USHGA Paragliding June 2000 by US Hang Gliding & Paragliding Association

PARAGLIDING ® JUNE 2000

COMP LINES

INCIDENT REPORTS

USHGA DELORME MAPPING SOFTWARE by]im (Sky Dog) Palmieri and Amy Head

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING

UTAH FLYING SITES article and photos by Ken Hudonjorgensen

139 MILES FROM PINE MOUNTAIN, CALIFORNIA COVER: Kevin Hintzy (Firebird Booster) cmd Chris Santacroce (Gin Bandit), high tlbove the north side, Point of the Mountciin, Utah. Photo by Jeffrey Farrell.

JUNE

2000

article and photos hy Tony Deleo

XCEARA -WHAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF article and photos by Marty De Vietti

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES IN PUBLICATIONS: TI1e matel'ial presented here is published as part of an information dissemination service for USHGA members. The USHGA makes no warranties or representations and assumes no liability concerning the validity of any advice, opinion or recommendation expressed in the material. All individuals relying upon the material do so at their own risk. Copyright © 2000 United States Hang Gliding Assn., Inc. All rights reserved to Paragliding and individual contributors.

Gil Dodgen, Managing Editor/Editor-in-Chief Steve Roti, Contributing Editors Dave Pounds, Art Director Will Gadd, Dennis Pagen Staff Writers Office Staff , Phil Bachman, Executive Director, phbachman@ushga.org Jeff Elgart, Advertising, jjelgart@ushga.org Joanne Peterson, Member Services, rjpeterson@ushga.org Cleda Ungles, Member Services, cungles@ushga.org Natalie Hinsley, Merchandise Services, njhinsley@ushga.org

MID-YEAR WISHES

USHGA Officers and Executive Committee:

Fly in fun conditions. Bring one person into the sport. Go to a competition (just to volunteer). Support your local, helpful, professional school. Phone, fax or e-mail in your membership. Have a personal-best flight. You can renew or join easily: 1-800616-6888, www.ushga.org, fax (719) 632-

David Glover, President, david@davidglover.com Mark Ferguson, Vice President, mark@ballvarios.com Bill Bryden, Secretdry,bbryden@hsonline.net Geoff Mumford, Treasurer, gmumford@apa.org REGION 1: ii Bolosky, Steve Roti. REGION 2: Jamie Shelden, Ray Leonard, Scott Gasparian. REGION 3: Ken Baier, John Greynald, Gregg Lawless. REGION 4: Mark Ferguson, Jim Zeiset. REGION 5: Frank Gillette. REGION 6: Jeff Sinason. REGION 7: Bill Bryden. REGION 8: Doug Sharpe. REGION 9: Randy Leggett, Geoff Mumford. REGION 10: David Glover, Matt Taber. REGION ·11: Kent Robinson. REGION 12: Paul Voight. DIRECTORS AT LARGE: Ed Pitman, Paul Rikert, Dan Johnson, Jan Johnson, Dennis Pagen. HONORARY DIRECTORS: G.W. Meadows, Bob Hannah, Randy Adams, John Harris, Steve Kroop, Larry Sanderson (SSA), Chris DuPaul, Gene Matthews, Lars Linde, Ken Brown, Rob Kells, Michael Robertson, Liz Sharp, Russ Locke. EX-OFFICIO DIRECTORS: Art Greenfield (NAA). The United States Hang Gliding Association Inc. is an air sports organization affiliated with the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) which is the official representative of the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI), of the world governing body for sport aviation. The NAA, which represents the U.S. at FAI meetings, has delegated to the USHGA supervision of FAl-related paragliding activities such as record attempts and competition sanctions.

PARAGLIDING magazine is published for paragliding sport enthusiasts to create further interest in the sport, and to provide an educational forum to advance paragliding methods and safety. Contributions are welcome. Anyone is invited to contribute articles, photos and illustrations concerning paragliding activities. If the material is to be returned, a stamped, self-addressed return envelope must be enclosed. Notification must be made of submission to other paragliding publications. PARAGLIDING magazine reserves the right to edit contributions where necessary. The Association and pub Iication do not assume responsibility for the material or opinions of contributors. PARAGLIDING editorial offices: 31441 Santa Margarita Pkwy., Suite A-256, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688, phone (949) 8887363, fax (949) 888-7464, e-mail: GilDodgen@aol.com. The USHGA is a member-controlled sport organization dedicated to the exploration and promotion of all facets of unpowernd ultralight flight, and to the education, training and safety of its membership. Membership is open to anyone interested in this realm of flight. Dues for full membership are $59.00 per year (of which $15 goes to the publication of Paragliding), ($70 non-U.S.); subscription rates only are $35.00 ($46 non-U.S.). Changes of address should be sent six weeks in advance, including name, USHGA number, previous and new address, and a mailing label from a recent issue.

PARAGLIDING (ISSN 1089-1846) is published ten times a year (Jan./Feb., March/April, May, June, July, Aug., Sept.,Oct., Nov., Dec.) by the United States Hang Gliding Association, Inc., 559 E. Pikes Peak Ave., Suite 101, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903-3657 (719) 632-8300. FAX (719) 632-641 7. PERIODICAL POSTAGE is paid at Colorado Springs, CO and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: SEND CHANGE OF ADDRESS TO: PARAGLIDING, P.O. BOX 1330, Colorado Springs, CO 80901-1330.

USHGA President David Glover david@davidglover.com, (706) 657-8485

that you should contact local pilots. Perhaps Jon was referring to a different article? But it never hurts to reiterate, and I must agree with Jon wholeheartedly in that Makapuu is a dangerous site with one pilot death occurring there almost yearly for 20 years at one stage (recent numbers are better). The late Duff King covered this in his excellent article in Hang Gliding magazine (January 1997). He outlines the history and conditions at Makapuu better than I ever could, and I'd recommend it to anyone interested. I didn't want to harp on the dangers of such sites as I was trying to promote Hawaii in general, not scare pilots away. I believe Makapuu can be flown with a degree of safety by experienced pilots in the right conditions, but it deserves the utmost respect.

MORE HAWAII COMMENTS

Brett Snellgrove Pukalani

Dear Editor,

6417. If you have any suggestions or thoughts for the organization, let me know. Thanks.

Dear Editor, I am writing to express my appreciation and support regarding comments made by Jon Goldberg-Hiller and Doug Hoffman on my Hawaii article. While I am not familiar with either of these gentlemen, l do know Pete Michelmore mentioned in Doug's letter. It has been almost 10 years since I have lived on, or flown on Oahu, and things have changed considerably since that time. These newer, local pilots are certain to have more accurate information. Many new launches (such as the one mentioned at Lanikai, which has apparently been improved considerably) and new sites have been developed, and I know Pete has been highly instrumental in this process. I have found Pete to be a most competent instructor, a talented pilot and an amiable guy, and would thoroughly recommend him to all visiting pilots. I cannot, however, comprehend why Jon felt I made Makapuu sound benign! In fact, I went to great lengths to point out that pilots must have a high degree of experience, that this is not a site for the fainthearted, the launch is a vertical cliff, you need to choose conditions carefully, the trades can build unpredictably, there is the danger of being blown over the back, and

PHOTO CREDIT Dear Editor, In last month's excellent article about Dixon White and the Washington Airplay Flight Park (affectionately known as "the Ranch"), I was given credit for many of the photos of the Ranch. fu much as I'd like to take credit for them, most of my pictures have a finger or lens cap in front of them. The pictures were actually taken by the much more competent Dave Masuda and David Levitt. While Dixon does a truly amazing job of running an outstanding paragliding program at the Ranch (and in Arizona), there are a number of other people who have invested incredible effort over the last decade in keeping the Ranch open for paragliding and instruction. They are roo numerous to list, but T need to at least make mention of Don and Jeanne Poirier, Jim Booher, Dick Magee and Johnny Morrow. Without them and Dixon there would be no Washington Airplay Flight Parle Thanks! Jabe Blumenthal Seattle, WA

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JUNE

2000

VOLUME

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ISSUE

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WEATHER TO FLY A much needed instructional video on micrometerology. Dixon White presents straight forward basic concepts that's easy to follow. 50min. $39.95

STARTING PARAGLIDING Covers basic preparations for your first flights. 30min. $29.95

PARAGLIDING-THE COMPLETE GUIDE

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PARAGLIDING-FROM BEGINNER TO XC by Sollom/Cook. A great addition to your paragliding library. Wonderful XC tips. Over l 20 pages with superior illustrations & color photography. $29.95

UNDERSTANDING THE SKY by Dennis Pagen. The most complete book on micrometerology for all sport aviators. Plenty of photos & illustrations. $19.95

FLY HARD CLOUDBASE PARAGLIDING Great intro video. Meet the hot pilots & fly the hot sites. 36min. $34.95

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Weather And Pref ighting by Dixon White

his is the first in a series of columns that will review, step-bystep, concepts concerning weather, and offer flying pointers. Get together with your local instructor and club to discuss these topics in greater detail, and be sure to expand your library of books and videos. This column will recommend certain books and videos, but realize that there may be some ideas that are arguable. Think about these weather concepts even when you aren't going flying. Begin ro identify trends that make for the best coastal flying, thermal conditions, or exhaust heat sessions, commonly called "glass-offs." Give your chums a call who flew on days you couldn't and see how close you can get w predicting the conditions. Be thoughtful about going to new areas and how powerful some atmospheric influences may be when compared to your home sites. There arc some sires that become unruly by 9:00 A/vi in August and others that can be flown all day. There are a couple of clues in the macro view of the atmosphere that can help you visualize approaching weather as early as three days in advance. Planning ahead for the possibility of flying can make the "home" scene and relationship with the boss much better. You might prefer to stay at home to rake care of a list of honey-do's than drive for hours without flying. Through the Internet, television weather reports and the National Weather Service you can find jct stream maps for as much as five days in advance. hir example, you can visit www.weatherchannel.com (www.paraglide.com has a very thorough weather section also), go to

maps, and find the jet stream forecast frir the next five days. In general, however, it seems accurate for only two or three days out. If the jet stream is moving into your area, within I 00 miles, there's a pretty good chance that flying will be switchy (changing direction dramatically within seconds), demanding (gust differentials beyond optimal), or impossible (just too darn strong). Although the jet stream is many thousands of feet over the ground it draws cold fronts, which can then drop the pressure and lower upper-level temperatures, thus reducing stability. The jct stream can also have an influence on surface winds, as strong upper-level winds can mix to the ground once the inversion has melted. You may notice on some days that arc influenced by the jet stream that surface weather conditions can change within a few minutes. You may also notice fastaccumulating cirrus cloud cover with second and third layers of clouds appearing very quickly, indicating degenerating stability. Keep in mind that flying sites at sea level, or near sea level, will be influenced less than high mountain sites. If you are going ro fly in questionable conditions make sure your glider and the site are user-friendly; avoid high-performance gliders and sites with rough terrain. Keep an eye on the cloud development and landing field winds. Land befc1re conditions can make your touchdown eventful. When hooking into your glider practice a determined routine every rime. Always put on your helmet before attaching to the glider. There have been fatalities when pilots were picked up and smacked into obstacles, each other, or the

ground while kiting on flat ground, not to mention on launch. Check your reserve thoroughly from the shoulder attachment points to the pin and handle. Don't leave your extra gear lying on the hill; pack it or stow it in your truck. Lay out your glider and get set up away from the launch area as a matter of politeness. Always do your leg straps first so you don't forget. Any preflight checklist is good. You might use this one, running through the list: R, I, 2, 3, 4, R, 'I'. S. The first "R" is for reserve, "I" is for helmet strap (actually pull on the strap to make sure it's fixed), "2" is for squeezing the carabiners to confirm that they are closed, "3" is to remind you to rng on your three straps (chest and leg straps), "4" is for confirming that your risers aren't twisted by looking at the four corners of the glider (two front risers and the two brake lines), the second "R" is for a radio check, "T" is confirming that you will be rnrning out of your reverse position the correct way, and "S" is for making sure your speed bar is hooked up and routed properly. Completely avoidable accidents have resulted from the lack of a consistent and thorough preflight checklist. Co to the park and practice getting in and out of your gear IO times without a glitch in your preflight. In our next article we will discuss lows, highs and isobars in the weather section, and how and why you should hook into your glider from a reverse position. The videos Starting Paragliding and \':(leather to Ry are my favorites, of course. You should also read Whittal's Paragliding: The Complete Guide and Pagen's Understanding The Sky. When reading Pagen's book you might want to try learning a new concept every day from the list of items in the glossary. Check the index for jct stream to help further your understanding of the discussion in this column.

The author may be contacted at dixon@Dprzraglide.com. - Ed. Ill PARAGLIDING

BALI HIGH VIDEO

he Bali High video, produced by Sea To Sky Productions just premiered at the Garmisch Hang Gliding and Paragliding Film Festival in Germany where it had the honor of being voted the most popular video by the audience. The film features three young American paraglider pilots on an epic paragliding advenrure on the exotic island of Bali, Indonesia. The 38-minute, high-quality video is produced in PAL and VHF and is available from Torrey Pines Gliderporr for $24.95 plus shipping. It may be ordered online at www.flytorrey.com or you may call coll free 1-877-FLY-TEAM.

NEW FROM SUP 1AIR

ing to an upright position is quick and easy with no need to let go of the toggles, as chis ABS harness is made in two halves which slide in and our of one another. Features include: two reserve handles on rhe right shoulder, accessible with the left, right or both hands; top or side reserve extraction; new cordura bottom; large rear storage compartment; outer and inner adjustments to move from an upright to horizontal flying position; 10-cm mousse bag; Twintex plate (al1ti-perforation); bottom protection or ballast compartment; cordura/neoprene wraparound top skirt with two built-in radio/camera pockets; speedbar/foorrest; side pockets; three-liter cockpit/ballast with camera/radio pocket and instrument panel support; speedbar guides; self-locking biners; chest strap with trimmers. The Cocoon 2000 is available in sizes small, medium and large.

Cocoon 2000

he Cocoon 2000 harness from Sup'Air was designed for competition and advanced P4 pilots. It features an "anti-slide" strap, side protection, 10-cm mousse bag, selflocking biners and ballast col1tainer. In addition to new colors, the harness has been thoroughly redesigned. Transition to a flat, streamlined posture is a breeze, and return-

Evolight

he Evolight is a full-blown ABS wraparound, certified light harness with reducedweight alloy mountain buckles, two seating plates, a very light honeycomb plate and a spare wooden one. It is equipped with the newly certified "BumpAir" 17-cm and a six-flap

reserve dorsal parachute container for faster opening. Features include: two built-in reserve parachute straps; three reserve parachute strap protection sleeves; four side adjustments (two adjustable in flight); fully adjustable chest strap; accepts the optional cockpit/ballast; elastic padded shoulder straps; large top storage compartment with built-in , large elastic radio pocket; zippered radio antenna window; bottom zippered storage compartment; two zippered side storage pockets; adjustable seat extension; pulleys for the speed system; speedbar line guides; speedbar storage; tow ready. Folds nicely in an average-size paragliding bag. The Evolight is available in sizes small, medium and large. Contact: www.SupAir-USA.com.

NEW FROM SUPERFLY FrREB!RD MATRIX

uper Fly is proud to announce that Firebird has set a new speed record. The newest DHV 1-2 glider from Firebird, the Matrix, recently broke the DHV speed record for its class by achieving a top speed of 52 km/h! The Matrix incorporates V-ribs and the SAS (Stability At Speed) accelerator system. This speed system dramatically increases speed while keeping the glider very stable. The Matrix is one of the easiest gliders to ground-handle, and has an incredible speed range and sink rate. All this with the incredible security of a very safe DHV 1-2 glider. The Matrix is in stock

PARAGLIDING

quickest draw in the West. ',j

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"The ARCUS is the best all around paraglider that I have ever flown . It has it a ll; speed, g lide, sink rate , great handling, light brake pressure, excellent thermalling characteristics, quality of materials and workmanship. as well as superior stability. There Is no need for a pilot to even own a DHV-2 or DHV 2·3 to get per formance anymore. Everybody from new P·2 's to veteran P -4 'swill be happy with this glider." Wally Anderson Merlin Flight School

"I found the performance and flying enjoyment of Swlng's new ARCUS beyond my expectations. Swing's ARCUS has raised the bar with this newly released entry level gilder. All the speed, performance and looks of a performance glider, in a DHV 1 paraglider. Any student choosing this gilder will likely wear it out, rather than sell It off for greater performance as they progress down the line. Advanced pilots will rediscover the sheer fun of safe flying without feeling overly restricted. My DHV 2-3 is going to have to share air time with the ARCUS as I ended up buying one for myself." Rob von Zabern Paragliding Magazine, July 99

"I never expected a beginning paraglider could have such a fantastic combination of great thermalling performance, eye-watering speed capability, rock-solid stability, and carefree maneuvering. The ARCUS is my idea of a flying dream come true." Mark "Forger" Stucky Paragliding Magazine, July 99

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and available for demo. GIN Cunn1s B11Nnrr uper Fly is pleased to announce the much-anticipated DHV 2 Bandit from Gin Gliders. Using the same construction method as the Bonanza, this little brother ol the famed DHV 2-3 has all the performance with a much higher degree of security, stability and confidence. You'll Feel instantly at home on the Bandir. According to the manufacturer it ground handles exceptionally and turns effortlessly with fine-tuned handling and an excellent sink rate and great glide and speed. Gin uses first-rate materials all around, from the fabric to the pulleys. Bandits arc in stock and available for demo.

0/0NF Cunr11- Cm·1v11c Rmn1 '/~1Nn1:AJ uper Fly is pleased to announce that Ozone's Trndem glider, the Cosmic Rider, has arrived! It has passed tandem certification and received a DHV 1-2. Ozone has worked long and hard to make the Cosmic Rider as user-friendly as possible. The fully cross-braced sail allows for less line, which makes for fewer tangles on launch and less in-flight drag. Beautiful turn coordination and a smooth, dynamic flare for easy landings coupled with top performance for cross-country adventures make for a cosmic ride fi.)r pilot and passenger alike. Cosmic Riders are in stock and available to demo. Please conract your local dealer or Super Fly at infoG_il4supcrfly.com, www.4supcrfly.com.

