SOARING FORECAST APRIL 12-15, 2013

LAST WEEK Spring conditions allowed pilots to stay aloft locally for several hours working lift in small thermals. The winds aloft limited most folks from getting high due to its negative effect on thermals ability to consolidate.Heard through the grapevine - -last weekend Dennis Tito and Jim Payne had a flight of 1500 kilometers! in the Sierra wave created by the unusual weather system.Last Monday we halted operations due to strong surface winds. We had steady NW winds of 30 knots with gusts to 40+ at the field. The winds and temps aloft forecast for 18,000 feet was 109 knots. That's an unusually low altitude for winds of that velocity.THIS WEEK Nice warm sunny weather throughout the period. Friday will mark the end of an Easterly flow and we'll have gentle West winds into next week.- - Friday and Saturday Dr. Jacks thermal updraft forecast indicates lift to 500 FPM at the field.Height of lift forecast is good on Friday and much better on Saturday with the return of the westerlies. Looks like 14,000 feet over our third ridge might be attainable. ...See you up there.  The National Weather Service is predicting the following local surface conditions for Friday through Monday: FRIDAY:Sunny, Temperature: 78 degrees.Wind: Northeast 10-15 mph.SATURDAYSunny, Temperature: 77 degreesWind: West 5-15 mph.SUNDAYSunny, Temperature: 73 degreesWind: West 15 mph.MONDAY:Sunny, Temperature: 67 degreesWind: Southwest 15-20 mph.email weather comments to robert.settle@gmail.com