road trip to rathlin island and the north coast of ireland

[andrew wallace]

John, richard, Terry Jones and myself all met up this morning in Ballycastle to take the ferry over to Rathlin Island
now the winds this week around the north coast of ireland have been very strong and most days the ferry has been cancelled
so after a lot of should we go or shouldn't we go three of us decided we would go and boy was the crossing rough     at one point i was thinking to myself Terry made the right decision stayin on dry land

once we landed in Rathlin we jumped on the bus and that took us to the west light house and this is were the bird sanctuary is and the site that we were going to fly off was perfect in every way

we flew for 3 solid hours and then the bus returned for its last stop of the day.We returned to the harbour and straight back onto the ferry for a much calmer sail home  [-o<

i'm glad we went it was a great experence  :clap:  :clap:  we're hoping of doing the same thing next year again

sorry i've no pictures  john and richard had the camera's

we're hoping to fly off other parts of the north coast tomorrow depending on the wind direction  

[Richard Boyd]

Just have to say a big thanks to John, Andrew,Bill and Terry for making the trip to Rathlin so so special.
I have travelled all over Europe flying planes and I was taken aback by the beauty of Rathlin Island.
The lift was amazing, the people of the island were so friendly and the company was second to none !
Today Sunday we had to fly from land as the ferries were cancelled , we headed to Andrews slope at Benevena !
At a guess winds were in the 50mph range and my planes were not going to fly in the winds.
Andrew did test fly a plane for Bill.
Bill tossed it of the cliff and after a flew leeps in the turbulance the wing was up and away, next thing a maasive Eagle came up from under the cliff to have a look, it frightened the life out of us.
I never even knew there were Eagles in Northern Ireland.
We watched this captian of the skys float around in the massive winds with ease and grace.
Magnificent sight to behold.
No one else flew today so we all retired to the caravan for coffee and of course the chat about our weekend  to Rathlin and the North Coast.
 
Thanks to you lads for giving me some of the best memories of my life.

Richard

[billscottni]

Great weekend and thanks for the invite. I missed the trip to Rathlin because of work, but headed up as soon as I finished. I flew the Zagi for about 20 minutes early evening before we retired to Andrews' workshop for JP to do a few repairs.
Today, we headed back to the same slope below Benevanagh to fly and found 40mph+ winds and no chance of much flying. Andrew & Terry tried flying there Bullets. Andrew a little more successfully, but even he was basically tracking back and forth on the same line and unable to penetrate.

I asked him to maiden my Predator Bat, a rather heavy plank style model. A launch and a few ups & downs and Andrew got it under control and was speeding up and down the slope, when he uttered "What the b***Y ell is that", as a very large (as yet unidentified Eagle) breeezed in to view, wondering what the hell is your problem with this wind speed!. He had a good look and then just sat there watching while we flew.

A good day, but only a few pics.

[andrew wallace]

:shock: i've never seen an eagle in real life before  :shock:
i was trying to watch bills plane and watch this massive bird at the same time
the whole time it was in the air it never flapped it's wings once  

another brilliant weekend was had by all  :clap:
thanks to everyone  :clap:

[andrew wallace]

 :shock: i think this is what we saw today a golden eagle  :shock:

[Richard Boyd]

Ok a few pics from Saturdays trip the the beautiful Rathlin Island.

 
The ferry to RATHLIN !!!!!! First class all the way


Leaving Ballycastle


 
Bye bye Terry, we all missed you


John is a happy bunny


First sight of Rathlins coast line.


Heading in to dock on Rathlin


Andrew was first to fly ! idiots go first and the old men go second lol


Now this is were we were flying !!!!!!!!! out of this world !!!!!!!!




Looking down on the west lighthouse











I PULLED A BIRD !!!!!!!!!!!!!
I AM IN LOVE !!!!!!!!!

[Happy Days]

Well, there you are guys. A spot to note for future reference, especially for us southern’ers, not used to the rugged coasts of the north. Those cliffs look to be quite high, what would you say lads? Two - three hundred feet? :?:
(I’d have been a sick as a dog on that ferry riding those white capped waters. :cry: ) But I’m glad it turned out as a pleasantly memorable event, for you all.
Pity none of you had any ballast :!: . Perhaps something to remember for next time?

And flying where Eagles dare,…….very impressive . And quite a shock :shock: ……… Er?

So,………where’s the next adventure to be??

Keith
p.s. Glad you‘ve fallen in love (again) Richard,………Trust you to pull a bird with a pecker!!!
(He’s definitely a strange one that Richard :roll: ,……Nice, but strange! :lol: )

[JohnPearson]

Hi guys
Well, was that a great weekend or what!!! I can say with my hand on my heart, that I have never flew in a more fantastic location, the view was amazing, the lift was pure air and best of all, it took balls  of steel to throw the glider off that cliff for the first time, however I was lucky, I had two great test pilots who went first, ha, ha. I flew the vector3 which is a good flying model, however, in this lift, the Vector came a live, rolls, high speed turns not a problem, and best of all, gain height and dive down to the sea and pull up vertical and keep going up, up, and up within a few seconds, wow!!!!
The trip over was a wet roller coaster ride, however the return journey was a little smoother,  still it was a bit of craic!! This was my first trip to Rathlin and It is a sloping paradise, can’t wait to go back!!.
A big thank you to Richard, Andrew, Bill and Terry for one of the best slope weekends I have ever been on!

Here are a few photos taken over the weekend:




Richard with camera at the ready


Coming out of the harbour


Richard and Andrew use a van for shelter


The waves get even bigger!!


Andrew glider at the ready


All a board the fun bus!!!


Andrew first to fly, brave man!


What a view!


Smile for the camera John!


This is my new buddy, Percy the Puffen


First class accommodation on the return ferry


'I wonder why, no one is setting in these seats?


Bill gets the wing ready for an evening flight at castlerock


Bill and Richard flying with lough foyle in the distant

[Richard Boyd]

Here we go !!!!!
I took very little video as we visited Rathlin to fly !!!!!!
Hope you enjoy

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/v/cGhMYCWgW0s[/youtube]

[andrew wallace]

:clap:  :clap:  :clap:  :clap:
felt sick watching the video  

[Happy Days]

:clap:  :clap: Yes!, very good ‘ol fruit.
And I would guess that was produced without a shooting script or story board :?: . (am I right?)

At the risk of sounding condescending , for I‘m no expert, but in my opinion you’ve come a long way in short film production since your first slide shows of the N.I. airshow.  

Well done Richard!

[Richard Boyd]

Here we go !!!!!
I took very little video as we visited Rathlin to fly !!!!!!
Hope you enjoy

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/v/cGhMYCWgW0s[/youtube]

Hi Keith, I made it up out of what footage I had lol.
One thing that was a problem, was the spray of the sea !
Even at the top of the cliff the camera lens was getting covered.
I like the shot of the front of the boat and waves coming out.
Andrew held on to my legs and hung me over the side.
The things we do to get a good shot lol.

Thanks for the kind comments,

[JohnPearson]

Great video Richard :clap:  :clap:  :clap:

a real rock and roller trip

[Fred]

I envy you big time!!  :cry:  :cry:

Sorry I could not make it.

Sooo... When is the next time you go up there ?? I'm in!

[Richard Boyd]

Hi Fred, we also missed you and the crew from glider ireland !
Maybe we can get together when life is less hectic for you.

I think God was shinning down on us over the weekend, it truely was a amazing trip.
I am lucky to have flown most sites between Ballycastle and Binevnagh yet Rathlin is special.
I am in the blues now after the weekend !!!!!!!!!!!
I even cleaned out my workshop, thats how bad it is.