What is the best way to de-thermalize a Monarch D?

Joe and Don,

Hey guys you can drop all future HLG design projects. I know I am not the best expert on HLG but I think you guys have designed the perfect HLG (or pretty darn close to it) in the Monarch D-Lite. Everytime I go fly the thing I am even more impressed with the way it flys. If there is even a hint of lift this thing will go up and it seems to have good legs to get home if you want to take it down wind chasing after those low level gofer fart thermals to get your max. I do have one question though. When those big hat sucker thermals come along what is the best way to de-thermalize this thing. I was out with mine this afternoon and got into one of the above mentioned variety of thermals and was beginning to wonder if I was going to be able to get down. I first tried to spin it and it kept going up, so I then turned it upside down and it kept going up, so I then tried an inverted spin and still kept going up. Luckily I was able to fly far enough back up wind to get into the sink behind the thermal and was able to get back down. All-in-all the flight lasted 16.5 minutes, the first 10 getting up and the next 6.5 getting back down. If you have any better suggestions please pass them along. One last question, where can I get find the nylon bolts use to hold the wing down. I would really like to get some that are .75" long if possible. I have a Mini Ellipse that I am maikng a removable tail on and I have not been able to find any of the nylon bolts with the beveled head on them. I would be happy to purchase some from you guys if you sell them. Thanks for a great HLG and may light winds and strong lift find your favorite flying site.

See Ya,

Pat McCleave
Extremely Happy Customer
Wichita, KS

Hi Pat.

Well, Don and I will be buying new hats soon ;-) THANKS for your nice comments!!

Dethermalizing: As scary as it may sound, I usually just nose the D-lite down at about 20 degrees or so and keep it there until it gets to the height I want. It does start hauling freight, but pull out gently and it'll be fine. I've also done some sloppy aerobatics to get the job done, such as continuous rolls, inverted S turns, and the like. To tell you the truth, if I'm not flying in a contest with a long max requirement, I really don't fly mine all that high. Once I catch a thermal and ride it for a while, I get out of it and go looking for another, or else I go back and try to re-locate the one in which I last climbed out. For me the most fun is had searching for and finding lift, using it for a little while, then leaving and searching some more. And, I agree with your description of the D-lite---it does let you move around the sky very efficiently, making the searching thing I enjoy even more enjoyable!

Would you mind if we use your E mail, with my reply, on our website?

Thanks again Pat--continued FUN with your D-lite!!

Joe Hahn