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Gil Dodgen. Managing Ed~or/Editor-in-Chief, St= Roti, Contributing Ed~ T1m Meehan.Art Director Will Gadd, Demis Pagen StaffWnters OfflceSmff Jayne DePanfilis, Executive Director, ,ayne@Jshga.org Jeff Elgart. Advertising. jelf,@ushga.org Sandra Hewitt. Member Se,,,ices.sandra@lshga.org Natalie 1·"1sle)I MernbEr Serwes.natalie@JShga.org USHGA Officers and ExecutM! Committee: Jim Zeise1, Presidenqimigreer@aol.com Marlc.~,V,ce PresidenL~ i~om Russ Locke, Sccretary.russ@lod<electric.com Bill Bolosky.Treasurer. bolosk)@'nocrosoft.com REGION I: Bill Bolosky, Mark Forbes. REGION 2: Ray Leonard, John Wikle, lim WesL REGION 3: David Jebb. john Greynald, Alan Chuculate. REGION 4: Mark Ferguson. Jim Zeiset. REGION 5: Frank Qllette. REGION 6: James Gaar REGION 7: am Bryden. REGION 8: Doug Sharpe. REGION 9: Randy Leggett, Fefipe Amunategui. REGION I0: T1ki Mashy, Matt Taber. REGION 11: R.R. Rodnguez. REGION 12: Paul Voight DIRECTORS AT LARGE: Jan Johnson, Dennis Pagen, Russ Locke, Steve Kroop, Chris Santacroce. HONORARY DIRECTORS: Aaron Swepston. J.C. Brown, Ed P,tman, G.W. Meadows, Bob Hannah. John Harris, Larry Sanderson (SSA), Dil\/e Broyles. Gene Matthews, Ken Brown, Rob Kells. Liz Sharp, Dan Johnson. Dixon Vvh~. EX-OFFICIO DIRECTORS: kt Greenfield (NM). The Un~ed States Hang Q,cing Assoc,alion loc. 1s an air sports 0<ganiza.tioo affiliated with the National Aeronautic Assoc,a11on (NAA) whi<:h is lhe official representative of the Federation Aeronautiquc Internationale (FAI), of the world govem,ng body for sport aviation. The NM, which represents the U.S. at FAI meeting~ has delegated to the USHGA superviSIOn of FAl-related paragliding actMties such as record attempts and competition sanctions.
CONTENTS
November.
'
Features
Departments
World Record in Texas Will Gadd
Air Mail
8
Updates
0
Foreign Flyin' Arna Goldsmith
0 0
Incident Reports High and Dry in Las Vegas Tony Lang
Thermal Lore Dennis Pagen
Photo Gallery DanMcManus
0
--0 --0
Calendar of Events
-0 --8
Classified Advertising Advertiser Index
0)
0
PAAAGl.lDING magazine is publilhec! for paragliding sport enthusiasts to crcale further 11terest in lhe sport. and to prov,cie an el)Jcational forum to advance paragliding methods and safety. Con1r1bvtioos are welcome. An)one 1s invited lo contnbut.e articles, photos and illustrall0n5 concerning paraglid,ng actlllities. If the maierial is lo be retumed, a stamped, sd(-addressed retUTI envelope must be enclosed. Notification must be made of submission to other paragliding publications. PARAGLIDING magazine resel'\/es the nght to edrt contributioos where necessary.The Associauon and pu~1cation do not assume responsibility for the material or opinions of contnbutors. PARAGLIDING editorial offices (articles and photos only): 31441 Santa Margarita Pkwy., Suite A-256, Rand\O Santa Margarita, CA 92688, phone (949) 88S-7363, fax (949) 888-7464, e-mail: G,IDodger@lol.com. All AOVERTISERING AND AOVERTlSING INQUIRIES MUST BE SENTTO USHGA HEADQUARTERS IN COLORADO SPRlNGS. The USHGA 1s a member-controlled !!)Ort organization dedicated to lhe exploration and prurnotioo of all facets of unpowered ultralight flight and to the edx:auon. tra:ning and safety of its membersh,p. Membership 1s open lo anyone interested in !hrs realm of flight Dues for ful rnenilership are $59.00 per ~ar (of which $15 goes to lhe pijllication of Paragliding), ($70 non-US); Sl.bscription rates only are $35.00 ($46 non-U.S.). Oianges of address shcxAd be sent six weeks in advance, including name, USHGA numbe,; previous and riew address. and a mailing label from ~ recent issue. PARAGLIDING (ISSN 1069-1846) is poolished 11 times a ~ar: Jan. Feb., March, April. June, July. Aug, Sept. Oct, NC7'1., Dec. by the United Stales Hang Glic.ig Association. Inc., 219 W. Colorado Ave, Surte I04, Colorado Springs. CO 80903 (719) 632-8300 FAX (719) 632-6417. PERIODICAL POSTAGE is paid al Colorado Spnng. CO and at additional rnaiing omces. POSTMASTER: SEND CHANGE OF ADDRESS TO: PARAGLIDING. P.O. BOX 1330. Colorado Springs. CO 80901 -1330.
Paragliding: November, 2002
DISCLAIMER OFWARRANTIES CN PUBLICATIONS:
The material presented here is published as part of an info1mation disseminatio n service for USHGA membe rs. The USHGA makes no warranties or representations and assumes no liability concerning the validity of any advice, opinion or recommendation expressed in the material. All individuals relying upon the material do so at their own risk. Copyrigh t © 2002 United States Hang Gliding Assn. , lnc. All rights reserved to Paragttdtng and individual contributors. 3
SIV CLARIFICATION
Dear Editor, We apologize for the lack of clarity in September's article on SIV (maneuvers) courses. The barograph traces were too small to read without a magnifying glass and two were identical. Please keep in mind that this is one small bit of research that gives us a general idea of descent rates for a small variety of canopy configurations. These are simply what was measured on Bruce Wallace's barograph. The rates will vary but are a general guide. We need to have more pilots gather more information with a variety of conditions and wings. Here are some numbers: Big Ears 4SO'/min. Frontal984'/min. SAT1,200'/min. Asymmetric 1,300'/min. Front Horseshoe-1,SOO'/min. B-line stall1,700'/min. Spin2,300'/min. Full stall2,300'/min. Spiral dive4,000'/min.
Ken Hudonjorgensen
IT'S COOL TO SINK OUT
Dear Editor, I would like to suggest that paragliding, for most people, is really all about simple flights. Most recreational pilots only need a simple flight off a big mountain in the morning or evening, or a quick soaring session at a simple site in order to derive satisfaction from the sport. Truthfully, to aspire to thermaling, altitude gains, duration and distance is to have very high expectations. I mention 4
'
this because we see a great number of good people come into the sport and really, truly enjoy their first few flights, days and months, only to become brainwashed by the flying community into thinking that they need to progress to the next level. This couldn't be further from the truth. Please let this quick note serve as permission for you to enjoy paragliding on a very, very simple level. If you are most comfortable kiting or flying under instruction, then please, please stop at that level and don't let "us" push you a step further. The last decade has shown us that ambitious pilots and those who submit to the prevalent mindset in their local flying community often end up in over their heads. Sadly, we lose a lot of great people each year who become scared or hurt out of the sport. These good people, if left to their own devices, might have only taken simple weekend flights over the course of years and years. It is often their friends and flying partners who push them toward more complicated flying scenarios, and who expose them to the risk of being scared or hurt. It's cool to sink out.