NIEW THIN RIED LINE EMER~ GENCY PARACHUTE SYSTEM

he majority of emergency parachute deployments occur at less than 200 feet above the ground. In response to this sobering statistic, after many months of development, Thin Red Linc presented their new emergency parachute cornainer and bridle system in combination with the newly patented C:onar parachute by Italy's Metamorfosi at Free Flight 2000 in Germany. The equipment is already used by a number of leading industry test pilots. The DHV-ccrtifi.cd Thin Red Linc container offers noteworthy departures from conventional paraglider emergency parachute container design and can be side- or

JllNE

2000

front-mounted on virtually any paragliding harness. Hook-and-Loop closures have caused many serious deployment malfunctions. The snag-free TRL system uses no Velcro or flaps; it remains fully exposed for fast, pre-flight inspection and predictable deployment. There arc no release pin cords. Release pins arc built directly into the handle with the right amount of flex so that container deployment is controlled and precise. Special EPDM retaining rings help prevent accidental deployment, yet ensure predictably smooth release with under 70 N ( 15.7 lbf) pull force in any direction. The pin loops test at over 300 lbf. The deployment handle is speci ftcally designed to resist tangling after deployment. The high-visibility Tygon handle always maintains its easy-to-grab shape. The deployment bag connecting strap tests at over 800 ]bf In addition, one size fits all. The container is adjustable and compressible in all three dimensions and will fit virtually any solo-size parachute as well as many tandem models. Engineered for performance flying, the container's low-profile, cylindrical shape provides an absolute minimum of encumbrance for even the most radical flying. The price is $130. The Conar chute was designed by Angelo Crapanzano, the first person to receive DHV certification for the now-standard PDA (Pull-Down Apex) design almost 20 years ago. Conar uses a patented "reversed apex cone" which shunts airflow through the apex outward across the top surface of the parachute, giving improved deployment time, sink rate and stability. Already adopted by pilots such as Manfred Ruhmer, Robbie Whittal and Andy Hediger, numerous independent, comparative tests indicate that Conar offers a most exceptional combination of fast deployment time, low sink rate, high stability, minimum weight and premium quality. Four sizes span a ready-to-fly weight range of 140 to 4 50 lbs. While demonstrating among the very best sink rates currently available, these kevlar-reinforced parachutes arc designed extremely small and lightweight for rapid deployment. The l G-gore for 183 lbs. median takeoff weight is only 22 square meters and weighs only 3.62 lbs. including

the deployment bag. The price range is $575 to $875. for more information contact: Thin Red Line Equipment, Inc., (604) 858-2300, thinredlincG_vuniserve.com, www.thin-redlinc.com.

SUN VALLIEY FLY~IN

he local flying community, Sun Valley Paragliders, hosted their second annual fly-in March 31 through April 2. Sponsored by Bigwood Bread, Trinity Springs and Fly Sun Valley the event brought 40 paraglider pilots together from around the country to fly from the Bald Mountain ski area. The focal point of the fly-in was the Dave Bridges Mountain Race. This race, in which 19 pilots participated, including two tandem entries, involved running or hiking from the base lodge at River Run to the summit of Baldy some 3,360 feet higher. All contestants left en masse starting at 8:07 AM, carrying their backpacks with paragliding equipment, and climbed Lower River Run to College, registering at a turnpoint on Baldy's summit. The first contestants, Chris Santacroce of Salt Lake City, Utah and Othar Lawrence of Aspen, Colorado reached the summit, shoulder-to-shoulder in 1:4:5 hours. Both pilots, former Ketchum, Idaho residents and both national paragliding champions, then ran to the top of Limelight Ski Run to launch their gliders in a brisk 12 mph wind and fly to a spot landing (a large loaf of bread baked at the Bigwood Bakery). Pilots were penalized one minute for every foot they landed from the loaf of bread. Chris Santacroce landed just seven minutes after his turnpoint at the summit 12 feet from the spot, relinquishing first place to Othar Lawrence who landed two minutes later on the dough, taking home the $1,000 first prize. Jason Kerrick from Ketchum placed third, ahead of the tandem team of Chuck Smith, co-owner of Fly Sun Valley and his passenger, Cherie Silvera of Aspen. Don Saver from Ketchum on his ·1,·inity Springs paraglider placed fifth. Winds on Baldy meanwhile gained strength, forcing race organizer Carth Callaghan to close the launch before the remaining pilots could get off the ground. The Dave Bridges Mountain Race was

Continued on page 32.

Calendar of events items WILL NOT be listed if only tentative. Please include exact information (event, date, contact name and phone number). Items should be received no later than six weeks prior to the event. We request two months lead time for regional and national meets.

COMPETITION UNTIL DEC. 31: The Michael Champlin World X-C Challenge. No entry fees or pre-registration requirements. Open to paragliders, hang gliders, rigid wings and sailplanes. For more derails visit the contest's Web site at http://www.hanggliding.org or contact: John Scott (310) 447-6234, fax (310) 447-6237, brettonwoods@email.msn.com. AUG. 12-19: First World Paragliding Accuracy Competition. Full derails available from the BHPA at: http://www.bhpa.co. uk/bh pa/ abou c/ contact.html. AUG. 26-30: 2000 French Open National junior Championship, at la Vallee de la Blanche (Dormillouse/St. Vincent !es Forts) and la Vallee de l'Ubaye (Barcelonnette). Organized by Lame in Air and Les Ailes de la Blanche clubs. 21 years old and under only. Contact: http://www.citeweb.net/lpvl/ parasol j r/ an glais/ anglmenL1. h uni, parasol.jr.2000@mailclub.net. SEPT. 9-16: Snowbird X-C Competition. Open-distance event and new state record attempt. No turnpoints, no race. CPS required. Contact: Ken Hudonjorgensen, ·rwo-can Fly Paragliding, 474 E. Tonya Dr., Sandy, UT 84070, (80 I) 572-3414, khudonj0)uswest.net. SEPT. 23-24: Fly ,md Bike Festival, Chelan, WA. Spot-landing contest at Chelan Falls Park, scored on accuracy and landing form. Three best landings count.

Contact: Marilyn Raines (509) 6822251. For accommodations call Chelan Chamber 800-4CHELAN.

FUN FLYING JUNE 30 - JULY 4: The Umpteenth Annual Festival of"Free Flight, Lakeview, OR. Registration and pilot's meetings June 30 and July I at 7:30 PM at Chamber of Commerce headquarters. Cash prizes for both hangers and baggers for most accumulated miles, spot landings and the ever-popular (and pretty difficult) Sugar Hill-Lakeview trophy dash. Fly Lake County's friendly skies (and LZ's) and party afterward. (Kegger at Jules and Mary's on July 3 and you can fly in!) Hang around for the Nats on July 16. Contact: Lake County Chamber of Commerce, 126 N. E St., Lakeview, OR 97630 (541) 94 7-6040, or Jules Gilpatrick (541) 947-3330, freeflice@rransport.com. JULY 8-15: Gorge Games Cross Country Challenge. fly X-C or just come for fun flying. Schedule and sire information updated daily during the week of the Gorge Games on the Cascade Paragliding Club message line at (503) 235-1514. X-C Challenge registration is $5. JULY 15: Gorge Games Fly-In. Spot-landing, duration, altitude gain and combined events make for a full day of fun flying followed by a salmon feed award celebration. Lots of prizes. Pilots' meeting at 9:00 AM. Registration and site information updated daily on the message line. fly-in registration is $35 (includes T-shirt, LZ salmon feed and launch shuttles). Pre-registration information available at Gorge Air (509) 493-2070, or e-mail Jay Carroll at Jamon@Gorge.net, T White at linkwhitetdesign0)mind spring.com. Gorge information page: www.Jfoto.com \CorgeGamesFly In.h tm. JULY 28-AUG. 5: 23 Annual Fete de VrJl Libre, Mont St. Pierre, Quebec, Canada.

Hang gliding and paragliding festival. Three launch areas. Entry $35. Gentle ridge lift to rock 'n' roll convergence with gains to 6,000'. X-C flights common, phenomenal scenery. Contact: Concept Air (418) 545-8368. SEPT. 2-4: I 0th Annual Pine Mountain Paragliding Fly-In, Pinc Mountain, Oregon. Contact: Raven Young (541) 317-8300. SEPT. 4-8: 2000 Mauna Kea Fly-In, Hawaii. Weather is more favorable in September, airfares lower and accommodations and car rentals more easily available. Fun fly-in designed for intermediate to advanced pilots. Entry fee of $2 50 includes airport pickup, five days of 4wd transportation, retrieval, guide and statcof.-the-art weather information. HG and PG pilots invited. Contact: Achim Hagemann, (808) 968-6856, tofly@excire.com. OCT. 28-29: Womens Halloween Costume Fly-In, Chelan, WA. Prizes for best costume, best food, best flying contraption and more. Contact: Marilyn Raines (509) 682-2251. for accommodations call Chelan Chamber 800-4CHELAN.

CLINICS/MEETIN GS/TO URS OWENS VALLEY 2000: Fly with a World Champion, 10-time National Champion and X-C world record holder Kari Castle as your guide in the Owens. Private one-on-one or group instruction available. further your flying education. Contact: Kari Castle (760) 872-2087, karicastle@telis.org, www.norrhwestout doors.com/fly/ 2000: Flying in Brazil 2000. Wonderful warm weather, flying in an exotic setting. Be part of the Adventure Sports trip to Covenador Valadarez, Brazil. Experienced instructors and guides. Take side-trips to Carnival or any of the beautiful beaches.

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PARAGLIDING

12 days, $1,200 for paragliders, $1,400 for hang gliders. Includes room with breakfast and lunch, ride to launch, retrieval and guided tour. Save $100; register by Nov. 15, 1999. Contact: (775) 883-7070, www.pyramid.net/advspts.

tions and prerequisites visit www.twocanfly.com.

whole weekend. Tows extra but cheap! Prizes from Superfly! JULY 8-16: P11ragliding trip with intro to cross-country flying in the Chamonix Valley and Annecy in the french Alps. X-C clinic with GMI PG School and Centre Ecole Parapente with Philippe Renaudin and Philippe Mogeny. $1,400 includes all transport, cable car rides, instruction by federal instructors, equipment if needed, bed, breakfast, dinner and full insurance. Physical required for insurance. Contact: (51 G) 676-7599, supair@macconnect.com.

UNTIL OCT. huo-Can Fly p1mzgliding clinics, by Ken Hudonjorgensen, Point of

JUNE 23-25: Grouped Pairs, three pairs per group. A pair consists of an Ace and Wingman. Air-to-air training, on-board video. Cost $300. All levels welcome. JUNE30-JULY 1, JULY7-8,JULY 14-15, JULY 21-22, JULY 28-29: Weel.:end Wing Enhancer. Cusrom-tailorcd, intense personal development of paragliding skills and strategics for longterm flight development. Enhanced training using in-flight video and written summaries to critique flying flaws and deficiencies. $75 per day or $1 50 per weekend. AUG. 4-6, AUG. 25-27: Grouped Pr1irs. OCT. 20-22: Bajt1 Fhcrmf/l Clinic. Best thermal skill development sire in the western hemisphere, just 40 minutes south of San Diego, CA. Three days of intense thermal flying development and fun. Pees include pickup and delivery from resort to LZ every day, breakfast buffet, campsite fees, shower, pool and spa. Bring a friend or spouse, only $225. Contact: Torrey Pines (CA) Gliderporr, Dclbcllo or David Jebb, 1877-FLY-TEAM, (858) 452-9858, (619) (165-3477, aircal@ix.netcom.com.

the Mountain and Utah mountain sires. JUNE 25: Intro to X-C (Olympus to ... ). JULY 28-30: Thermal. AUG. 1-3, 4-6: Safety Manezwers Clinics with Chris Santacroce and Ken Hudonjorgensen at Strawberry Reservoir, Utah. AUG. 26-SEPT. 9: X-C lntensi1Je and Snowbird/UT X-C Competition. SEPT. 1-3: Thermal. SEPT. 22-26: X-C lr11ining Competition. friendly comp with instruction from Ken Hudonjorgcnsen, Dale Covington and U.S. team members Todd Bibler, Bill Belcourt and Mary Anne Karren. OCT. 7-8: Mountain Flying. OCT. 13-16: Instructor Ti'llining. OCT. 21-22: landem (T2 and T3). OCT. 28-29: Instructor Recertifimtion. Contact: Ken Hudonjorgcnsen, ·1wo-can fly Paragliding, 474 E. Tonya Dr., Sandy, UT 84070, (80 I) 572-3414, khudonj(dluswest.ner. For clinic descrip-

JUNE 23-25: Central Texas X-C Clinic. Come fly flatland X-C with Will Gadd in the pleasant thermals of central Texas. Classroom discussion each morning and evening on thermal skills, X-C strategy, weather analysis and technology cricks, then X-C: flying each afternoon. Open to all P2 and above pilots with towing experience. June 23 evening: slideshow and lecture at the Hearne Airpark. June 24: rowing and X-C at the Hearn Airpark. June 25: Packsaddle Mm. X-C record attempts. Signup: Chris.Hilliard@COMPAQ.com, gadd@gravsports.com, or Nancy at Mojo's, shop(filmojosgear.com. Visit hrrp://www.gravsports.com for more info, or call Chris Hilliard (713) 545-1705. Cost: $75 for f<riday and Saturday, $75 for Sunday (including Packsaddle launch fee), $125 for the

THROUGH SEPT. Cross-Country Excellence Clinics. Join Airplay X-C and thermal specialists Mark Telep and Dixon White for intense thermal and X-C skills development. Thorough training on active piloting, reading terrain, weather, reserves and more. fly at the famous Chelan Butte where many pilots have had their best X-C flights. Air-conditioned luxury retrieval vehicles, glider demos and more. Lodging options available with complete transportation. Seven-day clinics: JUNE 4-10, JUNE 18-24, JULY 2-8, AUG. 20-26 and SEPT. 3-9. Three-day clinics: JULY 14-16th, AUG. 4-6 and AUG. 11-13. Maximum of four clients per clinic. Sign up now for the most valuable clinic you'll ever take. (Take more than one!) Contact: (509) 782-5543, dixon0'paragl ide.com.

JUNE

2000

JULY 15-16: Powered Par11gliding Clinic by USHGA Certified Advanced Instructor Hugh Murphy. The California's central coast is the most beautiful place in the country to develop the skills unique to motorized paragliding. Syllabus covers a smooth transition from paragliding to motorized paragliding with a safe, easy learning curve. JULY 22-23: Californit1 Coast Ridge Soaring Clinic by Hugh Murphy. Soar the Golden State's beautiful coastal sites from Monterey Bay to Santa Barbara in smooth ocean breezes. JULY 29-30: High Wind Clinic by Hugh Murphy. Take your paraglider confidently all the way to the top of its speed range in the ultimate safety of our soft sand dunes. Clinic will increase pilot's control authority and confidence in strong-wind launch and landing techniques. Make reservations early. AUG. 11-12: Powered Pamgliding Clinic. AUG. 18-19: California Coast Ridge Soaring Clinic. AUG. 25-26: High Wind Clinic. Contact: Surf The Sky Paragliding, (805) 772-8989, www.bmac.net/paragliding. AUG: 8-10, 11-13: Three-day Pr1msoft Sdftty Clinics, with scooter winch. Six participants max, Lake McConahay, Nebraska, three hours northeast of Denver Contact: h rtp://parasoft:. bou Ider. net/ safety.html.

field. The ubiquitous Brazilian kids showed up and helped me gcr packed and carry my gear to shelter before· the rain hir. Mall had headed back into the teeth of the storm and landed in town. Then there wa.1 a solidly rainv dav, which allowed ri111c to modify gec;r and lcar;1 our way around town. This wa.1 the start of Carnevale, and I'd expected huge street parties, but instead all the local partiers had headed our lo rhe big cirie.1, so things were unusually quiet for a week. ( )n the second day or the meet the fir.it task of the !'cm-Americans .1aw a rush on launch. The 180 pilots were jockeying for the half~dozcn launch slots, some of which provided only rnough space to rake rwo steps back before encoumering a steep rock slab. One pilot took a ru111ble ,rnd ended up perched on a ledge 50 feet below launch. Ir was a good ri111c to feel comf,,rtahk with rhe light-wind launch characteristics or your glider. The day looked moist. Base wa.1 500 feet above launch. I a.1ked Mart if he thought there was anv chance or the task being canceled if a cunim moved onto rhe course. Drawing on his experience with Brazilian meets from the Xccara and l Iigh Level meets, he said no. Cood information ro have. So, when, sure enough, a big hl.1ck cloud started chasing us ,1lo11g the course I knew the score. I could look back and sec gliders flying around happily (or in control anyway) right in front or. the black ma.1.s. There was no wind or great danger .1ssociated with it .so I pres.1ed on, hoping that the rain might trigger some extra lift, bur I was still circling in I 00 0

Tnree WeeKS In Brazil by josh Cohn

fter meeting up with Matt Taggarr (from the U I<) and Peter Simonic1 (from Hungary) in Rio, we hopped on the next bus to Covernador Valadares. I r's only IO hours on winding roads with an obviously race-trained bus driver. The landscape in this part of Brazil is a bit surreal: hilly with gr,rnitc do111cs like gumdrops sticking up here and there. We rolled our o( the bus, dazed at midnight, and rnok a taxi to rhe hotel Peter rcco111mendcd, which we later realized was three blocks from the bus station. Matt and I slept in and missed the otl-1cial practice-day transport. So alter some waiting and raking in the ,nmosphere of downrnwn Valadarc.1, we took a uxi and had the fastest ride up to launch of the three weeks we'd be there. The launch is 011 a solitary granite dome 2,000 feet above a wwn called Ibituruna. I launched off with nw brand new Woodv Valley harness and l,,und '.,ut that I hadn't ']L;ite got it adjusted right hanging in the simulator. Fortunately, the conditiom were smooth, 1omething I would marvel at again and again. Matt and I headed out 011 rhc regular X-C: route to the south. Meanwhile, l was getting 111)' harness soned out. Then: were pkntiful fields to land in along the roads, bur hey, wait a minute - was that .1tanding water in rlut Vick!? It had apparently been a wet season. Evervthing was green, if nor actually swampy. Soon the source of all rhi.1 greenness showed up and chased us out of the sky. I landed in a nice, big, and thankfully dry

fr,n1. 1-'or a half~mile stretch I flew through a solid sheer of rain and got soaked. Ir was amazing that nw Ball "ario was unhurt by the drenching and the harness even kept my reserve dry. Then it was back to dribbling along, having to fly fast rnough Lo sLt\' ,1head ol· the rain. I finally got to base and was able to go foster for a while. Then it was a fasr glide in to goal, made exciting by a close l!nish for till' .F-km task. I bear Tsuji Tsuymhi by IO seconds in to goal. hank Brown, Kawachi Masaraka and Fred Fscriba were close behind. We each landed and huddled under the eighr-l,,ot-sc1uare tclll by the goal line as a downpour came in after us. Many pilots were airing out wet gear in rhe last rays of .sun that evening. The third d.1v .1aw a 'i.'l-km race to Dom C:a\'ati. The crux· was the first 30 km to reach the ridge, and then ir was fairly straightforward. Twcmy-onc pilots made goal, with top Brazilian pilot Frank Brown winning the day. I made goal. bur slowlv, having got1en an earlier start rime rlian rhe pilms with whom I flew the second half of the course. I don't like multiple start rimes, sinl'l' you get to goal and wonder who won. Nobody knows until the C l'S's are checked. On rhc fourth day I lost my gaggle and did a solo low-level excursion over some fairly remote terrain. I had .1ome great low saves and flying with vultures hd,,re landing in a les1-remote valle). Had a cool retrieve with Luis Rosenkjcr on a

horse can. The incredibly consi.stem Kawachi Masaraka won this day. The vulrures here .seem to have an easy life, bred on the plcntifol, big, soft thermals. They go from thermal to rher111al, not bothering to find rhe best core, so it is important to rake the sight of birds circling here with a grain of salt, to see if they're acrnally climbing well. Several rimes on this trip I saw gaggles ofa hundred or so vultur'l's. I also saw a near head-on midair between a vultme and a paraglidn pilot. I heard a yell and saw a comp glider on the edge of stall, while the vulture screeched and dove out of the way. On the fifth dav I had a hrn, racy start, connecting the dots bc;ween nice pufl-y 'clouds. Arriving at cloud base with Frank Brown, with goal in sight, we went for it, bm rhere was a lot of headwind ro the last rnrnpoinr and out our group of live who rounded it only one got up on the low hills beyond and made goal. Pablo Melendez ol· Argentina won the day, with several others at goal. On the la.st day or the meet I found my first hit of rowdy air, diving into the lee o( some small hills after some swifts. The Quarx handled the wringing out beautifully and we climbed out, only ro land on the other side or the next ridge half an hour later. I thought I'd have a long walk our, bur Andre Fleury's (Brazil) truck showed up with a handfol of pilots in it and they stuck me in too. We drove to goal with the obligatory stop at a bar on the way. The meet was over, but the organization was in disarray, trying to get rhe scores out in time. It seemed like every rime I got to sec the results (not as olten a.s I'd hoped) there was a problem with my .1core. I starred to feel like a complainer. My complaint about the fir.it day's .1corc was l1xcd sevnal days later, and was never fixed on the website. But the topper was when two of the five U.S. pilots were omitted from our team score. Meanwhile, ir was newr quitL' clear which five or the 80 Brazilian pilots were meant to be rhc Brazilian ream. So with a slight home-field advantage, rhc Brazilians won rhe team event. Kawashi won the open, 1:rank Brown won the Pan-Ams, with me second, and I won the serial in both divisions. The weather went fro111 marginal to worse l,,r the !'WC. Days of rain reduced the dirt sections of the road to launch to mudslides. On two days, pilots leapt from a 40-per.1011 flatbed truck sliding out of control. A French pilor sustained minor injuries from this maneuver when the truck slid into him. The last and best task, with acrual moderately racy condirion.1, was invalidated due to a screw-up at the start gate. Sec the pwca.org site for dcrail.1. l'cl scheduled one day and night in Rio on the way our, bur not real Iv being in a party 11100d, and with poor flying weather, I shortened ir to half a da)'. I never really acclimared to the hur and humidity, and it wa1 a relief to get back lo Boulder, Colorado. II

