Airborn Feb 2018

Issue 205; February, March, April 2018

HANG GLIDING & PARAGLIDING

Forbes Flatlands Himalayan Vol Biv 7.50 Including GST

$

9 771170 992006

Southern PG XC Comp Ten Tips on Task Flying

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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

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.

NORTHLAND H.G.P.C. C/- Guntram Gross 1 Brook Road Whangarei Email: skywalk@igrin.co.nz Pres, Airsp; Shane Gross...............09 436 0268 Sec/Treas; Guntram Gross.............09 436 0268 PGSO; Wolfgang Harder................09 403 7594 HGSO; Stephen Chambers............09 430 3689 Herman Ahrens...............................09 432 9333

MANAWATU H.G.P.C. C/- Andrew Brownlie 11 Hollows Crescent Takaro Palmerston North 4412 Email: flyer.rosscoe@gmail.com Pres, Airsp: Ricky Winduss (Wanganui) .......................... 06 345 7659, or 027 447 4117 Sec/Treas, HGSO: Ross Gray......021 126 0892 PGSO: Andrew Brownlie ...........027 444 8911

AUCKLAND H.G.P.C. PO Box 47813 Ponsonby, Auckland 1144 Email: info@cloudbase.org.nz www.cloudbase.org.nz Pres: Stefan Sebregts .................027 225 2255 Sec: Graham Surrey ..................021 0262 5023 Treas: Malcolm Dawson...............021 052 1568 HGSO: Fraser Bull .......................027 801 4044 PGSO: Reuben Muir.......................09 446 0020 Airsp: Leslie Graham .....................09 579 6485 Stefan Sebregts ...........................021 266 1287 Steve Price ....................................021 781 828 Eva Keim .......................................09 446 0051 Skywings Paragliding ....................09 570 5757 Aqua Air Adventure Hang Gliding.. 027 288 0193 Wings And Waves Paragliding ......09 446 0020

BAY OF PLENTY H.G.P.C. C/-Dominique Le Sellin 41, Ririnui Place, Maungatapu Tauranga 3112 Email: bophangparaclub@gmail.com www.facebook.com/BOPHangGlidingParagliding Pres: Dave Washer.......................0275 992 934 Sec: Dominique Le Sellin...................... 021 617 111 PGSO: Darrell Packe........................027 249 2702 HGSO: James Low.......................021 102 5004 Airsp: Rhys Akers.........................021 177 7563 Sites: Dave Shaw...........................07 575 9560 Kiwi Air.........................................021 1046 208 Mount Paragliding........................027 249 2702

WAIKATO H.G.P.C. Inc. C/- Ian Manton PO Box 131, Matamata 3440 Email: ian@imatec.co.nz Pres: Mark McDonald...................020 444 9995 Sec/Treas: ................ Ian Manton 027 546 2832 PGSO: Bruce Vickerman ...............07 868 4991 HGSO: Rick Hawkeswood.............07 868 6250 Airsp: Neil Howe.............................07 304 9631

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KEY Pres; .............................................. President

Sec; ............................ Secretary/Treasurer PGSO; ............. Paragliding Safety Officer HGSO; .......... Hang Gliding Safety Officer CFI;...........................Chief Flying Instructor Airsp;.................................Airspace Officer

AORANGI H.G.C. C/- Tom Knewstubb PO Box 5976 Dunedin Pres, Airsp; Kevin McManus........021 134 0463 Sec, HGSO; Tom Knewstubb (wk) 027 289 6103 PGSO: Lisa Bradley......................021 156 3256 SOUTHERN H.G.P.C. C/- Mark Hardman PO Box 1122, Queenstown 9348 Email: admin@southernclub.co.nz www.southernclub.co.nz Pres; Tim Brown...........................021 182 4243 Sec: Melanie Heather...................021 204 0163 Treas: Kat Cerna.........................021 0291 0851 PGSO: Blake Round.....................027 367 7679 HGSO: Pete Helliwell .........................................

Sites: Cathal McLoughlin...........021 024 00350 Events: Chris Shaw......................021 051 2905 IT/Web: Daniel Diaz Rizo....................................

Airsp: David Hansen...........................................

Craig Smith...................................027 343 3537 Helen Jeffery................................022 303 2738 Mark Hardman................................021 809 275 Coronet Peak Tandem PG & HG..0800 467 325 Skytrek Hang Gliding & Paragliding.0800 759 873 Extreme Air............................ 0800 PARAGLIDE Infinity Paragliding School..........021 0228 2939 Paraventures Paragliding...............021 809 275

Photo; Richard Castro

TARANAKI FREE FLYERS C/- Dennis Green 38 Kaitake Rd RD4, New Plymouth Pres, Sec, HGSO, Airsp; Dennis Green .......................................................06 752 7618 John H. Morgan..............................06 759 4262

MARLBOROUGH H.G.P.C. C/- Richard Evans PO Box 546 Blenheim Email: evans.r@xtra.co.nz Pres, Airsp: Jason Gluer.............021 0824 7543 Sec/Treas: Richard Evans..............021 648 783 HGSO: John Urlich: .......................03 577 8886 PGSO: Russell Read....................027 448 0888

CANTERBURY H.G.P.C. Inc. C/- Cliff Swailes 22 Hemingway Place, Spencerville, Christchurch 8083 Email: cliffflyer@gmail.com www.chgpc.org.nz Pres: Simon Corbett.................... 021 205 0878 Sec/Treas; Cliff Swailes................021 204 9960 PGSO; Sam Bartholomew .............021 819 755 HGSO; Max Gebhardt................. 022 159 6101 Sites PG; Rob Kennedy................021 220 7993 Sites HG; Reece Fisher..................021 806 390 Airsp; Peter Taylor........................021 066 9886 Website; Stephen O’Shaughnessy.03 326 7373 Canty HG School; Bill Degen.......021 247 2676 Cloudbase Paragliding.................027 532 4874 Nimbus Paragliding......................027 432 4874 ParaPro.........................................0800 548 323

Flying at Wanaka.

HAWKES BAY H.G.P.C. Inc. 30 Kaweka Place Havelock North 4130 Email: hbhgpc@gmail.com www.soarhawkesbay.co.nz Pres, Rebecca Rae.........................021 605 204 Sec/Treas: Duncan McNab..........027 624 6434 Airsp: Shaun Gilbert.....................022 477 8804 PGSO: Sam Elkink..........................06 824 3123 HGSO: Ross MacKay.....................06 877 2052 Sites Liason; Euan Talbot ..............06 877 8999

WELLINGTON H.G.P.C. PO Box 9824 Marion Square Wellington 6141 www.whgpc.nz Email: info@whgpc.org.nz Pres: Chris Connolly ....................022 676 5599 Past Pres: Kris Ericksen...............021 116 4558 Sec/Treas: Grant Firth................... 021 422 698 PGSO: Adrian Watts.......................021 981 855 HGSO: Grant Tatham...................027 636 3491 Airsp: Ian Miller ............................022 176 8205 Communications; Vincent Audebert .....................................................022 186 8452 Oceania Paragliding School.........022 676 5599

TASMAN H.G.P.C. C/- Annett Teichner 1137 Motueka Valley Highway, RD1, Motueka 7196 Email: thgpgclub@gmail.com Pres; Josh Benjamin ....................021 136 5405 Sec; Annett Teichner..................021 0231 0755 Treas; Brian Erasmus .....................03 545 1003 PGSO; Greg Benjamin....................03 545 1543 PGSO; Pete Polansky ...................03 528 7374 HGSO; John King..........................03 548 8263 Site Owners; Tim Percival .............03 548 7397 Site Maintenance; Frog Twissell ....03 538 0339 Airsp; Claus Petry.........................021 250 4836 Nelson Paragliding.........................03 544 1182 Adventure Paragliding....................021 762 769 Hang Gliding NZ.............................03 540 2183 Tasman Sky Adventures...............027 229 9693

ISSN 1170-9928

printed on recycled paper

Magazine of the NEW Zealand Hang Gliding & Paragliding Assn. Inc. Published every three months for hang gliding and paragliding enthusiasts in New Zealand and abroad ● Subscription is by membership of NZHGPA (a

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N.Z.H.G.P.A. INC., 57 Kingsford Drive, Stoke, Nelson 7011, New Zealand www.nzhgpa.org.nz

Administration and Licensing Chief Executive Officer

Evan Lamberton, 35A Manly Esplanade, Browns Bay, North Shore City 0630, 09 478 0063, 021 407833, ceo@nzhgpa.org.nz Administrator

Nicky Hamill, 46 Quail Rise, Stoke, Nelson 7011, 027 202 1806, admin@nzhgpa.org.nz Executive Committee President

Kyla MacDonald, phone 021 056 2320, president@nzhgpa.org.nz Vice President/Secretary

Derek Divers, 106 Lachlan Avenue, RD2, Wanaka 9382, 03 443 7190, 027 493 1112, vice-president@nzhgpa.org.nz Hang Gliding Operations Manager

Mark Alton, 167 Mahoenui Road, Coatesville, Auckland 0793, 022 195 5746, hg.operations@nzhgpa.org.nz Hang Gliding Training Manager

Grant Tatham, 4 Phillip St, Carterton, 5713, 06 379 7322, 027 636 3491, hg.training@nzhgpa.org.nz Paragliding Training Manager

Mark Hardman, 021 809 275, pg.training@nzhgpa.org.nz Paragliding Operations Manager

Blake Round, Queenstown, 027 367 7679, pg.operations@nzhgpa.org.nz Executive Member

Duncan Mcnab, 43 Guthrie Road, Havelock North 4130, 027-6246434, Duncan@magnificent.co.nz Appointed Officers National Airspace Officer

Nick Taber, 27 Strathaven Place, Dodson Valley, Atawhai, Nelson 7010. 03 545 0766, 021 420 742, nicktaber@hotmail.com Website Manager

Adriel Kind, 027 964 5397, adriel.nzhgpa@gmail.com Chief Medical Advisor

Samuel Bartholomew, 3A Dalleys Lane, Lyttleton, Christchurch 8082, bartholomew.sam@gmail.com Internal Auditor

Kris Ericksen, 11 Koromiko Road, Aro Valley, Wellington 6012, 04 938 6539, 021 116 4558, audit@nzhgpa.org.nz Disciplinary Committee Convenor

Kyla MacDonald, phone 021 056 2320, president@nzhgpa.org.nz Bookshop Manager

Evan Lamberton, 35A Manly Esplanade, Browns Bay, North Shore City 0630, 09 478 0063, 021 407833, ceo@nzhgpa.org.nz Hang Gliding Competition Committee

Mark Alton, 167 Mahoenui Road, Coatesville, Auckland 0793, 022 195 5746, markalton@yahoo.com Dennis Thorpe, dennis_thorpe@hotmail.com Max Gebhardt, 03 312 7899, 022 159 6101, aerosm@gmail.com Paragliding Competition Committee

Johnny Hopper (chair), 021 056 2275, nzhgpapcc@googlegroups.com Tim Brown, 03 442 5319, 021 182 4243, nzhgpapcc@googlegroups.com Wayne Rohrs, 021 663 383 nzhgpapcc@googlegroups.com

In This Issue...

Himalayan Vol Biv Cross Country...............................................4 Southern Region Paragliding Cross Country Competition......8 Forbes Flatlands Hang Gliding Tow Competition....................12 Foreign Correspondent; On Home Ground..............................18 Southern Photo Competition....................................................20 Ten Tips On Task Flying.............................................................22 Hangies & Panties......................................................................23

Please send advertisements, photos and articles to the editor:

Events, Safety Checks, Site Notices........................................24

Classified Advertisements.........................................................30

Post:

Email:

Airborn Magazine

Cross Country Championships...........................................26, 28

Christchurch 8081

FRONT COVER: Mark Hardman flys his UP Trango XC2 towards Lake Wakatipu from the Remarkables (More on page 20). Photo; Melanie Heather

99A Panorama Road New Zealand

aero@xtra.co.nz

Next issue deadline: 31 march 2018 A

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Himalayan Vol Biv

By Bryan Moore

Introduction;

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n April 2015 I had done a 450km vol biv along the front of the Indian Himalaya from Bir to the Nepal border with Nick Neynens.

We encountered terrible conditions for XC with overcast skies and low cloudbases, hardly ever seeing the big peaks nearby.

I thought the best way to experience big mountain flying in the area was to go further inland and decided on trying a north – south crossing of the Himalayan Range from Leh to Bir. The original concept was to do the trip solo. A couple of friends (Grey & Glen) asked if they could join me, followed by two of their friends, Cristin & Helmut. We were also joined at times by Kiwi pilots Kat, Kath & Mel who were motorbike touring around Leh, then going to Bir to go flying.

Vol Biv Team: Grey Hamilton, Glen Stevens, Bryan Moore (all NZ), Helmut Blaime & Christin Kirst (Germany).

Motorbiking pilots: Kat West, Melanie Heather, Kath Jones.

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e had hoped to start at the Khardung La, a 5300m mountain pass just north of Leh. Due to the intense military activity this was never going to be possible, so we headed up a valley on the south side of Leh where we could

Christin 10km south of Keylong

start the trip unobserved and head straight into wilderness areas where there were no army or airforce bases.

While in Leh, there were regular patrols up and down the valley

by Mig 29 fighter jets and military helicopters as well as army bases approx every 5km along the main highway. China is less than 100km to the north and east, while Pakistan is approx 150km to the west and there are regular attacks from militants in the neighbouring state of Kashmir – understandably the Indians were very tense.

Acclimatisation: Leh is at 3500m, our first take-off was at 4500m and we climbed to 5500m within 15 minutes of launch.

No one was using supplementary oxygen, so acclimatisation (or lack of it) played a big factor in how the trip played out. We started off with 3 days exploring around Leh, slowly going higher each day, then headed up the lower Zanskar valley for a 3 day acclimatisation trek, along with

Above; Taxiing to Zanskar River 3 other friends from NZ. We ended up taking our wings and full bivvy kit with us which was a bit crazy given our lack of acclimatisation and the size of our rucksacks.

While on the trek, Helmut, Christin & I hiked up a nearby 4300m ridge for a test flight with all our gear. An approaching snowstorm meant we

took off in a rush, trying to beat the storm to our landing down valley.

We were faced with a very tight landing in the bottom of a gorge, new gliders, overloaded with a week of food and bivvy gear plus landing at 3800m – predictably it didn’t end well. I crashed badly, putting my wing in the scrub and ripping the

Left; Mel, Kat, Kath and Christin - departure from Leh Below; Leh Palace

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Right; View up mid Zanskar to Padum from cloudbase back out of my harness. Helmut did better, but still put his wing in some small trees. Christin just clipped the trees and did the only good landing of all of us. I spent 3 hours that night stitching my harness back together.

Glen and Grey were suffering from AMS (acute mountain sickness) symptoms and had stayed in the valley rather than fly that day. We dropped 200m down the valley to camp that night but Glens condition did not improve so he left the trip and returned to Leh rather than push on and risk more serious altitude sickness.

