USHGA Hang Gliding January 2001 by US Hang Gliding & Paragliding Association

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only Of course, you can still order the old fashioned way: Just Fly Aviation Gear 252 480 3552 www.justfly.com 1125 Harborview Dr. Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948 info@justf/y.corr

ntents (USPS O17-')70-20 - ISSN 08'J'i-433X)

15 Hook-In Alarms Revisited article, i!lustnttions and photos kY John Mf//oncy You won'r even know ir's chert or havt co mess with ic.

18 The Geometry Of Ramp Suck by Brilln Vant-Huf/ An explanarion of chis annoying phenomenon.

22 Pilot Report: The Airwave Sportster © 200 I by Dermis f>agen, photos hy Steve Kroop T he new kid on rhe block.

30 Thermals: Collectors, Wicks And Triggers by Vlifl Gadd Virsc of three pans on t1nding and flying in rhermals.

34 Tennessee Tree Toppers Team Challenge by Stephen Bellerby An i nnovarive meer for pilots of all skill levels.

40 Midwest Record Setting by Peter Birren Lany Bunner flies 213 miles.

Columns

Departments

Wing Tips, by Rodger Hoyt .... ..............6

Airmail ........................................ ... ........4

Incidenr Reports, by BilJ Bryden ....... .. 12

Calendar of Events ........ .............. ...........6

President's Corner, by David Glover ... 14

Updace .. ........... ... ............ .. ..... ................. 8

Producr Lines, by Dan Johnson ........ .55

Classified Advertising ..........................44 Index to Advertisers ............ .. ............ ... 54

JANUARY 2001

Gil Dodgen, Dave Pounds, /\rt John Heiney, Vaughn, Bob Lowe 1'/1c,tol!,1ilolwrs Harry Martin, /1/uslrator Dennis Pagcn, Mark Stucky, Rodg(H Hoyt, Meadows, Jim Palmieri, llill Bryden St,ilf Writers

Executive Conunittee: David Glover, l'msi<lent, um trl((VOav1(!J:f/0\1er,e Mark Ferguson, Vice President, 1111111w.11nm1vw"'·'··w' Russ Locke, wr·,,·r>1a.,v.n1«1r11·1a,faJ11111n Bill Bolosky, Treasurer, ,.,,,1,,;c1c,,,m,,w·m""' 1

HELP NEEDED

RESPONSE TO STEVE GOLDMAN

Dear Editor, We need support for a club we would like to pm together frH the pilots of Long Island and the New York City area. We need all the help we can get from anyone ro preserve an air-base flying have access to it as a club, and not let a golf course and homebuilders get their claws on it. It rnay not work but it was going to, and it would be an unbeliev able flying site for the nonheast coast. We live in the middle of one of the most populated areas in the U.S. where most of rbe money is too (the Gold Coast). Grumman (rhc airplane manufactmhas sold the place to the town of Riverhead (the cast part of Long Island) for one dollar. The town is hurting for money and is trying to gcr people on rhe air base to generate revenue. Bur many people want to keep it as it is now and for what it was built for, aviation. We just joined the effort to preserve the air base. Former Grurnman workers and local town folks do nor want to rrnnsform even more the already overde-vcloped Long Island area. The eastern section (Suffolk County) has all the farm land and 1his is where Long Island wines arc making headway in the world market. It is a beautiful area and rhe potcn-tial for paragliding and hang gliding towing and powered paragliding is very real. We arc asking pilots to send e-mails of suppon for the preservation of the air base and to open it 10 a general aviation club. Send your e-mails to me at supair@macconnect.com. [ will collect rhem for our future proposal to the town. Be specific in your e-mail and only mention paragliding, motorized paragliding and bang gliding, not airplanes because of the tendency frlr people to think of aviatiou as big and noisy, and this is nor what we want either, just quiet, non-pollming, beau ti fol, slow-flying wings.

Dear Editor, In the words of Steve Goldman, "I just can't let this go without ,1 response." My reference is 10 his letter to the editor in the November 2000 issue of this magazine. Steve must have had a serious crash while towing his \)(fills Wing glider. I don't know what kind of Wills Wing Steve was flying when he had his accident, but every Wills Wing that I've owned since my first SST had a placard that clearly stated that it was nor to be towed. lf Steve decided to tow his Wills Wing in spite of the warnings, then he was acting as a test pilot and should assume all the associated risks. If he did not undcrsrand the possible risks he was facing as a result of his actions then he should probably get out of the test-pilot business. Wills Wing has always been very snaighrforward with information and advisories, Wills Wing is a leader in pilot training and safe aircraft development, and they have always offered the flying community some of the best recreational flying equipment. 'fo try to blame Wills Wing for his unfortunate lack of understanding is detrimental to hang gliding, Wills Wing, and to every innovative pilot in the coun1ry. 1-lis threat lo "sue them out ofbusi .. ncss" is a demonstration of an attitude rhat has permeated American society, rhat being, "Jr's not my fault blame someone else." J have to wonder why Steve doesn't blame the people who taught (or didn't teach) him how to truck launch. They played a part in his misadventure, Or why not blame the people who built the tow system? They should share in Steve's lawsuit. Besides, the glider didn't unhook the nose wire, the nose line did. \Xlhy 1101' blame the guy who invented the nose line? I know the nose line inventor intimately, and he thinks Steve should stay at home to watch cartoons on the weekends and leave the test-pilot stuff to those who can deal with it.

Philippe Renaudin POSTMASTER: SEND CHANGE OF ADl1Rl:SS HANG Cl.!DING1 l',0. BOX

co 809()J .. J330.

JANUARY 2001

Vol UMI 31, ISSUI No. I

Jerry Forburger l ,ubbock, Texas

HANC GLll)INC

Calendar of events items WILL NOT be listed if only re111ative. Please include exact

CLINICS/MEETINGS/TOURS

information (event, date, contact nztme and phone number). Items should be

UNTIL MARCH: Vt1lle de Bravo, Mexico,

received no later than six weeks prior to

flying. Flying every day. Per week, in and

the event. We request two months lead

our on a Sunday. $895 HG, $695 PC. Contact: www.flymcxico.com, jeff(?1)fly--

time for regional and national meets.

mexico.com, l-800-861

COMPETITION

by Rodger Hoyt

l 98.

JAN. 19-21: 7,mdcm Clinic with the innovacors of aero10wing, offered by Quest Air

JAN. 14-21: Forbes (Australia) Odyssey.

Soaring Center, Inc. with tandem adrnin ..

Practice day Jan J 3. AAA and PAT-sanc-

istrator Russell Brown and

tioned WPRS aerotow meet. We will sup-

Instructor/ Administrat:or Steve Kroop.

ply tows, you supply glider, tow release,

Emphasis on aerotowing mcrhods, tech-

retrieval. Tow Organizer: Bill Moyes. Meet

niques and innovations. Basic/ Advance

Organizer: Vicki Cain. Essentials: Aerotow

Jnstructor Clinic as well as CPR and First

endorsement, f!GFA membership, GPS-

Aid classes will also be :wailable January J 5

Garmin or Aircotec. Entry fee of$500

through 18. Primitive camping, RV sites,

includes unlimited tows and presentation

private, semi-private and hunk rooms

dinner. Last Forbes comp in '99 had three

available on site by reservation. Family

world-record days! $100 deposit required

members welcome with access to private

by Nov. 30 to secure a spot, balance at reg-

lake, screened-in pool and hot tub, '.:lO

istration. Make checks payable to Forbes

minutes from Orlando's theme parks and

Flatlands 200 l and post to: Moyes Dclra

attractions. Contact: Quest Air Soaring

Gliders, 1144 Botany Road, Botany NSW

Center, [nc.

2019, Australia, tel. 011-02-93 l 64644, or

429-4846, quesrair(ti)sundial.ncr.

li29-0213, fax

JAN. 20-21, PEB. 10-11, MARCH 10-

11: Mexico 2001, Cotes Cliffs, Baja California, 80 miles south of Enscnada, a J 0-milc-long, 250-foot-high cliff on a

deserted Mexican heach. No facilities, so JAN. 20-21, FEB. 10-11, MARCH 10-

bring everything you need for the flight to

L1: Annual series ofwinter ftyir~g trips,

Glen Crater and The Point. Surfing good,

Cotes Cliff,, Baja, California, 80 miles

flying great! Bring household donations

south of Ensenada, Mexico, at a I 0--milc··

char can be left behind for the locals.

long, 250-foot-higb cliff located on a

Conract: Mike Tiilberath, (949) 455-

deserted Mexican beach. Flying usually

0032, eteamcr@usa.net,

startS before noon and lasts all day. No

eteam@biterne.com.

facilities, so bring everything you will need for the flight: to Glen Crater and The Point. Surfing is good and flying is great. Bring household donations that can be lefi: behind for rhc locals. Contact: Mike Hilberath, (949) 455-0032,

FEB. 9-11: USHGA Board of'Dircctors meeting, Indianapolis, Indiana. Contact: (719) 632-8300.

of writing this column is I get to utilize some of the ..1111...rcallitTs suggestions. This parachute packing tip from Mark Vaughn is a w111ner: "Every six months we hang glider pilNs are advised to do a repack of our reserve parachutes. And every six months we go through the same battle of pulling rhe tight little bungee cord back up through the two small holes in our safety lock systems and then fighting to insert the safety pins. This simple trick will save you both time and frustration. "'fake a six-inch piece of piano wire and fold it in half, making a tight bend at one end. Run one end of the bent: wire tool through the opening in the bungee and then run both ends of the tool up through the holes in your chute compartment from underneath. Using the wire, pull the bungee through, then insert the safety pins." Mark elaborated that piano wire can be found at hardware stores and bobby shops everywhere, but I discovered that mig-welding wire works equally well. Thanks Mark! Have A hot tip? E.. mail rbhoyt@go.com or mail Rodger lloyt; 956 Glengrovc Ave, OR.97502.

etearner@usa.net, or etcam@biterne.com.

HANC CUDINC

k ll

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II update WORLD TEAM ACADEMY AT WALLABY

wanted to carry our chis research umil we were absolurely sure of che resulcs. The termin ology adopted in Germany makes a disrincrion berween tucking and rumbling. Tucking is a quick forward rorarion like a for.,.,ard loop. Tumbling is rhe recurrence of chis quick forward rorarion umil recovery, inverted flight, parachure opening or glider failure occurs. Our fmal conclusion was issued based on dara obtained from many differenr sources:

• Aerodynan1 ics dara from more rhan 20 runs on che DHV cerrificarion tesr truck wich rhe Ghostbusrer in all possible configuracions. • Aerodynamics daca from Exxracy and Ghosrbuscer cerrificarion. • Reports about rhe accidents by the pilots. • Physical examination of the broken gliders sent back ro us. • Test flights by our pilots. • Reports from many Ghostbuscer pilots all over che world. • An independenr analysis performed by Dr. Marrin Jursa who was the technical direcror of the DHV and who performed profound cheoretical and practical research about ttU11bling characteristics in hang gliders.

allaby's World Team Academy (WTA) is open for che 2001 season. Ir is rhe narion's only learning center dedicared to advanced flighr insrruccion. U.S. World Team member Mike Barber heads che WTA ar Wallaby Ranch. The demanding pilot now has a place to go and perfect chose basic chermaling skills to advanced cross-country techniques necessary to safely fly over che horizon. Instrucrion is customized to che individual based on rheir skill level and needs. WTA offers a one-on-one grow1d school and in-flight, glider-co-glider radio guidance. Accelerated learning programs are specifica lly developed for inrermediare ro advanced pilots. If you are looking for your first X-C experience, trying to improve your current ranking, or just want some catered individualized instrucrion, WTA railors rheir program ro you. lt is located in the heart of Florida ar the famous Wallaby Ranch, whose repuration for excellent service and incredibly consistent soaring weather is world renowned. Wallaby has produced counrless 100-mile flights, including rhe Florida X-C disrance and duration records. Watch for funher WTA announcements on spring clinic dares in furure issues of Hang Gliding magazine. For more information go to wallaby.com and dick on World Team Academy, or e-mail WTA@wal laby.com, or call 1-800-Wallaby. Go World Team Academy because you're a better pilot than you think.

GHOSTBUSTER ADVISORY

A fcer a research process chat starred .r\.immediately after a tumbling in Arizona, we are presenting our conclusions about the srability qualities of the Gbostbuster. We apologize for the delay, but we 8

We wo uld like to stress that the research was done while exceeding all possible configurations a Ghoscbuscer could possible be in after leaving our quality conrrol. This was done to see if a parricular combinacion of extreme sweep and sail tension could induce a loss of srability wich C\vist disrriburion inside factory rolerances. None of these rests have shown any crirical resulrs in keeping wirh today's cerrificarion standards. The aerodynamk analysis performed by Dr. Martin Jursa consisred of comparing rhe stability curves from rhe different configuracions of che Ghostbusrer and rhe cerrified Exxracy. His analysis showed char che stab ili ty curves of the Ghosrbusrer are better chan chose of che Exxtacy. This is somewhat surprising because of che difference in safety records, bur agrees with rhe safecy goals char were sec when rhe Ghoscbuscer was designed. The Gboscbusrer was carefully designed wich a

large rip area co make it more spin resiscan c and improve load distribution . There is also mrbulator sewing along che span of rhe upper sail char prevenrs laminar stall. Where, then, has rhe difference in safety records co me from? Normally, a pilot entering a turbulence zone reaccs by adopting an ergonomic "alert" position in which the bar lies somewhere beC\¥een his chin and chest. The amounr of weight shifting afterwards depends on how dangerous the pilot judges rhe situation to be after a while. The Ghosrbusrer bar position is 7-10 cm farcher back than char of the Exxcacy. For an average-size pilot chis difference in che "alert" position represents a 3° to 4° higher angle of arrack, which will approximacely result in five km/h less speed. The speed and the angle of arrack diffe rences cannot explain why a Ghostbuster would tuck and an Exxtacy not, because in extreme turbulence, gust variations can be much greater rhan chat, cherefore, sraciscical ly, some Exxracies should have already tucked. Hang gliders are nor only tailless but also use weight shift in the longicudina.l a.xis (speed a.xis) . When a pilot moves his body forward he is not only increasing speed by reducing the angle of attack, bur more imporcantly, he is shifting his weighc and the CG (center of gravity) fonvard. CG position is ve ry important for all hang gliders, sailplanes and airplanes in turbulenr conditions. In che mechanics of flight rhe biggest safety factor when it comes to longitudinal stability is how far che center of gravity of the aircraft is in from of che neutral point. This distance is called the static margin. If a pilot maintains a specific "alert position" in a Ghostbusrer and an Exxracy there wi ll be a very big difference in stabili ty. As you can see in che table below, in chis example chere is more chan a 125% difference in the static margin . Ir is important to understand chat ir doesn't matter at which speed che pilot is flying. If he mai mains che same bar posicion relative co his body chis difference in stability will always be present at all speeds, but even more dramacic at lower speeds.

H ANG GLIDI NG

Upd Static margin in cm and in percentage of P*

Static margin m cm Sratic margin in %/P

Exx 160 11.18 cm

Ghostbustcr 4.9 l cm

I 3.34(Yci

5.9:3%1

*Sta:tic with tion in cm in percentage of P I? or Pfoilmass, is a referena value used mostly in tailless designs. If we change the pilot position by seven cm with new cables, we double the static margin of the Ghostbuster. A second very important positive effect of a bigger static margin is resistance ro rip stalls and spins.

Static margin m cm Static margin in %1/P

Exx 160 11 .18 cm

Chostbustcr l 0. 77 cm

13.34%

I :3.03%

CONCLUSION We had two goals in our research: l) Tti find a proven reason fix the d iffercncc in safety statistics between the Chostbustcr and the Exxtacy, 2) to find a solution for modifying the glider in such a way that pilots could fly safely without any special advice or tools, and with no reduction in in-flight fun or performance. The difference in srnric margin is a very reasonable explanation for the incidents. The Ghostlrnster, according 10 its pitch curve, is rnorc stable than the Exxtacy, but today's certification tests do not evaluate static margin and we did not evaluate it during the design process. Ycm can be sure that in all future develop-· ments we will rake care of this matter. By changing the front cables we arc providing a modification to pilots which will not in anyway decrease in-flight fun or performance, but will increase the safety margin to the well-proven Exxtacy standard, with better spin and stall resistance and recovery. New front cables and rear shackles for all Gbosrbuster pilots can be ordered free of charge from your importer or dealer.

Please contact North Arnerican r:light Design at napi@)fun2f1y.com or call (206) 320-9010.

submitted by Plight Design, Stuttg11rt USHGA ANNUAL MEETING IN INDIANAPOLIS, FEBRUARY 9 AND 10 to Indianapolis and attend the _,,,,,1,u Annual Meeting which is open to all USHGA members. There will be speakers and displays on the exhibit floor. The event is held in conjunction with the Soaring Society Annual Convention, so the exhibit hall will have gliding displays of all kinds. Rcgist ration: Call the USHGA Office or the Soaring Society Office. USHGA (719) (132-8300 SSA (505) 392-1177 Hotels: Embassy Suites Hotel (317) 236-J 806 Hampton Inn Flotcl (317) 261-1200 Be sure to ask for Air Expo or Soaring Society special rates. For More Information: Call the offices or e-mail.

lJ .S. rnanufacturers succeed. North Wing was born four years ago afrcr AirWavc shur down its U.S. facility. With the help of a few employees from former PacAir (Jose and Maria Gonzalez and George Reeves) Kamron Blevins started North Wing Design, Inc. For the past four years North Wing has mainly produced trike wings and a few hang gliders. They have also been manufacturing three trike models, including the ATF (a light trike for hang gliders). North Wing will start marketing and producing I JG MA-certified hang gliders very soon. Since they arc the crew that produced the Vision Pulse, they will be reintroducing rheir own Pulse under rhe name Illusion IO merer and l l meter. The company has already been supplying the majority of flight parks, schools and tandem pilots with the T2 (a tandem hang glider) for three years. The T2 is basically a refined Double Vision. North Wing takes pride in high-quality products and service, and will be looking for former Pac Air dealers and new ones as well. Contact: (509) 88(i-4605, fax (509) 886-Yi35, trikes@nonhwing.com, www.northwing.com.