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·,

Delorme Mapping Software EXPAND YOUR FLYING HORIZONS by Jim (Sky Dog) Palmieri and Amy Head

or being familiar with an area 1 am about to fly is both exciting and anxiety producing because ir is something new to me. Nor knowing the topography of a new area has the potential to put most pilots on a "shore leash. " As a pilot explores an area, char leash usually gets longer. We use road maps, hand-sketched maps, topographic maps and word of mouth to try co get an overview of a fl ying area. Unlike lucky pilots who are either self-employed or are in the hang gliding or paragliding business, I am just a weekend pilot. I reach school during rhe week and find it impossible co gee away co fly most weekdays. I do not have a desire to make long X-C flights. Probably the single most importam factor inhibiting me is being unaware of the areas over which I will be flying. I have always said char I would trade a year of my life to be an eagle or a red-tail hawk for a day. I have often famasized about this. Having a three-dimensional overview of an area is something only a raptor can claim - chat is, until recently when Delorme released its 3-D TopoQuad CD-ROM. Most pilots are familiar with the highquality Delorme Atlas & Gazetteer series. I have used the Atlas & Gazetteer topographic maps extensively. They stay in my Jeep, and all the sites I have ever flown are marked in detail on the pages. I have also used Delorme Street Atlas USA and AM Map 'n' Go on CD-ROM, as well as the company's Earchmate GPS receiver. These allow me to plan my combined flying and vacationing trips and help co give me an overview of new flying areas. I highly recommend them. Late in January I received rwo CD-

As a pilot I spend an inordinate amount of time studying the micrometeorology and geography ofareas where I fly. Many pilots feel more comfortable when flying sites closer to home because they have a better feel for the local topographic features. When visiting a new flying site, it is important for me to talk to local pilots so I can pick their brains about the local area.

A 2-D map of Utah with Point ofthe Mountain centered This map illustrated standard topographical features showing towns, highways, mountains and water systems.

PARAGLIDING

ROM programs fro m D el orme. O ne was Delorme Topo USA 2. 0, three-dim ensional, to pographic m aps of rhe enti re Un ired Stares (o ne C D-ROM) and rh e o th er was rhe co mpan y's new 3 -D TopoQuads program fo r Virginia and Washin gton , D C (fi ve C D 's) . I spent fi ve hours at the co mputer playing w ith the maps; I just co uld no t break away. The qualiry was so h igh and th e in fo rmation so detailed that I call ed rhe pres ident of D el o rme, Mr. Go rdo n Pow, and spoke w ith him abo ut rhe programs and how valuable they wo uld be fo r bo th hang glider and paraglider pilo ts. Th e product of that co nversatio n is this article. Below, I will list several of th e D el o rme C D-ROM program s, whi ch I see as useful to pil o ts. I will compare rhe products using rhe Point of rhe Mountain and Fri sco Peak, U tah, as stand ard reference po ints fo r comparison purposes.

STREET ATLAS 7.0 T hi s is a detailed street-level map of the entire U.S. which is useful in m app ing o ut fl ying o r personal trips. Street Atlas is compatible with th e Delorme Eanhmare G PS receiver and will en able yo u to make add ress-to-address routes. It can be used with yo ur laptop computer in yo ur vehicl e, as yo u wo uld use the new Garmin III Plus G PS, or ir ca n also interface with seve ral Palm O S or laptop co mpu ting devices. AAA MAP 'N' GO 5.0 This is sim ilar to Street Atlas USA but has grea ter detail for lodgings, resrauranrs, campgrou nds and po ints-of-interest in fo rm ati on . Trips can be broken down in rn time o r d istance segm ents. It also in cl udes highway-level m aps fo r Canada and Mexico. TOPO USA 2.0 DVD Seamless rnpographic coverage fo r the entire U nited States on one DVD di sk or six CD- RO M disks. T his program all ows a p ilot to loca te an y place in the U.S. quickly. Sea rches can be made by p lace nam e, geographic fea mres, stree t or latitude/ longitude readin gs, and viewed ar stree t-l evel derail. Cross-country trips can be pro filed in 2-D or 3-0 by distance, eleva tio n or grade. Maps can be cusContinued on page 48. * Refers to actual flying site. 11 Refers to the actual launch area. J UNE

2000

A 3 -D view ofPoint ofthe Mountain from an east-to-west perspective. Salt Lake City is straight ahead and mountains to the right and left of the Benches. 11

Intermediate Syndrome by Peter Reagan

he firsr exrremely serious accidenr of rhe year befell a 31-year-old pilor wirh only one year of experience bur already 100 hours of airtime. This optimistic, inrense and very enthusiasric individual had already been given his advanced rating, and had competed in a narional evenr. A few days before the mishap he had upgraded to a DHV 2-3 wmg. He had arrived ar his hometown mounrain thermal sire in rhe early morning of a day wirh a forecasted frontal passage. Conditions could become challenging, bur many good cross-counrry flighrs had occurred under similar circumsrances, and in rhe morning the wind was lighr. The pilot flew by himself for a while, toplanded, called some friends ro ask for company, then flew down to meer one of rhem in rhe LZ. The rwo drove back up bur noticed on launch rhar condirions were picking up, roughly as expected. The victim was all set up ro fly, and launched in rhe firsr availab le lull. His partner was methodically gerting ready but noriced rhar rhe pilor was experiencing srrong winds overhead. He radioed a suggesrion rhar rhe pilor fl y out away from the hill ro land, bur his radio barrery died. During a brief lull rhe pilor in rhe air decided ro fly back roward rhe primary LZ, closer ro rhe hill and subjeer ro more turbulence . Before he gor rhere he experienced a 50% asymmerric collapse and recovery, and then very srrong rhermal lifr. He flew srraighr rhrough it, and rhen, ar about GOO feer AGL experienced a cascade of even rs beginning with an 80% asymmetric collapse. There followed a surge, a full fronral collapse, significanr rorarion, parrial recovery, and then a second 80 % asymmerric collapse and surge/spiral inro rhe ground. The friend estimates five seconds elapsed

during rhe cascade. By then rhere were 30 mph gusrs on launch. The victim crashed in a neighborhood, impacring on an uprighr fence posr. EMT response was immediare. He was very severely injured and inicially unconscious, wirh C4 spinal injury, mulriple thoracic and lumbar fractures , hip dislocarion, and liver and spleen lacerarions. His course has been complex and discouraging with multiple medical complicarions and he remains in inrensive care, quadriplegic, semi-responsive and on a vencilaror rwo monrhs larer. His survival is in doubr. The witness felr rhac che victim had a few options ro improve his chances while in the air. During rhe lull he could have flown away from the hill. When he stumbled inro big lift on the way back he could have cried ro gain alcicude again ro gee clear of the area of maximum turbulence. Precise piloting may have interrupred the cascade of discontrol. Most imporcandy, he could have thrown his reserve. There's a lot ro learn from chis exrremely serious acciden r. In cri rical situations, split-second, perfect decision-making might save the day. Maneuvers rraining may help, bur could also contribute ro the problem on occasion if the pilot becomes overconfident, since rhe induced evenrs are much easier ro manage than is severe turbulence. Sometimes the perfecr decision is ro go hands up and lee the wing sort itself our. This is exrremely difficulr ro do in rhe heat of rhe momenc, and doesn't come naturally ro the acrion-orienred pilor. Second, the choice ro rhrow one's reserve muse be made somerime during a scenario like chis and with enough altitude for it ro work. We've all experienced rnrbulence, and rhe wing has always recovered. Therefore we assume ir always will. Third, a dead rad io barrery may well

have conrributed ro rhe initiarion of rhe event. Tc is our observarion rhat dead radio barreries are facrored inro many accident reports over the years. Good communicarion really does have the porential ro decrease risk. And bad luck was involved. The injuries were far worse because he hit a fence posr. Small obstacles seem ro be more dangerous than we perceive, perhaps partly because rhey look so licde from rhe air. We need ro increase our awareness of chem , and where possible, remove them from launches and LZ's. Bue by far the mosc critical iss ue raised by rhis event is rhe recognition of incermediare syndrome and its cardinal symprom, rhe purchase of a high-performance wing. I find it most disrressing to be reporring yet another very severe event, a year after chree of four facal paragliding accidenrs occurred ro Master-level pilots on highperformance or competition wings. Please think long and hard before you buy a DHV 2-3 or higher wing. For the vast majority of pilots (rhis probably means you), yo u pay more money, gee a glider thac's impossible ro resell, and the only change in yo ur fl ying is that yo u are in greater danger. Hoc wings feel very safe when you demo rhem in moderate condicions, bur they are much harder ro fly in ugly air. The only significant performance difference is rop speed. Sink rares are really comparable. You may save seconds or minures in a race, bur a DHV 1-2 wing is every bir as likely ro make a long crossco untry rrip. In many cases you are more likely ro succeed in cross-coun rry fl yi ng with a more srable wing because yo u can handle rougher condirions. The purpose of paragliding is nor ro fl y as fasr as possible - char's whar rhe X-15 was for. A hot wing does not give you more value for your money, and you are significandy more likely ro die. If yo u are still daydreaming abo ur a hot wing, yo u are either flyin g for a Jiving and competing regularly, or you have intermediate syndrome. This common and extremely insidious condirion is very difficulr ro self-diagnose. Do yo u have berween 50 and 200 hours of airrime? Are PARAGLIDING

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RELEASE, WAIVER AND ASSUMPTION OF RISK AGREEMENT In consideration of the benefits to be derived from membership in the USHGA, (Pilo~ and the parent or legal guardian of Pilot if Pilotis a minor, for themselves, their personal representatives, heirs, executors, next of kin, spouses, minor children and assigns, do agree as follows: A. DEFINITIONS - The following definitions apply to terms used in this Agreement: I. "PARTICIPATION IN THE SPORT means launching (and/or assisting another in launching), flying (whether as pilot in command or otherwise) and/or landing (including, but not limited to, crashing) a hang glider or paraglider. 2. "SPORTS INJURIES' means personal injury, bodily injury, death, property damage and/or any other personal or financial injury sustained by Pilotas a result of Pilot's PARTICIPATION IN THE SPORTand/or as a result of the administration of any USHGA programs (for example: the Pilot Proficiency System). If Pilotis under 18 years of age, the term" SPORTS INJURIES"means personal injury, bodily injury, death, property damage and/or any other personal or financial injury sustained by Pilot as well as personal injury, bodily injury, death, property damage and/or any other personal or financial injury sustained by Pilot'.sparents or legal guardians, as a result of Pilot's PARTICIPATION IN THE SPORTand/or as a result of the administration of any USHGA programs. 3. "RELEASED PARTIES' means the following, including their owners, officers, directors, agents, spouses, employees, officials (elected or otherwise), members, independent contractors, sub-contractors, lessors and lessees: a) The United States Hang Gliding Association, a California Non-profit Corporation (USHGA); b) Each of the person(s) sponsoring and/or participating in the administration of Pilot's proficiency rating(s); c) Each of the hang gliding and/or paragliding organizations which are chapters of the USHGA; d) The United States Of America and each of the city(ies), town(s), county(ies), State(s) and/or other political subdivisions or governmental agencies within whose jurisdictions Pi/otlaunches, flies and/or lands; e) Each of the property owners on or over whose property Pilotmay launch, fly and/or land; ij All persons involved, in any manner, in the sports of hang gliding and/or paragliding at the site(s) where Pilot PARTICIPATES IN THE SPORl "All persons involved" include, but are not limited to, spectators, hang glider and/or paraglider pilots, assistants, drivers, instructors, observers, and owners of hang gliding and/or paragliding equipment; and g) All other persons lawfully present at the site(s) during Pilot's PARTICIPATION IN THE SPORT. B. I FOREVER RELEASE AND DISCHARGE the RELEASED PARTIESfrom any and all liabilities, claims, demands, or causes of action that I may hereafter have for SPORTS INJURIES, however caused, even if caused by the negligence (whether active or passive) of any of the RELEASED PARTIES, to the fullest extent allowed by law. C. I WILL NOT SUE OR MAKE ACLAIM against any of the RELEASED PARTIESfor loss or damage on account of SPORTS INJURIES. If Iviolate this agreement by filing such a suit or making such a claim, Iwill pay all attorneys' fees and costs of the RELEASED PARTIES. D. I AGREE THAT this AGREEMENT shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California. All disputes and matters whatsoever arising under, in connection with or incident to this Agreement shall be litigated, if at all, in and before a Court located in the State of California, U.S.A. to the exclusion of the Courts of any other State or Country. E. SEVERABLILITY. If any part, article, paragraph, sentence or clause of this Agreement is not enforceable, the affected provision shall be curtailed and limited only to the extent necessary to bring it within the requirements of the law, and the remainder of the Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. F. I REPRESENT THAT Pilotis at least 18 years of age, or, that I am the parent or legal guardian of Pilot and am making this agreement on behalf of myself and Pilot If I am the parent or legal guardian of Pilot, I AGREE TO INDEMNIFY AND REIMBURSE the RELEASED PARTIES for their defense and indemnity from any claim or liability in the event that P,lotsuffers SPORTS INJURIES as a result of Pilot's PARTICIPATION IN THE SPORT, even if caused in whole or in part by the negligence (whether active or passive) of any of the RELEASED PARTIES.

G. I VOLUNTARILY ASSUME ALL RISKS, KNOWN AND UNKNOWN, OF SPORTS INJURIES, HOWEVER CAUSED, EVEN IF CAUSED IN WHOLE OR IN PART BY THE ACTION, INACTION, OR NEGLIGENCE OF THE RELEASED PARTIES, TO THE FULLEST EXTENT ALLOWED BY LAW. I have read, understand, and agree to the above RELEASE, WAIVER AND ASSUMPTION OF RISK AGREEMENT. Adult Pilot's Jifnature

ftin,lture ofPilot's Parent or Lepl Guardiiln ifPilot under 18ymr ofilre.

MMR 12-97

- J

you ofren the first off the hill? Do you notice that others suggest that you nor fly when you aren't too worried yourself? Are you enthusiastic and optimistic? These endearing qualities are rhemselves risk facrors. Do instructors seem ro be unreasonably conservative about increasing your rating? If so, BEWARE! Intermediate syr1drome kills, as surely as drunk driving. Ir is truly an altered state of mind . This accident has caused quite a bit of controversy concerning the responsibility of instructors to prevenr an intermediate pilot from gerring inro trouble. In their defense, while instrucrors and ocher very experienced pilots have no trouble recognizing intermediate syndrome, victims rarely can be made ro understand the seriousness of their own malady. They are often quire insistent about their own

JUNE

2000

advancement and do wharever it rakes ro drive ir forward. The compulsion is overwhelming to fly in scary air and ro upgrade ro scary wings. Just like adolescents, they believe they are immortal. Perhaps even more difficult than selfdiagnosis is rhe rreatmenr. Unfortunately, the surest way ro get beyond intermediate syndrome is ro have a serious accident chat requires some exrended recovery. (Incidentally, I write rhese reports partly because I survived a fairly dreadful injury myself.) When you experience the consequences, it's easier robe careful. The elusive goal of rhe USHGA Accident Committee and of chis reporter is ro figure out how ro help the imermediate pilor pass through chis stage without making rhe kind of mistake I made . I was lucky, bur you can't depend or1 that. We

need ro create a culrure in which intermediate behavior is made inconver1 ient, and is negatively reinforced o n every level. We need to promote awareness of the seriousness of accidents, and rheir preventability. In the 1950's, an unprecedented epidemic of heart disease was recognized and health-care organizations mobilized to decrease the death rate. The solutions were complex and involved mar1y behavioral and environmental changes as well as medical advances, but rhe end resulr was a dramatic reduction in cardiac morrality. We have the same opportunity to improve our own chances wirh this problem. Let's get to work. If you have had an accident recently, there is nothing more important you can do for chis sport than to report it now. You will save someone's life. That matters. •

review of the Swing Silex is the seventh article in a series recreational paraglider reviews. The first section of the lead review, which appeared in the November/December 1998 issue of this publication, provides a preview to this series and is recommended reading

ifyou missed the first installment.

THE COMPANY AND THEIR MACHINE Partners Markus Muller and Meikel Werner founded FB in 1989 . Their single-place powerplant uses an enhanced version of the popular German Solo 210 engine. By adding an expansion chamber (also known as a tuned exhaust) to the engine, they have increased the available power by 50% (from 8 kW/10.7 hp to 12 kW/16 . l hp). To maintain engine life and compensate for the additional heating added by the power boost, FB has their own casting to produce an oversized cylinder head for additional cooling. With both an exhaust silencer and an inrake silencer, their single-place machine is among the quietest PPG powerplants available. Efficient thrust is produced by their utilization of a carbon-fiber propeller chat is light, strong, powerful and enhances the overall appearance of their product. This year they have released a tandem machine known as "The Monster," which uses a Hinh engine and appears to be the most powerful tandem machine I have flown . SIZING

As of this writing, the Silex is available in two sizes, small and medium. A large size is expected to be avai lable by the time you read this. The specifications for the two current sizes are listed in rhe following table.

CANOPY

The author doing a reverse inflation.

he Silex compliments Swing's successful paraglider product line as they continue ro expand their growth potential with an entry into the powered paragliding marker.

INTRODUCTION The German PPG (Powered ParaGlider) manufacturer, Fresh Breeze (FB) , is now marketing a wing specifically for motoring. It's called the Silex. The wing is designed and produced for FB by the German paragliding manufacturer Swing. Swing manufactures a full line of paraglider wings including a popular beginner paraglider

model, the Arcus, which is available in an ultralight version (designated UL, with an increased maximum weight using a shorter riser set). However, according to Manfred Kistler, the designer at Swing, the Silex is a completely different wing than the Arcus UL. Swing has optimized the Silex for motoring by providing it with a higher trim speed and a faster roll rare for improved maneuverability. The result is a fast wing chat has quick and responsive handling, which makes it a fun flying wing for the seasoned pilot. The wing is a natural complimem to their machine.