The next day we climbed to the start point for our vol biv - the 4600m Dung Dung La. The climb to the pass turned into an epic as we were caught in a blizzard. Heads down, we trudged into the driving wind and snow, with Grey feeling worse and worse as we got higher. Eventually the storm passed, we carried Grey’s wing to the pass and found a perfect campsite on a col overlooking the start of the Zanskar gorge. Grey was well spaced out and sensibly elected to fly down to Chilling – the end of the road from Leh and last chance to escape before the gorge.

Day 1 (11 October 2016) 108km XC 4 hours 47min Take off was right beside our campsite at 4500m. Grey got away first and had a short flight before heading out to land at Chilling.

Christin & I climbed to 5500m and waited for Helmut who was flying strangely and not talking on the radio. It turned out his GPS/vario had a factory setting that shut down the display at 5000m and gave him a loud altitude warning. I guess they don’t expect you to climb to over 5000m in Bavaria?

Unable to fix the problem in the air, Helmut headed out to Chilling, following Grey. Christin & Helmut are partners and had agreed that if one landed, the other would land too – so after a good flight around the valley, Christin also landed at Chilling and the three of them got a taxi back to Leh. So there I was, just under 6000m, looking south into the 30km long Zanskar Gorge – no roads, tracks or landing sites vs the option of a nice warm taxi back to Leh. After

30 seconds of deliberation I said good-bye to the others on radio and committed to running the gorge.

It was the most demanding and frightening 90 minutes of flying I’ve ever done before finally getting within glide of the first landing options at Nerak. Climbs were scrappy and base was not high above the ridges. Occasionally I missed a thermal and had to move on to a last resort option before having to drop into the gorge. Nerve wracking, but it all turned out ok.

Hypoxic, and too scared to let go of the brakes, I completely failed to take any photos or video of the gorge section. Past Nerak, the going got easier. Climbs became smooth and base lifted to over 6000m.

Behind me the weather was closing in and it became a race to skirt around overdeveloping cells and zipping through snow showers, trying to reach the sunny skies to the south.

After 45km I was within glide of the road to Padum. A huge relief and a chance to savour the amazing views of the main Himalayan Range ahead of me and the barren peaks stretching away in all directions.

I was able to pick up speed and concentrate on getting as far as possible, with good strong climbs to base at around 6500m.

Once past Padum the valley gorged and the flying became serious again.

I was cold and hypoxic, trying to stay low but then getting caught in the strong valley winds and desperately trying to get high again. Flying past

Above; Cloudbase 6300m between Zangla and Padum

Above; Summit of Shingo la - take off in snow to left Below; Camp on Dung Dung La at 4400m; Grey, Helmut and Christin

Below; Grey launching on Dung Dung la 4400m

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view back towards Shingo la late evening thermalling

the Phugtal Monastery was a huge relief as it marked the point where the valley opened up leading to the Shingo La – the lowest route over the ranges giving access to Keylong and the ‘easy’ flying south of there.

Approaching the Shingo La it became apparent there were not many good launch opportunities near the pass, so I opted to land early, high at 4600m on a south facing ridge 20km before the pass. Stoked to crack the crux of the route and get far past our best expectations for the day (108km straight line).

Sadly, I’d lost my alcohol stove in the crash two days before, so had to hike 300m down into the valley below to collect firewood and water for cooking before climbing back up to camp at my landing site.

Day two (12 Oct) 6km XC + 18km walking

Bryan happy to escape valley south of Shingo la 6300m

My tactical early landing turned out to be a complete waste of time. After hiking to a good launch at 5000m the wind picked up and I had a 20 minute thrashing to the valley floor followed by hiking all day to the foot of the Shingo La. The wind strengthened during the day until I was struggling into a howling southerly blinded by driving snow. I came across a small shepherds hut as it got dark and collapsed on the dirt floor for the night, relieved to be out of the wind and snow.

Day three (13 Oct) 6km XC + 9km walk + 25km XC Aiming to reach the pass by 10am, I left the hut before dawn, hiking through the snow from yesterdays storm. Perfect clear weather made for incredible views from the 5000m Shingo La, prayer flags fluttering in the light southerly breeze. The Shingo La marks the border between Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh. I climbed another 200m higher up

Gumbarajan Peak 6031m on hike to Shingo La

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a spur overlooking the pass to find a take-off, only to get drilled by an increasing valley wind on the south side of the pass.

After packing my wing in the now howling wind, it was back to trudging along the dusty road down valley towards Keylong. Spindrift was blowing off the mountain tops and it was obvious there would be no more flying that day. 9km later, at the mouth of the valley, the wind had eased and it looked like a short glide/soaring flight might be possible to save a couple of km.

Launching just above the road in the late evening, I scratched higher and higher up the face in the valley wind and then hooked into thermals taking me up to 6300m – high above the surrounding mountains.

Flying 20km down valley brought me 10km short of Keylong – the start of yet another nasty gorge. Again, I dropped into the valley wind and moments later was on the ground and back in civilisation. Green fields, power lines and most importantly a big sealed road where I caught a taxi 10km into Keylong for a hot shower and soft bed.

Day four (14 Oct) Rest day Meanwhile, the others had been making their way south from Leh by road and were due in Keylong that night. A rest day meant I could hike into the hills behind Keylong, checking out potential launches for the next day once the rest of the team were back together.

The Shashur monastery at 4150m has been used previously by pilots and seemed to be the logical starting point. The others turned up late that night after a long bumpy ride by Jeep and we shared a few Kingfisher beers while catching up.

Day Five (15 Oct) 62km XC Took a taxi up to the Shashur take-

Grey thermalling 6500m behind Kelong - Klarkyoks pk

Helmut 6000m over Keylong off. We had been informed that Billing was closed for flying for several days due to a New Zealand vs India cricket match in Dharamsala; more bizarre Indian bureaucracy, so the goal for the day was the Sari Pass 15km short of Bir. The day was slow to start and Kat & Melanie both had extended sled rides to the valley floor. Grey, Helmut, Christin & myself patiently waited for another hour before launching and still had a very slow climb through the inversion. Once we cracked the

Bryan and Grey at 7000m 20km south of Keylong stable layer we were launched up to 6800m and boated around laughing with joy at being together high in the middle of such beautiful peaks.

The joy was relatively short lived for Helmut who became badly affected by the altitude and had to land near the foot of the Rohtang Pass. Christin dutifully followed him down, only to have the scariest landing of her life, going backwards in the valley wind.

Melanie and Kat were then arrested by the Indian police for “flying illegally” over Keylong. Some VIP

Other random stuff: Total distance flown; 276km. Distance walked; 33km.

I was super stoked to complete the mission. There’s still a little bit of unfinished business in the middle section that I’d love to go back and fly.

Sad that we could not fly more of the route as a team. Never having flown together before the trip meant we were not used to flying in a group. Lots of tricky dynamics making decisions about whether to land when some of the team go down. No easy answers to that one.

For all the flights I was wired up with medical sensors as part of Dr Matt Wilke’s study of the effects of altitude on paraglider pilots. One effect seems to be that altitude makes it impossible for me to work technical on-off switches correctly, and no data was recorded for any of my flights.

While the vol biv was over, Kat & I stayed on in Bir until mid November, getting to over 6000m on numerous days and flying over the top of Hanuman Tibba (5900m) and Deo Tibba (6100m) until I pranged my wing into a tree deep up the Parvati Valley.

Gear: Generally the gear we had worked really well. I’m still keen on flying without oxygen but would spend more time acclimatising next time.

Gliders: I flew a Mentor 4 light, Helmut & Christin were on Skywalk Arribas and Grey flew a Skyman Cross-Alps. The EN B wings were perfect for the rough air we encountered and made for much easier launches and landings (which was a life saver, given some of the terrible landing sites we had).

Cooking on fires worked remarkably well except at extreme altitudes where there was nothing to burn. Next time I’ll take enough solid fuel tablets for a couple of days.

Clothing; I flew with two down jackets, a pair of down trousers, balaclava, down neck muff and expedition down mittens with chemical hand-warmer pads. I wouldn’t make any changes – although the orange down pants are not very fashionable...

had spotted the other four of us high over Keylong Peak and instructed the police to arrest and charge us.

By then we had escaped south and poor Kat and Mel got arrested and charged instead of us. After 6 hours of interrogation they were charged by the local magistrate and released after paying a 20,000 rupee (approx NZ$445) fine.

Meanwhile, Grey and I had crossed into the Ravi catchment (50km north of Bir) and had climbed to 7040m.

Boating around like a couple of hypoxic fools we were having a great time, easily linking the abundant cores while nervously looking down at the inhospitable terrain below.

We finally crossed out of the Ravi catchment and into the Uhl – familiar territory only an hours flying time from Bir. The thermals went all soft and cloud base dropped to a measly 4500m as we soared the grassy

hillside the last few km to land on the Sari Pass, landing within sight of the Billing take-off. We pitched our tents and watched the sun set into the lowland smog, the trip all but completed.

Day six (16 Oct) 36km XC We were still not allowed to land at Bir because of the cricket, so made a short XC to Manali, landing on the outskirts of town and catching up with Helmut, Christin and the girls who had a few stories to tell about their adventures with the police.

Day seven (17 Oct) 33km XC – final flight to Bir At last – Bir is open again. Due to the stable airmass in the Manali Valley, Grey, Helmut, Christin and I started from the Behkli launch above Kullu.

From here it was all familiar territory, back over our Sari Pass camp to topland at Billing for a chai before the final glide down to Bir.

Above; Bryan over Bir last day of Leh Bir route Below; Camp at 4600m above Hampta La - Deo Tibba behind

Below; Helmut, Christin, Bryan and Grey top landed at Billing after flight from Kullu

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Southern Region No.2 XC

I

’m resting. Recuperating really, the day after the completion of the Southern Region No.2 XC Competition held in Wanaka from 27th-29th December.

This was the second year that Tim Brown and Louis Tapper have organised a cross country competition for several days over the Xmas - New Year period in the Southern Alps.

For the goal achievers on each task a total of over 10 hours flying was flown in dynamic conditions over three days overlooking spectacular, jagged and snow-capped mountain ranges around the southern lakes and valleys.

There didn’t appear to be much interest in the days preceding. At one stage, there was a forecast for cool conditions and rain for the first days and so, as for many New Zealand competitions, pilots didn’t register until quite late. In the end, with a few last minute prompts, a total of about 20 pilots registered: a great effort and what a competition!

The event began with a BBQ at Tim’s house on the Tuesday

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evening and although just a few people showed up, for those that did there was a small presentation

by Tim and Louis explaining how a competition works and how to set up instruments. Magda Brzezinska (POL) and Andrea Danielli (ITA), visiting pilots from Europe, were introduced.

Registration was on the Wednesday morning at a new venue, the ‘Ray White Real Estate’ meeting rooms in Wanaka next to the usual Kai’s, and provided by Dean Orton.

Wednesday’s forecast was for light winds and sunny skies. The task committee set a 60km triangle up to near the Raspberry Flats carpark back across to, and down, the Buchanans with a traverse back to End Peak and then to the Treble Cone bombout.

It was quite a punchy day but nothing ridiculous and for those

that got high, which was most of us, the scenery was fantastic. I’d never been up past, and above, Mt Niger and Mt Fogg; topping out around 2450m (8000ft). The rock faces are daunting, hot and steep. The thermals tight and close!

With around twenty pilots it didn’t take too long to download and score over a beer at Kai’s. Hot and thirsty! Kat West won it for the girls and Magda missed a scenic flight after bombing out in the different New Zealand conditions. Licensing issues with Andrea meant that he wasn’t able to be scored for that first task. Louis Tapper won the day and Grant Middendorf had missed a turnpoint.

Day two indicated fairly similar conditions. Hot, clear skies and light winds. The task committee wanted to set a more unusual task which also kept us away from air traffic near the Wanaka airport. A large

task, a triangle, of 83km was set which extended the flight deeper up the West Matukituki Valley then back out and over to a large cylinder on the Buchanans with a decision to then be made for a traverse back to End Peak or a direct traverse to Mt Roy for an extension out to Hillend and back to the TC bombout.

For some reason the air wasn’t so messy and there were some great silky smooth traverses between some pretty punchy thermals.

Stefano Gigli and Abe Laguna flew tandems. It was a long flight and for those that got to the Hillend turnpoint it felt like such a long way back, but it worked with a tailwind and lifty conditions at the end of the day.

Stefan made goal on the tandem for a possible new New Zealand tandem triangle flight record. Great to be able to land close to the vehicles and not deal with massive

Comp

Above; Stefano & Emilia wave to Tim? T2 Photo; Stefano Gigli

Left; View of Lake Wanaka from Mt Roy Right; Richard and Andrea on Mt Roy T2 Lower right; Looking north past Wanaka T2

Photos by Richard Castro retrieves (even though the car traffic up to Raspberry Flat is like a motorway at this time of year!).

At the end of Day 2 Richard Castro from Queenstown was leading the field with Tim Brown nipping at his heels. Louis had a bad day after he too missed a turnpoint over the Buchanans!

The competition directors request for a shorter flight on the last day, and with a total cloud cover expected by 3pm, lead to a shorter last task (40km) up to Mt Niger, back to near Mt Roy and then to a goal at Pemberton Park in Wanaka.

It was a very tricky start. The sky had completely clouded over and the rare thermals were weak but there was a bit of dynamic wind coming up the face at Pub Corner.

Very few pilots got high before they set off. Tim didn’t get above launch height before he got fed up after half and hour of struggling and decided that if he was going to go 5km, then at least he’d go down course line. He didn’t get above 800m until close to Mt Niger.

Helen Jeffrey struggled over, or near launch, for an hour and a half. Magda, gave up on flying the task and decided to simply stay airborne and then made her way to Mt Roy where she ‘skied out’ later in the day and boated around for several hours admiring the view and enjoying the flying.

Richard didn’t fly so well and Stefan found it extremely difficult on the tandem. But the day somehow defied the forecast and got hotter and clearer. There were some bullet thermals over End Peak and Mt Roy and some buoyant lines to be taken.

Andrea Danielli won the day flying an Alpina 2, and on the lower end wings, Ian Douglass made goal and Kieren Campbell stormed into Pemberton Park over an hour and a half after the leaders!

What exciting and dramatic flying in some of the world’s most stunning scenery. It turned out to be one of the best Regional Competitions, with respect to points accumulated, of any Regional Competition ever!

“As good as any Nationals,” commented Kat West.

“One of the best,” from Johnny Hopper who assisted with the scoring from a grey Auckland that same week.

Louis Tapper won the champagne and cherries (a local produce) and Tim Brown took second

place. (Hmmm... Did they rig the scoring?!). Grant Middendorf took the ‘Sports’ prize, Derek Divers the ‘Fun’ class and Kat West won it for the girls. Well done and thank you to all those that contributed and participated.

