Dinner for the 50th anniversary of the Club de Vol a Vela Igualada-Òdena and launch of the book “50 anys - Vol a Vela - Igualada//Òdena”
On Friday 30 October, at La Masia of the Can Bohigas wine cellars, right next to the Igualada-Òdena airfield, a dinner was held that brought together some 130 guests, among them the cream of our gliding Club, also represented by its pioneers, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of that momentous milestone, which took place between May and June 1965.
At this gathering a magnificent book was presented that bears witness to that important event, recounting the history of our motorless flying club from its beginnings to the present day.
The pioneers’ table. From left to right and around the lazy Susan: Mrs Anglada, Àngel Anglada, Josep Ollé, Wolfgang Knopf and his wife, Mrs Victòria Borràs widow of Ayesta, Mrs Cabaní, Josep Cabaní, Concepció Faus de Ribalta and, missing from the photo as its author, Pere Ribalta.
At another table was José Luis Yarza with his wife Montse, one of the pilots who, coming from Monflorite, made the first glider flights at Igualada.
The president of the Club de Vol a Vela Igualada-Òdena, Josep Lluís Tàpia, presented the book, and then one of the three people behind the book on our Club’s 50 years, Jaume Sanmartí, spoke. After him, in this order, Pere Ribalta, Àngel Anglada and Wolfgang Knopf addressed those present with a few words recalling aspects of the early days of gliding at Igualada-Òdena.
The aeronautical engineer Enric Sanmartí also received an award for his generous professional dedication to our gliding.
This book is a collection of many stories told by their own protagonists, which draw the reader in and thrill them with the feats of extraordinary flights, sometimes expressed with humour and full of details that may inspire anyone who reads it to take to the air.
Text and photos: Pere Ribalta