British Carrington Nylon cloth is used throughout the wing with type 1097 used for the top and bottom surfaces, while type 1099 is used for the ribs because of its greater resistance to diagonal screeching. The Silex uses V-ribs (diagonal ribs) to control the airfoil shape internally, thereby reducing drag with fewer exterior lines . There is also a reinforcing strip of cloth running between each cell along the 0-row, which strengthens and controls the wing shape in the aft chord area. The vertical ribs are reinforced with Mylar (polyester sheet) for stiffness to keep the air inlets open and provide good inflation characteristics. The stock colors are red, blue, or yellow. Ocher colors are available by special order. Running the full span of rhe leading edge is a series of alrernaring black and white stripes which gives rhe impression of a piano keyboard. This layout is very distinctive and suggestive of an aerobatic color scheme. The standard Swing center cell

PARAGLIDING

marker, a small black circle, is inconspicuously placed ar rhe rrailing edge rhough rhe center of the wing, distinguished by being rhe only chord line wirh rwo lines arrached ar each row.

LINES The lines have rwo cascade poincs converging ro rhree lower A, Band Clines and rwo lower D-lines. The stabilizer line is attached ro the B-riser. Two differem materials are used for the lines . The lower and middle are Cousin Technora (aramid like Kevlar), while rhe upper and brake lines are Edelrid Dyneema (polyethylene, known as Spectra in the U.S.) . As is standard in the industry, the lines vary in diameter for drag and cost savings. The lower lines are of rwo different diameters . Thicker-diameter, 2.2-mm lines are used where the loading is highest, along rhe leading edge (the A and Brows), and thinner l.7-mm lines are used for the C and D rows. The middle lines are 1.2 mm while the upper lines are 1.0 mm.

RISERS The Silex has a four-riser configurarion with both a speed system and trimmers. The accelerator has a 3: 1 pulley ratio with 9 cm (3.5 inches) of pulley line travel , moving rhe A-riser 3 cm (1 inch) and rhe B-riser half as far. The rrimmers allow only lengthening of rhe rear risers with no shortening possible. There are no split A-risers bur rhe short riser length (43 cm/l 7 inches) allows rhe lines ro be accessible in flight for performing big ears, even when flying wirh high arrachment po ints above the pilot's shoulders. The rear risers have t\VO pulleys available for rhe brake lines, with rhe lower one primarily intended to restrain rhe toggles from comacting the propeller. Routing the brake line through rhe lower pulley may be useful for pilots with short arms, particularly if motoring with a high suspension artachmenc po int, but I found ir ro be awk'Ward and uncomfortable. Since I fly with m y brake lines shorter than most pilots do, I also found use of rhe lower pulley unnecessary with regard to propeller contact. If you choose ro nor use rhe lower pulley for routing the brake lines, be sure ro conduct a thorough ground check before fl ying with rhis configuration since getting your roggle caught in the propeller will surely result in a sp111 to impact.

]UNE

2000

The author motoring on a silex.

Size Recommended Pilot weight (kg/lb) Payload (machine + pilot) (kg/lb) Number of cells Wing Area (m2 / fr2) Flat Projected Wing Span (m /ft) Flat Projected Aspecr Ratio (Flat/ Projected) Canopy Height (cm/fr) Canopy Weight (kg/lb) Certification

Small 60-85 / 132-187 70-120/154-264 48

Medium 80-105/176-231 90- 140/ 198-308 48

24.6/265 20.8/224

27.9/300 23 .9/257

10.8/35.4 9.0/29.5 4.7/3.9 670/22 5.8/12.8

11.6/38. 1 9.8/32. l 4.8/4.0 710/23 6.2/13.6

DULV 1

D ULVl

1 The D UL Vis the Gennan powered ultralight certification agency, which pe1fom1s a set of tests far certification that are specific to motoring. There is some overlap of these tests with those required for paraglider certification by the Gennan u11powered ultralight agency, the DHV.

for rhe motoring application is to compensate for right turning during climb caused by propeller torque. With rhe Silex trim system there is nor only adequate trimmer travel to fly straight during climb, bur there is additional trim available to make a climbing left rum without use of rhe toggles. This is accomplished by fully lengthening the right riser for maximum speed while simultaneously fully shortening the left riser for minimum speed. A thoughtful feature of the trimmers is char each handle can be Velcroed to the rear riser so it doesn't flop around in your face.

GROUND HANDLING The Silex inflates easily with "no hands" for both forward or reverse wind conditions. There is no tendency for the canopy to either undershoot or overshoot. In a steady wind, it simply remains overhead with no pilot input.

The Silex line configuration.

ACCESSORIES The Silex comes standard with two accessories: an accelerator and rear riser trim. Both of these accessories lower the angle of attack when utilized, thereby increasing airspeed by lowering the flight path angle. In the interest of pilot safety I want to emphasize that reducing the angle of attack makes the wing more subject to leading edge collapse when flown in turbulent conditions such as thermals, shear and rotor. Therefore, these speed-enhancing accessories must be used with discretion in turbulent conditions. As with any paraglider, if a leading edge tuck or asymmetric collapse occurs when either of these accessories is being utilized, rhe recovery rime and potential complications will be minimized if these accessories are immediately rerurned to their slowest setting.

ACCELERATOR The accelerator, often referred to as a speed system, is common on paragliders, bur nor popular for use when motoring. I suspect char this is because rhe motor harnesses have historically not been available with the pulleys required for accelerator use, and that training in their use has typically not been provided to the motor community. The system is activated and deactivated by the foot stirrup, so the action is nearly instantaneous if the pilot's feet are resting on the stirrup, as is usually the case. An accelerator affects both riser sets equally and simultaneously,

so rhe changes are always symmetrical and no turning tendency is introduced. A speed system is simpler for the manufacturers to get gliders to pass certification rests because a glider with trimmers requires twice as many rests since each test must be performed at each extreme setting. The owner's manual states that when flying from an area oflifring air into an area of sinking air (as when exiting a thermal), "Ir is essential to rake your foot off the speed bar in order to prevent a possib le collapse. If a leading edge collapse occurs while the accelerator is engaged, it should be released immediately."

BRAKE LINE LENGTH The brake travel is appropriately long for the higher suspension position typically used for motoring. This also makes it forgiving for beginner pilots. The factory brake length setting activates the brakes after 12 cm (5 inches) of travel. When paragliding using the Silex, you may want to shorten the brakes, bur note that the minimum brake length recommended by the factory is 7 cm (3 inches).

REAR RISER TRIM The tear riser trinuners on the Silex are configured to only allow the wing to speed up from what is termed the neutral trim position. Neutral trim is the position rhe risers would have if rhe trimmers weren't present, that is, all of the risers are of equal length. Some paragliders with trimmers also allow shortening the rear risers from the neutral position. An advantage of trimmers over an accelerator

bic Dufour flying deep in the brakes.

PARAGLIDING

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Steve Roti (R- 01) (503) 284-0995 sroli@uswest.net Gene Matthews (H - 00) (206) 488-1443 skydog@gte.net Bob Hannah (H • 00) (206) 328-1104 paraskr@aol.com REGION 2 Ray Leonard (R - 00) (775) 883-7070 advspts@pyramid.net Jamie Shelden (R - 01) (408) 353-5159 jrshelden@aol.com Scott Gasparian (R· 01) (650) 218-3984 gaspo@igi.org Ed Pitman (L- 00) (530) 359-2392 epitman@c-zone.net Russ Locke (H • 01) (408) 737-8745 russlocke@juno.com Ken Brown (H - 01) (415) 753-9534 kennyb2u@aol.com

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Gregg Lawless (R - 01) (858) 484-2056 glawless@sempra-sins.com Rob Kells (H - 00) (714) 998-6359 rob@willswing .com Gil Dodgen (Editor) (949) 888-7363 (949) 888-7 464 fax gildodgen@aol.com REGION 4 Mark Ferguson (R - 00) (303) 439-8542 mark@ballvarios.com Jim Zeise! (R - 01) (719) 539.3335 jimzgreen@aol.com Larry Sanderson (H - 00) (505) 392-1177 Larryssa@aol.com Liz Sharp (H - 01) (303) 530-0718 eas@cmed .com REGION 5 Frank Gillette (R - 00) (208) 654-2615 Watercyn@cyberhighway.net

Dan Johnson (L - 00) (651) 450-0930 CumulusMan@aol.com REGION 8 Douglas Sharpe (R · 00) (978) 318-9714 dsharpe@tiac.net Randy Adams (H - 00) (603) 543-1760 randyadams@cyberportal .net

G.W. Meadows (H - 01) (252) 480-3552 info@justfly .com John Harris (H - 00) (252) 441-4124 ucanfly@outer-banks.com Steve Kroop (H - 00) (352) 331-6729 usaflytec@aol.com

REGION 11 Kent Robinson (R - 01) REGION 9 (972) 960-0516 David "Randy" Leggett (R . 01) flydallas@aol.com (610) 258-6066 ias@ot.com REGION 12 Paul Voight (R - 00) (914) 744-3317 Geoffrey Mumford (R · 00) (202) 336-6067 flyhigh@frontiernet.net gmumford@apa.org Jan Johnson (L - 00) (914) 695-8747 Dennis Pagen (L - 00) (814) 422-0589 hm janj@uarc.org pagenbks@lazerlink.com Paul Rikert (L - 00) (914) 946-9386 Chris DuPaul (H-00) (540) 672-0065 Krisdupaul@aol .com Lars Linde (H - 00) (732) 747-7845 larslinde@compuserve.com Art Greenfield-NM (X) 1-800-644-9777 awgreenfield@naa-usa .org

REGION 13 (lnt'I) Jan Johnson (L - 00) See Reg 12 Michael Robertson (H - 00) (905) 294-2536 flyhigh@inforamp.net USHGA Executive Director Philip Bachman PO Box 1330 Colo Sprin~s CO 80901 (719) 632- 300 wk (719) 632-6417 fax phbachman@ushga.org ushga@ushga .org EXECUTIVE COMMITIEE President-David Glover Vice President-Mark Ferguson Secretary-Bill Bryden Treasurer-Geoff Mumford KEY: (R)-Regional &)-At Large (H)-Honorary ( )-Ex Officio COMMITIEE CHAIRS: Competition-John Borton CompCommitte@aol.com

Membership & Dev-Steve Roli Site Mgmt-Randy Leggett HG Accident-Bill B~den PG Accident-Paul lemond Awards-Jan Johnson Bylaws-Paul Rikert Nat'I Coordinat.-Dennis Pagen Planning-Geoff Mumford Safety & Training-Bill Bryden Tandem-Paul Voight Towing-Geoff Mumford Publications-Dan Johnson (03114/00)

IN-FLIGHT HANDLING The Silex has a rapid roll rare bur wirh high roll damping so rhe canopy rolls inro and our of rnrns very quickly. The brake line rension is lighr despite rhe somewhat high wing loading when flying wirh one of rhe two smallish sizes of this glider, panicularly wirh rhe added weighr when mororing. As a resulr, roll reversals can quickly ger away from the inartentive pilot. T he wing will pitch quickly, borh fore and aft, but rhe leading edge remains quire stable dming surges. The quick response in these two axes and the high wing loading allow the Silex co generate steep spi rals wirh an accompanying rap id descent rate so call(ion is advised.

advanced) wing in combined thermal and ridge lift condirions. Size Small Airspeeds (km/hr/mi/hr) Scall 20/ 12 Trim 43/27 Maximum 50/31

Medium 20/12 43/27

50/3 1

DESCENT TECHNIQUES There are fou r common descent rechniq ues: big ears, big ears with speed bar, B-stall and spiral dive. Since rhe Silex also has rrimmers, these can be used wirh big ea rs and/or rhe speed bar for two additional combinarions.

BIG EARS PERFORMANCE The Silex, as wirh other modern paraglider wings, is uimmed ro fly at rhe speed fo r maximum LID (lift ro drag rario). This is equivalent ro the maximum glide rario in srill air. According ro the owner's manual rhe minimum sink rate is achieved wirh 20% ro 30% brake. No performance polar was published or measured, but the published airspeeds are listed below. I was able ro soar the Silex equally well while sharing the air wirh another pilor on a DHV 2-3 (intermediare-

Big ears is a symmetrical wing area reducrion technique used ro increase descent rare by increasing wing loading. T he Si lex does nor have splir A-risers co facilicare rhis, however the risers are short eno ugh ro allow the pilot ro reach above the quick lin ks and up ro the lines to perform "ears ." The owner's manual recommends pulling two outer A-lines on each riser ser until the wingrips fold in and under, yielding a sink rare of fom mis (800 ft/min). I suggest pi lots use a progress ive ap proach when becoming famil-

iar with a new wing by first inducing ears using only a single line per side before stepping up ro rwo Iines per side. The tips usually open on rheir own when the lines are released, but rhe owner's manual states thar should this automatic reinflacion fail, pump rhe bralce on the side which remains closed. Ir should be obvious ch at if borh sides were ro "stick, " rhen both brakes should be pLm1ped simulraneo usly if needed. Also, ears should never be combined with a spiral dive due ro the porential fo r srrucrural failure.

BIG EARS WITH ACCESSORIES While ears do not provide an increase in forward speed, it can be combined with use of che speed bar and/o r rrimmers to do so. The owner's manual indicates that chis combined action can increase the desce nt rare of rhe Silex ro six mis (1 ,200 fr/m in). I had occasion ro utilize this mode afrer launching in winds rhat were locally increased by the presence of a ventmi (a narrow gully berween two hilltops). I was concerned abour gening blown back (gerting sucked into rhe vemuri), so to remain low in the slowest portion of the wind gradient I used big ears . Also, ro peneuate upwind and get om in front of the band of ridge life, I

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PARAGLIDING

trimmed full fast and appli ed full speed bar. The combi nation proved effective for not only getting me down and out in front , but it also stopped the small asymmetric collapses [ was experiencing in the turbulence at the mouth of the venturi . The Silex vividly demonstrated its stability in this descent confi guration and it felt secure in this maximum-speed dive. B-STALL B-Stall is a paraglider rapid descent technique that is popular because of the canopy's effective yet benign behavior. A symmetrically executed B-stall can provide a smooth and steady descent rate of up to 10 m /s (2,000 fr/min) with the Silex acco rdin g ro the owner's manual . Bur it also cauti ons that a front horseshoe of the canopy can occur if the B-risers are pulled down excessively. Ir further cautions rhar rhe risers should be released evenly fo r recovery. And, it warns rhar if rhe risers are released roo slowly, you may enter a parachural stall. If rhis occurs and does not immedi ately correct itself, rhe manual advises ro press rhe A-risers forward as is recommended in rhe section below citied " Parachutal Stall. " I perfo rmed on ly one B-srall with the Silex but fou nd it to be

] l1NE

2000

easy to execute, effective for descending, and it behaved predictably rhroughom the maneuver (initiation, descent and recovery) .

SPIRAL DIVE According to rhe owner's manual, a descenr rate of up co 15 mis (3,000 fr/ min) can be achieved in a spiral dive of rhe Silex. Due ro this potentially extreme sink race, chis author recommends chat pilots perform and practice spirals using the Silex only with a minimum altitude of 1,000 feet (300 m ) AGL (Above Ground Level).

COLLAPSE PREVENTION AND RECOVERY Consistenc with the two principles of "active fl ying" for resisting turbulence-induced collapse, the owner's manual recommends flying with about 20% brakes and responsively adjus ting the brakes to keep the canopy centered overhead. Flying with brakes on maintains a higher angle of attack than flying brakes off while also damp ing canopy movement. According to Swing, the Si lex would probably receive a DHV 2 (i ntermediate) racing without the accelerato r and a DHV 2-3 (intermediate-advanced) raring wi th full

accelerator and trimmed full fast. Th is is accencuaced by the small wing size. So, in addition to the lighr handling, the collapse recovery characteristics, which would be the source of these higher cenification ratings, reinforce that the Silex is especially inappropriate for the beginner-level p ilot for flight in turbulent conditions when a collapse is most likely.

ASYMMETRIC COLLAPSES The owner's manual stares that "yo u muse nor accempt ro inflate the canopy by 'pumping' the brake unril the glider is stable and you are flying straight and on the co rrect course." Ir further scares chat if an asymmetric collapse does occur, use the opposite brake co stabilize and straighten the canopy, and notes to "brake coo littl e rather than coo much! " The manual warns rhat the Silex may require 180° to 360° of rotation for recovery from an asymmetric collapse. I had the opportuni ty ro perform only a single 50% asymmetric collapse on the Silex and noticed chat it required nearly 180° ro recover without pilot input, and that the rotation occurred very quickly and was associated with a rapid loss of altitude.

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OUR PHILOSOPHY Diro11 '.r Airplay specializes in immersion training programs for new pilots who wam to learn ~lis rich and complex sport thoroughly. We teach from the ··ground-up", bullding in ~ie pilot an academic understanding of paragliding and meteorology, an intuitive feel for their wing. iuid, most importan~y. an appropriate attitude towards paragliding. We've instructed many of the top pilots in the U.S. and have supervised over 29,000 student flights.

OUR ADVANCED INSTRUCTORS

DIXON WHITE, USHG,\ Instructor of the Year ;md Oirect0r of Airplay Paragliding, is a Master Pilot and Tandem Examiner

111th a Five Diamond award Crom USHGA for over 5,000 accident-free flights. He has certified hundreds of pilots and bas supervised over J 8,000 stude111 flights. Dixon has been featured in numerous paragliding artides and shows.

1'UR1Y DEVIETII is an Adl"M1ced Tandem lnstrnctor 11ith a Single Diamond award from USHGA for over 1.000 accident-free flights. He has a Bachelor's degree in Aviation Tecllllology :md is an lnsu·ument Rated fixed-wing pilot. Marty has supcn'ised over 11 ,000 student nights.

ASSISTANT INSTRUCTORS include Dave Wheeler, R}1111 Swan, Mark Telep and Breu Zaenglein. OUR FLIGHT PARKS Our Flight Parks are perfect beginner training areas with drive-up open launches and large landing fields. Small class sizes, two-way radios and state-of-the-an equipment and trucks permit man)' flights per session and it fast yet comfortable learning curve from a few feet off of die ground lo 10,000 feet above the ground. Advanced pilots have bad Oights or over 5 hours and up 10 70 miles from our sites.

AIRPLAY WASHINGTON, 2,000 pril"ate acres of beautiful rolling lti!Js on the sunny east side of the Cascades. is open April through September. Lai1d within a hundred )'ards o( the Airplay classroom and picnic area. The property includes biking & hiking trails, a tight-wire and a 30' climbing wall.

AIRPLAY ARIZONA, 500 acres of extinct volcanoes within the spectacular painted desert near Flagstaff, is open September through April.

PAUL HAMILTON PARAGLIDING VIDEOS

Order at dixon@paraglide.com STARTINGPARAGLIDING, filmed at our Flight Parks and Wasllingt0n's Chelan Butte, is a must-own video for all pilots. Brilliant on-board tandem video, important classroom basics. advanced pilot ground handling, and even no-wind reverse launches.

WEATilER TO FLY, with Dixon White. explains what wead1cr data you need, where 10 ger it and how 10 interpret it in a very straight forward presentation. You're flying luck)' if you don't know .. weather to Oy". AUphotographs copyright Cl David Levitt, Forest Brender.