Chris Santacroce
BRINGING BACK THE RATINGS COLUMN
Dear Editor, For some time I have missed a feature that was dropped from our monthly magazine. That is the list of new ratings. Someone told me that some of the schools had complained about the resulting comparison of school output,
which was potentially misleading, unflattering or denigrating to the one-instructor weekend schools. I'd like to propose bringing back a modified version called "Member Accomplishments." This new version would list all ratings, Safe Pilot Awards, Lilienthal Awards and X-C awards. If anyone is actually earning PAI awards, those might be appropriate as well. Unlike the old ratings format, with the school or rating official listed, I suggest that all we need is the member's name, city and state. There is no need to list the rating official. I do believe that an annual summary would be interesting, but it would only summarize how many of each rating or award was granted during the year, not school production statistics that might have done in the old feature. As a supplement to the simple Member Accomplishments list, I would really like to see a brief pilot bio for anyone receiving a Master rating. Since the HS /PS rating is more of a special recognition, I think it would be appropriate to hold up our Master pilots to the membership as good examples. A short paragraph describing the pilot would be enough: how long they have been flying, where they fly, preferred type of flight, how much (if any) competition flying they do, and whether or not they fly other craft besides hang gliders or paragliders. Even a brief quote solicited from the new HS or PS would be nice.
Cragin Shelton Should we bring back the ratings column? I like Cragin)s suggestions. -Ed. Paragliding: November: 2002
NEW FLYTEC 4030 RACE Flight Computer
Earlier this year Flytec USA started working with U.S. number oneand two-ranked pilots Paris Williams and Mike Barber to make substantial changes to the 4030XL. A list was compiled from Paris and Mike's extensive X-C and competition experience, feedback from other worldclass comp pilots, and deficiencies found in many other flight computers (including our own) that needed to be corrected. The goal was to take advantage of the 4030XL's strong points and add new features and functions that would benefit serious cross-country and competition pilots. Today's competition tasks are often won or lost on final glide; consequently, much emphasis was placed on improvements in that area.
optimal final glides I've ever done." Mike Barber, who is well known for emphasizing the importance of final glide and being a tough critic, was .also very pleased. He it!,, expect the first duction units the 4030Race be available 111
was about
O
Some of the new enhancements include: instant activation/ deactivation of the final-glide computer; quick and simple, one-touch final glide headwind/ tailwind entry; dramatically improved stability and reliability of goal arrival altitude; display of altitude above goal, arrival altitude and MSL altitude; real-time display of actual headwind/tailwind. Paris and Mike have tested the prototype of the 4030Race and are delighted with the performance. Paris commented after a day of testing that his glides with the new 4030Race were "the most steady, Paragliding: November, 2002
ood idea, we believe at, considering the pularity of the current user-friendly mapping GPS units available from Garmin and others, that integrating a GPS into the flight instrument would actually reduce overall functionality and decrease battery life, while greatly increasing the price. Free upgrades from the 4030XL to the 4030Race will be available to pilots who purchased 4030XL's after September 1, 2002. 4030XL's and 4030's purchased prior to September 2002 may be upgraded for a charge. For more information on the new 4030Race contact: Flytec USA, 1-800-662-2449 or (352) 429-8600, fax (352) 429-8611, www.flytec.com, info@flytec. c9m.
AIRPLAY NEWS
Once again, Airplay Team pilots Josh Cohn and Kari Castle both won their U.S. National Championship divisions for 2002. Josh, flying the new Windtech DHV 2-3 Syncro, swept the serial class with ease. Kari, still excited about her Windtech Quarx, finished sixth overall and first in the women's division. A brand new training video, Lifting Air, filmed at Airplay in Washington and featuring Dixon White, has been produced by Adventure Productions. It will help paraglider pilots recognize lifting air in both ridge-lift and thermal conditions, and help them learn to make the most of that lift. Lifting Air is available in both VHS and DVD and has a release date of December 15, 2002. For more information contact: www.paraglide.com, dixon@paraglide.com. SUPER FLY HAWAII TOUR
Join Super Fly on a flying tour of the Hawaiian Islands, November 15-23. During days one through four they will begin in Maui, flying various mountain thermal and ridge-soaring sites. On day four they will take Hawaiian Airlines to the big island of Hawaii or Oahu, whichever is likely to offer the best flying. They will explore numerous sites with ridge-soaring and X-C potential. For photos visit http: / /www.4superfly.com/ 4superfly / pages/ press_releases/ pressl2 .htm. Accommodations on each island will be at the four-star Outrigger Hotels and Resorts. The tour will be very accommodating for non-flying significant others, and if the flying weather isn't perfect 5
there are plenty of other activities. When it comes to flying, you can look forward to gentle thermals, easily attainable cloudbase flying, incredible views, extracurricular activities, sandy beaches and a great time all around. Chris Santacroce and Jeffrey Farrel! will be your tour guides and X-C coaches, and they promise to help you experience the best flying trip of your life. Super Fly's paragliding tours are famous for great food, fun, friends and flying. Their customers always have some sort of personal best. Group sizes are small and slots are filling fast, so reserve a spot soon. The cost of the tour is $2,400, which includes transportation, lodging, guiding, X-C and thermal coaching and retrieval. Also included is interisland airfare from Maui to Hawaii/ Oahu and back. You will arrive in Maui on November 15 and depart from Maui in the afternoon or evening on November 24. Pay for your meals and airfare to Maui and that's it! To reserve a spot contact: info@4superfly.com, (801) 255-9595. CLOUD 9 SOARING CENTER NEWS
Firebird Sky Sports would like to announce that they have chosen Cloud 9 as their new distributor, which will keep the Firebird brand in Utah. They have implemented a completely new strategy along with internal restructuring to cater to today's market and pilots, at today's prices. Firebird and Cloud 9 have been working closely over 6
the last several months to produce the best system overall. Firebird prices are now more in line with European prices. Cloud 9 will also be responsible for repairs and inspection of Firebird equipment, and will be the only center in the U.S. to hold a Firebird certificate. This year has seen some very exciting, new ideas from their team in Germany, with designer Dani Loritz producing some of his best gliders yet. You are invited to see all the new products at www.fircbird.de. For more information on dealers near you, contact Cloud 9 at (801) 5766460 or visit www.firebirdusa.com. In the very near future Firebird will have a new website at www.flyfirebird.com. For those looking for a used glider, Cloud 9 has more than 30 used gliders in stock, as well as a few harnesses. E-mail them at info@paralgiders.com and they will send an Excel file featuring the gliders at blowout prices. Cloud 9 has also just received a shipment of traction kites from Edel. These are great four-line kites, and at $299 for a five-meter kite, the prices are excellent. Check out the on-line store for more details. Cloud 9 is also selling Blokarts, wind-powered go-carts that break down in a few minutes. Check them out at www.blokart.com. They are in stock ready to ship. Firebird's new Skim Bats are also going to be a ton of fun. The Skim Bat (a.k.a. "wind weapon") can be seen at www.kitewing.com.
Contact: Steve Mayer, Cloud 9 Soaring Center, (801) 576-6460, www.paragliders.com. THIRD ANNUAL SEATTLE AERO BATTLE A TOTAL SUCCESS -AGAIN!
