GRADIENT GOLDEN 3 80-100

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tX9eTiTLgE



After some flights in thermal conditions, loaded at 95 kg all up ,with an impress harness, here is what I found.

Construction and quality are very good ,to the last detail in simplicity and GRADIENT style .It inspire confidence just by looking. Regular risers and lines , excluding the thin lines on top.





Launching the glider is easy, in all conditions. Nothing special on that.

In the air, at my wing loading I found the brakes long as the Aspen 3,but the wing is agile in smooth conditions. When it is turbulent and bumpy, I need to insist keeping the brakes in a low position in order to turn the glider faster.

Hitting a thermal the glider pitch back a little, after it settles inside, it cores perfectly till cloud base.

The GOLDEN 3 is a little talkative glider for an EN-B glider without excess. It moves but stays overhead showing the thermal direction.

The brake pressure is a little heavier than the Aspen 3,but it remains in the light cat.

The accelerator is efficient and the wing remains very stiff fully accelerated. Induced collapses are soft in recovery.

Wing overs are nice and could be high, and coordinated.

The feeling in the air is like a typical GRADIENT glider.

Performance...


Today was perfect for testing the performance vs the ORYX. My friend Moni took the GOLDEN 3 with a total weight of 100 kg and flying a pod samurai harness.
Myself flying the ORYX with an impress 2 + harness and an all up weight 93 kg.

Gliding in a little shaky air but without any headwind ,shows that the glides are nearly the same with a slight advantage in speed to the ORYX loaded only at 93 !!.

In the weak thermals ,and even loaded at 100 kg ,the GOLDEN 3 is really great.I think it has the edge in climb in the weak stuff. We were practically together all the way up,and I could feel that the climbing of the GOLDEN 3 is catching up… Then Moni missed a small thermal by going further left to the ridge ,and I waited up a little (see video)

When he got up again we settle on a small glide headwind ,heading north. Here the ORYX shines…No comment how it is really good in headwind glides !!!

Knowing that , we did return to land on take off and Moni got the ORYX to try at 98.5 all up (Weight of ORYX is 4.5! ) and I took the Artic 2 Small (EN-C) loaded at 95 all up for a test glide also.

Launching and going up, surely the advantage of quick climb is for the Artic 2(EN-C) .This glider is a reference between (EN-C) gliders. Now the good part is the 2 km headwind glide with the ORYX .

We were both surprised as you will be, seeing the video! They were both equal in this glide...(NO more Comment,see the video)with an advantage for the ORYX in trim speed. But when I pressed the bar headwind with the Artic 2 ,the difference is of course in favor of the EN-C glider.

Finally our conclusion is:

Our thoughts were that we really were amazed to see such performance gain in the EN-B cat + the ease to fly them without the stress of a high performance glider. It was such a joy…We felt that the GOLDEN 3 has an outstanding climb rate and a very easy feeling in the air.


A glide in still air is not important because the gliders fly always in active air.Just for fun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P-Y7gqzHfU



Video in weak thermals.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im8un92L7h4

NOVA ORYX S (80-100)

Finally after a long wait I received the ORYX at 1:30 noon and rushed for our soaring site for a quick 0 gravity feeling.
The wind was sideways and fairly strong ±30 km/h, but the glider was very easy to inflate and handle. It does not have the tendency to be pushed out of gusts and thermals. It keeps getting forward smoothly. I really like that in a glider regardless of the category they represent.
Speed stall is very far beyond seat position. (I could not reach it with the factory settings)





The ORYX is a light glider .I have weighted the S size at 4.7 kg + compression strap.





The risers are normal and not too skinny, like all NOVA gliders.




Playing on the ground is a child play. Very easy and forgiving .A small tendency if you let completely the brakes the glider could frontal collapse(only when kiting on the ground). That’s normal for a high performance EN-B glider. It is nice to see after a long period of time that this category of gliders is even easier to handle than its predecessors and playful at the same time.

I made a small introduction video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqbSIEvAH1M



Today was weak on thermals. I flew the ORYX and the GOLDEN 3 .

The ORYX loaded at 96 all up.

Launching was very easy and quickly the glider lift me airborne.
In the past NOVA gliders were lacking of handling. from the Argon…to the Tycoon.
The Tattoo was nice to fly but the ability into wind was absent. Even with the Mamboo ,i was always pushed out of thermals. The handling was not to my liking and lost interest…(I did not try the FACTOR yet which NOVA claims to have a nice feel).

Today was something new…I never felt happier flying this ORYX. It is like a NEW NOVA era !! Hope so…To describe the handling of the ORYX ,is a revelation to me. The brake travel at that loading was perfect .Not long anymore and very efficient .I felt (near)flying my best high performance glider in efficiency and in response. The glider turn on a dime!!! Coring perfectly every thermal with ultimate precision. In head wind conditions + thermals the wing is not pushed out of the thermal…Incredible efficiency for that EN-B glider. If you have flown the ARTIC 2 S,then the feeling of the brakes is the same(but a little longer).

That's a glider with a 'soul'

Flying it again in stronger conditions showed a very good behaviour. Still very agile and precise in turns even the air is bumpy.I could place the glider easily wherever i want.

The ORYX inspire confidence in the strong stuff.The feeling of security and happiness is great.


The performances are for sure on top of the EN-B cat.A high trim speed of 39km .It has an outstanding ability upwind matching the EN-C cat.(We did a glide test with the ARTIC 2) The ORYX loaded at max has a higher trim speed of 0.5 km more . Video in process.

Taking from the GOLDEN 3 tests:
+++++++++++++++++ Knowing that , we did return to land on take off and Moni got the ORYX to try at 98.5 all up (Weight of ORYX is 4.5! ) and I took the Artic 2 Small (EN-C) loaded at 95 all up for a test glide also.

Launching and going up, surely the advantage of quick climb is for the Artic 2(EN-C) .This glider is a reference between (EN-C) gliders. Now the good part is the 2 km headwind glide with the ORYX .

We were both surprised as you will be, seeing the video! They were both equal in this glide...(NO more Comment,see the video)with an advantage for the ORYX in trim speed. But when I pressed the bar headwind with the Artic 2 ,the difference is of course in favor of the EN-C glider.++++++++++++++++++++


To conclude my test ,i could describe the ORYX like a butterfly. Light ,performant and beautifull .
Surely the best EN-B glider i have ever tested till 20/3/2010.


Video number 2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LdREBD-xFw



A small glide comparaison just for fun.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P-Y7gqzHfU


Another comparaison with the ARTIC 2 EN-C !


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmbv6UFQJEA



A video bettween Goden 3 and Oryx in weak thermal flying

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im8un92L7h4