18M Champion Lumpy Paterson in his JS3 at Leeton.
The Multiclass Nationals were held at Leeton NSW in January. There were 44 entries in 18M, Open and combined 15M-Standard classes, making Leeton the best attended Nationals for some time. The weather conditions were excellent, resulting in some very fast race days. The following story is from the new 18M Champion Lumpy Paterson with additions from the blogs of some of the other pilots.
By Lumpy Paterson
Photos by Gary Brasher
and Sean Young
Leeton is based in a region with soaring conditions that are among the best in Australia. However, it was back in 1985 when the last Multi Class Nationals was held in this location. JoeyGlide also held two National events there in 2005 and 2006, and in the last seven years it hosted the SkyRace event with great success. The weather has been very favourable and, along with Leeton’s facilities and town infrastructure, it’s well suited to host events of this size comfortably.
It was great to see such a large field for this Multi Class competition. Only the 15M class needed to be mixed in with the Standard gliders to be able to validate the class. I’m sure that the new DHT (Distance Handicap Task) assisted in boosting numbers in Standard and Open Class, with a wide variety of sailplanes entered in each class. Open Class didn’t have two of the same model entered, and it was great to see those big wings out there engaged in some competitive racing.
Standard Class also had scope in their field rather than just LS8s, which were very well represented as always. There were also two Standard Cirrus, a Salto, LS4, ASW24 and AS34 mixing up the group. Seeing these gliders lined up at a Multi Class Nationals again was refreshing.
From Across the Nullarbour
The commitment from the Western Australian team was awesome. Nine pilots and crews made the journey across the paddock to play at Leeton. Top job, team WA! A special mention must go to Ash and Sam Boyle for making the trip with their big Open Jantar 2B, bringing the kids along for a memorable holiday – I think that’s what they called it.
It’s always great to see Ash – he drives the Jantar like he stole it. It was encouraging to see the kids joining in on the action as well, assisting greatly on the flight line with ropes, wings and things even in the 40°C heat. Adam Woolley’s Ventus 3 also had some special treatment from the kids, getting a daily dust-off just prior to launch.
The season may have started a little cooler in the south but summer was well and truly at Leeton during this competition. The practice days provided some good conditions, allowing pilots to get their bearings and an understanding of the lay of the land. The town of Griffith is out to the west and has well irrigated farmland, which is not great for thermals, but just to the north and east of Leeton lie good hilly, rocky outcrops, which in contrast provide awesome triggers to get things going.
18M Class had 20 entries this year, which was just magic. This class has the least variance in glider performance, which ensures some great racing knowing that all the tasks are very similar, even with DHT.
Contest Director Greg Schmidt
Matthew Scutter took 1st place in 15M-Standard Class.
Matthew Scutter
Finished 625 points clear overall of my next competitors today with a 260km task at 163kph!
An incredible sky meant I was able to do the task with only 7,000ft of climbing, average LD 68:1 at 105kts. A little hard to join the dots but one of my best ever final glides. Thank you to the organisers, fellow competitors and crew who made it possible. Leeton is a nice site (just a bit dusty!).
Long Racing Tasks
Straight out of the gate on Day One, we had a 658km racing task in 18M Class – now that’s starting a comp – which made full use of the day with gliders finishing around 7pm. The conditions saw 10,000ft reached during the task and included softer spots that needed to be navigated as we flew from the CUs out into the blue. Everyone made it around, bar one pilot who fell just 12km short of the line.
1. Norm Bloch 147.13kph JS3
2. Ray Stewart 146.57kph JS3
3. Greg Beecroft 144.00kph ASG29
Day Two was cancelled due to the very strong wind and high temperatures. These conditions made it problematic, needing a high trigger temperature to break the inversion, and with a total fire ban in place.
Brad Edwards and Uli Schwenk from Germany, on the flightline discussing the peculiarities of Australian weather.
Day Three was in complete contrast to the previous day. High cloud prevented good heating reaching the ground, and a cooler southerly breeze produced one of those ‘character building flights’. Only seven of the 20 pilots were able to complete the task and this changed some priorities for the field. The winning speed around this 264km task was a blistering 83kph!
Pilots displayed good airmanship in these trying conditions, while maintaining separation and choosing suitable and safe places to land out. We spent most of the day bouncing off the ground with maximum heights of around 4,000ft agl and quite often down to 1,100ft. It was tricky to find climbs that kept you airborne, but didn't let you drift too far downwind in the process, which would take you further from home. Greg has a reputation for excelling in these kinds of conditions, and today was no exception.
1. Greg Beecroft 83.10 kph ASG29
2. Norm Bloch 81.06 kph JS3
3. Geoff Brown 77.12 kph JS1
Andrew Georgeson and Anoushka de Chelard won Open Class.
Day Four was cancelled due the weather, so some sightseeing, wine tasting and chilling out took place, soaking up the Leeton hospitality.
A Few Gear Changes
Day Five saw the 18M Class heading out on a 523km task with forecast heights of 8,000ft with good strong climbs and this turned out to be the case. Again, keeping the momentum up required a few gear changes during the flight as the CU thinned out in places. The first half of the task was quite fast under some nice CU but the second half was a bit slower out in the blue. However, it was good racing with only ten minutes separating the top nine finishes.
