Pilot of Luhačovice Aeroclub on the podium

She squeaked by

to take a beautiful second place in the club class category at the sailing races. This class was dominated by a trio of participants from the Czech Republic - Lubomír Motl from Kyjov was the winner ahead of Piscata, followed by Lumír Motyka flying for Frýdlant in third place. They left behind a number of representatives from Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. As Pískatá revealed, it was the allowed cooperation with the aforementioned colleagues from the Czech Republic that helped them to stand on the podium together. "We flew in a group and helped each other. For example, if you are looking for a rising stream under a big cloud, three planes will find it faster than one," the successful pilot outlined. She added that the race was also affected by the current situation. "Because of the covid, this year there were not as many participants as usual and not as strong competition as in other years," Squeaky added modestly. Together with other competitors at the event held from August 2 to 13, she flew hundreds of kilometres. "The way the races are run is that the organisers set a course with turning (flyover) points on each day, depending on the weather. It is evaluated who completes it in the shortest time, i.e. with the highest average speed. The results of the individual days are then added up," the pilot described how such a sailing event looks like. During the race she flew hundreds of kilometres and spent dozens of hours in her glider. "We flew on different distances - from about 200 kilometres to 300, 400 and 500 kilometres, during which we sometimes flew to the Czech Republic or Poland. I even made a personal record in the length of the flight during this race, when I spent 8 hours and 10 minutes in the glider for the longest distance. All in all, we flew about 50 hours during the race," the racer added.

Piscata's success will not come as a surprise to lovers of the sport, as she has been flying for many years and her name has appeared among the participants of major competitions many times, including when she was still competing as a bachelor under her maiden name Papežíková. She has been the best female participant in the Czech Championship in the club class several times, and she has also managed to place in the top ten at the World Championships. At the national championship she won the second place among juniors. And what does she enjoy most about flying gliders? "What fascinates me about this sport is that you can fly 500 km in a fibreglass glider without a drop of fuel. Plus, I'm very competitive, so I enjoy racing. Of course, all the views from the plane are fascinating too. During these races we flew over the Slovak mountains and it was very beautiful, for example to see Chopok from above. Hikers cross mountains for days, we can see the whole mountains in an hour from a glider," smiled Pískatá. She credits her family for getting her into this beautiful hobby, which she is also successful at. "My father, also an aviator, brought me to it," added the pilot, who is otherwise in her regular job as a credit analyst at a bank. And what are her next goals in competitive flying? "I guess it's not surprising to say that I would like to bring back a valuable metal from a world championship sometime in the future," the pilot remarked.

Petra Pískata in her glider (photo: pilot's archive)

Categories: Sport, Luhačovice, Aeroclub Luhačovice, Aviation