Far left; Task 2 Briefing on 28th Dec 2017 Left; Richard on his way back to the Buchanans T2 Right; Richard faces Rob Roy T2

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r a g l a n - o z o n e f l a g s h i p s t o r e i n f o @ o z o n e n e w z e a l a n d . c o m

Forbes Flatlands 2018 Oliver Chitty reports from Forbes, Australia Photos by Ruta Pleike

T

he Forbes Flatlands competition starting on 29th of January through to 5th of December makes it the first big comp of the year. Having hosted the world championships in 2013, it made its mark in the hang gliding scene as having one of the best and most consistent flying conditions to be found during this time and it attracts pilots from all around the world.

This year saw a gathering of pilots for a few practice competition days as the forecasted good weather put on a good show, notably Alexandra “Sasha” Serebrennikova managed to set a new women’s Declared and open Distance Female Triangle world records, taking off from Forbes, she flew southwest to West Wyalong then east to Grenfell before pushing back north west to Forbes to complete her task landing at 7pm. Congratulations Sasha! She comments, “And to think this is only the practice task at Forbes!”

Every year the competition head quarters is run at the rugby club in the center of town where all the pilots meet for a 10am task briefing.

It’s likely to be in excess of 35ºC so keeping pilots out of the sun is quite a priority! From here the pilots are told the task course, start time and any other details they need for the day.

It’s usually about two hours before

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the first launch window opens at 12:30pm so it’s nice and relaxed as it only takes about 10 minutes to get to the take-off field formally known as the Bill Moyes International Airfield!

Day One; Canned!

Day one in any competition is always quite tense, the famous saying rings through everyone’s minds, “You can’t win a competition on the first day but you sure as well can lose it!”

The task set for day one is a 155km task to the SSE. There is a lot of overcast today and a strong breeze, there are some cumulus forming under the high cloud but a band of rain possibly pushing in from the west. With much discussion between the safety committee and task committee, the launch window is pushed back from 12:30 till 2:30 to give the strong winds time to die down. As 2:30 arrives, nearly half the field are in the air and climbing

well, but maybe too well as a large area of rain starts to descend on the course line and the safety committee decide to cancel the day on grounds of safety. The laminate gliders we fly in competitions really don’t handle well in the rain but everyone makes it down safely back in the start cylinder.

Day Two; Task 1 The weather for day 2 looks far more promising, still quite strong winds out of the WSW but no over development and a 9000ft cloud base. With day one out of the way it’s a little more relaxed before take-off in the tow field.

Our task today takes us north to Trangie just to the west of Dubbo for 142.8km optimised race to goal with a later start again to let some of yesterdays bad weather clear the area. A challenging cross wind for the first part of the flight but should back later on to a more predominant tail wind. All of the competitors get up and off and there is plenty of room in the 10km start radius.

A large proportion of pilots take the first start at 15:00 but quite quickly people are taking different routes on course line, some pilots take a more direct route keeping just left of course line enough to battle the wind, while other push much harder into the cross wind to make the later parts of the flight easier.

First into goal is Atilla Bertok followed closely by Ollie Chitty from the first start after taking the more direct route and not straying far from course line. It’s 10 minutes before the next competitors arrive; Guy Hubbard and a chasing pack of 2nd starters (15:15) with Josh Woods, Steve Blenkinsop and Niki Longshore. Niki also took a decisive day win over the other females in the competition being the only one in goal.

Day Three; Task 2 A switch in the wind brings us a steady northerly flow, this means we will be seeing predominantly blue conditions early on and only 10

Left; Wayne Thompson takes off under close chase of the trolley retrieve team Right; A litter of dragonfly’s as the task window opens and competitors take to the skies! knots of wind from the north in the boundary layer. With this forecast we have a 185.7km race to goal via 2 turn points finishing at a town called Bookham north west of Canberra.

Its noticeably slower conditions in the start cylinder today and climbs are only getting to 7000ft. The first start clock comes around but only a few pilots at the top of the gaggle take the plunge, everyone else seems to be on the same consensus that a later start gate would prove more efficient if the conditions get better. It’s only a short time (15 mins) before the second start is activated and everyone starts hunting down the lonely few gliders on course line.

With two large radius turn points along the way there is quite a split of pilots along the course line. Josh Woods takes the day win closely followed by Jonny Durand and Atilla Bertok all taking the 2nd start.

Day Four; Task 3 The ever-reliable southwest wind returns and a 195.2km task to Gulgong airstrip is set. In this wind direction we get a cooler air mass and even better flying conditions.

There are talks of getting to over 10,000ft today so we are reminded at the pilot briefing about the effects and dangers of hypoxia.

Straight off the tow it was obvious today was much stronger, already by 12:30 we were getting close to 10,000ft and climbs well in excess of 1000fpm. Almost everyone took the first start today and a good strong gaggle made the first 50km look easy!

Niki Longshore was once again one of the top pilots pushing the gaggle and was on glide heading for climbing gliders ahead when she was hit by a incredibly strong patch of rough air sending her glider pointing straight up to the sky with no airspeed left to recover, She very quickly pulled her parachute and was on a descent through a gaggle of gliders from 8000ft! Niki did an incredible job to stop the rotation before being placed quite perfectly in a paddock with road access and under the shade of trees!

Far Left; The take-off line up Left; Jason Kath takes off flying the only Wills Wing T2C in the competition Middle Right; Sasha takes off on what would be a record setting day of task 4 and over 400km!

Right; The view down course line on the record task 4!

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A Kiwi perspective on the Forbes Flatlands It’s one comp NZ pilots can go to and meet pilots from all over the world without flying at the worlds or Europe. We have an advantage over them as they come from the other side of the world where winter is in full swing and it takes them more than a few days to get over the jet lag and the heat.

Our disadvantage is that we have not had a lot of flying leading up to Forbes and it is a marathon! The days before the 388km task we flew 180km and a 195km just for a warm up. Everyone was getting fatigued by the end of the week and you must make the most of the car ride back to Forbes catching up on sleep. The boys that got to Manilla did not arrive back until after 3am. The next day we did have a late start which helped a bit.

This years Forbes had a lot on action and not all of it good, but the unsung heroes of the comp are the tug pilots. We may get a bad tow due to conditions, but they have around 15 – 20 tows every day and they did it in very trying conditions this year.

Most pilots at the comp set a personal distance record. On the 388km day only 3 pilots had flow this distance, but after that day 13 more had.

Oliver Chitty, who is coming to our Nationals this year showed he is determined to be one of the best in the world winning the 388km day and smoking past Jonny Duran Jr on final glide to goal twice. Rory Duncan who won the comp by one point over Jonny was another outstanding pilot at the comp and has come a long way over the last 5 years.

Jonny Durand Jr showed us that after a bad first day finishing well down the list he made a comeback to finish second. Josh Woods has only gotten back into hang gliding 5 years ago and before this he did not have a lot of air time. He came third.

John Duran Snr and Guy Hubbard have not missed a Forbes in 28 years.Australian pilots get an amazing amount of airtime every year and the only way NZ pilots are going to accelerate their learning is competing in Australia. More NZ pilots are making their way across the ditch every year to do this.

– Mark Alton

Right; Ground crew to the rescue as a wind change hits pilots on the dollys Jonny Durand was first on scene after seeing Niki pull her chute. He descended with her, side by side and landed in the field within seconds of her arrival. Many pilots stayed in the area to make sure things were okay before heading back on course.

Unfortunately Niki’s competition would be over after such a strong and dominating start and Jonny would receive his score made from an average of his future total.

First into the Gulgong goal would once again be Atilla Bertok, closely followed by Tyler Borradaile and Josh Woods.

Day Five; Task 4 Waking up on the morning of the 2nd of January we are greeted by our competition WhatsApp group with a message of, “Briefing 10am, be here ready to fly!”

There had been talks of going big today, the south wind was still blowing but slightly stronger today and even higher bases than yesterday so it looks like the task committee was planning a big one!

In 2014 the distance to goal record in a competition task was set at 368km flying from Forbes to a small town north called Wallygett, today we have a slight west component to the wind and will be flying 389km to another flying site, Manila!

To make this new record task, pilots had to be taking off much earlier than previous days so the first start was 12:00 just 90 minutes after briefing in town! For many pilots this would be a personal best flight and nearly everyone took the first start getting on their way as soon as possible.

Even at midday there were good cumulus clouds and pilots reporting climbs to over 11,000ft.

A lot of pilots had Niki’s accident in their minds for a while, glides were noticeably slower for the first portion of the course. There seemed to be two main routes taken; a few pilots

took the direct course line route when other pilots headed further west of course line and followed a line of mountains hoping to use them as triggers.

It was only 5 hours later before the first pilot called on final glide; Ollie Chitty from Great Britain was first in goal with a time of 05:18:23 just ahead of Jonny Durand with a time of 05:19:27 and Tyler Borradaile took third place just a few seconds later.

Eventually we would see 16 pilots make the record task with many personal bests broken and smiles all round, except for the retrieve drivers who had over a 1000km total journey, the real heroes of the day!

Sash took an early bird launch and flew 10km into the head wind to a declared starting point with an attempt at breaking another women’s world record extending her flight to over 409km! we’re yet to hear if she has made it to four records this week but she sure has put the effort in!

Day Six; Task 5 With many pilots not returning back till the early hours of the morning the next task briefing was delayed by a few hours giving people time to rest and recuperate before flying again; a shorter dogleg task via one turn point of 155km was called, landing at Wellington airstrip starting at 15:00.

Today was the polar opposite of the previous day, no clouds and slow climbs. Many pilots were dropped in the first hour struggling to find any climbs they could. Once at the turn point the conditions seemed to get

better but it was a strong crosswind for the final leg. Some people landed short after drifting too far down wind giving a hard final glide.

Ollie Chitty took a second consecutive day win, once again followed closely by Jonny Durand and Guy Hubbard. Only 9 pilots made the task.

Day Seven; Task 6 Finally a day with less wind, task 6 was called a rest day for the retrieve drivers so we would be flying a closed loop triangle of 166km! Pilots were starting to look noticeably fatigued after 5 back to back long tasks (and a record task!) so the towing was slow to get going.

Fortunately there were good clouds in the start cylinder and everyone had plenty of room to pick their start.

Almost everyone took the first start again at 13:50 with only a few pilots choosing to take the gamble on a later start at 14:10.

The shorter first leg of the triangle went fast with a slight tail wind but some pilots got low and had to take slow climbs from the foothills at the turn point. Heading northeast into the 2nd turn point, the day started to blue out and become a little more tricky. It was here that the fast first starters had a slight time advantage over the stragglers and didn’t waste much time getting out.

The wind had picked up slightly and made the final leg of the triangle more difficult as pilots headed over high ground and minimal landing areas.

Once out onto the flats it was back to good climbs and long final glides of over 30km! Jonny Durand took the day win with a time of 03:33:59 closely followed by a consistently well scoring Rory Duncan. Jason Kath took out 3rd place for the day just 30 seconds behind Rory.

Good music and many goal margaritas were handed out in goal as pilots and retrieve drivers celebrated at last a task with no five hour drive home!

Day Eight; Task 7 The final task! Seven straight competition days has the field of competitors looking and sounding

Left; Day 2 task 1 the towing starts Right; Jonny Durand Takes off while ace tug pilot Steve McCarthy eagerly awaits some clear air for departure

14 A i r b o r n

Right; Ollie Chitty takes off on the soon to be canned Day 1 Task 1 attempt very tired! We have a weather system passing through the area today and the wind direction could be anything later in the day. We have a task that heads North east to a large 40km radius turn point before turning west into an 50km radius and returning south down to goal at Peak Hill air strip.

Depending on the weather this could be a final 15km strong head wind stint, there was discussion at the pilot briefing if this was safe as we would be crossing over a firing range but eventually agreed this was the best bet for the conditions forecasted in the local area.

After launch many pilots commented how rough the air was in the 5km start cylinder, some managing better than others to get up but everyone at least managed to get away for the start. The task saw a fair tail wind for the first 50km on course line before dropping to almost nothing before the first turn point.

The faster pilots of the day made a better run after the first turn point and made short work of the 2nd leg.

With two very large radiuses there can be quite a few different routes depending on where you intercept the optimum point of the turn point; this stretched the field out into many small gaggles.

Atilla Bertok took another day win, closely followed again by Tyler Borradaile and Rory Duncan seconds later. The scores for the top

three pilots were incredibly close.

No one would know the final scores until the prize giving that evening so it was a quick pack up and off to get home and ready for the presentation.

The only pilot to make goal on every day of the competition was Rory Duncan and rightfully so, he took the overall win and became national champion by 1 single point from a total of 5880, beating 7-time champion Jonny Durand on 5879!

Josh Woods took a strong third place after another consistent competition.

Alexandra Serebrenikova took first place in the woman’s category just ahead of Yoko Sano from Japan.

The winners grinners; Josh Woods, Sasha Serebrennikova, Jonny Durand & Rory Duncan Photo; Adventure Flying

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IQ SONIC; Mini-vario (audio only) Ideal as a back-up or combine with an alti-watch. Small, light, simple; just switch on and go.

All switchable metric/imperial. Mounting bracket options.

Most items are in stock for overnight courier delivery NZ wide. Call or email for more information. Dealer, School and group order enquiries welcome

Over 25 years of free flying experience and quality service

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

Foreign Correspondent;

On Home Ground L ittle River, on Banks Peninsula has always been a good place for me to enjoy some local thermalling, and has a lot of potential for a fun sortie when the conditions are moderate to light. Good for keeping your hand in when you want to stay local to Christchurch.

A light North to Northwest produces a good chance of some nice convection especially when take-off has been in the sun all morning, (at 2300ft, 700m). Even

Lakes Ellesmere, Forsyth and Little River

North Easterlies on the lee side of the peninsula have proven to develop convergences in the valleys.

With clouds above the peninsula, it was worth taking a lone punt of driving to take-off... Bugger, it was over the back. I hoped any west of NW would be still channelled up the valley, but it found an easier way around the back.

Vertical clouds were teasing me in the centre of the peninsula and the swift breeze behind my neck reluctantly forced me to flag the day.

Before driving off I decided to watch a pretty good show of convergence clouds above Little River; it was nice and quiet, no traffic, no sirens, barking dogs or screaming kids... I fell asleep in the car.

Booff.!! Half an hour later I got woken up with a little shake of the car. It wasn’t a quake, it was a dusty whistling around the roof racks rounding up bugs and grass along the glider bag. Well that doesn’t happen every day, though I did notice the tail wind on launch was starting

View of Lyttelton Harbour from over Mt Herbert Warren over Kaituna Spur, Little River

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Crossing Lyttelton Harbour to be rather hesitant in flowing over the back. Interesting... the Little River convergence show looked a lot closer, and... well, ‘hello’, there’s clouds forming directly above me.

