Gliding all over Yorkshire

ON A clear day there can't be many views to match the one from Sutton Bank, but it gets even better when you're soaring above the ridge in a glider.

York is easily seen; the Dales in all their hazy glory are just over there and the Humber estuary peers in from the east, shimmering and back-lit by the early morning sun.

Suddenly the horizon disappears. No more verdant and gold patchwork fields, just an iridescent sky as the plane powers upwards into a loop. Seconds later the earth reappears, this time above us and accompanied by a pit-of-the-stomach sensation. "Grunt," is the advice. "It will help counter the G-force."

I do, it does and before you can say Cuban roll, the plane is back as it should be, straight and level; horizon dead ahead, the iridescent sky in its rightful place; verdant and gold patchwork fields below us once more.

Exhilarating isn't a good enough word. Fortunately Mike Smith, an instructor at the Yorkshire Gliding Club, has a better and more considered one – "aesthetic".

"I think it's the view and the notion of soaring like a bird that gets you. Seeing the world from a privileged position; and having a completely different perspective on the countryside in a way most people never do," he says.

Mike took up gliding after powered flight proved unaffordable. Now he reckons it is a better way to fly and says every sortie is as good as his first.

They're all unique too. Gliders are dependent on rising air and it's constantly found in different places. We've all heard of thermals; a bubble of air that has been heated by the sun more than the surrounding air.

And as any schoolboy knows, hot air rises. It is circling within this air that allows birds – or gliders – to go upwards.

Which sounds great in theory, but how do pilots know where to find them?

"It could be a particular colour of grass, a car park, rooftop or cliff face," says Mike. "Also as the bubble of air rises it cools down and the water vapour condenses to form fair weather, cotton wool like clouds. So they too are a good indicator of a thermal."

Brilliant in California, perhaps, but with our often dismal climate, glider pilots are grateful of a more reliable source of lift. And there is nowhere better than a ridge, where air is forced upwards by the slope.

Which is why the Yorkshire Gliding Club is based at Sutton Bank.

The club is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year and in that time has boasted an illustrious register of members including former world gliding champion, Phillip Wills, Fred Slingsby who founded Slingsby Aviation and, most famous of all, Amy Johnson.

It's a friendly club where everyone mucks in. Members don't just fly, most spend a full day there, helping out with launching and winching. Then at the end of the day, they put the gliders away, before a spot of flying banter over well earned pint in the club bar.

And it's a sport for all. You too can discover the joys of gliding at the club's open day on June 14 and you really should, because this is a particularly graceful way to fly. Soaring at 45-50 knots, but it feels like a snail’s pace, you really can take in the views and experience a sense of freedom like no other.

One flight and you will quickly understand why so many pilots believe gliding is the purest and most rewarding form of flight.

"There is this extraordinary expanse from the cockpit, an almost 360 degree panorama," says Mike. "From about 9,000 feet you can see both the east and west coasts."

Best of all are the unexpected moments of elation. Mike tells of the time he shared a thermal with a peregrine falcon. It may have been flying 200 feet below, but because the light was so intense he could make out every little detail.

Mike also describes other worldly sensations such as seeing his glider's shadow cast on a cloud and surrounded by a rainbow halo.

Then there is the silence.

"I used to be a teacher and I found gliding was the only activity I could do to forget about the classroom for a day. I was completely focussed. I still am."

Another bonus at Sutton Bank is a third form of lift called mountain wave. While it's too tricky to describe why the phenomenon occurs, Mike says finding one allows a glider to reach extraordinary heights. Indeed 19,000 feet is run of the mill and the club record is 33,000 feet.

"People often ask what's the longest I've been in the air, expecting me to say about an hour," says Mike. "When I say five and a half hours, there's silence. They just can't believe it."

And it's not spent circling over the airfield. Because of the singular conditions in this part of England, long distance cross country flying is quite common at this club. Indeed 300 kilometres is the norm – one pilot even flew twice that.

Sutton Bank has to be one of the best gliding locations in the country. Couple that with a large, modern fleet, full time and part time instructors and you can fly here every day except Christmas.

Best of all at you don't have to wait for good weather, which is just as well really. This may be the ideal place to catch rising air, but it also catches the worst of the elements. And on days when pilots can't contemplate getting anything out of the hanger, they can still go flying in the simulator.

"Gliding is not like being on row 79 of an Airbus, you feel part of the aircraft and feel every movement," says Mike. "Soaring over the best scenery in God's own county – it doesn't get any better than that."

Yorkshire Gliding Club, Sutton Bank, Thirsk YO7 2EY 01845 597237 Club open day June 14.

You can sample the delights and challenges of soaring above Sutton Bank on a one or five-day course. These are available until September and run from Monday morning through to Friday afternoon.

A five day course costs £180 and includes three months temporary membership. A wide range of gliding activity will be covered which, dependent on weather conditions, might include:

• Demonstration of and tuition in the fundamentals of gliding

• Launches by winch and aero tow

• Hill and thermal soaring

• A short cross-country flight

• An introduction to basic aerobatics

The number of students on a course is restricted to four in order to maximise flying opportunities for each student and you will fly in modern two-seater gliders, with instruction from professional staff or a qualified club member.

The club also operates a self-launching motor glider which may be used if there are weather or operational constraints.

Gliding is also suitable for people with a range of disabilities

The only age limit is that you must be 14 to go solo. There is no upper age limit but, from 65, you will need a doctor to sign once a year that you are fit to fly.

The following height and weight restrictions apply: Maximum height: 6' 2" (189 cm); Maximum weight: 16.5 stones (104 Kg). Minimum height: 4' 7 (140 cm).