This is the damage my new glider got, after been dragged on the ground over a 'sand stone' rock for only a few inches. While taking off at the Rondebosch South-West site, I did not see the trailing edge of my glider resting on top of a 'sand stone' rock. Although I felt the resistance while inflating the wing, I did not realize the trouble I got into. Just after taking off I had a quick look at my lines and I was happy to see they were OK. I had a nice 30+ min flight (ridge soar) and went to land next to my vehicle as usual. The glider flew like usual. Only during packing the wind I saw the damaged cells. I was so upset, I ran back up the hill to the take off spot and found the 'culprit'. A sandstone rock has very interesting properties, one of them been - it has a very rough surface (no sharp edges though). This one was particularly 'vicious'. Just to give you a idea how sharp the rough side is - I rested the palm of my hand on top of the rock and tried to slide it over it. My palm hurt and on closer inspection I saw the skin almost coming of in places. Is a wonder the wing did not suffer more damage. Fortunatelly the damage is right at the trailing edge where the pressure isn't that much during normal flight. Never the less - it is not nice to know my new 'baby' has alread 'battle scars'. After all, I barely have 50flights (just under 10hours air time) on it :-(
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