Now if the cycles get strong enough, it could push back the tail wind.

A recent proverb, ‘Better wait rigged than late’, seemed to be the appropriate thought.

It felt a little disturbing to feel occasional air still coming over the back while rigging. I could just hear the clouds above, “Do you feel lucky”...

Ok, so I’m hooked in, bone dome on and watching clouds, and scareable air switching between tail and port side. The moment came, I ran hard into a large wafty cycle that made its announcement in the grass as it moved right up the face.

Cripes; the lift just didn’t stop!

The first turn became a 360 and continued until just under a fluffy base. The views of Akaroa and surrounding bays became very picturesque against the blues and greens of the sea and sky. Seeing the whole peninsula in one go was really rewarding.

I topped up in some convergence above Little River, then glided over to the middle of the peninsula where the good stuff was.

The wispy playground was fun and a pleasure to see the world in such a cool way. Each cloud had a small upward wall, fed by the westerly.

Views from just behind Herbert showed the easterly was flowing all the way up the Lyttelton Harbour, and some orographic cloud forming at Godley Head. To leave the playground would be mainly a long glide into a westerly or easterly, I took another cool dip and went out to explore.

The tour glide behind Diamond Harbour was peaceful as the light

westerly tail wind made good, towards Camp Bay and Adderley Head. Contemplating on when I would eventually drop into the sea breeze seemed to be more a matter of ‘where’.

Crossing the harbour at minimal height added a bit of excitement, but it was so neat seeing the harbour right up the guts with lots of water all around. Point of no return, still crossing the drink with a light westerly cross wind, and hitting the easterly was expected any moment.

Observing Taylor’s from a different direction was a pleasant change and I saw one para trying his luck in the light lift. At that moment I felt the glider nod into the moist Easterly.

With a little height to spare, a scenic cruise via Godley barracks was worth checking out a flat cloud that was forming over the heads. But it was just not strong enough to hang around, so I crossed Taylor’s Bay to the Scarborough cliffs which had a flowing head of orographic cloud.

I took some nice shots of circular rainbows, which was a bonus treat as I descended along the ridge lift.

On the last sea crossing over to Sumner beach, there were lots of people surfing and swimming.

Rounding out on finals at Sumner beach was like looking down at Baywatch with many people enjoying the sunny weather. After dodging sunbathers and umbrellas, my tip toe landing into a warm breeze was slightly distracted by a couple of bikinis walking by, I pinch myself just to check I was still not sleeping in the car... ‘Yep!’ it’s not a dream, time for a swim and ice cream. What a great way to see the countryside.

I lost a few bonus points when I explained to my better half, Clare, where I left the car (Little River is an hours drive from Chch) - Warren & Clare, December 2017

Glory Rainbow over the cliffs

Orographic cloud over Taylors cliffs Flying from Godley Head to taylors Mistake

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19

Southern Photo Comp I

n August 2017, the Southern Club ran a photo competition via its Facebook group.

We had a great response, with entries from all corners of our club.

There were speed flying, soaring, XC, acro, Hike and Fly, comps and social event photos entered. The high standard of the entries made the Facebook voting pretty interesting, but we eventually narrowed down these top 6 shots and runners up for the 3 FMC categories in the competition; ABW above bushline with human element, ABN above bushline no human element, BBW below bushline with human element.

As our club is also affiliated to the Federated Mountain Clubs of NZ, the top Southern Club photos were entered into FMC’s national photo competition. We’ll be hoping to do our club photo comp next year, maybe even with a few sponsors and prizes! - Dan Clearwater

Above; ABW, Mike Karnik; Glen Stephens. These pictures are from my longest flight in NZ; 120km from Hawea to Mt Cook Village. It was on the second day of the Wanaka paragliding competition when I got an early morning text from Brian...”Weather looks good to fly to Mt Cook” What to choose? ...mountain flying or competition around Wanaka; it did not take me long to make my decision :) I quickly replaced the back protection of my harness for sleeping bag, camping gear and food then jumped into my car to catch up with others at Hawea. We launched from Mt Maude just west of Lake Hawea. The first 40 km was quite easy because all of us flew together but before crossing the Hunter River (north end of the Lake Hawea) I got stuck in one of the valleys and was on my own. I was already more than a day of hiking from the road and the southerly was too strong to try fly back. I decided to follow Huxley range and hoped that the others flew similar direction. It was a nice relief when I heard familiar voices on the radio and saw some tiny paragliders in front of me. Luckily, I climbed all the way to the cloud base and at end of the range caught up with Glen. (Brian took a little detour to the Landsborough valley).

Finally, near the Naumann Range we saw also Brian. From there we all flew together around Mt Hopkins and soared nice smooth valley wind with thermals from Dobston Valley. Thanks Glen Stevens and Brian Moore for an epic flight :)

Upper Left; ABN, Louis Tapper; Alpine tarn.

Left; BBW, Lucas Marin; Ground handling.

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Above; ABN, Mike Karnik; Mt Sealey.

Right (and front cover); ABW, Mel Heather; Mark Hardman on his UP Trango XC2 flys towards Lake Wakatipu from the Remarkables mountain range in Queenstown. This was an impromptu club evening arranged when we had confirmation the Queenstown Tower was off watch and there would be enough daylight for a fly. Club members started the evening hike and fly only to pop up on to the ridge to fairly strong conditions. Mark and a few very experienced pilots flew while many of us took in the stunning sunset views.

Below; BBW, Zac Morris; Te Wae Wae Beach; Leo soaring in the wind directly coming from Antarctica at Te Waewae beach. We had arrived the night before but the wind was gusting up to 60km/hr and our hope to get in the air was slim... We’d managed to get our speed wings out in the morning but the wind still felt strong and powerful. Then suddenly the wind eased and it was time to do some serious flying into the sunset.

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21

Ten Tips on Task Flying

By Marco Littam© Originally written as part of a tutorial for new competition pilots in Italy. It has been translated and adapted for international readers by Stuart Mackintosh with permission of the author.

R

egardless of the ability and experience we have there are some rules that I feel I should suggest. If we follow these I believe that they can bear fruit.

1. Every problem becomes exponentially bigger in flight!

If walking along the road I have cold hands it is a small discomfort.

However in flight this situation can be very dramatic.

This is just a small example of why it is necessary to completely eliminate beforehand any problems that could interfere with our flight.

Therefore it is necessary to pay a lot of attention to our clothing and equipment.

2. Know your instrument like the back of your hand.

In flight (see point 1) pressing a button to change screens on your instrument can be quite difficult and doing so we loose concentration and waste time. When beginning competition flying, it is better to have a small amount of clear information. Remember that the crucial instrument for our flight is our mind. The information that is essential on our instrument is: * GPS height * Ground speed * Direction and distance to the next waypoint * Time Starting competition flying with this information surely will hone our perception and sensitivity, starting with lots and lots of information will do nothing but create confusion.

3. Allow time to get used to the flying conditions and orientate ourselves.

Not all pilots adapt quickly to the conditions of the day or manage to orient themselves to the flying area.

Given that every day is different, it is necessary to take off a bit early to ‘feel’ the air and get an idea of the conditions and in the meantime have a look around the area.

4. Study the start cylinder.

Try to imagine a swimmer that has a bad dive from the starting blocks or Valentino Rossi that stalls the motorbike at the start of a gran prix...

In flying our start is the exact moment that we cross the start

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cylinder, we need to do this in the best way. The fundamental rule is maximum height!!

Try to imagine a car trip, we stop at the petrol station and instead of filling up the tank we only fill to half way. Continuing our journey, at the next petrol station, the pumps are out of order. Eventually we run out of petrol and we stop.

With flying it is exactly the same thing! if the day allows a 2000m base for example, if we start with only 1500m is the same as throwing away fuel (free by the way) that we will need sooner or later to continue our flight.

With experience we can also study the wind direction to use it to our advantage for the first glide.

5. Fly high.

Flying a task can be considered like lots of little start cylinders: maximum height - glide, maximum height - glide etc. This is the correct sequence. If we get used to this right from the start, it will be an indelible mark in our flying style. Not risking it by leaving the thermal halfway will allow us to get the results that we hope for.

6. Strong thermals are to be used ALWAYS Thanks to point 3 above we have given ourselves an idea of the day and the strength of the thermals, this will help use choose thermals if necessary.

For example if the strongest thermals of the day are around 3m/s, every time we come across a thermal of that strength we should take it right to the top. We can potentially skip thermals (if we are

high obviously) that are weaker and if we have indications that there are better thermals in the vicinity.

7. Assume an aerodynamic position.

An anecdote that I always tell... I know a pilot that is such a perfectionist of the most aerodynamic flying position that he doesn’t even change his position to scratch his nose during a glide.

Remember that every time that we add extra drag due to an incorrect posture it’s like throwing away fuel.

8. Optimise every ‘movement’ in the air Linked to point 7, it is fundamental, even if it is difficult to quantify, that we optimise every ‘movement’ from thermalling to gliding. If it were possible to quantify the metres of height that we waste in a glide that isn’t perfectly straight or in a useless turn in a thermal we would be very surprised.

9. Calculate the height needed to get to goal.

To arrive short of goal is a huge error, our position in the rankings will be determined only by the distance we have flown and not by the time we have taken, even if we are very fast.

On the other hand, arriving at goal with 1000m of height is also an error, smaller but an error all the same, quantifiable by the time we spent thermalling to make that extra height. This is time that we could have taken off our final task time.

Getting to goal with 200-300m could be considered a correct arrival in goal.

It is a very good idea to calculate the necessary height to arrive in

goal by studying the map after the briefing.

10. Unfortunately I only have room for one more piece of advice...

One could go on ad infinitum, but what fun would there be in that?

COMP FLYING is the same as EXPERIMENTING - COMPARING AGAINST OTHERS - REACHING OBJECTIVES I am sure that each of you will live your race with the right enthusiasm and motivation. Whatever your result you will be winners.

Like the great Julio Velasco teaches, there are 3 types of victory: • Victory against our own limits and weaknesses: To have decided to participate in a competition is like winning against an imaginary adversary. Lots of pilots prefer not to enter comps for various motives, not least the fear of making a bad impression.

• Victory against difficulties: Flying comps can be difficult. It can be difficult getting good results but the difficulty serves to improve. If we can overcome the difficulties it means that we are getting better and therefore we have won again.

• Victory against an adversary: The highest victory. Only for a few in paragliding as only one pilot can be number 1 in any given competition but maybe next time it will be your turn.

It’s up to you...

About the author. Marco Littam© is a veteran of Italian competition paragliding. A frequent member of the national team, He is a four time Italian national champion, winner of the 2015 Paragliding World Cup in Brazil and the 2012 European PWC champion.

Photo: Pilots flying a task at the Kaimais

by Kris Ericksen

Hangies and Panties

Two New Hang Gliding Female World Records In Brazil, on Sunday 5th November, Corinna Schwiegershausen flew 407.8km straight line distance for a new women’s world record.

The distance is close to the previous record of 403.5km and she needed to beat it by 1km.

Corinna launched from Tacima, Paraiba, in northern Brazil and after over eight hours landed in Quixada, Ceará, Brazil. The flight was also to a declared goal of 405km. She landed within five minutes of sundown.

The flight is now being reviewed by FAI.

Corinna probably not enjoying some more airtime

Australian Paragliding XC Record On 2 January Joël Debons foot launched from Ben More in Victoria, Australia and landed east of Wagga Wagga in New South Wales. After over 10 hours in the air he made 469.19 kms straight line (or 570 including turnpoints).

See track at www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:joeldebons/1.01.2018/22:24#fd=flight

Red Bull X-Alps 2017 Documentary Released In July 2017, 31 world-class athletes from 20 different nations embarked on a gruelling hike and fly adventure across the Alps. Filming the race was an 18-man camera crew, equipped with the latest technology and a helicopter. The Red Bull X-Alps team has put together a 52-minute documentary showcasing the most epic moments of this year’s edition.

Jam-packed with incredible paragliding and almost impossible feats of Alpine adventure, the movie is now online at redbullxalps.com.

Narrated by race reporter Tarquin Cooper, the documentary features veteran pilots such as reigning champion Chrigel Maurer (SUI1), Paul Guschlbauer (AUT1) and Romanian running man Toma Coconea (ROU), as well as rookies like Benoit Outters (FRA4) and Simon Oberrauner (AUT4).

From the start in Salzburg to the finish in Monaco, you can follow the athletes as they traverse the mountainous terrain of seven different countries including Slovenia, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and France. Covering a straight-line distance of 1,138km, the 11-day journey is not just a story of adventure, but a true statement of the skill and unwavering determination of the athletes.

Race organiser and co-founder Ulrich Grill says; “Red Bull X-Alps 2017 was fiercely competitive and as unpredictable as ever. The athletes gave everything they could; both physically and mentally, so it’s great to see the full extent of their achievements come together in the 52-minute documentary. We’re very excited to announce its release and hope the fans will enjoy it too.”

Whether you’re a paragliding enthusiast or an armchair adventurer, the video is guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat. From thrilling highlights and unseen moments to the athletes’ personal insights, it’s time to buckle up and relive the adventure of Red Bull X-Alps 2017.

Australian Hang Gliding XC Record

O

n 8th December Rohan Holtcamp flying an Airborne C4-13 flew a new Australian hang gliding cross country record of 532.4km in 10 hours, 19 minutes!

He foot launched from Ben More Victoria around 9:45am and landed in the Parkes region around 8pm. He was 26kms short of his nominated goal of Milby, NSW. The previous record was 521km set by Jonny Durand.

“I’ve planned doing an Australian hang gliding distance record from a local launch for some time now, Friday 8th Dec weather forecast looked like it could be ok and Rohan on his record flight it was.

Here’s the stats page from my flight recorder. I’ve also got a Garmin 76CSx tracklog and a Spot track to backup the Oudie 4 igc file. It’s an excellent navigation tool and vario, it let me know where all the airports were and what frequency to broadcast on the whole day, with battery to spare.”

Sandra his wife, drove 1500 kms on the retrieve, navigating around flooded areas. Sandra received Rohan’s position from his Spot satellite messenger and arrived before Rohan had finished packing up.

They arrived back home at 6pm the next day!

Rohan is a well known pilot with numerous competition wins including Australian Champion and PreWorlds Champion.

He runs Dynamic Flight running 9 day hang gliding courses and manufacturing hang gliding harnesses. See www.dynamicflight.com.au/

A Very Nice Xmas Present One lucky pilot must have been very good this year, his lovely wife surprised him with a brand new Mac Para paramotor wing.

Nick (Santa’s little helper in the picture at right) dispatching the greatest present ever.

It was delivered at short notice and pulling out all the stops to make it a fantastic Mac Para Christmas.

The Adventure Counts With its “/advancedadventures” initiative, ADVANCE support and publicise worldwide exceptional paraglider projects which showcase and promote the sport in all its variety.