2000

infoG:JJssa.org ushgaCthush ga.org

NORTH WING TEST VEHICLE

North Wing has acquired the ultirnatc testing equipment, the "mobile wind wnnel." This same vehicle has been used to certify hang gliders for years by Wills Wing, and North Wing would like to thank Wills Wing and Mark West for making the vehicle available. Wills bas been very supportive in helping other

ongratulations and thanks are in order for the pilots and sponsors of the Texas Cross-Country 2000 Contest. ft opened on March 3, 2000 and ended on December 3 with 23 Texas pilots entered. Two divisions were created, with anyone having made 50-mile flights separating the "Old Dogs" from the "Young Pups." A Web site managed by Michael Williams, with rules, sponsors, contestants and results can be viewed at http://users.evI.net/,,michaelj/TXXC/. The season was slow to ramp up due to a wet spring, and the first meaningful X-C flights weren't achieved until late May. July heated things up, with older "Dog" Degtoff and a younger "Dog" Zimmerman trading the lead several times. Then the ·rcxas summer drought began to set record high temps, and the race was on. Early August hinted of

HANC CLIDING

u incredible soaring to come, as Degtoff's Acros Stealth carried him 1 miles north for a new personal best :rnd an Austin Air Sport's site record our of Hearne. The Lone Star Championships saw many of the country's best pilots launching into spectacular mid-August crosscountry conditions. The LSC: provided Zimmerman, in his Laminar MR 2000, four of his bcsr--scoring flights of the year, which included a stellar 71-mile triangle. Many L.SC: competitors said it was the best XC flying rhey had ever cxperi-and many of them set personal bests with the 71-milc triangle and 108mile goal tasks. The rest of the "Old Dog" class turning in flights included Michael Williams, Kenr Robinson, Ben Eastern, Greg Chastain and Recd Murray. John Krueger in his Wills Wing Fusion set the Pups bar higher when he almost complcu:d a 2.3-milc out--and-return to Hearne in early July. Marco Zaldiva was close on his heels with a 35miler out of Houston site Brookshire. Aussie Lionel Orford, Carl Bodie, John Beveridge, 'fom Clark and Bill Misiaszek all submitted flights in the "Puppy" class. I'm sure several of these Pups will steal a couple of bones in next year's comest with flights of 50 miles or better and move up to flghr with the Dogs in 2002. We wish to thank the sponsors who so generously contributed to the wonderful success of our contesr. It was possible to o(Ter a prize to all contestants who entered because of the sponsors' generosity. These wondcrfi1I companies were: J\dvennm: Productions, Angle of Attack, Austin Air Sports, Flytec USA, !--!all Brothers, High Energy Sports, Moyes America, Neilsen-Kellerman, Sky Dog Publications/Jim Palmieri, Soaring Dreams, U.S. Aeros, USHGA and Wills Wing. The ']has X-C 2001 Contest is scheduled for 3/ I /0 I to 10/31 /0 I for all X-C pilots residing in 'frxas.

RESUITS OLD DOGS !st Chris Zimmerman 2nd Mike Degtoff

jANUARY 2001

7%. 5 points 598.8 points

Michael Williams 4th Kent Robinson 5th Ben Eastern 6th Greg Chastain 7th Recd Murray

399.7 points 78.7 points 40.8 poims 39.9 points 17.3 points

YOUNG PUPS ] St John Krueger 2nd Marco Zaldivar 3rd I ,ionel Orf(ird 4th Carl Bodie 5th John Beveridge 6th Torn Clark 7th Bill Misiaszek

61.9 points 55 points 15 poi lltS 36.7 points 26. 9 points 17.3 points 1 I .3 points

submitted by Mike Degto[l

.W. Meadows of.Just Fly, U.S. Acros and J\irwave America announces

that the companies will be closed from January 2.2. through February 1, 2001. Afrer the most successful year to date for these businesses, G.W. has decided to give the entire company and employees a two-week vacation during the slowest time period of the year. Please plan your merchandise and pans orders accordingly.

of Directors is pleased to announce a full slate of award recipients for the

Year 2.000-2001. The Committee wishes to thank everyone who subrnirtcd nominations this year. We appreciate the time that om members, Directors and Chapters took to provide us with information. The awards ceremony will take place in conjunction with the Air Sports Expo and spring Board of Directors meeting to be held in Indianapolis in February. Please join us now in congratulating:

Bill !Jryden, Presidential Citation Joe Greblo, Exceptional Service Special Commendations: Shant Buzzard Acromotive and the Rcno Air Race Committee

Kim Bartel, BLM represernativc Bill Clayton and R11y 1v11uo'rNi'11 Elliott Field Kathy Park Supervisor, l~ong State Recreation Arca, WI Corene !l!bri;~ht, landowner !nes Roberts, Bettina Gray /\ward Bay Area Pcm1glidi11g !lssociation "Ric{~edancei; "Newsletter of the Year Crestline Society, Chapter of the Year Pettr Reagan, NJ\!\ Safety /\ward Instructor of the Year/Paragliding: Marty De Vietti Instructor of the Year/Hang Gliding: Rob McKenzie Comrnendaticms: Smith li1Jes '/rill Chit/ Frnie Regly jachie Danslein Gary Ptmlin Andy Austin In addition, we will be recognizing the points leaders for all competition classes. Congratulations to the winners and sec you in h:bruary!

by]tm Johnson

he C:TVL, the international hang gliding and paragliding commission of rl1e FJ\I, has created a notifica-· tions Web site at h t1p:!/www.fai.org/hang __ glidi ng/ safety/ s afety ~notices.asp. The C!Vl, will create direct links to official national and manufacturers' postings of hang gliding and paragliding safety notif1cario11s once conractcd. The Cerman, British and Canadian associations presently have Web sites dedicated to safety notifications. Links from the CIVL Web site should be established shortly.

suhmitted by fred Wilwn

by USHGA Accident Review Chairman Bill B~yden am saddened to report our third hang gliding fotality for the year. f ,arry Zoellner died on November 15 of complications resulting from a hang glid-· ing accidem he experienced on November :3. Larry was a highly experienced aerotug pilot but only recently earned his Intermediate hang glider rating. The vast majority of I ,arry's estimated 50+ hours of hang glider rime was in single-surface, beginner-level gliders. l lis experience in high-performance, double-surface gliders was limited to about a half dozen flights. As a commercial pilot and C:FI, he also had extensive experience (more than 5,000 hours) in other aviation craft including crop-dusters and helicopters. 1.arry was being acrotowcd on a Wills Wing X-C in the evening about an hour bdc)rc dark. He launched ;md began oscil-lating quite aggressively. 1-lis body was observed to shi/i. side to side the maximum amount possible during each oscillation, uncharacteristic of his previous flying style. 1-Ieclimbccl to 100-150 feet and then released. The oscillations persisted fclr a few moments and then settled down as rhc glider's airspeed slowed significantly. He started a gentle turn bur then straightened out near a line of trees. Approximately IO seconds afrcr the towing release, the lefr wing tip clipped a tree at about 50-60 feet of altitude and the glider crashed to rhe ground. Assistance reached I .;ury almost immediately and he was helicopter evacuated to a trauma center. 1 lis only injuries were head related and he died about two weeks later. Clidcr damage was not very extensive: a broken leading edge, control bar and downrubc and some sail damage from the leading edge. This was Larry's fourth flight on this glider, which he was cousidcring for purchase. For unknown reasons, unlike all his previous flights on higher-performance gliders heing aerotowcd, Larry did not have a stabilizing fin installed on the glider, nor he did have winglets insrnlled. It is speculated that due to the lateness of the evening flight, maybe he did not want to burn up daylight retrieving the fin from across the airfield. Compounding problems caused by the lack of the fin, he was being rowed by a turbo I ug that tows at

higher airspeeds, typically 35 mph or more when coming out of the field. Civen his modest hang gliding experience, limited high-performance glider experience, the higher towing airspeeds and the lack of a fin which helps moderate oscillations, it is easy to understand how and why his extreme oscillations began and persisted during the tow. After the tow release, I .arry's actions to avoid the tree line and setup for the imminent landing were perceived as quite slow by observers. The reason for this is unknown. It has been speculated that the sheer anxiety of the tow may have swamped his thinking. Many instructors have witnessed this kind of panic/fear situation in which the pilot freezes up and fails to act promprly. l ,arry's extensive aviation experience crop-dusting, aerotowing and in helicopters would tend to argue against his succumbing to a fcar/anxicLyinduccd brain stall hut docs not rule it out.

Some of the lessons from this tragic accidcm arc ones we have discussed here before. l 11 the November issue we discussed intermediate syndrome and how newer pilots may believe their skills arc more developed than they really arc. l don't know rhat Larry sufkrcd from this, hut most pilots do ar some point as their experience progresses. 'foo often, new pilots learn to fly on single-surface gliders and then want to move directly to a competition-class glider. Newer pilots observe the ones who fly longest, highest and fimhcst, and sec that they arc generally piloting rocket-ship gliders. It is easy ro conclude that the fancy glider is a major factor in this, and they conscquemly seek ro purchase one expecting to duplicate the success. There is an ego dimension as well. The good pilots fly competition-type gliders, so if I fly one roo, I'll be a good pilot or ar least perceived as one by others. Unfortunately, the high-performance gliders require significantly more finely boned skill to pilot confidently and safely; skill these pilots generally don't yet possess. Mosr instrucrors have seen pilots move inco compctitio11-lcvcl gliders too quickly. The gliders often stunt the progression of these pilots' flying skills. '!'hey generally have shorter flights than they would on an intenncdiate-lcvel glider. Flying the comp glider will be a higher anxiety experience with less reward. Many of these gliders handle like a truck, arc slow to respond and require more effort to effl.:Ct control.

These pilots don't have fun and some even leave the sport because the idea of playing golf or doing something equally non-stimulating becomes more appealing. Simply possessing a compctition--class glider will not yield higher performance, as many newer pilots believe. Performance derives from a proper marriage between the pilot and the glider. These gliders arc harder to fly, and if a pilot docs not have the abiliry to extract the performance from the glider, it usually compromises his flying performance rather than enhancing it. Novice or intermediate skills coupled wirh an appropriate intcrrnccliate glider will generally result in far better performance than rhose skills will on a comp glider. Many pilots pursue competition gliders because of the concern that they will outgrow an incermcdiatc glider too soon, and have to sell ir and purchase a new one. lnterestingly, beginner- and intermediate-level gliders have for better resale value than competition-class gliders. Various manufocnircrs inrroducc new and improved comp gliders annually. After several years, a given design is no longer the greatest and its manufacturer generally replaces it wirh some newer version or completely new model. The previous comp glider is not especially competitive (which is not relevant since most pilors don't fly in competitions) and consequently, desirability and market value plummet. Manufacturers produce beginner and intermediate glider designs frir years and years. One of rhesc can often be purchased used, and if well maintained sold two or three years later for not a whole lot less than rhc purchase price. Examine the ads in the back of this magazine, and you'll find many examples of introductory gliders exceeding the value of comparably aged and used high-performance gliders that originally cost thousands rnorc. If you arc a newer pilot, seek the wisdom and advice of an experienced instructor about your next glider. Rcwarc of an older comp glider thar is pitched to you as a "deal." If the: price is low, there is a rca-son. 'foo many advanced pilots buy the latest ship and try ro pawn off their old one on some up-and-corning new pilot. Be especially wary of recommendations and comments about the appropriateness of the glider being made by the person attempting to sell the glider to you. 'There is no hurry to advance to a competitionclass glider, and believe me, you'll ultimately enjoy the sport far more and stay in it longer if you take your time. Ill HANC GLJDINC

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[ got a message from Frank Colver, USHGA #7: "I was glad to sec the list of members with numbers below 1,000 in the November issue of Hang Gliding. Unfortunately, l renewed too late t:o make that list. "I had strayed from the flock for the last year or two but now, afrer attending the vintage hang glider meet ,H Dockwciler Beach in California (vintage pilots also) in September, I decided to get off my butt (pun intended) and rejoin USHGA. At rhe meet l flew my Eipper Flcxi Floater for the first rime in 19 years and had a ball. l also rediscovered why we developed better gliders! 'Tm now happily back in the fold." Frank Colver, USHGA #72

B 1nn1n h New Mill nn1um ~y USHGA President David Glover

he real beginning of the new rnillennium. J wish 1 had something memorable ro say, something that would stanc-1 the test of time and be read by pilots 100 ye;irs from now and hold them in awe. BuL l just have a few simple thoughts. The year 2000 had the fewest pilot farnlities since we staned keeping records in the mid-1970's. Herc are some thoughts: • • •

Preflight your glider well. Ply a glider below your skill level. Fly in conditions below your skill level. • Sign up for automatic renewal at www.11shga.org. • "falk a friend into trying flying. • Imagine what the sport could be in 10 or 2 5 years. 14

ln acldirion, Dudley Mead (USHGA should have been included in the list of USHGA members with numbers below 1,000. He is a life member and has been a continuous member since J01l11l1g. A correction to make: The poster in rhe movie The Vvatcher, mentioned in a previous magazine, is rrom a photo rhat was a group effort. John !Ieiney momned Tenn Sanders' (of Aerial Focus) camera on a glider that Moyes suppl icd to Gerry Charlebois. G.W. Meadows towed behind Gerry flying an AirBorne Edge trike. If you have extra energy or an idea to help the Association please let me know. 'Thank you for your membership in the USHGA.

Nationals at Austin Air Sports in Hearne, 'Icxas. For the latest list of sanci-ioned com· petitions in the U.S. check out ushga.org.

Wing Rankings Rc1nh Pilot 1)

2) 3) 4) 5)

6) 7) 8) 9) I 0) 1]) ] 2) 13) 14) 15) 16) 17) 18) 19) 20) 21)

bis is a listing of pilots who have attended sanctioned meets in the U.S. and abroad for selection of rhe National "!cam. The 2001 U.S.--sancrioned hang gliding meets are the Flytec Championships at Quest Air in Groveland, Florida, and the U.S.

958 878 619 635 572 501 491 410 331 294 241 179 178 126 61 46 45 22 7 3

U.S.

Rankings

Rank Pilot

Total

1) 2) 3)

1802 l

David Glover mc1y bt contticted 11t: (706) drwid@dt/l)idglover. corn. Ill

U.S. HANG GLIDING PILOT RANKINGS, CLASSES I AND II, AS OF DECEMBER 2000

Porter, Brian Stranb, Davis Posch, Johann Sharp, David Barrnakian, Bruce Zeiset, Jim Gibson, Mark Bowen, Campbell Pousrinchian, Mark Mulholland, Mark Yocom, Jim Ziaskas, Mike Sheldon, Jamie Lamb, J;irncs Rogers, Tip Cameron, Kevin Brown, Russell Grubbs, Mark Yanctz, Ramy Denton, Tim l ,ocke, Russ Hagcwood, Bo Austin, Craig

lrJtal

5) 6) 7) 8) 9)

Lee, Jim Williams, Paris Barber, Mike Volk, Glen Rossignol, Jersey Arai, Chris Hagcwood, Bo Castle, Kari Rewolinski, SLeve

1388 1269 1179 1115 1114 1108 1033 33. HANC CLIDINC

article, illustrations andphotos by john Maloney

This article presents a device that makes hang gliding safer, a device so simple to operate that a pilot need never turn it on or otherwise even remember that it's installed on his glider. r addresses only one aspect of our sport: failure ro hook in. It was my hope that this problem had been put w rest with new techniques: hooking the harness in before you get in it, having your launch crew back you up, and other good procedures. However, when I read of a recent fatality resulting from failure to book in, I decided to finish whar [ had started years ago and present the device to the hang gliding public for your evaluation and benefit. 'fhis type of accident is not simple and is not going away without fur-· ther imcrvcntion. What I am proposing could potenrially put an end to this complex and deadly issue. Please take the time to reflect and admit that you arc not immune to this risk. This article conrains a pans list and illustrations so you can make your own hook-· in alarm. Although 1 don't have the rime or motivation to have this device produced and made widely available, it is my hope thar someone out there docs. Perhaps a kir could be made available. 'fhc parts shouldn't cost much more than about 25 bucks.

A BRIEF HISTORY Inspired by Harry Martin's hook-in alarrn (Hang Gliding, March 1992) I built: an improved version. With the conceptual groundwork done by Harry I simplified it and made it truly passive. I have been fly· ing with one ever since, My version con··· sists of a battery, a bu:r:1cr, a mercury tilt switch and two magnetic recd switches. Magnetic reed switches arc like the ones on your home alarm system, They arc scaled in a vacuum, are activated by the proximity of a magnet, and arc extremely reliable. JANUARY 2001

Magnet epoxied inside batten

"" Prox.sensor #808-1035 normall.y closed (opened magneticall.y) taped to hang loop

Inboard under pocket(inside sail)

batten

(High school equivalency electrical schematic) ~ Wire.from gadget box

Prox. sensor#808- l 035 normttll.y closed(opened magn(Jtically) taped to hang loop.

The entire circuit is in simple series. Battery to buzzer, buzzer to tilt switch, tilt switch to arming switch, arm.ing switch to hang loop activation switch, then back to the battery, The arming switch is placed in the sail on a batten pocket and activated by a magnet installed in the batten. This way, when you complete your normal semp you have

Magnet taped to top ofcarahiner

armed the system with no additional action. The hang loop switch is normally closed and will only open when the cara,, biner (with a magnet taped to it) is placed in the loop. This makes the hook-in alarm system completely passive. It is armed automatically by normal setup and disarmed by normal breakdown. Once installed you can forget about it, chang-

Hang loop equipped with proximity sensor, closed until carabiner with magnet is hooked in.

ing the battery only once a year, since che bacce1y never has a draw except when the alarm is sounding. If you use good procedures you may forget what it sounds like, but the system is there waiting for you co do something out of your routine.

THE SYSTEM WORKS! After not flying for a few months I sec my glider up in the yard co check a camera mount, and when I pulled the nose of the glider down co attach the nose cone, the hook-in alarm buzzer sounded and scared me half co death. I had forgotten all about the system, but it still worked as designed. I regard this incident as validation that the system is truly passive. A passive warning system does not inhibit or substitute for the use of good preflight checks and procedures. The system simply waits for the pilor to have a lapse, then shouts, "STOP, DON'T LAUNCH! YOU'RE NOT HOOKED IN. " Warning systems make aviation safer. Jee transport aircraft are equipped with warning systems: Ground Proximity Warning Systems, Stall Warning Systems, Takeoff Configuration Warning Systems and a Traffic Collision Avoidance System, to name a few. These systems enhance flight safety. They do not undermine safety or add to complacency. The Federal Aviation Adminisuacion and National Transportation Safety Board have mandated these systems in response to specific accidents, in an effort to avoid repeat rragedies. As a result, commercial aviation in the United States has been made ever safer. We can enhance the safety of our spore by caking action where action is needed, implementing change where change is needed. Lee's put an end to failure to hookin fatalities . The alarm system is very simple to construct and all necessary pans are readily available. It is important chat the tilt switch be properly placed in the gadget box so it will be open when the glider is at rest on che keel and closed when tl1e nose is lowered as when about to launch. This cakes a only a Ii ctle tinkering. Here is a list of components and suppliers: • Allied Electronics: 1-800-43 3-5700 • Proximity sensors: pares #808-1025 and #808-1035 • Actuator (magnet): (2) part 808-0029 • Radio Shack • Gadget box, mercury tilt switch, buzzer,

Gadget box containing mercury tilt switch, battery and buzzer.

