Airborn #223 August 2022

HANG GLIDING & PARAGLIDING Emergency Rescue; -Who to Call Acrofest 2022 Aorangi HG XC Meet Hike & Fly FMC Photo Contest Issue 223; August, September, October 2022 9 771170 992006 $7 50 Including GST

WakefieldMtfromflysO’BrienElliott Photo;LorraineJohnsKEY because flying sites have been lost by visiting flyers who have upset land owners. To assist travelling pilots, people wishing to learn to fly or to contact hang gliding and paragliding clubs, here is a list of people who can help you. Those on the list or wishing to be listed, should contact their Club Secretaries who should keep Airborn and the NZHGPA website updated of changes of contact details. M any pilots visit flying sites outside their own region. To ensure that you don’t jeopardise arrangements between land owners and local flyers you must ALWAYS CHeCk WiTH LoCAL PiLoTS BeFoRe FLYiNG That way you won’t upset land owners or pilots, you will be shown all the best sites and will be welcome back. We don’t publish site names and locations Pres; ............................................. President Sec; ........................... Secretary/Treasurer PGSO; Paragliding Safety Officer HGSO; Hang Gliding Safety Officer CFI; Chief Flying Instructor Airsp; Airspace Officer 2 A irborn TASMAN H.G.P.C. C/- Frog Twissell 186A Nile Street, Nelson thgpgclub@gmail.com7010 021 272 3236 Pres; Peter Allison ...........................021 350 066 Sec; Frog Twissell 021 228 2121 Treas; Brian Erasmus 021 384 4464 PGSO; Saxby Thorndyke 027 606 8669 HGSO; Mark Patton 021 619 279 Airsp; Claus Petry 021 250 4836 Sites; Kevin Rooke 021 762 769 Nelson Paragliding ........................03 544 1182 Hang Gliding NZ 021 762 769 CANTERBURY H.G.P.C. Inc. C/- Paul Conaghan 34 Mounter Pres:www.chgpc.org.nzexec@chgpc.org.nzChristchurchAve8051ColinHogg 021 249 9599 Sec/Treas; Paul Conaghan 022 414 7377 PGSO; Stuart Mackintosh 020 4021 3344 HGSO; Warren Simonsen 021 183 2126 Sites PG; Ondrej Wieden ...........020 4158 8152 Sites HG; Adriel Kind 027 964 5397 Website; Stephen O’Shaughnessy 03 326 7373 Airsp; Jean Brossard 021 143 9993 Canty HG School; Bill Degen 021 247 2676 Chch Para 022 045 7254 Cloudbase Paragliding 027 532 4874 Nimbus Paragliding 027 432 4874 ParaPro 0800 548 323 AORANGI H.G.C. C/- Tom Mulder 31 James St. North East Valley Dunedin Pres,tom@mulder.co.nz9010Airsp;KevinMcManus 03 472 7598 Sec, Tom Mulder 021 148 1831 Treasurer: Hagen Bruggemann HGSO; Tom Knewstubb (wk) 027 289 6103 PGSO: Alex Tups 021 172 0848 SOUTHERN H.G.P.C. C/_ Tim Brown, 142 Dalefield Rd, RD1, Queenstown Pres;www.southernclub.co.nzadmin@southernclub.co.nz9371TimBrown..........................021 182 4243 Pres; Nina Harrap 027 844 3904 Sec: Nico San 021 052 7250 Treas: Kat Cerna 021 0291 0851 PGSO: Benjamin Kellet 021 232 7217 HGSO: Pete Helliwell 021 0284 5170 Sites: see Nico or Nina IT/Web: Daniel Diaz Rizo Airsp: see Nico or Nina Wanaka; Doug Patterson Jesse Dhue 022 310 2931 Craig Smith 027 343 3537 Louis CoronetTapperPeak Tandem PG & HG .0800 467 325 G Force Tandem Paragliding 03 441 8581 Infinity Paragliding School 021 981 855 Skytrek Hang Gliding & Paragliding0800 759 873 Paraventures Paragliding 021 809 275 NORTHLAND H.G.P.C. C/- Mike Pres;NorthlandHangGlidingandParaglidingClub/www.facebook.com/mferg066@gmail.comWhangareiFergussenMikeFerguson(acting)021995 682 Airspace: Shane Gross 09 436 0268 HGSO; Bernie Massey 021 244 4405 PGSO; Wolfgang Harder 021 112 3597 Auckland HGPC PO Box Ponsonby,47813Auckland Pres:www.cloudbase.org.nzinfo@cloudbase.org.nz1144NickRead.............022 264 6425 Sec: Stefan Sebregts........027 225 2255 Treas: Malcolm Dawson.......021 052 1568 HGSO: John Burton...........027 420 4094 PGSO: Jeremy Watts..........021 611 089 PPG: Glen Ogilvie...........021 684 146 Sean Oliver HG instruction..027 670 8301 Skywings Paragliding........027 498 2345 Wings and Waves Paragliding.09 446 0020 WAIKATO H.G.P.C. Inc. C/- Ian Manton PO Box Pres:krazymudd@gmail.comMatamata131,3440AaronDarby 021 407 357 Sec/Treas: Ian Manton 027 546 2832 PGSO: Peter Jones 027 273 8375 HGSO: Rick Hawkeswood 07 868 6250 Airsp: Neil Howe 07 304 9631 HAWKES BAY H.G.P.C. Inc. 22 Mangarau Crescent, Havelock North Pres,www.soarhawkesbay.co.nzhbhgpc@gmail.com4130KenBeach 021 191 6388 Treas: Nick Webster 027 494 9032 Sec; Jonathan McIlvenny 021 133 7019 PGSO: Shane Davies 027 870 6000 HGSO: Ross MacKay 027 285 4195 Sites; Bex Rae 021 605 204 Airsp: Shaun Gilbert 022 477 8804 TARANAKI FREE FLYERS C/- John Morgan New Pres,PlymouthAirsp,Sec/Treas, PGSO; John021Morgan726183 HGSO; Dave Austin 021 0283 6797 BAY OF PLENTY H.G.P.C. C/- Neville Goodwin, 304b Papamoa Beach Road, Papamoa Beach, Papamoa, Airsp:OverallHGSO:PGSO:Treas:Sec:Pres:codypicklesj@gmail.comRD1188C/-MARLBOROUGHComms;Airsp:PGSO:HGSO:Sec/Treas:Pres:info@whgpc.org.nzwww.whgpc.nzWellingtonMarionPOWELLINGTONMountKiwiSites:Airsp:HGSO:PGSO:Sec:Pres:www.facebook.com/BOPHangGlidingParaglidingbophangparaclub@gmail.com3118KevinWylie0273211107NevilleGoodwin0274653637MarkMcIntyre021337595JamesLow0211025004RhysAkers0211777563DaveShaw075759560Air0211046208Paragliding0272492702H.G.P.C.Box9824Square6141MatthewWilliams0275525205GrantFirth021422698GrantTatham0276363491IrwinImhoff220872173IanMiller0221768205WarrenFitzgerald0275111599H.G.P.C.CodyPicklesWaihopaiValleyRoad,6,BlenheimDanielFrancis0278237292CodyPickles0274912730LindsaySmith0278506368JulieBousquet0273400718JohnUrlich035771024,0273025629SiteManager;MarkDavies02102733977DanielFrancis0278237292

officer

177 7563, airspace@nzhgpa.org.nz A irborn 3

AcroFest 2022 4 Aoraki Hang Gliding Classic .......................................................8 Hike & Fly; Guideless Buttress and Mt Potts ..........................12 FMC Photo Contest ...................................................................16 Emergency Rescue - Who To Call 22 Executive Reports 24 Safety Checks ............................................................................25 Cross Country Championship Tables ............................. 26 & 28 Classified Advertisements ........................................................30 Pilot’s Pix 31 All advertising enquiries and payments to the editor ● Classified advertisements are $0.50c per word to commercial operators and nonNZHGPA members, personal classified advertisements are free to current members who quote their PiN number ● Classified advertisements are automatically deleted after each publication, for repeats please re-send or quote identifying words and phone number ● Advertisements for new hang gliders and paragliders must state certification status and meet our standard conditions ● For display and other advertising rates and conditions please contact the editor Editing, Graphics; AeroDesign, Bill Degen Printing; The Caxton Press Please send advertisements, photos and articles to the editor: Post: Airborn Magazine 99A Panorama Road Christchurch 8081 New Zealand email: aero@xtra.co.nz All articles, photos, news items, press releases, safety tips and letters will be gratefully accepted for publication ● Articles should preferably be computer text files in any unformatted word processor file. Airborn can use Apple Mac, or Windows text files. You can send them by email, or on SD, flash, CD, DVD or even floppy disc ● Printed, typed or written copy should be neat and legible, leaving space in margins and between lines. Please print/write on one side of the page only ● Photos, discs, flash drives and articles will be returned if clearly marked 'to be returned' with your name and postal address Published every three months for hang gliding and paragliding enthusiasts in New Zealand and abroad ● Subscription is by membership of NZHGPA (a legal requirement for all hang glider and paraglider pilots in NZ) ● For non flyer and foreign subscriptions please contact the NZHGPA Administrator for current rates, or see advertisement in this issue ● Actions, opinions, claims and advice expressed by authors and advertisers in this magazine are their own and are not necessarily endorsed by the NZHGPA or the editor ● Articles, photos and graphics are copyright to the author, photographer, editor or designer and may not be reproduced without their permission ISSN 1170-9928 printed on recycled paper Contributions MAdvertising AgAzineoftheneWzeAlAndhAnggliding&PArAglidingAssn.inC N.Z.H.G.P.A. iNC., C/- Po Box 131, Matamata 3440, New Zealand www.nzhgpa.org.nz inthisissue... Next ISSue deAdlINe: 30 September 2022 FRONT COVER: Blake Round competing at AcroFest 2022 Photo; Mark Stevens AdMiniSTRAToR Ian Manton, C/- PO Box 131, Matamata 3440, 027 202-1806, admin@nzhgpa.org.nz ExECuTivE CoMMiTTEE; Governance through the NZHGPA Constitution; Membership, budgets, competitions, complaints & disciplinary, media (Airborn), land space issues, to the general well-being of the pilot and the flying community (that includes 11 affiliated clubs). President Duncan Macnab, 027 624 6434, president@nzhgpa.org.nz vice President Ian Manton, 027 546 2832, vice-president@nzhgpa.org.nz Executive Council Duncan Macnab, 027 624 6434, president@nzhgpa.org.nz Ian Manton, 027 546 2832, krazymudd@gmail.com Carlos Palmer, 027 487 7654, ths_master@hotmail.com Kyla MacDonald, 021 056 2320, kylamacdonald@gmail.com Blake Round, 027 367 7679, blake.round@gmail.com Kevin McManus, 021 134 0463, kamdfc@gmail.com

Communications Team Ryan

Erica Caro, 021 978 524 eerieka@gmail.com Pete Helliwel, 021 0284-5170, pete.helliwell@sky.com officer Kyla MacDonald, 021 056 2320 landspace@nzhgpa.org.nz Larraman, Barlow, Executive Nick Taber, Manager Carlos Palmer, 027 Manager Blake Round, 027 Auditor Sven Ericksen, 021 Safety Nina Harrap, 027 Airspace Akers, 021

367 7679, training@nzhgpa.org.nz internal

844 3904, safety@nzhgpa.org.nz national

487 7654, operations@nzhgpa.org.nz Training

022 658 3001, comms@nzhgpa.org.nz Lorraine Johns, Warren Simonson, Bill Degen Paragliding Competition Committee Timothy Brown (Chair), 03 442 5319, 021 182 4243, NZHGPAPCC@googlegroups.com Dave Washer, Nina Harrap Hang Gliding Competition Committee Dennis Thorpe (Chair) 021 112 1622, Hgcc@nzhgpa.org.nz Matt

021 420 742, ceo@nzhgpa.org.nz operations

Tom Mulder oPERATionS TEAM; Flying requirements under CAA 149 Aviation Certificate (HG/PG licence to operate in NZ). Administer, authorise and set standards for training, licensing, equipment, safety, AIRS, auditing, launch sites and WOF’s, as per NZHGPA Operational Procedures Manual (OPM). Chief

officer Rhys

116 4558, audit@nzhgpa.org.nz national

officer

Landspace

with the prize-giving to be held there like last year. So we arrive at the lake on Friday by 9am for pilot briefing and get the towing underway to test the tow pattern for the day. Contrary to the forecast it’s a no wind blue bird day and we start the fun with competition runs. A few tows complete and so far everybody has stayed dry, flying great runs right from the start. Now it’s my turn to throw down my first run. The amount of practice I’ve been able to get before the event was only a few short flights in the weeks leading up. Those quick flights and the safety of the water filled me with confidence to complete a good string of tricks to start. I kick my leg as a signal to the boat ‘pilot ready’ and the rope pulls at my harness before the glider inflates lifting me off my feet. The breeze keeps me cool as I visualise my run while the boat pulls me high above the lake. I come off tow, stow my bridle, check my hook knife, then reserves and fly into the box over the lake in front of the beach, carefully accounting for my drift. I start to take energy in a spiral, I can feel the wind on my face getting faster and my weight in the harness getting heavier as the G’s build up. iwoke up in the morning of March 22nd 2021 slightly hung over (massively). We had been celebrating AcroFest21, the first in a decade. Three days of absolutely beautiful weather and amazing freestyle flying over the crystal blue lake rekindled the event that was run through the early 2000s in Queenstown and Kingston by acro enthusiasts. It has taken a generation of pilots before another keen group stood up to the challenge of organising the event. I’ve been to a few fun paragliding events around the world but AcroFest was definitely the most fun, inspiring and constantly entertaining event I’ve been to. So it was with eagerness I looked forward to next year. 350 days later with the long range forecast released, it wasn’t looking great. Storms were forecast and interest in the landing field at Flight Park seemed a bit low. Everyone I asked wasn’t as sold on entering the event like I was, most people quoting “I’m not an acro pilot”. At the event last year there was more than just ‘acro pilots’. It was about encouraging anyone to enter and push their technical flying skills to their next level. The majority of pilots there were not even tumbling above their glider. But I remember every single pilot flying their absolute pants off and by far the best display of glider control I’ve ever seen in one weekend. In fact 2 year pilot Jason Searle stalled, spun and wingovered his way to win the novice category and take out the rookie of the year award.Withabout 8 pilots registered and paid we were chatting on WhatsApp about starting times for Friday. It was looking like that would be the only day we would have a full day of towing. Blake from ParatowNZ has run the winch now for two seasons and he knows to get started early. He takes full advantage of good weather as the wind direction and strength can change and quickly end the day. This year the location was moved to the Cromwell Yacht Club with Pisa Moorings being the back-up location

4 A irborn

AcroFest2022

5

Left; Leandro Jêsus Photo; Mark Stevens Right; And the judges are, from back to front: Nico Sand, Clémence Cadario, Ben French, Jack Bailey and Kai (the dog) Photo; Carly Hayman Below; Sanae Noguchi launching Photo; Mark Stevens Below; Nico Sand and the rescue boat Photo; Anna Stewart A irborn