Foiled by airspace changes last year, this year's event was two days of hardcore, crowd-pleasing maneuvering. This year's field of pilots was less experienced than in previous years, making it more of a regional event. Still, the maneuvers were every bit as intense as in world-class competitions, and the general vibe of the whole event reflected a lighthearted approach to competition. Special thanks to Steve Williams and the Ballard Market who made the event possible. In addition, Seattle Paragliding (Team Chirico), Super Fly, Inc. (Jeff Farrell), and Interstate Batteries (Tom Allen) were instrumental in the event. First-place pilot Wade Maxwell won with smooth, consistent runs and crowd-pleasing landings. Meanwhile, Matt Gerdes and Nik Peterson threw "tumbles." Matt Gerdes executed the hardest maneuvers and had the highest skill level overall, but it wasn't enough to fend off Wade Maxwell. In the end, Matt Gerdes came in second, Nik Peterson was penalized for his aggressive, carefree style, and Bill Burks charged his way into third place with great diversity and a wholehearted smile. The only real upset was that Ann O'Connor, who was the favorite to win the event, failed to helicopter on her first run and was unable to make up for it in subsequent runs. Still, it is clear that Paragliding: November. 2002
she is simply the very best female aerobatics pilot in North America and perhaps the world. Enleau O'Connor worked tirelessly throughout the last week to "dial in" aspiring competitors, and was rewarded by seeing the successful performances of Randy Campadore, Kingsley Wood and Snuffy, who were the outstanding rookies in the event. Snuffy's antics made him the absolute crowd favorite. Red Bull kept the coolers full and the energy high. Case in point: Six pilots were wet on the first day and only one or two stayed dry on the second day. Wade Maxwell of Port Townsend, Washington, on an Ozone Octane, won $500. Matt Gerdes from Washington flew an Octane XS
Paragliding: November. 2002
and won $200. Bill Burks of Bend, Oregon flew an Ozone Octane M and won $100. Other results included: Anne O'Connor, 4th; Drew McNabb, 5th, Abe Laguna, 6th; Phil Smith and Gordon Grice, 7th (tie ), Nik Peterson, 8th; Randy Campadore (who won an Intestate Batteries jacket for "best rookie" ) and Kingsley Wood, 9th (tie); Snuffy (who won an Interstate Batteries jacket for "crowd favorite" ), 110th; Chris Newman, 11th. The following links are best suited to those with high-speed Internet access: Day 1 Results: http:// www.superflychris.com/ aerobattle%202002%20results%20r ound%20 l .htm.
Day 1 pictures: http://www.superflychris.com/ aero_battle_2002_day_l .htm. Final results: http://www.superflychris.com/ Seattle%20Aero%20Batlle%20Day% 202.htm. Look for a web video at: www.thehookproductions.com in coming weeks. Also, pick up "A Visual Guide To Aerobatics" while you are there. It is the very best way to develop and eye for the maneuvers. I would like to extend a special thanks to Rick Hubbard who catered the event, and the entire NWPG club for their typical hospitality. If you see Randy Campadore, thank him for providing accommodations to every last competitor (almost).
7
Don't forget Kassie Vo, Lori Doyle and Jimmy Skydog who volunteered their time to make the Aero Battle a great success . - submitted by Chris Santacroce (chris@4superfly.com) FLY ECUADOR THIS WINTER
For the 2002-2003 winter season, Thermal Tracker Paragliding will be carrying on their yearly tradition of winter getaway tours to the beautiful, awe-inspiring mountains and coastal regions ofEcuador from December 12 through January 15 .
strong emphasis on supporting P2 pilots with light airtime, or any pilot choosing to strengthen his present skills with instructional coaching, experienced critiquing and assigned tasks. The tour will also include inland exploration of the high Andes, with an emphasis on the indigenous cultures and communities, Inca ruins, whitewater rafting, photography, hiking and mountain biking, and exploring national parks by train, with possible excursions into the Amazon region. For strengthening your flying skills and accumulating airtime, the coastal portion of the tour will be
Opportunities will abound, with time spent exploring the High Andes, flying among some of the most beautiful peaks in South America. Spend time relaxing on the warm Ecuadorian coast swimming, fishing and flying miles of smooth coastal ridge sites.
just the thing, with miles of smooth coastal ridge sites. Past participants have accumulated more than six hours of airtime without landing. Instructional tandem flights . will also be available, as well as warmwater swimming, fishing, and a visit to Machalilla National Park on tl1e coast (www.bitecuador.com/ national_parks.htm ). Accommodations range from fanruy-run pensions to beautiful haciendas high in the Andes. Each group will be limited in size to promote quality, so reserve early and secure your space in this winter's adventure. Price depends
BLU
EYE
eyewear
The first tour (December 12-23) will be for strong P2 pilots and above, with flying at some of the more challenging Ecuadorian paragliding sites, mostly high-altitude Andean launches, with the tour finishing up at the smooth coastal sites (http: / / www.sfbapa.org:12703/ bapaweb / gallery/ ridgedancer / 1997/ jan.html#crucita). The second tour (December 29-January 9) will focus on instructional coaching, experienced critiquing and assigned tasks on the warm Ecuadorian coast, with Andean flying if appropriate. The tour will be guided by Advancedrated tandem instructor Kevin Lee and the pilots at Ecuadorian Expeditions. This tour will put a 8
contact your local Flytec dealer
FlyTEC
352 -429-8600 • 800-662-2449 • www.flytec.com Paragliding: November, 2002
on length of stay, so call for info. The price includes all ground expenses in Ecuador, lodging, transportation, drivers, guides, air shuttles to the coast and other fees. A professionally produced tour video and past participant referrals are available. Kinsley Wong's journal story about flying in Ecuador can be found at: www.BigAirParaGliding.com/ Ecuador.htm. Photos and stories about flying in Ecuador may also be found at www.thermaltracker.com/ ecuador.htm, www.rvhga.org/O ldweb /Ecuador99 .htm. Contact: Kevin Lee, Thermal Tracker Paragliding, (541 ) 660-8839, thermaltracker@bigfoot.com. FLY ABOVE ALL NEWS
Fly Above All, Inc ., a top paragliding school in the U.S., is proud to announce their fall schedule. Fulltime instructors Chad Bastian and Bo Criss, as well as visiting presenters from around the country, will offer clinics that will guide your development as a pilot. This series includes instruction in all aspects of flying, including ridge and thermal soaring, site introduction and analysis, understanding weather, map reading and course plotting, cross-country flying from beginner to advanced, competition technique, surface towing and maneuvers, and the best P2 certification at the finest training hill in the U.S. For times and dates please visit the activities page on the Fly Above All website at www.flyaboveall.com. In response to requests from local and national pilots asking for intermediate and advanced flight training, Fly Above All is building a tradition of continuing education and is pleased to introduce the Masters Series. This series of clinics by accomplished paraglider pilots will focus on a variety of subjects, such as weather, cross-country principles, preparation for competition , excellence in instruction, thermal dynanlics, aerobatics, flying philosophies, video production , and equipment seminars by the people who actually fly and design the gliders . The Masters Series will start early on Saturday mornings with clinic material presentation and discussion. We will then break for a nlidday flying session at one of the Paragliding: November. 2002
9
local sites, meeting again later for evaluation. The day will finish with a barbecue and afterburner party for the participants and instructors. This is a perfect opportunity to get some quality time with some of the best pilots, instructors and contributors to the sport. The sessions will present the latest information and techniques, giving any pilot, whether new or pro, a chance to learn something valuable. We will offer at least one of these sessions every month. You can choose to attend each seminar separately or join us for the entire series. If you are planning to visit from out of the area, limited accommodations or camping may be available at pilots' homes, or you can reserve a hotel nearby. See the calendar of events in this issue of the magazine for schedules and pricing. Contact: Fly Above All, Inc., http://www.flyaboveall.com, info@flyaboveall.com, (805 ) 965-3733, P.O . Box 3588, Santa Barbara, CA 93130.
Mexico Jan 5-12, 12- 19 Jan 26 - Feb 2 $1900 excludin~ airfare and food. No minimum experience requirement. Never a rain day, personal best guaranteed! Air to air coaching and tandem xc instruction.