Inside ofsaiL Sensor taped or sewn to batten pocket. This is the arming switch. It is normally open and closed/armed when the batten (with magnet inside) is inserted.

baccery clip and wire. Nace: I believe that Allied requires a minimum purchase of $25, so get extra pans and build a second alarm for a friend.

The author may be contacted at: 112161.l572@compuserve.com. - Ed.

Fly safely. • H ANG GLIDING

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by Brian Vant-Hull

o most pilo-ts ramp suck is a mysterious and occasionally frightening phenomenon, usually explained by sketchy references to rotor hitting the back of the wing, if not goblins snaking their long arms up over the edge of the cliff to snatch the unprepared. The most probable explanarion is much simpler, but requires a portrayal of the principles of flight removed from the equally mysterious "Bernoulli's Principle" approach. The explanation I give is not the only explan;nion for ramp suck under all circumstances, and I have heard other convincing arguments. Rotor exists, hut I haven't noted it being strong enough 10 produce the sizable forward forces I've felt. On many ramps the wingtips project into the airstrcam behind the pilot, which could produce a nose rotation. This depends on the launch construction, and many will not have this factor. Given the widespread occurrence of ramp suck, it's my belief that the effect portrayed below is the most prevalent. I like to explain flight by referring to the deflection of air: The air is ddlcned one w;iy, the wing is pushed the other way. This requires little more than some geometry married to simple physics. In contrast, the customary approach derives pressure differences from the fluid flow and then uses the pressure patterns to calculate the lift. This has the advantage of being more accurate in the long run, but does not easily reduce to back-of· the-envelope calculations and diagrams. Unfortunately, the people who write textbooks arc invariably professionals interested in precision, and so the general public is rarely exposed to the simpler, rnore intuitive approach I will outline below. Worse still, attempts ro simplify the pressure approach have led to several false statcmeni-s being perpetuated in high school science classes. It's time to revise sorne history.

We sec the ball come in at a specific speed and angle and bounce off at very nearly the same speed and angle. As it bounces it exerts a force against rhc wall, and the wall responds by exerting an equal and opposite reaction force against the ball. Notice that the forces bisect the angle between the incoming and outgoing velocity. This geometrical bauble is the crux of all rhat follows. Now let's look at air bouncing off a wing. At first you may think the air docs exactly what the ball docs, and bounces back at the same angle it hit:

However, in order to do that the air would have to be push-· ing through rhe air coming up beside ir. Air may be a gas, but it sl'ill occupies space. The air bouncing off ends up being pushed to the side by the air coming up next to it, so we get the following effect:

*** I'll start with what J call rhc "Simple Vector Flight Theorem." T call it tha, because I've never seen it in any text, so I can call it whatever I want. The name emphasizes the vector approach as a contrast ro the pressure approach. T<) motivate it we start with a familiar example. Air is made up of molecules which bounce around like little balls, hitting our wings and exerting a force as rhey bounce off. So let's look at a ball bouncing off a wall:

The air /i)llows along the undersurfacc oF the glider. Note how the force is angled more forward. And the air on top? Well, as the wing sweeps through rhe air it creates a bit of a vacuurn behind it, and the air over the rop is deflected into this area of cavitation, speeding up in the process. Sec the sidebar for a more Hi\NC GUDINC

detailed explanation. Even though the angles aren't symmetrical, so long as the speeds arc equal the force will bisect the angle frirmcd by rhe incoming and omgoing velocities. And if you tliink of a ball just gr;izing a wall, it will exert very little force. Apparently the larger the angle, the larger the force. A faster ball will also produce a larger force. Now we can put this together to ltirm the Simple Vector 'fheorem in the box below. The diagram part of the theorem ;iddresses the direction of the total force on the wing clue to air· /low. It is the most importam part. The second part addresses the size of the total force due to airflow, and is common know]. edge. Both parts should make intuitive sense.

v.111

force lift

drag

V V

out

The force in either case can be resolved into perpendicular components which have independent effects on the object in question. With the box, you know very well that when you pull up at an angle not all the force is being used to drag rhe box across the floor; a portion is also lifring it against gravity so that it does not press against the floor as hard. In the case of the wing, the lifr also opposes the force of gravity, but the drag is slowing it down. The conventional definitions have lifr always perpendicular to the direction of motion and drag parallel to the motion, so that in a dive rhc lifr is not necessarily opposite to gravity. hir this essay I will keep drag and lifr fixed relative to the earth so that we do not have to deal with rotating coordinate systems.

Warning: The following definitions and effects are not st1mdard and will only be used in this paper! The direction of the force on a wing bisects the angle between the incoming and outgoing air velocities.

The size of the force increases with the size of the velocity as well as the angle of attack, 8

You should go through each statement: carcfiilly to make sure it jibes with your experience and intuition. Sometimes inrnit.ion needs readjustment!

Lift

The component of force parallel to gravity.

ff the lift is: The validity of the above st,Hcments rests on the assumption that the outgoing velocity is equal to the incoming velocity. While rhis is nor snictly true, it's close enough for most conceptual purposes. The air on rop may be moving slightly faster, bur this is nearly balanced by the air being slowed down below the wing. The major exception comes during a stall when the air eddies over the top, decreasing the average velocity. I will also assume that the outflowing air always follows rhe angle of the trailing edge. Ignored completely are second-order effects from drag on the pilot and rigging, as well as induced drag from eddies spiraling off the wingtips. Design details such as swcepback, reflex and washout would add complications unnecessary ro om discussion. Applications of this linlc theorem require the l!se of the concepts of lift and drag. To develop the ideas, let's compare lifr and drag on a wing to that of dragging a box across the floor with a rope.

LARCFR than the total weight, the glider accelerates up. EQUAL to the weight, the vertical speed will not change. SMALLER than the total weight, the glider accelerates down. Yes, it is possible for a glider to be moving down but acccler· ating upwards. This happens if you are in a dive (moving down), then raise the nose, thus increasing the upward force on the wing above that of the weight. With the acceleration opposite to the velocity, the glider slows. A similar effect happens when rhc glider is climbing but accelerating downward. Drag

The component of force parallel to the ground.

Jf the drag is: FORWARD, the glider speeds up in the horizontal direction. ZERO, the glider rnainrains constant horizontal speed. BACKWARDS, the glider slows down horizontally. We might refer to forward drag as thrust. Standard definitions of thrust require an engine, but since there is no other term that I know of for this forward component, that is the term we'll USC.

We can demonstrate this with a few examples.

]!\NU!\RY 20()'!

A glider

horizonttdly

mr:

(/lidcr in

lift

force

lifting

air

out

In this case, as the glider moves fc)1ward (V ,Jidcr) the wind the pilot secs (Yin) is blowing straight back. l(~c apply the angle bisection idea to get rhe direction of the force on the we find it will have a backwards component of drag, slowing the glider down. The obvious conclusion is drnt can't m01;1' horizontally through still air and rrwint,1in constrmt .1pccd We know this. So what's the solution?

So you cttn move horizontally and maintai11 constant speed, if the :1ir is rising. We call it ridge soaring.

Pull in,

out: F

Glider descending through still air:

Pull in

out

The glider is now moving forward while losing elevation. /\s the angle of Vin shifrs down, the force shifrs forward. Notice that the drag has disappeared! In order to maintr1in tonstrmt in still ti must tmvcl with tl No need to talk about energy loss, etc. Om si rnplc model docs the job. If the glider is going at the proper speed, the upward force will exactly ha lance the force of grnvity, and the glider will nor accelerate vertically or horizontally. There is only one such equilibrium speed for each angle of anack, which is what people arc talking abom when d1cy say angle of' attack determines the speed. If you arc not going at rhc proper speed for your angle of attack, the glider will accelerate or decelerate until things lial ancc out. Of comsc, the other way to produce this upward directed Yin is to have an upward component ro rhc air itself':

Push oul

We sec that whcn we pull in, the frm:c on the will angle the glider to accelerate. Since we arc also at a rhe size of the force will be smaller, and will no longer be balanced. The glider will do a combin:llion of forward and downward acceleration, called a dive. Whc11 we push out, we develop drag, which slows us down in the horizontal direction. But the higher angle of attack also develops more lift. We rend Lo slow down horizonr:11ly and climb In both cases the period (lf' acceleration/ deceleration is shon lived. In a dive, as rhc glider incrc;iscs speed, the lifr will increase until a new equilibrium is established and the glider will stabilize ;Ha higher speed. The opposite occnrs as you push out and the glider will stahilizc al a lower speed. As the components ofvc!occhangc, so will rhc angles of attack. I leave the derails for the detail-minded to work out for themselves. we have seen how rhc "Simple Vector Flight Theorem" Time to apply it to can explain commonplace flight the spooky phcnomcnon of "Ramp Suck."

H/\NC G1 IDINC

RAMP SUCK EXPLAINED Ramp Suck Fxplairu:d

lifi

~ l h r uSI

= \

Ill

Our in trepid pilot approaches th e ramp (after a thorough hang check) and begin s to adjust th e glid er to what wo uld normally be a co mfonabl e angle of attack. Surprise! Th e glid er begin s to pull forward un co ntroll abl y. Th e pani cked pil ot backs off and makes a mental note to have di e coo ler ready for th e wire crew. The more savvy pi lot rea li zes char th e "ra mp suck" experi enced by th e first pilot is nothin g more than th e natural fl yin g tendency of the glid er in respon se to the ge nerall y ve rti ca l air enco untered at a cliff. T he force on th e win g not onl y has a larger forward component than enco untered on a slope laun ch, iri s also larger due rn rh e larger angle of arrack. This rime, when rh e glider begin s rn pull forward , rh e keel perso n is as ked ro rai se rh c nose until the forward pull disa ppea rs. Th e bogey is li cked. If the pilot prefers a littl e help with forward accelera tion , rh e nose ca n be lowered ca utiously unril th e fo rces feel co mforrabl e to th e pilot. This is nor a reco mmend ation to laun ch wirh a hi gh angle of arrack (whi ch wou ld likely res ulr in a stall ri ght off laun ch wirh consequen ces to hor ribl e ro contemplarc), simpl y an ex plan ari on of what is happening. I leave rh e dec ision about how to use rhi s knowl edge to the experi enced pi lot.

Sidebar: Deflection of Air Above the Wing

r's easy to und erstand how air hittin g rh e borrom ofa win g would exe rt a fo rce whil e be in g defl ec ted downward, but why would air flowin g over th e rop do th e same thin g?

ca vi tati on!

"The more savvy pilot realizes that the 'ramp suck' experienced by the first pilot is nothing more than the natural flying tendency of the glider in response to the genera lly vertical air encou ntered at a cliff. The force on the wing not only has a larger forward compo nent than encountered on a slope launch, it is also larger due to the larger angle of attack. 11

As the wing swee ps throu gh th e air, it produ ces a cavity behind rh e wing the sa me way an oa r swept through water does. Sin ce air is co mposed of molecules bouncing around like crazy, if rhere are more molecules above th e wing th an in th e cav ity, they will end up bein g bou nced into th e cavity - air ex pands ro fill a vacuum. Th e ner effect is a downward defl ection of th e air mass. Si nee th e molecul es meet less res istance ex pand in g into rh e cav ity than rh e air below th e win g mee ts, rh cy end up movin g faster. C ont rary ro popu lar beli ef, th e in creased speed of rhe air above rh c win g has littl e to do with th e shape of the win g. Neith er docs rh e redu cti on of press ure above th e win g. Boch res ult alm os t entirel y from th e angle of attack. We know from paper airpl anes and bal sa , rubber band -powered toy plan es rhat a curved wing is not esse ntial rn fli ght. So why do our win gs have ch at distin cti ve airfoi l shape? Simpl y to reduce the chan ces of turbul ence ove r the top. A sharp edge wi ll indu ce eddi es as air spills ove r th e win g, thus reducing th e speed of the air over th e top. Th e cur vature does not increase speed , merely helps preve nt th e dramati c reducrion of speed due to turbul ence. T he myth chat a curved win g in creases th e speed of air ove r the top should be bani shed from our culture. If the win g were sittin g still rat her than sweepin g th e air asid e, the re wou ld be equ al pressure above and below th e win g - no li ft . As it moves, there will be more pressure bel ow as th e molecul es strike ir more ofre n and less pressure above due to the sweepin g effect, which actu all y produ ces th e larger change in press ure. Bernoulli 's th eo rem rel ates an increase in velocity rn a drop in press ure, but note chat it is more co rrect to imerpret the drop in press ure as ca using the in crease in velocity, rath er than rh c reverse. •

-+<=.-i!;;.$!!!!'11111114~=-___:V..Li vf JANUARY 2001

final result

Writing glider reviews has its advantages: I get to try all the hot stuff, often in competition, so I can really compare. But it has its drawbacks as well. It is frequently difficult for me to choose a glider for myself because I see all the bare assets and all the warts. It's almost as if there are too many things to consider.

his dilemma was nor rhe case when I flew rhe ew Airwave Sporrsrer. This inrermediare glider rurned in a reporr card rhar was nearly flawless , ar lease in my school of aerial discipline. The glider's sexy lines, ideal behavior and performance left me chinking, "Gee, why don'r I ger to review more imermediare gliders?" The answer is probably char they don't trust me alone wirh such innocem, unseasoned models. Bur rhis one can handle rhe rough stuff, honesr judge. Tf you're in rhe marker for a glider that is unbelievably userfriendly yet will nor deflare your flying fantasies , check our rhis unveiling of the Sporrsrer.

THE PHOENIX Several years ago Airwave imploded. Thar legendary company, known for its grear-performing yer friendly gliders (starring on U.S. soi l wirh rhe Magic in rhe early l 980's and ending wirh rhe Concepr in rhe mid l 990's - yeah , we know abour rhe Extreme) mer its demise several years ago. The cause was a combination of loss of inrerest, disrracrion (paragliding and sailing) and insularity on the pan of rhe principles. When Airwave died, everyone bur rheir comperitors shed a nostalgic rear. Imagine our grin to hear abom white k.nighr Marcus Willinger earring a wheelbarrow ofEuros ro Rory Carter's (Airwave owner) house on rhe Isle of W ight (Ai rwave cenrral) and purchasing rhe whole smiel - lock, srock and logo. Marcus was rhe former Wills Wing European distributor and had much experience in rhe business end of our sporr. Bur he needed a design. Many of us didn'r expecr rn hear from Airwave for a while. After all , most ropless gliders have taken their companies a couple of years to develop. Bm Marcus was foxier rhan we knew. He decided to bring om an intermediate glider first - easier to perfect, wirh a bigger marker, and you don't have to be 18 wirh

H ANG GLIDING

JANUARY 2001

parental guidance to fly it. Marcus simply employed an experienced designer, Martin .Jursa, who had previously developed the succcssfid Scedwings Merlin. Meet the Sponsrcr. The f'tnal piece of the puzzle was put in place when c;.W. Meadows of Just Fly eontrac1cd with Marrns to import rhc Sporrsrcr into rhc U.S. The glider nicely compliments G.W.'s stable of Aeros gliders because as yet they don't offer a glider for the intermediate market. 'fhc name Sportstcr obviously hints ar the glider's i mended bur in my history-burdened mind it should be called the Phoenix, since it has already truly raised Airwavc from the ashes.

THE TOP OF THE CLASS There's the glider sitting glinting in the sun. What do we sec? Interestingly enough, it doesn't look like an intermediate bec:mse ir has the sleek lines of many top-drawer gliders. Curved tips! Who ever heard of such a nice touch on a midrange machine? It sure the Sportster a disrincrivc, desirable and dynamic cast, and adds another felicitous feature as we shall see. The resr of the glider comes out fairly familiar: kingpost, an assortment of bat.. tens, a floating crossbar, faired uprights and a round belly basetube. Notice the VG lines snaking through the jam cleat? There should be no doubt rhat rhis glider h:1s all the appointments of a hy .. per glider with licrlc of the weight, complexity and challenge. The faired uprights deserve spcci:t! mention. Marcus apparently acquired the special Airwavc die, for these arc the Klassic's classic Fast Foil uprigbts. They are comfortable, drag defeating and inexpensive. ff you have to replace them, no sweat. Both ends :ltlach with quick dctent buttons. Again we see nice attention to the enhancement of quality and performance of this glider. One other thing T want you to notice: T'ake a peck at che internals and you'll sec things unusual in an intermediate machine. That's interior webbing and vclcros to control the lower surface at various speeds. These devices arc known to enhance pitch stability and performance, but require a bit more sail work. In sum, it seems that Airwave took many cues from high-performance design and backed off ,1 bit on batten density, air-

HANC GLJJJINC

frame stiffn ess and tension to produce a wing for every rec pilot.

SPORTSTER ERGONOMICS We can dispense with setup and brea kdown in one easy parag raph . T he co ntrol fr am e goes together with a qui ck pip pin, th e batten s are attac hed with ties, and th e ha ulback attachment should be fa miliar to a ny Airwave pilot. The only thin g interm ed iate pilots m ay tind unfamili ar is th e in stallation of th e tibe rglass tip wands that fo rm rh e curved lead in g edges. But a practice time or two teaches you th e tech nique. Because the Sportster isn't strung like a bow, these rips with their cam system are very easy to set up. T he Sportster has a full co mplime nt of pads for protection . (This leaves m e st ill wa itin g for th e pe rfect glider with hardware so well -des ig ned that on ly a basetube corner dust bag is required.) The cover is li ghter and more flyin g fri endl y than the cordura m ega-weight bag of the o ld Airwave. These o ld covers offered good protection but d id 110c ht inside most h arnesses. Who wants to leave their cover on takeoff? The new cove r ca n be stowed in most sli ck harn esses. The hardware on th e Sportster is rugged and reliabl e. l e is standa rd E uro issu e with the ability to lay the basetube along the back of the glider when it's folded up . All but the largest w heels can be left on th e basetube whi le it's still a ttached to the upri ght at one end . T he glider is well put together a nd i 11 m y es timation (based on my brief affair with it) should last as long as any wellm ade interm ediate design if you treat it kindly.

