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Early on, it was decided that there was too much soil erosion going on so boulders were moved to block the launch and the Highway Patrol told the pioneers to search for another site. Edwards launch and the infamous "E" were the results. There are many other places along the ridge that were tried, but these two sites seemed to be the most popular. Edwards is directly above the landing area so it was perfect for all conditions. The E, two miles south of Edwards is known for it's predictable soaring conditions during the Spring and Summer. Pilots from all over the world visit here to hone their soaring skills. Many of them are competition pilots.
A study was conducted by the sail plane pilots decades ago to determine why the soaring conditions were so good and so predictable here. The answer was simple. The proximity of the ocean to the desert valley was responsible for the phenomenon. As the valley warms up, the cool ocean air starts to creep up the back side of the mountain. The warm air rising in the valley enhanced the movement of the cooler ocean air. When the two masses collide a strong convergence results making record altitude gains and XC flights the norm.
The launch sites have never been much of a problem. We keep the areas clean and try to get along with the Forest Department as much as possible. The real problem was keeping a safe landing area within sled run distance to both launches. We used to have an LZ that was so big a blind man could hit it from Edwards. But the encroachment of housing tracts was beginning to threaten our LZ. This was something that we could not stop.
Over 12 years ago the idea of purchasing the land was tossed about. At that time we didn't really have the resources to do it. Also, no one really thought that anyone would ever want to build there so the idea was soon abandoned and sure enough, the developers came in and wiped us out. With over half the original LZ gone, landings were getting dangerous and people soon moved to the other side of the highway. It wasn't long before this LZ was also facing developement.