The Leading Edge - An
Adventure Story
Authors: Dick Georgeson
and Anna Wilson
Paperback, 98 black and white and color photos, 5 map pages, 212 pages
(not including photo and map pages)
Dimensions: 5.91 x 9.02 x 0.79 inches
(150 x 229 x 20 mm)
From the Back Cover
One of the most famous figures in world gliding, Dick Georgeson spent
much of his childhood at Irishman Creek station with his uncle, renowned
engineer and inventor Bill Hamilton. Learning to glide in England
in 1949, he was soon completely hooked; by 1951 he had his first New
Zealand gliding record, and first world record by 1960. In 1979
the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) awarded him the Gold
Medal, their highest award for flying, followed in 1985 by the
Lilienthal Medal, the highest award for gliding. In 1979 he
received an MBE for services to aviation in New Zealand.
His story interweaves a fascinating personal
biography with gripping descriptions of many of his record-breaking
flights. A bold pioneer in long crosswind wave flight, he pursued
his addition with courage and tenacity. Imagine flying at 35,000
ft in a flimsy glider, air temperature -57° C, your breath crystallizing
around you and ailerons and air brakes frozen solid - and looking down
to see the plane from Australia a tine dot 20,000 ft below!
Tribute is paid to other pioneers and pilots; the evolution of
sailplanes from the fabric-covered, 'wings and wires', open-cockpit
glider he first flew is described, and he tells of some of the risks and
accidents associated with throwing oneself at the mercy of weather and
terrain.
The book is introduced with a foreword by
by Einar Enevoldson, former NASA test pilot and mastermind of the Perlan
Project, the attempt to research the polar vortex in the stratosphere in
a sailplane with the American Adventurer Steve Fossett.
Any with an interest in high adventure of
an kind will find it utterly absorbing.
Dick and his wife Anna Wilson. With an M.A. (Hons) in English, she
has combined travel and teaching with an enjoyment of music, art,
reading and writing, family and friends. They both take much
pleasure in exploring the back country and the shores of New Zealand.
Quote from the Book - Regarding a Wave
Camp at Mount Cook
"The fierce mountain weather notwithstanding, the mountain-soaring at
this camp was a magical discovery. The experience of sailplane
flying is incomplete unless it includes mountain flying, which has a
peculiar thrill all of its own, and transcends nearly all other aspects
of the sport. To see from the ground on a clear day the
snow-covered peaks towering thousands of feet above; to climb into a
sailplane and quietly work your way up from low altitude, passing jagged
rocks, the snow-line, ice falls, deeply snow-covered faces; and finally
to soaring above the mountain peaks themselves, and look down on them
spread out below, is an enthralling experience: a privilege for which
one is forever grateful."
Reviews
"Dick Georgeson's excellent memoir... also reads as a love letter - to
the Mackenzie Basin in the South Island... an exciting account... exudes
modesty, good cheer and impressive resilience." Steve Braunias, The
N.Z. Listener
"...a gripping, absorbing and fascinating
account of a New Zealand gliding icon's adventures." Marlborough
Express
"Dick has blended personal tragedy and
triumph in this easy to follow book... hard to put down." Pacific
Wings
"...the story of one man's life in
gliding. It is that and more too... a very enjoyable, absorbing,
well-written book... I very much enjoyed reading." Wanganui Chronicle
"One of the most remarkable books of the
soaring literature... fascinating and interesting... Dick Georgeson, the
great pioneer of New Zealand wave soaring... a life always on the
leading edge... An impressive foreword by Einar Enevoldson. In
short, a joy to read, and I highly recommend it." Dr. Joachim P.
Kuettner, American Soaring "I
have read 'The Leading Edge' book and would thoroughly recommend it to
any glider pilot. It is a brilliant read. :-)" Ian Sheppard, New
Zealand Glider PIlot |
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$42.95 |
In Stock |
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