The glider pulls as it surges into a steep turn before I straighten out, as I swing through, I grip the inside brake handle and drive it down towards the lake spinning the glider into a high energy Mac Twist. The glider spins more aggressively than I anticipate as I rotate through the manoeuvre and I swing up level with the canopy. In that moment, I realise I’ve pulled too early and stalled the inside for too long stopping the rotation of the glider as I continue to rotate through. I feel the risers pull together and the harness start to catch me as I fall back under the canopy, still rotating. I’m twisted. The risers wrap around each other 3-4 times and the brakes are locked through the twists. I’ve lost control of the glider now as I try to kick out the twists looking up at the glider still stalled. Before long it starts to enter auto rotation and I can hear Theo de Blics advice, ‘If you don’t know how to fix the situation, throw before you end up in bigger trouble’.Islide my hand down my leg connecting with the reserve handle and send it flying. The reserve container drifts away from me and the lines stretch out popping the rubber bands off one by one, but just before the round parachute inflates my wing opens perfectly above my head, then boom, the reserve yanks me back as it inflates and my glider surges forward and stops flying. With the reserve doing it’s job well by safely getting me down slowly, I start to pull in my glider. I look down at the water shimmering far below me and I think I should have tried longer to save it but now I have an early date with the lake and get the chance to look back at the cheering beach before I plunge into it. After I break the ice, people start taking the gamble of getting wet or staying dry with a 20% bonus for a raft landing. Some land with style and grace but plenty end up in the water on failed attempts, neither less entertaining. The atmosphere is really heating up. One by one we hook in, tow up and throw down some spectacular flying testing our glider control and spot landing skills at the end of each run to a cheering beach. Before we realise it’s 5pm and Blake has completed 32 tows. That’s 32 kilometres of entertainment just in the first day putting smiles on everyone at the beach as we finish up and head to the campground for the night. There ended up being a few people register on the day and the pilot list grows to 11. The next day we were ready to make the most of the morning before the bad weather but it never arrives. We end up with 3 stunning autumn days in a row giving us plenty of room to fit in non comp tows for others, keeping the boat busy until 5pm again on Saturday. The way points are scored falls into three categories. Technical score (40%), Choreography (30%) & Landing (30%). The technical score is according to the FAI list of manoeuvres and each trick has a coefficient to be multiplied by the judges score so harder tricks end up with better points. The judges just have to score how well they performed that trick out of 10. The judging is shared by the more experienced pilots and there are many roles to be filled to make the contest run smoothly. Almost everyone is involved in running the event making it an interactive experience and it’s a great learning platform for the newer pilots. Its not just the physical flying skills you can build on. If you’re looking to understand how each trick is performed or how to progress safely into acrobatics, there is plenty of discussion from every level of pilot raising the level of understanding for the whole community. It’s an excellent opportunity for peer reviewed advice on how to progress, information that pilots around the world pay a lot of money to receive. It makes the value of the entry fee, that only includes the costs to run, extremely well worth it. Each manoeuvre during the rounds can only be scored with full value once and each successive time it is calculated at 50% less (left and right sides scored seperate). This sparks a lot of chat between the pilots for our third run looking for tricks we have not yet scored, searching for the most points available. It also incentivises variety which keeps the spectators interested. As Blake prepares for his last run he asks me, “What full point tricks

By Bradley Franks Top facing page and left; BASE jump from tandem by Ben Kellett (BASE) and Georges Millet (tandem) Photos; Mark Stevens Top right; Clémence Cadario (D-bag), Ben Kellett (pilot) towing up Photo; Anna Stewart Right; Roll over D-bag from tandem by Nico Sand (D-bag) and Ben Kellett (pilot) Photos; Nico Sand

Above; Ben French cutaway BASE canopy release Photo; Anna StewartLeft;Blake

tow Photo; Anna Stewart Above; Blake Round deploys second reserve Photo; Anna Stewart 6 A irborn

can I still do?” So I take a look at his score card; Right Heli, right Misty to Heli, right Mac twist, right Mac to Heli, right Infinite Tumble, right Loop… I can see a pattern here. ‘Just turn left!’ I tell him. He thinks for a minute then says “well, this should be interesting”. Interesting it was! As Blake goes through his run he makes the same mistake I had and pulled his left Mac Twist early, the following rotations wind his risers together locking his brakes. While trying to recover normal flight his glider dives into auto rotation. We watch from the beach, he’s now out of control and the crowd erupts into a chant, “Reserve!, reserve!, reserve!”. “Whoooooo” as the reserve comes out. But the auto rotation puts the reserve straight into the lines and it slides unopened into the canopy. Reserve two comes out, also straight into the lines and the crowd goes from cheering to concern. Still in auto rotation there’s no sign of the glider slowing but Blake has over ten years experience flying acro and knows how to keep cool under pressure. He pulls on the lines of the round parachute filling it with air quickly slowing him down. Now the first reserve also opens and with all three canopies above him he floats down towards the water plunging softly into the lake before the once again cheering crowd. Finals day Sunday and with a bit of a mis-start and change of location from Pisa back to the yacht club due to wind direction, we get the finals tows underway. With a clean slate the finalists are free to perform any tricks they like and Clémence Cadario tows up first to put down her last run. As a very experienced tandem and cross country pilot sponsored by BGD designs, Clem claims not to be an acro pilot and is flying in the fun category. She has flown very well and combined with her perfect raft landings, has made it into the finals. This just proves if you go out there and fly clean runs that look good and land well you can compete with the best. The quote, “I’m not an acro pilot” can no longer stand as an excuse not to enter. Clem starts with a Misty and a Mac Twist which impresses the judges but a bit of a wobbly Heli and SAT followed by a loop puts her a bit far from the raft and her spiral ends up in the water. Next up is event co-organiser Ben Kellett flying his dirt coloured AirG Emily. Not quite getting the height of others which may or may not be due to the porosity of his glider he was limited to only 2 tricks, Cowboy and Mac to Heli, but a clean run ends with a spiral that he spins before splashing into the water. Impressive enough for a bonus point but too far away from the raft to score well. Maybe if he didn’t wash the dirt out of the porous fabric in the round robins the boat would have got him a bit higher. He is blaming the boat, which one it was we will never know. After him is Ben French. Ben won AcroFest21 with a clinic of impressive flying. He was the clear favourite this year flying far more technical tricks than everyone else like twisted Rhythmic Infinite, Joker, Corkscrew, twisted Mac Twist and capable of most of the tricks on the FAI list. Ben is passionate about acrobatics and he is just as passionate about sharing the knowledge. If you ever see him at the Flight Park he is more than happy to give tips and pointers to help you if your struggling with a new manoeuvre and personally he has helped me immensely through my progression. There is no exception at AcroFest and many of the pilots draw on his knowledge while he’s at the beach. As he is towed into the sky people take their seats ready for a sure spectacle. He starts his run with Infinite Tumbling before trying a twisted Mac Twist but carries on the theme of pulling too dynamically putting him into multiple riser twists. With no option but to end his run with a cutaway BASE canopy deployment, he watches his glider float off into the distance as he comes down under a steerable reserve. Always the entertainer he flies towards the raft and nails a perfect raft landing sending the crowd into a huge cheer but his chances of taking out the title this year float away like his glider did when he pulled the reserve handle. With Ben out the race for the title of 2022 NZ acro champion, the competition is blown wide open with three pilots still to fly. Next up is co-organiser Nico Sand and he puts down a clean run of well choreographed acrobatic flying including Esfera, Mac Twist to Heli, Tumbling and Misty to SAT. Deciding to go for the accuracy points instead of spiral he executes a perfect spot landing on the raft entertaining the onlooking crowd. Everyone is buzzing on the level of flying and the less experienced pilots are inspired by the technical tricks being flown with great accuracy. There’s music playing on the stereo system, plenty of locals watching and a few beers in hand for people who have finished for the day. Next up is Blake Round, Blake is an experienced instructor who is at the heart of this new movement. A few years ago he decided to take the plunge to buy a world class pay-out winch and a boat to provide a much needed service to the New Zealand paragliding community. After the club lost access to a few mountain sites near water in the last decade, there was nowhere for local pilots to practice safety manoeuvres over water and Blake saw the need in the community for this extremely valuable resource. SIV is a hugely important step in every pilots career where under instruction, we practice simulated incidence over water. Until Blake ventured into buying the boat and winch, the closest place we could do this course was Australia, with most pilots going half way round the world to Europe to enrol in a course. It is also a requirement to attain our advance license that we do an SIV course but it is just as important that this resource is available to pilots to be able to understand the dynamics of a glider when it stops flying in the way it is designed. For acro the ‘full stall’ is the most important manoeuvre for safety and until you have completed multiple stalls you can not advance in flying any acrobatics safely. In fact so crucial is the stall that it’s the reset of our glider when a manoeuvre goes wrong. Being able to safely stall and reset you glider is the basis for safely flyingBlake’sacrobatics.passion and efforts for making this service available to the flying community in New Zealand, along with other significant contributions to the entire free flying community was rewarded this year with the Jill Borst Memorial trophy. So after seeing his dream come true last year to eventually hold acrobatic competitions again, he lines up for his final run for AcroFest22. He did Round on

7

Above; Blake Round lands three canopys Photo; Anna Stewart Below; Georges Millet on his winning run Photos; Mark Stevens have to dry all his equipment from the day before and repack his two A irborn

Above; Kat Cerna gets the target Photo; Mark Stevens Final results 1) Georges Millet 2) Nico Sand 3) Blake Round 4) Ben Kellett 5) Ben French 6) Clemence Cadario. NZ acro champion: Georges Millet Fun category: Clemence Cadario Novice category: Jason Searle Freestyle Freak: Thomas Rold Accuracy trophy: Ben French

reserves but he was ready to throw down a display of acrobatics that hopefully ended up in a raft landing and not another reserve toss. He flew a great run of dynamic manoeuvres including Infinite tumbling, Twister, Joker and SAT to Heli unsurprisingly all to the right! He ends with a spiral and comes up just short of the raft with a bonus point I’m sure for keeping the vibe in the crowd and dunking his gear in the water once again. The beach was more than impressed but with the judges critique on a few minor mistakes the race to the trophy was now extremely close with only one pilot to fly. Step up to the launch Georges Millet. Having come a close third last year Georges was keen to try and clinch the trophy this year and so he left the launch with a stylish foot drag as the boat pulled him into the air. Georges always flies with style and has many years of experience in acrobatic flying so everyone was keen to see what he could pull out of the bag this year. There was still extra points on the table if he could put down a clean technical run. On the beach, the spectators were spread out across the launch area as well as on boats in the lake. As Georges comes off tow he flies towards the beach and arriving at his box he starts with a good looking Heli to SAT. He then builds energy in a rhythmic SAT eventually tumbling over his glider before a clean stall exit. A dynamic Mac Twist leaves plenty of height as he goes Misty right then Misty right again before ending with a Dynamic Stall. Trick after trick the crowd watched as he flawlessly Heli’d, tumbled and spun into perfect position for the spiral landing. His approach to the raft was a high energy nose down spiral and you can hear his lines whistle as he bleeds out the energy with a wingtip touch on the water, wowing the crowd before nailing the landing on the raft. The beach goes wild and he has flown a near perfect run to take out the trophy of 2022 NZ Acro Champion.Althoughthe stars of the event have displayed tremendous flying skills and put on a show for the crowd, every participant has again executed exceptional glider control no matter their level. Second year entrant Jason Seale takes out the novice category for the second year running and Clemence Cadario takes first place in the fun category. But after a fifteen year acro hiatus local tandem pilot Thomas Rold shows he’s still got it by flying exceptionally to take the Freestyle Freak award pulling tricks out of the bag any new school pilot would be proud of. Everyone has stories of success and not so successful tales as we pack up for prize-giving. We gather at the Pisa Moorings restaurant for the awards and Ants the owner puts on a great dinner in his private room out the back. I reflect back on the event as the beer goes down and think how lucky we are to have once again pulled off an epic event with 3 beautiful blue sky autumn days. I guess the weather gods just know that every year on the 3rd week of March we need 3 calm warm days to run the best event in New Zealand. I really hope next year we can build the momentum and encourage pilots of all levels to come and participate, pushing the skills and development of our community higher and higher, just as Blake had envisioned. Next year I hope I don’t hear ‘I’m not an acro pilot’. Instead I’d love to see new faces come down and test themselves in a non serious, fun learning environment. So get hold of ParatowNZ and support Blake by enrolling in courses or coming out on free tow days to see what your capable of, and until next March Fly hard, stay safe and progress slowly.

Aoraki Hang Gliding Classic

2nd January On day two four car loads drove up The Buscot. There was a thin vale of high cloud blocking the sun but a few light thermal cycles were coming through take off. The

it is no secret that some of the best soaring air in the world can be found in the Mackenzie Basin. Omarama is situated inland on the edge of the mighty Southern Alps away from most sea breezes. The hot sun and clear skies produce stunningly strong thermals and the westerly winds produce wave that can lift you to the edge of space.

wind was hyper light and switching around. After changing take off sides DFC pilots Andrew, Hagen, James, Abe and Boot took off. “Run Forest, run,” was the call by those watching. Even two paragliders found take off light. Andrew led the charge and after a gallant fight he eventually floated down to the Twizel highway. The rest worked one very light thermal on the point together. They glided off towards Omarama from about 5000’. It became a glide angle competition with Hagen winning the day with a 16km cross country flight. The wind then died completely and the remaining pilots had a long wait. Eventually a light NE wind kicked off some reasonable cycles. Ollie, Steve F, Steve C, Kirsty and Rod launched into some more lively air. Ollie and Kirsty landed on the Twizel highway and the rest flew towards Omarama. I managed to get to 5,500’ and flew 10kms to land on the airfield in front of Terry Delore’s chalet. I was greeted with a cold Steinlager! Thank you, Terry! Steve C landed with some cows near the Ahuriri Bridge and Steve F flew over the airfield to maintain first place in Sports Class. Matt Barlow had a family day at Lake Benmore but has maintained his position in 1st place overall. Not a high scoring day but some nice flights were had and two out of two days flying in paradise ain’t too bad! 3rd January With overcast conditions, ten pilots ventured up the Omarama Saddle. We were greeted by a nice steady NW wind blowing on take off. We rigged and enjoyed some nice soaring where some short scoring Above; Boot and Steve about to launch at The Buscot. That is Lake Benmore at upper left. Below; Matt and John climbing with the Ben Ohau range in the background. Words and Photos by Rod Stuart Below; Rigging at the Omarama Saddle Photo; Liz Turner as comp HQ. Registration was done at a relaxed New Year’s Eve party held at Dirapuk. It is always fun to catch up with flying friends and you could feel the enthusiasm. What follows comes from my daily logs covering 8 superb days of flying in a row. 1st January I did notice a few 0.0% alcohol beers in my fridge on New Years Day; perhaps some are taking this competition seriously? Nine pilots drove up to the Omarama Saddle and were treated to some superb conditions. Several pilots ventured down the Hawkdun Range and most made it back to Omarama township. Matt Barlow made a flying start with a 104km flat triangle from Omarama Saddle, to Mt Ida, on to Omarama town and back to the Saddle for a score of 156.57 points. He takes the lead! Steve Ferguson established himself in first place for sports class with a 51km cross country to Twizel earning him 50.99 points. An amazing 16 pilots have registered to compete this week! An exciting start and such a relaxed competition format. Thank you to all the pilots, drivers, friends and family for supporting this competition. Always great to get a flyable first day!

Tom: “I’m in!” I also wanted to revive the Sterling Big Sky competition and phoned John Smith with this idea. Rod: “John, would you help me set up a one day race with turn points for the Sterling Big Sky?”

Omarama makes you feel like an astronaut!TomMulder has recently introduced Xcontest to the hang gliding scene in NZ. A simple way to score cross country flights using igc files recorded by a GPS. I phoned Tom... Rod: “Tom, do you think we could use Xcontest to score a hang gliding competition?”Tom:“Isee no reason why not. Would you like me to help you with scoreRod:keeping?”“Yesplease! I am organizing a relaxed hang gliding competition first week of January.”

8 A irborn

John: “Great idea Rodney ~ I would loveAndto!”so the Aoraki Hang Gliding Classic was born with Dirapuk, Marney and Rod’s ‘crib’ in Omarama

~ January 2022

1. XC Flight ~ start, 3 turn points and finish. Scored with 1 point per km flown.

2nd place overall with Hagen Bruggemann and John Smith not far behind. Three days flying in a row and pilots are buzzing! 4th January Another stunning day in the skies above paradise. Nine pilots ventured up The Buscot. The skies were overcast with high cloud but a small front was coming in from the south with a lot of activity. Clouds marked the lift to over 7000’. The usual Buscot glider shuffle took place and we ended up taking off to the north.

2. Open Distance ~ longest distance between two points. Scored with 1.25 points per km flown.3.Flat triangle ~ three turn points to form a triangle which must close to within 2% of the total distance flown. Scored with 1.5 points per km flown.

Above; Steve C. aka The Hood; Most Promising Pilot Above; Hagen wins dog eaten Sterling Big Sky trophy Above; Matt; Aoraki Classic First Place

Above; Matt’s incredible 128km FAI triangle A irborn 9

4. FAI Triangle ~ three turn points to form an equilateral triangle which must close to within 2% of the total distance flown. The shortest leg must be greater than 28% of the total distance flown. Scored with 2 points per km flown. Pilots simply upload their igc file to Xcontest and the best score from the 4 options above is recorded. Scores are collated onto a spread sheet to score the Aoraki Classic. Your best 3 scores added together give a final result. All flights must start in the Mackenzie Basin and be uploaded to XContest on the day you flew. Matt Barlow won the day with a very clever 18km cross country using mostly ridge lift. There is some fierce competition heating up in sport class. Rod Stuart and Steve Cronin fly Gecko 170s and have named themselves ‘The Lizard Kings’. Landscape gardener Steve Ferguson is currently in the lead and the Lizard Kings have declared that they are going to compost him! Gary Turner has had a couple of days off but may return and mow us all over! Boot (John Urlich) is holding Right; Pete Helliwell celebrating finally getting to take-off in Ned’s truck

Hagen Bruggemann came so close to a 75km FAI triangle but that 2% closing rule is brutal and he ended up with a 72km XC. Matt Barlow had his phone go flat at 8000’ about an hour into the flight. He left his Spot tracker at home so we had no idea where he was. He was spotted climbing on the west side of town at 4pm and last seen flying at 5000’ towards Mt Killermont. flights were possible. The beauty of XContest is that you can choose your task yourself. There are 4 ways to score using igc files recorded by your instrument, GPS or smart phone.