Brazil March 1-10, 10-20 Mild thermals and easy cross country
Super Fly Inc. SS2 W. 8360 S. Sandy, UT 84070
------ 801-255-9595----1
www.4superfly.com
28 year, bec1t111g World record'.,
c111d 1rnnuf,1etun11g flying equipmt>nt of tfie fmf 1est quc1lity. '>dfety c1J1c1
10
Paragliding: November, 2002
Calendar of events items WILL NOT be listed if only tentative. Please include exact information (event, date, contact name and phone number). Items should be received no later than six weeks prior to the event. We request two months lead time for regional and national:rneets. COMPETITION
UNTIL NOV 15: 2002 Region Nine Yearlong X-C Contest. The yearlong contest is to honor longest individual flights of the year on any day between February 15 and November 15. Classes for Rookies, Sixty Miles, Open, Rigids and Paragliders. Entry fees $10 and $5 respectively. Contact: Pete Lehmann, lplehmann@aol.com, (412) 661-3474, 58ll Elgin St, Pittsburgh, PA 15206. UNTIL DEC. 31: The Michael Champlin World X-C Challenge. No entry fees or pre-registration requirements. Open to paragliders, hang gliders, rigid wings and sailplanes. For more details visit the contest's Web site at http://www.hanggliding.org or contact: John Scott (310) 447-6234, fax (310) 447-6237, brettonwoods@email.msn.com. CLINICS, MEETING, TOURS
THROUGH APRIL.: Dixon's Airplay Arizona open all year (near Flagstaff). Specializing in new pilot instruction. Start out right with thorough training in meteorology, kiting, flight dynamics and much more. Only one or two new students per instructor. Wide-open, 360° drive-up launch sites from 20 to 1,200 feet. Limited weekday Paragliding: Novembe" 2002
and weekend space available. Make reservations early. Complete paragliding store and service center. Contact: dixon@paraglide.com, www.paraglide.com, (928) 526-4579. DEC.: Fly THROUGH Above All Masters Series. NOV. 23: Tom Truax presents "weather and X-C principles." Tom has held state distance records more than once, and is one of the best XC pilots in America. Knowledge of weather to fly and the strategies of cross-country flight will be the focus of this session. $200. DEC. 14: Will Gadd presents "Xe and adventure flying, the psyche sessions." In July of this year Will broke the U.S. and world distance record by flying 263 miles! He has flown across America using a paramotor on an adventure called Paraglide America. This weekend session starts with a free slide show on Friday night at 7:00 PM at a location to be announced, with clinics on Saturday and Sunday starting at 9: 00 AM, flying at 11: 30. $200. Contact: Fly Above All, Inc., http://www.flyaboveall.com, info@flyaboveall.com, (805) 965-3733, P.O. Box 3588, Santa Barbara, CA 93130. THROUGH DEC.: iparaglide Fly Hard Adventure Holidays 2002. We can get you fully certified as a pilot while on the vacation of lifetime. NOV. 2-17: Fly Hard Southwestern USA. Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, San Diego, CA; Las Vegas, NV; Flagstaff, Phoenix, AZ. Visit Venice Beach, Universal Studios and Disneyland while flying California's beautiful
coastline. Visit the casinos of Las Vegas. In Phoenix, enjoy big-air flying with huge cross-country potential. NOV. 23-DEC. 8: Fly Hard Mexico. Puerta Vallarta, Manzanillo, Colima, GuadaLajara, Morelia, Mexico City, Puebla, Vera Cruz. Starting at the shores of the Pacific, we will take you through some of the most pristine Mexican wilderness and authentic small-village life in Mexico. Visit the best-known flying sites as well as the more impressive, less-wellknown ones. Contact: www.iparaglide.com/ flyhardinfo .htm (604) 681-4459, Dion@iparaglide.com, (Canada); (480) 991-1440, Zrinko@iparaglide.com (U.S.). MONDAYS: Torrey Pines Gliderport paragliding talk show on Internet radio, broadcast live on wsRadio.com, Mondays from 9:00 to 11:00 AM. Hosted by Gabriel and David Jebb, open to a worldwide audience. Call in toll-free at 1-800-327-0061 (U.S. and Canada) or 1-760-476-4111 for the world audience. Surf to www.wsRadio.com and click under the "live" section. Contact: David Jebb, Director of Operations, 2800 Torrey Pines Scenic Drive, San Diego, CA 92037, (858) 452ZULU (9858), www.flytorrey.com. NOV. 10-17, 17-24: Parasoft paragliding trips to New Mexico. Come to where winter has not arrived. Parasoft Paragliding School, which has organized flying trips to old Mexico since 1992, will offer trips to New Mexico in November. On Sundays we will meet P3 pilots at the El Paso, TX airport and take 11
up sites (Dry Canyon and Ruidoso) with Parasofi:'s air-conditioned 4WD truck. Towing with a payout winch guarantees flying all six days. Hotel, transportation and guide service included. Details at http://www.par asoftparagliding.com/NewMex.html or call (303) 494-2820. NOV. 14-16, 17-18: ITP and Tandem with Dixon White. Instructor Comprehensive Training Program for firsttime instructor candidates and recertification, Santa Barbara, CA. Nov. 14-16 with a tandem clinic, for T-1 through T-3 the 17th and 18th. dixon@paraglide.com, Contact: www.paraglide.com, (928) 526-4579. NOV. 15-23: Super Fly flying tour of the Hawaiian Islands. Begin in Maui, then take Hawaiian Airlines to the big island of Hawaii or Oahu. Numerous sites with ridge-soaring and X-C potential. For photos visit http: / /www.4superfly.com/ 4superfly / pages/ press_releases/ press 12 .htm. Accommodations at the four-star Outrigger Hotels and Resorts. The tour will be very accommodating for non-flying significant others. Look forward to gentle thermals, easily attainable doudbase flying, incredible views, extracurricular activities, sandy beaches. Chris Santacroce and Jeffrey Barrell will be your tour guides and X-C coaches. The cost is $2,400, which includes transportation, lodging, guiding, X-C and thermal coaching and retrieval. Also included is inter-island airfare from Maui to Hawaii/Oahu and back. Arrive on Nov. 15 and depart on Nov. 24. Contact: info@4superfly.com, (801) 255-9595. 12
adventure into Atacama Desert of northern Chile. This Xe trip is designed for the strong intermediate or advanced pilot who is looking to set personal-best X-C records. Warm up with some casual coastal flying and then quickly move on to serious distance flights. Call today, as this trip usually books by late summer. For more details on these tours, or to suggest and create your own tour, contact: (206) 3209010, napi@fun2fly.com. NOV. 24-DEC 8: Fly Nepal 2002. The most stunning and exotic flying site imaginable! Fly near three of the highest peaks in the world with huge birds. Gentle and consistent thermal conditions appropriate for novice thermalers with good canopy control. Guidance from Master-rated instructor Dale Covington, logistics handled by Nepal expedition specialist Kellie Erwin. $1,800 for two weeks in flying paradise. Contact: Big Sky Paragliding, www.bigskypar agliding.com, 1-800-782-9204, (801) 699-1462. DEC. 2002 THROUGH MARCH 2003: Advanced Paragliding Mexico paragliding tours. Juan Laos and Fabio Blancarte will host sevenday paragliding tours in west central Mexico, including Tapalpa, the site of the 2002 Paragliding World Cup. One of the best paragliding areas in Mexico, with 10 sites within a two-hour drive. Launch from a 15,000' volcano, soar the coastal ridges and enjoy some of the best seafood in the world at very reasonable prices. Sites include Jalisco, Colima and Michoacan. Tours include pickup and dropoff at Guadalajara International Airport, transportation to all
with maps, daily meteorology information and retrieves. Thermal flying and crosscountry coaching and instruction. $1,500 includes pickup at the airport on a Saturday morning and drop-off at the airport on the following Saturday. $500 USD deposit required. Credit cards accepted. Contact: Juan Laos, (925) 377-8810, juan.laos@realpvs.com, www.advancedparagliding.com. DEC. 12-23, DEC. 29-JAN. 9: Thermal Tracker Paragliding Fly Ecuador Tours. Getaway tours to the beautiful, awe-inspiring mountains and coastal regions of Ecuador. Explore the High Andes, flying among some of the most beautiful peaks in South America. Spend time relaxing on the warm Ecuadorian coast - swimming, fishing and flying miles of smooth coastal ridge sites. The first tour (Dec. 12-23) is for strong P2 pilots and above, with flying at some of the more challenging Ecuadorian paragliding sites. The second tour (Dec. 29-Jan. 9) will focus on instructional coaching, experienced critiquing and assigned tasks on the warm Ecuadorian coast, with Andean flying if appropriate. Guided by Advancedrated tandem instructor Kevin Lee and the pilots at Ecuadorian Expeditions. Contact: Kevin Lee, Thermal Tracker Paragliding, (541) 660-8839, thermaltracker@bigfoot.com. DEC. 20-FEB. 16, 2003: Airplay Paragliding Central Mexico tours, with Marty DeVietti and Dixon White. Ten-day tours with a max of five students at a time. Topnotch thermal/X-C flying, eating and lodging. With seven years of Paragliding: November; 2002