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MARK TELEP, one of the most respected U.S. cross-country pilots, wi1h the l:.S. 1riru1gle distance record of 60 miles, 1he Washington distance record of 122 miles, five 100+ mile flights and zero injuries, S,tys... "I'm determi11ed to jlJ' t/Je i•e,y bes/ sporl c/(ISS g lider mJ(li/able- /'111 co11vl11ced lbe lflindleclJ Quar.,· is the best g lider I've everflow11!"

BRETI ZAENGLEIN, the U.S. National Sport Class chrunpion for 1998, says... ·,t couple of Ill)' fa vorite 1110111e11ts were putting the Quar.,· 011 its ear a11d coring "' 1000 /pm rig/JI t/Jro11g/J seve11 /Jm1g g lider pilots a11d jus t piay i11g 1111th light thermals 11ext to the rlt,er ill Cas/Jmere. I 1/Jink Airplay /Jt1s picket/ up (Ill e.,·cellenl line of gliders!"

DIXON \VHlTE, Direcior of Airplay Paragliding, says... "TIJe Am bar, lf!iudtecb's entry -level glide,; is wo11derfu/ as a firs t g lider. Its eas e of IHmtlling 011 t/Je g ro111ul t11td sec11rllJ1in flight /Jelp m e del'elop a new pilot f as ter."

PILOT EXCELLENCE CLINICS . ,\ed f Join Mark and Dixon for intense 1hcrmid and ~ XC skills development clinics. Thoro11gh trainiflg _.:: ~"a\\ab\e on active piloting, reading terrain and weather. - ~ fly the famous Chelan Butte with only 4 clients per clinic. ,\ir conditioned rctrieml vehicle :1nd glider demo progrrun. - elm and 3 day clinics, Summer of 2000.

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l..arge, Higb GiJafity Siuff /Btrg Solid Cordura construction protects your investment! Fully opens to cover gear or cinches up around unfolded wing, harness, etc., offering protection and portability. Unique "Cinch Closure" design stays closed! Built in stowbag and shoulder straps. The best quality and design available today! Afumf111um Hook Knives Beautifully craftedaluminum hook knives all feature replaceable stainless steel blades and lightweight construction. Knife pockets available. 4" Single blade design. The best small hook knife available. 4 3/4" Also a single blade design, with snap strap. Incredibly rugged!

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PARACHUTAL STALL A parachutal stall, also known as a deep stall or as a constant stall , is when a paraglider wing loses enough airspeed that che air simuhaneously f-lows around che trailing edge as well as around the leading ed ge of the wing. When this happens, it behaves like a parachute, producing only drag. This is caused by a loss of airspeed due to excessive braking. The own er's m anual states chat "if yo ur glider engages into a cominuous parachucal descem, give the A-risers a short downward pull until che cano py resumes ics forward fli ght. " In searching for deep stall using the brakes while ridge soaring, che canopy exhibited a significant increase in sink rate but maintained adequate airspeed for co ntro l. Upon release of the toggles, th e wing resumed normal fl ight with no tendency to enter constant stall. This rein fo rces the industry standard that modern gliders cannor enrer a parachural srall simply by using the brakes . Pilots must recognize, however, th at any paraglider can enrer deep stall during co llapse recovery such as a B-srall, particularly when it has a light wing loading. Also, tran sient turbulence may be able to induce constam stall wirh brakes alone, especially if the glider has trimmers that are capable of and ser at an airspeed slower than "neutral. "

MAINTENANCE AND INSPECTION

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A from tuck, also known as a leading edge collapse, can occur when sinking ai r is entered abruptly, as when exiting a thermal. Flying slower than trim speed and timely braking to dampen d ives will reduce the probabiliry of frontal collapses . The Silex recovered promptly without the need for pilot input from the full fromal I perform ed. A firm and rapid pump of both brakes can accelerate the recove ry. T he owner's manual suggests reducing the throttl e to aid recovery. J perfo rmed my full fro ntal collapse at id le to minimize the influence of thrust.

A soft sponge and clea r wa ter o r warm wa ter and a mild soap are recommended fo r clean ing the canopy. The owner's manual cautions against the use of chemicals, scrubbin g or hor wa ter, which can weaken the fabri c and dissolve the surface fin ish . To m aintain G erman certification the wing requires a professional inspection ever two years .

OTHER FLIGHT MODES Towing Th e Silex is no t specifically certified for towing, however, there is no caution against it either. Accordin g to Sw ing, the manu facmrer, th ere is no problem with tow laun ching th e Silex. I d id not have the oppo rtuni ty to tow launch it, but Eric Dufour of Para tour in Quebec, Canada, the N orth American FB importer/distributor has extensive ex perience towing the Silex and recommends it fo r this launch method.

MOTOR FLIGHT The Silex was designed for auxiliary power and is well suited for rhis fl ighr mode. The only adve rse factor, wh ich I have noticed, is related to its small size. Some pi lots, when flying at a high wing load ing, as wirh a wheeled undercarriage (commonly referred to as a trike), have found that th is highspeed wing requires a higher throtde setting to maimain altitude than the large r w ings they have been using. As a resulr, I think the new large size Silex will be a welcome additio n to acco mmodate big pilots and those w ith heavy mach ines. For mo torin g, I like th e rubber 0-rings used on rhe qui ck links as line retainers on the Sil ex and o ther wings because the open link allows me to increase the success rate of my forwa rd inflatio ns. By inse rting th e rip of each index fin ge r into rh e A-riser quick link, I use ir as a handle to complete the inflari o n. W hen I perform a fo rwa rd wich a motor, I apply a secondary applicarion of riser tensio n by pulling dow n firm ly bur ge ntly w ith my index fin ge rs to bring rhe canopy full y overhead .

COMPATIBILITY WITH OTHER THAN FB MOTOR UNITS The Silex paraglider wing is reco mmended by FB fo r use with any PPG motor un it, which uses cv10 actachmenr points and is within the recommended weight range.

SUMMARY The Silex is rh e first successful paragli der des igned fo r the m otor market. Th e Silex was preceded by the first PPG -specifi c wing, th e Refl ex, whi ch proved to be fast and stable but had heavy handling, was no t a good soarin g performer, and was difficu lt to inflate in lighr winds. By conrras t, rhe Silex combin es the best features of a mo toring wing with those of a soaring wing. It excels in handlin g, speed and stability.

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VIDEOS tcWEATHER TO FLY Dixon White educates us on this very important question. (50 min) .. 1/b t<TURNING POINT-PG & HG Tame the elusive alpine thermal. Beautiful Euro footage.(24 min) 1/b t,STARTING PARAGLIDING- Covers the basics of your first flights. (30min) ............................. 1/b MASTERS AT CLOUDBASE-A paragliding music video, set to hard hitting music. (20 min) ...... 1/b FLY HARD-Rob Whittal & C. Santacroce paraglide the westcoast. Rock soundtrack. (36 min) . .. 1/b PG: THE MOVIE-Owen's Valley world competition. Hot action, rockin' soundtrack. (40 min) ... .. 1/b CLOUDBASE PARAGLIDING-Great intro. video. Meet the hot pilots, fly the hot sites. (36 min) 1/b HAWAIIAN FLYIN'-HG & PG in Paradise. Amazing launches & awesome scenery! (46 min) ...... 1/b All our videos are in USA/VHS NTSC format only.

MISC. WINDSOK™ 1.5 oz. ripstop nylon, 5'4" long w/11" throat. Pink/yellow or pink/white (circle one) .2/b $39.95 ZING WING Flying toy. Launch it skyward and watch is soar. Seti 2.......................................... Boz $ 5.00 WINDSEEKER Hang glider flying model. It loops & soars. Lots of fun to fly, you'll want two ..... Boz $ 3.00 USHGA EMBLEM DECAL Our original logo, in its original colors, on a 3" circular sticker ........ 1oz $ .50 USHGA SEW-ON EMBLEM Our original logo, in its original colors, on a 3" circular patch ....... 1oz $ 1.50 .................. .... 1/b $ 6.50 LICENSE PLATE FRAME Chrome plated. I'd Rather Be Paragliding. PAYMENT must be included with your order. NON-USA orders must be in U.S. FUNDS drawn on a U.S. BANK! SUBTOTAL WEIGHT (for shipping) _ _

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United States Hang Gliding Assn., PO Box 1330, Colorado Springs CO 80901-1330 (719) 632-8300 1-800-616-6888 www.ushga.org fax (719) 632-6417 email: ushga@ushga.org

However, the Silex compromises the flat turning efficiency of a soaring wing, and its collapse recovery characteristics make it less than user-friendly for the beginner pilot if it collapses. The trimmers and short risers make it well suited for the motoring application, and its light and responsive maneuverability make it very fun to fly. I am personally looking forward to the release of the large size Silex. If it retains the handling of the smaller sizes while retaining the top speed, the increased wing area should reduce its power requirement for motoring while improving its sink rate performance as a soanng wmg.

About the author: Alan Chuculate began his foot-launch flying career in 1974 as a hang glider pilot. In 1977 he became an instructor and had his first ofa long-term experience with rigid-wing hang gliders. In 1980 he learned to fly and train pilots in powered ultralights. While operating a truck-towing tandem hang gliding training program in Alaska in the summer of 1989, he was exposed to paragliding.for the first time. After a single lesson that winter he went on to earn his instructor rating before spring. He pioneered tandem paragliding and towed paragliding before his first flight in a PPG in 1993. In 1995 he became a UFJ (Ultralight Flight Instructor) and is now affiliated with the E4A. He is authorized by the USHGA to train and certify both paragliding and hang gliding instructors. He also has trained pilots to fly the Mosquito powered hang gliding harness. He resides in San Diego, California and has trained PPG pilots on four continents. In the summer andfall of1999 he trained a diverse group a/Egyptian Army airborne troops to fly PPG formations, both solo and tandem in the thermal-intensive Sahara Desert, without the benefit ofhill training or machine towing. If you have questions or comments regarding this article you're welcome to contact him directly by e-mail at g_achucu@qualcomm.com or kY telephone at (858) 292-1552. Ill

Continued.from page 11.

200 hours operating time. The Solario is matchbox-sized containing an audio-only vario. Velcro the Solario to your helmet and you have the ideal basic vario. lt's so responsive that it feels as if you have a vario inside your brain. The price is $169. All models of the Sol Range are clad in a sleek case with the solar panel at the top. The unit is compact and light (230 grams excluding mounts/accessories). Each model is upgradable to any other model spec, the cost being the price difference between the two models at the time of the change. The Sol 3 is anything but basic (three to six altimeters, analog vario, averager, programmable audio, stop watch, thermometer, 10 memories) for $399 including a paragliding mount. The Sol 5 adds PC link-up options, date, time and no fewer than 100 memories for just $499. The Sol SC offers the same functionality and includes CPS access for glide ratio in the air and over the ground, plus ground speed for $599. The Sol 7G incorporates a barograph as well as a final approach calculator, glide ratio to next waypoint, wind evaluation and speed-to-fly - all the expensive options at a competitive price of $799. You can order by visiting fly Above All's website at www.flyaboveall.com or call (805) 965-3733. II

organized and named as a tribute to the late alpinist and high-altitude cameraman, who lost his life on September 29, 1999 in the mountains ofTibet while on the American Shishapangma Ski Expedition. Dave, along with renowned climber Alex Lowe, was swept to his death in an avalanche. A former resident of Ketchum and pilot at Sun Valley Paragliding who went on to become a partner at Aspen Paragliding, Bridges was a former national paragliding champion. His first Himalayan expedition was in 1994 on K2. In 1998 he summitted Mal<alau with alpinist Mike Groom as a cameraman. Local paraglider pilots expect this event to continue each year and gain recognition within the world of paragliding, bringing pilots to Sun Valley from all over the world.

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2001 USHGA Regional Director Nominations Solicited USHGA is issuing its annual call for nominations to the national Board of Directors. Ten positions are open for election in November 2000 for a two-year term beginning January 2001. USHGA members seeking position on the ballot should send to headquarters for receipt no later than August 20, 2000 the following information: name and USHGA number, photo and resume (one page containing the candidate's hang/paragliding activities and viewpoints, written consent to be nominated and that they will serve if elected). Candidates must be nominated by at least three USHGA members residing in the candidate's region.

Nominations are needed in the following regions. The current Directors, whose terms are up for reelection in 2001, are listed below. Ballots will be distributed with the November issue of HANG GLIDING and PARAGLIDING magazines. USHGA needs the very best volunteers to help guide the safe development and growth of the sport. Forward candidate material for receipt no later than August 20 to: USHGA, PO Box 1330, Colorado Springs CO 80901-1330. Reg# 1

2 3 4 5 6

Current Director Bill Bolosky Ray Leonard Ken Baier Mark Ferguson Frank Gillette Nominatiom· are not needed in Region 6for this election.

Bill Bryden

Douglas Sharpe

Geoffrey Mumford

David Glover

Nominations are not needed in Region J J for this election.

Paul Voight

States within region Alaska, Oregon, Washington Northern California, Nevada Southern California, Hawaii Arizona, Colorado, El Paso TX, New Mexico, Utah Idaho, Montana, Wyoming Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Arkansas Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota New Hampshire, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont Washington DC, Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia Alabama, rlorida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico Texas (excluding El Paso), Louisiana New Jersey, New York

The following form is for your convenience.

****************************************************************************************** I hereby nominate

REGIONAL DIRECTOR ELECTION NOMINATION FORM as a candidate for Regional

Director for Region # _ _ __

I understand that his/her name will be placed on the Official Ballot for the

2001 Regional Director Election if three nominations are received by August 20, 2000. NAME- - -

- - - - - -USHGA#- - - - - - -REGION#- - - -

Utah Flying Sites article and photos by Ken Hudonjo rgensen

There are numerous flying sites in Utah, however, keep m mind that many sites can be hazardous in some weather conditions. All mountain sites should be flown initially only after consultation with and the guidance ofsomeone who is familiar with the site.

Vertical : 5,200 to 5,500 feet depending on launch and landing sires T his sire offers a great evening sled ride (20 minutes) as yo u fly toward the Great Salt Lake and watch the setting sun. The orange glow spreads across large expanses of the lake as rhe sun dips to the other side of our blue-and-white ball. It is excellent for newer mountain flying pilots, but not very good for cross-country. Don't climb out or yo u will be in Salt Lake International airspace or at least in the path of ai rlin ers as they climb out. One of my flying friends first flew here a year before I began flying and didn't make it out of the canyo n. He called it a "life-threatening walk our." His story just added to our sense of adventure and we learned to fly out over the spine rather than the canyo n. We have never had to experience the life- threatening walk out, thanks to my friend's input.

CRAWFORD MOUNTAIN Location: Randolph, Utah, 2-1/2 hours northeast of Sale Lake Ciry Altitude: 8,000 feet Vertical: 1,800 feet

ost pilots think of the Point of the Mountain when they chink of Utah and foot-launched aviation. We have more good flying sites in this state than we are capable of flying in a year, and we can't always get around to all of them. Some of these sites have already been discovered and are enj oyed by many, while others await the next available pioneer to open the window of opponuniry and begin the adventure. The following is a brief list of some of the more commonly-flown sites.

POINT OF THE MOUNTAIN

North Side Location: Draper, Utah Altitude: 5,300 feet Vertical: 900 feet from top to the bench and 300 feet from rhe bench to rhe bottom - 1,200 total vertical feet

South Side Location: Draper, Utah Alrirude: 5,300 feet Vertical: 300 feet The Point of the Mountain is a great site for reaching and experience-gathering for novice- and intermediate-level pilots. Ir is known worldwide as one of rhe best training sites for both paragliding and hang gliding, and was first used for foo tlaunched aviation at leas t as early as 1928 (we have photos and newspaper articles), with sailplanes being rowed behind Model T Fords and pulled into rhe air by a large number of guys hauling on a rope. Maybe we should call char feet-launched flight.

FRANCIS PEAK Location: Above Farmington, Utah, 19 miles north of Salt Lake Ciry Altitude: 9,500 fee t

Excellent for newer to advanced pilots, chis site has good cross-country potential . I once jealously watched a new pi lot launch here when I couldn't fly because I had torn my glider on a rock while preparing to launch. He fl ew straight out with out making a turn and went up, up and up, until he disappeared. We found him later, cold and scared. This site is excellent for ridge soarin g and offers plenry of choices when it comes to landing zones.

HEBER Location: Above Midway, Utah, 1-1/2 hours east of Salt Lake Ciry Altitude: 8,600 feet Vertical: 3,000 fee t Heber has excellent cross-country potential, bur it is suitable for advanced pilots only with climbs to 17, 000 feet on better days. Our hang gliding friends thought we were crazy when we first came here to fly because the lift was so "big" and the launch slope quire shallow. They were right: It does get quite "big" at rimes but with good, advanced skills, paraglider pil ots do fine.

PARAGLIDING

SNOWBIRD Location: Ski resort, 20 minutes southeast of Salt Lake C ity Altitude: 11 ,000 feet Vertical: 3,000 feet Snowbird has excellent cross-country potential! (The Utah record is 90 miles from this site.) It is for advanced pilots only. This is our best and most consistent and conven ient cross-country site, with a history of great and exciting flights. It offers climbs to 17,000 feet on better days. As we learn more about Snowbird it is becoming a good competition site. This is a very delicate site chat could be lost in a heartbeat as the result of one foulup . It took a lot of time, effort and delicate negotiations to get this site opened, and it was all worth it. Most of our best Utah cross-country flights are made here.

INSPIRATION POINT (INSPO) Location: Above Orem, Utah, one hour south of Salt Lake C ity Altitude: 6,300 feet Vertical: 1,800 feet This is our most-used site after the Point of the Mountain. It has a paved road to launch and good cross-country potential, with very consistent thermaling conditions and climbs to 15 ,5 00 feet on better days. It is used by newer thermaling and

Grandure LZ and Launch (where small clump ofpine trees start on ridge Line). cross-country pilots, bur can turn into a very advanced site with a eight, busy landing zone for newer pilots. I remember the first time we flew here. Our hang buddies (who have been very helpful over the years and to whom I feel indebted) cautioned us and said they didn't think we could make it to the landing zone, chat it was too turbulent, and that we shouldn't fly here . Back in chose days, neither hang gLder pilots nor paraglider pilots really knew what paragliders could or couldn't do. The sport was so new to all of us. We said, "Thank you very much, " set

up and launched anyway. It has proven to be a wonderful place to fly bur one must still use caution to enjoy it fully.

CAMEL Location: Above Springville, Utah, two hours from Salt Lake City Altitude: 7,800 feet Vertical: 3,500 feet Camel has a gnarly dirt road but some cross-country potential, and is good for newer mountain-flying and thermaling pilots. Some of the first paragliding crosscountry flights were made from here, and we were very excited because we went three mil es. Don't laugh; it was a Utah record back then!

FRISCO PEAK Location: West-northwest of Milford, Utah, four hours south of Salt Lake City Altitude: 9,600 feet Vertical: 4,000 feet Easily the "biggest air" site in Utah that is currently used for paragliding, with climbs to 18,000 feet if you're not careful! It offers excellent cross-country potential - very seldom is it flyable and not good for cross-country. We heard such horror stories about this site from the hang gliding community that for the first two years of paragliding at Frisco only one other X-C buddy and I were willing to fly it. (Ignorance is bliss.) My fifth time there it looked too "big" to me, so I chose not to

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fly, but my friend did. He got sucked into a cloud in 2,200 fpm lift while in a B-line stall! An hour later he was 200 feet off the ground going 70 miles per hour over the ground. He came through it without a scratch. Wow! We were both permanently impressed. (Take a tarp along for launching.)