Hagen’s glider bag was sucked up in a dust devil and climbed 200’ above take off ~ after a good 10 minute flight it landed 200m down the road to win first place for a kite bag! Boot won the day with a very clever 38km FAI triangle for 76 points. This has put him in the overall lead! Matt had a family day. Hagen flew an amazing 52km cross country by flying to Magic Mountain, on to Mt Killermont and landing at Omarama. Andrew did a sneaky wee FAI triangle along the Benmores for 35 points. The Lizard Kings, Steve C and Rod did some nice composting and scored with good cross country flights landing in the same paddock close to camp Kevin McManus. He kindly came over with cold beer for us ~ thank you Kev! Steve F had a short one but has hung onto the lead in sports class. Tom and Ollie flew xc and landed in Omarama. Every day is flyable! 5th January I had a rest day with Marney and we took our dog River and a couple of beers to the Ahuriri River bank for some well needed chill time. But with a pair of binoculars and live tracking using the XCTrack app via XContest we could follow the action. Ten pilots took off to the South directly behind the usual West take off at Omarama Saddle. Reports were that it was a great take off and everyone flew through the saddle to the west and into lee side thermals. It was a little tricky getting up with the bomb out claiming 5 aviators. We spotted Andrew McKirdy flying high over Omarama on route to Twizel for a 48km cross country. Next, we spotted Tom Mulder flying down Mt St Cuthbert to land at the Omarama airfield for a 28km XC. John Smith flew high directly over us sitting at the Ahuriri River. He successfully closed an awesome 70km FAI triangle scoring 141 points.

Steve

B Gary Kirsty Abe Kev, Rod and Steve C Andrew Robz James Steve F 10 A irborn

John Smith Tom Boot

6th January A rough day on The Buscot. 11 pilots drove up and 7 flew. A moderate wind was blowing up from the south directly along the spine creating some respectably rowdy air! John was first off; he took a while to get up but managed to fly a 12.9km FAI triangle for 25 points. Tom and Boot had short XC flights down to the Twizel highway area. Steve C flew over to the foothills of the Benmores giving Marney an interesting retrieve. Rod and Steve B flew short XC flights and landed at the Hat’s place beside the Ahuriri River. John landed beside them and we were all treated to a nice cup of tea beside the Hat’s pond in the company of his pet trout. Matt Barlow was flushed off the hill low and was soaring lower Buscot with John Smith at one point. He caught a light thermal and decided to drift back in it towards Mt Eric. He was soon climbing high and heading north. He crossed Lake Ohau and started flying on the Ben Ohau Range towards Aoraki Mt Cook. A stunning effort saw him fly a 76km straight line flight landing just before the Mt Cook Airport earning him 96 points to maintain first place. Steve Ferguson has held onto first place in Sports Class with Rod Stuart just 13 points behind now! Pilots are enjoying the relaxed competition format where a day off does not necessarily penalize your final score. With six out of six days flying, a rest can be needed!

Score keeper Tom Mulder realised Steve Ferguson’s track log from XCTrack had failed to record part of his flight. He needed to fly just under one kilometre to beat Rod Stuart. His track log was uploaded into XContest from his vario and it was concluded that Rod had won by just 0.37 points! An unbelievable 370 meters separated them after 8 days flying! A BBQ and prize-giving was held at Dirapuk. Matt Barlow was the clear winner of the Aoraki Hang Gliding Classic open class. Hagen won the Sterling Big Sky race. The trophy had been in storage a few years at his place. His dogs had eaten the top off it! I have since repaired this trophy and completed the Sports Class trophy won by me! The most promising pilot award was given to Steve Cronin, aka ‘The Hood’. Boot read out a beautiful poem about the late Sterling Meyer. A real hang gliding character from the past in the Omarama area. The outside fire was lit and we all enjoyed a few tipples celebrating 8/8 days of amazing flying and friendship.

At 7pm Tom, Boot and I formed a ‘Find Matt’ chat group and put the word out. At 7:30pm Matt phoned from the land line at Twinburn Station farm house. He had just landed completing a stunning 128km FAI triangle. His flight took him to the far end of the Benmores, then up the Ahuriri Valley and across to the head of Lake Hawea high on the Dingle Range. He then flew back to the airstrip bomb-out paddock below Omarama Saddle to close the triangle. A very happy Matt arrived back in town to a nice meal cooked by Marney. 5 out of 5 days and Omarama just keeps delivering!

The new Sport Class trophy won by Rod and the repaired Sterling Big Sky trophy A irborn 11

7th January The drive up Buscot was a clown act right in front of owner Richard. Matt got a flat front tyre and had no spare. We tried to use Steve Ferguson’s spare but that was flat too! We drove back and got Ned’s Toyota truck. His spare was bolted on Matt’s truck. It moved one foot and the rim jammed on the brake callipers breaking them! Eventually gliders were transferred to Ned’s truck and everyone made it to take-off. Matt Barlow won the day with a staggering 91km straight line flight. He landed knee deep in mud at Lilybank Station north of Lake Tekapo. John flew 74kms straight line for 93 points. Rob Campbell flew a very nice skinny triangle to Twizel and back for 55.5 points. Upset of the day was Rod Stuart managing a 41km straight line flight for 51 points on his Gecko 170 named Peg. This gave him just enough points to take the lead in Sports Class by only 0.35 points over Steve Ferguson. Boot, Steve B and Hagen got a ‘pegging’ by all landing near Simons Pass. Andrew flew a tidy little FAI triangle for 19 points. Steve F had a nice XC flight to Lake Pukaki and Gary Turner landed near him scoring with a straight-line flight. Pete Helliwell flew a nice 43km XC flying over lake Ohau and landed on a strange property behind a locked gate ~ ask him for the story! Steve Cronin did a nice wee skinny triangle over the Benmores for 27 points. Tom and Kirsty were our proud bomber squadron for the day landing on the Twizel Highway. Ned and Adrian also had nice flights but are not scoring. 8th January On the eighth day we tried something different ~ two competitions in one flight! The Aoraki Classic was run Thank you to: ~ Marney for helping with the competition, driving for us and organizing the prize-giving BBQ. ~ Partners, family and friends who supported and encouraged all the pilots for 8 days. ~ Tom Mulder for a ‘Sterling’ effort scoring two competitions. ~ The farmers who allowed us to drive up, take off and land on their properties. ~ The competitors, who demonstrated excellent sportsmanship, flying skills and camaraderie. ~ The skies above Omarama for turning on 8 out of 8 superb days of flying conditions. During the week, 20 pilots took to the skies. Boot was the only pilot to fly all 8 days and he placed 4th overall.Thisweek has been better than my wildest dreams. We can all be proud of being part of an exciting and enjoyable new way to compete with hang gliders. The next Aoraki Classic starts on 28th December 2022 and finishes on 4th January 2023. You are welcome! Text Rod on 027 434 4822 and he will add you to the WhatsApp group. in conjunction with the Sterling Big Sky race. John Smith set up a turn point task flying from The Buscot to Omarama Saddle, back to The Buscot and landing in Omarama. 12 pilots took to the air and were greeted by light but very usable lift. Hagen was the only pilot to fly the whole task landing back in Omarama to win the Sterling Big Sky. Tom got to the Saddle and back to Omarama for second place. Pete Helliwell landed below the Omarama Saddle to claim thirdTheplace.Aoraki Classic was scored for the eighth day but scores did not affect placings much. Matt had a rest day but his best 3 scores added up to make him overall winner.

overall results: Aoraki Classic Open Class:1st Matt Barlow, 2nd John Smith, 3rd Hagen AorakiBruggemann.Classic Sport Class: 1st Rod Stuart, 2nd Steve Ferguson, 3rd Gary SterlingTurner,Big Sky: 1st Hagen Bruggemann, 2nd Tom Mulder, 3rd PeteThereHelliwell.wasa nervous moment before prize-giving for Sports Class.

Above; Hagen and Tom land in Omarama after the Sterling Big Sky Right; The prize giving BBQ at Dirapuk in Omarama

Climb and Fly

12 A irborn ugh, I’m splinched. I’m trying to force my way up a narrow rock chimney, but the bulky paragliding pack on my back keeps getting stuck. Elliott is ready to climb down to help, but I need to sort this myself. Elliott, the stronger climber, has breezed up the exposed arete next to me. The chimney has a good run out; the arete does not. However, I just can’t fit into the same spaces that I normally would with a slick climbing set up. I eye up the slab – miniscule holds, but aesthetically pleasing. I don my rock shoes and step up onto the airy traverse, the friction of my soles keeps me safe as I continue upward. It’s the penultimate day of April, so we are climbing at the cusp of the seasons. Thermals are long gone, and this will be the last opportunity to climb this route, an imminent front set to bring snow. We’re ascending the Guideless Buttress on Mount Wakefield in Aoraki Mount Cook National Park, an 800-metre-high route that goes directly up from the viewing platform at the Hooker Lake to the summit massif. If you don’t know about Mount Wakefield, well you should. The peak is, apparently, one of the 19 holy mountains of the world

Mount Wakefield, Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park Lorraine climbing to launch Photo; Elliott

Lorraine Johns on two recent climb and fly adventures call up – did you see this tramping sidle? He sure did, but he is just loving that rock. If we were recording GPS tracks, they would look quite funny - Elliott’s beeline, and my frequent little zig zags. Around lunchtime the rock becomes blocky and crumbly, signalling that we are approaching the top. It’s at this point things become a bit less straightforward. At the edge of the undulating plateau we’ve reached, there are no safe launches. The ground is undeniably rocky, and the wind always seems to reach us in the lee of some or another tiny outcrop. It’s also coming from the north, when the only good launches here are to the south. It’s not going to be easy to launch today unless we drop down snow to the southern tarns. We maintain our height and head north to scope out the scree slope between Point 2012 and the summit. The wind here is disappointingly light and swirly, and it doesn’t feel safe. We head back up to a col just west of Point 2012 – it’s now our only option now unless we drop to the tarns. Time is ticking. Since we last stood on this spot, the wind has picked up from 15km/ hour to over 20 km/hour, sometimes and was “charged” with “majestic spiritual powers which can never be depleted” on Christmas Day in 1960. There is a ‘famed’ holy rock on the mountain, inscribed with the word “charged”. Rumour has it that the graffiti artist was gunning for Aoraki Mount Cook but had to settle for Wakefield when he discovered there was no walking track linking the two. In fact, I’m not sure he actually liked Wakefield that much, as the holy rock lies in the vicinity of Point 1566 on the South Ridge, quite a long way from the summit. Today Elliott is feeling charged. Me, I’m a bit ancient and sleepy, but delighted to be here. Neither of us have climbed this route before, but I’ve climbed the nearby Routeless Buttress. I hadn’t been certain on that occasion if I could safely climb a technical route like that by myself with my wing, so the only added flavour then was in making it a day trip from Christchurch. However, a year later, I know enough to pitch this objective to Elliott as safely manageable with wings and without a We’verope. been up since dawn, leaving at around 7am. Elliott was keen for an earlier start, but I had tempered enthusiasm for route finding without a moon, particularly as there was a risk of frost. In daylight, everything so far is going like clockwork. We had started up from the lake by following a dry stream bed at the base of the buttress, avoiding the most difficult climbing, and gaining the ridge proper just as the sides began to fall away. Now here we are climbing in the cool autumn sun, icebergs glinting in the Hooker Lake just below us, the highest peaks in the country just around us. As we wind our way up, the ground is changing from crumbling greywacke to the comforting redness of ironoxidative weathering. I tell myself I’m completely focused on the climb, but I can’t help but notice what the wind is doing. There is almost no wind so far, though at times we feel the odd weak thermal. I know the launch at the top has the potential to be very challenging, but we are in a marvellous place and I’m in the moment.Elliottis spending most of his time heading directly up the beautiful but exposed ridge crest. Me? I often pop off to one side or the other, to take an easier line. At one point I even O’Brien

Above; Elliot with flying kit on boardRight; With Mt cook backgroundin Below; Looking toward the launch sitePhotos; Lorraine Johns Right; FlyingWakefieldover Below; view of the Hooker from Wakefield Photos; Elliott O’Brien Left; Elliott landing near Mt Cook VillagePhoto; Lorraine Johns

gusting 30km/hour. Elliott is a much more confident strong wind pilot than me and I’m nervous, so we decide I’ll go first. I agree with Elliott’s assessment that we’re in a venturi. If we can launch in a lull, it will be safe. Wind at launch is the part of flight I feel most connected to, and I have frequently found wind to sharply decrease just below a high point. Here, I don’t want to drop any height because I’m on a small wing with a poor glide and the ground below us is shallow, some large rocks threatening the exit. Elliott reassuringly tells me to take my time. I’ve said this to others before and it’s what I need to hear myself right now. However, I immediately make a mess of my beautifully preclipped wing when a line catches during inflation. After I collapse my wing, the wind becomes so strong that all I want to do is bunch up and crouch on my wing. I needn’t have worried. Every single line seems to have become stuck, and now it feels like I couldn’t get the wing off the ground if I wanted to. Which of course I do. We decide to drop down ten metres where the wind is oscillating from nothing to about 15 km/hour. Now we must time launch to make sure it’s as strong as possible. Elliot has unclipped to help me as, every time I try to launch, something catches. I pull my wing into a wall when it starts gusting and he quickly dives around unhooking every caught line. Finally, it’s up above my head. I run as hard as I can. It’s an intimidating take off and the wind pushes me toward two large rocks just after my feet leave the ground. I steer between them, lifting my legs. The ground immediately drops away and suddenly I’m flying in Mount Cook National Park for the first time. The view is unbelievable. I fly away from the terrain because I’m moving fast enough to suggest there is a bit of power in the air. I fly out over the Hooker Lake and look to Aoraki and the upper Hooker Glacier, rimmed by the dramatic peaks. I’ve spent an embarrassingly long-time telling Mt Cook Traffic that I’m about to launch, so it’s a relief to finally report an aerial position. I love losing my height over the flats of Mount Cook Village – what a place to do circles in the air. It’s nonetheless a relief, when I land, to not still be standing at 2000 metres, but where’s Elliott? He responds once to my radio calls then I don’t hear from him again. I hope it’s just that the radio has stopped working but can’t help starting to worry. Meanwhile, Elliott’s radio has disconnected, and he hasn’t been able to get away. Every time he tries, something catches. With no-one to clear lines for him, he heads back up to the top launch. It’s still strong and he knows that when he pulls the wing up, he’ll be stationary – so he needs to find a lull and patiently hang suspended while slowly creeping forward. When I finally see him in the air, words cannot describe my elation.Back at the lodge I collapse in a heap as we sit and laugh and try to unwind. Launching has been an intense emotional effort, completely dwarfing the climb and the flight itself. It’s now late afternoon and what we really need is to make an early dinner and head to bed. However, some lady with too much pre-trip enthusiasm had come up with a ridiculous plan to climb The Thumbs the next day. So that’s what we’re off to do now. We’re fully committed as we’re meeting a friend in Tekapo to walk the first couple of hours up the Macaulay River. The forecast has deteriorated, and summit day is no longer looking great, but we nonetheless find ourselves at Lilybank Station at 9pm that night, about to embark on another adventure. Just like for the Guideless Buttress, I’ve been in the area before, done the maths and give us an 80% chance of success. Provided we can get to the twin summits in daylight, then we’ll have no choice but to suffer the sodden trudge back to our low camp. And somehow, just somehow, we pull it off, climbing both the High and Low Thumbs the day after our climb and fly of Mount Wakefield. The weather holds as we walk up the glorious, golden, sun-drenched valley in a gentle but steadily increasing breeze. A nice day to be climbing. Yet on the summit of the High Thumb I still look across to Elliott and wonder if he is thinking the same thing as me – is this launchable right now?