guiding experience in Mexico and a combined 22 years of teaching paragliding you can count on a great experience. You should be a solid P2 (at least 70 flights, l O hours, solid basic skills) to consider this trip. Contact: dixon@paraglide.com, (928) 526-4579. JAN. 4-11, 2003: Valle de Bravo trip with Academy instructors Ken IIudonjorgensen and Kevin Biernacki. Contact: Two-can Fly Paragliding, 474 East Tonya Dr., Sandy, UT 84070, phone/fax (801) 572-3414, hudonj@qwest.net, www.twocanfly.com. JANUARY 12-19, 2003: Parasoft Paragliding 10th annual trip to the mountains of Igualla, Mexico. Come fly where it is still summer! Parasoft Paragliding will offer its l 0th year of trips to the mountains of Igualla, Mexico. P2+, 25 pilots are welcome to improve their thermaling and X-C skills from a 300' drive-up site. Curriculum at www.parasoftparagliding.com/ WinterFlying.html. JANUARY 19-26, 2003: Parasoft Paragliding trip to Valle de Bravo and Igualla, Mexico. Be picked up at the airport and guided to popular mountain sites. Parasofr Paragliding offers P3 pilots 18-mile X-C flights with chauffeured retrievals. Stay in comfortable hotels with breakfast discussion of X-C skills. Pictures at: www.parasoftparagliding.com/ WinterFlying.html.
Paragliding: Novembe~ 2002
FEB. 8-12, 2003: 2003 Mauna Kea Thermal Clinic, on the Big Island of Hawaii. Mauna Kea (13,796' MSL) has flying sites at various altitudes, some of them suitable for intermediate pilots. Pilots should expect big air, high-altitude takeoff's and challenging X-C flying. Mauna Kea and the surrounding areas are still unexplored to a large extent. Requirements: Intermediate rating or better/ Novice with instructor signoff. Everything you need for highaltitude X-C flying. $275 before Dec. 15 (registration deadline). Food and gas money extra. Clinic includes 4WD transportation, airport pickup, guide service, free ocean site camping, daily state-ofthe-art weather report. To register contact: Paraglide Hawaii, P.O. Box 797, Mountain View, HI 96771, tofly@excite.com, (808) 968-6856. MARCH 2003: The original Adventure Sports Brazil Tour. Five years of fl)~ng, fun and a bit of confusion with the best guides in Governador Valadares. USHGA instructors fluent in Portuguese and with local knowledge. Side trips to Bahia and Rio de Janeiro also available for coastal fl0ng adventures. $100 per day includes hotel close to the LZ, breakfast, rides and guides for local or X-C fl0ng. Make the most of your Brazilian experience. Contact: Adventure Sports, (775) 883-7070 http: / /www.pyramid.net/advspts/ brazil.htm.
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13
T L
Copyright© 2002 by Dennis Pagen
ridge lift
so often pays off is a tribu e to our
around and play local
glider's performance, the wealth of
hero, waves are a gift from the gods
knowledge that has accumulated
and convergence is a magic carpet
in the flying community and the
when you find it. But only thermals
abundant lift that nature affords.
are consistently present and
Many of us wish that fishing for
readily exploitable by even newly
seafood or mates had such a high
fledged novice pilots. Thermals are
rate of return.
intriguing because they are mostly invisible and they can take us to
This series of articles is intended
dizzying heights, in some cases
to illuminate the many aspects and
higher than big brother wants our
peculiar behavior of those elusive
tender wings to go.
entities we know as thermals. The idea is to promote better flying
Another aspect of thermals is that
through knowledge. Hopefully
they reward the development
pilots of all skill levels will find
of certain skills, but involve an
some nuggets to carry with them
element of dumb luck. Just as
into the wild blue yonder. My
with fishing or picking up a new
approach will be to try to avoid
romance at a party, you can never
too much technical detail, but offer
be 100% sure about what you're
references for those who wish to
going to come up with when
delve deeper. I believe this format is
you go trolling. It is that element
appropriate for the vast majority of
of expectation and surprise that
pilots, since much of thermal flying
adds spice to the endeavor. With
is (and should be) intuitive. But
thermals, we cast our net based
we do need a solid groundwork on
on knowledge and how much
which to let our intuitive nature
height we have to spend, then
roam free.
14
from conversations with the world's top pilots, but also an important source has been research papers written on micrometeorology. These papers most notably appear in the OSTIV publications, which is dedicated to the technical aspects of soaring (sailplanes). In the last decade or so there has been much interest in micrometeorology because of the development of drones, surveillance aircraft and other small flying objects. I'm dubious about the uses of these craft, but grateful for the advancement in understanding. In the course of this series we will visit the subjects of thermal development, shapes, behavior, types and ways to exploit them. We will also look at special thermal situations such as the cause of cloud suck, the "dead zone," high-pressure thermals, East and West differences and inversion encounters. Hopefully we will Paragliding: November, 2002
mat;~a.l that will make each of us a better thermal pilot, or at least informed enough to know why we hit the ground while others are
thermals reappear in earnest.
scribing taunting zeros high over
After that, a more sparse but
our heads.
regular production of thermals occurs. This is when the
The Thermal Day
thermal day sets in properly
Without going deeper
and we are apt to be
into matters such as lapse
successful when we cast
rate and insolation right
~
now, let's look at the broad
to the air that allows the
picture of how a thermal day
creation, birth and growth of
develops. Most of us know that the
thermals. Thus, solar energy
air mass sitting over our area must
gives rise to all life, including
be relatively unstable for thermals
thermals that are born in the
to exist in abundance or usable
heat of the day.
form. What we mean by unstable
our fate to the wind. The mechanism that causes the thermal production pause, then the more regular succession of thermals is as follows: The warming ground in the morning heats a large
2) In the morning, as the air
area (almost the entire layer) of
overlying the surface gets
air over the surface. Thus, there
heated, not much happens as a
is a large reservoir of warm
thin layer thickens and grows
air to go up as thermals. But
warmer. A slight sloshing
this air can't release because of
around may occur here and
the ground inversion. When
there, but no real thermal
the bonds of the inversion are
activity happens until suddenly,
broken, the thermals release
of visible light and ultraviolet
all heaven breaks loose -
with a vengeance. These early
radiation, mostly passes
thermals happen everywhere.
thermals may not be all that
through the atmosphere and
What's going on herd The
strong because the sun isn't
strikes the ground. The solid
answer is that ground inversions
yet beaming down all that
molecules on the ground catch
stop the release of thermals
hard, but they come in rapid
the solar radiation and convert
until they have penetrated to
succession and often are fairly
it to molecular vibrations and
the top of the inversion (we'll
continuous streams as the
much longer wavelengths -
discuss the nature of inversions
warm air on the ground seeks
infrared. We detect vibrations
in a later part). However, once
restitution aloft.
and infrared radiation as heat
this penetration occurs, the
is a certain temperature change in the air with changing altitude. On an unstable day, thermals rise spontaneously once solar heating gets underway and heats the surface adequately. Here's the sequence: 1) The sun's energy, in the form
'
and so does the overlying air.
thermal release comes all of a
It is the transfer of heat from
sudden and from widespread
the sun to the ground and then
sources.