1. Ray Stewart 143.69kph JS3
2. Greg Beecroft 140.80 kph ASG29
3. Norm Bloch 142.07 kph JS3
Scott Lennon flying his LS8. Scott came 2nd in15M-Standard Class.
Day Six brought another big task, set with 622km of racing. We started off heading east into the trough line with heights of around 7,000 to 8,000ft under mostly good CU, but you needed to be rather selective to get the best climbs, as some were only producing average thermals. It was plain to see that pilots had their own ideas of what was working the best as the routes were quite varied. However, all came together again at the turn points.
As we turned onto the fourth leg, things got rather interesting as the sky blued out on track, but about 20 to 25km east of track, the CU were still working and looking good. The field seemed to split here, as many deviated back to the clouds and a few of us, me included, stayed direct on track. Then we all met up at the second last turn point - the run under the CU was faster but the advantage evened out, having travelled further.
The last 100km run home for most of the fleet was a real hoot. The last turn point lined up perfectly with a nice convergence line running all the way to the control point and most ended up flying the last leg very fast, in some cases leaving the last thermal well below final glide and making up the height on the run home. I left my last climb needing around 2,500ft on a 4kt ring setting, and within 30km I was 800ft above!
1. Norm Bloch 148.91 kph JS3
2. Greg Beecroft 144.65 kph ASG29
3. Matthew Atkinson 144.83 kph JS3
Tobias Geiger who came 3rd in 15M-Standard Class with Adam Wooley who came 3rd in 18M Class.
Adam Woolley
Absolutely epic day, probably a record 1,000km day in any class today! I had an 8kt average over 500km and averaged 163 kph, no mistakes, no 6kt top ups, all cruising, for sure. I didn't win, I don't think I can pedal this glider faster in such conditions. I started 20 minutes earlier than I planned. There were 8kt climbs to 9,000ft already and a great energy line to the first turn. My first climb was a 10kter, the second was 10 too! The day just kept rolling like that. 8kts was the top up safety climb when I was approaching 6,000ft, unbelievable.
Stitching the Energy Lines
Day Seven looked rather exciting on the forecast and the task setters set another good task utilising the best weather with five turn points over 503km. There was a possible cooler change moving in from the southwest later in the day, which was going to cut off convection considerably. However, if we timed it correctly, there could be a very nice convergence line running back north towards the control point.
I had a great flight stitching the energy lines together fairly well. I spent most of the day on my own until reaching the last turn point, where I hooked up with Karsten Bojesen and Geoff Brown and we all ran the line to the control point in company.
1. Lumpy Paterson 168.70kph JS3
2. Bruce Taylor 168.42 kph JS3
3. Ray Stewart 167.07kph JS3
DISTANCE HANDICAP TASKING
This competition was the first national contest to use Distance Handicapped Tasking (DHT). DHT is a tasking system that allows gliders of different performance to compete fairly by adjusting task distances based on glider handicaps. This means that lower performance gliders fly a modified racing task with shorter distances compared to higher performance gliders. You can learn more about DHT at help.dhtask.com
Max Scutchings flying an LS4 in 15M-Standard Class. He went on to win JoeyGlide in Benalla.
Max Scutchings
Today’s lesson was about mindset. I had a really slow start, and didn’t find a climb for the first 20 minutes, which put me 30+km behind the people I started with. There was a lot of moisture in the sky and I found it hard to pick the reliable CUs. I put the first part of the flight behind me and started fresh, picking good lines and finding strong climbs, and caught back up as much as I could. I got better at final glides as well.
I left my last thermal 1,200ft under on a 4kt MacCready setting. I managed my energy and flew above 90kts all the way in. It’s all learning and practice for Joeyglide, and I’m having a lot of fun flying alongside some amazing pilots.
A Little Playing Around
Day Eight featured another great racing task of over 624kms and the use of five turn points running mostly up to the north and then west to maximise the time under the fluffy white stuff.
There was a little playing around prestart today as Matthew Scutter indicated in his weather briefing that wave could be possible today. It was quite hard work to make the transition into wave from the thermals and it was very weak until you could get established into it. I found a nice little spot on my own and managed to climb up to 15,500ft in about 3kts. Normally when we get wave, it’s downwind of the start line, and then you need to push into the 40kt headwind that allowed you to climb in the wave in the first instance.
Ryan Driscoll and Ashley Boyle
This time my first turn point was downwind – YAY! This made for a very fast first leg, and having started very near last in our group, I was able to mix in with the group mid-field, halfway down the second leg. I managed 239 kph to the first turn, but not long after that I needed to descend, as I was unable to go over the CUs. I had to burn 2,000ft of height to remain clear and get underneath them to play in our normal environment.
The task was cleverly set to keep us under CU for 90% of the flight, but there was a sting in the tail on the way home when a very strong southerly arrived at Leeton about 20 minutes before we turned the final turn point. This found a number of pilots scrambling to find some height again to make it home. We all left with surplus height, 2,000ft above final glide and every bit of it was used up to sneak over the fence.