FLYlNG, FLYING, FLYlNG We're going to consider takeoffs and landings as part of fl ying. Co ncernin g foot launch I can quote no perso nal expe ri ence; l tow-laun ched from a do ll y. However, th e glider's li ght weight, good balance, normal co nfigu ration a nd low sta ll speed all point to an easy, forgiving launch ch arac teristi c. Landing 1 know about. Three facto rs render the Sportster docile in landin g mode: easy, predi ctabl e handlin g, low sta ll speed and a wide fl are window. Co ncerning handlin g we need to point our that t he glide r ex hibits no tendency to w in gwa lk, so pulling on speed for la ndin g and turning is not a problem . Tr is very preJANUARY 2001

dictab le and respo nds qui ckly to light ro ll co ntrol. T he fl are itself is non-critical. 1 noticed th at the hang strap is placed quite a bit ahead of the upri ghts on the keel. T his a rrangeme nt all ows for good flare aut ho rity since it simul a tes havin g longer arms . O n the Sporrs rer I found that I had la nd ed with no steps when I was twothirds of the way through my flare. Ir wasn't impo rtant how fast I flared or if I was a tad late. W hen yo u're low eno ugh a nd in rhe upri gh t pos ition , relax and perform a leisurely push -out and voila, you've la nded birdl ike. T he on ly drawback I can see to this att ribute is char an inte rmed iate pilot w ill not be train ing for the more cri tical fl ares of upper- level glid e rs. Bu t do m ost pilots need a n uppe r-lev-

el glider? Let's compare the Sportster and tind our. Regarding performance, th e Sportster acquits itself well. Ir has a grea t sink rate/climb rare. Because you ca n slow it way down a nd put it exactly where you want it instantl y, a good thermal pilot w ill probably be abl e to keep up with th e best gliders. Ir is the handling that makes chis glider shin e. l was ab le to try the glider in a vari ety of th e rmal s a nd did a bit of experim entation. Since I found the handlin g so easy, I liked to thermal with the VG betwee n a third and half on. T his setup didn't sig niti ca ntly deg rad e the han dlin g and I cou ld slow down just as mu ch, so 1 ti gured I was gettin g a climb rate beneht. On thi s glider I co uld initiate turns w ith th e VG fu ll -ti ght as quick-

ly and with as light forces as some highperformance gliders with d1c VG loose. I speculate that an experienced Sponster pilot could probably tighten the glider up somewhat to gain an increment of performance without a noticeable handling loss, although landing characteristics may not be quite as sweet. I didn't have a topless glider to race with, but my experience indicates that where the Sportster would lose to the heavyweight gliders is in higher-speed glides (perhaps above 30 mph). The loos-er sail and lower batten density is whar· contributes to th is effect. On the other hand, I expect to sec the Sportst:cr as one of the last: gliders left in the air as the sun sinks at a flying site and gliders themselves sink one by one. Intermediate gliders have an uncanny tendency to hang high at the hill. Isn't that what many intermediate pilots thrive on?

TOWING SPECIAL One of the most importam points we can bring to the fore in this review is how easily the Sportster tows. I first towed it in I 0-15 mph direct crosswinds with thermals. I was a bit wary on the first tow because all my recent air-to-air towing has been at meets where crosswinds are generally not tolerated. However, the tows went without a glitch and I learned bow easy air towing can be. For several years I have been flying topless gliders on the line and none of them have put me to sleep on tow generally the most exciting part of the flight is tl1c tow. However, the Sportster was on rails. There is no ten-dency to oscillate at all. A couple of times I got rocked by a thermal punch and thrown out of whack, but I just pointed the nose at the tug (easy to do with light handling) and hung on. I was soon back on track. There's certainly no need for a rail on this glider. All the early gliders with curved rips (Sensors and Xtralites) demonstrated this resistance to oscillations. Later, when topless versions were made, the designers incorporated a good deal more anhedral in the wing to compensate for the fixed cantilever crossbar. This made gliders like the CSX and Laminar ST ptone to oscillate on tow. But the Sportster, set up as it is, reflects back to the earlier curved-tip designs with their admirable roll/yaw coupling. Move this glider to the head of the

class. The designers have obviously done their homework and we all benefit as hang gliding safety, fun and affordability moves forward. I recommend this glider to any pilot with intermediate and above capabilities. Indeed, some advanced pilots will want to fly the Sportster, for it offers exactly what most people wanr in a glider. Jf T were to list the qualities of the Sport-ster, the salient points would be: confi-dencc-inspiring (easy handling and landing), easy to use (quick setup, light

weight), outstanding as a fun, recreational glider (handling and stack-topping sink rate), ideal for towing (no oscillation), perfect for scratching (handling, sink rare), good for downwind X-C (tbermaling capabilities and case oflanding), and a wise choice for first competitors (forgiving, thermal capabilities, non-fatiguing). Surely most pilots will find some of their secret desires listed herein. As usual we recommend that you rest any glider you intend to buy. You'll probl-lANC GLIDINC

ably fall in love with the Sponster if your heart throbs like rhar of most pilms. 'lo find a demo location contact the distributor ar: Airwavc America 1125 Harborview Dr. Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948

Tel: Fax:

E-mail: TRVvDjusrfly.com Web Page: www.justfly.com Ill JANUARY 2001

SPORTSTER

Small Sail ctrea 5JJtm Aspect Ratio Double surface Weight . Flook-in weight range Cert~fication Price:

135 sq. ft. ft, 80% 59 lbs. 135-190 lbs. DBV

195

Medium 148 sq. ft

ft. 80%

66 lbs. 150-230 lbs. DHV

$4,195

Large l59sq. 33.9 ft.

80% 68 lbs. 165-260 lb$; DT{V $4,195

PART

011 A THREE-PAKJ' SERIES ON 'I'r-IERMALS

by Will Gr:tcld

nly in this way will the pilot actually learn something with each "success" or "failure." l often hear students in clinics I teach say, "Ah, I sort of knew that, but this simplifies things a lot." That's the goal: to have a simple, clear system rhat you can refine each season ro produce hen.er results. I broadly split my thermal-prediction model into two parts: ground-based thermal prediction ideas and sky-based thermal dues. This article is my attempt to explain to myself and anyone who finds it interesting how thermals form on the ground and how to find them effi-ciently. Part two will deal with the sky, part three with staying and flying in thermals.

The crux ofcross-country flying ojien lies in correctly answering the question, "Wher/r the next thermal?,, [fyou could answer that question correctly even 90 percent of the time then life would be very, very good. I thinle its key jrJr every

pilot to develop his or her own system far

understanding thermals, then continuously r~fine it. COLLECTORS I call potential thermal-generating areas "collectors" because they collect the sun's energy and rd ease it as warm air or thermals, a process any successful X-C pilot should be very interested in. I think the air in collectors tends to warm up as the sun heats rbe ground, first releasing relatively slowly and steadily (early morning mountain thermals are the best example of this), followed later in the day by more

violent "sets" or cycles in much the same way waves hit a beach. Imagine small waves coming in continually, then a big set ripping through, followed by srnall waves again. lfyou find a good collector you can often maintain in a zero over it and wait for a good set to come through. If you're low, this may be your only chance. Collectors are all about sun. If there's no sun there's probably nor

HANG CUDING

much air leaving the grouud (cold fronts :md other very unstable air masses arc exceptions). When looking at any potential thermal collector I first ask, "How long and at what angle has the sun bcrn shining on rhc collector?" A perfect collector would be at right angles LO the sun for hours. I first learned this lesson flying in the'% U.S. Nationals when all the top pilots flew to the sunny but Ice side of the ridge and I went to the windward side where rhc sun was just starting ro hir. T sunk out, they didn't. At the rime I thought this experience was bad luck, but luck had nothing to do with it; the slopes simply hadn't been in the sun long enough. The next factor that dcterrnines how much the air heats up is the surface the sun is striking. For an excellent analysis of surface thermal theory read Reichman's Cross- Country Soaring. Basically, dry surfaces with a lot of trapped or sheltered air will produce the best thermals. Late-s1:aso11 cereal (wheat, oats, etc.) crops arc dry, hold a lot of still air, and consequently release some of 1-he best thermals. Dry shrubbery also works well, and rocky terrain with a lot of dead air-· space between the rocks works well, but takes longer ro heat np. Moist ground cover absorbs the sun's energy and uses it to evaporate water, a cooling process that kills thermals. Wind tends to destroy thermals by continuously mixing rhe air in collectors, preventing ir from either reaching the temperature at which it leave the ground or rnrning what have been a decent thermal into a mess, especially close to the ground. A large line of hedges or trees around a very dry but bushy often hold a nice still of air. You can thermals on the ground just walking around; ny, dry spots protected from the wind will be warmer. As odd as it might sound, I've learned a lot by simply walking

)ANUAl,Y 2001

in the mountains and feeling the cool air in the pines, comrastcd with rhc warm air on avalanche slopes or other treeless areas. The more protected and sunny a collection area is, the warmer it will be and rhe better chance you as a pilot will have of going up. This means that the best thermals arc ofren found in sunny, Ice areas. This is no problem if you're high and fly above then1, but you have ro make your own decisions about how nrnch rotor you want to play with if you're lower. This isn't an article about Many pilots believe black such as that found in big parking lots roads will be a good thermal source. Although pavement is black and absorbs tremendous amounts of energy, it often doesn't work because there is nothing the air in place. ff you birds soaring above a Iot or freeway, they almost always be turning very small ci rel cs and much

works better than one without cars because the cars hold dead air nicely. A road can be good "wick," but more on rhat below. The aspect angle of rhe is critical. ],or example, dry, fields almost always work better than dry, flat flclds. l think this is because the sides of the fiirrows tend to face into the sun like little solar collectors, while the actual furrows protect the warm pockets from the wind and allow them to develop. Jf you're mountain Ay-ing, look for rhc slopes that have been ar right angles to the sun the longest. Lee slopes often work better than windward slopes because the air in the lee is protect-

ed, but a windy slope in the sun will bear a shaded in tbc lee every time. massive, southwcst-fi1cing slopes in the mountains may offer continual, strong thermals from midday through early evening, bur east and due west-facing slopes will only work in rhe morning and evening respectively. The anti-collector is, of course, a lake cool, reflective, moist, often windy. You will almost never find a thermal that comes from a lake. 'T'hat is not to say you won't find thermals over lakes, but they aren't coming from the lake itself very often. One exception m;iy be very late in the day when the relatively warm water releases beat, but I've very seldom seen this happen in a strong enough manner to produce usable thermals. Long glides over lakes in rhe evening are often quite buoyant, bur don't count on air too ofrcn or you may be swimming.

PASSIVE TRIGGERS (WICKS) I believe thermals have some form of surface tension, and tend ro track along the ground before releasing, sort of like oil up a wick. I call rhe poinr at which the thermal leaves the wick a "passive trigger." The most cllecrive PT is the top of a sharp peak. There will often be a cloud over it from 9:00 in the morning until sunscr, even as the sun moves from cast ro west. First, the east-facing slopes warm, wick up the hill and

release, then the somheast-faci11g slopes, then the south slopes, fi_illowed by the west-facing slopes nt the end oF the However, die thermal comes up the wick ro rhe same passive trigger. Think about the "house thermals" at your local sit c. What's really happening with each one as the sun moves? If you're high you can fly straight to die wicking top of the peak, but if you're low you need to fly to the sunny side of the peak and then clirnb out. Ridges often work die same way, with convergence happening if hoth sides of the ridge release at the same time. When mountain flying I look for PT's where I think bubbles might break their tension and lifr off Ridges above protect· ed slopes in the sun and places where a ridge forms ;1 mini-summit for thermals to break off (like water nrnning down your arm and falling off at the elbow) seem to work best. Two or more ridges coming together arc better than one, since each ridge increases the chance that you've picked rhe right wick. If you're bored, rake a spoon and stick ir into a glass pot of boiling water some rime, it nicely illustrates how all this works. Passive niggers can be very, very small when flatland flying. For example, a road on the downwind edge of a large, dry, plowed field will often have a small ditch between the road and the field. This is a passive trigger fcir sure. Just the edge of a dry field against a more vegetated field may be enough to lift the air ofl: I almost invariably find my best thermals in downwind corners ofLirgc, dry fields, places with maybe a hedge or even simply grass instead of plowed dirt. A group of houses in the middle of a barren section or even a lone oil well breaking the monotony of flat ground will ofrcn wick thermals skyward. Some people believe strongly in power lines as p:issive bm 1 think the thermals found above power lines generally have more to do with the terrain. The exception is really big, high-tension towers wicking thermals skyward, hut this is suspect. Thermaling over power lines docs impose a bonus hazard as well. Large rocks arc often good wicks and the passive niggers, as they tend to surface tension and also release "bullet-· style" thermals, allowing larger pockets of air to also leave 1he ground. Finally, contrast·s in surface tempera-· ture may affect lapse rates and also acr as

I ofrcn find thermals at the junction of two disparate surface types. fields leading up to a large Miles of lake will often have a reliable thermal at the boundary between the two. (If the from the fields, this tlicrwind is com mal will slope om over the lake.) How· ever, wet fields or lakes will ofrcu shut down all in their immediate area, especially on the downwind side. These surface temperature differences can be quite small, bm thousands of' examples have taught me rhat 1hcy matter.

ACTIVE TRIGGERS arc that move. a rracror ing a dry wheat field will al1nost invariably be a thermal source. Cars driving back and lonh on a road ncxr to a big, dry Acid will also act as triggers. Any type of motion be it from people, farm cqniprncm, cars, even other glider pilots landing will often crnsc a collector to release. I low many rimes have you land· cd in a likely flcld only to watch some one climb out above you? I am starting to believe that cloud shadows will ofrcn act as active triggers as well. I have flown enough sites now the forward ol a cloud shadow will produce dust devils as rhc shadow advances across the ground, some· thing like a mini cold front lifting the warm air up. It's a theory, bm it docs seem to work some rhc time.

HOW TO APPLY ALL OF THIS On any given thermals reach a Certain height hc/c)rC stopping, a distance between the ground and cloudhasc or rhe top of usable climbs. I call anything below half rhis "low," and any· th ,1bovc it "hn example, if cloudbasc is 6,000 Ccet ;ibove ground level, l think I'm high when over 3,000 feel ACl. and low below this point. This article deals with making decisions while in the "low" zone. Ir you're low, hcnd for collectors that arc in the sun and have been for a long time. Be very carcfoJ flying into cloud low, it's very rare to shadows. If climb up out oC cloud shadow. ( :on·· nect the collccrnrs with rhc potential wicks and Sunny meadows below a sunny ridge in a light Ice with

puffy clouds directly above arc pcrfoct. If you're on the shady side of a ridge then you're in the wrong place and need to find some sun in a hurry. A big, hrown ftcld wi1h a small knoll on the down· wind edge could be good, or a big, dry, grassy ftcld that meets a busy Interstate. I try to lly over as many potential collcc· 1or/wickltriggcr combinations as possible. I I l get even a consistcn t "zero" on my vario while low, I'll stop and circle until a thermal "set" comes through. Of course, if you sec ;1 h;iwk going up like mad or a big dust devil spinning off tl1c back of a tractor, thcn things get simpler. I won't mess with weak thermals if I've jusr topped out a climb and am starting a glide; there's no point as they will probably end soon anyway. l will stop l<)r anything solid once I get into my "low" zone. It's importmll to understand that the lift and sink generally balance each other out, especially in relatively small meas. If yom climb rare is 1,000 fim1, expect at least 1,000 fimi+ sin king air when leav·· ing the thermal. I( the thcnnals arc large, expect big areas of sink. IC you're in an area ol· violent sink, then somewhere close by is probably a violent thermal. You should "Where's the collector? Where's the wick? Where's the and attack! Collectors also tend to draw air imo them as they You will often notice an increase in your ground speed as you near a thermc1l. Finally, remember rhat the wind slopes thermals. ff you're relatively low and corning into a collector rhcn it won't mancr much, bur the higher you arc the more downwind of the source you'll need to be w intercept the column. 'rlic system above may he largely wrong, hut it's the best one I've developed yet. E;ich year iI seems to get ;i bit bet tcr, and each year I look back and think, "Oops, was I ever wrong about that!" J try to honestly look at each flight and ask, "What worked, and what dicln'r? Why did J sink out and someone else succeed?" Cood pilots crcarc their own rhcrmal luck remarkably consistent· ly. good luck in developing your own system, that's tlic one rhat rnau:crs! Ill

HANC GLIDINC

Continucdfom prw I 1.

U.S. Flex

(continued)

Rank Pilot

'Ji11td %!

20)

Sauer, Richard Burton, Richard Presley, Terry Pagen, Dennis Goodman, Buhba Bostik, Josef Stinnett, James Bolt, Mark Sayer, Wayne Giles, I )avid Clover, Ryan

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)i\NUAJ~Y 2001

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had gotten up and gone, and all afternoon dozens were scattered along 40 miles of the Sequatchie Valley from Whitwell to rhe very north end. An Ocroberfesr parry had never been better timed. As, old friends reunited and new friendships were forged, the Tennessee Tree Toppers' 2000 Team Challenge was officially christened with a frighteningly large bonfire. There were more pilots than you could shake a stick at. A German competitor even busted himself down to wind dummy to keep the teams exactly even. From New Zealand to New Hampshire, a great gang filled rhe field . With the advertised maximum of 45 pilots signed up, there would be nine five-pilot reams for this week-long event, uniquely focussed on improving everyone's flying skills. The ream flying format matches newer pilots with, and reams them up against, some of hang gliding's most experienced aviators. The Team Challenge features a fun and friendly handicapping scheme. Scoring calculations reward less-experienced C pilots with more points. Completing the same cask, they score nearly double rhe points available ro Ns who have ranked well in nationally-sanctioned competitions. B pilots, with cross-coumry or previous competition experience, are scored right in the middle, between rhe C and A pilots. To win, reams make decisions together, and work to help the C pilots make it as far as possible each day.

)

SUNDAY - DAY 1 The dail y pilot breakfast, deliciously catered by Meet Cook Aldonna Johnson, was conswned by a task committee which faced light wind to no wind with overcast conditions. Dale McCartney's was called (12 miles to the south) and conditions began to improve. Climb rates were very

H ANG GLIDI NG

)PPERS 2 0 00

A hundred pilots ftom around the world converged on Tennessee's famous Henson's Gap (near Chattanooga) to wind down the last day ofSeptember 2000.

byS~hm&~,0 Gliders at cloudbase. Photo by Dean Funk.

JA UARY 200 1

slow and the gaggles hung on in front of launch an unforgenahle show for the onlookers at the Highway 111 overlook. Most rook spot-landing points in the regular LZ and we witnessed many unusual and comical approaches as well as several per-feet spot-nailers. /\ select few got away, and six pilots made goal: Cloudstrccr Boys Greg Wojonowski and Gary 'T'hompson, Jeff Laughrey from the Birds of Paradise, Dixie Rooster David Giles, and Kurt \X/arren from Lookout's Knights in White Dacron. Arkansas pilot Wayne Hobbs of the Snoremasters squeaked his Exxracy inro the goal field after going on glide and not really knowing exactly where he was going. "Even a blind pig gets an acorn sometimes," he explained. Local free flyers Steve and Kathy Lee also made goal. On this day all finishers flew topless gliders in slippery harnesses. Results: first, 'learn 9, 190 points; second, Te:am 8, 120 points; third, 'I cams 3 and 4, I 00 points each.

The atmosphere in the LZ was charged as pilot after pilot came in knowing t·hat they

had the potential to change the score for their team. More than just a moralcbuilder, these points were ro prove decisive. Results: first, Team 9, 318.84 points; second, Team 3, 240.86 points; third, 'Jc\lnl 8, points.