The project is not primarily about performance, but personal adventure - the appeal of having dared to do something new.

Individual projects will be presented in exciting reports and exclusive interviews on www.advance.ch/ advancedadventures. Stories such as Sebastian Huber’s bivouac flying adventure through the Indian Himalayas, Thomas Ulrich’s straight line crossing of Switzerland or the Hike & Fly speed-summiting of Eiger, Moench and Jungfrau will be enhanced by high quality photos and videos.

Any pilot can join the/ advancedadventures family. Find out how this works on: www.advance.ch/ advancedadventures

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EVENTS Omarama Hang Gliding Classic Cross Country Camp Saturday 3 February to Sunday 11 February 2018

O

n as usual, this summer during the week of Waitangi Day. It should be hot again this summer.

At this time of year Omarama gets the most flying days with least strong winds, turbulence and the most cross country flying opportunities.

It can be hot, maybe windy and sometimes rough (thermals up to 3000 fpm+) but the competition format is stress free. Fly the whole week, just the weekends or only fly the best days.

Flying will be spectacular; expect to get 9 or 10,000ft and an easy 20 to over 100km depending on your skill and luck. You’ll probably beat your Personal Best; height, distance etc, and move up the XC Champs table, or maybe fly to Mt Cook!

The track up Magic Mountain is limited to 4WDs with low ratio gearing for safe descents.

The track was bulldozed again last season so should still be in good order. To help maintain this track we’ll ask everyone for a donation but the competition is free.

THE MISSION; Fly open distance, in any direction from the Omarama area that you choose. Enter any number of flights. Take any days off, only your best 3 flights get scored.

Flights can be entered each evening at the cottage next door to Omarama Hotel or at the camping area entry boards.

Required; Advanced rating with mountain/ XC skills. Pilots with lower skill ratings may fly only if under supervision and if conditions are suitable. Printed site briefings are available.

This is mountain high desert country so essential equipment is; a 2.5m rope for securing gliders during dust devils, radio, cellphone, maps, GPS, water, survival gear

Getting high on the way to Mt Cook (centre distance) Photo: Bill Degen

(days can be over 30°C with frosts at night), basebar wheels, spare uprights, glider fully checked and a repacked chute.

A satellite messenger such as a Spot is recommended for pickups as cell reception is patchy. Buying an extra sim card for the other phone network is a cheap and easy way to maximise coverage.

An Emergency Locator Transmitter may be wise. Airtribune is a free tracker for Android cellphones that can allow your pickup crew to follow you (within cell coverage).

Note; airband radio (118.6 Mhz) is mandatory for flying North of Ohau if you want to head for Mt Cook.

Bring a brave but careful 4WD driver, and a spade is essential for clearing slips off the access road and for some pickups.

Or bring your aerotow or car tow set-up.

All types of accommodation are available; free camping, cabins, caravans, motels and luxury hotels. There’s hot pools in Omarama for after flying too.

For more information, site briefings, maps etc; contact Bill Degen aero@xtra.co.nz or check www.hgpg.co.nz for updates

Want a better magazine?

Airborn needs your articles and photos. We’d like to read about your flights, frights, sites, experiences and techniques. Anything that’s of interest , educating or enthusing to pilots is especially welcome.

Airborn can’t afford to pay you but does post contributors a complimentary copy which you should receive a day or so before everyone else.

Just email your text to; aero@xtra.co.nz or put it on CD, DVD, Zip, Flash drive or even floppy disk. Most text programs such as Microsoft Word (Windows or Mac) are fine but please do not put photos in MS Word files as this reduces the resolution, please supply photo files in highest resolution separately.

If it’s not digital, clean printed copy helps or if you hand write, please write neatly on one side of the paper only.

INCLUDE photos, of the people, place or gliders involved and one of yourself to make the article more interesting. We have full colour and with digital photo editing, it’s amazing what we can do to enhance ordinary snapshots. Black and white or colour prints are fine. Digital images should be the original high resolution.

Contact me for solutions for emailing large files such as multiple large image files.

Photos for the cover should be eye-catching, colourful, sharp, and high resolution.

You can also send transparencies or prints for scanning. Anything marked with a return address will be returned along with your complimentary copy.

Help promote or make our sport safer, and Airborn will present your contribution in the best way possible.

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NZ Hang Gliding Calendar for the 2017 – 2018 season Date

Location

Contact

1st flyable weekend of Nov 2017, 4/5, 11/12, 18/19, 25/26.

Far North XC Open; Now 5 XC sites to fly

Tom Kellner: tkmechanical@vodafone.co.nz

1st flyable weekend of Dec 2017. 2/3, 9/10, 16/17

Kaimai League: Kaimai or Paeroa Ranges

Geoff Christophers: geoff@tradeupjobs.co.nz Aaron Darby; aarondarby@gmail.com

30 Dec - 2 Jan 2018

Sterling Big Sky; Omarama

Max Gebhardt: Maximilian.Gebhardt@ideal.co.nz

Wellington Anniversar y weekend 20 – 22 Jan 2018, Reserve TBA March

Wellington

Grant Tatham: tathams@xtra.co.nz

17-18 Feb or 24-25 Feb 2018

Auckland League; Anywhere that is flyable in the upper North Island

Les Graham; Graham-mackie@vodafone.co.nz Steve Dwyer: steved@tdstructures.co.nz

27 Jan – 3 Feb 2018

HG Nationals; Based at Mt Murchison

Matt Barlow: nat.matt3@gmail.com Shane McKay: info@pelorusecoadventures.co.nz

17-19 Nov 2017

Canterbury League Christchurch

Max Gebhardt: Maximilian.Gebhardt@ideal.co.nz

Sat 3 Feb to Sun 11 Feb 2018

Omarama Classic; Omarama

Bill Degen; aero@xtra.co.nz

40th NZ Hang Gliding Nationals In 1976 when hang gliding was young (and most of were as well) the first Hang Gliding Nationals was held in Queenstown and over 80 pilots turned up to compete.

Next year the Nationals will be based at Murchison and organised by Matt Barlow and Shane McKay in cooperation with the HGCC. The Hang Gliding Comp Committee is proud to announce that it will be the 40th annual hang gliding Open. So, don’t miss out on this as it promises to be a monumental event and it would be nice to get a record turnout close to 80 pilots.

The dates are 27 Jan – 3 Feb 2018.

The Cook Strait ferry discounts will be advertised when they have been negotiated, getting you across for half price.

The hang gliding blog site has more info and please register early to help organisers.

Payment details and discounts will be advertised on the blog when we have them.

Updates will be posted on the blog so save the link; http://nzhgnats.blogspot.co.nz/

Please note: The HG Nationals will be an FAI cat 2 event and when you come to renew your NZHGPA membership please tick the box to get your FAI Licence.

See below for information on the XC Clinic to be held at Murchison the two days leading up the Nationals.

- HGCC

XC Clinic for Novice and Intermediate Hangies (and old digs if you are interested): As the XC Clinic was cancelled due to heavy rain before the Nationals this year, we are hopeful that next year will be better. The Nationals will be based at Mt Murchison next year, which is a great place for Novices to get a high fly on and the XC clinic will be a good lead up to this. We had a lot of interest last year so I hope to get the same for next year.

So we are looking to find the numbers of Novice and Intermediate rated pilots (or higher) that are interested in attending the XC Clinic for 2 days before the Nationals. The dates for the Nationals are in the above notice.

We will need to know numbers so that we can organise instructors.

The Clinic will include things like thermalling skills, instrument set up, choosing a landing area, gaggle flying etc. You then get to use these skills for the next week at the Nationals. Novices cannot compete at the Nationals but you can free fly.

Please register your interest by emailing Matt Barlow at nat.matt3@gmail.com

Interislander Ferry Discounts for NZHGPA Members

I am delighted to announce that Interislander Ferries are proud to support the NZHGPA for another year to cover the period up to 18 December 2018.

NZHGPA members can have special discounted Ferry Rates, not just for the HG & PG National Competitions, but also throughout the whole of 2018 to cover travel to and from Regional Competitions or simply for NZHGPA members to travel the rest of the year on holiday.

For prices see https://member.nzhgpa.org. nz/resources/Documents/Interislander%20 NZHGPA%20Member%20Rates%20-%20 NZ%20Hang%20Gliding%20and%20 Paragliding%20Assn%20for%202017.pdf Despite the National comps being held during the peak ferry season, Inter-islander have offered extra special competition rates for a car and driver to cover a week either side of the HG/PG Nationals from 19th January to 11 February 2018.

A booking is made direct by individuals with Interislander by simply quoting the NZHGPA Membership Booking reference code

number: FA5650 and showing their NZHGPA Membership card at the check in.

Group Booking conditions and instructions: · Each reservation must be made direct with Interislander – www.interislander.co.nz/ Booking/Group-Bookings.aspx · Entering Code FA5650 - Please note in the Group code box · Every reservation will be given an expiry/ payment date, required to be paid in full by that date · Space is subject to availability at the time of the booking request · All bookings for vehicles over 3.5 tonne need to be made by contacting Commercial Vehicles on 0800 660-670. Price advised at time of booking. · Membership card is to be shown at check in or retail fares will be charged. Membership card isto be in the name of the person travelling. · Fares valid for travel through to 18 December 2018 · Prices are subject to change with notification Happy flying.

- Nick Taber

NZ Paragliding Calendar for the 2017 – 2018 season Date

Location

Information

21 – 28 Oct 2017

Canungra Cup (NZ Overseas PG League) Canungra, Australia

https://airtribune.com/ canungracup2017

18 – 19 Nov 2017 Reserve dates; 25 – 26 Nov 2017

Auckland Regional Paragliding Comp.

Auckland, Matamata or Rotorua

https://airtribune.com/auckland for all details and registration

28 Jan – 4 Feb 2018

NZ Paragliding Open Wanaka

https://airtribune.com/ newzealand/info FAI Cat 2. Entry fee; $190 prior to 10th December 2017, $225 thereafter.

NZ Competition Organiser’s Responsibilities It is the Comp Organiser’s responsibility to; 1. Obtain a list of current members from the NZHGPA 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’.

Metflight Weather Access for NZHGPA Members

Safety Checks Icaro Pandion paraglider lines

During an internal quality control on a Pandion M glider, we noticed a mistakenly used line type. Instead of the specified TSL 380 for the A1 main-line, a TSL 500 has been used.

Furthermore, we found wrongly used line types on a Pandion S. TSL 90 have been used on the C/D Top-lines instead of specified DSL 70.

Icaro recommends to change the mentioned lines on all Pandion models. All lines will be provided by Icaro free of charge. We recommend to contact your flight school or dealer to assemble the new lines. Please feel free to get in touch with Icaro directly in order to find the best solution for replacement of the

Aeronautical Charts 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

lines. We have to assume that all Pandion sizes have been affected.

- Flintsbach, 5th December 2017

Ozone Exoceat paraglider harness reserve handle This notice affects all Exoceat harnesses manufactured before November, 2017.

We have been made aware of a potential safety issue with the Exoceat reserve handle.

If the metal pin becomes fatigued due to repeated bending while packing the harness, there is a possibility that the handle could break during extraction.

Action required: Mandatory replacement of all Exoceat reserve handles.

The reserve deployment handles on all Exoceat harnesses should be replaced before next use. Please contact your dealer to request replacement handles.

The correct replacement handles are coloured red, if your reserve handles are made from transparent plastic then they must be replaced before your next flight.

For any questions regarding the replacement of the handle, please contact your local Ozone Dealer or Contact us directly.

BAD GOOD

come in two scales 1:250,000 and 1:500,000, and cost $16.35 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. www.flyozone.com

Metflight have a comprehensive aviation weather website that many of you have shown an interest in, at http://metflight.metra.co.nz/MetFlight.php We have access to that using the following log in details: Username eg - HP4567 (HP and your PIN, no space in between) Password - HGPGA (everyone uses the same password).

How to Get Vector Magazine

Vector Magazine is the Civil Aviation Authority’s bi-monthly publication of aviation safety related articles and CAA news. Because NZHGPA is a CAA - certificated organisation (Rule 149), its hang glider and paraglider pilot-rated members can apply for a free Vector subscription. There is a simple form to complete and then send to Vector Subscriptions.

The form can be obtained online here: http://www.caa.govt.nz/search/Forms/24149-02. pdf or by writing to: Vector Subscriptions, Civil Aviation Authority, PO Box 31 441, Lower Hutt; or fax: 0-4-569 2024; or email: info@caa.govt.nz. Alternatively, Vector Magazine can be downloaded online from the CAA’s web site: http://www.caa.govt.nz/safety_info/ publications.htm

Site Notices Magic Mountain

The site owners Bryan & Michelle Patterson at Longslip Station have requested that drivers and pilots all sign a waiver form before going up Magic Mountain. Unless a comp organiser has organised permission for the week, pilots need to ask each time and also need to sign in the book each time at the lower launch gate.

The road is in good order after being bulldozed last season and we have a Magic Mountain Road Maintenace account now with any payments to be signed off by Rod Stuart, Kevin McManus and Bill Degen. Donations collected at events and from anyone flying at other times can be deposited into the account and will be used to clear the road when we have enough to pay for it; probably every 3 years or so. There’s a copy of the waiver form at www.hgpg.co.nz/452659/

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April 1st - March 31st. Sponsored by Wings & Waves

April 1st 2017 to March 31st 2018. Top scores at 25/1/2018 Pilot, flight date/time

Site

Distance

Points

Total

Pilot, flight date/time

Site

Distance

Points

Total

Aaron Ford [AaronF] 218.29 p.

1 22.12.17 12:48UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 76.96 km 96.20 p.

2 27.09.17 12:45UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 69.27 km 69.27 p.

3 27.10.17 13:06UTC+13:00 NZsugar loa...

52.82 km 52.82 p.

Dylan Vickerman [centralotago] 214.32 p.

1 02.01.18 13:53UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 73.99 km 92.49 p.

2 27.12.17 12:10UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 64.00 km 80.00 p.

3 28.12.17 12:22UTC+13:00 NZHyde Rock 33.46 km 41.83 p.

Wayne Rohrs [xcjunky] 213.03 p.

1 30.12.17 12:23UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 71.42 km 89.28 p.

2 03.12.17 12:30UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 61.63 km 77.04 p.

3 22.04.17 13:39UTC+12:00 NZTe Rereat... 31.14 km 46.71 p.

Rob Gillard [rob_gillard] 197.37 p.

1 03.12.17 12:26UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 72.84 km 91.05 p.

2 12.11.17 15:10UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 50.74 km 63.43 p.

3 16.12.17 12:45UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 34.31 km 42.89 p.

Stew Karstens [nelpara] 196.23 p.

1 31.10.17 12:24UTC+13:00 NZMt. Murch... 71.05 km 88.81 p.

2 28.10.17 11:57UTC+13:00 NZInwoods 54.95 km 54.95 p.

