BGD BASE

BGD Base M

The Base is the new 2015 B glider from the two time world champion and owner of BGD ,Bruce Goldsmith.
The Base has lots of innovations ! From the Cord Cut Billow to the
mini-ribs on the leading edge, and an aggressive big white nose ! “A new
name for that famous leading edge” 😉

Bruce often comments about the perfect angle reached with his leading edge design.

Taking off is very easy and smooth on the Base.

In the air , the Base gave me an immediate feel of a compact,
comfortable , easy to manage glider for the B category. It feels more
coherent and more stable than some low B’s i have tested earlier. It is
definitely NOT a fully dampened boring glider . All the movements are
still present but reduced to a minimum, allowing the pilot to feel every
bit of lift in a slow motion way.

The brake travel is medium to short and is relatively “slightly” heavier than the recent B’s i had in my tests.
The authority on the brakes are very good .It enable the pilot to put
the Base exactly where he wants, and also in a moderate slow motion way.
It is not the most agile B glider, but i was fully satisfied of it’s
agility ! Pulling on the brakes will immediately enable the glider to
turn right where it is ordered to go.
Trim speed at 90 all up on the M size is close to 39 km/h and it’s a average to good speed for the category !
The full lengths on the speed bar enhances the speed by approximately
13 km/h over trim, and it’s relatively easy to pull with a moderate
pressure like the M4 or the Iota i was testing earlier.
Applying the bar, the Base became even more solid and coherent.

Inside the B category, i found out that the Base has a very efficient sink rate in weak thermals enabling low saves !

I think the ability to slow it down and to squeeze that turn radius
coupled with a very good sink rate is putting the Base among the top
efficient ones.

With stronger thermals, coring with the Base by
lowering the inside brake is fun to do, but the brakes get a bit heavy
on the lower end. Bruce’s philosophy was to put regular lines on
the Base,instead of competition lines, for many B pilots wishing for a recreational B glider .

I did some glides with the Base versus the new B’s.
The glide in
calm air or racing in strong air at trim and full bar is within the B
category. The glide performance puts the Base in the middle of the B
category, and it offers a lot more in climb, comfort and agility.

Ears are easy to pull, they are stable with a sink rate around -3m/s. They slowly open with a small dab on the brakes. Conclusion:
At first, just by looking at those colors will surely get you in a better mood 😉  ! especially the River color ! The Base is a well sorted glider made for big air.

If you fly from +30 hours /year to +200 h, and your wish is a very good
climbing glider that has all the latest technologies, a glider that can
take you safely and comfortably in the air, a smooth and balanced
amount of feedback with nice brake authority, then the Base is an
interesting option to look at .