Engineered Systems Ltd

Programme and Project Management by Ed Johnston

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Ed.Johnston@EngSyst.co.uk

EGC 2011 Pociunai

Return to Reality

The Closing Party

Fond Farewells from and by the localsA great and social affair, though as competitors I find these always flat affairs. You have the tension to unwind and opportunities, successes and faults still fresh in your mind while still looking forward to a long journey home.

The Tug Team There was food and drink a plenty, a marvellous spread being laid on for a modest 20Euro and most of the competitors, crews and organisers being present. We had a fantastic meal and certainly the crews and organisers were steadily letting their hair down as the night progressed. The results were confirmed with a participation certificate and gong for all pilots being handed out by Vitas and two very pretty assistants, though the Dutch team thoughtfully held back their pilots from receiving their prizes in person, fearing that a picture of them kissing the girls might leak to their loved ones! Needless to say, they escaped at the end of the ceremony and claimed their chased embraces.

Some had to go already, from our number Gary had to get back to go to work on Monday, setting off to drive through the night. Others, me included, really could not justify waiting until after noon and the official closing ceremony to set off on the 1400 mile journey, so packed up the party at about 11 for a good night’s sleep (or as good as yet another wedding at the hotel would allow).

The Journey Home

I settled the bill and got to the field around 8am and eventually got Devin packing up his gear. He eventually completed his fond farewells to his particular admirer who worked in the bar and we got going around 9.30.

Classic skies on the German borderThe drive home is a natural anti-climax, with first  the potholes of Lithuania and eastern Poland to be negotiated and the competition to look back on rather forward to. A few little mistakes as we chatted and missed a turning, or TomTom unable to recognise a better, sign posted route to the better roads not in its database. Despite this we made good progress eventually getting onto the one excellent road in Poland, then on and across the German boarder before stopping.

We had a bit of excitement stopping, first missing an obvious good place to stop, then finding a town with a small hotel down a tiny road which we declined, followed by a fraught straggle through a town on the edge of a thunder storm to a small pension at the edge of town, down another tiny track. Fortunately they had a room beer and food, so despite the lost hour of motorway time, we stopped, fed and dropped to bed, Devin in his sleep reaching for my hand no doubt in fond recollection of the previous evening’s companionship. What do I do with these? Vitas our director

Up at a reasonable 7am breakfast the next day, we set of at a steady pace for Eindhoven. We were only 80k from Berlin when we stopped and after passing the capital, the next phase seemed to take much longer than I expected; perception and reality of the distance from Berlin to the boarder did not quite match up! We were passed by Andy Lincoln on the way, he having dropped Steve off at the airport and no doubt driven through with few if any stops. Russell passed me after dropping Devin off, both driving faster and longer having left after picking up his bronze medal. No sign of the others though with Chris leaving early to get to Magdeberg and a rendezvous with Hugh Kindle to get him and glider back from there to the UK after he dropped his hire car. Likewise Nick was leaving later and probably driving slower too.

After dropping Devin off at his place was an appreciative farewell for a job well done. Fortunately no retrieves were needed but the job of a crew on the ground is often under-estimated and less appreciated.

Then once more, the longer than expected trip to the channel where I arrived just in time for an earlier crossing which for £20 this way seemed like a good deal compared with the way out. I paid the cash and almost drove straight onto the 17.45, a decent meal and an hour wandering round, stretching my legs.

Eventually getting onto the correct side of the road, I dropped the glider off at Dunstable and when home, simply picked up my overnight back then fell into bed at about 10.30 without unpacking the car.

And then

It is surreal to wake up in the grey drizzle of the UK, rather than the pine forests with the prospect of another competition day ahead. Getting you mind round work, team,  projects rather than met, energy lines and competitors. Which is the reality and which the fantasy?

Eventually I got back into the rut of work, despite the frustration of not having the leave to fly the 15m Nationals and being thoroughly knackered. After a few weeks, the competition (and the summer!) seem like a distant memory.

How Could We Improve?

Ground equipment, especially the radio, did not perform at the beginning of the competition and was not particularly useful as we got further into it. Some better equipped and funded teams had people on the ground dedicated to the weather and tactics, staying in constant contact with pilots.

It is unlikely that we will suddenly get funded with sufficient cash to hire met men and tacticians, but on most days there is a significant amount of spare and educated manpower on the ground able to assist in these areas.

A really good innovation was the Dutch team’s use of trackers on their team gliders. With more rapid update and no time lag, they were able to communicate with their pilots and guide them on how they could help each other. This feels like a really cost-effective innovation

As a team of 3, we mostly worked well together, despite having only 2 compatible styles and one (me) rather different. Over all the information exchanges were accurate and timely and it was only when I got out-voted and flew in a direction against my preference (a 60/40 thing not sufficiently strongly held to go my own way) did I start to get a little frustrated.