WEDNESDAY DAY4 Conditions looked pretty much the same, but early launchers revealed promising prospects for better lift. One in rhe early showed exceptional form, climbing out twice from very low over the L'./.. When the bubble burst he gracefully

MONDAY DAY2 lt looked bleak at flrst light with a strong south wind (our worst direction) but optimistic pilots started setting up before the morning pilots' meeting. Eventually the wind velocity decreased and things starred to look better, with some development across the valley and some straight cycles puffing in. Unfortunately, the wind velocity continued ro decrease to the point of no wind ar all, and many sled rides cornmenced. The spot was not placed this day due to the difficult direction and velocity earlier, so no points were scored. Results: first, Team 9, 208.42 points; second, 'Team 3, 180 poims; third, Team 8, 135 points. TUESDAY - DAY 3 Light south winds again with high pressure keeping a cap on thermal activity, but on this day a Few got up alld out. Blind Pig Wayne found his acorn again, making goal just short of Pikeville at Standif'er's Field. Gary Thompson made ir more rhan half way at 11. 5 miles, David Giles pulled off nine miles, and Bird of Paradise Shawn Locklear tucked his toes for points late in the day, gliding just across rbe C minimum scoring distance of three miles. Again, the spot was set, and many teams managed to gain extra points, nailing great landings.

HANC CLIDINC

sunk om and made the five-point spot landing circle. Every pilot flew for the chance to become skygod(dcss) for the in almost nonexistent lilt, bm when a moll· ster gaggle of 1'S gliders only a couple of hundred feet above the 1./. sunk out, the X-C action looked finished. Bur then, blind Lo the inexorable sink

f!Jr lmmch. Photo

)ANU/\RY 200 I

Guiton.

ing around him, Wayne J-Jobbs blundered into another acorn. Hanging out over the LZ in zero sink for 20 minutes, he began to climb oh--so--slowly and drifted out of sight. Even before the radio news that he'd made 15 miles, we gawked in awe as Wayne left, and C pilot Miles Bodnar got on the last rung of Wayne's ladder and crept up, behind him. Skillfully radio--guided by grounded team mares Gary Thompson and Greg Wojnowski, Miles made 12 miles! Spot landings were again an entertaining part of rbe day. Results: first, Team 9,318.84 points; second, Team 3, 240.86 points; third, Team 8,234.47 points.

THURSDAY DAY 5 The Big Band Breakfast a perfor-mance by the Dunlap high school band, led by local pilot Dan Shell. Dan has worked for years to build the school's music program and his efforts really showed as the kids played tight renditions of both old and new hits. They sounded great and the pilots offered a warm reception and hearty applause. The weather, however, was not warmly received, as it offered yet again much the same fare. For the third straight day the wind was a soft south hreezc with very little thermal activity predicted. Indeed, there was no thermal activity to be found this day and even the spot landings were not as much fun, with higher velocities in the LZ than in days past. 'J'hc Blind Pig didn't even set up today. Results: no changes. FRIDAY DAY6 Low overcast greeted pilots at the early morning pilots' rneeting. It did not look good for flying, but as the morning pro· gressed rhe clouds lifted and some decided to launch once the task had hecn called and the window opened. Marion County air-port was the destination but it w;is to prove elusive for all. The low ceiling persisted and made progress down rhe ridge difficult because it was hard to sec other gliders in the air. As it turned out, launching earlier was the strategy of the day, with free--flyer local pilot 'forn Prouhct being the first to launch and the only one to make goal, with competitor Kun Warren of Team 4 coming up 8.4 miles short of the airport. The wind became stronger and more northerly. Many competitors sank out along the course and some did not even get a launch before the window closed.

313

l~i\\JC Ci IDINC

Results: first, Tc:am 9, 356.17 points; second, Team 3,352.22 points; third, '!cam 8, 346.4 points; fourth, Tc:am Ii, 325,8 points. SATURDAY DAY7 Only about 30 points separated the top four teams 011 rhis, the last day, so each pilot's performance was critical. Conditions were strong and northerly, and some sun began poking through. Most were of the opinion that it was only going to get worse (stronger), making safe launches cliflkult. 'fhe result: a mad dash to get in line and a large gaggle of gliders hanging on in front of launch. In fact, conditions became lighter. The whole group of early launchers steadily s;mk out, some landing in the landing field and others drifting down the valley in a small area of zero sink, making precious few miles. After this first wave conditions improved a bit and some pilots gor away in weal, thermals, with Wayne Hobbs and Mark Furst ('] cam 8) drifting down to the Powells Crossroads area. Early launchers who landed in the l Z were able to make a rcflighr bcfcire the launch window closed, and they had the best conditions of the day. A large bank of clouds moved in and with it came some very buoyam air. New England Airhead Scott I ,conard was the fost ro reach goal. He was followed by Ollie Cregory from learn 2. Dean hrnk (']c:am Ii) flew what turned out to be the first-place clincher. He landed about one mile short of the airport, closely fcillowed by Ray I lelman Clcam 5) and [ ,oco Cinco Doug Mossbrook. Points-wise, this would prove the best day of the meet. Numbers were crunched and recrunched, ;md when the smoke cleared, a friendly rivalry of southerners settled into top place. Lookom Mountain's Knights in White Dacron would take first place by a very narrow margin. Less than IO points behind~ points graciously frirgone by spot-landing guru Clark Harlow (at bat frir Jeff [ ,aughrey who'd abandoned the Birds for a day's kayaking) die home ream, Henson's own Birds of Paradise, would come in second. A solid third place awaited Gary, Greg, Miles and the rest of the C:loudstrcet Boys. Soaring conditions had materialized on only four and a hair of seven days, but spirits had constantly soared. Friends reunited who hadn'L flown together in 20 years. FireContinued on page 48. ]i\NUARY 2001

Deem Funl: diving off thefizmous radial ramp.

by Stephen Bdlerby has it that about a d.ecade ago, the Coast Challenge, the greats in gliding had a groovy idea··--· get together for a group thing, an event in which points would be earned not by going it alone, but by gaggling. A team event, in which team players were awarded points in inverse proportion to their level of experience, would change t·he focus from competition to con1rnu~ nication. Newer pilots would learn to fly; and well-seasoned ones would have the satisfaction of giving bad, to the sport. In Wayne's words, "These people have ralents, talents they ne(;:d to share.'' In 1990, Dennis Pagen, Rick Jacobs and the rest of the Sequatchie Valley Soat:ing Association set up a meet that combined pilots with a range of skill Jev.: els in.to teams, tcatm that wouldn't just hang glide together, they'd hang out together, discussing strategy, weather, launch conditions and landing approaches ..As Rick put it, "Pilots spend a lot of time discussing how to meet the daily challenges, things you might not normally get into, wld1. I:-Iang 2's, and 4's all t<wether. It's a real learning t, ex:p,:rience!" 'The meet has evolved ovet its first I 0 years with the vastly different personali~ running it. From Dennis and Rick, to G.W. Meadows and Mark ''Curly"

Dunn, Jlm Loi1g, Ma&: "Pirsty" Bruce Hawk and Bdlerby, the meet directots al1d meet crews.have been as difforem as the tearns who came to fly. The scoring has also ch,inged. Extra points for and B pilots have ranged from 50 to 400 percent of the basic A pilot point quota. year we settled on o.ffering 150 points 100 to B's and 80 to Ns, a distdb11tion that to most appeai:ed fair. With increasingly high-tech gear and higher expectations from the field, the meet has perhap8 become more serious. But after one meet that drew almost no C pilc>ts, the originators c:alled for a move back to biisics. Happily, la.st meet drew almost a dozen C's, and remained }';'Yf-on:ly as pilots pinned in on the big board the old-fashioned way. Tnrough turns serious and simple, a decade ofTeam Challenges helped hundreds of pilots toimprove thcidly-· ing skills .. And whatever the weather, it's a rare reunion;· pilots qmverge for southenNty!t; fon and flying; We're looking fr>rward to , 11,:cu,11,., more of you. Whether you have a lot w learn, or som.ething to share, save a in October for the friendHest competition around. 39

Midwest Record Setting:

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, And WOW! by Peter Bimm

Left to right: ]ejf(tugpi!ot) Arlan, Larry.

Twelve years ago, the weather in the Midwest was really cooperative, especially for a hang glider pilot who was in shape both physically and mentally to take advantage ofthe systems. Larry Bunner cranked out 100-mile flights that year like the rest ofus mortals take sled rides. Ofthe six flights he made that year, one set a new mark for long, flatland cross-country 176 miles. This "East Coast" record (at the time it was the longest flight originating east ofthe Rocky Mountains) stood for 10 years. t rook an accomplished pilot like Pete Lehmann to break that, flying 182 miles and making the first crossing of the Appalarian Mountains in 1998. He was bad that year - an awesome flight. Larry had made his 176-miler in 1988 on a Sensor B model in what were truly epic X-C conditions. The flight rook a mere 5.5 hours and saw him averaging over

7,000 feet AGL. Flex wings came a long way in the ensuing years. Then, along came the rigid wings. Mark Pousrinchian, and then Davis Straub, blasted out of Florida for new "East Coast" distance records last spring, both on the new class of flying machine. Davis cranked out the first 200-miler in rhe East, and this new record srood for all of five

days (the ugly part - what a shame he couldn't have enjoyed it longer). Then the weather turned on in the upper Midwest and Larry was primed to rake advantage of it - sort o( At rhe beginning of each year since his first record-seuing flight he set his sights on being the fuse to break the 200-mile barrier east of the Mississippi River. Little did he th ink it'd rake a dozen years for a pilot to accomplish this, and you can understand his disappointment when it wasn't him . To make things ugly for Larry, he rook a new position with his company that significantly limited his opportunities to fly. While he had once been able ro fly relatively often on weekdays, now he was only a weekend warrior. Selecting the one prime flying day on a given weekend to allow for family priorities resulted in his annual airtime shrinking dramatically. In 2000, prior to his record flight, he had a scant 12 hours logged, and with the Midwest X-C Championships looming, he elected to rake a week's vacation to prepare for rhe comp. Hang Glide Chicago, the aerotow park southwest of Chicago in Leland, Illinois, is where Larry does most of his flying these days. The owner, Arlan Birkett, has one Kolb Mark III tug, modified with wing extensions and rurbulator strips to permit slow, controlled flight, and one more under construction. The sire, Harold's Airport, named for the owner/crop-dusting instructor, is located about 50 miles from Chicago and is ideally situated for X-C flying in the Midwest. The only obstructions to long distances to rhe south and east are the controlled airspace over Champaign, Illinois and Lafayette and Indianapolis, Indiana. There are no mountains to cross or forests to fly over, just fl at ground as far as the eye can see. The land and road systems provide numerous static row sites as well, with six to eight such sires within a rwo-ho ur drive of Chicago. Many flights over 100 miles have originated in this area, and it was only 20 miles from here rhar Larry's longest-to-dare X-C flight began so long ago. On Wednesday, May 24, Larry went through his preflight rimal: check the grass for dew on the way to get the paper; get on the Internet to check the soaring forecast; call Flight Service for rhe Chicago- land area soaring forecast. All indicators looked good. The grass was dry and the forecas ts predicted excellent lift and strong winds. Winds at the top of the lift were predicted to be

H ANG GLIDING

approximately 40 mph. (How's that for push?) Last year's logbook had notes about the need to get to the park earlier. Often the cu's would be forming well before noon and he would still be on the way to the sire. Wouldn't you know it? The night before, his better half, Sue, sensed a flying day was on the ho rizon and put together a list of chores to do . Being shortsighted, Larry finished them that night, not realizing that after he went to bed she developed a new list; when he arose in the morning, there was still work ro do! Enough with the excuses! Even still, he didn't get to Leland umil after 10:30 AM and wasn't on the flight line ready to row until 11 :50. Needless to say, those cu's were forming around 11 :00. (Davis could reach Larry a few

JANUARY 200 1

things about maximizing the from end of the day.) The winds at launch were blowing from the northwest at 10 ro 20 mph. Greg Dinauer and Warren Seipman were set up and ready to go. Towing Larry up, the rug did not climb very well as they got almost two miles upwind before releasing at 1,400' AGL. Larry flew upwind in his trusry Stealth 151 KPL to get some more maneuvering room before deciding to leave the park area. A ratry thermal rook him ro 2, 500' and quickly back over the airpon. Leaving this in favor of a developing cu to the southwest of the field, he was soon in scramble mode down to 600' under the cloud shadow. As he rold this author, "I was going ro find this thermal or go down trying. " Luckily enough (and very lucky it

was as you will soon find out), he caught a smooth core of 300 fpm that turned into 600 fpm, topping out at over 6,000 ' almost 20 miles away near Morris, Illinois. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Greg rowed his Millennium ro 2,000' and released in good lift to head on his way. Unfortunately, Warren Seipman was still on the ground and the last to row. By the time the tug landed after Greg's release, the winds had picked up considerably, gusting ro over 30 mph at ground level. Arlan could not get the tug to taxi downwind without it being blown back aro und or a wing being lifted, and Warren was having trouble on the dolly. Arlan called it a day and Warren broke down (his glider - he didn't start crying). Larry sure was glad he went fo r the clo ud.

I Ic and Greg were using the USJTGA business hand channel 2. However, l .arry co11ld nor transmit. Creg was coming through fine for about an hour and then Larry's batteries went totally dead. Both spares were tried in flight and rbey were dead too. Apparently, after six years of use they had exceeded their usable lifetime. Larry is a real lone wolf and flies best when alone anyway, so it was no problem fr)r him. It was actually now one less distraction 42

rn worry abom. Small rnmuli were forming in rough streets w the north and cast, a good line, but rbere were no clouds to the south. Climbing to 7,500' with the next few thermals, still well below cloudbase, the lifr seemed to die out:, so he made a downwind run to the southeast with his sights ser on crossing and then 1'he 'fongent's "next climb" was set ar this point ro 650 fpm with a tailwind of 24 mph, and T.arry

began 11sing the speed-to-fly in earnest. The next two thermals went to approximately 8,500' in the strongest lift (more rhan 1,400 fj1m) he had ever encountered in the Midwest. Cloudhase was later estimated to he well over 9,000'. Subsequent glides took him into Incfona over Highways Ii l and J-65, the north-south routes in eastern fndiana. 'The going had been fairly easy up to this point, as staying above 5,000' was no problem at all. Checking the distance, he was very surprised to sec the 100-mile mark so soon. It was only 2:30 PM! lfhe could just stay in the air there was enough push that the site record of 14/i miles, and Region 7 and state records of 176 miles, would soon fall. As often happens, however, the conditions began to deteriorate. High cirrus from some distant storm to the west was moving closer, faster than he was able ro fly. The shadows from a long way off were coming quickly and he had to pick a line lo keep in the sunshine. 'The lift was still good at about 600 fprn, however, rhe cu's began to dissipate and soon the glides between lift sources became much more extended. While he wasn't in "scramble mode," the inteHherrnal runs had him clown to 4,000' before he found lifr that would pump him back to over 7,000'. Larry commented, "My philosophy has always been that he who stays in the air the longest usually goes the farthest, so at this poim l changed gears a bit and set my "next climb" back to 350 fpm with a tailwind of 18 mph to be a little more conservative." At IJ:00, sans radio, he reluctantly grabbed for the cell phone, hanging onto it with a death grip. Hang Glide Chicago was dialed up frlr a status report. There would obviously he a long, late retrieve roday. Was there anyone on the other end? The wind noise drowned everything out. Arlan laughed when asked later about that call. I-le said Larry just shouted, "I'm over 6,000' at l (i4 miles." Message received, Arlan and Warren piled into Warren's big blue pickup and headed out for Indiana and other pans as yet unknown. Greg hir rhe growing, high cloud cover at about: Ii :00 PM, glided into a big, blue sink hole and landed near Fort Wayne, [ndiana. He broke the long-standing Regional record by one mile, landing at 177 miles (WOW! #l ). Larry, just behind Greg, entered the same blue bole but with more altitude, and was sucked below HANC GLilllNC

4,000' fc)r the first time.

Way off in the distance a good line ol cu's was still established, and if he could only get to them Ohio would certainly be within reach. There were several good climbs back ahove G,000' and the glides were still producing good mileage. With visions of entering Ohio and breaking off a really long flight, he found himself sinking to below 3,000' and then 2,000' between thermals. The cu's remained just ahead, and he scratched and clawed ro stay airborne. Down at 1,500', one srnall patch oflifr was found that pushed eastward and slowly upward to 2,200'. Searching and gliding, he bubbled along for another half hour before finally succumbing to the forces of gravity, landing north ofBryam, Indiana, just eight miles short of the Ohio border. The total distance was 213 miles in a little under 5. 5 hours. Whoocee! l lc was back in the s;iddle again (WOW! Wh ilc walking the glider OU( the field, a small cumulus cloud could be seen fimning overhead. It was the first of a line of three nicely shaped cu's rhat poi med the way in10 Ohio. Yon do the math and !igme

)i\NUJ\RY 2001

what could have been. Larry, 'Tvc had two days to critique the fligln and although l flew fairly well, several errors cost me some miles. Most glarwas the start rime. I kick myself again for not in the air by 11 :00 AM. In one thermal I lefr good lift at 7,500' ro fly upwind to ;1 bertcr--looking cloud (what a waste of rime duh!) only to get about what I had ]di. The next was leaving 400 fj)m at 7,000' to fly south ro a dust devil ripping across ,1 field. J lost 1,000' and never did hir lift. In retrospect, I was probably right in the lift from the dust devil as it snaked up to where l had been climbing. "foward the end of' the flight I was at 2,200' and maintaining when I spotted a cu far above and about I 00 yards to the right. Ag;iin, I !di: whar l had to try to !incl hettcr lift, only to lose everything and land. I should have stayed wirh what I had!" Arlan and Warren (remember the dauntless retrieval drivers?) were only on the road for a short bir when they got a call from Greg. headed straight for him bur got a little turned around, earned a speeding ticker from one oC/olict's finest,

then found him. had been treated to dinner and beer landowner, so by the time the drivers got rhcrc, ;ii] that had ro be done was to load the glider and head out lcH I ,arry. him proved to be somewhat easier and bm not so him in the rruck. Seems the was a real fricndly son and he loaded Larry down with arrowheads from a collection plus planrs and flowers for Sue. As rhc crew left the distant LI. at about 1O::'>O l'M rhc landowner gave an open invitation for them w drop by any time. 011 the way home for the drivers' dinner, then the pilots picked up rhe duties while Arlan and Warren wc;iry bunch made ir back, tired Inn satisfied, to Harold's in I ,clancl at li:30 1\M. All in all ir was one ,1wcsomc day. 'lwo records were broken: rhc Regional open disranee (twice) and rhc longest open distance flight cast the Mississippi River. lt certainly shows the incredible potential we have here in the flatlands of the Midwest. We can only hope that it doesn't rake another 12 years to better it. Ill

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Yellow/white, absolute mint concJi. tiotr, hours use and then stored indoors for 2 years $2,800. !<lassie J 55, 80 hours, clean $1,500 OBO. (262) iiTl-8800, 111t,,ta>J·1an1;gl"forr;.com LAMINAR STH Handles, lands easy, flies fast & slow $2,000. (/i25) 338-0361, (/i25) 252·2789. LAMINAR STH --- Coocl shape, 1997 $2,000. (106) 892,5088. LAMINAR STl!i - Absolutely perfoct, 9 months old, <ii5 hours, blue & magenta 11udcrsurface $4,/iOO. (562) li2').80.'l3, marcwQ1lspri11tmail.corn I.AMINAR STIit Virtually like new, low hours, rna11y cornponc11rs $2,200. (608) 7.21 .. J(,81,

I.AMJ NJ\R STH New 5/2000, 50hours. The best handling you c:111 End. Red/whitc/blnc $/i,800. (fi H) 975-7873, Snrfi\ir~"cxccpc.com LAMJNAR HST Mylar) a.s new, perfect ttlllc\ .slowest & fastest, uicc, purple/red, w/xc bag, carbon basctubc, 'JOO/Best. (310) 559. 123 I, .S\Vci11cr9(~hc;1n hl ink.11ct

llerno daily. WALLABY RANCH (863) LAMINAR-·- ST, lit, 1:3 in stock. WALLABY RANCH (863) li21i-0070.

