| Home
|
Article From Hang Gliding Magazine, April 1997
Article and photos by Doug Rice Sauratown Mountain, North CarolinaBefore the white man came and before the Cherokee expanded their territories, the Saura were a small tribe living in peace on the Piedmont Plateau. Sawra, Sorro and Saura are other documented spellings. "Sara" is a Catawba word that signifies a place of "tall grass or weeds." There were two fertile locations along the Dan River where the Saura lived until around 1700. White settlers later occupied abandoned villages which became known as Upper Saura Town and Lower Saura. Today the Sauratown name is attached to a unique mountain chain in Stokes and Surry Counties of North Carolina. Geologists refer to the area as the "Sauratown Mountain Window" where a localized event occurred, leaving three separate rock formations sticking up out of the middle of nowhere. Hang glider pilots refer to the area as a "Launch Window" with cross-country possibilities in every direction. The broken mountain chain covers 16 miles from the southwest to the northeast. Westernmost and just across the county line in Surry is Pilot Mountain which became a state park in 1968. Its pinnacle is at 2,440' MSL with an average base in the chain at 1,100' MSL. Unfortunately, the state does not permit launching and there is a six-mile wide gap from the chain's namesake at Sauratown Mountain in Stokes County. At the eastern end is Hanging Rock State Park which opened in 1944 and consists of a cluster of mountain peaks spread out over an area six miles long. Its highest peak at 2,595' MSL is Moor's Knob which faces northwest. Facing south is Cook's Wall at 2450' MSL. At 4.5 miles from Sauratown Mountain, it is often used as a pit-stop. In the middle of the chain is privately owned Sauratown Mountain that tops out at 2,465' MSL. The 225-acre property was purchased in 1955 from Delbert and Hettie Hall for the purpose of transmitting television signals. That same year the road to the top was constructed and the first of two 700' towers was built. Now occupied by other newer and smaller towers, the location also leased access to the Sauratown Mountain Hang Gliding Club. Like other eastern flying sites, Sauratown's most consistent cross-country season is during April and May. Although not quite as reliable, September and October also offer good flying, and other possibilities exist throughout the year. What sets Sauratown apart from other sites is its ability to handle all wind directions with the exceptions of strong north and northeast. Sauratown's cross-country history dates back to September 18, 1983 when Jeff Poplin and Ken Haney were first to cross the border north into Virginia. In the years since, Sauratown has produced almost 50 different flights in every direction in the 40-, 50- and 60-mile range. The only two flights over 70 are Doug Rice's 72 and Jake Alspaugh’s 75.5-mile record that has stood since 1988.
SAURATOWN MOUNTAIN HANG GLIDING CLUB This is the story of a small group of pilots building a flying site now 17 years in the making. It's a story about the generosity of landowners and individuals who gave selflessly of their free time. This is about the Sauratown Hang Gliding Club. Actually, this is only a fraction of the story because to include all the plot twists, the heroes and villains, the triumphs and failures, or to even begin to mention all the people involved would require a book. Instead, this is a condensed record of the history of a flying site and the club that evolved with it. Sauratown began to lure pilots by 1981. For starters, it had an open road to the top, but the upper part was privately owned by a television broadcasting company. Some of the first were made from the lower cliffs along the road by pioneers who might otherwise have been called "banditos". By 1982 the mountain’s top had been fully tested and was being used more frequently. In February 1983, Sauratown’s first newsletter, the Flying Wire, was produced by G.W. Meadows. During the summer of 1983, Peter Adams and a group calling themselves the "Sauratown Soaring Society" approached the broadcasting company seeking a lease that would permit their activities. At first the owners were not impressed, so the North Carolina Hang Gliding Association (NCHCA) stepped in and their name was attached a lease. The NCHGA continued to cover Sauratown's lease and the USHGA site Insurance until 1988. As Sauratown's popularity grew, so did the potential for problems. In 1986 the primary LZ was lost as a result of a misunderstanding with the property owner. June Bug Covington's property had always been an alternate, but it was narrow and For a short time pilots were allowed to land at the base of the mountain on part of Delbert Hall's property. That was until someone landed in this tomato patch - By 1987 the LZ dilemma had shifted focus to the possibility of buying land. This divided the NCHGA when dues were raised from $15 to $30 to establish a sire procurement fund with the emphasis on