Erewhon Adventure i’m pretty obsessed with Erewhon. It’s a place which inspired Samuel Butler’s 1872 satiric fantasy story, following his exploration of the headwaters of the Rangitata river. Erewhon is an anagram of “nowhere” and that’s exactly what it feels like here, at the gateway to the Garden of Eden. Today I’m right at the start of nowhere – Mount Potts. By following a dry stream bed, created by very recent floods, I manage to avoid the masses of matagouri that threaten the lower flanks of the peak. I’ve decided not to go up the skifield road due to the amount of snow lying around. It’s bitingly cold on the nicely gravelled ridge when I reach it, even walking in my down jacket. As I get higher, I’m surprised by the unexpected beauty of this place. There is a hidden valley between Mount Potts and an outlying peak called The Pyramid, and the sweeping change in colour as elevation increases, is dramatic. Now I’m higher, the Italian I’ve been learning on the way goes away. The snow conditions are tricky, with avalanche danger on one side of the ridge, and an annoying layer of soft snow over iced up rocks on the side I’m on. Upward progress becomes slow even though I’m using an axe. To my amusement there is still the odd pole as I ascend – dilapidated remnants from the historic skifield below.Afterwading through some hideous knee-deep snow, I make the summit to find no wind at all. I give myself a few minutes, then I get going. There was a small launch site just before the summit, but with no upslope breeze it’s too difficult for me and the next stage of my adventure requires a northern launch anyway. I’m not committed to launching but if I have to walk down, I won’t go back the way I came, nor will I risk potential avalanche danger on the slopes leading to the skifield. I decide to drop to the northernfacing saddle between the summit and Point 2146. I can see a rocky slope below the small saddle and I’m hoping that might trigger an upslope breeze. The saddle looks more promising from a distance than what eventuates when I reach it. There is a very slight tail wind but launching on the southern side of the saddle is nonetheless out of the question. It is icy, rocky, shallow, and there is still no upslope breeze when I stand on the edge. I commit to waiting for some wind to come up the sunnier, northern side of the saddle. I have my small wing with me – a blessing and a curse. I could not launch my big wing here in nil wind, but I’m also not convinced I want to launch my small wing. The wing will pop up above my head from a small footprint, but it requires a runway. Even in a decent breeze a couple of weeks ago on Steepface Hill, I still ran a long way to launch. Here, there is no runway and no wind. Two steps are all I have to get my wing above my head and veer off the edge. I try a couple of times and my wing is like a jellyfish in the air. I don’t have to launch. I won’t launch unless there is more wind. So I wait about 30 minutes, then to my delight, 3 to 4 kilometres of wind pops up the slope. Somehow my skinny riser catches on my chest strap and I immediately abort. Five minutes later there is another similar gust – I’m gone in a second. The wing takes enough of my weight in those two steps for me to commit and push forward with all my strength. I launch before my wing flies me away, as the ground is so steep it just disappears. However, my wing doesn’t seem to surge and suddenly I’m flying through smooth, velvety air. I’ve launched later than desired and it’s June, so the daylight is short. Shall I fly back to the car? Nah. I’d rather bag Potts Hut. So I fly on to the north. The terrain is pretty, but not spectacular – that is until I fly out past the flanks of Mount Potts. What a valley lies beneath, glistening in the low winter sunlight. It’s so beautiful I’m momentarily sad that there is no one here to share this joy. As I fly into the valley, it just gets better. The most glorious tarn appears on the Dog Range opposite me. It literally takes my breath away. Suddenly I’m not sure if I will land at the hut. I really want to fly over the tarn. Indecision takes me, but at the last minute I decide to skim the tarn. This will also give me the best chance of a second flight back to the car. It’s all very idyllic and lovely in this secret spot, until I reach the ridge crest, where there is a slight tail wind. I can’t launch. There is a multi-directional light wind launch on point 1485, but I don’t know if I can get there before nightfall. When I try to launch from the edge of the shallow Point 1546, my wing is, once again, a jellyfish. It’s also almost impossible to get it off the ground to even try and launch, as everything is frozen solid. Even the dirt catches and firmly traps my lines. I pack my wing away when Evening Civil Twilight ends and blast my way down over untracked ground to reach the polled track below. From there it’s a cold walk back to my car and a warm drive back to Christchurch spent planning an adventurous return. View flying Mt Potts Photo; Lorraine Johns Mt Potts Landing Photos; Lorraine Johns

14 A irborn

XC tRAINER Vario/alti/flight computer, 16 ch GPS, wind speed & direction, speed to fly, thermal mapping, Google Earth output. Accurate & reliable. www.aircotec.com/

WOOdy VALLEy models for racing, training tandem and recreational. tenax 4 with tilt control options and removable skin. The ultimate race harness. Flex2 has Tenax construction with independent back supports that is lighter, more flexible, has easier landings and a more convenient packed size. Libero is super light and compact, a practical all purpose harness that provides support but goes upright well too, Replacable skin. Woody Valley have the compact Quadro square emergency parachute. Wills Wing have the all purpose Z5 harness with storage and front reserve options, as well as the modern Flylite 3 cocoon. The Aerodesign apron harness is the perfect first and dune flying harness with storage & easy launch and landing.

Rigid wing Air Atos is the world leader in performance holding multiple world champs wins in Class 2. www.a-i-r.de/index.php

Full baCkup ServiCe Glider & harness repairs, strip checks & trim/tuning. Student pilot instruction. tested to DHV certification. Fly with confidence knowing you have the best back-up available. many accidents happen close to the ground, so a quick, reliable opening is most important. Many NZ pilots have been saved by their reserves; even with deployments below Paraglider50ft!!models fit built in harness containers or WaNt

the beSt • Fast, reliable, opening. • Reduced weight & pack size due to high strength material and Dyneema lines. The reduced size and weight is especially useful for tandems and for hang gliders. • Optional steering for PG; Land where you choose • Extremely low sink rate due to horizontal travel of the cruciform canopy. • sizes; 100, 125 & 160kg. Tandems 160 & 220kg. • Pendulum-free smooth descent. • 12 month packing cycle due to pack system design and construction. • Inner container stowed lines makes deploy ment easier & minimises tangling risk. Check out videos at; de/en/rescue-systems.htmlhttp://finsterwalder-charly. dIAmONd cross HANG GLIdER mOdELs have a UV and abrasion protected bridle. Optional swivel. Up to half the packed size and weight of conventional HG reserves. 125, 160 and 220kg sizes. over 30,000 rescue systems sold world-wide EmERGENCy PARACHUtEs IN STOCK NOW www.naviter.com Crystal clearand sunlight readable displayExceptional battery lifeeven at full brightnessEasy to useSeeYou Navigator softwareWifi, Bluetooth and 4G/LTEconnectivityFree 1-year SeeYou subscriptionfor seamless integration NEW MODEL Just in

courier delivery NZ wide. Call or email for more information. Dealer, School and group order enquiries welcome QUICK OUt carabiner 4000 kp break load, Can released under load. With safety lock. Valuable for windy landings. OUdIE N; GPS/alti/vario/nav. Sunlight readable high res col our touchscreen. World maps, airspace & terrain installed & updated, thermal assistant, task & triangle optimiser, wind, glide, terrain, IGC track logs, txt (sim or phone), scan QR turnpoints, web browser, wifi, forecast wind, wave,

OUdIE BLAdE Similar to above built into a slim instrument pod for HG. Airspeed pitot built in. Fanet+ & Flarm. Mounts for aerofoil basebars or uprights. Element tRACK has 3D GPS track recording, USB downloads. Wind, All you need for everyday flying, comps & XC. Element sPEEd has GPS wind direction & speed for soaring & XC. Easy to operate, affordable & practical. Element ALtO; Robust, reliable & simple alti/vario with GPS alti, 250 hour battery life. Switch on & fly! Choose the right instrument at; www.naviter.com/ free-flight-comparison-table/ HyPER; pocket size with colour maps. Ideal for daily flying and hike-and-fly. Navigate routes, complex airspace and record all details of your flight. Pocket size (107 x 70 x 18mm), Lightweight (135gm), Sunlightreadable colour LCD touch display, Wifi & Bluetooth connectivity, Maps and Airspace included.

Most

Competition kingpostless gliders such as the Wills Wing T3 is a world leader & the T2C holds the world XC distance record. Recent performance and handling improvements. www.willswing.com

Above gliders USHGMA or DHV Certified.

Hang glider Repairs, spares, Full inspections and maintenance checks NZ’s largest stock of parts for Wills Wing, Airborne Windsports, Finsterwalder and Enterprise Wings. Wires and tubes made to specifications. Round, aerofoil & rubber backed uprights, Quick-pins, etc.

sport Class double surface gliders like the Wills Wing Sport 3 and Airborne Sting 3 have many performance options. More performance Wills Wing U2 hold their own at competitions and XC. Finsterwalder Funfex is super-light and packs without tools to just 2m. www.willswing.com www. airborne.com.au www.finsterwalder-charly.de/en/hanggliders-a-accessories/funfex.html

HELmEts INsIdER & NO LImIt by Aerodynamic helmets with 96% field of vision & strong, light kevlar/aramid re-enforced shell weighing just 650gms to save your neck muscles. Shock absorbing EPS liner for max brain protection. Breathable inner fabric. Scratch resistant colours including metallics, matt & carbon. Sizes 53 - 62 cm head EN966circumference.certified for hg & pg. No Limit has faired back and scratch.anti-foganti-reflective,protectiongives&forpolycarbonateoptionalvisorwindprotectionaerodynamics,100%UV&is&antiand sizes in stockhttp://finsterwalder-charly.de/en.html items are in stock for overnight convergence (SeeYou & Skysight req.), customisable display, long life battery with phone charger. Fanet+ & Flarm option.

front mount cockpit containers WheN you really NeeD a paraChute, you oNly

HALL compact (11.5cm) ‘Small Hall’ is the best priced airspeed meter available. Simple and accurate. Brackets for hang or para. Never needs batteries!

HAnG GLidErs

HG HArnEssEs

Over 25 years of free flying experience and quality service Best Gear at Best Prices www.hgpg.co.nz Phone 021 247-2676 (021 AIRBORN), a.h. 03 326-6411 email aero@xtra.co.nz post 99A Panorama Road, Christchurch 8081 More information, reviews and specials at; Wind mEtErs Read the true wind speed so you can tell how strong or gusty it really is, indicating turbulence or whether it is safe or soarable. Essential for safe flying.

skyfloaters are light and responsive to control with the best control authority and landing ability. From the best training glider ever built; the Wills Wing Alpha, to the World single surface distance record holder Falcon 4. Airborne’s best selling Fun2 and Tandem gliders. www.willswing. com www.airborne.com.au

Southern Club Photo16 A irborn

Photo Comp 2022 A irborn 17

to Tim Shoultz as overall winner, and Michael Muldoon as overall runner-up, each winning instructional tandems from Infinity Paragliding. Jeff Packard came a close third, receiving a tandem voucher from G-Force NZ. All the winning shots below get entered by the club into the Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ (FMC) photo competition, with thousands of dollars of prizes! (Last year, Tim Shoultz was a runner up in one category, winning a $500 down hoodie!) Southern Club used the FMC categories for our comp. Because the NZHGPA pays an affiliation fee to FMC, all free-flight clubs are eligible to enter the FMC competition; entries close 15 September. fmc.org.nz/ photo-competitionThankyouverymuch to the generous prize sponsors, and to Dan Clearwater for running the competition.

the Southern Club ran its 3rd annual photo competition in may, with dozens of excellent entries, showcasing all the reasons we love free flight so much. The winners were voted on by the club members on Facebook, and are shared here for you to enjoy. If you want to see all the shots, search #southernclubphotocomp2022 onCongratulationsFacebook!

2022 southern Club Photo Competition Champion

Above Bushline with human element Category winner and overall runner up michael muldoon Skytrek tandems Winter tandem work in Queenstown can be demanding at times. We have to get our passengers off the ski lifts and some of them have never seen snow before. Then according to the forecast some flights are a traverse line behind the Coronet Peak where the rewarding view of Skippers as photographed is complimented by views north to TC and of course the flight back over the resort to Flight Park. Pilot: Jack at Coronet Peak Tandems.

Above the bushline, no human element Winner Jack Cano Corner peak cloudbase Beautiful conditions prevailed on January 31, 2022 and a group of us had great flights from the Lindis Pass. Tracking SW from the Ahuriri towards Corner peak, was one of the many pumping cloud streets present that day. I had seen these streets form earlier in the season from the Hawea range and was delighted to finally be cruising one, in the direction of home! I soon after touched cloudbase at 10,000 ft above Dingle peak. Summertime, ey...

18 A irborn

Overall winner and long exposure Category Winner tim Shoultz - Aurora Vol biv. One of my first vol-biv missions starting from the summit of Coronet Peak > Harris Range > Mt. Aurum on the Richardson Range and chose the ridgeline leading to Mt. Earnslaw for my home for the night (~35ks). I woke up around 10:30pm to a glow in the sky and got my camera out to verify strong Aurora Australis. What a gift of a night. Will remember that one for a long time.

Praise! Jack Parr reaches out to touch a miniature Billy Waller during a high wind speed soaring day at Te Waewae Bay, Southland.

Below bushline, with human element Winner Jordan mcInally/undersoul photography Soaring poutu Sand dunes Soaring Pouto beach, North Island

runner up Anthony Saupin breast Hill sunset Hike and fly from the summit of Pakituhi on a beautiful winter day. The plan was not to fly so late but many unsuccessful and frustrating attempts to launch in a tricky wind eventually gifted me with a very nice sunset flight

runner up Stephen Skelton praise te Waewae bay

runner up and 3rd overall Jeff packard Corner peak sunset (previous centre pages) It took a while for my buddy The and I to line up the weather and work for a mission to Corner Peak. While we were aiming for an afternoon launch that July day, the icy and snowy hike up the mountain slowed our pace and ended up with us reaching takeoff shortly before the sun dropped down behind the mountains. While every hike I’ve been on in New Zealand was beautiful, I had no idea this one would be so stunning! A irborn 19

r unner up Anthony Saupin parachute rocks, St Arnaud Hike and fly at Parachute Rock for a beautiful flight over lake Rotoiti with some locals during my own ‘St Arnaud XC camp’, one of the 4 consecutive flyable days in this nice area

Below bushline, no human element Winner Jan Necas On retrieve This is the snap I took while retrieving my bike. I burned a lot of calories that day...

An autumn flight from French Ridge in surprisingly buoyant conditions could bring me back to Wanaka, but with car at Raspberry flat and bike hidden somewhere in the bushes on the way to French ridge I landed at Raspberry Creek, dumped my glider in my car and run back for the retrieve.

native Flora and Fauna Winner Henry bayne bottlenose dolphin

If only you could fly around Doubtful Sound; landings are a bit limited!

20 A irborn

Historic HIS Winner r ob Nicholls Winterfestival 1977 HIS runner

Nicholls NZ Hangliding Champs 1976 A irborn 21

runner up Simone Striezi Kea Once I was able to share the air with three Kea, who were telling me unmistakably that I was in their territory. But this time I was ascending Talbot Ladder, near Milford, and I could hear them long before I was able to see them. Finally a Kea landed nearby and the wind ruffled his feathers as he ambled closer: a great chance to capture the Nestor notabilis. The Latin term notabilis means “noteworthy” and in my eyes they truly are. up rob

• searches for missing aircraft or aircraft in distress - this includes HG/PG free flyers! • off-shore marine searches within New Zealand’s search and rescue region

• Police • Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand (RCCNZ) • Ambulance police Search and rescue

There are three main bodies who can take responsibility for the response to accidents and incidents involving free fliers: –

RCCNZ also assists with other rescues when required, and provides search and rescue (SAR) coordination services from a fully staffed operations room in Wellington, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Note: RCCNZ is the best set up to provide the fastest response for free flight accidents. Ambulance The ambulance services (St John’s and Wellington Free Ambulance) are not directly involved in searches and rescues. Their role is to collect injured people from known locations. Calling 111 – what you need to know When we call 111 you normally are asked if you need Police, Ambulance or Fire. Your response directs where the operator sends you. If you say somebody has had an accident or is injured you will typically be sent directly to AMBULANCE. This is a crucial area for us to understand. Ambulance is not able to initiate a rescue response. To call in Search and Rescue you must ask for police and then state specifically that you need a SAR response. Not all beacons are the same. A distress beacon is an electronic device which, when activated in a life threatening situation, assists rescue authorities in their search to locate those in distress. Free flight pilots can use Satellite Emergency Notification Devices and/or Personal Locator Beacons:

Emergency rescue services -

22

24/7 emergency NZ toll Free 0508 ACCIdeNt (0508 222 433) enter this number into your phone NOW! Note: If you are the pilot’s emergency contact person and you have been notified via a notification from a SEND device of the emergency please call this number to provide them with additional information that may assist the rescue helicopter. If Calling from outside of New Zealand: +64 4 577 8030. who to call

understanding who is in charge

#1 The single best way to get an immediate response, with location and ‘no questions asked’ is to ACTIVATE YOUR DISTRESS #2BEACON.CallRCC (Rescue Coordination Service NZ) on 0508 ACCIDENT (0508 222 433) and state you have seen or have been involved in a paragliding/aircraft accident. #3 Call 111 if you do not have normal reception but you do have emergency services reception and ask for the Police. (See below for further information on calling using 111). Get a fast response by activating your beacon Beacon activations usually take less than a minute to come through to the Rescue Coordination Centre (RCC), and give your location, details and any extra information you have added to your profile. SEND beacons (e.g. InReach or SPOT) normally take a little bit longer (up to 5 minutes) as they go through another (normally overseas) service that then directly contacts RCC. If you are flying above a crash site but are not involved in the incident directly, activate your own beacon if the downed pilot is: • not able to do so themselves due to injury • not able to respond to you on radio Note there is no issue if multiple beacons have been activated. You are out flying in the back country and you see another pilot crash or take a heavy landing. It looks serious. A irborn

• searches for emergency locator beacons that have been Theseactivated.searches and rescues are termed ‘Category Two’ incidents.

• Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs) can only send a distress signal, but they do this via two methodstransmitting an analogue distress signal on 121.5MHZ as well as digital distress information (GPS position information and beacon registration number) on 406MHZ. Any powered aircraft (including Air NZ at 40,000’) will detect 121.5MHZ, and SAR helicopters can home in on your exact spot using this signal. t his is specifically relevant when the terrain might prevent a SEND or PLB from getting a good GPS position, but a SAR helicopter close by could still receive and track the 121.5MHZ signal. PLBs are manufactured to an international standard of ruggedness and battery life. Because SENDs and PLBs work quite differently, carrying both devices for free flight pilots will significantly increase the chances of urgent medical assistance and rescue. beacons work best whether an urban or remote location According to Mike Ambrose (LANDSAR NZ) the best way to get the fastest possible response to free flying accidents is to activate your distress beacon. This applies to both: • Urban Locations where phone reception is available. • Remote locations where no phone reception is available. In both situations the FASteSt Coastal ridge soaring, you have a collapse and crash land, unhurt, onto an otherwise inaccessible ledge. You receive a text message from a friend saying that someone has badly hurt themselves near the top of a mountain and a rescue helicopter isYouneeded.should always consider the worst and hope for the best. It is far better to over-react and activate rescue services than to think things will be all right, which could result in a worse outcome. So... who do you call, what do you do? The answer is not what you would think. Calling in rescue Services Before we explain how rescue services work we want to clearly understand who to call or notify first when you see or are involved in a hang gliding, paragliding, paramotor or speedwing flying accident.

rescue Activation FlowrChartCCNZ

The Police are responsible for coordinating searches and rescues that involve land, inland waterways, caves and close-to-shore. These searches and rescues are termed ‘Category One’ incidents. Police respond to nearly 2,000 land and marine search and rescue incidents each year, and these are coordinated at a local level. The call will go through to a single Police officer holding the on-call phone, who is probably out doing their day-to-day job. Police bring in whatever SAR assets are needed for the job, including helicopters, SAR volunteers and medical teams etc. rescue Coordination Centre NZ RCCNZ is responsible for searches and rescues involving aircraft, off-shore and emergency locator beacons. RCCNZ’s primary job is to coordinate:

• Satellite Emergency Notification Devices (SENDs) include devices such as InReach and SPOT. A SEND works by getting a GPS fix, then transmitting your location via communication satellites. This could be with routine messages, tracking points or a distress message when you press the Emergency/SOS button. Routine messaging can reduce battery life available if an emergency occurs, and they have limited waterproofing. If this is your only emergency device you carry, fully charge your device before flight and consider additional spare batteries or for internal fixed batteries a backup battery with a charging lead.

New Website

Ever wondered what the Association actually is? You’re not alone Kyla MacDonald, NZHGPA Exec Councillor explains...

Note: Forms are currently best accessed using Google Chrome as your browser, any browser works however some other browsers don’t let you preview the PDF’s, only download them, we are working on this. Feedback We invite constructive feedback on what you see, please note there is work yet to be done but feel free to get in touch with anything that is missing or you feel could be done better... Email Feedback training@nzhgpa.org.nz What’s happening to members.nzhgpa. org.nz This will be your member profile and used only for the membership directory, instructor only content and membership renewal. The only access to this page will be through your membership login, so it will now start to look very different.

NZHGPA Acknowledgement: PG Pilot Mal Haskins and the team of contributors Dan Clearwater, Blake Round, Nina Harrap, Sven Ericksen, CAA, LandSAR and RCCNZ. did you know… The NZHGPA is privileged to be one of the few member-owned Part 149 certificate holders in New Zealand (many of the others are limited liability companies), and we are certainly the largest. So what? I’ve never even heard of a part 149 certificate. Part 149 is the part of the Civil Aviation Authority rules that apply to recreational aircraft – that’s us. Holding the certificate is what enables the NZHGPA to set its own training and equipment standards, issue pilot certificates and ratings, entitles us to fly and allows us to organise aviation events like competitions and fly-ins. The NZHGPA is the envy of many other aviation organisations, because of the authority delegated by the CAA to our CEO to self-regulate. Compare that to the alternative control of CAA setting training, equipment and maintenance standards, site control and issuing pilot licenses and ratings. The 149 certificate is the golden ticket that basically gives member pilots the legal right to fly. So… it’s pretty important for us to maintain it. What’s the difference between the Clubs and the NZHGpA (aka the Association)? The NZHGPA is an Association of Clubs. What does that mean? Well, an association is generally a membership organisation or a group of people who come together for a specific purpose. In our case, it’s to enable recreational hang gliding and paragliding (+ the powered version, + speed flying). The common focus is to develop, protect and promote the sport of hang gliding and paragliding, so we can all just grab our kit and go fly. What’s the Club have to do with it then? Our structure has local Clubs, which are Membership Organisations of the Association. All the Clubs and the Association are legal entities under the Incorporated Societies Act. Every pilot is a member of a local Club, as well as being a member of the national Association. Why do we need both? Every region is different, and Clubs represent local and regional interests. Clubs generally deal with things like site access and maintenance. They also deal with the social side of things. Back in the day, the Association was created so that the Clubs could have a single, much larger and stronger voice for representation when dealing with bodies like the CAA. Most recently it’s been beneficial for dealing with insurance companies for compulsory public liability insurance, and negotiating with the Department of Conservation for a nationwide concession, ward off national airspace threats and deal with various legal matters. What if I want to get more involved? Sweet as. Contact your local Club committee and let them know. Sometimes people feel like they aren’t experienced enough. You are! If you want to get involved at a national level, contact the NZHGPA Exec on exec@nzhpga.org.nz or contact one of the Exec directly for a yarn (details at the front of the mag). Thanks to all the dedicated volunteers working behind the scenes on behalf of all pilots. Without you, we would not be able to fly in NZ. It’s a team effort to keep the wheels turning and always appreciated.

We have a new website at last, well done to all who have been working on it! There is still a bit of ironing out to do but it is hopefully already a lot better than what we had and will continue to improve as we go forward. There are a few changes you will notice which have been made for the security of the association, Password access has been added to the forms and our membership database. to Access Forms: 1 Go to the main web page: www.nzhgpa. 2org.nzGoto ‘Pilots’ then under the drop down menu click ‘Licensing and Administration’ 3 Enter the Password: letsfly (this password can also be found under your member profile once logged in) 5 Check out the new layout all forms, manuals and exams are now under the appropriate category/discipline and will hopefully be a lot easier to navigate. We will be improving the content under the drop down menus so not only will the manuals, exams and forms be found in the one place for each rating, but there will be a bit of direction for instructors and pilots as to what’s needed for each rating. nZHGPA t raining Update

23

Right; Kyla on her 40th birthday, borrowing Melanie Heather’s wing at Treble Cone Photo; Johnny Hopper A irborn

ervices way to get a response is to AC t IVAte A be ACON ( plb or SeNd). If you have cell phone reception and you have activated your beacon about an accident, you should then also CALL RCCNZ to give them information about what has occurred and let them know that you are not directly involved in the accident yourself. There is no charge or fault for activating a beacon if you are not directly injured yourself. When to call 111 vs b eacon activation or calling r CC NZ directly? Essentially you should only call 111 if the incident has occurred in an urban setting and you only need the medical services of an ambulance. Examples include; • Queenstown rugby field • Pembroke Park, Wanaka • An urban situation IMMEDIATELY accessible/beside a road with no technical assistance required • If caught in an urban tree or somewhere where an ambulance can help directly. They will use the Fire Service to assist them in these situations. • If there has been a crash, it can be helpful to tell the Ambulance operator that there has been “a fall from height”. Most of our take-offs and flying areas can be considered to NOT be in an urban situation ie no house number or road addressso trigger beacon and/or call RCC and be prepared to provide GPS coordinates. Any GPS format is ok, provided you say the numbers and all the coordinate names slowly and clearly. Eg. 44° 41.0425’ FOUR FOUR DEGREES FOUR ONE DECIMAL ZERO FOUR TWO FIVE MINUTES. Practice with the devices you take flying so you can quickly find your current coordinates, and learn how to approximate the coordinates of a pilot you can’t reach, by dropping pins or other methods. Finally - all don’tfaultRescuethatthatthoughtsego,moveTakeproblemresponsefirstainjuries/rescuesincidents/accidents/canoftencreatehighstresssituation.Oneofthepointsofrescue/emergencyistonotcreatealargerorputyourselfindanger.thetimetoassessandslowly.Don’tallowyourperceivedembarrassmentorthatthepilotistellingyoutheyarenotinjuredtoassumerescueservicesarenotneeded.andemergencyservicesarefree.Getthehelpyouneed-addtotheincident.

All entries can be viewed on the NZHGPA Website at: www.nzhgpa.org.nz/safety What to report? You must report as soon as practical anything that is defined as an “Accident” by CAA rules. That is anything that caused significant damage or serious injuries while the aircraft is being used. Club safety officers and other pilots can help out here by reporting even basic information about an accident for pilots that are unable to do it themselves. We also want reports for incidents or accidents that aren’t so serious. The biggest benefit comes from the reporting of the smaller incidents and near misses. How small? Well, if good luck is all that saved you from an accident then it’s probably worth reporting. Your personal details will be kept confidential. How? To make a report go to the NZHGPA website and click on ”Safety”. www.nzhgpa.org.

pilot Advice: Take the time to assess the weather and spend some time at the site before assuming it’s okay to fly.

i I’m

April/may/June 2022

may 2022 paraglider preparing for launch Incident No Injury Human Factors quoted by pilot; Fatigue, decision making and Situational Awareness experience: 35 hours While laying the wing out and preparing for launch, a strong gust picked up the wing and dragged me approx 10-20m. I started to prepare for launch without taking time to assess conditions and didn’t realise how windy it was.

CEO Comment: I continue to be impressed by the honesty and thoughtfulness of our pilots reporting, especially the Pilot Advice to help others stay safe – Respect and Thank You.

24 A irborn

Executive r eports

Safe

2012OctoberRevised

June 2022 paraglider launch Accident No Injury Human Factors quoted by pilot; Stress, distraction, decision making and Situational Awareness experience: 20 hours Clipped in wrong to glider with twisted line, increased tension on speed bar. Pulled to one side aborted flight on the side of the TC mountain Pilot Advice; 5 minutes prior to take off I was informed of the death of a club member, I didn’t know this person personally but with other recent events in my life this caused some emotional stress, being a new pilot out of school I think the emotional stress, not understanding how my glider would fly with the twist in the risers caused me to abandon my flight onto the side of the hill. In hindsight I could of flown safely with a bit of weight shift to counter what was going on or recognised better the emotional stress from current news and sat that flight out.

I encourage all pilots to check their emails from the association and read through the safety report as it makes for some interesting reading, especially when evaluating the risk to pilots covering; what cycle of flight, experience, or age a pilot is in their flying career, type of flying, location and human factors to mention a few. Working together to improve the safety, well-being and fun factor of our flying community, would not be possible without some key dedicated people in the association; the NZHGPA analytical wizard Hamish Dicker, Auditor Sven Ericksen, National Safety Officer Nina Harrap, our 24 Club Safety Officers and you the pilot as you work towards mastering the art of flying. If you have been unfortunate enough to have an incident or accident, thank you for reporting your misfortune, the flying community greatly appreciates your valuable input. The new AIR System has already proved its worth, filtering into updating training manuals, processes, club site assessments, to the article found in this edition of Airborn; ‘Emergency Rescue Services - who to call’. Thanks Mal Haskins and Dan Clearwater for this valuable insight into Emergency Communications. I have no doubt that pressing the emergency beacon button and calling RCCNZ 24/7 Emergency NZ Toll Free 0508 ACCIdeNt (0508 222 433), will result in faster rescue times for injured pilots at a critical time when every minute counts. Wishing you all safe flights and happy landings. - Nick, CEO NZHGPA Selected Accident & Incident Summaries

During this three month reporting period 1st April until 30 June 2022 there were 25 Incidents or Accidents. Extract from the NZHGPA Pilot Safety Report; There is a fundamental difference between foot launched and more conventional aircraft fitted with state of the art computerised flight management systems reducing human error, encased by a protective cockpit and shock absorbing landing properties of tyres. By contrast, a hang glider and paraglider pilots legs become the undercarriage, the harness provides for minimal protection and the brain, our on-board management system has the unwitting ability to be hacked by emotion. The desire and reward of flight can manifest to a dogged determination to fly, forgetting the checks and balances or IMSAFE, resulting in Decision Making being a big player in incidents or accidents. It is of no surprise that the most critical and dangerous phase of flight for the foot-launched pilot is launching and landing and interestingly most occurrences happen at your local flying site, perhaps due to familiarity relaxation; may 2022 paraglider landing Serious Accident (lower Spine) Human Factors quoted by pilot; decision making and Situational Awareness experience: 70 hours Flying at Kennedy Park sea cliff site. Wind picked up in seconds and was lifted up into faster wind flow. Stronger winds pushed glider backwards as I applied descent techniques, but due to high wind speed I overshot any possibility of landing at Kennedy Park, and was now flying in the rotor. Chose to emergency land, aiming for garden amongst residential area. Lost control of glider in turbulent air and landed very fast into residential garden. Impacting coccyx first into a concrete slab. No damage to property. pilot Advice: Be patient and ease into a new site with absolute caution. I read up about the site beforehand but it would be better to ask people who have flown at the site about potential hazards. Ideally fly at a new site with people who know it well and watch them fly first. Take on more paragliding courses as soon as possible such as the SIV or PG3 (after PG2) so you feel confident that you can get out of sticky situations in the best possible way. Learn more about meteorology generally, including how specific weather patterns affect the site you’re flying at. Get really good at understanding RASP. Heuristic factors. Know yourself and be very aware of how you make decisions, including your weaknesses and how you respond in groups, such as getting tunnel vision in herding mentality. Take the time to run through the reasons not to fly rather than looking for the reasons to fly.

nz/safetyThenthe button to hit for starting your report looks like this; Your description of what happened is the most important part and makes up the majority of the reports we publish but other details are used to help with statistics that show trends so please complete as much as you can. Please include the location so we can send the report to the local safety officer and the club president for any follow up they need to do. Don’t worry, our policy is that we do not use the reports to lay blame or for any disciplinary action. They are for safety and learning. Finally if you want to see other reports then click on this button;

In this reporting period the NZHGpA Ops team emailed out to all pilots on 2nd June, the second instalment of the comprehensive NZHGpA pilot Safety Summary report. this covers the xC flying season from the 1st April 2021 to 31st march 2022 with AIrS data collection going back to 2015.

