PWC Bulgaria · Day 5

Date
Distance: 54.53 km
SSS: 14:00
Task deadline: 18:00

AI-generated feedback summary

Responses: 42
Satisfaction: 4.05/5
Safety: 4.45/5

Overall ratings were positive: pilots were generally satisfied with the task, and safety was rated especially well. Comments still showed a clear split between pilots who appreciated the safer, technical flatland emphasis and those who felt it created low, crowded, or random flying.
Task quality received several strong compliments, with pilots describing it as technical, smooth, interesting, and a welcome shorter alternative to always setting long tasks. Several pilots valued the route options and the concept of using the flats, while a few felt the task was too short or not ambitious enough for the day.
Weather and conditions were described differently across the field: several pilots mentioned high cloud base, smooth thermals, and flats that worked from low, while others found the flats stable, slow, random, or not working until late in the task. This difference contributed to some pilots feeling the task was lucky or unfair, especially for those low in the flats.
Safety feedback was mostly appreciative of the apparent effort to reduce mountain and ridge exposure, especially given recent concerns, but several pilots said going low into the flats and returning to terrain created crowded scratching and messy gaggle situations. A few pilots suggested reducing mountain exposure further, and one noted that the last turnpoint in the mountain felt too high.
Pilot behavior was a recurring concern in a few comments, especially turn-direction discipline in thermals; one specific example mentioned a pink Niviuk repeatedly turning left on course while others turned right. A few comments also noted tension between pilots choosing ridge lines versus flats, with calls for more disciplined and thoughtful decision-making in shared airspace.
Organization comments were mostly positive, including appreciation for very fast retrieve and a request to keep pilots together with an organization dinner on Friday night. One safety-communication concern was that mentioning a helicopter when it was not in the task area created unnecessary confusion for some pilots.
Suggestions for improvement included considering a later start, specifically moving the start from 2:00 to 2:30, to let the flats develop before the first excursion. Other proposals included using the flats more deliberately, designing tasks that go into the flats and back with ridge sections for altitude, keeping short technical tasks in the mix, improving communication around non-task-area incidents, and reinforcing turn-direction discipline.