Tuesday 23.6.
What an incredible weekend. The organisation was, as always, spot on — the experience built into this event really shows. And the weather delivered too: classic Nardt conditions, meaning the year’s first real heat wave arrived right on cue. Occasional gusts of wind were a welcome relief, a noticeable improvement over last year’s World Championship.
Both days brought constant shifts in wind strength and direction, and at Team Foo we were caught a little off-guard on Sunday. Flying in 10-knot wind on 1.18mm line is a serious challenge — but Steffen rose to it and somehow kept the line in one piece. Others faced different challenges, courtesy of the „good times“ rolling later and later into Saturday night at the Bergfest. 😄 That’s also your hint that the Nardt airfield once again delivered exceptional catering — food and drinks on point all weekend.
The flying was pure Nardt: unpredictable, always changing, and challenging. Duration caught some pilots out, but distance was where most of the real battles were fought — especially on Sunday. Thermals built up fast and were hard to centre. If you found a strong one on your distance run, you had a decisive edge that most competitors simply couldn’t match. Speed rounds were mostly light-wind and heavy air, with the exception of the second half of Speed 4 on Sunday when the strong gusts rolled in.
Steffen held onto his points lead from Saturday, giving up a few in Distance and Speed but doing enough to claim the overall win, German master and the Speed trophy, ahead of Andreas and Michal Behensky. Theo Weberschock had a standout weekend — strong, consistent flying earned him the Junior ranking and an impressive 4th place overall. The Juniors as a group were excellent; they flew in demanding conditions, didn’t default to easier duration flight areas but tried to actively get an advantage, and genuinely impressed experienced pilots with how far they’ve already come. The consistency will come — but it’s worth noting that very few pilots at any level have truly cracked that.
Team Foo had plenty to be happy about in the rankings overall. The author (Christian) had a „small“ setback and is heading back to the workshop. 🪛 Belgium is coming fast!
A huge thank you to the Nardt airfield, all the helpers, and organizers Dylla & Dylla for four rounds of flying, excellent weather management, and a weekend full of fun.
A few reminders before I sign off:
- Several competitions are still open for registration — dates and links here
- I’d especially love to see more pilots at the Söhl competition in Bavaria in about four weeks. Financials are not the issue, Juniors are free of charge! — I just prefer a field of 12 or more pilots. Sign up here: f3xvault.com
Next year i try to fix the date earlier if the location works again.
See you in Belgium! 🏆
Sunday 13:15
sorry for the late post. I had 2x technical difficulties.
we started with duration. Less wind than yesterday and already hotter with full sun.
interestingly no good thermals were there. But you had to find the less sinking area.
another distance round was similar. But thermals became a bit stronger.
afterwards speed round 3. Low altitudes. But some awesome speeds. Very precise and smooth.
after lunch we are now going for speed round 4.
22:30
the day has ended. We finished 2 complete rounds and one duration flight. We were really lucky with the showers. The thunderstorms really developed just after passing us. We only had 2 or 3 small breaks with a little rain.
The temperatures also went down a bit with the rain, making it a bit easier. On the other hand we had a lot of line changing due to fluctuating wind speed and direction.
the first speed was quite standard. The second speed had low launch altitudes and in general much slower speeds.
the final duration was mostly possible, but never a safe thing. Low launch altitudes and very low thermal activity punished every single mistake immediately.
thats it for today. See you again tomorrow !
16:00
we first continued with duration. And two small rain showers later. We are now in speed.
wind is changing strength and direction frequently.
intermediate results in the gallery below.
12:55
we flew three groups duration and had lunch now. Awesome catering as always!
we will continue with speed in 5minutes due to the thunderstorms that are building up.
11:06
second round duration. Wind gets a little bit less, thermals get stronger.
we already have high temperatures and cloud free sky. Fortunately a bit of wind for a bit of refreshment.
10:10
we started with distance. Max legs around 20. Wind and thermals are there but difficult to find and rather weak.
