Winning strategies
Which behaviours went with better ranks on this task.
Analysis computed
Which behaviours went with better ranks
Each row is one behaviour, compared against the published ranks. Select a row to plot it against rank.
| Behaviour | Strength | What it means | Pilots measured |
|---|---|---|---|
| Distance covered between climbs | too few pilots | ||
| How much of the thermal the pilot climbed before leaving it | clear pattern | ||
| Climbing faster than the pilots sharing the thermal | clear pattern | ||
| Share of race time spent hunting for the next climb | clear pattern | ||
| Share of the height gain made outside thermals | could be chance | ||
| Share of lift turned in that was kept as a climb | could be chance | ||
| Time to core thermals | could be chance | ||
| Share of the flight spent in air that wasn’t sinking | could be chance | ||
| Arriving at ESS with height to spare | too few pilots | ||
| Low saves dug out from the bottom of the band | could be chance | ||
| How low the pilot gets between climbs | too few pilots | ||
| How round and consistent the circles were | could be chance | ||
| Final glide committed to when leaving the last climb | could be chance | ||
| Glide L/D against the field median | could be chance | ||
| Climbs joined on another pilot's marker | could be chance | ||
| Climb rate at thermal exit | could be chance | ||
| Glide speed between climbs | could be chance | ||
| Gliding wide of the optimal course line | could be chance | ||
| Time spent flying with a gaggle | could be chance |
3 behaviours were measured on fewer than 8 pilots — too few to tell either way.
Metrics with a clear pattern, plotted against rank
How much of the thermal the pilot climbed before leaving it
Climbing faster than the pilots sharing the thermal
Share of race time spent hunting for the next climb
- Speed-section phase shares, field p25/median/p75: climb 0/21/33% · glide 11/24/45% · search 27/49/64%
Outcome checks
These measure the result, not a behaviour, so they always follow the ranks.
| Outcome | Strength | What it means | Pilots measured |
|---|---|---|---|
| Race time behind the leader at ESS | too few pilots | ||
| Race time lost against the fastest pilots, leg by leg | could be chance |