying from his club, Lasham Gliding Society. Alan, who was much respected and valued, was an example to all aspiring long distance glider pilots. He had held five UK records, logged 756 flights of more than 300km, 160 flights in excess of 500km, 16 of over 700km, held the 750km diploma and recorded a final glide of 240km. Although written all those years ago, the article is as fresh as ever, making many valid points and gives advice countless inexperienced pilots have undoubtedly found helpful

Do you ever get bored when local soaring? Do you have the urge to go cross-country before you have permission? Has it been good at your site and nowhere else? Would you like to practise cross-country flying without the worry of outlanding. Have you been without a retrieve crew or car on a good day? Would you like to improve your cross-country speed? Have you had an evening date and dare not land out? Would you like to try out new techniques against known yardsticks? Have you ever taken turning point photographs? Even the greenest of Bronze C pilots can savour the delights of cross-country flying without going out of the local soaring range by trying the tiny triangle. The particular tiny triangle I use at Lasham is:- 1. The big green aerial on the Holybourne road near The Golden Pot. 2. Herriard Church (on the A339 towards Basingistoke). 3. Bentworth Church (about two miles beyond Lasham village). None of these turning points is more than two miles from the airfield boundary, so (providing the wind is light) each turning point can be rounded at say 1500ft without undue worry (make it 2000ft if you're inexperienced or anxious). Each leg is about 6km long so the total distance is 18km (11 miles). You only have to go round three times for 50km, so that budding Silver C people will find out how easy a 50km task can be. A 100km task is six times round, and 300km 17 times. You must choose a suitable triangle round your own site or persuade your CFI or local pundit to find one for you. It does not have to be symmetrical or exactly 18km in length - anything between 15 and 20km should be acceptable. Ensure the turning points really are recognisable (not whole villages) such as churches, road junctions, large buildings or small ponds. I think also that we had better all agree to always go round anticlockwise - not that there is any special significance in going that particular way round rather than clockwise - but if the idea catches on we do not want to find hordes of sailplanes charging round in opposite directions. Come to think of it, the clear vision panel is usually on the left of the cockpit so going anticlockwise should make it easier to take photographs. The first thing to do is to wander gently around looking for the turning points and fixing the layout of the triangle in your mind. Also note the features on the ground that lead up to the turning points. Gold C aspirants should mark the photographic zone on their maps and note which features must be included. With these preliminaries over you, our intrepid potential pundit can start flying the triangle in earnest. You are bound to start circling in the first thermal you find, and the second and the third. Eventually you complete the first circuit of the triangle and note how long it took - probably half an hour. That's