2008 Swiss RC Gliding Championships (F3J and F3B)

The SM F3J took place on May 3, 2008, in Ricketwil near Winterthur. After a slight delay, the first round began shortly after 10 a.m. Under bright sunshine and with a light breeze, good thermals developed. Despite the good weather, the six qualifying rounds for the fly-off were highly selective, and many favorites had to accept poor scores due to their gliders stalling. Consequently, all members of the F3J national team fell victim to the treacherous conditions and no longer had a chance at a Fly-Off spot. At the top of the standings, the competition was as tight as ever, and to secure the last of the seven

Fly-Off spots, 99.6% of the points had to be achieved, meaning there was really no room for error. In the end, the entire Böhlen delegation—Thomas Kübler, Reto Fiolka, Heinz Bischofberger, and Christian Müller—qualified for the Fly-Off.

The fly-off itself took place under moderate thermal conditions, which actually made it relatively safe to fly out the required time. In the end, it all came down to a precise landing at the “very last moment,” with Stefan Böhlen showing the steadiest nerves. He deservedly became the Swiss F3J Champion ahead of his brother Andreas Böhlen. Heinz Bischofberger, also

a very experienced F3B pilot. A big thank you to the organizer, Ruedi Schaub, and to Kurt Strasser, whose signaling system ensured the competition ran smoothly.

The Swiss F3B Championship took place in Altikon on the weekend of August 23–24, 2008. On Saturday, it was cloudy, and as the day went on

There were a few rain delays. The timed flights proved to be quite challenging at times, causing some participants to fall behind. Due to the onset of rain, the first speed flight had to be divided into two groups. During the second speed flight on Saturday, a moderate, slightly crosswind blew, allowing all participants to reach very good altitudes.

Andreas Böhlen made the best use of these conditions and, flying his Shooter, clocked a time of 13.1 seconds—the third-fastest speed flight time ever recorded in a competition! His brother Stefan then followed suit with his “Precious,” flying a 13.6. The rest of the field also benefited from the good high-launch altitudes

, and there were quite a few 14-, 15-, and 16-second times. Only Fidel Frick had to fly as rain began to fall, but he accepted this so as not to further delay the competition. A fair and sportsmanlike gesture from Fidel!

Sunday surprised us with thick low-lying fog, which initially prevented any launches, as the gliders would otherwise have disappeared from view. As a result, we weren’t able to begin the timed flight until around noon. Despite bright sunshine, conditions remained difficult, even during the subsequent distance and speed flights. At times, there were widespread downdrafts, and a light tailwind resulted in poor launch altitudes. In the fourth round, only the speed and distance flights could be completed in order to conclude the competition

to be able to finish early. In the end, Andreas Böhlen won the Swiss F3B Championship in commanding fashion, for the fifth time in a row. Christian Müller took second place, followed by Fidel Frick, who placed third at the World Championships, in third place. A big thank you to Thomas Kübler and Christian Müller, who put together a fantastic Swiss Championship. A big

thank you also to the numerous volunteers from MG Diessenhofen and the external helpers, whose tremendous dedication contributed to the success of this championship.

*Report: Reto Fiolka
Photos: Ruedi Schwald,
Reto Fiolka*