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., June 20 for the Aug us! 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:

SECTION U Flex Wings U Emergency Parachutes U Parts & Accessories U Business & Employment J Miscellaneous U Paragliders U Videos

U Towing Cl Schools & Dealers I.J Ultralights U Rigid Wings I.J Publications & Organizations U Wanted IJ Harnesses

issue and run for ........- ...-·-···--..consecutive issue(s). My U check, U money order is enclosed in the amount

of$_ ........-... ·--···--.. --.. -.... NAME: ._,.. ,..........___ ................ ·- .. - ...................- .............---.......... ----·. ·ADDRESS: .. _____............. - ..--......,......_ ..........- .._.,...--.... - ....- .... __ _

Number of words: ___ ...._.. __________ @$.50 Number of

@$1.00

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

1-lANC Cl IJ)INC

MRx2001 LAMINARS AIH'. I !ERE The highest performance llex wing availahlc that is a joy ro fly and land. \Jew and lighrly used STs arc available. (/60) 721-0/01, indaskyv1lyahoo.com and www.icaro2000.co111

Medium, only 6 fligh1s, includes para, WW"/.5 chu1e-hand deploy/rocket $500. (619) 173,97/i.3, I .berrsGi\1escl.edu

MOYES CSX'i - Topless, <7. years old, excellent condition $2,950. (61 <J) 286-560/i, bol,(i1lwcbsitctraf. liclll1ilders.corn

AIR SPORTS USA -WWW.FLYFORl'UN.NET

MOYFS CSX U7 Perfr.ct condition, 58 hours, small control Cramc, red undcrsurf,1cc w/l,ird logo $2,!iOO. (95/i) 978-T\O."l, nancy2(i1lmindspring.rnrn

er, harness, hincrs and helmet only

MOYES CSX ~- SX, XTI., XS3, XT, etc. New ,md nearly new. j\vaiL1hle immediately. N,11ion's largest Moyes dealer. WALLABY RAN(:! I (86."l) ,12-1-0070.

MOYLS LITLSl'FFD Ii - New, m·ver ilown, only test flown $/i,800 you pay shipping. (li07) 578 89.lS, onctow 2xc~i\:f1.rr.u)m

l'ARAGUDERS

with glidPerfcc1 lirs1 glider for getting into om sport inexpensively. (206) .,20-9010. RIGJD WIN(;S

100 in stock. Lookout Mountain. W\vw.hanglidc.corn TRX 1(,0 },,1st one made, white wired chandell bot10111 leading edge, all original. Extras, 1 .set carbon downt11he.s, 2 sets tip cones, I each tip wand, very clean $1,800. Reggie (Cil<J) lili5-J6.33, rcggicandvicki(r1)hornc.com

MOYFS XT !'RO 16'5 .rnrfoce, 1wo available 8800, infc,V/lhanggliding.com

TRX I (,0 Fxccllen1 condition, will send pictures $"/00. (858) 270-788'), rflood I %7vllaol.corn

MOYES XTRAI.ITE U7 Well kepi, blue/grccn/whi1e $1,500 OBO. (2(,2) li"/.l-8800, in f,,v11J,anggl id ing.com

Rcnt,il UITRASl'OIZT lli7, 1<iG park, low hours, clean, priced to sell.

PlJI.SES & VISIO!s:S - - Bough1-Sold-Traded. Ravrn Sky Spons (262) li7.3-8800, info<i!lhanggliding.corn

VISIONS & l'Ul.SES Bought-Sold-Traded. Raven Sky Sports (262) /iTJ-880(\ info~11 hanggliding.com

RAM;\JR Iii(, l-.xcellcnt condi1iot1 $950. Tmho Boh (/Iii) 350-/860.

WW SPORT AT 167 Very good condi1ion, grecn/whitc/bluc, ripswp tr:1iling edge, flies grc:tl $850. Joe (81i7) 89'5-5858 Illinois.

SATURN 165 Ve; bcellem condition, blue/ycllow/hlack, dO ho,m, wheels, pvc tube $2,800 or trade forli"x'i" field camera and lenses. (')1(,) 956-2181. SPECTRUM !!iii Fxccllcm condition, "/5 homs, ml/white $1,200. ('J5/i) 978-TlOJ, nancy2.v1'111incl spring.con1 SJ>EC:TR\JM 167 Incl11clcs rail kit, new nose cone, great condition $1, 'iOO or looking for {/lrras1iort 166. Frie (.160) 501-li26(,, hangchcck(,11yahoo.co111 SPECTRUM Cl.LARANCE SALi'. Three 165 Spcctrurns in near nnv condition, w/all options $2,li00-$3,200. Raven Sky Sports (262) /ill 8800, i11fo((1)J1anggliding.co1n

ar flight liTl-8800,

WW UI.TIV\Sl'Olff J,i7 - - New 8/99, exccllen1, 2.'l hours 11.sc, wheel brackets and 5"dia.whecls, tail fin, .spccdhar, no damage· $2,500. Paul Ced des (616) 89 I, 001.3. .salcs~1lbgprod11cts.co111

M I<li need eel. 1-800.688-5GT7. USE!) WWX(:

WWXC 155 I.ow hours, clean, nice condition $2,liOO. (262) /iT\-8800, infov,Jhanggliding.com

w/swivcl $375. 20 20 COIZF PDA Many more available. H.aven Sky Sports 8800, infc,G/lha11ggliding.com

w/low homs, in good condi1ion.

(Ii 15) 902-9292 S.F. !lay area, lcwisbyingto11&Dyahoo.con1

SCHOOLS & DEALERS

EMFRGENCY PARACIIUTES

t I'!'!. /il}

HARNESSES

SUl'FRSPORT 153 Superne:ll rnstorn sail, very low hours, WW IJn included $2,100. (2(,2) /iTl-8800, info&Dl1angglid i ng.co111

IIICII ENI'.RCY POD 11/\RNESSFS Sizes & styles clunge mon1hly, $300-liOO. cc; I OOO's $250. Cocoons $200 each. I.MF!' pod, 5'9" $/iOO. l<ncehangers & stirrups also available. (2(,2) li73-8800, in fo(r1JJ 1a nggl i< Ii ng.com

]ANlJARY 2001

AIR SPORTS lJSA WWW,l'l,YPORFUN.NE"l" WANTED

HARNESS EXCHANGE - CHUTES (970) 611'Xl 15, Imp:/ /gunniso11glidcrs.com/

ULTRALIGI-ITS

info&1)J1angglid i ng.corn

SUPFRS!'ORT 1/iJ -- Cood condition $500. (619) /iT\-')7/iJ, I ,bc-ttsc'\1csd.edu

ad is by n1ore J 0,000 hang gliding

SUPERl'LOATFR Like new condition, aerotow and ground !OW release, BRS parachu1e and all avail, able options. Always hangared, <30 total hour,.s, w/irailer $ I 0, 500. XCHawkv,laol.corn, h 11p://www.barglrnhn.com/C:loudbase3. hem, (50"/) 895-lf2ii0.

McNETT TRAININC: I IARNFSSES Light, sirong, simple, durable. Thousands of s111dcnts have 1raincd in 1his harness over the past 10 yc;ns. (207) 729-')867.

RINCS NATIONi\l. SCIIOOL NFTWORK LOCAi.LY. For information call David (706) <i5"/8/i85, davicJ(i1>claviclglovcr.corn ALABAMA 1.00KOlJT MOUNTAIN FLIGHT PARK-~· Sec ad under ( ;eorgia.

CALIFORNIA DREAM WEAVER HANG GLIDING Train on statl'-of-thc-art WILLS WING FALCONS. LESSON PACKAGES: One four hour lesson $ I 00. Three four hour lessons, plus tandem off 2,000ft. $300. Five lessons for $1iOO. Ten lessons plus tandem $'/50. lntroducc someone new to our sport. For each new student that you introducl' that rakes rlrrcc or more lessons from me, you'll get a free lesson or $50 off a fi1ture pttrchasc. lesson Yc:trround in.stTuction.

DEf~PORT

2800 Torrey Pines Scenic Drive San Diego CA Since 1928

service, repairs,

USHGA

instn1ction, sales, and sire lmirs. San

Diego's M:tstcrC:ml accepted. 1-877-FLY Tl~AM. Check us out and order online at www.flytorrcy.com

FLORIDA The Acrntow Flight Park Sarisfaction C uaranteed

JUST 8 MILFS FROM DISNEY WORI .D • YEAR ROUND SOARING • OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK • SIX TUGS, NO WAITING • EVERY DIRECTION

Santa Barbara. 957 9J!i5, L.A's HlcST SlNClc 197/i

THF I TANG GLJDINC; CENTER - 6312 Malcolm Drive, San Diego CA 92115, (619) 265,5320. l-ITGH ADVFNTURE

Jiang paragliding schooL Equipment sales, service, ac Souchern California's mile high site, Crestline. USHCA Instructor Rob McKenzie. By appointment year round. (909) 88}-81i88, www.flytandcm.com

Sec

Orlando (only 8 hours).

! JANG GLIDING AND PARAGLIDING

and

clinics avaih,blc. Call for group rates. Tired of hiking I'll help you! Dealer for Wills Altair, Eneq:,,y Sports, Ball varios, Camelhaks more. New and used cquiprncm. We love tradc,-ins. l'm your northern California MOSQlJITO HARNESS DEALER. If you live in central me a call or email to your M,,sq1rn1to dcmc,nstrauo,n or clinic. Call or email, scl1cdluJ1rng lessons five days a week, Friday through Tuesdays. training hill, up to J 50ft., 600/i. mountain. 1,200/'t. mountain. Tandem instruction. USI-IGA Advanced lnsrructor DOUG PRATHER (209) 556-0469 Modesto, CA. drmwvrhgtglsofrcorn.ncr FLY AWAY HANc; GLIDING Tammy Burcar (805) www.!lyahoveall.corn/flyaway.htm

LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN FLIGHT PARK

ad under Georgia. Nc:ucst n1omuain training center to

20 minutes from LAX.

Full service walk-in center. Training for all skill levels, rentals, guide service\ sales) lodging ;1t world fan1ous Mountain Flight Parle 37. 5 sunny a year. Vicrory Blvd., Van Nuys CA 91406, 18) 9880111, fax (818) 988-1862, www.windsporrs.com

50+ b:LlCE demos tony: Topless to Trainer Gliders: l .arninar, Moyes, Wills, Airborne, Airwavc, Exxracy, La Jv1oucttc) Sensor;

also harnesses, varios, ct-c.

Ages l :J 'l'o Tl have learned to fly here. No one comes close to our level of' experience and

COLORADO

success with tandem acrotow instruction.

Full-rime AIRTIME ABOVE HANG GLJDTNG lessons, sales, service. Colorado's most experienced! Wills Wing, Moyes, Altair, High Energy, Ball, Flytcc, Connections and much more. Call (:303) 674Fvergrceu, Colorado Airrimcl ](;1711:wl.com

A GREAT SCENE FOR FAMJLY AND FRIENDS ...

IO motels & restaurants within 5 mins.,

hot

showers, shade rrccs, sales, storage) ratings,

retrievals, DSS TV,

weather, climbing wall, trampoline, pong, picnic tables, swimming pool, etc.

CONNECTICUT LARGEST HANG CLIDING SHOP fn the West! Our deluxe rcrail shop showcases the latest equipmrnt and has two virtual reality hang gliding flight simulators. \Ve stock new and used ... Wills Wing, Altair and Moyes gliders, and all the hottest new harnesses. Trade-

MOUNTAJN W[NGS ~- l.ook under New York.

Flights of over 200 miles and more than 7 hours. Cross Articles in Hang Gliding, Kitplanes, and others. Featured 011 numerous

FLORIDA

shows,

l latclinc NBC, The Discovery Channel&. FSPN.

ins are welco1nc.

Our comprehensive located at rhe San hancisco Bay Area's site fcamres: gently sloped hills," Wills Falcons of all sizes and training harnesses! "FIRST FLIGHT"l 5 minute video rour of our ner lesson program shows a smdenr's skill pn,grcss11on $20 (shipping included). 11 16 Milpitas CA 95035 (ne11r S,111 _Jose). (408) 262-1055, (li08) 262-1.388. rnission([Pbang--gliding.corn www.h;mg-gliding.com

Visit us on the \Xlcb: http://www.wallaby.com Please call us for references and video. 1805 Dean Srill Road, Disney Arca, FL 33837 (863) li24-00'/0 - phone & fax Dy~ilwallaby.com 1-800.\XfAI.LABY Conservative• IZcliablc • State of the Art F.fl.C. INC.!FLYINC FLORIDA SfNCE 197/i

Our advertising has a two-month lead time plan ahead. 46

USHGA CERTJFlFD TANDEM INSTRUCTION McNamcc. llcrorow training & ratings. and aero tow cqnipmcnt, I. 5 IJisnc,world. Call (352) 18'>-9969.

Malmlm J,mcs, Ryan ClovN, C,rlns llrs.sa I.auric Croft, Jeremie Hill, Kerry Uoyd Tom Ramseur, Roger Sherrod, Rhett Radford Tiki Mashy, Paris Williams

www.grnyhirdairspons.con1

HANC CIIDINC

MORE BUNNY... THE HILL WITH IT!

IDOKOUT MOUNTAIN l'Llc:JIT PARK -- Sec our display ad. 1)iscovcr why FOUR TIMES as many pilots earn their wings at Looko11l l han al any other school! W,· wrote USHCl\'s Orlici;il Training Manual. Our s11ecialty-rnsto111cr satisfoction and firn wi1h the BEST l'ACIUTJES, largest inventory, ming, vollcyhall, more! For a flying trip, imro lesson packages, Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga, your COMPLETE center. Info> (800) 688-1.MFP.

MARYLAND MARYLAND SCI 1001 OF H!\NC CLI lllNC, INC:. insin1ction, speci:ilizing in foot b11nch. Dealers for Wills Wing, Moyes, I ligh Fncrgy, year-ro11nd instruction. (Ii 10) 527-097'5, www.mshg.com

~ Ccrrif,ed

MEXICO

WF HI\VF The mos1 advanced training program known to hang gliding, teaching you in half rlic time i1 tal,cs on tbc training-BUNNY l-llLL, and wi1h more in !light air 1irnc. YES, WF CAN TEACH YOU FASTER AND SAFER. !'or year-round training fim in the sun, call or write Miami llang Clicling (:\05) 2858978. 2'i50 S Bayshorc Drive, Coconm (;r,ivc, Florida

3.3133.

BUNKHOUSE VAl.1.F DF BRAVO WARM & COMFORTABLE By 1.MFP! 32 bunks, hor showers, open all year, 21t hour self registration. l-800-803-7788!

\Vintcr, week long gliding. 1-800

tours, in-n-out on Sunday,

861-7198, jcfivilflymcxico.co111

MICHIGAN HAWAI! CLOUD 9 SPORT AVIATION - - 1\crotow spccialim. We carry all majm hrand gliders. Free PVC glide, srorngc/rransport tube wi1h new glider purchase. Now in m,ck: Laminar ST; Wills Fusion, XC, Uhrasport, Falcon; Moyes Sonic; Acros Stealth Magic Kiss. Outrigger launch cart kiJS, and other accessories in sLOck. Call for spring tandem lessons and flying ,1ppointmcms with the Soaring Club al C:lnud 9 /icld. I I 088 Coon Rd. W., Wcbhnvillc, Ml li8892. (517) 223-868:l. ( :loud9saci'aol.com h1rp://members.aol.co111/cloud9sa

QUEST /\TR SOI\JUNC C:FNTFR Yom vacation h:rng gliding location. (.152) Ji29-02 Ll. fox (.352) li2CJ4846. Visi! onr website at: www.qucslairforcc.com or email us: q11cstair<?l\;undial.11ct

CEORGII\ CAilfN RENTAL Tastcfolly dccornrcd c;1bin for nighrly and rentals within walking distance to Lookom Mtn Park LZ. Sleeps four, hill kitchen, back sarcllirc tv, ai1 conditioned, heated, porch w/hor mb. Tasrclidly fornished rustic fi1rnishings. Call (706) 657-2756 or 74 I l for info and reservations.

BIRDS lN PARADlSF I Jang gliding & ultralight flying on Kauai. Certified 1andem instruction. (808) 822-5:lO'l or (808) 639- 1067, hirdsG1lhinlsinparadisc.cont www.birdsi11paradisc.co1n ILLINOIS HI\NC Cl.]])F. CHIC:A(;CJ -- Full service acropark, 2 10w planes. Full time certified instructors, ultraligh1 instructors, East C:oas1 record 2 n miles. (81 'i) .'325-

1685, www.hangglidechicago.com (312) .%00700, (815) RAVEN SKY SPORTS liB'J-'J700 or (262) 173-8800. homs fi-01n Chicago, 90 111in111es from Elgin, Palatine Ill' 1.ihenyvillc. The he.st instrnctors, tire best cq11ipmc11t, the best results in

the Midwest. Training progrnn1 f,1r combincd/intcgrarcd f<iot la11nch and acrotow certification. Apply I OO'Yi, of your intro lesson costs to ccnillcation program

upgrade' Please sec om ad under W!SCONS[N. INDIANA J -800-805 7788

!'UL!. l ]()())(. UPS room. l -800-80.'l-7788

JANUARY 2001

I .:rnndry, propane, recreation

(262) 173-8800. Please sec RI\ VFN SKY SPORTS our ad under \Xlisconsin. infi:,Qrlhanggliding.corn

NORM I.ESNOW'S FLYlNC ADVENTURES Since J 978. Experience & safo1y arc II I. l\cro1owing and hill irmoductory flights and full raugc ol' lesson programs for beginner ro advanced. Acrotow clinics &

US! JC!\ appropria1c ratings available. US] JC;;\ ccni {1cd school. Please co1Hac1 Norm l.c.1now-/vbs1cr Pilot, Examiner, Advanced Tandem Instructor, Tow Admi11istr:1tor. (21i8) 39'J-<Jft33, FlJl.LTIME school. nlfo(tt!juno.com, www.scriouss1)or1s.com/n\C1

TRAVERSE CITY lli\NG GLIDERS/PARAGUDERS FULL-TIME shop. Ceni/Jcd instrnc1io11, foot launch and tow. Sales, service, :1cccssorics for Al.I. rmjor br:mck VISA/MASTERCARD. Come soar our IJ50' duncs 1 1509 F 8rh, Traverse C:i1y Ml lt%81i. ()ffrring powered paragliding lessons & dealer for the & 11sed 11nirs. Cdl Bill at (2.31) 92?-28/ili, tcl:1anggllH1,crv,u1u110.rn,111. Visir our pa1·ag,lul111gsehool i11 Jackwn, Wyoming. Call Tracie a1 7.'3') .. 8620.