3 07.12.17 11:02UTC+13:00 NZInwoods 52.47 km 52.47 p.

Elliot Revell-Nash [slowtypinguy] 196.01 p.

1 03.12.17 12:33UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 71.41 km 107.12 p.

2 30.12.17 12:38UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 46.77 km 58.46 p.

3 24.01.18 13:25UTC+13:00 NZmoirs hill 24.34 km 30.43 p.

Leighton Joll [Leighton] 195.69 p.

1 30.12.17 12:20UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 70.17 km 87.71 p.

2 01.01.18 10:23UTC+13:00 NZTe Mata Peak 56.88 km 71.10 p.

3 31.12.17 11:18UTC+13:00 NZPaeroas 36.88 km 36.88 p.

Kat West [katwest] ♀ 192.19 p.

1 22.11.17 12:03UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 38.89 km 77.78 p.

2 28.12.17 13:01UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 64.95 km 64.96 p.

3 27.12.17 13:01UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 49.45 km 49.45 p.

Claus Petry [ClausPetry] 189.94 p.

1 31.10.17 12:24UTC+13:00 NZMt. Murch... 72.81 km 91.01 p.

2 23.11.17 11:50UTC+13:00 NZInwoods 61.58 km 61.58 p.

3 28.10.17 11:52UTC+13:00 NZInwoods 37.35 km 37.35 p.

Barry Baxter [BarryBaxter] 173.72 p.

1 31.10.17 12:30UTC+13:00 NZMt. Murch... 72.34 km 90.43 p.

2 24.11.17 12:50UTC+13:00 NZKourarau 40.35 km 60.53 p.

3 16.12.17 13:30UTC+13:00 NZKourarau 18.21 km 22.76 p.

Ken Beach [ken.beach] 173.45 p.

1 30.12.17 12:33UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 55.05 km 68.81 p.

2 16.12.17 12:27UTC+13:00 NZTe Mata Peak 45.99 km 57.49 p.

3 24.12.17 11:25UTC+13:00 NZTe Mata 37.72 km 47.15 p.

Mark Macdonald [Brick] 171.63 p.

1 30.12.17 12:36UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 49.78 km 62.23 p.

2 12.11.17 15:11UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 43.93 km 54.91 p.

3 03.12.17 11:49UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 43.59 km 54.49 p.

Helen Jeffery [helenjeffery] ♀ 166.40 p.

1 18.12.17 13:39UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 54.91 km 68.64 p.

2 28.12.17 12:53UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 56.64 km 56.64 p.

3 27.12.17 12:43UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 41.12 km 41.12 p.

Robert van Ham [robbo114] 153.69 p.

1 28.10.17 11:13UTC+13:00 NZMt Robert 122.95 km 153.69 p.

Andrew Cavaney [AndrewCavaney] 148.87 p.

1 03.12.17 12:36UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 42.55 km 53.19 p.

2 12.11.17 15:11UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 40.53 km 50.68 p.

3 31.12.17 11:34UTC+13:00 NZPaeroas 45.00 km 0.00 p.

Bruce Vickerman [Bruce.V] 147.91 p.

1 17.11.17 12:52UTC+13:00 NZHospital ...

45.92 km 57.40 p.

2 02.01.18 13:03UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 41.54 km 51.93 p.

3 03.12.17 15:21UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 25.72 km 38.58 p. T Henry Dumbleton [HenryD] 147.68 p.

1 30.12.17 12:32UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 47.59 km 59.49 p.

2 16.12.17 12:38UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 44.59 km 55.73 p.

3 31.12.17 11:22UTC+13:00 NZPaeroas -... 32.46 km 32.46 p.

Ben Kellett [benjamin.kellett] 144.35 p.

1 11.11.17 12:12UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 58.67 km 58.67 p.

2 27.10.17 12:53UTC+13:00 NZSugarloaf... 52.82 km 52.82 p.

3 23.11.17 15:50UTC+13:00 NZmiddle peak 26.29 km 32.86 p.

David Cleary [DCleary] 144.13 p.

1 06.12.17 12:00UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 76.97 km 76.97 p.

For the 2017/2018 season, the online web site for scoring and uploading your track logs is now XContest at: www.xcontest.org/newzealand/

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Photo: Ross Gray

Louis Tapper [yakernz] 664.97 p.

1 22.11.17 11:57UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 160.94 km 321.88 p.

2 22.12.17 12:04UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 138.35 km 207.53 p.

3 28.12.17 12:32UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 67.78 km 135.56 p.

Glen Stevens [Glen_Stevens] 636.52 p.

1 22.11.17 12:33UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 149.30 km 298.60 p.

2 14.11.17 11:58UTC+13:00 NZRoys Peak 99.22 km 198.44 p.

3 13.11.17 13:07UTC+13:00 NZRoys Peak 69.74 km 139.48 p.

Bryan Moore [bryanmoore]

512.98 p.

1 27.10.17 11:53UTC+13:00 NZRoys Peak 123.82 km 247.64 p.

2 01.12.17 11:07UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 133.35 km 166.69 p.

3 11.11.17 12:00UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 78.92 km 98.65 p.

Gert van Maren [gvanmaren] 401.06 p.

1 22.11.17 12:56UTC+13:00 NZMt Maude 92.83 km 185.66 p.

2 14.11.17 14:42UTC+13:00 NZPakituhi 111.99 km 139.99 p.

3 02.01.18 14:35UTC+13:00 NZPakituhi 60.33 km 75.41 p.

David Watson [davidwatson] 340.65 p.

1 14.11.17 12:32UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 122.96 km 122.96 p.

2 06.12.17 12:19UTC+13:00 NZmt alfred...

115.79 km 115.79 p.

3 22.12.17 12:44UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 50.95 km 101.90 p.

Michal Karnik [miketech] 340.50 p.

1 27.10.17 11:56UTC+13:00 NZRoys Peak 62.95 km 125.90 p.

2 27.12.17 13:13UTC+13:00 NZMt McIntosh 90.56 km 113.20 p.

3 18.11.17 13:02UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 81.12 km 101.40 p.

Shaun Gilbert [q2qxc] 329.11 p.

1 16.12.17 12:06UTC+13:00 NZTe Mata Peak 103.65 km 129.56 p.

2 30.12.17 11:04UTC+13:00 NZTuriri 87.19 km 108.99 p.

3 17.12.17 11:27UTC+13:00 NZTe Mata Peak 72.45 km 90.56 p.

Tim Brown [timbrown] 320.48 p.

1 28.12.17 12:35UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 65.92 km 131.84 p.

2 27.12.17 12:31UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 61.54 km 123.08 p.

3 22.12.17 13:13UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 52.45 km 65.56 p.

Vincent Audebert [vatfr] 286.10 p.

1 27.12.17 12:42UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 58.37 km 116.74 p.

2 28.12.17 12:34UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 54.49 km 108.98 p.

3 22.12.17 12:07UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 48.30 km 60.38 p.

Michal Talavasek [Tala] 284.71 p.

1 27.12.17 13:19UTC+13:00 NZMt.McIntosh 90.42 km 113.03 p.

2 18.11.17 13:02UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 85.66 km 107.08 p.

3 28.12.17 13:22UTC+13:00 NZMt.Shrimpton 64.60 km 64.60 p.

Nick Neynens [nneynens] 268.21 p.

1 19.01.18 11:03UTC+13:00 NZSharks Tooth 155.25 km 194.06 p.

2 10.01.18 11:23UTC+13:00 NZMoke lake 36.35 km 45.44 p.

3 10.01.18 17:09UTC+13:00 NZMt Campbell 22.96 km 28.71 p.

Stefano Gigli [stefanogigli] 256.13 p.

1 28.12.17 12:50UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 75.53 km 151.06 p. T 2 27.12.17 12:24UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 56.34 km 56.33 p. T 3 29.12.17 12:24UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 48.74 km 48.74 p. T Doug Patterson [dougpatterson] 251.35 p.

1 27.10.17 12:54UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 55.88 km 111.76 p.

2 18.11.17 11:49UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 70.21 km 70.21 p.

3 29.11.17 12:09UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 34.69 km 69.38 p.

Jan Zimmermann [xcimax] 250.02 p.

1 28.12.17 13:29UTC+13:00 NZCoronet Peak 100.09 km 100.09 p.

2 14.11.17 11:13UTC+13:00 NZMt. Chees... 61.42 km 76.78 p.

3 28.10.17 11:26UTC+13:00 NZMt. Chees... 73.15 km 73.15 p.

Rob Hughes-Games [robhughes-games] 245.49 p.

1 11.11.17 11:50UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 105.46 km 105.46 p.

2 28.10.17 11:54UTC+13:00 NZMt. Chees... 83.56 km 104.45 p.

3 09.10.17 12:58UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 35.58 km 35.58 p.

Roy Tingay [royboy01246] 243.31 p.

1 27.12.17 12:42UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 59.07 km 118.14 p.

2 28.12.17 12:38UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 48.69 km 97.38 p.

3 02.01.18 12:50UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 27.79 km 27.79 p.

Lauris Pumpurs [avio] 237.99 p.

1 17.12.17 13:01UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 78.74 km 118.11 p.

2 30.12.17 12:35UTC+13:00 NZKaimai 47.99 km 59.99 p.

3 31.12.17 11:42UTC+13:00 NZPaeroas 59.89 km 59.89 p.

Mark Hardman [mhardman] 220.01 p.

1 23.12.17 12:35UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 104.75 km 130.94 p. T 2 05.10.17 11:59UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 50.58 km 50.58 p.

3 01.01.18 11:58UTC+13:00 NZTreble Cone 38.48 km 38.49 p. T

NZ Paragliding Competition Committee write up

I

t’s been a good summer so far for flying as I write this on New Years day. Right from early in the season there have been some good flights and records broken, especially ‘down south’.

This season sees the introduction of a new national pilot ranking system, the NZPRS, to replace the old competition ladder. This allows for the use of FTV in competition scoring (there is an article in this magazine explaining what that’s about). The ‘XContest – NZ’ website has sure been getting more and more of a work-out, do be sure to check out the ‘Wandering Kiwi’s’ competition to see how the guys that have travelled overseas have fared.

The PCC has been busy revising the Competition Rules and so hopefully now they are more readable and make more sense! Do take the time to read them.

In late November, Gert van Maren broke the ‘out-and-back’ paragliding record with an 116km flight from Mt Maude near Wanaka and about the same time Louis Tapper broke the NZ FAI triangle record from Treble Cone with 161km.

Johnny Hopper’s Auckland Regional in November got postponed due to weather and on the second attempt they managed one task which in which Jeff Ripley took the prize with a 10km flight and 138 points - a “Raging Success”!

For the Southerners, Angus Tapper from Queenstown, who has been absent from the competition scene for some years, organised and conducted a successful Southern Regional Competition in mid November and then, as per last year, Tim Brown and Louis Tapper organised and ran a fantastic Southern Regional competition over the Christmas-New Year week for which the weather Gods were happy.

Three long tasks were flown in light winds and hot conditions which resulted in the highest scoring regional competition ever in NZ; possibly even beating many of the National competitions, with nearly 3000 points being accumulated over the three days. (There is also a review of this competition in this magazine.)

Congratulations to those who attended.

Next on the competition agenda is the NZ PG Open in Wanaka being organised by Mark Hardman. Currently about 100 pilots are confirmed of 186 applications. It promises to be the largest competition ever held in New Zealand and is attracting a lot of overseas interest. We look forward to that. We look forward to seeing as many of you there as we can. Happy New Flying!

- Tim Brown & the PCC

FTV and the NZPRS in 2017

By Tim Brown

T

his article endeavours to explain simply what FTV is, and does, and why the new NZPRS (NZ Pilot Ranking System) has allowed it to be introduced to New Zealand competitions.

There is also currently a good description of Fixed Total Value (FTV aka Fixed Task Validity) in the Competition Rules.

FTV is a complicated and alternative competition scoring formula for dropping competitors’ scores over a multi-day competition. It is used in lieu of a ‘dropped task’ scoring system whereby a pilot’s lowest scoring task was dropped. With FTV only a percentage of a pilots’ lowest ‘performing’ points are dropped. The ‘performance’ is measured by the amount of points a pilot gets for the day versus the maximum available points for the day.

FTV refers to the fact that a percentage of value is used to calculate the total points available.

Essentially you add up the value of each task in the competition then subtract whatever percentage of FTV is being used (in NZ it is 75%) from that sum. So instead of looking at a pilot’s lowest score and dropping that, FTV looks at your performance each day and drops your lowest relative performing points. The performance rating is calculated by dividing the pilot’s score for the day by the value of the day.

The most immediate advantage of FTV is that it will reward high performance (i.e. you did well) on a lower value (grey sky not much lift/ guys didn’t do well/lots of bomb-out type days) rather than dropping that low scoring task. This means if a pilot flew well on a low ‘value’ task that pilot gets to keep their score and instead be able to drop points from a task where that same pilot didn’t fly as well compared to the rest of the field. Therefore FTV rewards all flying days and skilled flying more than the just ‘dropping tasks’ scoring system.

FTV can handle point percentages for a task and therefore it can better handle competitions that have mismatched flying days.

Consequently, over the last few months, the PCC has instigated the NZPRS which improves the way New Zealand’s leading competition pilots are assessed and how to best encourage pilots to improve their competition skills to be compatible with international standards. That also means encouraging pilots to participate in international events.

This last winter and early summer, numerous NZ pilots competed i n E u ro p e a n a n d A u s t r a l i a n competitions, notably in Kruševo,

Macedonia, where New Zealand was represented by eight pilots and the ever- popular Canungra Cup in Queensland.

Overseas pilots flying in previous New Zealand competitions have lamented the fact that NZ competitions are far too safe and slow because nobody takes risks and ‘leads out’ preferring to stay behind and watch what the other guy does before they make a move!

Traditionally, NZ pilots have not trained to achieve or maintain a high standard of competitive performance at international level as, prior to the new NZPRS, the scoring system favoured consistency in every task and distance covered rather than speed over a course. It did not sufficiently reward tactical risk taking such as leading out.

As a result NZ pilots were generally conservative in tactics and relatively slow compared with overseas competitors.

International competitions are heavily weighted towards rewarding speed (it is a race after all!), and encourage tactical risk taking by using FTV or, dropped tasks, in the competition results. As a consequence of the NZ conservative competition environment NZ pilots have not done well at international level.

Consequently, it was deemed that the previous ‘ladder’ formula was not giving a true indication of our best, most dynamic and most qualified pilots. To rectify this and to encourage pilots to fly faster and to be more competitive the PCC, in liaison with NZHGPA executive officers, have decided to accept world rankings, or a component thereof, (by using an algorithm that is based on the World Paragliding Ranking System (WPRS)) from overseas competitions and to introduce FTV into competition scoring. The new NZPRS has been initialised with the scores from the old National Ladder and will score future National, Regional and overseas competitions in which Kiwi pilots participate according to the new algorithm.