Location: Hurricane, Utah, six hours south of Salt Lake City Altitude: 7,300 feet Vertical: 900 feet Hurricane has some cross-country potential. le is definitely desert! With care this could be a good site for new chermaling and cross-country pilots. Take along a tarp for launch. (We learned the hard way!)

Location: Bountiful Utah, one hour from Salt Lake City Alcirude: 6,200 feet Vertical: 1,900 feet This was a fun site to find. We flew over it from Bountiful Peak (which we seldom fly anymore). le is a good beginner mountain-flying and thermaling site with a long glide to the landing zone, but there is an alternate LZ at the base of the mountain. Don't climb above the mountain peaks because of airline traffic.

Location: 1-1 /2 hours south of Salt Lake City on south edge of Utah Lake Altitude: 6,900 feet Vertical: 2,300 feet This site requires some caution but can

be good for new mountainflying pilots. The LZ is huge and everywhere! It can be good for thermaling, but has poor cross-country potential. Weird-air potential is high if there is any wind above eight mph or strong thermal conditions. We started flying here in order to have an east-facing site on those rare east days. I don't like it very much but it beats being ground-bound. There is also a north launch lower and on the other side of the mountain facing Utah Lake.

All ofthe previous sites are "drive-tolaunch" sites. OLYMPUS Location: 10 minutes east-southeast of Sale Lake City Altitude: 5,600 feet Vertical: 400 feet

one of the few people in the U.S. at that point who knew anything worth mentioning about X-C, and I followed him to the Point for a 13-mile flight. This was a first, and one of the better Utah X-C's. Seeing paraglider pilots fly into the Point from somewhere else for the first time also helped turn many local pilots' eyes up and away from the Point for the first time. When John landed and said he thought Olympus was the best site we had in Utah, it punctuated the already powerful visual image. Finally and slowly, other pilots were willing to make the 10-minute climb. Now it is flown regularly. There are many other Utah sites, both named and unnamed, discovered and undiscovered. There truly is a wealth of flying here.

Ken Hudonjorgensen offers mountain-flying tours, guide service and all levels ofinstruction in Utah. He is Master-rated and holds the best official safety record in the US. He has helped pioneer most ofthe mountain sites in Utah. For more information contact: Ken Hudonjorgensen, 474 E. Tonya Dr., Sandy, UT84070 (801) 572-3414, khudonj@uswest.net, www.twocanflycom. 11111

Olympus is an excellent beginner to advanced thermal/cross-country site, with a 4,000-foot bench-up along a spine and soul-tingling sheer rock wall. You muse have very good tight-landing skills. Thirteenmile cross-country flights to the Point are made almost daily in the summer. I "discovered" this site because my hang friends said they used to fly it back in the l 980's, and the thought of flying next to 3,000 feet of sheer rock face seemed awesome to me. I wasn't into climbing to the top like the hang glider pilots used to do, so I found a lower launch. I flew it by myself for two years because no other Utah paraglider pilots were willing to walk for 10 minutes to launch. Then John Bouchard (one of the people most responsible for introducing paragliding to the U.S.) visited here and flew Olympus with me. Being from back east he was used to having to walk to launch. He was also West Mtn. southeast launch.

PARAGLIDING

ine Mountain, Southern California (N 34° 38.158", Wl 19° 18.336"), is located 25 miles northeast of Santa Barbara, California. The elevation is approximately 7,000 feet MSL. It is one of the most prominent peaks in the area and the one that is readily accessible and flyable by hang gliders and, as oflate, paragliders. It is approximately 30 miles west of the Antelope Valley (more high desert than valley), which is not only the western gateway to the Mojave Desert but segregates the Great San Joaquin Valley and the Los Angeles Basin. Generally it is the Antelope Valley where these two air masses converge. Hang gliders have flown from this site for the last 12 to 15 years with the longest Bight being approximately 180 miles and a few Bights in the 140+ mile range. Pine Mountain is generally a convergence site with 3,000'+ altitude gains being average and 7,000' + not unheard of Since the site is close to the Pacific Ocean, longer-distance flights are made to the east. The days to look for are those following the influence of monsoonal flow, which is typically from the southeast, until the typical, westerly, onshore flow begins to reestablish itself. On Wednesday, August 25, 1999 I awoke to definite signs of monsoonal flow. By noon there was a convergence line with beautiful cumulus clouds from Pine Mountain east as far as the eye could see, with cloud base at 14,000' to 15,000'. The temperature in the desert was high, l 05° or more, and was expected to remain so for the next three or four days. I watched rhe clouds all day, knowing that it was one of the best days of the year - the kind you wait for all year - and we were not flying. My friend and mentor, Torn Truax, was leaving town for the week to visit another pilot friend and family in Washington. It was only this summer, with very few exceptions, that the site was being flown by paraglider pilots at the height of the day. Half jokingly I told Torn, "If you leave town I'm going to breal< your paragliding record," approximately 60 miles. (Tom also holds the site hang gliding record 180+ miles.) After watching the dynamic flying all day Wednesday I promised myself that I was not going to be on the ground watching again the next day. Thursday came, the monsoonal flow had actually increased, and it was almost raining. So much for flying.

•

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1 es FROM PINE MOUNTAIN, CALIFORNIA article and photos by Tony Deleo

Tony flies 139 miles from Pine Mountain in Ventura County through Los Angeles and Kern Counties, landing north ofTrona in Inyo County.

The author south ofEnsenada, Mexico. On Friday, August 28, three pilots and I agreed to meet in Ojai at 9:30 AM for the one-hour, 15-minute drive to launch. The day was warm and southwest winds at altitude were forecast. As we drove up the road to launch I looked to the east and saw an isolated cloud on the Tehachapi Mountains approximately 30 miles northeast of takeoff The Tehachapi Mountains run east and west for approximately 40 miles, separating the Central Valley and the Antelope Valley. At 11 :00 AM we arrived at launch. I noticed a number of inversion layers to the south of takeoff, and it also appeared that the wind was blowing 10 to 15 miles per hour which is right on the edge for a paraglider in the mountains. These condi-

tions appeared to be very similar to those during my last flight at Pine Mountain, when one pilot ended up in the hospital and I ended up hiking for five hours. After studying the conditions it appeared that it was not excessively windy, but that thermals were cycling through. There was no cloud development as I pulled my Firebird Flame overhead. I was lifted off the ground and had to scramble to recover and take off. The initial 20 minutes of the flight were spent low and close to the terrain in front of takeoff, in ratty air, with numerous asymmetrical tip collapses. I topped out at 9,000' over launch and there were still no clouds. The other pilots seemed to be having

trouble getting off of the hill. Afrer flying above takeoff in relatively smooth air I drifted over the back and onto the north side. I immediately connected with a thermal that was climbing slowly and drifting out of the southwest toward Lockwood Valley, 10 miles east. Unfortunately, I was not able to get any higher than 9,000', which for hang gliders and paragliders is not enough altitude to comfortably make the glide over IO miles of canyons and scrub pines into Lockwood Valley, the major lift source in the area. Fully committed, I was drifting toward Lockwood Valley and its first landable area. l dived into Lockwood Valley, grateful that I'd made it this far and thinking about what a nice flight it had been given the weak conditions. At the west end of Lockwood 1 was at 800' AGL when I contacted a broken thermal, climbing at 200 to 300 feet per minute. Seven miles ahead was Frazier Mountain at 8,000' MSL, the jumping-off point into the Antelope Valley. Ac hazier Mountain there were clouds mixing and tumbling, indicating a convergence. I made sure that I topped out at 12,000' prior to arriving at Frazier, not wanting to have to top out in the converging air mass. Some of the worst turbulence I've experienced in paragliding has been in convergence. I passed Frazier Mountain, climbing to 13,000', and there was a cloud street from Frazier the length of the Tehachapis. The first 15 to 20 miles of transition from Frazier into the Antelope Valley is the most difficult part of the flight. Out of hundreds of flights fewer than 20 have connected and made it to Highway 14, approximately 40 miles. In addition, chis area is a major air corridor between southern and central California. As I left Frazier Mountain on glide to the Tehachapis there were small planes zipping around and the cloud street was diminishing. I arrived at the foothills of the 'lehachapis at 8,000' MSL (approximately 2,500' AGL) behind a cement plant, making sure not to let the wind carry me into the mountains as I worked the foothills. Working light lift, I continued to drift eastward toward the first prominent peak on the range 15 miles ahead. This is where the mountains become more pronounced and where the cloud street began. There was a rock shelf about two-thirds of the way up the peak which faced into the wind. If I could just make chis shelf I was sure I could ridge soar up the shelf to the peak where a thermal would surely be working. At

PARAGLIDING

two miles west of this peak it was no longer an issue. I climbed to 10,000' and drifted over the peak. I was now established on the Tehachapis when a Lear jet, on final to Bakersfield, flew by overhead. Expecting turbulence and receiving none, I looked below to sec a dark object. Was it an eagle or a condor? No, it was an F-117 stealth fighter climbing through me and turning out to the desert toward Edwards Air Force Base. T was now above Double Mountain with the town of Tehachapi to the north, the Antelope Valley to the south, and the beginning of the Sierra Ncvadas and the city of Mojave approximately 12 miles ro the east. Knowing that reaching Mojave would represent a site paragliding record, and thinking that I probably had it in the bag, I went on glide to the cloud street forming over the Sierra Nevadas which run in a more northerly/southerly manner. Unfortunately, l immediately started plummeting out of the sky in 1,000-fpm sink into a meadow/canyon called Oak Creek, with a substantial walk ahead ofme. Within five minutes I had gone from breaking a site record to landing short and out. As I entered Oak Creek Canyon I was low in lee-side turbulence with two options: try to fly upwind to a south-facing ridge with probably one shot at getting up, or let the west wind carry me to a north-facing ridge with maybe a couple of opportunities to get up. I continued downwind, and at about 800' AGL I contacted a broken thermal and slowly climbed out into the heart of the convergence. Having finally caught up to the convergence, which had eluded me all day, always pulsing out just in front, I was now flying under the cloud street at minimum sink and climbing at 500 fpm without turning. Below and to my left were the windmill generators in the Tehachapi Pass. I decided to give them wide berth and fell off the wind, arriving at the city of Mojave at 4:30 PM, and immediately climbed to 14,500' in smooth lift. I had broken the site record. At this point my options were to continue to fly due east toward Barstow where there were no clouds, and extend the record, or take a more northerly course, staying with the clouds, which were running parallel to Highway 14 northeast toward Ridgecrest. 'Iopa Chase was now in the area, but unfortunately, while my radio would receive, it would transmit only marginally. JUNE

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As I turned northward I applied 50% speed stirrup. I was having trouble staying on course as the west wind was carrymg me on a more easterly course. I was now west of the California City airport which is located 14 miles north of Mojave and has glider and skydiving operations. I have flown sailplanes there and know Cindy and Marty who operate Carolco Soaring. In addition there is a skydiving drop zone, and with retrieval questionable this was looking like an attractive landing area. Just west of the airport I climbed back to 14,000', and ten miles ahead was the automobile test track in Fremont Valley, with good cloud development. I arrived at the track and saw a sailplane climbing, so I flew over to him. He reached cloud base before I did and headed back to the airport at California City. I wondered what he must have been thinking! There he was, out in the desert, and some guy in a paraglider shows up at 12,000' next to him. At this point chase had caught up to me and we had broken communications. My goal was Ridgecrest, 20 miles ahead. I was heading upwind above the El Paso Mountains. My ground speed was negligible, and at this rate I would be on the ground in 15 minutes with a long hike in the middle of nowhere and no communication. I fell off downwind and arrived at Laurel Mountain, north of Ransburg, and slowly climbed back to 12,000'. It was 6:00

road - seven hours, four counties, and 139 miles later. It was unofficially the longest foot-launched paraglider flight in the United States. 'fopa Chase, driven by "fast" Eddie Scow and Ron Faoro, showed up to retrieve me within 10 minutes after I landed as I was discussing my flight with a couple oflocals. "Fast" Eddie, a veteran hang glider pilot, who had received little or no communication during the flight, knew by looking at the clouds and wind direction where I would probably be landing. To both of you, thanks for being there and sharing the experience with me. I also want to thank the folks who designed and manufactured the Firebird Flame in which I've had some memorable cross-country flights.

The author may be contacted at writetonyd@aol.com. - Ed •

I'M.

I continued to head north over Spangler Hills and topped out in my last thermal. Below me was Searles Valley, east of Ridgecrest, and up ahead was the mining town ofTrona. I was now on final glide, hoping to make 'frona and wondering what the wind velocity would be on the ground. My goals were to stay out of the lake which the wind seemed to be blowing me toward, and co land away from any power lines. Trona was soon five miles behind me. I passed by the Trona airport at 6:30 PM in light and variable conditions, turned into the wind, and landed at a turnout in the

Tony flying and old Icarus 11 biplane hang glider in the 1970 ~.

ear a WHAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF! article and photos by Marty De Vietti

onth or so later we Fortaleza were dorred with und ourselves in 1,000- to 1,500-foot-high o de Janeiro, hopstone monoliths that jutted ing to fl y near the famous skyward from the sparsely Christ statue during the vegetated earth in this, the days before the comp. rypical "dry" season. It Unfortunately, flying was reminded me a Ii ctle of out of the question due to Joshua Tree National rain and low clouds. "It was Monument in Southern great the week before," said California. But instead of Matt Taggart, who particithe rock piles being a tanpated in an interesting event colored quartz monzonice, the week before, fl yi ng over these were composed of the ciry and even landing on some kind of granite or the famous Copacabana sandstone chat was more beach. Go figure. Thumbing through Cross Country magazine last fall, gray/black in color. And Our enthusiasm still instead of Joshua trees intact, we waited anxiously my good friend Ryan Swan pointed out a most inviting standing here and there, I until the nexr day for a consaw palms and large cacti necting flight to Fonaleza. advertisement about an X-C comp in Brazil. The ad was spread about i11 a similarly Located in the northeast sparse way. It seemed that part of the country, we understated in its design, but contained some enticing everywhere I went there would then be within a bus were echoes of places I had ride of reaching the third information that grabbed our attention and our been before, but I found annual XCea ra Classic near that there were some very the small town of Quixada imaginations as well. interesting differences as (pronounced Kee sa THA), well. Brazil. In addition to the friendly people according to rhe locals there. As we all The unique accommodations we we met and beautiful sights we had seen stepped off the bus into the deluge I co uld enjoyed at chis event are a good example so far, we fell in love with the warm, see in everyone's faces that we were all of what I mean. Our housing consisted moist air that was so pleasantly differem un sure if our oprimism would be justified of dormitory-like rooms chat were simthan the frigid , dry air we left back in for rhe following six days of flying. ple yet comfortable quarters, each having Northern Arizona. The fall seaso11, for Remarkably, as evening approached, the a balcony. The balcony in my room Ryan and all the rest of the team, had sky cleared a bir and a few pilots fl ew in came complete with a hammock to relax been extremely productive for all who the strong evening wind char followed. Ir in while caking in the scenery of this came out for lessons, but the weather, seemed uncomforrably close to m y perbeautiful region called Ceara. Next door dominated by high pressure that fall, had sonal wind limit and choosing not to fl y to our rooms was a cafeteria chat prebeen terribly hard on our soaring and seemed the prudem choice. I would be pared simple yet satisfying buffet-style X-C ambitions. This event was looking ready to fly for rh e practice day tomorrow. meals char were the only added cost to like a dream come true. For now I was intrigued by my surthe entry fee of $400. All of my meals The day we arrived at the site it roundings. The vas t flatlands rhac led averaged about two or three U.S. dollars poured rain for che first time in 25 years from the sugar-white beaches near for enough food and a drink to satisfy

PARAGLIDING

A look at the cobblestone road leading up to launch and our lodging. even the hearties t appetite. The trul y interes ting part was the face chat chis fac ility is all a pare of a working m onas tery, perched 800 feet up on one of the many scon e "islands" in the "ocean" of parched fields and flatlands char stretched fo r mil es in all directio ns. T he best pare was char the takeoff area for the event was right next co the church, a mere hundred ya rds from our roo ms! And for those interested in a wide assortment of religio us items, there was a gift shop just a little fa rther pas t che cafeteria. I felt like I was at a re treat, of so rts. T he next morning rhe sky was sunn y and filled with mouthwatering cumulus clo uds. I couldn't believe how nice ir looked! T he w ind o n launch, however, was upwa rds of 25 mph and I watched

the ocher pilots carefull y co see if they were as bewildered as 1 was . A few days la cer I wo uld realize char chis is rhe norm! I go t my gear ready, hoping things would settle down and ch at my preparati o n wo uld not be in vain . Ofte n, it was necessary co recruit several peo pl e (usually local children who were eager co participate in any way they could) co hold down each glider on the steep launch . Then, around noon or 12:3 0 PM, almost as if on cue, the wind wo uld finall y lull down co as low as 12 co 17 mph. The pilots wo uld wave off their yo ung volunteers, signaling chem co lee go, and everyo ne with a glider laid out and ready would launch in rapid succession. T hen, anywhere fro m 30 seconds co a minute or so lacer, the wind wo uld be back co upwards of 20 mph or m ore.