A pilot launches in the heat of the competition. BELOW: Pilots meeting. Photos by Dean Funk.

side fun was everywhere, every night, sometimes all night. And though the meet would be won by scores in the hundreds instead of thousands, the atmosphere atop Henson's was unbeatable. From Arkansas ghost stories to the paper-propellers, flaming hot air balloons and other fireside anti cs ar Camp Rob, rhe whole gang were happy campers from the soaring start to the Free-flying finish. We'd like to thank our sponsors who generously donated nearly $2,000 worth of prizes, and the Sequatchie Valley landowners who made their thousands of acres available. Lookout Mountain, Wallaby Ranch, Quest Air, Graybird Air Spons, Altai r, Flyrec, Hall Brothers, Just Fly/U.S. Aeros, Moyes America, Rock Creek Outfitters, the USHGA and Wills Wing - each added generously to rhe excitement ar every pilot's breakfast meeting and contributed to the . . . wmmng pnze pot. As Meer Director I'd like to rhank each and every one of yo u for bringing yo ur expertise, enthusiasm and energy to this epic hang gliding reunion. To the meet

staff (Jamie Case, Mike Gares, Aldonna Johnson and Mark Furst), rhe crack local launch crew ream (Johnnie Lawton, Bill Colvin, Clark Harlow, Sreve and Cathy Lee, Mark and Katie Dunn and Tom Prouherr), and anyone I've missed, we all extend rhe sincerest gratirude. Your effons were remarkable. What a great event. See you all next fall! •

RESULTS Knights In White Dacron ........... 478 Birds of Paradise ..... . ............. 474 Cloudsrreet Boys . .... . . .. ...... .. . 42 1 Snoremasters .. ... . ..... .. ........ 400 Leftovers ... .... . . ... . . . ..... .. . .. 387 Dixie Roosters ...... . ....... . ..... 386 Sorry Sinking Souls . ... . . . .. . .... .. 323 New England Airheads ... . . ...... . . 183 Loco Cincos ........... .. ..... ... 11 3

Nearly 1,000 articles... hundreds of pilot reports • All "Product Lines" columns • How-to-Buy Guide • Read owner comments Site not open; sign up online to be notified

MINNESOTA

NORTH CAROLINA

PUERTO RICO

RAVEN SKY SPORTS (612) 3/i0-1800 or (262) liTl-8800. Please sec our ad under WISCONSIN.

FLY PUERTO RICO - Team Spirit Hang Gliding, f IC classes daily, tandem instruction available. Wills Wing dealer. Gliclcr rentals for qualified pilots. PO Box 978, Punta Santiago, Puerto Rico 007IJ I. (787) 850-

NEVADA

0508,

ADVENTURE SPORTS-·· Sierra soaring ar irs best. Tours and tandems available. Instruction from certified USI-IGA instructors wit!, 25 years experience. Sales, service and instruction by appointment Carson City/Lake Tahoe NV. (775) 883-7070 \1 ttJ>:/ /hotnc. pyra1nid.11ct/ad vspts

TENNESSEE LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN FLIGI IT !'ARK ad nndcr Georgia. XC CAPITAL OP THE CAROLINAS (828) 632-')8 l O foothillsfligl1tir1llwtmail.com

Sec

TEXAS

LAS VEGAS AIR.BORN WATFRSPORTS USHCA ccrtilied hang gliding instruction. Sales and service, boat tow, mountain soariug, XC. (702) 2607950, www.virmalhosts.net/hang.htm NEW JERSEY MOUNTAIN WTNGS

Look under New York.

NEW MEXICO

Fly At

•

Srate-of..thc-arr CROSSROADS WINDSPORTS training with stationary simulator, Boomllar, tandems, and video coaching. Aerotowing. Towing for paragliders. Rentals. Camping on the Airpark! Call Curr Craham in Hobbs (505) 3')2-8222. NEW YORK MA l'l.l(;IJT SC:11001. MOUNTAIN WINGS I ELI.ENVILLE AlR SPORTS. Full service shop, flight park, 4 500/i. row field, winch and aero rowing, tandems, two~pbce L'.L training. Airwavci Altair, Moyes, Acrc)si

learn '.WOO, Hight Star U.L., MOSQUITO powered harness, WOODY VALLEY harnesses in srock. The original V-MITTS $29.00. mtnwings@catskill.net or (81J5) 6/i?-3377 www.flightschool.net, 150 Canal Sr., Fllcnvillc, NY 12428. The most complete HC Pro-shop in the North Easr. AIR SPORTS USA NYC's first and only certified gliding, paragliding, microlights (trikes), powered paragliding. Distributors for Avian. Dealers for most major brands. Full service and equipment at best prices. The most friendly service in rhe area. Store address: 29 31 Newtown Ave., Astoria NY. Phone (718) 7000, WWW.FLYFORFUN.NET FLY l llCJ! [!ANG GLIDING, INC.-~ Serving S. New York, Connecticut, Jersey areas (Fllcnvillc Mtn.) Area's EXCLUSIVE Wills Winp, dealer/specialist. Also all other major bra11ds, accessories. Certified school/instrnctio11. since 1979. Area's most INEXPENSIVE prices. Exccllcm secondary instruction ... ifyou'vc finished a program and wish to continue. Fly the mmmrain! ATOI. towing! Tandem flighrs! Contact Paul Voight, 5 I G3 Scarsville Rd, Pinc llush, NY 125G6, (M5) 7/ili-3:l I 7. SUSQUFHANNA FUGT-IT PARK Cooperstown, NY. Certified Instruction, Sirles and Service for all major manufacmrcrs. IJO acre park, 5 training hills, jeep rides, hunk house, camping, hot showers, 600' NW We have the best facilities in N. New York state to teach you how ro c/o Dan (;uido, Box 293 Shocnnkcr Rd, Mohawk NY I .,li07, Cl 15) 86(,-615}

• YFAR-ROUND SOARING • EXCEU.ENT XC Fl.YING •TANDEM fNSTRUC:TTON • AFRO TOWING/THREE TUGS • DRAGONI;I.Y/TRIKE TNSTRUCJ'ION • WINC!-1 TOWING • INTRO FOOT I.A UNCH CJ.ASSES • PARAGUl)]NC TOWS • WJNCTI TOWING• FLY INS AND CLINICS SALFS AND SFRVIC:F • 600 ACRE FACILITY Steve Bllrns 'JIJ'J.279.9:l82 email: sburnsG1\rlpha I .net 800B Pille St., Ikarne TX 77859 Fred Burns 281.li71. I li88 email: austinair~ilaol.com .'l8 IO Bonita Lane, La Pone TX 77571 ,vww.austi11airsports.con1

CO ... HANG GLIDTNG!!' Jeff! !um.. Austin pb/fax (512) 467-2529 jcff'G!lflytcxas.corn • TANDEM fNSTRl/CTION • AEROTOWINC • BOAT TOWING • BEACH RESORT • TRAlNfNG CAMPS • FOOT I AlJNCH • OPEN Yl'.AR ROUND • PARACUDING • FQU[PMENT SALES AND SUZVTCE

(800) 334-4777 NAGS HEAD, NC Internet Address: lmp://www.kittyhawk.com E-Mail Address: info(ii>kirtyh,rwk.corn PENN SY! VANIA MOUNTAIN TOP RFCRFATTON -- C:errified instrnction, Pittsburgh. (Ii I 2) 76T-li882. C'MON OUT AND PLAY! MOUNTAIN WINGS

l lII.L COUNTRY l'ARACl.!DJNC INC·-· I.earn complete pilot skills. Personalized lJSHCA certified training, ridge soaring, foot & tow la1Jnching in central Texas. MOTORIZED PARAGLIDING INSTRUC. TTON & EQOIPMENT AVAILABLE. (915) 379l 185. 1475 CR 220, Tow TX 78672.

KITE ENTERPRISES ---· Foot launch, platform lmmch and acrotow instrucrion too. Training) sales) rentals and repair. Airwave & Wills Wing. Dallas, Fon Worth and north Texas area. 211 Ellis, Allen TX 75002. (972) :390-9090 weekends, www.kitc-cntcrpriscs.co111

TOTAi. AIR SPORTS -- Area's OLDEST Wills Wing dealer. Cerri lied instruction available. "I only DEAL with WlLLS". 16121 Lakeview, Houston TX 7701JO. (713) 937-86Jli, totalairsports@hotrnail.com

Look under New York.

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

UTAH

WISCONSIN

CLOUD 9 SOARINC CFNTER Tlic nation's paragliding ,111d !tang gliding shop, is now olfor· ing gliding lessons, guide S(:rviccs, repairs and sales at Point of the Mountain, Utah. Contact 11s for an infor111ation packet or stop by the shop. (80 I) 576· 61iGO, infoQilparaglidcrs.com 12'556 S. Minuteman Dr. Ill Draper, UT 8li020.

RAVEN Sl<Y SPORTS Hi\NC CLllllNC AND l'/\RACLII>!NC - The r\.1idwcsr's Pronicr acrorow flight park, founded in I ')92. Featuring INTEGRJ\' ['. I'D INSTRUCTION of foor.\attttch and acrotow tan· rlcm skills, at package prices to beat in the USA. Seven be,n11if't,l, gr,1.ssy training hills all wind directions. Four I lragonfly row planes, 110 waiting! Three tandem gliders 011 wheeled undercarriages. W'\XI hikom for training from the very fost lessons. USU/\ 1d1rnligh1 and tug instrucrion. Paragliding tows. l;rcc crn,ping. Salcs/servicc/acccssorics for all brands. Open 7 davs a week. C:ortt;rct Brad Kusl,ncr, PO !lox IOI, Whitewater WI 5:l 1')0 ().62) /i7.J.8800 phone, (262) ftF).880 I fox, www.hanggliding.com, info(t1)ha11ggliding.com

WASATCH WINGS - Utah's only ftdl service hang gliding school, Poinr of the Mountain, rcgion;i\ rnoun-

rain sires, Moyes, Wills 21/ ·1- 7194,

Dealer for 1\crns, i\irwavc, Alr,tir, and mttc!t more. Call lac (80 I) ,vi ngs([ilwasa 1cl1.co1n

www.wasatch.com/ -wings

J\11. J\C:C:ESSORIES IN STOC:K! Flytec ii005, Quantum :l:lO, call! I.ow prices, fast delivery! Cttnnison Clidcrs, I 51j<) ( :011nty Road 17, ( :unnison ( :<) 8 I 2:$0. (970) G/i 1·9.l 1 http:/ /gunnisongliders.com/

VIRGINIA PARTS & i\CCESSOIUES AEROTOWJNG J\CCESSORIFS Sec· TOWINC. THE WAll.i\BY RAN(:! I (863) li2./i.0070. AMJ\/INCLY I.OW PRJCFS Boh<,1l[1rokcrforyo1t .com

On all Ball v:nios!

BLUE SKY Ful!timc instruction and service at \1anqttin Park near Richmond. Wills Wing, Acros and i\irwavc gliders. Mid· Moyes, l'light !\r\anric Mosquito dealer. Steve Wendt (510) •fl2· 6557 or (80/i) 2/i I li32/i, www.bl11eskyhg.com, bl11esky\1g~1\ahoo.cotn

HANG GLIDING ACCESSORIES BJ\R MITTS: FXl'I ORFR No map pocket $/i5.00 NA VICJ\TOR Removable map pocket $5'i.0() COMl'FTlTOR C:irrnlar map rnff $Ci5.00 C:1./DER lll\CS.J !FA VY DlJTY GOO deni,·r polyester. Water & UV protection. 1110 ·1.ippcr Reinforced ends. Tapered design. C:0111i1111ous loop haudlcs. Red or blue. $100.00 CROSS C:O\JNTR Y ?. 10 rlenier nylon, strong yet 115 zipper. $90.00 Tapered. Red or RADIO JlOUCllES Vinyl window. strap. Acljttsts to ltt most radios. Velcro\ onto strap. Red or blne. $15.00 1-IM(NFSS BJ\C Adj11scablc waisl & shoulder straps. i<cd or bluc.$/i 5.00 $12.00

FLY AT VIRC!NIA'S NEWEST TOTAL l'LICIIT PARK Mi\NQUIN offers acrotowing, tandem lessons. platform rruck training hill and .scooter towing for thru pilots. Certified instruction,

equipment sales, service and

BEST 12" Wl!El'l.S AV All.ABLE Super rough, tandem flying. Built.in lightwcighr, a must for wheel. $/i2.95, qttamiry bushings. Only USA.fittilt discounts. Immediate delivery. Looko111 Jv1oun12in1 (800) 688.LMFl'.

Sail Tics $1.00 per I()" Wing Ti[' Bags $5 ca. or $8/1,r. MAST/\! )ON DESICNS Box 6655 S. Lake Tahoe CJ\ 96157 (5.30) 'i/i2 3853 www.masradon.net

fl.IC! IT CONNlcC:TIONS, INC. l'TT !!

W(' have what you need and WC J\ VS ( :all (760) 721 0701 or email at tnclaskvtfl'yah,:io.co,m

• New and [mproverl ' Water/Dust Resistant Push Button Switch ' l'icld Replaceable • 1lea vier ( ;auge !'lugs 'Increaser\ Strain Rclic/'ar /\LL Joints

MTN! VAR)() - World's smallest, (). Clips ro helmet or warra111y. Crcat for 18,000 i'r., fast response Mallcrrcc, PO Box roo. ONLY $ I

Li\MlNAR PARTS

arc committed m same

"BLUE SKY" Virginia's bding hang Try 3·axis flying with certified ultralight instruction "FLY RAWLING", learn to lly and soar the :if'Wa.shingron DC, minutes NE of Richmond. Free camping

close to fist food, rcsUtu·-

ranrs and

Dominion theme park.

Visit us on

\vcb ,vww.manquinacro1-c)\v.com or

www.bl11cskyhg.cotn. (540) 132-655'7 KITTY Ill\ WK KITES

Sec North Carolina.

SILVER WlNCS, INC. ~· Certified instruction and equipment sales. (703) 533· 1965 Arlington Vi\. WASHINGTON HANCTIME Dealer of the MOSQUITO powered harnesses. Call for CT.INIC dates. Right here in the pacific northwest. ('i09) 525,357/i, lbbrown011bmi.ncr

)ANUi\RY 2001

%Ci 12/iO,

Price $119.95. Extra finger switch $19.95 wlpmclmc. Dealer inquiries welcome. Call ('l 13) 268,79/iG. lv1( :!Visa. Visit our 1vcbsitc at WW\v.fligluconn.com

MC/Visa accepted, www.mallcncc.com

OXYGEN SYSTEMS

The world-class XCR--180 operates up to 3 hours (illl8,000 ft. and only lilb. Complete kit with cylinder, harness, caunula and remote on/off /lowmcter, only $375.00. SPECTACULAR TROPlflES - Awards &. gifts! Soaring Dr,·arns (208) 376-791 Ii,

WIND! I. 5 oz. ripsrop nylon, UV treated, 5'4" long w/1 I" throat. Available colors fluorescent pink/yellow or flumesccnl $39.95 ( ,-$Ii .75 S/11). Send to USHCA P.O. Box 1.130, Colorado Springs, CO 80901 1330, (?19) 632-8300, fox (719) 632--6/i 17, ushga~iushga.org VlSAIMC acccp1cd.

HARRY AND TI lE I fJ\NG CUD ER is a bcautifi.dly illusrrarcd, hardcover children's book with 10 color to share ihc dream send plus $3 shipping to Publishing, 201 N. Tyndall, Tucson, J\'/. 85719 or (520) 628-8165 or visit http://www.flash.net/-·skyhipub Visa/MC accepted.

BUSINESS & EMPLOYMENT TEK PLIGHT PRODUCTS ACCEPTING DEALER INQUIRIES Popular liill face hclmct.(.)03) :-lli?-8995 leave message.

BECOME A PROFESSIONAL FUCHI' lNSTJWC-

mounts

arc

available in ! .os Angeles at one fincsr hang gliding schools. For information contact Joe Grebin al windspom@carthlink.net DRAGONFLY TOW CLUB 'J'hc success is in the smiles! Dragonfly ki1s available NOW for $10,800! Fully built for $12,800 you Bohby Bailey 10 train you ar your site. for Ken Brown dba Moyes America (5.10) 888-8622 FlyaMoycsQilaol.corn. Camera mount $!/8.50. Camera remote (ask abom rebate) $45. Vario mount $15. 6" wheels $29.75, 8" wheels $.34.75 S&f-1 included. TEK FLIGHT Pro,lucts, Colebrook Winsted CT 06098. Or call (860) 379-1668. tek@snct.net or our page: htrp://tekllight.tripod.com UVEX HELMETS·- Arc the best and arc now on sale for only $215, you save up to $1 IO! Check out hnp://www.fun2f1y.com/ncws.htrn or call (206) 32090 IO for more info.

insrrncrors. openings Live 1he Californi,1 rlream ... instruct s1udcnts at the San Fnrncisco Bay mca's premier site. Service shop em.p/i,yrnc1'1t is also available. Par Dcnevan (408) 262-1055. MSC:HCG:1\rol.corn www.hang--glidi11g.com

·roWING AEROTOWING ACCESSORIES I lcadquartcrs for: The finest releases, releases, Spectra "V" bridles, weak links, iandern launch can kits, ere. THE WALLABY RANCH (863) 424-0070. PAYOUT WlNCll --- Excellclll condition, mounted on a new trailer w/bancrics, ,111 self conrained, 3000' rope, 1wo drag climes $2,300 OBO.