How to report an accident or incident CEO Update - Accident & incident summaries medication only edicationM Managing stress well at home and work tressS Free of alcohol and drugs and their effects lcoholA Rested sleepingandwell atigueF Fed, watered, and ready to go atingE llness Free of illness and symptoms safe to fly CeO update on Safety Work

removal and isolating process: If you have detected a missing seam, remove the affected bridle, cut it in half (to make sure you do not use it again). Take a photo of the concernedthealsoyouyoupossible.asofbridlesawillemail,receivesoontheemailserviceafter-salesSUPAIR’shalf.bridleconformingnon-cutinContactbywithphoto.AsasweyourwesendyounewpairoffreechargesoonasIfwish,canreturnbridleto

- BGD, GmbH Am Gewerbepark 11, 9413 St. Gertraud, Austria sUPAir dyneema parachute bridles Solo Dyneema parachute bridles REF: ELESOLODYNEEMA, Tandem Y Dyneema parachute bridles REF: ELEBIY, Tandem H Dyneema parachute bridles REF: ELEBIH Every pilot having SUPAIR bridles listed above. Recipients; pilots, schools, clubs, dealers, workshop. deadline: It is imperative that you execute this modification before your next flight.

Wherever you are Alan - may it be blissful, the skies blue and the lift awesome. Fly high my darling - life will never be the same without you!

All NZHGPA clubs are eligible to enter a set of their club’s top shots to the Federated Mountain Clubs photo competition, with thousands of $ in prizes up for grabs. Southern Club has been doing this for the past 3 years via their Facebook group, and it has proven a fun and popular event for the end of the flying season. There’s a templated set of rules and instructions for how to do it on the FMC blog; www.wilderlife.nz/easyonlinephotocomp Entries close 15 September for clubs. - Dan Clearwater

s afety Checks Site Clo S ure S

It is with immense grief and immeasurable sadness that we bring the news of our mate, awesome friend, and my precious husband, Alan Hills, who passed away on 23rd April after a completely unexpected brain bleed. Al was 63. Alan was one of the first instructors in NZ and embraced it with a passion! (He was a paragliding instructor, a speedflying instructor, a paramotor instructor and a tandem rated pilot). He was intensely concerned for the safety of everyone under his instruction and was serious about that as his students will tell you, but he was also funny, cheeky, witty, clever, intelligent, thoughtful, loving, adventurous and generous - and for 31 years Alan’s influence touched so many people within the paragliding community in NZ as well as overseas - he was great at what he did and his influence will be hugely missed. We made a bunch of amazing lifelong friends over those years, and the support and love has been phenomenal! Thank you so much everyone for all the amazing messages of support, your ongoing help and of your sorrow for Alan - he has left a gaping hole in so many of our lives. You left a great legacy in SkyWings Alan - Hunter and I will carry on with that for you!

Some of us are birds without wings. Looking to the sky with longing in our hearts. For it is there that we belong. And it is there that we will ever yearn to return. To our life in the sky. Alan, you gave me my wings to fly. I’ll look for you in the sky my friend, until the earth calls me home.

- Belinda Hills - SkyWings A life made whole in the sky, What a thing it is. A reference point in a storm. A cherished place of wonder. A friend through thick and thin. A gift that keeps on giving. Such a thing must be experienced to be believed. Such a thing has value beyond measure.

25

-With love from Hunter on behalf of Alans flock A irborn

Status: Critical. problem description: Possible absence of a safety seam on solo or tandem parachute bridles Facts/Observations: We had 4 customers reporting that one of their parachute bridles is missing a safety seam. As a precautionary measure, we ask that you inspect your bridles. persons able to carry out this verification: All persons in possession of the product concerned. NB: If you do not feel able to carry out this check, please contact our after-sales service in order to carry out the check, either at distance (photos or videos), or by returning your bridles to us to be inspected here. Inspection procedure: You need to check for the presence of this seam (grey thread) as shown in the photos on right. To do this, you must have access to the riser attachment points on the harness and the parachute. NB: It is not necessary to deploy the parachute or to disconnect the bridles from the harness to execute this check.

Thank you so much for all the amazing years we had together - I am flooded with so many great memories and miss you desperately!

Alan Hills April 2022

Have a go at a club competitionphoto

some cases where the force needed to pull the rescue handle may be too high. As stated on page 10 of the SNUG manual, a practice throw should be made each time you pack your rescue to check the correct functioning of the deployment system. If you have done this and the pull force is normal then there is no need for further action. The ideal pull force should be approximately 7kg. A pull force in the range of 5-10kg is considered reasonable.

On some SNUG harnesses a pull force greater than 10kg is required because the black webbing of the rescue handle is too wide. It should not be wider than 70mm (see photo). If your harness has a plastic wire type reserve closure, please check this. If the rescue handle webbing is wider than 70mm please contact us and we will send you a replacement rescue handle free of charge. Send an email to office@flybgd.com stating the serial number, date of purchase and the dealer or shop that sold you the harness. Please include an address to send the replacement handle to.

In Springtime throughout New Zealand, farms are expecting newborn sheep, cattle, horses, deer and other animals. Your presence on or flying over farmland could frighten or injure pregnant or newborn stock. Even at places that you usually fly without problems, please check with the farmer if it is OK to fly. This is a difficult time for farmers and they do appreciate your consideration. Not asking has resulted in the loss of many flying sites while asking has earned their friendship. If in doubt or if any stock are present DO NOT FLY without asking. BGd snUG paraglider harness This safety notice applies to SNUG harnesses,repacksunaffected.retainstainlesswire2017,manufacturedharnessesinFebruarywhichuseplastictoretaintherescue.HarnesseswhichusesteelpinstotherescueareDuringrecentparachutewithSNUGwehavefound

the following address: SUPAIR SAS service SAV, 34 rue Adrastee, 74650 Chavanod- France, Tel: +33 4 50 45 75 29 - email: sav@supair.com We are aware of the difficulties that this call for inspection may cause and we apologise. The safety of our customers remains our priority and we are fully committed to helping you. Thank you for your understanding. - The SUPAIR team

• Two FAI Triangles over 140 km, and a further 12 more FAI or Flat Triangles over 100 km

77.2 287.8 6

11 Jan Zimmermann Canterbury 117.8 76.2 51.4 245.4 Mark Hardman Southern 100.4 86.9 57.4 244.7

north island Open distance table (top 3 placings) (Ranking based on the maximum distance of a pilot’s North Island flights).

13 Nick Taber Tasman 90.8 80.7 72.2 243.7

Jesse Dhue Southern 130.6 109.8 43.0

• NZ’s FAI Out and Back record broken by 30% (183.8 km, louis tapper, Long Gully, Otago)

• A two day out-and-back from Breast Hill Hawea to Mt Cook Village, then back to Hawea/ Wanaka, over 100 km open distance each way, by three pilots (leo Chelle, Jesse dhue and dan pugsley)

Hawkes Bay 58.9 31.7 26.7 117.3 14 Pete

283.4 8

20

Pos

17

19

At the time of writing this report, contrasting with the elation one gets from a great cross country flight was sadness with the news of the death of Charlotte O’leary on June 2. Charlotte had been a keen and improving cross-country pilot: this last season Charlotte had bettered NZ 25 km open distance with a 31 km flight from Treble Cone to the Pisa Range. My thoughts and sympathy go out to Charlotte’s family and close friends who must still be hurting very much. Champs’ wrap-up report; Again, weather-wise the season was a mixed bag. For most of December the weather was quite poor, then during January it got quite epic (at least in the South Island), and then it got a little bit disappointing again (February). In the top half of the North Island, spring cross-country flying activity got subdued or curtailed by regional COVID-19 lockdowns. However, when it was on, the quality of the flights flown, especially by Southern club pilots in Otago, was exceptional, and relative to other seasons it was a superlative year for the number of flights over 100 km in distance. Here’s a list of some of the highlights:

Bay 59.6 36.6 34.0 130.2 12 Rebecca

• A new regional open distance record for Nelson (Stew Karstens, 127 km) bettering a mark that had stood for 19 years

2 Shaun Gilbert Hawkes Bay 111.7 58.2 40.8 210.7

19

• NZ’s 6th and 8th best open distances (Chris Connolly, 174.5 km and Glen Stevens, 170.5 km respectively)

109.9 57.3 283.9 7

9

44.1 39.5 33.4 117.0 15 Andy

10 Leo Chelle Southern 130.6 109.7 23.4 263.7

4

Cross-Cou

Bay 43.8 37.3 25.2 106.3 16 Bruce

2022 nZ XC Champions and Category Winners 1st place and 2022 NZ xC Champion: louis tapper. For his 4th consecutive Champs title, Louis showed what can be done with a paraglider from the more established Otago take off sites, i.e. ones that you can drive up (Long Gully, Treble Cone, Grandview and Coronet Peak), when you have very good and ambitious flight plans: very long triangles and out and return courses! Louis’s total score of 796 points is the highest yet achieved under the NZ XContest Champs scoring regime (and it needed to be high to keep ahead of Kellett in second place). 1st Runner Up: ben Kellett. 90 points ahead of third place, Ben’s bivvy flying trips saw him fly from over 25 mountain take offs in Otago and Southland. Ben’s 144 km FAI triangle flight on November 11 from Mt Prospect nudged out Tapper for the best FAI triangle course of the season and the 9th best NZ FAI triangle ever!

2021/2022 nZ PG XC Champs Final standings (top 40 placings) For detailed flight information and relative rankings of all NZ resident pilots, see the 2022 PG XC Champs Table at XContest (XContest season name: “2021/22”). (Note that for the NZ PG XC Champs, the XContest table is an approximate table only: some ineligible coastal soaring flights may be incorrectly included). Pos Pilot Club F1 F2 F3 Total 1 Louis Tapper Southern 289.9 284.4 222.2 796.5 2 Ben Kellett Southern 288.4 200.6 188.6 677.6 3 Glen Stevens Canterbury 213.1 195.1 177.0 585.2 4 Tomas Balik Southern 228.4 202.1 147.5 578.0 5 Thomas Rold Southern 212.4 149.8 134.7 496.9 6 Jan Zimmermann Canterbury 217.0 147.2 109.2 473.4 7 Warrick Boustred Southern 200.5 130.1 128.9 459.5 8 Aaron Ford Southern 189.3 134.7 131.3 455.3 9 Bradley Franks Southern 174.8 140.9 78.2 393.9 10 Stew Karstens Tasman 158.9 135.3 94.7 388.9 11 Peter Groves Southern 154.6 133.0 96.5 384.1 12 Chris Connolly Southern 218.2 127.2 25.0 370.4 13 Dan Pugsley Southern 145.8 137.4 86.7 369.9 14 Leo Chelle Southern 163.2 137.2 57.1 357.5 15 Jesse Dhue Southern 163.2 137.3 53.8 354.3 16 Petr Poboril Canterbury 122.8 121.0 106.5 350.3 17 Kinga Masztalerz (F) Auckland 177.4 89.3 77.0 343.7 18 Clemence

(F) Southern 134.0 109.4 94.7 338.1 19 Mark Hardman Southern 125.5 109.4 98.9 333.8 20 Matt Jeffery Southern 200.2 71.3 58.9 330.4 21 Doug Patterson Southern 134.2 109.1 80.4 323.7 22 Nicolas Sand Southern 165.3 80.5 65.5 311.3 23 Mark Macdonald Waikato 111.8 104.6 91.8 308.2 24 Ondrej Wieden Canterbury 136.1 91.9 77.9 305.9 25 Nick Taber Tasman 113.5 100.8 90.3 304.6 26 Laetitia Bottollier Curtet (F) Southern 117.2 107.5 77.0 301.7 27 Timothy Shoultz Southern 145.8 78.0 74.6 298.4 28 Tim Percival Tasman 105.0 101.7 90.2 296.9 29 Barry Sayer Hawkes Bay 106.2 94.2 79.7 280.1 30 Blake Round Southern 134.8 81.9 57.3 274.0 31 Dave Watson Southern 156.8 69.8 41.0 267.6 32 Shaun Gilbert Hawkes Bay 139.6 72.8 51.0 263.4 33 Aaron Chesterman Hawkes Bay 91.6 82.1 80.9 254.6 34 Sanae Noguchi (F) Southern 127.1 60.3 56.1 243.5 35 Tim Brown Southern 115.1 69.2 38.5 222.8 36 Joshua Short Southern 85.5 68.1 64.8 218.4 37 Greg Allum Tasman 84.5 69.9 61.4 215.8 38 Ross Gallagher Bay of Plenty 78.1 73.8 58.0 209.9 39 Irwin Imhoff Wellington 77.5 59.9 56.6 194.0 40 Mal Haskins Southern 78.0 59.4 55.1 192.5 north island table (top 20 placings) (Top scoring from North Island flights). Pos Pilot Club F1 F2 F3 Total 1 Mark Macdonald Waikato 111.8 104.6 91.8 308.2 2 Barry Sayer Hawkes Bay 106.2 94.2 79.7 280.1 3 Shaun Gilbert Hawkes Bay 139.6 72.8 51.0 263.4 4 Aaron Chesterman Hawkes Bay 91.6 82.1 80.9 254.6 5 Ross Gallagher Bay of Plenty 78.1 73.8 58.0 209.9 6 Rob Gillard Waikato 112.0 55.9 0.0 167.9 7 Elliot Revell-Nash Auckland 60.6 51.0 37.2 148.8 8 Anand Srinivasan Auckland 61.7 51.1 31.1 143.9 9 Ken Beach Hawkes Bay 57.1 53.1 25.7 135.9 10 Peter Jones Waikato 61.2 40.7 28.9 130.8 11 Craig

2022 Women’s xC Champion: Kinga masztalerz. Kinga’s mid summer visit to Otago reaped dividends, headlined by a seven hour, 141.9 km open distance flight from Moke Spurs-Speed Peak, a new national Female Open Distance record, and the 3rd best open distance of the season! best rookie (first-time PG2 competitor): James Gibson. Placed 44th overall, James’s spring and summer hike and flies included a 42 km FAI Triangle from Cheeseman and the season’s best open distance from Bealey Spur, 22.9 km. North Island Champion: mark macdonald. One of Mark’s flights was the season’s best open distance from Kaimai, 83 km, but not in the normal northerly direction, instead it was heading south to very near Lake Taupo!

12

1

2

April 1st - March 31st. Sponsored by Wings & Waves NZ Para G l I d ING XCo NT e ST Cro SS -Cou NT ry Cham PI o NS h IPS NZ Paraglidi N g XCo N test

Stew Karstens Tasman 127.2 107.7 75.8 310.7

3 Mark Macdonald Waikato 83.7 59.5 50.7 193.9 A irborn

Dan Pugsley Southern 116.7

16

2022 new Zealand Paragliding Cross-Country Championships April 1st

20

to March 31st

• The prestigious Coronet Peak open distance record broken (Connolly, 174.5 km)

N try Cham P io N shi P s

18

18

(Ranking

• In total, 54 NZ 100 km flights of various course types.

72.5 18.1 14.0 104.6 17 Emlyn

Tomas Balik Southern 118.0 92.6

15 Tim Percival Tasman 84.0 81.4 72.1 237.5 Kinga Masztalerz (F) Auckland 141.9 48.4 43.1 233.4 Barry Sayer Hawkes Bay 84.9 75.4 63.8 224.1 Warrick Boustred Southern 103.2 74.5 43.8 221.5 Shaun Gilbert Hawkes Bay 111.7 58.2 40.8 210.7 Bradley Franks Southern 112.7 49.5 40.0 202.2

Louis Tapper Southern 109.6 95.9 91.5

2nd Runner Up: Glen Stevens. Glen’s hike and fly visits to take offs in the Ahuriri and Hawea Conservation Parks reaped rewards including a 97 km FAI triangle from Dingle-Ahuriri Pass. Earlier, a Christmas Eve Coronet Peak flight of 170 km was the season’s second best open distance, helping Glen top the open distance table with a 131 km average!