Paragliding: November, 2002
But when the warm air is depleted, it has been replaced by cooler air from aloft that takes time to heat. Continues on page 18 15
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Continued from page 15
artificial release of heat from
a much colder overlying layer. The
So we have a pause. In addition,
the surface. (The artificial
high mountains surrounding the
without the presence of the
matters may be buildings with
valleys drain these layers of cold air
widespread ground inversion, the
internal heat sources, fires or
down into the valleys all night long
thermals that do build can release
water heated by some means
until a blanket of cold air is pooled
when they grow to a certain size,
other than the sun's rays.)
deeply in quiet repose.
or they are induced to do so by triggering mechanisms. The most
5) As evening falls, the moon
The thicker the ground inversion
common triggers are downdrafts
rules and the earth loses what
layer in a given area, the longer it
impelled by the rise of other
it has taken from the sun. The
takes to reach trigger temperature,
thermals in the area. Thus, we
heat re-radiates off as infrared,
which is where thermals break
have a picture of a steady-state
and this effect sustains the
through the inversion in the
growth and release of thermals as
warmth of the air for a while,
morning. However, in desert
long as the sun's heat continues in
but with no new solar heat to
conditions the sun's heating is
sufficient strength. The size of the
tickle the earth's surface, the
comparatively more intense, so
thermals depends on (among other
surroundings soon grow colder.
trigger temperature is reached
things) how long they sit on the
Then, the air stills, chills,
relatively sooner than in humid
ground and grow before release.
and a ground inversion layer
areas. In addition, thicker
The initial release, then pause in
develops. This layer thickens
inversions often result in a longer
thermal production, is often seen
throughout the night until the
initial release of thermals, and
in the ridge and valley systems in
sun again peeks over the peaks
in this case there may be no
the eastern U.S.
and warming begins again. The
pause between initial release
cycle is complete.
and the onset of regular thermal
4) As the day progresses, thermals
production. The reason for this
tend to climb higher and peak
Adding Details
in strength just a bit after
Ground inversions can be anything
the peak solar heating. Then
from a few feet to a few thousand
they dwindle in strength and
feet in thickness in extreme cases.
frequency but still retain their
The thickest inversions occur in
maximum height. Finally, only
deep valleys in desert conditions.
a few anemic old-maid thermals
The reason for this situation is that
rise as the sun wanes and our
desert conditions result in rapid
soaring prospects dim. In the
and extensive radiation of heat
end, only dreams of the day's
from the surface because of the
glory remain unless special
clear, dry air, and thus
latter factor is that the thermals developing in a thick inversion are already rising high enough to promote the vigorous downdrafts that can trigger other thermals building on the ground. Thus, once the thermals begin their initial rise to full potential, the Continues on page 38
situations occur that continue to result in the 18 Paragliding: Novembe" 2002
COOL.&.~
. . Al~ T'Rc6'6-E~
rs, inutes, e e Reco
Czuchra. Zapata is a small town on the Texas/Mexico border. Most people wouldn't go there for a holiday - it's hot, flat and every bit of vegetation has thorns, and all the most common animals have fangs and venom. But the flying is very, very good, and the local people are very hospitable to the distance-obsessed pilots who invade their town. very spring for the last five years I've gone in search of long-distance flying. I fly for adventure, and cross-country flying always provides plenty of it. In 1998 I flew 180 miles from Hobbs, New Mexico to near Bryce, Texas, for a world record, but Godfrey Wennes then flew farther in Australia. I've wanted the record back ever since.
E
The next three springs in Hobbs produced good flying (I flew 100+ miles so often that I started to feel like a trucker), but true world-record conditions just didn't happen. It was frustrating but also educational; flatland X-C flying is extremely technical compared to flying at my normal mountain sites, and the hundreds of hours of flatland flying I put in taught me to enjoy the subtleties of morning cloud flying and to crave the fullon power of midday dust-devil combat. Last spring I changed tactics and used a motorized Ozone Octane to fly across the U.S., perhaps the ultimate "cross-country" flight, but the desire for a world-record distance flight came back stronger than ever this spring. Frustrated with Hobbs, I joined up with the Flytec World Record Encampment in Zapata to chase records and film a 1V documentary on the whole process with a friend, Darryl 20
A few years ago, meteorologist and ultralight sailplane pilot Gary Osoba looked all over the United States for a flying site with strong, consistent winds, good thermal potential and a long flying day all important variables for worldrecord flights. He choose Zapata, Texas, and organized the Flytec Word Record Encampment with Davis Straub and David Glover. That year the world hang gliding record was broken several times, concluding in Manfred Ruhmer's 700-kilometer flight. Josh Cohn set a new distance-to-goal record of 200 miles on a paraglider, Kari Castle set the women's world distance record, David Glover set a new hang gliding distance-to-goal record, and Davis Straub set a new world record for rigid wings. After this remarkable season it was clear that Zapata had tremendous potential for world-record flights. We arrived on June 14, and the next day David Prentice and I flew over 150 miles in seven hours. On June 19 Louise Crandall and I flew 130 miles in six hours. On the June 20 David flew his Ozone Proton GT 240 miles for a new world record. He launched at 11: 00 in the morning and landed at 8: 00 pm. The same day, Mike Barber flew his hang glider farther than anybody ever had, just missing an official world record by less than a
mile (you have to exceed the old record by one percent). That day was epic; the clouds formed early, the wind blew hard out of the south and many people had long flights. Unfortunately, I had some problems, mainly due to my own lack of organization, and never left the tow field. I actually developed heat exhaustion waiting for the towline. The temperature was over 100 degrees, and dressed in all my kit I rapidly dehydrated and fell apart mentally. I was frustrated with myself but also excited to be there and see that the potential was amazing. On June 21 Gary called for light, east-southeast winds, but I was determined to make the most of the day regardless. Here's what happened. June 21
After the previous day's debacle I was extremely motivated. Notlung purifies desire like a good dose of resistance. By 9:30 am I was in the tow field, and the sky was absolutely full of moist clouds. Gary's morning forecast had predicted relatively light eastsoutheast winds aloft but good cloud development early, and sure enough there were good clouds, but they were moving more slowly than the day before. Many people elected not to fly due to the low wind, but at 9:50 am I was clipped into the towline. The Flytec aerotow pilots, Russ and Bo, had come out to help David Prentice with the towing (he made it back from his flight/retrieve at 4:30 in the morning, and it really shows his level of commitment to the common cause that he was out there at 9:00 in the morning), and I heeded their advice to wait
tow went very well. Dave got me to 1,000 feet over the ground, by far the highest tow I'd had, as the paraglider tow field is fairly short. Immediately I hooked a light but solid 100 up under the forming cloud and started the ~ The time was 10~
beenable.w before about
seem like! ~ b offlym ~
cho
e mand just see where I was at l :00 pm. It's also common
liters of water before crawling into some half-shade under a bush to wait out the afternoon. Most of the other areas I've flown in have good access roads or reasonable temperatures. There are lots of roads here, but they are almost all behind locked gates, and the heat is really unlike anything else I've ever experienced. It's quite serious landing out here; the border patrol told me they find bodies in the brush regularly. Although my climb was slow, I was absolutely determined to stay cool at base rather than suffer on the ground agam.