WANTED

PUBLICATIONS & ORGANIZATIONS

HAWK ATRSPORTS INC P.O. Box 905Ci, Knoxville, TN 37940,0056, (865) 9li5-2625. World the O.shkosh & Sun--NBA(; IT! ff you don'1 have your copy of Dcnuis l'agcn's l'ERH)RMANCF Fl.YINC available rhro11gh USHCA $29.9'5 s&h for UPS/l'rioriry Mail USHCA, PO Box 1330, Colorado Springs CO 80901. 1-800-616-6888 www.t1shga.<)rg

SOARINC - Monthly magazine of The Soaring Society of America, Inc. Covers all aspects of soaring copy flight. Full membership $5'>. Info. kit with $}. SSA, P.O. Box I 00, 1lobhs, NM (50'>) .192-1177.

ht rp://www.bargbah11.com/Billy's'V<,20 P,1gc.htrn, (507) 8')5-li240.

Can't afford new equipment? Find great bargains in our classified ad department. More than 10,000 hang gliding enthusiasts read our magazine every month. 'T'hat's more than 20,000 eyes seeing your ad. HANC GUl)INC

MISCFI l.J\NFOUS

V!DEOS & l'ILMS

SPEED GLIDING: TFJ\R UP TJIF. SKIFS By Adve11111re l'roducLions $24.95 NEW* TO FLY: DISCOVER l!ANG GLJDINC TODAY liy J\dvcnturc Productions ONLY $'5.00 FOR US! !CA MEMBERS ($15.'!'5 for 11011-USJ I<;;\ mcrnhcrs). l )iscovcr hov:.r modern gliding can c:1sih• you realize yom dreams 10 ONLY $5.00. to shuw how h;rng gliding li;1s evolved into a s;1fr, affordable, and ft111 way "To l'ly". Filmed :II scvcral m;ijor hg schools i11 the US "This procluctio11 has my best footage packed inro a short 10 minute eye opener. ONLY $5.00. IO min.! This is rhr video you show your family a11d frirnds! ONLY $5.00. NEW* WEATJJFR TO FLY. by Adventure

( :overs the :,,pc('d

contest in I<:1mloop.s, British

onto Telluride, Colorado. Columbia aud Superior graphil animation, great camera angles. 2,1 JlliJJUH'S,

TF!.l.URIDF SPEED GLIDING Hy Tarurn Prnductions $19.95. C:omplctc coverage o( this evc11r. The sonnd of the gliders 1i:1ssing through the control gates is totally :iwesome ..l.'\ minutes. C:all lJSllCJ\ (719) 6328300, fax (719) 6.ll-f/i!7, order from our web site W\V\V.ushga.org. Please add 1.$/i s/h in the \JS!\.

"AEROBATICS"--· hdl color 2:l"x 31" poster featuring John I Jeinc:y doing wll:11 he docs best-1.00P!NC! J\vail:1blc through \JS] IC/\ !IQ for just $6.95 (1$/i.OO s/h). !'ill th:it void on yom wall! Send to USl!CJ\ ;\crobatics Poster, PO Box J.'l()IJ, Colorado Springs CO g()9:J:l. (US/\ & CanacL1 only. Sorry, posters arc NOT /\V1\ll.ABI.I, on internation:il orders.) Sl'FCJ1\L-J\crobatics pmler & Eri, BOT! I HlR $10 (1$/i./5 s/h). Check section of' our weh site W\vw.ushga.org for a color picrnn· oftlicsc he:nni(id posters.

Productions. ;\ much needed instrncrion;d video on

rnctcorology. Dixon \Vhitc, /vl;ister pilot ;ind US! JC/\ Exrunincr, tnkcs you through a simple stcp-t,y-step ;-;howing where to acquire weather d:HJ 10 interpret it. This video will help 1,ilo1s of' any aircrnCt understand more about 111odcli11g and forecasting. You'll learn about and local influrnccs and how to determine alo(i and s1;ibili1y. "Wea1hc1 To l'ly" is an over :ill view packed with useful dcLails and includes clo11d IL is a s1r:11glllt-lo1"wa11'll prcsenr:u ion 50 min. NEW* STARTIN(; Jli\NG GLIDING. by Aclvrnrure Prod11c1ions. !'rocluccd especially to mote rhc spon. Covers basic prcparaLion, proper a11iwdc, groundh:rndJjng, bunching a11cl d1osc llrst flights. JO min $29.95. TURNING POJNT IN ALPINE Tl!ERMJ\LUNG, hy Drnnis Tron/Alpine !'lying ( 'rntrc. 50%, I JG, 5010, PC. Discover techniques Lo t:m,c· the elusive alpine thermal. llc:rntiftd

For new ,md used hclrneLs ,rnd more. This SJ\LF so please cllC'ck it out or call (20(,) .HO 'JO 10 for more inform:nion.

rigid wings, page is 11pcL1tcd

Vl DFOS, BOOKS & POSTFRS yom /vlerchandisc order form (719) 637-8300, email: ushgaCt'1ushga.org, or check ou1 wch page WVVW,lL)hga.org

l'rom the Telluride Festival in 1981, to the modern day co111r1ct1uo11. Follow the history o( this dynamCall US!!(;;\ (71 'J) (,:J).-8:lOO, or(kr f'rom our web si1c

www.usliga.org. Please add +$Ii domestic s/h. RF.AL ESTATE

Enropc's most dramatic rnmmtaius. Also comments from top pilots ("x great animation. 7-li min

C:RFSTLIN C:J\I.JH)RNJJ\ ..- 1\1 launch site, income pmcnt i:il, home for sale, possible bed/breakfosr.

$35.95 C:urrcndy our hottest selling vidco 1 J\ERONAUTS f!ANC Gl.!DJNG MASTERS. hr Photographic Expeditions. /\ docnrncnrary of' hang today. S1tpcrL footage. graphics & imervicws. min $29.95. I !ANG GLIDING EXTREME & BORN TO FLY hy /\dvcnmre Productions, great hg action $3/i.95 each. HAWAIIAN FLYJN by S11;icc 9, soaring in p:Hadise, amazing l:rnnchcs $:l:l.00 Call UST !CJ\ (71 'J) 6'\2-SJOO, fox (71 'J) 6'\7.-6/i 17. email: ushga(tc>us/Jg;t.org, or order off our wch www.ushga.org. Please: add 1$Ii domestic s/h (1 $5 lwo or more videos). Crc;it to impress your friends or for those socked-i11 d:iys. l'crfrct gili for the l:tunch potato turned collch polato. /\!so, ask u:,, about 0111 par:igliding videos!

hirtlwr inf(1rmation at ww\v.tcrcsalirca!csrntc.com 01 (9/i 9) (,89-9135.

wvvw,:;,i11g;wi11g.con1

available. Special

)ANLJA/<Y 200 !

NOW MODFLS AV/\ILAB!.F 12.-21" wing span. Priced at 2/$5, 'j/$ U, I0/$20 (, $:l.20 S& I I, W J\ resi dents add 8.G'X, sales tax). Check/money order IO: Zing Wings, PO llox li89, Enumclaw WA 98022.

only $5.00 ($15. non-members). 16-6888

membership

(719)

gladly

DON'T LEAVE YOUR <;ROUND-BOUND EQlJIPMENT SITTING IN TIIE CARACF.. SEU. IT TN THE 111\NG GU DING CL/\SSIHF.DS.

C:LASS!FIFD ADVERTISINC: RATES Tlw rate for classilicd ;1dvcrrising is $.50 per word (or group ,,I' char· acters) ,rnd $ I .00 per word for hold or all ivllN J. MUM AD CHARCI· $5.00. /\ Ice of 15.00 is charged for each line art logo aud $25.00 for each photo. 1.INEART & PHOTO SIZE NO l./\RCER THAN 1.7'\" X 2.)S'. l'ka.sc underline words robe in ol' rnhs $25.00 per column inch. Phone words. lcrnail or web addrcs.1°,.lwDrds. AD llEi\Dl.lNFS: /\II ad copy, instrnctions, ch,rngcs, additions and cancellations u111sl be received in

1.5 months

rhc cover

date, i.e. Janw,ry for the make checks pavablc to US! IC/\, P.O. Box 13.\0, Cc,lorado CO 80<JO 1· 1.lJO, (719) 6,2-8}00. h,x (!19) 17 or email: 11shga('1)ushga.org you1 classified with your Visa or MasterCard. STOLEN WINGS & TllINGS

MOYF.S XTRi\LITF lli7 & 161 ~tolen 2.000 dming Regin,wls in I !Fi\RNF, TX. BoLh have a white upper sml,icc, black 11ndcr s11rl,1cc and an X-lite cmhlcrn on 11ndersurfacc of rig\11 wing. C:0111act Melvin B. Asher (281) 931t-6 I ')'J or John Moody (713)

STOJF:-1 WINCS arc listed as a service to US! J(;i\ rncrnhcrs. Ncvvest entries arc in hold. There is no charge for this service and lost :111d found wings 01 eq11iprnrnt may be called in (719) 632-8300, hxcd in (719) G.'l2-61i 17, or emailed at 11shga~i'11shga.org for inclusion in I Cliding magni1w. Please call lO crnccl the gliders arc rccowrcd. Periodically. be purged.

Adventure Producrions ................... ,.... 7 Aircotec ............................................. 4 3

Angle of Attack ................................. 54 Arni Design ...... ,................................ 33

I)an Johnson ........................... ,......... 49 Flytec ............................................. 9,4 l Hall Bros ............................................. 7

High Energy Sporrs ........................... 17 Just

7li0-6Cn5.

Mojo's Gear ...................................... 41 Fl.lG! l'l' DFSTC\I S2VT - Two parnglidcrs lost by the US posLal service, shipped frolll CJ\LIH)RNJ/\ to J 1/\W /\ 11 parcel post on /\11gust I9th, I 999. One brgc one mcdinm w/orangc top. Lois Hulmes w/pmplc

Moyes ............................................... 17 Ncilscn .. Kcllcrman ............................ 17

Aviation Publications ................. 7

(530)

I.EFT WINCLFT Lost for a WWXC: l'i5, at CLASSY iv!OUNT/\IN, SC: on Oc10hcr ;rnth, 1')9'J.

Traverse City IIang Clidcrs ................. 2

U.S. Acros ........................................... 5 USHCA ........................................... 13,49, 54 Wcsr Coast Atos ........................................... 7

/\EROS STEALTH 152 Stolen from QUEST /\IR fl.lCf!T PJ\RI(, FL on May ls,, 199'J (L,st day olthc

Wills Wing ................... ,..... Back Cover

Nars.) Red 1mdcr, bl11c mylar top. Call Mark (2.18) 3'Jft. \227 mliot1:~l1'1c~naol.co1in

And they'll also receive a $ gift certificate redeemable off their 1st lesson from a participating school.

Phone: 209.543.7850 Toll-Free: 888.530.9940 E-Mail: custsvc@a ng leofattack. net Website: http://angleofattack.net 1110% Guaranteed. I! no1 satisfied, rn1um unused tubes for 100% money back. Major Credit Cards accepted. OEM/Dealer inquiries encouraged. Ad b Potor Birron: 847.M0.0171

HANC Gl IDINC

PAUI,, MINN., An happened last fall. As 2000 came wing (Lc1minar) producer, Icaro, accord with Germany' t:op wine; producer, A.I.R. Web wr:i t.er, Dav:i Straub, reported in Oz Report, "A . . R. has moved its assembly operation and shipping to Icaro in Italy. has bf?cm ,l s tronq with A. f:rom U1r? producincr making well being respons:ible Eor a s:ignificanl: porl:ion of the d:i stribution. Now Jookc; Jike Icaro i.n c1 posi t:i on with respect· l:.o l\. . R. " Icaro confirmed St:raub' s report- sayi nq, "rn t11ese past: y·ears, Ica:i-::o play(~d aJrcady an important .r-010 .R. with producing tl,e major part of the and the' tJ.10 l{l'US and, in addition, has sold over 130 of t.hem." Jcaro expressed, "Since the ATOS been perfonn:ing in such an :i mannei: World and European Champiorns fly l\'I'O~,), we will not modify it riext year." Straub, outspoken supporter and of rigid wings such a.s in notable rucord reported here October hi.s persorn,J inqE,, "l\s a cu::::torner I more 21ecure in havi ncs d and mor0 hang id ng company taking on more responsibilities for the NI'OS. Ruhle w:i11 ,;tay with tl1e AT'OS but w:U I Germany doing U1c design work. Derndt Weber, Managing Director [businc,sc) manacJerJ oE A. l. R., (explained, "W:i U1 focusing on dc,siq:n we wi.L1 be able to offer an inl~ermediate Nf'OS ( to E,afe, weight and cheaper)." W0b0'r added, "We have sold more than 400 ATOSes. " 'Che deal set in stone on October 24th wben Webc,r contract with Icaro allowinq A.I.R. to cfove1op new gliders while Icaro becomei, responsible tl1e a,membly and ,,hipping of l:be l\'J'OS from thc~il' bm;e in However, A.LR. will hold onto the ownersliip of the German cerL:i ion (Dl!V C{itesit;:Jel) and A. I .R. will continue to design projectE, Lhe futur0. St:raub reports, "Berndt that he very optimi2,Uc witl1 1ik0 [Icarc) bo:c:s] GiarnJJ Hotz and behind A.LR. and Felix [Ruble]." J>. A.I.R. indical~ed Ruhle and another engineer plus composil~e worker wi continue working out of the Znin:i Germany of Apparent] y, reporl:.ed ~3traub, "Felix would 1ik.e to move U1e l\.I.R. off to place cJoser to hie..; home, but won ' t happen the next four mont.hs." As th.e story conU.nuc;;; to unfold, A . . R. will allegedly be workincJ on new intermediate version of the ATOS, and perhaps caged glider. ('T'he enclosed A'l'OS not an new w_i.t:h an exJX'r_imental having a}readv appeared, but Uiis Uie ind_i_cation of which T'm awan, wher2 Ruhle and ternn put tJ1eLr m-7'.nds on more information direct from source, contact: . de; more :information also available on Straub' s website wliere c,dj tions of his Oz Report arc; archived at davisstraub. com. My pen;ona1 observat.ion that rigid wings may have truly arrived when wing company embr c1ce,;

1NUi\RY 2001

rigid concept in fasllion. Many J\merican pi lots cJre c1ware that Wills Wing worked with Briglits l-ar, put ting triangle control a Millennium and guinj nq ,3ome Uyinq witl, No word on any f:ut.ure for collaboration, but my hope that we ernergenc~, of rigi cl work in the USA to compete' wi U1 the Europ1c,ans who cu:rTc.mtly dominate l:he rigid developmentE3. In Lhe Ee.1st, try to updd to fr1fo on \:lie Rapt.or 2 project frorn Mal.t Ko11rnan, a Lot.ally Made·-in-the-USA rigid winq. Down .in the soul-.h ot Florida, James Tindle lias opern?d liis aerotow park: locaLed roug}1l halfway between Miam.i and . Myen,, Floridc1, L:he town of L,ibell . Local enthusi.ast and supporter, Juan Arraiz, photos of l:.he flights frorn new 90-acre hnng gl:iding presE,rvEc, on November 11th. lle says, "Working with Rtms Brown f:rom Quest, t.ook four tandem faerotow] flights w:Ltl1 bjm and soloed Sunday aft0rnoon. 'I'hus, I became; the pilot to be trained and fly solo from this new airpark." He now a contc,ssed aerotow proponent, adding, "aerotow a wondE•rfuJ m0ans to launch ql ider. 'I'his the tuture." Tindle new towpark now has a name?, a clever one i.n my opin.i on: Florida Ridge Soaring Center pj 1ots who 1:ly Florida know about Florida r:idqe tliat has ·1 ~;a.i lplanes nm the whole north/south of the, long for years. 'L'hose who don' always ask, "What ridge?" giving '['ind] a great conversation to :Lnvit:e newcomers. Ile wanl~s t:o his students place• to continue training so newcomers definil:0ly of the 1''1orida Ridge took delivery of l:heir m"w 914 '.l:'urbo Dragonfly tug that should yank lIP tandem with evc,n n warm wc,ather. "Both [Lookout:.' s] Matt 'l'abor and [Qu0st' ] Russ Brown L:rongly advised \:.he 9 [engine] over ,TamE,s . But a new ,;iccason , he, won't: have to rely just on one plane as Arlan Birkett will be bringing a bc1ckup tug from the Chicago Hanq Gliding group tbat j their winter months. Ari an wi11 help cJames by managing Florida Rid<:c1e ov,"r i lx.:,ginninq days of operation. Birkett is a midwest aerot:ow w:LU1 Tandem Administrator rat iixJ USHGA BFT (Basic ighr_ Instructor) USUJ\, U1e uLtrali~Jht a,;sociation. that a new hangar wLL1 the property ,January and l:11aL c1 Grand Opening wiJ1 happen concurrently. So, if the contact •rind1e You more info and Ridge t .com. Cor ton 've mi pas 'J'r1c, above arne Outt.a room! So, version 'cm to: t;:/Ot news or opinions? St. Paul MN 55118. Messages or tax to 0930, or to CumulusMan(clao1.com . "Product columns wi Ll belater th.i al www.ByDan,Tohn13on.corn. TH.1\c~KSJ 0

Competition?

Oh yeah, we do that too ...

B o Hagewood Ji m Lee Pa ris Williams

1st 1st 3rd

2000 US National Championships 2000 Lone Star Championships 2000 Lone Star Championships

Fusion 150 SP Fusion 150 SP Fusion 150 SP

Jim and Paris combined to w i n s i x out of seven days of the meet. K ari Castle F ranc;:oise Mocellin

1st 2n d

2000 Women' s World Championships 2000 Women' s World Champ ionships

Fusion 150 SP Fusion 141 SP

These were the only two Fusion SP's in the meet Richard Walbec F ranc;:oise Mocellin Richard Walbec Sa ndy D ittma r C hris Mulle r

1s t 1st 3 rd 1st 1st

2000 French National Championships 2000 French Women's National Championships 2000 Pre-World s 2000 Valida Inte rnational De Vol Vibre Venezue la 2000 Canadian National Championships

Fusion 1 50 SP Fusion 141 SP Fusion 150 SP Fusion 150 SP Fusion 150 SP

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B ut then , we do other things as wel l. Like the Wills W i ng Falcon · the world wide standard for first purchase, e ntry-level fun . T he Wills Wing Eagle - d ouble surface performance with single surface flight characteristics. and maybe the best all around glider we 've ever made. The Wills Wing Ultra Sport · the most accessible true high perf ormance you can buy. And the W ills Wing Fusion · the confidence that comes w ith first quality materials and e ngineering, and an unmatched safety record .

Wills Wing gliders. Check us out.

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Quality aircraft for exceptional people.

Wills W i ng USA, 500 West Blueridge Ave . Orange , CA 92865 , ph 714 .998 .6359 fax 714 .998 .0647 www.willswing .com