297.0 5

26

Auckland 52.4 27.2

North Island Best Open Distance: Shaun Gilbert. 111.7 km from Te Mata Peak, Hawkes Bay. South Island Best Open Distance: Chris Connolly. 174.5 km from Coronet Peak, Otago. Well done all of the above! (Especially Louis) :) Thank you to all who submitted flights so we could see where there was good flying to be had. 2021 2022 Cadario Miller Hawkes Rae Hawkes Radonich Martin Waikato Owen Hawkes Vickerman Waikato Revell-Nash 23.8 103.4 Nick Buhaets Auckland 40.0 36.6 25.1 101.7 Scott Arrell Auckland 52.6 28.3 0.0 80.9 Dawid Wisniewski Auckland 51.3 15.8 0.0 67.1 distance table (top 20 placings) based on the maximum distance of a pilot’s flights). Pilot Club F1 F2 F3 Total Glen Stevens Canterbury 170.5 130.1 94.3 394.9 Ben Kellett Southern 125.0 122.9 104.5 352.4

Open

3

13 Chris Connolly Southern 174.5 49.2 20.0 243.7

Pos Pilot Club F1 F2 F3 Total 1 Barry Sayer Hawkes Bay 84.9 75.4 63.8 224.1

• NZ’s Female Open Distance record broken twice, the mark is now 141.9 km (Kinga masztalerz, Moke Spurs-Speed Peak, Otago)

Petr Poboril Canterbury 98.3 90.6 85.2 274.1 Peter Groves Southern 123.7 77.2 67.4 268.3

Bay 51.3 38.4 31.9 121.6 13 Eden

Canterbury Dingle Burn-Ahuriri Divide 133.8 Ben Kellett 14/01/2022 (Dingle-Ahuriri Pass)

Canterbury Avalanche Peak 58.8 Tomas Balik 14/03/2022 Canterbury Craigieburn Range 68.0 Ondrej Wieden 08/11/2021 (Long Spur) Canterbury Dingle Burn-Ahuriri Divide 97.6 Glen Stevens 11/02/2022 (Dingle-Ahuriri Pass) Otago Cairnmuir 49.1 Tomas Balik 14/09/2021 (Clyde) Otago Coronet Peak 114.2 Tomas Balik 15/01/2022 Otago Hawea Eastern Ranges 144.2 Ben Kellett 30/11/2021 (Mt Prospect) Otago Lindis Pass 101.0 Tomas Balik 31/01/2022 Otago Treble Cone 142.2 Louis Tapper 05/11/2021

Canterbury St James Range North 39.9 Jakub Krauz 25/02/2022 (St James 1781) Otago Cairnmuir 100.1 Ben Kellett 09/11/2021 Otago Long Gully 193.2 Louis Tapper 31/01/2022 Otago Mt Maude 88.7 Peter Groves 30/11/2021 Otago Roys Peak 39.2 Matt Jeffery 05/01/2022 (Hill End)

Nelson St Arnaud 90.8 Nick Taber 04/01/2022 (Mt Robert)

Wairarapa Kourarau 17.8 Irwin Imhoff 22/01/2022

2022 season site Best Flights (from entries) Open distance Region Site/Site Group Distance Pilot Date Take Off SR Northland Kamo 15.8 Ernst Pfister 12/01/2022

Canterbury Sealy Range 130.6 Jesse Dhue 15/01/2022 (Sebastopol) Canterbury Tekapo 35.5 Kinga Masztalerz 18/01/2022 Otago Cairnmuir 57.6 Ben Kellett 09/11/2021

*

Hawkes Bay Te Mata Peak 111.7 Shaun Gilbert 17/02/2022 Hawkes Bay Turiri 37.1 Aaron Chesterman 15/02/2022

Region Site/Site Group Pilot Date Take Off SR Hawkes Bay Burma Road 45.7 Aaron Chesterman 15/01/2022

Nelson Takaka - Riwaka 32.1 Greg Allum 29/01/2022 (Takaka Hill)

FAi triangle Region Site/Site Group Distance Pilot Date Take Off SR Waikato Kaimai Range 36.9 Ross Gallagher 29/01/2022 (Kaimai) Hawkes Bay Burma Road 45.8 Aaron Chesterman 21/01/2022 **

** Ratified

Paragliding Competition Committee Write Up July 20222022-2023 Paragliding XContest results so far At 14 July 2022 A irborn 27

* Ratified Site

Distance

† * Ratified Site Record † Ratified National Record Flat

Nelson Barnicoat Range 34.0 Sam Hamill 23/01/2022 (Barnicoat)

Auckland Moirs Hill 29.1 Nick Buhaets 11/01/2022 Waikato Alans Hill 17.9 Mark Macdonald 11/01/2022

Canterbury Avalanche Peak 27.1 Tomas Balik 14/03/2022

Nelson Inwoods Lookout 84.0 Tim Percival 09/03/2022

Canterbury Black Range 22.9 James Gibson 15/09/2021 (Bealey Spur) Canterbury Craigieburn Range 52.1 Petr Poboril 17/01/2022 (Long Spur) Canterbury Dingle Burn-Ahuriri Divide 94.3 Glen Stevens 17/01/2022 (Dingle-Ahuriri Pass) Canterbury Organ Range 85.2 Petr Poboril 03/01/2022 (Shale Peak)

• Ratified Site Record ** Ratified Site and Regional Record

ratified

Nelson Takaka - Riwaka 30.8 Greg Allum 29/01/2022 (Takaka Hill) Otago Long Gully 183.8 Louis Tapper 31/01/2022 triangle Region Site/Site Group Pilot Date Take Off Waikato Kaimai Range 74.6 Rob Gillard 08/01/2022 (Kaimai) Hawkes Bay Burma Road 53.1 Aaron Chesterman 15/01/2022 Wairarapa Kourarau 39.9 Irwin Imhoff 22/01/2022

It’s been a cold and snowy winter. the skiing is pretty good and still some of us are managing to fly from the local sites. It is with envy that I see so many kiwis flying and competing overseas and doing so well. Richard has been in America. Louis, Aaron, Chris, Aaron Ford, Kylie and many others have been flying competition in Europe. Louis has particularly excelled in Cat1 World cup competitions. Thank you all for the efforts to compete and to represent New Zealand in far off lands. At home the competition scene is quiet and for the near future looks to remain so. I sent letters to all the Clubs in May asking, as per usual, for nominations to host a NZ PG Open next summer (2023) but to date there have been no firm offers. If the competition fraternity wishes to compete and hone their skills it is imperative that they speak with their Clubs and organise a competition. Competitions don’t have to be grand extravaganzas. The PCC is able to offer assistance in organising such an event. The FAI/CiVL website has a new platform (like ‘Airtribune’) that simplifies and streamlines competition organisation making it easier for Competition directors and organisers. The PCC will continue to make enquiries. Be prepared for a late notice event or even no event at all! As I write this, Louis Tapper and Chris Connolly are participating in the European Championship in Serbia. Louis is in the top 20 on Task 1. Go team! Importantly, it has come to my attention that even in Cat2 events all participants must have a NZ Sports Licence. I must admit I have been under the impression that it was OK to compete without one but that your score would not count to the World Rankings. That is not the case. In order to compete in a FAI sanctioned Cat1 or 2 event you must register using your CiVL ID and your FAI NZ Sports Licence details. That has been the case in all the Cat2 events I have attended in overseas competitions. The NZ Sports licence is obtained each year by ticking the box near the bottom of your NZHGPA renewal form each November. (Otherwise you will need to write a very nice letter to our FAI representative in NZ, Liz King). I didn’t realise: if you compete and you don’t have a Licence Liz cops the flack from the FAI. Be warned. We look forward to some great flying next summer. Bring it on! -Tim Brown (PCC)

*

Bay of Plenty Paeroa 62.5 Ross Gallagher 20/11/2021 Hawkes Bay Burma Road 53.9 Aaron Chesterman 23/01/2022

Nelson Mt Murchison 98.3 Petr Poboril 02/01/2022

Nelson Takaka - Riwaka 29.0 Nick Taber 15/10/2021 (Takaka Hill) Marlborough Blowhard 34.0 Nick Taber 21/02/2022

Otago Cardrona area 28.0 Jan Zimmermann 22/10/2021 (Motutapu 1594) Otago Coronet Peak 174.5 Chris Connolly 14/01/2022 * Otago Glenorchy Eastern Ranges 33.6 Ben Kellett 11/02/2022 (Mt McIntosh) Otago Haast Pass 67.4 Peter Groves 14/01/2022 (Brewster Hut) Otago Hawea Eastern Ranges 112.7 Bradley Franks 14/01/2022 (Breast Hill) Otago Hawkdun Range 71.2 Louis Tapper 18/11/2021 (Saddle Ridge) Otago Humboldt Mountains South 107.2 Clemence Cadario 30/11/2021 (Mill Creek) Otago Lindis Pass 103.2 Warrick Boustred 31/01/2022 Otago Long Gully 130.1 Glen Stevens 16/02/2022 Otago Lowburn Tow Launch 33.9 Pete Helliwell 09/11/2021 Otago Matukituki 38.2 Bryan Moore 08/02/2022 (Shotover Saddle) Otago McKerrow Range 51.4 Ben Kellett 21/10/2021 (Mt White) Otago Mt Ida 54.8 Glen Stevens 23/01/2022 Otago Mt Maude 51.2 Peter Groves 30/11/2021 Otago Pisa Range 52.0 Ben Kellett 03/11/2021 (Mt Pisa) Otago Richardson Mountains 141.9 Kinga Masztalerz 14/01/2022 (Moke Spurs-Speed Peak) Otago Rock And Pillar Range 10.7 Doug Patterson 28/11/2021 (Summit Rock)

Nelson Birds Clearing 21.2 Greg Allum 29/12/2021

Otago Roys Peak 63.3 Aaron Ford 11/02/2022 Otago Shotover Ranges 77.2 Peter Groves 06/11/2021 (Mt Siberia) Otago Treble Cone 100.4 Mark Hardman 18/01/2022 Otago Waikerikeri 55.2 Ben Kellett 15/01/2022 (Leaning Rock Spur) Otago Young Range 60.8 Peter Groves 07/11/2021 (Makarora Knoll) Southland Eyre Mountains 38.5 Ben Kellett 22/09/2021 (Hummock Peak) Record Site and Regional Record FAi Out-and-Back site records

Waikato Kaimai Range 83.7 Mark Macdonald 19/11/2021 (Kaimai)

Marlborough Mt Tarndale 20.0 Chris Connolly 08/02/2022

Distance

Nelson Barnicoat Range 127.2 Stew Karstens 17/02/2022 (Barnicoat) ** Nelson Beebys Ridge 17.6 Cody Pickles 09/03/2022 (Beebys Corner)

28

controversial)askedatheforBrisbanedueupCovid,inupdatesnick-neynens.www.gofundme.com/f/Alsocheckthereforhowhe’sgettingon.Atthetimeofwriting,NickwasisolationinAnnecyhospitalwiththepandemichavingcaughtwithhimdaysbeforehewastobemedicallyevacuatedtohospitalandthenboundChristchurch.Hehasconfirmedhasnofunctionbelowthewaistpresent.Tohelphimpassthetimewesomerapidfire(andslightlyquestions.

Nick is a much-loved member of our community and had just moved to France to pursue his flying dreams. We wish him the best in this difficult time. Nick’s friends have set up a page to support his ongoing medical expenses and recoveryif you would like to help you can do so at

The Mackenzie country around Omarama is a great place to beat your Personal Best; height, distance etc, move up the XC Champs table, fly legally to 13,000ft or maybe even fly to Mt Cook! This summer, our usual Waitangi date was nabbed by the Nationals so we’ll go for the week after so people can go on to Omarama for more excellent flying. This time of year gets the most flyable days with the least strong winds and turbulence, but it’s still hot and dry so gives the most XC flying opportunities. Launch and landing areas are massive and the event is stress free; there’s no queues or waiting.

Registration is open for the Nationals next year. Tom Mulder is organising with Shane McKay and Steve Cronin. Matt Barlow has stepped away from organising the Nationals thisMurchisonyear.

Nationals Competition 2023 Dates:Practice Days: 2nd and 3rd February Competition Days: 4th - 11th February https://airtribune.com/nzhgnats23/infoRegistration: NZ Comp Organiser’s responsibilities It is the Comp Organiser’s responsibility to; 1. Obtain a list of current members from the Administrator. 2. Ensure every competition entrant is a current NZHGPA member. 3. Sign up any non-members. Any competitors found to be non-members will be listed and scored as ‘disqualified’. A irborn

Don’t be put off by stable forecasts, it’s usually better, sometimes has wave and a stable day at Omarama beats coastal flying. Strong winds are more common in Dec-Jan, so if it’s not too windy, it’s on. Fly open distance, in any direction from any site in the Omarama area. Enter any number of flights and improve your personal best flight. Scoring is by GPS or you can use witnessed launch & landing positions and you can use XContest as always. Fly the whole week, just the weekends or just the days you want, when you want; it’s up to you, only your best 3 flights are scored. You decide if, when and where to fly and a couple of unlucky flights won’t ruin your total. There’s no pressure and make it as safe as you want. If you don’t like the conditions; don’t fly, you’re not penalised for being careful or sensible. There’s awards for best total of 3 flights, best single flight, most improved personal best and for best driver. Hang Gliding Cross Country Classic

Q: How is your French going? A: If you know English then basically you know French, but the accent can be tricky sometimes. Q: Favourite French word? A: Bonjour Kiwi Favourite in Our thoughts

Q: Best and worst hospital meals? A: The meals are pretty random, sufficient yet odd, but I have a never-ending supply of gifted food.

January 1st to december 31stApril 1st 2022 to march 31st 2023 scores on XContest at 14/7/2022 NZ Ha N g glidi N g XCo N test Cross-Cou N try C H ampio N s H ips NZ h a NG G l I d ING XCo NT e ST Cro SS -Cou NT ry Cham PI o NS h IPS

Saturday 11 February to Sunday 19 February 2023

Accommodation; free camping, cabins, caravans, motels and hotels. The gliding airfield campground is recommended as it welcomes hang glider pilots, has weather briefings and a cafe that’s often open late. REQUIRED; Advanced rating with mountain/ XC skills. Pilots with lower skill ratings may fly under supervision if conditions are suitable. Printed site briefings are available. The tracks up local mountains need 4WDs with low ratio gearing for safe descents or brakes will burn out. There’s usually plenty of 4WDs and a spare place or 2 but best to team up earlier if you can. To maintain the Magic Mountain track we ask pilots for a donation but the competition is free of charge. Buscot and Twinburn sites are less scary for drivers. Bring; spares, a driver that’s comfy with steep mountain tracks, radio, (airband for the MBZ if you fly to Mt Cook), camelback, spare sim card, satellite messenger. Bring your MTB and kite/windsurfers for days off. If you don’t have a driver, pilots can take turns: this results in expert drivers and a welcome rest day for tired pilots. There’s often time for more than 1 flight per day too. For more information, updates, registration, site briefings etc; contact Bill Degen at aero@ xtra.co.nz and check www.hgpg.co.nz for updates.

nick neynens was flying in France with friends when he experienced a collapse close to terrain and sustained serious injuries which have greatly affected his mobility.

The web site for scoring and uploading your track logs is XContest at: www.xcontest.org/newzealand/ranking-hg-open/ High at Ohau, on the way to Mt Cook (centre distance) Photo: Bill Degen Flying around Omarama is always spectacular; expect 9 or 10,000ft and an easy 20km to over 100km depending on your skill and weather conditions.

Omarama

We are all dependent on good relations with the farmers who own the land we fly from. Here are some guidelines to ensure that you and other pilots will be able to continue to enjoy flying there. ALWAYS CHECK with local pilots before flying at new sites. ALWAYS ASK PERMISSION to fly unless you are absolutely certain that the owner allows use of the site without asking. CHECK AGAIN at Springtime as most farms have pregnant and newborn stock that can easily be frightened and injured. DO NOT show displeasure or abuse an owner if permission is refused. This could hamper getting permission in the future. ALWAYS GET PERMISSION to take a vehicle onto a property. Ensure that vehicles without gliders are not taken onto the property. Put all gliders on one car rather than have a convoy crossing the property. If stock is near, drive slowly.

LEAVE GATES as you find them, gates may be closed to keep stock in or open to allow stock to feed. Ensure that all pilots and drivers USEunderstand.STILESand gates where ever possible, if you must cross a fence, cross at a post or strainer post. AVOID hay standing or cut unless permission has been given to cross it. AVOID landing in paddocks containing crops or stock. Carefully move off crops to avoid damage. DO NOT LIGHT FIRES at any time. DO NOT SMOKE during fire risk times. DO NOT TAKE DOGS onto any farm or property. DO NOT disturb plants or machinery, move around it.

LEAVE NO RUBBISH. tHe CouNtrY CoDe Above; Nick at an X-Alps

Hang Gliding nationals 2023

Q: Whittakers or Cadbury? A: Europe has its own chocolate Q: Who invented the pavlova? A: Sounds Russian. Q: Glide or paraglide A: You prefer to fly, or have an adventure? Q: Mantra for the week? A: I flew that many years ago. Q: Words for your supporters A: Make your own decisions!