Norm had a good run all day, only to use his jet 5km from home. Unfortunately for him, he was the first to experience the conditions, getting caught in this breeze even with a good margin. It was a tough call, but made with all the experience of a Q747 Captain, and the risk wasn’t worth it. Safety over points – well done, mate!
View from Lumpy's cockpit in wave above the clouds.
1. Brad Edwards 153.49kph JS3
2. Richard Frawley 624.85kph JS3
3. Lumpy Paterson 146.85kph JS3
Day Nine had a forecast of thunderstorms and over development starting early in the afternoon. A 351km speed task was set for the last day. We also had gate open and gate closed times for the first time, with a 30-minute window in which to start. It was going to be a sprint today, and I felt a little pressure as I was on top of the leader board - but only just. Ray Stewart was only 18 points behind and flying consistently well - ‘nervous much’.
Souie Imam flew one of two Standard Cirrus in 15M-Standard class.
From Western Australia, Ben Terrel with brother-in-law and crew Geoff.
Just Fly Your Best Flight
My plan was to just fly the best flight I could do, minimise the risk and have fun.This advice came from Tobi Geiger. The flight went very well and I was able to pick some good lines along the tracks towards the turn points without the need to stop and climb too much. I knew Ray had started behind me and I figured as long as he didn’t pop up on my FLARM I was staying far enough in front.
I was also very conscious when flying against the calibre of pilots we have in 18M Class, not to get tunnel vision and that I needed a good performance regardless. I found a good climb about 85km from home, which lined me up nicely with a good-looking energy line for two thirds the way home, which worked very nicely all the way to the control point.
1. Lumpy Paterson 158.41kph JS3
2. Brad Edwards 153.60kph JS3
3. Peter Temple 152.02kph JS3
I appreciate that it’s a contentious topic, but it was so good seeing competition finishes in use again for the first time in years. These were not compulsory, and pilots had the choice to finish at higher altitudes if they wished. There is something about seeing gliders coming through the finish line dumping water while Gary Brasher captured some ripper quality photos with his big camera.
Massive Thanks
A massive thank you must go to the organisers of this event, which ran very well in what could be considered challenging conditions! Awesome work Nick Gilbert, Charlie I’Anson, Greg Schmidt, Aaron Stroop, Tom Gilbert, Scott Lennon, Neil Campbell (remote scorer) and Barry Kirkup from the Leeton Aviators group. Based on previous years’ attendance numbers, the competition organisers team wasn’t oversubscribed. However, even with the large number of entrants, the team worked extra hard to ensure all ran to plan.
Many pilots and crews from Western Australia travelled to Leeton for the championships.
Getting tow planes for such a big entry list was certainly a challenge given the current Pawnee situation. Brad and Edwards Aviation supplied a C 82 all the way from Armidale, with Bill Bartlett and his ever reliable C180, Temora Gliding Club with their big Pawnee and Tocumwal Soaring Centre who supplied Isabella, the yellow Callair. While tugs are one part, tug operators are the other critical part of that equation. Bill Bartlett, Allie Swart, Charlie and Neil Dunn (from Kingaroy) - thank you for getting us all up in the air and to a much cooler place every day.
Thank you and congratulations to all pilots for the support, great racing and achieving some personal bests during the event. There were many pilots attending their first ever Nationals, a couple of Juniors, and pilots flying older gliders, and the airmanship and camaraderie displayed were excellent.
18M Class Champion Lumpy Paterson
Multiclass Nationals Leeton
8 - 16 January 2026
18m Class
1 Lumpy Paterson Tocumwal SC JS3-Jet 6,102
2 Ray Stewart Kingaroy SC JS3-JET 5,978
3 Adam Woolley Kingaroy Ventus 3TS 5,878
4 Geoff Brown Temora JS-1C 5,726
5 Norm Bloch Beverley JS3-Jet 5,595
Matthew Scutter, 15m-Standard Class Champion, also won the Speed Trophy for a speed of 162.93 kph.
Scott Lemon, the Standard Class Champion, took 2nd place in the combined 15M-Standard Class.
15m- Standard
1 Matthew Scutter Kingaroy Diana 2 FES 5,920
2 Scott Lennon Temora LS8 5,296
3 Tobias Geiger GCV Ventus 2ax 5,133
4 Allan Barnes LKSC LS8 5,089
5 Peter Trotter Kingaroy LS8 4,889
Open Class Champions Andrew Georgeson and Anoushka de Chelard
OPEN CLASS
1 Georgeson & de Chelard GCV- Kingaroy Nimbus 4DM 6,167
2 Ryan Driscoll GCV Nimbus 3T 6,060
3 Joshua Geerlings Narrogin GC JS1-18m 5,941
4 Philip Ritchie Adelaide Quintus M 5,878
5 Ashley Boyle Narrogin Jantar 2b 5,699
Full results at soaringspot.com tinyurl.com/y64caker
The Best Performance by a Novice Pilot, Josh Geerlings
Team Trophy Winners from Kingaroy Soarinc Club. Left to Right: Angrew Georgeson, Ray Stewart, Matthew Scutter