to land between about noon and l: 00 pm, a time I call the "witching hour." It's like the morning lift stops and the afternoon lift isn't working yet, and I wanted more experience surviving that. From 10:00 to 11:30 am I flew very conservatively, circling in any scrap of lift and staying as high as possible to make sure I stayed in the game and out of the mesquite hell. At 11:30 the sky started to dry up noticeably, a sure sign that the thermals were spacing out as the day's heating took cloud base higher. I hooked a solid 700 fpm climb that took me up in the blue to 6,500 feet, well above the "old" base at 3,500 feet. I made
lo~ to"
ttbbie oatmeal cream cookies, and it could be a long day. I briefly considered spiral diving after my Pop Tart, but it actually got a good glide going and zipped off into the distance, proving that about anything will go faster than a paraglider. I had covered about 45 miles in the first two hours, definitely not a record pace. I thought again about landing, but every time I got down to about 2,000 feet above the ground the heat was unbearable, and Darryl, my video and driving partner, was way behind me, and I didn't want to wait on the ground in misery~ so I might as well keep flying.
until about 2:00 pm and 85 miles out. Four hours, 85 miles - that works out to about 22 miles an hour, still not fast enough for a world record. I resolved to glide longer and only climb when I had hit something above 400 fpm on the vario. Normally this strategy doesn't work for long-distance flying. The game is to stay in the air, circling in even relatively light lift and letting the wind work for you. Cloud base had risen to about 7,500 feet, but the thermal climbs were really slowing down about 1,000 feet below base, which seemed weird until I noticed that the cloud development was definitely smaller and farther apart than it had been. There were no major cloud streets to fly along under, but I did my best to get good glides and simply move faster by leaving the climbs when they slowed at all. This strategy kept me lower, but the winds seemed better and I was able to glide at up to 35 mph if I used some speed bar and kept off the brakes as much as possible. At 3:00 pm I was out at about 110 miles. More complex mental arithmetic, supported by the first Little Debbie, led me to believe a record was very unlikely: If I needed to go 240 miles then I was still 130 miles short with four hours of airtime, maybe five if I got lucky. Twenty-two miles per hour average speed wasn't going to cut it, but it would be close if I ran into some more southerly winds at the end of the day and went a bit faster for the next couple of hours. Darryl told me he was good with chasing ifI had even a chance at the record, which helped my psyche a lot. A motivated driver is key to staying in the air; driver suck 22
can be lethal to distance flying. Okay, time to race. I figured I'd hit the dirt like I always do when I race (anyone who has been in a competition with me has certainly flown over my grounded glider), but Darryl was relatively close and there were enough roads, so why not? Thirty minutes later I was about 400 feet above the ground, having skipped two light climbs in favor of gliding fast. The heat was appalling. I found a very weak thermal maybe 300 feet above the ground and started working it - I'd rather fly until it started to cool down around six than land and suffer waiting for Darryl to find me. Soon my light thermal turned into a ripper, and I happily cranked back to cool temperatures at 6,500 feet, still below base but high enough to get back on the speed bar and head downwind. I continued to fly aggressively, often gliding to within 500 feet of the ground while working a little to the east to miss the Del Rio Air Force Base at 200 miles. The next two hours went by very quickly. I couldn't believe it was 5:30 pm when I looked at my watch. I had been in a total zone of just flying as fast and efficiently as I could. I felt very in tune with the air, perhaps the best feeling in flying for me. I could feel the thermals in front and to the sides of me through the Boomerang, and I was able to stop thinking and just fly instinctively, totally immersed in the game. The ground rises quicldy the farther north in Texas you get, and now it was about 1,000 feet MSL and I was gliding to within a 1,000 feet of it regularly before hooking violent Paragliding: November, 2002
thermals back up to about 6,500 feet. The strategy had worked: At 6:00 pm I was at about 190 miles and safely clear of the Del Rio Air Force Base, which meant I could glide more to the west with the east wind as the Texas border cuts more westerly into Mexico. If I could just stay in the air until 8:00 pm and cover 30 miles an hour for the next two hours I could have the record. The Texas Hill Country starts about 200 miles from Zapata, and I could see that the cloud development was nonexistent between me and the first hills. No clouds generally means no good thermals, but I was at 6,500 feet so I went downwind on glide toward the hills and hoped for the best. Gary had told me that the winds often really pick up over the Hill Country, and sure enough I was flying at about 45 miles per hour downwind as the ground rose up to meet me. At about 500 feet above the ground I started to worry; the air had been very still during the glide, a sign that the thermals are shutting down. At 200 feet above the ground I saw about 10 birds climbing well, maybe 1,000 feet in front of me. This was going to be close, but I could feel the thermal tugging at my glider. I knew that if I could just stay in the air until I hit it that I would have a shot at the record. The situation was complicated by a set of power lines downwind of the thermal. The wind was strong enough that I would probably be going slightly backwards if I couldn't get up in the thermal, but then I realized that I probably didn't have enough altitude to turn into the wind and land in any event. I was either going to hit Paragliding: November: 2002
Zapata Notes
Flying in Zapata is very committing. The Owens Valley in July is the only site Pve ever flown with the same potential for serious problems. If yo11; land a long way from a road here you could seriously die of heat exhaustion and dehydration) as many illegal immigrants from Mexico have. I absolutely will not fly into the Texas Hill Country again unless Pm at base and think I can stay there until I pass over it. On the other hand) if the wind had been blowing Just jive more miles per hour I could have gone an additional 50 miles for perhaps 310 miles. Gary rated my day a cc4)) on a scale of 1 to 10. Someone will fly 300+ miles here) and it will be a great accomplishment. World records are made to be broken and mine will be) perhaps soon) so rip it up Dave! I flew a Gin Boomerang. I believe in choosing the best weapon for the type offlying Tm doing. At home in the mountains) where I normally walk up to sites) I fly an Ozone Peak) but on the flats I wanted the best-performing wing I could find. The Boomerang is that wing. I bought my Boomerang II used from Chris Muller, and Gin graciously refunded the money after the record. Thanks! Pd like to thank Darryl Czuchra for driving) Gary Osoba for his support over the years and finding this magnificent site) Dave Prentice for the tow (he remarked Just after I got off tow1 ccHey1 I think I Just towed him up for a new world record - Td like to have it for at least 24 hours!)) David Glover for his enthusiasm and downloading my Flytec Barograph and GPS (all good) 1 and especially all the other pilots and people at the World Record Encampment. It's a very positive atmosphere and a real honor to fly with everyone here. Finally) I wouldn)t have made this flight and many others without the support ofJeff Farrell) Chris Santacroce and the whole team at Superfly. They have stood by me through a lot of adventures as friends and sponsors. Jim Gunning) Hayes Wheeless and the entire Red Bull team have given me the freedom to live this life. Thanks! Fly far, and land safely. 23
the thermal and climb out or land going downwind well above the safe speed limit.
ridge level I started cursing myself for being in such a stupid position - agam.
Desperate men do desperate things. With teeth clenched and the brakes held tightly, I followed a thin line of zero sink and felt my glider pressurize and surge hard at the thermal like a shark. I didn't wait until the surge ended to start turning, and the birds scattered as I wobbled my way into their midst and cleared the power lines. Ten minutes later was at 6,000 feet under a freshly formed cloud. My whole body was vibrating and my jaw hurt from grinding my teeth, but I now had a real shot at the record. It was 7:00 pm and I was at 220 miles. I got on the radio to Darryl and let him know that I was back in the game, and his words were, "GO! GO!" I rode my cloud until it turned to strong sink, then went.
