Soarable height
Where usable thermals top out, above the ground.
Soarable height is the top of the usable lift, measured above the ground below.
How to read it
Section titled “How to read it”Higher is better: more height means longer glides between thermals, more choice of which thermal to take, and more time to solve a problem. Under cumulus the soarable height stops at cloud base, because a glider does not climb into cloud.
Read it together with thermal strength: a deep but weak day and a shallow but strong day fly very differently.
What goes into it
Section titled “What goes into it”The thermals grow from the ground up as the sun heats the day, and stop where they meet more stable air or the cloud base. See Working height and cloud base.