At the task level the introduction of FTV into the scoring changes the task scoring to reward the pilots who go ahead and lead the gaggle (KLO (Kilometer Lead Out) does this).

At the Competition level, KLO and FTV are seen as complementary to each other.

FTV also compensates the pilots who take tactical risks to find a faster way around the course and who push hard even on bad days.

FTV also encourages tactics that

win competitions rather than just individual tasks.

The NZPRS is a ‘competition’ oriented ranking system rather than the previous ‘task’ oriented National Ladder. NZPRS values each pilot’s competition result, including the Regionals, based on the placing of the pilot, the number and quality of pilots and the number of tasks in the competition. In contrast the old system considered each individual task score scaled to a fixed value for Regional Competitions. So in future pilots should employ the tactics that will give them the best competition result rather than the tactics that will give them the best score on individual tasks. The NZPRS setup reflects the current “best” pilots as it uses a time devaluation factor on competition results.

It is hoped that by aligning the New Zealand scoring systems with the world standard that overseas and top end pilots may be more encouraged to visit and participate in New Zealand paragliding competitions which will have corresponding benefits to the conduct of local competitions and the world rankings of local pilots.

References: Southern California League/FTV, NZHGPA Competition Rules, Highcloud Scoring FTV, ‘FTV’

by Tim Cummings2001. *Note: FTV stands for ‘Fixed Total Validity’ but by changing the word ‘Validity’ to ‘Value’ it was found to make the explanation a lot more understandable!

- Queenstown, January 2018 Top Pilot Rankings at 1/01/18 Name PIN Points 1 Louis Tapper 5108 169.45 2 Grant Middendorf 911 151.62 3 Evan Lamberton 2659 147.57 4 Russell Read 1006 137.66 5 Wayne Rohrs 3291 110.58 6 Reuben Muir 1368 106.18 7 Tim Brown 5038 104.6 8 Toni Skerrett 13231 104.03 9 Richard Castro 4519 98.68 10 Jeff Ripley 1474 96.49 11 Derek Divers 3529 95.97 12 Rodger Kerr 4528 90.63 13 Andres Contreras 5885 83.2 14 Mark Hardman 1410 81.27 15 Phil Hystek 5460 80.16 16 Andy Maloney 2232 78.74 17 Sedat Kirtulukoglu 5748 77.95 18 Roy Tingay 4824 76.86 19 Jean Brossard 3857 73.25 20 Elliot Revell-Nash 5135 72.95 21 Bruce Vickerman 2543 71.5 22 Claus Petry 12999 69.93 23 Matt Harrison 4364 69.1 24 Jack Bailey 13444 67.45 25 Eva Keim 1366 64.96 26 Anand Srinivasan 4308 63.76 27 Rob Boyle 4452 63.58 28 Kinga Masztalerz 13121 63.58 29 Rhys Akers 448 62.47 30 Robbo Robinson 2041 61.92 31 Cameron Kennedy 5066 59.64

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January 1st to December 31st

N

ovember and December saw some great XC weather with many new flights entered. John Smith entered a tow flight from Lake Dunstan to become 2017 XC Champ and Derek McKee just held onto longest flight with 116kms.

Geoff Christophers and Les Graham entered a couple of flights each at the Kaimais and Tom Mulder and myself some from Magic Mountain.

The 2018 XC Champs have now started and should see some great XC flight opportunities as temperatures are forecast to be the highest ever.

At this stage we have just a few flights entered but I’m sure there will be some great xc flights done this season.

Best to be out there flying on those great days when they come and turn them into xc. It’s a great summer for cross country.

Airtribune Live tracking For those who want quicker retrieves, get the Airtribune App for your Android smartphone.

Airtribune will track your flight and let your retrieve driver look you up on their smartphone to see exactly where you are. It is limited to cell coverage but apparently satellite trackers like Spot work with it too. It’s easy on the phone battery but it still pays to have a backup battery as well.

Note that Airtribune doesn’t calculate FAI Open Distance from the 2 furtherest points of your flight.

You still need a tracklog for that as explained in the entry section.

The Apple IOS version is hasnt been updated for a couple of years and currently only works at Airtribune contests. Airtribune has recently been sold to a new owner so hopefully an update will come.

ONLINE RESULTS Latest results are posted as they come in at www. hgpg.co.nz and on the NZHGPA website at www. nzhgpa.org.nz/competitions/hg-competitions/ hang-gliding-cross-country-championships (but check if it’s been recently updated).

Online scoring? Not yet, but if you have a 3D GPS you can enter any of the online contests as well. If you do this, just let me know by emailing me a link to your online entry and I’ll copy the data to the NZ HG XC Champs. It should have all we need to enter your flight.

TO ENTER...

It’s free and simple; fly anywhere in NZ before midnight on 31st December, email or post in your flight details (and tracklog if you have one) before 30 days has passed and you’re entered. Enter as many flights as you like. Your shorter flights are automatically replaced by your longer ones. Only your longest four flights are scored.

For each flight entry, please supply; • Your name, email address and contact phone number.

• Flight date, take-off/release place, landing place, and flight distance in kilometres and 10ths.

• Tracklog file from a GPS that can be read by GPSDump, such as an IGC file. Best is a kml file processed by GPSDump.

• If you don’t have a GPS tracklog, then please also supply; Start and landing witness/s name & contact.

A GPS instrument has many advantages for XC flying, but for pilots who don’t have GPS, you can still enter the NZ HG XC Champs without one, you’ll just need to provide take-off and landing witnesses.

GPSDump is free, comes in Windows, Mac and

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The 2017 Cross-Country Championships Final Results

Name Flight 1 Flight 2 Flight 3 Flight 4 Total kms John Smith 115.8 108.0 98.0 36.5 358.2 Geoff Christophers

113.7

76.5

67.6

62.4

320.2

Derek McKee

116.0

96.0

56.0

20.7

288.7

Neil Howe

109.2

69.2

67.3

39.8

285.4

Rick Hawkeswood

106.5

70.2

48.6

38.2

263.5

Leslie Graham 81.7 51.5 47.2 41.6 222.1 Bill Degen 47.8 41.3 28.2 17.9 135.2 Steve Bankier 56.0 30.0 8.0 94.0 Oliver Derry 56.0 19.5 9.0 84.5 Rod Stuart 27.4 19.5 19.0 12.7 78.6 Eddie Pearson 30.0 12.6 10.6 53.2 Cris Lawry 30.0 10.0 8.0 48.0 Marty Smith 20.8 10.0 9.0 4.0 43.8 David Martin

* 15.8 15.1 12.8 43.7

Tom Mulder

20.9

13.9

4.2

4.2

43.3

Robin Campbell 8.0 7.0 2.6 17.6 Dan Campbell 9.0 7.0 16.0 Reece Fisher

12.0 ** Class 2 (rigid wing), * Skyfloater

12.0

The 2018 Cross-Country Championships Table so far...

Name Flight 1 Flight 2 Flight 3 Flight 4 Total kms Bill Degen 86.9 57.5 10.9 155.3 John Smith 120.5 120.5 Tom Mulder 12.3 6.9 19.2

other versions and it reads GPS tracklogs from just about any instrument. It works out the best start and finish points for you automatically. It also works out if the flight fits any other FAI criteria such as out and return, triangle etc. It enables you to export it for viewing in Google Earth in 3D. Download GPSDump at; www.gethome.no/stein.sorensen Rules You must be a paid up NZHGPA member during all flights or you don’t score. Entries must be postmarked or emailed within 30 days of the flight or don’t score. This helps ensure accuracy, prevents pilots holding back flights until the end, and we all want to know how everyone’s doing.

Please DON’T phone, txt, or tell me in the pub, all entries must be in writing (email preferred) with all flight details (and GPS tracklog if using remote launch and/or landings), or do not score. Don’t assume that because someone else was there or you were in a competition that your flight has been entered. It is each pilots’ responsibility to declare and enter full details of their own flight entries.

Measure your flights in kilometres and 10ths of km, straight line from take-off to landing. Optimised flight distances with a Remote Start and/or Remote Finish are welcome, provided you send in a valid, GPS tracklog. Out & return, triangle or multiple distances are not eligible at this stage, however if a enough pilots enter them, I’ll table them.

Aerotow launched flights are permitted, but your release altitude must be less than 5% of the flight distance (current FAI ruling) or does not score.

The flight starts from tow release position (not tow take-off) and verification can be witnessed by the tug pilot, or confirmed with known landmark photo or GPS tracklog.

Note: If you don’t follow the rules by providing all relevant flight details, (including valid tracklog for

remote start or finish flights) you DO NOT SCORE. GLIDER CLASSES Same as FAI rules. Flex wings including kingpostless gliders are Class 1. Rigid wings such as the Atos are Class 5 and Swifts are Class 2 or Class 5 without the pilot fairing.

There’s a special prize for pilots flying skyfloater gliders such as such as the Fun, Falcon, Malibu etc.

30% double surface gliders such as Buzz, Gyro, Mars, Target, Ventura, Malibu etc can be flown in this class too. As long as it has exposed crossbars.

Don’t forget to point it out on your entry if you have an exposed crossbar glider or rigid wing. You can enter in as many classes as you like. Skyfloater flights can be entered in a separate class and/or included in your Class 1 score, whichever you prefer.

Classes can be scored seperately if multiple entries are recieved. Meanwhile they will appear in the table above.

Let me know if your flight is a site record too.

SCORING The pilot with the best total of four flights is the NZ Hang Gliding Cross Country Champion for that year and gets first choice of prizes followed by pilots with second and third best totals. The pilot with the longest single flight gets fourth choice, then prizes go from fourth best total onwards.

Flights for each years XC Champs must be flown between 1 January and 31st December and entered within 30 days. This ends one contest while pilots have good weather and starts the next the contest while everyone’s still keen.

SEND YOUR ENTRY TO; aero@xtra.co.nz (Please write “XC Entry” in the header and please keep your entry separate from other emails) or post entries to; NZ Hang Gliding XC Champs, Bill Degen, 99A Panorama Road, Christchurch 8081

N Z H G P A B OO K ROOM The art of Paragliding

by Dennis Pagen. Instruction manual for beginner to intermediates. Large format 374 pages $80 Hang Gliding Training Manual by Dennis Pagen.

Ultimate guide to Beginner to Advanced hang gliding flying skills $80 Performance Flying by Dennis Pagen. Hang gliding for intermediate to advanced flying skills, includes competition, cross country, towing $80 Understanding the Sky by Dennis Pagen. Sport aviation weather and micrometeorology for hang glider, paraglider and microlight pilots. $60 PARAGLIDING, BEGINNER TO CROSS COUNTRY by Sollom Cook. From basic techniques to competition flying $60 A PILOTS TRAINING MANUAL (PG) Includes zone free, 80 minute DVD with 9 chapters including; forward inflation, reverse inflation, manoeuvres, soaring, flying thermals to landing methods.

Only $65!

NZ Hang Gliding Training Handbook Essential Beginner/ Novice instruction information for NZ hang gliding students learning to fly. $15 NZHGPA Hang Gliding Tow Manual All aspects of towing with clear photographs and step by step instruction $15 NZHGPA Aerotow Manual In depth detail of aerotow procedure as authorised by MAANZ and NZHGPA $15 NZHGPA Paragliding Tow Manual This manual outlines requirements and procedures for towing $15

NZHGPA Logbook With rating record $15

NZHGPA MOVIE LIBRARY FLYING OVER EVEREST, DVD, Angelo D’Arrigo and the story of his flight over Mt Everest.

PLAY GRAVITY, DVD, Extreme paragliding, snowboarding, BASE jumping, freeriding and speedflying in the most awesome settings.

EAST WIND, DVD, German pilots fly hybrid recliner bike/ paramotors 1632 kms across eastern Europe; Hanover to the Black Sea. DYNAMIC DECISIONS, DVD, Shows how different DHV paragliders react when flying the most dangerous manoeuvres.

THE RACE, DVD, A race between climber and pilot in the Italian Dolomites. Winner of 4 world film contests.

Paragliding Learn to Fly, DVD Tutorial for PG Performance Flying, DVD by Jocky Sanderson Never Ending Thermal Pura Vida Flying Security in Flight & The Speed to Fly Birdmen of Kilimanjaro The Red Bull X Alps Managing Risk in Aviation CAA Red Bull X-Alps 2005 Check the NZHGPA web site for the latest special offers In order to cover the high cost of importing HG and PG DVDs, cost of hire and postage is $10 for 10 day loans Postage and GST is included in price.

Please send your order with payment to;

Evan Lamberton, 35A Manly Esplanade, Browns Bay, North Shore City 0630 Ph 09 478 0063, 021 407833 ceo@nzhgpa.org.nz

Hang gliding, paragliding schools and instructors that you can contact for qualified flight instruction in New Zealand NORTHLAND HANG GLIDING Skywalk Guntram Gross, Herman Ahrens Phone: 09 436 0268 or 09 432 9333, 021 072 0357 Email: skywalk@igrin.co.nz AUCKLAND HANG GLIDING Aqua Air Adventure Paddy Monro Phone: 09 528 7594, 027 288 0193 Email: aquaair@ihug.co.nz www.gethigh.co.nz PARAGLIDING SkyWings Paragliding Alan Hills Phone: 09 570 5757, 027 498 2345 Email: alan@skywings.co.nz www.skywings.co.nz Wings & Waves Paragliding and Kitesurfing Reuben Muir and Eva Keim Phone: 09 446 0020, 027 472 7013 Email: info@wingsandwaves.co.nz www.wingsandwaves.co.nz WAIKATO PARAGLIDING Wings & Waves Paragliding and Kitesurfing Reuben Muir and Eva Keim Phone: 09 446 0020, 027 472 7013 Email: info@wingsandwaves.co.nz www.wingsandwaves.co.nz OMAHU, THAMES/PAEROA PARAGLIDING Bruce Vickerman Phone: 07 862 4919, 027 498 9941 Email: bruce.v@clear.net.nz HAWKES BAY PARAGLIDING Airplay Paragliding School Barry Sayer, Phone: 027 451 2886 Email: barry@airplay.co.nz www.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 MANAWATU HANG GLIDING SkyVenture (Manawatu HG & PG Inc. Club School) CFI: Ross Gray Phone: 06 357 8996, 021 126 0892 Email: rosscoe@e3.net.nz WELLINGTON/WAIRARAPA HANG GLIDING Wellington Hang Gliding & Paragliding Club Grant Tatham Phone: 06 379 7322, 027 636 3491 Email: tathams@xtra.co.nz Oceania Paragliding School Chris Connolly, Phone: 022 676 5599 Email; school@oceaniaparagliding. co.nz www.oceaniaparagliding.co.nz