Hmmm , I tho ught, what have I go tten myself in co? Ryan was sick chis day and I was wo nderin g if sraying in bed might no t be ch e best cho ice fo r me righ t now. T he m agazine ad menti oned cloud base h eights of 2,000 co 3,5 00 meters AG L (6,5 00 ' co 11 ,000 ' +) and peak climb rates o f three co 12 mete rs per second (600 co 2,400 fpm ). Yee, fro m che relati vely low clouds I was see ing now, ir seemed co me that che added mo isture of che previo us d ay's rain was having a negati ve effect o n clo ud height. T hus fa r, I hadn't seen anyo ne cake an asymmetric or even gee pitched aro und all chat hard, at lease not ye t. Ir wasn't unril I go t into the air ch ar I realized th e cl imb races would be significantly lower th an adve rtised as well. My

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PARA G LIDIN G

strongest peak climb rate for the week was 1,000 fpm and I averaged probably 200 to 400 fpm most of the time. I was perhaps among the last to take off this day, having watched numerous pilots before me ridge soar, bench up, and eventually climb to cloud base and run the course. The sky had become so cluttered with cumuli that I wondered if I had waited too long. Finally, I zipped up my flight suit, pulled on my gloves and committed aviation. I was feeling overdressed but imagined the cool air up high would make it worth my while. My climb-out was surprisingly easy and smooth. Once I did finally get to the clouds it occurred to me that I was still overdressed. It was still a paltry 75° F and I vowed to leave the flight suit in the room from then on. Once established in my climb I couldn't get over how beautiful the sky was, and took several pictures to try to capture the moment in a more permanent fashion. Soon after putting away the camera it occurred to me that I had topped out my lift, unfortunately, below cloud base. Now, too far behind launch to think about penetrating back in front, flying fast toward another source seemed wise, or my next photos would surely be from the ground. Heading toward another outcropping of rock, one of the few in full sun, I heard a helicopter approaching. As I arrived over its crest, so too did the helicopter. I could see an open door and it looked like they were filming me as we orbited together. This would be one of the few "Pringle can" thermals I would core, with almost no drift at all, and we climbed vertically together in easy two mis (400 fpm) lift for a few turns when the craft finally moved on toward goal, out of site and earshot. I found out later that the footage was probably going to be shown on Brazilian ESPN. Wow, this country sure does love paragliding! Eventually I caught up to a Rio pilot named Julius and we tag-teamed a few thermals before going our separate ways. The sky became increasingly choked by cumulus and I was still too far away to see goal just yet. The ground was mostly shaded now and I was catching up to Julius again, and another pilot I hadn't seen yet, all of us getting low. We each worked our own light little bubbles of lift for what seemed like 20 minutes or more, only gaining 500 feet or so. Then it JUNE

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The boys ftom Brazil, left to right: unknown driver.for the event, Chico Santm; Ale Santos and Frank Brown. seemed that we three were all on converging paths with our respective thermals, finally coming together, and the lift seemed to become stronger and more organized. I noticed chat the new glider was in fact the tandem team and they climbed above us, going on glide before we could top our. Finally able to see goal, I went to full speed and aimed to the side of the nowdarkening cloud above us to avoid the suck zone. Julius, choosing a more direct course under the cloud, spent a lot of time in big ears and eventually fell behind me as he struggled to stay out of the "dark gray" room. There were hundreds of people at the landing zone and the helicopter that flew with me was already there too. After landing, swarms of Brazilian children huddled around me as I quickly tried to bunch my glider, knowing that if I didn't do it fast there would be lots of dusty footprints all over1t. Half an hour later all the pilots were shoveling down some local delicacies, some involving the internal parts of a wild boar chat had been roasted to perfection and was displayed prominently in the middle of the huge complimentary buffet. Thinking of Ryan and his sour stomach back at the monastery, I tried to play it safe and stick to foods I thought I recognized. The more adventurous who cried the exotic dishes said it was all very good. Famous last words, I thought to myself. The complimentary beer was an even bigger hit, and it wasn't long before people

were being thrown into the small pool near the eating area. \X'ithour exception, every pilot was at some point systematically surrounded, lifted and carried to the pool's edge, and ultimately thrown in, some more than once. I wisely removed my boots and camera before I too was ultimately submerged. What a day chis has been. And it officially all started the next day! The following days would prove to be equally fun and challenging in chat the launch continued to be windy and the climb rates were less than expected. The thermals began blocking the wind on or after the noon hour each day with uncanny consistency, allowing pilots to get safely away each day - well, most pilots anyway. There were a few pilots who did get blown back and gave chose remaining on launch a bit of a show. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and aside from being in the wrong place at the wrong time, those who did gee behind the hill certainly did a great job of not making a bad situation worse, leading to safe landings for all of them. Not in a hurry to take off early, many of the pilots were treated to some fine musical contributions from Peter Brinkeby who piped some really nice "acid jazz" into the PA system. This created an almost surreal atmosphere for me as I took it all in, watching the conditions and deciding when to launch, if at all. Chris Muller got my vote for the most resourceful hydration system, displaying his simple yet effective "water bottle in

..................43·

sock" trick, previously unknown to many of the pilots in attendance. Frank Brown, the local Brazilian champ, generously offered a free download of all 200+ GPS points and several routes he had stored in his GPS unit to anyone who asked. Actually, it was Carlo Borsatino, from South Africa, who made it all possible, as he had the foresight to bring a patch cord that fit any and all Garmin units. Thanks again to both of you! Once away from launch, flying became an exercise in maximizing light lift, thinking ahead, and patience. I learned a lot about all three of these things in the following days. On the first official day I got up and away quickly and easily, climbing to cloud base and then drifting with several other pilots until the blue hole was visible. This was where the clouds seemed to part, forming an opening five km wide, like a gauntlet to be crossed 10 to 15 km from the takeoff point. Many pilots would be tested here, and it was a source of discussion among many pilots in the following days. It didn't occur to me on the first two days to go back to a cloud that was still growing and just wait for something to happen out front. I learned this patient move on day five when flying with Gabriel Canada, co-owner of Windtech, on what would eventually be my best flight to date. In the meantime I foolishly tacked across to what seemed like a better looking cloud street, and ultimately sealed my fate for that particular flight. I was more or less on glide until landing a few kilometers south of the first waypoint on the course, a small city called Madelena, for a distance of 68.5 km in 2.5 hours. The good news was that I got a ride from Caren and Bridget, the South African wives of pilots Andrew Smith and Siggi Bockmaier, just minutes after I landed. Unfortunately for the wives, and ultimately their spouses, their radio was not transmitting or receiving properly, making the retrieval of their hubbies a futile task on day one. As a result I enjoyed a fast, roomy and air-conditioned ride back in their rental station wagon. The pilots who went really far this day got back pretty late. I would later realize that this would be my most expedient and comfortable ride of the entire week. I helped myself to a hot dinner, reclined in my hammock to read a while, and drifted off to sleep,

Carlo Borsatino hamming it up for the fans at goal. hopeful for an even better day tomorrow. The next day I still managed to make some mistakes, but was very fortunate in that I had my most dramatic save to date, keeping me in the game long enough to help me reach my personal goal of 100 km. Ryan and I climbed out together this time, but left well behind some other pilots who pulled away from us and split into two groups. One group went left of the blue hole, the other right into the

Windtech pilots Matt, Gabriel and Ryan suiting up for action.

heart of it. I thought it was too far away to go left, and figured with two or three other people so close to me, straight ahead, I might be able co stay above them and use them as thermal markers when I arrived above them. Ryan was several hundred feet below me and chose to go straight as well. I silently cheered him on, knowing he had his work cut out for him. He went everywhere that I would have gone, had I been in his position, but he ultimately was forced to put down behind an outcropping of rock that I was sure would produce, but didn't. Meanwhile, the pilots I had hoped to catch up to had climbed out and left before I could join in the thermal that sent them on their way. After watching Ryan land I noticed that he kept his glider overhead and kited it for a few minutes. Peculiar, I thought, because it wasn't windy when he landed. I was noticing that fact because I was perhaps 100 feet off the deck at this point, had my feet down, and planned on landing next to him when I realized that he had triggered the field! Another low pilot, Siggi, on a yellow glider, saw me turn into some very disorganized lift and joined me. We both worked very hard to navigate what would eventually turn into a cohesive column chat leaned over in the wind and eventually took us to the clouds again some three

to four km downwind. Talk about a "sacrifice fly," baseball fans! I owe you for that one Ryan. For the rest of the flight Siggi and I managed to stay reasonably high until we both ended up landing near Othar Lawrence, who had been waiting for a ride for some time before our arrival, at a distance of 144 km in four hours and 40 minutes. Wow, 89.3 miles! I suppose I should make 100 miles my goal next time instead of 100 km! Navigating the ride back was an event in itself. It seems that because of the small towns and din roads that spanned the course, road signs were at times sparsely distributed or nonexistent. Asking for directions was sometimes difficult for our drivers too, as it seems that many of the locals who live in these remote places had never been outside of their own town or village and honestly didn't know the way to the next larger city along our route. I was glad to finally arrive back at my room sometime after midnight and get some sleep. In the meantime, Chris Muller had gone 242 km this day, setting a new site record, and would eventually win the Open Class with his consistently long flights. The tandem team, setting a new World Tandem Open Distance Record, really got people excited when we heard about it the next day too. Mix master Peter Brinkeby, while on his way to winning the serial class, was very kind in sharing his mini-disc player for some epic rides back to the monastery, taking upwards of six-plus hours to get back on my eventual l 00-mile flight. Thankfully, even though the atmospheric conditions were milder than in previous years there, personal, site and world records were all broken when it was over. It was humbling and inspiring to fly with such high-caliber pilots in such a fun event. I will never forget it. A big thanks to Chico Santos, the event coordinator who was really helpful and made it all happen. And also to Dixon White for the sponsorship that made it possible for Ryan and me to attend such a memorable and fun event. I'm really looking forward to sharing the things I learned with our students.

Marty De Vietti is an Advanced Tandem Instructor who works full time for AirPlay Paragliding and can be reached at: devietti@ellensburg.com. 1111 PARAGLIDING

USA SHIPPING

14.00 5-6lbs odd 6.00 More 6/bs, or an

1lb add 2lbs add 4.75 3.41:)s odd 5.50 tflan

Inf/ order, co/1/fax/emoll. Visa & WC Acee fed

Continued Ji'om page 17. to mi zed by the addition of M apNores, text or sta nd ardized symbols. Hi gh-qual ity, derailed maps or a cross-section p rofi le of yo ur ro ute can be printed for in-fligh t use. Topo USA accesses the global pos itioning sys tem through connection with a G PS receiver. Maps and ro ute directi ons ca n also be uploaded to Palm Computing or W indows CE handheld computers. It allows fo r Find, Print and Draw opti ons, Navigation and G PS info rmation, Nerlin k to Delo rm e, and rh e capabili ty of view ing an y m ap in standard 2- 0 o r 3-D profiles with or without grid markers. In the 3-D mode, pitch , rotati on and verti cal exaggeration (1X-8X) can be changed . O ne ca n determine altitude, latitude, or longitude of any point by moving the cu rso r to th at po int on the map. T his softwa re program is an inexpensive way to gee a solid 3-D view of any area yo u will fl y.

3-D TOPOQUADS 1.0 DVD A sea ml ess USGS 7.5-minute quad m ap series on CD-ROM or DVD fo r individual states, avail able for all 50 states. M aps can be viewed as 2-D or 3-D profil es. M aps produced using 3-D TopoQuads are similar to chose produced by the Topo USA program , bur are in greater de rail and reso lution. Pilots can print custom ized maps of any region regardless of which quads overlap. T hese software programs are co mpatible with most current G PS receive rs and Palm Computing or lap to p co mpu ters. T he two state m aps I have used

DELORME HISTORY Since the beginning of the CD-ROM revolution, Delorme has been at the forefront of technology and a leading publisher of detailed and easy-to-use maps, atlases, mapping software and online mapping applications. Delorme began pubiishing in 197G with the Maine Atlas & Gazetteer. Now available for every state, Delorme's Atlas & Gazetteer series offers the best in recreational mapping. Each arias covers an individual stare in its entirety with big, fullcolor topographic maps, showing everything from major highways to trails, boat ramps, lakes and streams, campgrounds

A 2-D view of Point of the Mountain Ji'om an east-to-west perspective. Saft Lalee City is straight ahead and mountains to the right and left of the Benches (launch area is labeled).

and campsites, mountains, forests, waterfalls and much more. In the mid l 980's, Delorme expanded into computer mapping, and ultimately into software publishing, while continuing to add more states to the Atlas & Gazetteer series. The first entry into the CD-ROM market was Street Atlas USA, published in 1991, which provides derailed street maps of the entire United States. In the l 990's the company introduced a variety of ocher software titles, including AAA Map 'n' Go, Delorme Topo USA, 3-D TopoQuads, Eartha Global Explorer and a CD-ROM phone directory, Phone Search

USA®. In November 1996 the company

released its first hardware product, the Delorme GPS receiver, an inexpensive GPS receiver designed to work with Delorme software. In 1998 Delorme released the Earchmate™ GPS receiver. Slightly smaller than the Palm Connected organizer, Earchmate can be used wi ch Delorme's Solus Pro software for real-time GPS tracking on the Palm Computing or Windows CE 2.0 platforms. The company just recently released a program especially appropriate for small businesses called XMap Business. It combines the most up-to-dace, street-level map data with database management tools, annotation functions and over 104 million business and residential phone listings.

PAR AG LIDI NG

include Virginia (five CD-ROM's) and Urah (seven CD-ROM's). A comparison of rwo flying sires in Urah, Point of rhe Mountain and Frisco Peak, are made using rhe 3-0 Topo-Quads and can be seen in rhe diagrams. Special features include: 3-0 modeling of rhe rerrain, providing an inseam and realisric view of rhe land; Abiliry co idemify probable landing areas based upon land cover, terrain , place name, geographic fearure, altirude, laritude and longitude and drainage characrerisrics; • Draw cools co enable pilors co cuscom ize rheir maps wirh MapNores, polygons and lines of varying colors and fill patterns; • Easy-co-use cool for measuring disranees and areas and GPS and handheld computer capabili ry. The 3-D TopoQuads program features 97 different levels of map derail including 17 levels of scanned USGS 7 .5-minure maps ar a 1 :24,000 scale. The ocher 80 viewing levels fearure Delorme's sueerlevel mapping darabase. Pilors can use these fearures co srudy a geographic area ahead of rime or co produce printed m aps co carry and use while in flighr.

IN SUMMARY Delorme has produced a series of compurer programs which use new DVD technology and GPS capabiliry co create extremely useful cools for borh paraglider and hang glider pilors. The qualiry of their computer-generared maps is high and the cost reasonable. I have used rheir cuscomer service department for quesrions and informarion and have found them co be one of rhe besr in rhe sofnvare business. Delorme is locared at Two D elorme Drive, P.O. Box 298, Yarmomh, Maine 04096. The general telephone number is (207) 846-7000 and the fax is (207) 8467050 . The toll-free sales number is 1800-452-5931. Their Web site, www.delorme. com, contains a plethora of information about the company's produces, including coses and ordering informarion . A visit to Delorme headquaners is worth rhe rrip should yo u be traveling in rhe area. The world's largest globe is the highlighr of the building. •

]UNE

2000

) .. : ;~- - -:,,.l: :-__ /;

'?'t ~

·y..

.[ ' -~-- -~...., - . .- --..--1 e.:_ - -

,. ,. . j:;. -

A 3 -D view ofFrisco Peak from a north-to-south perspective. Frisco Peak is between Point of the Mountain and Provo, Utah.

"""""""~i'~j'

PARAGLIDING ADVISORY: Used paragliders should always be thoroughly inspected before flying for the first rime. If in doubt, many paragliding businesses will be happy to give an objective opinion on the condition of equipment you bring them to inspect. BUYERS SHOULD SELECT EQUIPMENT THAT IS APPROPRIATE FOR THEIR SKILL LEVEL OR RATING. NEW PILOTS SHOULD SEEK PROFESSIONAL INSTRUCTION FROM A USHGA CERTIFIED INSTRUCTOR.

UP KATANA FR - Designed by Cin, medium, brand new, never flown, comp wing for advanced pilots only $500 OBO. (604) 836-4923, aizadi@hposc.harvard.edu UP SOUi. - Medium, 85-1 OOk., 15 hours, good condition $800 OBO. Torn (910) 231-7060. POWERED PARAGLIDERS

PARAGLIDERS

DK WHISPER '99 ·- Electric starter, with large Symphony canopy. As new, 50 hours $5,500 shipping included, perfect condition. (330) 262-8176.

EDEL SABRE - Medium, <50 hours $975. Mike (307) 739-2797, (307) 739-8945, mfoster@jacksonhole.com

EMERGENCY PARACHUTES

EDEL SABER - Large, very good condition $1,000. Edel Balance harness with integral Van Blan reserve $500. Together $1,400. Ted (406) 721-0214, mdowe@bigsky.net

BRAND NEW $395 -- 38sq/m & 42sq/m. Used $200 meets milita1y specs. (303) 347-8995. SCHOOLS & DEALERS

ARIZONA 1-'IREBIRD BOOSTER - Lirge, 80-105kg., fast (50kmh), exceptionally stable, next to new condition, IO hours $2,900 OBO. (604) 836-4923, aizacli@post.harvard.edu GIN BOLERO - Medium, like new, <10 hours. purple/red, Edel Balance harness (large), Secura Max reserve $2,500 rakes all. Contact Judy (636) 536-2955. LIKE NEW - Omega IV $1,900. Cult $700. Companion tandem $1,100. (808) 280-098 5, mendes@shaka.com NOVA PHOCUS 26M - Edel :1arness, reserve, helmet, mini vario $1,000 OBO. '.510) 482-6.313, ianbr@hotmail.com

ACCELERATED fOLIGHT SYSTEMS - Personal USHCA certified paragliding & hang gliding instruction. Courses arc expertly run on a friendly, informative basis. We have been introdL1cing people to the world foot launched flight since 1976. New and used gliders and accessories. Ball, Comet, Edel, Nova, SupAir, Pro Design, Firebird, Ai1wave, Wills Wing/Swing and others. All skill levels welcome. PO Box 1226, Del Mar CA 92014. (858) 481-7400 Southern California.

DIXON'S AIRPLAY PARAGLIDINC our display ad. www.paraglide.com

Please see

Our advertising has a two-month lead time plan ahead.

AIRJUNKIES PARAGLIDING - Join KEN BAIER for your "Pursuit of Paragliding Excellence" in the land of year-round, excellent paragliding: Somhern California and the Baja. Courses lor Novice, Intermediate, Advanced and Instructor ratings. Powered paragliding, soaring and maneuvers clinics, guided tours, tandem and towing irntruction and special events. USHGA certified. Handling the latest equipment. Call (760) 753-2664 for infortnation.

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USHGA CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING ORDER FORM 50 cents per word, $5.00 minimum Boldface or caps: $1.00 per word. (Does not include first few words which are automatically caps.) Special layouts or tabs: $25 per column inch. (phone numbers: 2 words, P.O. Box: 1 word, E-mail or Web address: 3 words) photos: $25.00, line art logos: $15.00 (1.75" maximum) DEADLINE: 20th of the month, six weeks before the cover date of the issue in which you want your ad to appear (i.e., September 20 for the Nov./Dec. issue). Prepayment required unless account established. No cancellations or refunds allowed on any advertising after deadline. Ad insertions FAXed or made by telephone must be charged to a credit card. Please enter my classified ad as follows: -----------------------------

Number of months:

I I I I I

SECTION

D Paragliders D Emergency Parachutes D Parts & Accessories O Business & Employment D Miscellaneous D Powered Paragliders o Videos Begin with

D Towing D Schools & Dealers U Ultralights D Publications & Organizations

OWanted D Harnesses

_____ 19_ _ issue and run for

consecutive issue(s). My D check, U money order is enclosed in the amount of$ __________ NAME: _______________________ ADDRESS: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _____________ STATE: _ _ _ __ CITY: PHONE: _ _ _ _ __

Number of words: @$.50 =_____ Number of words: _______ @$1.00 =______ _

USHGA, P.O Box 1330, Colorado Springs, CO 80901 (719) 632-8300 fax (719) 632-6417

I I I

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PARAGLIDING

SOUTHERN SKIES -~ Serving rhe SOUTHEAST, nearest MOUNTAIN FLYING, also POWERED PARAGLIDING. (828) 632-6000 WWW.SOUTHERN SKIES.NET GEORGIA SOUTHERN SKIES - Serving the SOUTHEAST, 4 hours from ATLANTA. MOUNTAIN FLYING, POWERED PARAGLIDING. (828) 632-6000 WWW.SOUTI-IERNSKIES.NET FLY ABOVE ALL - Experience year-round paragliding instruction in beautifol Santa Barbara, CA! Our friendly, experienced staff offers hands-on, personalized, radio-controlled lessons. Enjoy soaring rhe best training hill in the Western US and when you land, shuttles will whisk you back to the top for your next scenic flight. USHGA cenilied, solo, tandem and powered paragliding instruction, equipment sales and tandem flights. Visit our Website :H www.f1yaboveall.com or call at (805) 965-373.'l.

mAHO

HIGH ADVENTURE - Paragliding, hang gliding school. Equipment, sales, service at world famous Marshal Peale USHCJ\ tandem instructor: Rob McKenzie. By appointment year round (909) 885-8488, www.flytandcm.com

F!r TORREr PINEi G

DERPORT

2800 Torrey Pines Scenic Drive San Diego CA 92037 Since /IJ28 PARAGLIDING AND J-IANC GLIDING certified instruction, tandem flight instruction, sales, service, repairs, parachute repacks, motorized pg/hg instruction and site tours. Southern CJifornia Importer for PARATECl-1, ITV and EDEL. Vis.1 and MasterCard accepted. Call (858) 452-9858 or toll free at 1-877-f'LY-TEAM. Check us out at and order on-line at http://www.flytorrey.com FLORIDA

• ••• \

, r

MIAM1PfUU1GUD1NG CLVB miamiparagliding@aol.com (954 )6615689 USHGA CERTIFIED INSTRUCTION - Tandem flight instruction, sales, service, repairs. We offer year-round towing and powcredl'C training,. Bilingual instruction.

