RC Outlaw,
I enjoyed getting from the 125 F on the valley floor by auto, to the 80 F at the 8000' launch, to the freezing 17,300' max alt I ever reached, some times ascending at nearly 2000' per minute, thinking anxiously about when the time comes to exit the lift and hitting the sink. Then bobbing along at cloudbase, sucking a little O2 now and again, with 2 miles of clear air between your belly and the valley floor. Of cause this was in a hang glider, and the place was Owens Valley, CA (Hwy 395 - Bishop) and almost 10 years ago when my adrenaline demand was slightly larger than it is today.
DKjens