Visual Navigation Charts (VNCs) can be purchased from Aeronautical Information management (a division of Airways NZ) on 0800 500 045, or their web site, www. aipshop.co.nz. VNCs come in two scales 1:250,000 and 1:500,000, and cost $14.50 for a pair of charts printed on a double-sided sheet. the coverage of the 1:250,000 charts makes them handy for planning cross-country flights. iGC signature bug fixed for Flytec 6030 instruments

Just released is new firmware for the Flytec 6030 (aka Brauniger IQ Compeo+). This version fixes a bug that could cause the 1-second IGC file to be produced with an incorrect signature. The firmware can be downloaded from Volirium at; 6020-and-6030/www.volirium.com/en/volirium/support/software-maintenance-for-flytec-

www.naviter.com Crystal clear and sunlight readable display Exceptional battery life even at full brightness Easy to use SeeYou Navigator software Wifi, Bluetooth and 4G/LTE connectivity Free 1-year SeeYou subscription for seamless integration Hang Gliding & Paragliding Supplies aero@xtra.co.nz 021 247-2676 03 326-6411 NZHG pA Cross-Country m ilestone Achievement stickers are awarded the first time a pilot surpasses the ‘milestone’ distances of 25, 50, 75, 100, 125, 150 or 200km (open distance) on a hang glider or paraglider in New Zealand. the next table lists the pilots who achieved milestone paraglider flights during the 2022 season. In the North Island, three pilots surpassed NZ25km for the first time; and three achieved an often hard-to-get North Island 50km: Robbie Kerr flying from Te Mata, and Simon Craddock and Mark Curtis flying from Kaimai. In the South Island there was an extraordinary run of favourable conditions for cross-country during a roughly five week period starting on Christmas Eve and continuing to the end of January. And on a few days it seemed like the ‘stars aligned’ - groups of pilots together on the right days and at the right sitesresulting in clusters of milestone flights being recorded together on those days. The best example was January 14 when 20 milestones were achieved, including six NZ100km, three NZ125km and one NZ150km milestone flights!Overall, relative to other seasons, it was certainly a superlative year for the number of NZ100km and NZ125km milestone flights flown! The tally of NZ100km pilots increased by 10 to 37, a 33% increase! The tally of NZ125km pilots increased by 6 to 19, a 45% increase! Well done all these pilots, with special congratulations to the new members of the paragliding NZ100km ‘club’. (Stickers will be sent out in August). pilot Achievedmilestone(km) Flight date dOpenistance Site Name Matt Jeffery 25 23/11/2021 32.4 Roys Peak Christopher Adams 25 29/11/2021 40.1 Treble Cone Laetitia Bottollier Curtet 25 30/11/2021 49.6 Mt Maude Christopher Adams 50 30/11/2021 51.3 Coronet Peak Chris Cain 25 29/12/2021 29.7 Long Gully Anthony Saupin 25 2/01/2022 33.5 Mt Murchison Mark MacKenzie 25 2/01/2022 34.3 Mt Murchison Johnny Lawry 25 4/01/2022 37.3 Te Mata Peak Greg Allum 25 4/01/2022 38.3 Inwoods Lookout Robbie Kerr 50 4/01/2022 57.4 Te Mata Peak Joshua Short 50 5/01/2022 68.4 Mt Hyde Michele Invernizzi 25 8/01/2022 27.7 Kaimai Simon Craddock 50 8/01/2022 50.8 Kaimai Benjamin French 25 14/01/2022 39.4 Coronet Peak Damian Chaparro 25 14/01/2022 39.4 Coronet Peak Sam Hamill 50 14/01/2022 58.4 Barnicoat Nina Harrap 50 14/01/2022 61.4 Coronet Peak Charlotte O'Leary 25 15/01/2022 31.6 Treble Cone Jessica Green 50 & 75 15/01/2022 77.7 Treble Cone Andrew Herbert 25 23/01/2022 34.0 Kaimai Jan Franta 25 28/01/2022 32.5 Treble Cone Wil Killip 25 & 50 28/01/2022 50.2 Treble Cone Jack Cano 25 & 50 31/01/2022 54.2 Longslip Mountain Vicki Zadrozny 50 31/01/2022 57.1 Lindis Pass Robert Dunkerley 50 31/01/2022 58.4 Lindis Pass Thomas Wright 25 11/02/2022 30.4 Roys Peak Mark Curtis 50 12/03/2022 53.6 Kaimai Clemence Cadario 100 30/11/2021 107.2 Mill Creek Thomas Rold 100 30/11/2021 107.2 Mill Creek Glen Stevens 125 & 150 24/12/2021 170.5 Coronet Peak Leo Chelle 75, 100 & 125 14/01/2022 109.7 Breast Hill Jesse Dhue 50, 75 & 100 14/01/2022 109.8 Breast Hill Dan Pugsley 50, 75 & 100 14/01/2022 109.9 Breast Hill Bradley Franks 100 14/01/2022 112.7 Breast Hill Kinga Masztalerz 100 & 125 14/01/2022 141.9 Moke Spurs-Speed Peak Chris Connolly 75, 100, 125 & 150 14/01/2022 174.5 Coronet Peak Jesse Dhue 125 15/01/2022 130.6 Sebastopol Warrick Boustred 75 & 100 31/01/2022 103.2 Lindis Pass Jan Zimmermann 100 16/02/2022 117.8 Long Gully Stew Karstens 125 17/02/2022 127.2 Barnicoat season 2022 milestone Flights An XC Sticker World and North American records Sub-class: O-3/paragliders Type of record: Straight distance to a declared Course/location:goal Del Rio, TX (USA) Performance: 556.8 km Pilot: Sebastien Kayrouz (USA) Aircraft: Enzo 3/Ozone Date: Previous2021-06-20record:529.5 km (15.10.2020Rafael Monteiro Saladini, Brazil) Sub-class: O-3/paragliders Type of record: Free Distance Course/location: Del Rio, TX (USA) Performance: 609.9 km Pilot: Sebastien Kayrouz (USA) Aircraft: Enzo 3/Ozone Date: Previous2021-06-20record:no record set yet Paragliding Homologatedrecords

Aeronautical Charts

027 670 8301 Email: PARAGLIDINGFaceBook:skyriderag@gmail.com@Skyrider

Email:Phone:Hawkeswood021682766rick.hawkeswood66@outlook.com

REVOLUTION 2 reserve for hang gliding. Traded in, just checked and packed, 021 247 2676 or email aero@xtra.co.nz INStRUMENtS OUDIE N instruments in stock now. Full featured GPS/alti/vario/flight computer, with high resolution colour mapping and airspace that automatically updates, Optional Fanet and Flarm via sim card or cell. A range of Naviter, Aircotec and Digifly instruments in stock 021 247 2676 or email aero@xtra.co.nz

07 862 4919, 027 498 9941 Email: seehigh@slingshot.co.nz

Thames Coast Rick

news, phone 021 247 2676 email aero@xtra.co.nz EMPLoyMENt CLOUDBASE Paragliding NZ, based in Christchurch, is looking for an instructor for next season mid September onwards. Further information contact 027 532 4874 or cbparagliding@gmail.com learn to Fly MARLBOROUGH PARAGLIDING High Adventure new Zealand Russell Read Phone: 027 448 0888 Email: russread@ihug.co.nz NELSON/TASMAN HANG GLIDING Ash Win Phone: 021 220 8302 email: ashswin556@gmail.com nelson Hang Gliding Adventures Glenn Meadows Phone: 027 275 1022 Email: PARAGLIDINGGmeadows@xtra.co.nz nelson Paragliding Stew Karstens Phone: 028-446 3930, 0508 FlyNow Email: www.nelsonparagliding.co.nzparagliding@xtra.co.nz CHRISTCHURCH HANG GLIDING Canterbury Hang Gliding School Bill Degen Phone: 03 326 6411, 021 247 2676 Email: PARAGLIDINGwww.hgpg.co.nzaero@xtra.co.nz Cloudbase Paragliding Grey Hamilton Phone: 027 532 4874 Email: www.cloudbaseparagliding.co.nzcbparagliding@gmail.com ParaPro (paragliding & powered Daveparagliding)Dennis Phone: 03 328 8255, 0508 548 323 Email:www.parapro.co.nzinfo@parapro.co.nz WANAKA PARAGLIDING Paraventures Paragliding School Mark Hardman Phone: 021 809 275 Email:www.paraventures.co.nzinfo@paraventures.co.nz QUEENSTOWN PARAGLIDING infinity Paragliding School Chris Connolly Phone: 022 676 5599 Email:www.infinityparagliding.co.nzinfo@infinityparagliding.co.nz Extreme Air Hang Gliding & Paragliding School & Tandems Lisa Bradley Phone: 021 156 3256 or +61 45 728 7200 Email:www.extremeair.co.nzlisa@extremeair.co.nz DUNEDIN HANG GLIDING Aorangi Club Tom Mulder Phone: 021 148 1831 Email: tom@mulder.co.nz NORTHLAND HANG GLIDING Skywalk Guntram Gross, Herman Ahrens Phone: 09 436 0268, 09 432 9333 or 021 072 0357 Email: PARAGLIDINGskywalk@hotmail.co.nz Ferg’s Paragliding & Adventure Mike Ferguson Phone: 021 995 682 Email:www.fergsparaglidiing.comfergsparaglidiing@gmail.com AUCKLAND HANG GLIDING Sean oliver Phone: 027 670 8301 Email: PARAGLIDINGFaceBook:skyriderag@gmail.com@Skyrider SkyWings Paragliding Alan Hills Phone: 09 570 5757, 027 498 2345 Email:www.skywings.co.nzalan@skywings.co.nz Wings & Waves Paragliding and Kitesurfing Reuben Muir and Eva Keim Phone: 09 446 0020, 027 472 7013 Email:

ACCESSoRIES HELMETS, No Limit (visor option), Insider, Loop (visor option) & the new lightweight Vitesse, phone 021 247 2676 email aero@xtra.co.nz HANG Gliding & Paragliding Supplies will be moving soon to a new address a bit closer to Sumner and Taylors. There will be some stock clearing Check www.hgpg.co.nz for www.wingsandwaves.co.nzinfo@wingsandwaves.co.nz

BUSINESS

BAY PARAGLIDING Airplay Paragliding School Barry Sayer, Phone: 027 451 2886 Email:www.airplay.co.nzbarry@airplay.co.nz BAY OF PLENTY PARAGLIDING Kiwi-Air Mike & Aniko Phone: 07 929 5807, 021 104 6208 http://kiwi-air.co.nz Mount Paragliding Darrell Packe Phone: 027 249 2702 Email: darrellpacke@gmail.com WELLINGTON/WAIRARAPA HANG GLIDING Wellington Hang Gliding & Paragliding Club Grant Tatham Phone: 06 379 7322, 027 636 3491 Email: tathams@xtra.co.nz GrayRossBrown,NeilPhotos: Hang gliding, paragliding schools and instructors that you can contact for qualified flight instruction in New Zealand Classified Advertisements 30 A irborn

WAIKATO HANG GLIDING Sean Phone: Bruce Phone:

Paramotors

oliver

HAWKES

■ Paid up NZHGPA members may run one advertisement per classification for free in each issue ■ Please email or post your advertisement to the editor, quoting your NZHGPA PIN number ■ Commercial operators, dealers, and non-members must enclose payment of $0.50c per word with their advertisement ■ include your email address for the online issue ■ Please notify when your items are sold ■ Buyers are advised that all used hang gliders and paragliders are highly recommended to have a full check as well as a new WOF when sold ■ It is dangerous to fly a glider or with equipment that is above your rated ability ■ PARAGLIDERS SKYWINGS Paragliding in Auckland - 33 years serving and training NZ pilotsexclusive PHI importers, Mini Wing specialists, Paramotor Specialists - Phone 027 498-2345, info@skywings.co.nz HANG GLIDERS WILLS Wings T2 154, Dacron sail, 150 hours, two spare down tubes, Great condi tion, $3000, contact Alex Crawford 022 164 9462 or alexcrawford858@gmail.com FUN 190 for sale in Auckland, approx 125 hours + new WoF, Include cocoon harness, Piccolo 2 vario and chute. Complete package. Txt 021 0880 0496, leo. AIRBORNEcomeskey@gmail.comC4-13with a few spares. White mylar upper, yellow & lilac under. $1500 ono. Tom, 027 245-6777, nz_flyboy@outlook.com U2 160. Dacron sail, Mylar/Hydranet LE/TE, speed battens and raked tips. 2012, great condition, has flown approx 300 hours. email - skyriderag@gmail.com, phone 027 670 8301 KIWI 170 mint/new condition. Manufactured mid ’90s, unused. Test flown - Good Nov/Intermediate first 70% double surface lower aspect ratio glider, No VG new WOF, $2000. email - skyriderag@gmail.com LITESPEED S 4.5 $2000, Phone 027 670 8301, Email: skyriderag@gmail.com KIWI Flyer 170, US 6061 tubing, low hours (has been in storage), great condition, full strip check and trim, phone 021 247 2676 email aero@xtra.co.nz MOYES Litesport 4 (149 sq ft) for sale. DOM 2004. Airframe really good but sail is worn but serviceable. Mainly white sail with kevlar leading and trailing edge. White and mid blue lower surface. Recently purchased but too small for me. Comes with manual, batten profiles and spare uprights. Will be sold with new WOF. $1200. Contact John King at 027 751 3192 or jonstoys53@yahoo.co.nz HANG GLIDER HARNESSES EUROPEAN backframe harness, red in near new condition, front reserve container, sliding 2 riser type for easier landings, fit around 5’10 medium build, Phone 021 247 2676, email aero@xtra.co.nz MotoR HANG GLIDING MOSQUITO NRG motorharness, very tidy with very low airtime, electric start, plus folding carbon propellor, stainless auto carabiner, extra fuel tank, can supply large reserve parachute if required. Phone 021 247 2676, email aero@xtra.co.nz RESERVE PARACHUtES RANGE of reserve parachutes for hang gliding and paragliding including Charly’s super compact DiamondCross in steerable PG versions and HG version with built in swivel. Woody Valley Quadro are similar and sized in between. Bridles, Front containers, Maillons, Swivels, Hook knives etc, in stock at HG & PG Supplies, Phone 021 247 2676 or email aero@xtra.co.nz

vickerman

specials.

I took the glider to work to get a good lunch-time getaway. The glider on the roof rack is a bit of a giveaway of my intentions for the day but the work staff know pretty well what motivates a good chunk of my life. Anyway..., I took off to the Allandale site, since conditions looked good for a casual boat up and down the ridge to get the quota in for keeping current during the quieter months. Allandale sits at 1500 ft on the Canterbury Peninsula, and is mainly a NE soaring ridge site facing up the harbour. It takes the incoming sea air and offers some amazing sunsets across the Canterbury Plains. It also produces some good thermals during the summer season. The wind was already at least 15 knots on launch, and I knew I should have already been in the air. After rigging, the wind was a little off to the north, I expected the northerly part to be causing the gusty bits. I took off anyway despite knowing it was at my top end for being worthwhile and unlikely to top land. I went straight up with a few strong corrections, but it was nice to find the air smooth on top. I went up and down the ridges as usual for over an hour. Then it was time to do something different or land... Well... There’s an idea why not both... I radioed I was going over the back to get a hot chocolate at Taitapu pub. This is not a major flight to brag about, but a nice way to end the flight if you’re not in a hurry to get home. Besides... I knew every grass blade and rock on the soaring ridge to the usual bottom landing field. Leaving the ridge at about 2500 ft, is just a high enough to avoid the leeside rotor and to still have reasonable downwind glide to the pub. I circled a couple of times near the pub and the northerly air behind some trees gave me some wind gradient management to contend with... but landed good, right opposite the pub. I just was taking off my helmet and a patron ran out of the pub to hand me a beer, “Its from the owner... we watched you land while we were drinking”. .. Well... I have not even got out of my harness yet!!.. This has got to be record! After packing up, I walked across the road and ordered a hot chocolate and rested in the sunny beer garden... very nice... mission completed.Butwait... even better... the new Warren Simonsen goes for a Winter flight bartender said he would take me back to my car in the courtesy van, but he required directions and did not know the area. Well... he knows the area very well now... “all the way to the very top”, and as a bonus, I gave give him a personalised tour of the area and sun setting viewing spots.Asthey say, ‘it’s never over until you get home’, and the most memorable part is the journey along the way, (not necessarily the original destination).

31

1 oct 2021. Even a short winter flight can be worthwhile; it keeps your basic skills current on what your base bar still feels like during the cooler season.

Allandale to taitapu for a Hot Chocolate

Above; Warren over Canterbury Plains and landed. Below Allandale sunset Photo Rod Stuart A irborn