JUNE

2000

FLY MAUI! www.Jlaraglidel-lawaii.com - Locals fly 320 days a year. Soar from J-laleakaLt Crater. Maui is quickly becoming the KITF SURFINC CAl'ITAL of' the world. The new sport of' kite surfing is namral f'or most pilots, especially those who also enjoy water sports. Proflyght is now offering kite ~urfing seminars in the afternoons, afrcr thermal ~oaring in the mornings. Year-round guiding, training, equipment rental and sales. Toll f.rec 877GO-FLY-1-11.

ING AND KITE SURFING shop is now open. Corne lly where the sun always shines and the wind always blows with USHGA TANDEM INSTRUCTOR PETE MICHELMORE .111d MARC "NALU" HILL and PWC'S PETER BRINKEBY (EDEL) in beautif'ril Kailua, Hawaii. riv the famous 'MAKAPUU' sea cliffs, 80km out and return /lights arc possible at .l,OOOfr ms\ and land on WHITE SAND BEACHES. Our complete PARAGL!l)JNG and KITE SURFING shop is located just one block from the Kailua beaclr. We offer BEGINNER TO ADVANCED COURSES, RIDGE SOARING CLINICS for novice and up, TANDEM INSTRUCTION, and !-TO-I STUDENTS TO INSTRUCTOR RATIOS. KITE SURHNG LESSONS AND PACKAGES. We arc Haw,tii's dealers for EDEL and SWING paragliders. We also have Surf' Kites and BOARDS available in all sizes. Our school has a PERFECT SAFETY RECORD to dare with thousands of student flights. Beautiful Kailua beach accommodations starting at just $45. J-lawaii,tn Islands guide service available. Fun f,1r the entire family. Look us up on the web at www.paradiscparagliding.co111 or www.gravityspons.org. Email us at parapctcC!'._7l]ava.nct or just give us a call to start your HAWAIIAN EXTREME VACATION at (808) 26I-SURF Our new shop address is: GRAVITY SPORTS, 767 ll. Kailua Rd., Kailua I-II %7.14.

KING MOUNTAIN PARAGLIDING - Certified l,,ll-time SCHOOL, taught by Masrci- rated instructor Brad Bloxham. Tandem, RETAIL, major brands, POWERED PARAGLIDERS, guide service, mountain tour~, site information, including world famous King Mountain ( 19')7 US Nationals.) SUPPLIER/MFG: The most comprehensive, educational INFO/LOGBOOK in the USA, $24.'J5, RADIO HARNESSES $39.95, PC CARGO/DUFFEL BAG (holds wing & cve1ything else) $49. 95. 10169 N 15 E, Idaho rails, ID 8340 I. l'hone or f'ax (208) 'i24-00.l9, email KingMtPG(i\10!.com, Visa/l)iscovcr/[)iscover.

•c 0 VALLI-: DE BRAVO - Coming winter, week long tours, in-1HJL1t on Sunday, $595 paragliding. 1-800861-7198, jdl<;1lflymexico.rnm

FAX your classified ad, membership renewal or merchandise order: (719) 632-6417 We gladly accept VISA and MasterCard. 51

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NORTH CAROLINA

TEXAS

LEARN TO PARAGLIDE

HILL COCNTRY PARAGLIDJNC INC - Learn complete pilot skills. Personalized USHCA certified training, ridge soaring, foor & tow launching in central Texas. MOTORIZED PARAGLIDING INSTRUCTION & EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE. (915) 3791185. 1475 CR 220, Tow TX 78672.

111 Kit1y Hrlwk Kites

- Put your knees in our breeze and soar our 450' sand dunes. FULL-TIME SHOP. Certified instruction,

Outer Banks, NC Lessons Daily Towing & Foot Launch Year Round Sales & Service CALL TODAY! 800-334-4777 252-441-4124

beginner to advanced, fr)ol bunch and row. Sales, service,

!:~Mail Address

accessories !'or ALL major brands. VISA/MASTERCARD. 1'i09 E 8th, Traverse City Ml 4%84. Offering POWERED PARAGLIDING lessons & dealer for the Explorer & used units. Call Bill at (231) 922-2844, tcl1angglidcrQvjuno.com. Visit our paragliding school in Jackson, Wyoming. Call Tracie at (307) 739-8620.

info@kittyhawk.com

KITE ENTERPRISES ·~ Foot launch, payout winch low and

powered paraglider instruction too. Training,

sales, rentals and repair. Edel, Airwave, Wills Wing, UP and DK Whisper. Dallas, l'ort Worth and north Texas area. 211 Ellis, Allen TX 75002. (972) 390-9090 nights, weekends. www.kitc-cnterpriscs.com

UTAH WHAT HAPPENS when you combine the largest paragliding school with the largest paragliding and hang gliding shop? Introducing the new CLOUD ') SOARJNC CENTl·:R. We are open 7 days a week for lessons, sales and tandem flights for both hang gliding and paragliding. The shop is now owed by Steve Mayer. Our new repair facility run by Bill (Bad Bones) Anderson, is ready for any repairs or repacks. for more inf(Jfmation-

www. pa ragl id e rs. com or stop by at 12665 S. Minuteman Dr., just a few minutes from world famous Point of the Mountain. info@1paragliders.com 1-888944-54.'lJ. In Utah, call (801) 576-6460. VIRGINIA SOUTHERN SKIES -- MOUNTAIN FLYING and POWERED l'ARAGI.IDING instruction, sales and service with full-time shop, 1 hour north of Charlotte. 7 beautiful flying sites nearby. (828) 6.12-6000 WWW.SOU'l'HERNSKIES.NET

KITTY HA WK KrTES -

See North Carolina.

SOUTHERN SKIES - Serving the SOUTHEAST, I hour from Virginia stare line. MOUNTAIN FLYING and POWERED PARAGLIDING. (828) 652-6000 WWW.SOUTHERNSKIES.NET

OREGON "Solarios" arc awesome and we've got 'em~!

WASHINGTON

Dial into

your next summer thermal with the mini vario powered

DIXON'S AIRPLAY l'ARACI.\DINC our display ad. www.paraglide.com

COMPLETELY by the sun' High Plains also carries the latest gear from Sup'Air, Gin, Advance, Thin Red Linc, Firebird, f'lytec, and Ozone. Pull up the I-IPP website http://hometown.aol.com/hiplainz to access

Please sec

prices, equipment specs, and more. Have a great .\llll1-

U.S. AIRBORNE SPORT AVIATION CENTER l'araglider.s, powered paragliders, trikes, harnesses, etc.

mer! (406) 442-7163, hiplainzQ1\ml.com

Wide ~elcCLion of manufacrures rcprescnred. l mporter

NEVADA ADVENTURE SPORTS - Sierra soaring at its best. Tours and tandems available. Instruction from certified USHCA instructors with 25 year,1, experience. Sales, service and instruction by appointment Carson City/1.ake Tahoe NV. (77'i) 883-7070 http:/ ihome. pyrarn id. net/ advspts NEW YORK AlR SPORTS USA - Lessons, snvice, equipment. Paragliding, hang gliding, powered paragliding, trikes. Phone (718) 777-7000, WWW.Fl.YFORFUN.NET

OVER THE HILL PARACl.lDINC - Oregon/SW Washington. Sales, service, beginner-advanced USHGA certified instruction. Nova, l'irebird, Apco, AT, l'ro Design, SOL, Ball, flytec, HES Quantum parachutes. Service: 1,ill service shop, FAA rigger repairs/mods. Our of state pilots: We have great thernd, coast.ti and Gorge sites. Call us for info. There is no sales tax in Oregon' New/used gear. Trades welcome. 2286'i SI·: Yellowhammer, Cresharn OR 9/080. (503) 6(,7-lr5'i7, fax (505) 666-6979. Fmail: orhpar,&11 spiritone.rnm web: http://www.ovcrthehillparagliding.com SUNSPORTS PARAGLIDING - Hood River, Oregon. Beginner lessons, tandem flights, advanced instruction, consignment sales. Rick Higgins, Master rared pilot, Advanced Instructor, Tandem Administrator. (541) 387-2112, SunSportsPC@\10l.com

for the Miniplane powcredl'C. Sales new and used. Beginner thru advanced instrnction. U.S. AirBornc (509) 2ii3-4988. Send $3 f,ir info pack (specify info requested), PO Box 'i7<J, Asotin WA 99402, website h tq,://www. val Icy-in ternet.ner/ ch p/airborne/ Email usairbornc~Dhon1c.com

WISCONSIN RAVEN SKY Sl'ORTS-(414) 47.'l-8800, info((1Jhanggliding.com

Sell your unused equipment here. PARAGLIDING

PARTS & ACCESSORIES

BUSINESS & EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES INSTRUCTOR WANTED - Grayllird AirSports is looking for a paraglider and powered paraglider instructor. Interested, reliable, self-motivated pilots should contact Gregg McNamee at: GrayBird AirSports Flight Park & Soaring Center, 1 5072 SW 111 rh Sr.. Dunnellon, FL 34-fl2. (352) 489-9%9 days, (352) 245-8263 evenings, email: fly@graybirdairsports.com, Webpage: www.graybirdairsports.com

DO YOU i\El-:I) i\ LARCLR l\ACKl'ACI< l,n your new oversized harness, tandem glider, powcredPC or

Cage? Do you hike to launch? Is your cutTL'IH b,lckpack more of a polaLO sack than usc!'ul? Di'.',covcr the hendlt.s of backpacks designed l,n flying' lluilt wirh rop qualirv materials including Cordura, YKK zippers and more. $155-19'). MC/Visa/DC 100');, Cuarantcc. Free brochure. Dealers wanted. Critter Mountain Wear 1800-(,86-'J.l27 cri t tcr~rlcrestedhurte. net,

PUBLICATIONS & ORGANIZATIONS Windsok. Made of 1.5 01. ripstop nylon, UV treated, 'i'4" long w/1 \" rhroar. Available colors fluorescent pink/yellow or fluorescent pink/white. $39.95 (+54.75 S/H). Srnd to USHGA Windsok, P.O. Box l.l.30, Colorado Springs, CO 80901-U.lO, (71')) (,52-8.,00, fax 1719) 6.l2-6417. VISA/MC: accep1ed.

www.crittermountainwcar.com ---------------- ----

FLICHT CONNECTIONS, INC. I'll/!

MINI VARIO- WorkLs .smallest, simpbr vario 1 Clips

PARAGLIDING: THE COMPLETE GUIDE - By Noel Whittall. The most complete guide to paragliding on the market. Over 100 color photographs & illustrations, 200 pages, $26.95 +$4.75 s/h. USHGA, PO Box l:\JO, Colorado Springs CO 8090 I. (71 'J) 632-8300, fax your MC/Visa to (719) 632-6417. Our most popular book 1

to helmet or chinstrap. 200 hours on batteries, 0-18,000

ft., fost response and 2 year warn11Hy. Crear ror hang gliding too. ONLY $169. Mallettcc, PO Bux 15756, Sanra Ana CA, 'J27.l5. (714) %6-1240, www.mallcr-

• New .md Improved • Water/Dust Re.sistant Push Burron • Field Rq,laccablc Finger Swirch • Heavier Cauge Wire/I mp roved !'lugs • Increased Strain Relief" ar ALI. Joints !'rice $9'J.'J5. l;_xtra ilnger switch $ I ').'J'i w/purchase. Dealer inquiries welcome. Call ('Jl.l) 268-7'!46. MC/Vis,l. Visit our website at www.flightconn.com HAYE EXTRA EQUIPMENT - That vuu don'r know what to do vvith. Advertise in the l\iragliding cla~sifieds, $.50 pn word, $5 minimt11n. Call USI \CA lc,r details (719) (,.l2-8.,00, ushgal!"ushga.org or fax vour .id with a Vis:i/MC, fax (719) 6J2-6!i 17.

Classified advertising: new life for your equipment and cash in your pocket What a deal!

•

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JUNE

2000

PARAGLIDING: From Beginner to XC - By Sollom/Cook. A great addition to your paragliding library. Wonderh.tl XC: tips. See Steve Rori's review in the March/ April 200 Paragliding. Over 120 pages with superior illustrations & color photographs, $29.95 +$4.75 s/h. US! \CA, PO Box 1330, Colorado Springs CO 8090 I. (719) Ci.l2-8 l00, fax your MC/Visa to (719) (i:l2-64 I 7. SO/\RINC - Monthly magazine of The Soaring Society of America, I 11c. Covers all aspects of soaring llighr. Pull membership $5'i. Info. kir with sample copy $.1. SSA, P.O. Box 2100, Hobbs, NM 88241. (505)

_______________ ,9_2-1-177_.- - - - - - - - - ~

VIDEOS

THAN 1.75" X 2.25". Please underline words to be in h_ol1W2Ii.lli., Special layouts of" tabs are $25.00 per column inch. AD DEADLINES: June 20th is the deadline for the Augustissue. Please make checks payable to USHGA. Send to: l'ARACL.IDING MAGAZINE, Classified Advertising, P.O. !lox 1330, Colorado Springs, CO 80901-1:330 (719) 632-8."lOO or fax (7l'J) 632-6417, email jjelgarr@ushga.org with your Visa or MasterCard.

INDEX TO ADVERTISERS Adventure Productions ........................... 32 Aerolight USA ........................................ 26 Airplay Paragliding ............................ 28,29

STOLEN WINGS & TI--lINGS

APCO Aviation Ltd .......................... 25,27

*NEW* WEATHER TO FLY, by Advrnture Productions. A much needed instructional video on micrometeorology. Dixon White, Master pilot and USHCA Examiner, takes you through a simple step-bystep process showing where to acquire weather data and how to interpret it. For pilots of any aircraft. Learn about regional & local influences and how to determine winds aloft and stability. "'>:feather To roly" is an over-all view packed with useful details and includes great cloud footage. A straight-forward presentation that is easy to follow. 50 min. $39.95. TURNING POINT IN ALPINE THERMALLING, by Dennis Trott/Alpine !'lying Centre. 50% HG, 50'Yi, PC. Discover techniques to tame the elusive alpine thcnnal. Beautiful fc.>otagl' set against Europe's n1ost dramatic mountains. Also features con11nents from top pilots & great animation. 24 rnin $35.95. STARTING PARAGLIDING by Adventure Productions. Covers b;.1sic preparations, weuher, proper attitude, ground handling & those first exciting launches. 30 min $29.95. FLY HARD: Viking Films newest release. Rob Whittall, Chris Santacroce & a vintage Buick convertible fi,11 of paragliders. Outrageous flying at several west coast flying sites. Meet HC aerobatics champion Mitch McAleer along the way. Excellent rock soundtrack, professionally filmed & edited, 35 minutes $35.95. PARAGLIDE: THE MOVIE by Viking Films. Rock-nroll world class competition at Owens Valley. l'rofossionally filmed & edited, 35 minutes $35.95. Call or fax USHGA (719) 632-8300, fox (719) 6526417, please add +$4 domestic s/h (+$5 for two or more videos). Crear to impress your friends or for those socked-in days.

"AMERICAN FLAG" PARACI.IDER- Lost by FedX, identical to the one Scott Alan is flying in the inside back cover Paraborne display ad. (407) 935-9912, scou@)paraborne.com

Baja Clinic ............................................. 21 Flight Design ......................................... 55

FLIGHT DESIGN S2VT - Two f'araglidcrs lost by the US postal service, .shipped from CALIFORNIA to HA WAIi parcel post on August 19th, l 999. One large w/purple top, one medium w/orange top. Lois Hulmes (550) 542-49,7.

Flytec ....................................................... 7

AT BAG/FIREBIRD G-SPORT L - I.ost at LAKE CHELAN, WA launch area by the towers on May I 6th, 1999. AT bag is purple/green, Glider is pink/white. Also SupAir purple/white harness, reserve, Piccolo vario. Darren Harr (970) 925-248.l.

Pro Design ............................................. 15

EDEL CORVETTE 24 PG - Stolen from storage locker in CLARK FORK, ID on May 4th, 1999. Hot pink/lime green, with trim tabs. Also GQ security chute, burgundy "vetter" helmet w/sevcral site srickers on it (Funston, WOR, Dunlap, Ed Levin, etc.) And older red helmet. Rhoda, (208) 266-1505. FREE-X FLAIR M - Stolen from a vehicle in SAN FRANCISCO, CA area 011 April 20, 1999. Red w/whitc LE. Advance harness attached, purf,le/black/yellow. Call Stephen Ainge (516) 283-32AO, ainge@lhampto11s.co111

Hall Brothers ......................................... 32 Mojo's Gear ............................................. 5

Red Bull ................................................. 55 Sky Gear ................................................ 32 Sport Aviation Publications ...................... 5 Sup' Air .................................................. 15 Super fly, lnc ........................ 2,Back Cover Telluride XC Open ................................ 26 Thermal Tracker .................................... 30 Thin Red Line ......................................... 9

STOLEN WINGS arc listed as a service to USHCA members. There is no charge for this service and lo.st and found wings or equipment may be called in (719) 6328300 or fox it in (719) 632-6417 for inclusion in Paragliding & Hang Cliding magazine. Please call ro cancel the listing when gliders are recovered. Periodically, this listing will be purged.

Torrey Pines Gliderport ...................... 8,42 USHGA .......................... 5, 19,31,33,47,54 Wills Wing ............................................. I 0

------------ --------- ------------- --- --------MISCELLANEOUS VIDEOS, BOOKS & APPAREL - Call USHCA for your Merchandise order form (719) 6.12-8300, fax (71 9) 632-6417, email: ushga0\ishga.org, www.ushga.org DON'T LEAVE YOUR CROUND-BOUND EQUIPMENT SITTING IN THE GARAGE. SELL IT IN THE CLASSIFIEDS. CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING RATES The rate for classified advertising is $. 50 per word (or group of characters) and $1.00 per word 1,,r bold or all caps. Phone number=2 words, PO Box=2 words, weight range i.e. 137-185lbs=2 words, web site or email address=.l words. MINIMUM AD CHARGE $5.00. A fee of $15.00 is charged for each line art logo and $25.00 for each photo. LINEART & PHOTO SIZE NO LARGER

PARAGLIDING

FEATURING THE

USHGA Nationals of Paragliding, Stunt Hang Gliding, and Hang Gliding Speed Run. $25,000 cash purse August 30, - September 5, 2000 Aspen, Colorado, USA REGISTRATION/IN FORMAT! 0 N www.redbullwings.com e-mail: fly@redbullwings.com Phone: Othar Lawrence at 970.948.0808

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