Sauratown. The plan backfired, and within six months the dues were reduced. But the damage had already been done, and an increasing number of pilots from other flying sites decided they didn't need the NCHCA. In the meantime, Sauratown solved its own LZ problem in May of 1987 when Delbert Hall had a change of heart. Sixty-five at the time, Delbert said, "You all have to come down someplace." Much to his credit, Delbert demonstrated forgiveness and put the tomato patch incident behind him. He accepted a proposal allowing the use of a different piece of his property farther away from his garden and closer to the mountain. The section of land consisted of only two small fields, but permission was given to remove as many trees as needed With hard work at several work parties the two fields were first connected by cutting a slot through the trees. Then the site regulars each pitched in an extra $100 to pay for a bulldozer to remove the stumps. In December 1987, 12 pilots joined together to form the Sauratown Mountain Hang Gliding Club (SMHGC). Mike Nester was voted in as the club's treasurer and remained the only year-round officer until being elected president at the beginning of 1992. That same year, Delbert Hall had the remaining trees around the LZ clear-cut, opening up new approaches, and the SMHGC hosted its first "October's Best Fly-In." OCTOBER'S BEST FLY-IN -1996 REVIEW AND 1997 PROMO By mid-afternoon on Friday conditions began to improve. Jeff Reynolds and I launched off the southeast cliff ramp with a light tailwind. We quickly topped out at 5,600' MSL and elected to head east toward some promising-looking clouds. Two miles south of Cook's Wall we climbed under a beautiful cloud street with big smiles on our faces. On Saturday the wind finally blew in at 5-10 mph allowing the competitors to float off the end of the ramp. After topping out a 5,200' MSL I headed east toward Hanging Rock with Jerry Brown in close pursuit. On Sunday I again crossed over to Cook's wall, but this time I flew alone as no one else got up in the L/V conditions. As during the previous two days I flew for about an hour and a half, then opted to land conveniently in my yard five miles from launch. I would have been more inclined to go farther had these conditions existed one week earlier during our fly-in. Unfortunately, October's Best 1996 and the entire Eastern Seaboard were held captive by unrelenting northeast winds. Although 90 degrees cross and averaging 5-10 mph, most of the 46 registered pilots flew multiple times during the three-day event. Weak thermal activity produced few good cycles, and as patience wore thin pilots dove off the ramp for all it was worth. On Saturday Mitch Shipley continued his strong annual showing as the only pilot to leave the mountain. He barely climbed above the TV towers, then milked it for 5.2 miles to win the X-C task. The duration times were pitiful, but it was still fun trying to better vince Furrer's 12 minutes. Mark Fink was holding on to second place with 10 minutes as Saturday ended. By Saturday evening pilots and friends alike were ready for some hot food and tale mountain for a few years, June Bug Convington continues to add to our fly-in's popularity by cook'n and serv'n his Saturday night chicken dinner. One hundred plates were served and the food kept coming. He has been on hand since Sauratown's first top launch was cleared. His list of contributions to the flying site, added to his early days as a barnstorming wing-walker and skydiver, makes him a Sauratown original. Sunday morning, while most of the pilots pussy-footed around, whining about the conditions, Tom Fort attacked the day aggressively. Tom demonstrated the day's flyability, making three flights using a new approach to the southwest target. Soon the remaining pilots were stuffing ribs and shooting for the bull. As the day wore on the conditions improved slightly, allowing me a brief duration flight with Mitch Shipley. Launching and landing two minutes apart we moved into a three-way tie for second place with Mark Fink. The tie was later broken with the pilot's next-longest flights. Although we would have preferred chasing cloud streets with late-night retrievals, Sauratown's reputation for being flyable shined. Special thanks to Sauratown Mountain Hang Gliding Club members for putting on a good show that was injury free. Thanks also to launch timer David Tollison, to Jeff Reynolds for generating electricity for the campers, and to concessionaires Jerry Lawson and Gene Sands for serving breakfast and lunch each day. Besides just plain being a fun thing to do, October's Best raises money for site improvements in addition to the annual maintenance that a small club can't afford. This year we hope to open up a safer and easier approach to the landing field for northeast conditions. In the meantime, stop by and have a flight on us. For more information refer to the Calendar of Events in this publication or contact Doug Rice (910) 994-4377, or Vic Lewellen (910) 595-6505 |