MARLBOROUGH PARAGLIDING High Adventure New Zealand Russell Read Phone: 027 448 0888 Email: russread@ihug.co.nz NELSON/TASMAN HANG GLIDING Nelson Hang Gliding Adventures Glenn Meadows Phone: 03 548 9151, 027 275 1022 Email: gmeadows@clear.net.nz www.flynelson.co.nz Tasman Sky Adventures Trevor Leighton Phone: 027 229 9693 Email: info@skyadventures.co.nz www.skyadventures.co.nz PARAGLIDING Nelson Paragliding Stew and Zanna Karstens Phone: 03 544 1182, 027 446 3930 Email: paragliding@xtra.co.nz www.nelsonparagliding.co.nz CHRISTCHURCH HANG GLIDING Canterbury Hang Gliding School Bill Degen Phone: 03 326 6411, 021 247 2676 Email: aero@xtra.co.nz www.hgpg.co.nz PARAGLIDING Cloudbase Paragliding Grey Hamilton Phone: 027 532 4874 Email: cbparagliding@gmail.com www.cloudbaseparagliding.co.nz ParaPro (Paragliding & Powered Paragliding) Dave Dennis Phone: 03 328 8255, 0508 548 323 Email: info@parapro.co.nz www.parapro.co.nz

WANAKA PARAGLIDING Paraventures Paragliding School Mark Hardman Phone: 0800 FLYSOLO (0800 359 765), 021 809 275 Email: info@paraventures.co.nz QUEENSTOWN PARAGLIDING Infinity Paragliding School Alan Swann & Blake Round Phone: 021 0228 2939 or 027 367 7679 Email: info@infinityparagliding.co.nz www.infinityparagliding.co.nz Extreme Air Hang Gliding & Paragliding School & Tandems Lisa Bradley Phone: 021 156 3256 or +61 45 728 7200 Email: lisa@extremeair.co.nz www.extremeair.co.nz DUNEDIN PARAGLIDING Dunedin Paragliding & Hang Gliding School Lisa Bradley Phone: 021 156 3256 Email: lisa@extremeair.co.nz www.extremeair.co.nz

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Photos: Neil Brown, Ross Gray

NZHGPA

B OO K ROOM

Learn to Fly

■ Paid up NZHGPA members may run one advertisement per classification for free in each issue ■ Please send your written 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 ■ All advertisements are deleted for next issue unless repeat request received ■ Buyers are advised that all used hang gliders and paragliders should have a NEW fitness check (WOF) when sold ■ It is dangerous to fly a glider or with equipment that is above your rated ability ■

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Digifly Air for sale, low airtime, as new condition, reasonable offer wanted for top instrument. Phone 027 359 4542 or email clintfraser@xtra.co.nz RESERVE PARACHUTES RANGE of reserve parachutes for hang gliding and paragliding. Bridles, Front containers, Maillons, Swivels, Hook knives etc, in stock at HG & PG Supplies, Phone 021 247 2676 or email aero@xtra.co.nz ACCESSORIES Helmets, No Limit, Insider, Loop, Breeze (adjustable) and new better fitting PlusMax. Range of colours & sizes, No Limit visor option, PlusMax chinguard option, phone 021 247 2676 email aero@xtra.co.nz INSTRUCTION HANG Gliding/Skyfloating. Experienced instruction in Christchurch using the latest skyfloater hang gliders and equipment, Phone Bill 021 247 2676, 03 326 6411 a.h., email aero@xtra.co.nz and www.hgpg.co.nz EMPLOYMENT TANDEM Pilots wanted for 115 Operation. PGTC preferred. Professionals only please. CV2 wanakaparagliding@gmail.com.

CORONET Peak Tandems Ltd, Queenstown, are looking for tandem hang gliding and paragliding pilots. Call 021 220 5932 SKYTREK Tandems Ltd, Queenstown, are seeking tandem hang gliding and paragliding pilots to join our growing tourism business. Please call Ian on 027 4301 741 or email ian@skytrek.co.nz Lost & found HARNESS, helmet & hang gliding gear, taken from Omarama in 2010. Custom High Energy Tracer harness (black with blue stripe), Lara parachute with swivel, Spot Satellite Messenger, Olympus Mju Tough camera, Charly No Limit helmet (metallic dark silver) with visor, radio headset, Silkbody top, softshell jacket and other gear in black backpack. Contact Bill 03 326 6411, 021 247 2676 or email aero@xtra.co.nz

Keep in touch with the NZ hang gliding and paragliding scene, the latest developments, events, new and used equipment...

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All NZ hang glider and paraglider pilots are required by law to be members, and receive Airborn magazine as part of their membership but non flyers and overseas pilots are welcome to subscribe.

For Airborn SUBSCRIPTIONS please contact; NZHGPA Administrator, 46 Quail Rise, Stoke, Nelson 7011, New Zealand

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Feb/Mar/Apr May/Jun/Jul Aug/Sep/Oct Nov/Dec/Jan 201 202 203 204 197 198 199 200 193 194 195 196 189 190 191 192 185 186 187 188 - - 183 184 179 180 181 182 175 176 177 178 171 172 173 174

Feb/Mar Apr/May Jun/Jul Aug/Sep Oct/Nov Dec/Jan 2008 issue numbers 165 166 167 168 169 170 2007 issue numbers 159 - 161 162 163 164 2006 issue numbers 153 - 155 156 - 158 2005 issue numbers 147 148 149 150 151 152 2004 issue numbers 141 142 143 144 145 2003 issue numbers 135 - 137 138 139 140 2002 issue numbers 129 130 131 132 133 134 2001 issue numbers 123 124 125 126 127 128 2000 issue numbers 117 118 119 120 121 122 1999 issue numbers - - 113 - - 1998 issue numbers 105 106 107 108 109 110 1997 issue numbers 99 100 101 - 103 104 1996 issue numbers 93 94 95 96 97 98 1995 issue numbers - - - - - 1994 issue numbers 81 82 83 84 85 86 1993 issue numbers - 76 - 78 79 80 1992 issue numbers 69 70 71 72 73 74 A5 Issues below $1.- each (Prior to issue 69 all are the smaller A5 format) 1991 issue numbers 63 64 65 66 67 68 1990 issue numbers - 58 59 60 61 62 1989 issue numbers 51 52 53 - 55 56 1988 issue numbers 45 46 - - 49 50

For Back Issues; send your order with payment to; Airborn Back Issues, 99A Panorama Road, Christchurch 8081, NZ

- Sorry issues marked with this symbol are no longer available

PARAGLIDERS APCO Lambada, medium (90-110 kgs total loading) 28.1 m2. Red. 80 cells.

DHV-2. CEN/AFNOR Performance Class. APCO’s top-of-the-line, crosscountry wing in 2006. manufactured Sept. 2005. Airtime:123 logged hours. originally guaranteed for 250 hours or three years. The cloth is 46gm/m2, zero-porosity ripstop with a silicon coating for extra life. The wing has split A-risers for “easy ears,” is in excellent condition, and has been well cared for.

Considering the condition of the wing now, I would consider 300, or more, eventual hours of usable airtime very likely. The wing has been carefully stored, flat and loose, in dry conditions, when not in use. Contact 021 153 3163 or email; helen.lagan@gmail.com MACPARA Proud Supporters of NZ XContest have an exciting range of paragliders for 2018. Checkout the awesome reviews for; ENB Illusion, Hike & Fly Paradis, Elan 2 ENC, Pasha 6 Tandem. Discounts may apply for first orders into NZ, social media pilots/adventurers, chat to Nick Taber tel: 021 420 742 nick@macpara.co.nz facebook @macparanz AIRDESIGN gliders -New this spring; Rise 3 high EN-B, agile handling, top performance with a light weight construction. Check this and other amazing gliders at wildparagliding.com ADVANCE PI 2 23, 14 months old, 5 hours. Plus Easiness 2 harness with airbag and Companion Reserve (100kg). As new. Light and compact. Wanaka based.

Phone/txt. 027 273 0730 or email stevemwanaka@gmail.com OZONE and Advance paragliding equipment at Infinity Paragliding. Check out all the latest Ozone and Advance paragliding equipment at www.infinityparaglding. co.nz. Infinity provide the most extensive range of paragliding equipment in NZ for every skill level, including a full line up of beginner, intermediate, advanced and lightweight mountain gliders and harnesses. www.infinityparagliding.co.nz for all the specs. Drop us a mail or give us a call to secure the best deal on a new glider. info@infinityparagliding.co.nz 021 0228 2939.

PHI Gliders - the latest creations from Hannes Papesh - Symphonia, Sonata... exclusively from SkyWings - the revolution continues - high B performance with EN A safety - www.phi-air.com - Phone Alan 09 570 5757 NOVA Paragliders - www.nova.eu - exclusively by SkyWings - www.skywings. co.nz - email alan@skywings.co.nz NOVA Phantom - www.nova.eu/en/gliders/phantom/- a new class in paragliding - top end Triton 2 performance with low B safety - 99 cells - very expensive, very special - phone Alan 09 570 5757 NOVA Mentor 5 - https://www.nova.eu/en/gliders/mentor-5/EN B - first sizes are here - email alan@skywings.co.nz OZONE Paragliders www.flyozone.com - Awesome new models - 25 years bringing you the best wings - email alan@skywings.co.nz SPEEDFLYING specialists - and dozens of great XC wings - happy to trade all kinds of harnesses in stock as well - www.skywings.co.nz or phone Alan 09 570 5757 MOTOR Paragliding PARAMOTORING - exclusive Miniplane and PAP motors - SkyWings for courses and equipment - www.skywings.co.nz or phone Alan 09 570 5757 BLACKBIRD Paramotor. NZ designed and made. High performance comfort.

Intro pricing $9350 email: paradynamics@xtra.co.nz www.paradynamics. co.nz Phone 03 325 4540.

HANG GLIDERS DESIRE 141, Very good condition for age, spare upright. Suit lighter pilot.

Nice handling, quick to rig up, none of those nasty curved tips to hassle with!

Will consider trades on single surface gliders. $990.00 ono. Contact Peter on 027 752 9650 U2 160. Dacron sail, Mylar/Hydranet LE/TE, Mini battens, Flex-tips. 2012 great condition, has flown approx 300 hours. email - skyriderag@gmail.com , phone 027 670 8301 SKYFLOATERS; New and used; Fun, Falcon, fully strip checked, test flown and trimmed, trade-ins considered, contact Bill at 03 326-6411 or aero@xtra.co.nz MOTOR HANG Gliding MOSQUITO harness, good cond, pod type, pull start. folding carbon fibre prop, and prop brake, $3000 ono. Phone 027 292 3928 or email trevvvster@gmail.com MOSQUITO NRG motorharness, very tidy with very low airtime, electric start, plus folding carbon propellor, stainless auto carabiner, extra fuel tank, and reserve parachute if required. Phone 021 247 2676, email aero@xtra.co.nz INSTRUMENTS NAVITER, Flytec, Digifly, Aircotec flight instruments, audio only mini units and simple vario/altis to full GPS flight computers and even compact flight computers. Large range and new models in stock now. Phone or txt 021 247 2676, email aero@xtra.co.nz

THE COUNTRY CODE 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 fly.

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.

OZONE NZ DEMO TOUR Stefano Gigli is on a nationwide demo tour of the country, North and South and is also a mobile WOF center for paragliders.

Ozone NZ’s home base is Raglan, call by the store and share a coffee, test our entire range of wings and kites or book a kitesurfing or hydrofoil lesson with Morgan 021 024 47902 We are proud to sponsor the NZ PG Nationals, if you are interested in demoing the entire Ozone range and will be visiting Wanaka/Queenstown over the summer season please contact Stefano. 022415031/stefano@ozonenewzealand.com Follow us on Facebook or Instagram for daily updates and please message us if you would like to test the Ozone range. We pride ourselves on being able to offer demos on all our wings, kites, harnesses and accessories.

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 understand.

USE STILES and 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.

Everything you need • Ready to fly – no setup • Extremely responsive & accurate Vario assisted by inertial sensors • Sunlight readable LCD with Touch panel optimised for gloves • Long lasting battery with quick charger • Vector maps for the whole world pre-installed (towns, roads, rivers, lakes etc.)

• Airspace files for most of the world pre-installed and updated • Software fully supports Competition and XC Pilots • Barometric and GPS altimeters • Easy and free software updates • In-flight FAI Triangle Assistant • Customizable data fields • Multiple wing profiles • Thermal Assistant • Wind Assistant • IGC tracklogs • Lightweight • Perfect size • Available in Full or upgradeable Basic versions • And more…

www.naviter.com/oudie-4 http://www.naviter.com/oudie-4/ A i r b o r n 31 aero@xtra.co.nz 03 326 6411 021 247 2676 aero@xtra.co.nz

. Also an exceptional range of harnesses - the new Lightness 2 lightweight POD harness, the Axess 3 Air and Progress 2 reversible. Go to www.infinityparagliding.co.nz or www.advance.ch

Visit our webpage for our weekly special and list of gliders and harnesses in stock.

Don’t see what you want? We’re ordering all the time.

www.skywings.co.nz

www.nova.eu

Exclusive Importers

We stock all Ozone Miniwings - Ultralite 4 - Zero - Litespeed - Firefly 3 - Rapido - Fazer 3

ION 4 EN B Once again, Nova bring the most performance you can get to a School safe glider. And also the most dynamic handling you can have in a first glider.

NEW MENTOR 5 IS HERE!

MINI WINGS Twice the fun, twice the flying, half the price!

Perfect your groundhandling skills. Huge fun for soaring and strong day thermalling. We are the specialists with 20 years on the smallest wings

EN B

The Nova Mentor story is simple: it has led the class by delivering EN C performance with EN B safety. And now the best gets even better!

For many years the Mentor has been setting the standard for XC-intermediate wings. It combines impressive performance with a high degree of passive safety.

The Mentor 5 shows a marked performance increase over the class leading Mentor 4 with excellent precision and agility in the handling.

Weight optimized - all the benefits of a light weight glider and full, heavy duty longevity combined.- only 5kgs for 80-100kgs.

Early indications - performance may be on the level of the Phantom!

PARAMOTORING SPECIALISTS Miniplane - under 20kgs NZ’s most popular motor

NEW NOVA PHANTOM EN/LTF B PHANTOM – the most advanced EN B glider ever created! The PHANTOM offers the safety of a basic intermediate with the performance of a top-end wing.

This has been made possible through probably the most complex construction ever used in a serial-production wing.

The Phantom is a new, completely revotionary paraglider with a similar aspect-ratio to the ION and with 99 cells, it combines the safety of the Ion series with the high-level performance of the EN C Triton 2.

Exceptional directional stability as well as unique precision and simplicity with excellent handling.

27 years motoring & teaching Our level of experience means everything when you learn to motor www.papteam.com www.miniplane.net

HARNESSES Importer of Sup’Air, Nova and Ozone harnesses like the Ozone Ozium - 2.5kgs

MENTOR 5 EN B

Ph: 09 570 5757 Cell: 0274 98 2345 email: alan@skywings.co.nz

www.skywings.co.nz