The Langer Report

Sunday 21st June - 23:29 - My skull hurts. Yours would hurt too if you'd been drinking the same quantities on booze we have been consuming... mostly courtesy of Le Brasser O'Neill. Good stuff... just too much of it! So, what happened today?

Being a non-starter for flying (still blowing like a $50 hooker) and with no pressing engagements to fulfil, we took a lazy morning, crawling out of bed at a leisurly 9am for a little brekkie alfresco. Plans for our approach to the competition were discussed wihth some seriousness (as only we can be in the cold light of the morning after the night before) and we did partly manage to get our shit together enough to sort out radios and communications. Good thing too, as Geoff's PTT was killing his transmissions! Anyway, fixed that and moved on to the gliders. Shaun thought it might be a good idea to fit a hang strap to his wing, and the rest of the morning was spent worrying over the insanely narrow 2mm cheese-wires holding his wing together!

Shaun fitting his hang strap

Later on in the morning we were treated to amaster class in sprog and glider pitch stability issues by Tesm USA pilot Geoff O'Brien.

Geoff O'Brien gives Shaun a master class in sprog issues

All too soon it was 3pm and time to hear in to Laragne town for the official weather briefing. We figured we'd have time to grab a quick bite to eat afterwards. No such luck... the briefing went on until 4pm and was then immediately followed by the mandatory pilot's safety briefing, which went on for another hour or more! We were all beginning to get seriously hungry and thirsty!!

While signing in the the mandatory safety briefing we were delighted to see a photo of Fran Denny on stage at Ribiers during the 2008 Pre-Worlds shin-dig. It seems that everyone not only remembered Fran's heroic rescue of the Ribiers entertainment disaster when he hopped up on stage and wrestled a guitar from the wrist-slashingly depressing band and turned the event around, but were all asking why he wasn't here again this year! We had to explain that he was under the thumb of de missus and off entertaining his family and the Texicans. Dierdre, you're in deep shit if you ever show your face around Laragne in the future!!

Bruce Kavanagh prays at the shrine of St. Fran of Ribiers

Geoff & Shaun at the mandatory pilot's briefing

During the pilot's safety briefing Heather Mull sprung a lovely surprise on all the pilots by introducing the father of hang gliding, Bill Moyes (who practically invented the sport and started Moyes Delta Gliders) and presenting him with a few gifts. Bill and his wife and daughter received a well deserved standing ovation and raucous cheers from all the pilots in the room. It's not often you get to meet a legend!

Bill Moyes (and family) receive a presentation from comp director Heather Mull

When the pilot's briefings had all eventually finished we finally thought we might slip away for a bite to eat (it now being nearly 6pm... and not having eaten since breakfast!) but it ws not to be... we were all told to regroup in the town square where we would find all the local children carrying all our national flags and standards, and to stand behind them for a parade through the town back to the town hall for yet more speaches and the official opening and welcoming ceremony (in French and English) which seemed to go on for yet more hours! It was worth it, as the parade was headed by a really fantastic drum and percussion troup which really got people dancing and in the party atmosphere. The kids were amazing too - really enthusiastic and cheerful!

Ireland's standard barer in the international parage through Laragne

Mayor of Laragne, Auguste Trupheme welcomes us all to the HG Worlds

Finally, with all the parades and speaches over, the whole town piled in to the town hall for very pleasant eats and drinks. We had to elbow our way through the thronging croud and had to crack a few shins, but the Irish team finally managed to get to the tables where food and drink were to be had. When we had finally stripped the place clean we wieved our way back to the campsite (via the piza parlour) to consume another crate of Shaun's beer. Scott and Monica Barret (Australia) dropped by for a chat and pop music quiz before we all dissolved into our beds.

00:34am - Blog done... my head still hurts!