SKYWALK Spice XS

Skywalk Spice XS

After test flying the Cayenne 5 here’s the light version, the Spice.

I flew the Spice at 91 all up with a woody valley rated 6 .

The material used on the Spice is quite delicate resembling the LM6 cloth. Thin rises with a complete set of unsheathed lines.

The Spice with its light cloth is easier and faster to launch than the C5 especially in low wind take offs.

I have flown the Spice in multiple sites from difficult and turbulent
conditions to average thermals with the company of the Cayenne 5 which
let me to draw accurate conclusions on behaviour and performance.

The brake pressure on the Spice is moderate to light, less than the LM6
pressure and close enough to the C5 XS but with a slightly less direct
feel.

The Spice is for sure an agile glider, that gave me some flying pleasure.

May be just only 5 % less than the C5 XS in direct feel and agility for the same loadings !

Flying it in turbulence gave me the impression that it has a slightly
more neutral pitch or slightly pitch back sometimes than the C5 XS i had
earlier for the test.

I would say that the Spice in XS size is slightly more comfortable than
the C5 in XS size for the same loadings in moderate thermals.

That doesn’t mean that it’s an entry C glider. The Spice still needs
more active piloting than the Alpina 2 in strong conditions.

The climb rate of the Spice XS loaded at 91 compared to the C5 S loaded at 99 is quite close.

In very weak climb (0.5 m/s ) the C5 S will have the edge in surfing upward those tiny lifts.

At trim speed the Spice XS (75-95) flown at 91 is slightly slower (-0.25 km/h) than a Cayenne 5 S (85-105) at 99 all up.

The glide at trim and accelerated is very close to the C5 which puts the
Spice also as one of the best C performer for the light category.

The speed bar has a moderate to light pressure. The ability to control
the pitch with the C risers is efficient in moderate turbulence.

Very small ears are stable but not efficient. Big ears are unstable.
Pulling the B3, is stable. It gave me -2.5 m/s with full bar and the
reopening is super fast.

Pulling the C3 with a slight bar is little more delicate and has also the same efficiency as pulling the B3’s.

Wing overs are super big and a joy to make.A playful glider for sure !

The Spice has a low stall speed and it’s efficient to top land
accurately in narrow spaces. It stalls below the hip with a small
warning sign which is easy to avoid for the keen C pilot.

The top speed with pulleys overlapping, over a 1 km run is 10 km/h over trim on the Spice XS size at 91 all up at 1000 ASL.

Conclusion: I had a fun time test flying the Spice. The agility and the
energy are good for the C category coupled with top performance. The
feel under it is slightly mellower than the C5 XS in moderate thermals.
In strong thermals and turbulence it needs the same level of piloting as
the C5 XS with a similar behaviour.

My only regret is the pitch back upon entering thermals on the
Spice which wasn’t felt on the excellent Cayenne 5 XS or S i have
flown…For sure it feels differently tuned !

I’m sure that many pilots will appreciate the overall feel and potential of this light, top performant C machine.

Cheers,

Ziad.