There was no good place to land going backwards. The sharp ridges would surely throw violent rotors with the wind, and the image of crashing miles from a road and certainly out of radio or cell contact was on my mind. I checked my reserve handle as I sank lower and hoped I would have enough altitude to use it. I felt like I was in the middle of a ridge minefield - shit! I came into another ridge low, surfed up it, then pointed my glider into the wind and went over the top, going backwards at maybe 10 mph with a fair amount of brake on to help the glider stay stable through the rotor.
There were more clouds downwind and I raced toward them at up to 50 mph, but sinking like a rock. The terrain below me was wild, as though God had rumpled up the landscape like a carpet. It would not be a good place to land a paraglider. At 500 feet above the sharply rolling hills I flew near Darryl and gave him my bearing and distance, then flew over the first 200-foot hill with a downwind speed of 45 mph. It was now 7:30 pm, later in the day than I had ever flown at Zapata, but the clouds above me were obviously still forming, so something could possibly work. Darryl filmed me sinking out behind the ridge and later said, "It was like watching one of those plane crashes on TV. I expected to see a ball of flame and smoke when you disappeared behind the hill." Now down below 24
AB expected, I found some ridge lift, and surfed left and backwards to where the sun was fully hammering a large, open bowl in the lee. Surfing right might have been better for landing since the gully was more open, but I was already in deep, so ... Suddenly the glider pressurized, the wind roared like it often does just before you get worked, and the vario indicated 600 fpm lift. Normally this is followed by stronger sink in a rotor, and I waited a second or two for the sink before the thought crashed into my head that perhaps this was a thermal - or more likely wishful thinking. I've been fooled so many times in rotor. A sharp turn in a rotor is generally a bad idea since it takes your weight out of the center of the wing, but the glider continued to feel pressurized and solid, so in one of those endless, instantaneous decisions I cranked a hard left turn deeper into the lee. Something very good or very bad was about to happen. Paragliding: November, 2002
At 1,000 feet over the hills I realized that my entire body was again shaking uncontrollably from the adrenaline, and I radioed Darryl that I had escaped but it was the most terrifying experience I'd ever had on a glider. It's one thing to get blown over a big ridge with some altitude, but quite another to be facing a bad rotor less than 200 feet off the deck. At 7:45 pm I was at base at 230 miles, floating near the wispy, fresh clouds and grinning like a man who has had the rope removed from his neck just before the trap floor drops away. I circled lazily at base, letting the strong drift work for me and just enjoying the feeling of being high over
a beautiful evening landscape - there's a fine line between terror and peace. I radioed Darryl and asked him to check the GPS for the exact time of sunset at our position. He radioed back that it was 8:45 and then said, "Hey, it's the summer solstice and the Paragliding: November. 2002
longest day of the year!" I had been in the air for almost 10 hours. It was hard to see northwest in the late evening light, and I wanted to land near a road so Darryl could be my landing witness, but in all the confusion of getting low twice and fighting out, I had totally lost track of where I was in relation to the few roads in the area. I circled until 8:15 or so, then went on final glide at 45 mph. At about 1,000 feet over the ground I saw a relatively wide open valley with a good road, so I glided in and turned into the wind for a slow backward descent through a mild rotor into the shadows. I landed at 8:38 pm, seven minutes before sunset and 10 hours, 38 minutes after launching. It had taken me a few years, but at least for now I had gotten the world record back. And, while flying farther than anyone ever has on a paraglider is a nice plus, I knew that I had had the best flight of my life - so far! In the end that's what counts. Weeks later I continue to dream about flying into the sunset Texas Hill Country. Some nights I climb out into the light like an invincible hawk, on others I crash painfully into the shadows and awake with the knowledge that, while I flew well, I also rolled the dice - and won.
25
recently read the June issue of Paragliding magazine and saw the letter about rehydration. I never figured it would come back to haunt me so soon. I am a member of the Desert Skywalkers (Las Vegas Nevada Paragliding Club). On Saturday, July 6, 2002, members of our group met at 8:30 AM. Our plan was to fly our thermal site which goes by the name of Goodsprings. It is a 6,000-foot MSL launch that faces both east and west, located approximately 15 miles southwest of Las Vegas. Our plan wtas to be on launch by 9:00 AM and launch within the hour. Everything went as planned. There were four pilots flying on this day: Mark Hug, Carl Appelin, Matt Van Buskirk and the author. In my mind I was expecting an average flight. I thought we might fly our normal X-C path that runs from south to north on a course along the beautiful red rocks, which provide a panoramic view of the entire length of the Las Vegas valley. Our pilots have been having a lot of success flying this 20-mile route lately. In my opinion, it is one of the prettiest X-C flights you will ever make! Upon checking our regular weather sites prior to leaving my house, I felt that this day would be marginal at best. There were some scattered clouds that seemed blown out quite high, and the pressure was a decent 29 .90. They were calling for southwest 10 to 15, which is normal for this time of year, and the high temperature was expected to reach a record 26
high ofl 10 degrees. Normally, we like flying this site on days that call for light and variable. One thing I have learned is this: No matter what you see on your computer, it is usually different on launch. But that's a different story. Before I left home I drank about eight ounces of water and followed that with a 16-ounce glass of juice. I normally eat a banana before I leave, but on this day my cupboard was bare. Normally I will drink more water up on launch prior to departure, but not on this fateful day. I packed my 24-ounce water bottle
deep in the back of my harness where I would not see it again for five hours and seven minutes. On this day Mark H. launched first at about 9:30 AM and started to climb out almost immediately. He was followed by Carl, who also climbed out. Before I knew it, they were both up pretty high and started their X-C flights. Matt, who is our newest pilot, launched next, and I thought he was going to sink out, but he managed to stay up and thermal around the launch. I launched last. It seemed like Matt and I were thermaling around launch for quite a while. I didn't want to leave until I had enough Paragliding: November: 2002
altitude to make the first major transition to Mt. Potasi, which is about 8,500' MSL. Matt left first and made a good transition. I continued around launch until I had enough altitude for a clean transition. I left last. Carl made an early error and sunk out in Cottonwood Valley, which is about six miles from launch. Matt and Mark were still in the air and well in front of me. As I topped out at over 11,000' over Mt. Potasi, I could see that Matt was out front and would probably land soon. He managed to stay up and almost run the entire red rock range. He landed out at about 17 miles - not bad for his second cross-country flight ever. (He had flown almost 19 miles a few days earlier.)
Mark was still up and still way out in front of me. I had some great altitude and was cruising across the top of the red rocks. Our next transition was into Kyle Canyon and to get there you need some decent altitude to clear La Madres. But the bigger problem there is that the whole valley is shadowed, causing considerable rotor situations, and each time I have flown back there I have taken
some major poundings. Mark decided to work his way east and literally go around them, and he ended up landing in Kyle Canyon at about the 30-mile mark. It was his personal-best flight for distance. It was also his third consecutive successful X-C flight on his new Gin Oasis glider. He has been flying great since he acquired this wmg. I decided to cross over the top of the La Madres and make a run for it. As soon as I got over the top I realized that I was sinking out, and the next thing I knew I was flying in total crap. I took a couple of minor whacks and was looking to set up for a landing - I was going to land about three miles from the road. I was not happy about this development, especially since I had good altitude when I made the decision to cross over. I headed for a little bump, caught some lift, cautiously turned in it, and was thrilled to stick it. I was just happy to get enough altitude to shorten my walk to Kyle Canyon Road. But as luck would have it on this momentous day, I continued to climb to over 11,000' again. Mark had just radioed to check on me and I told him that I was still climbing and getting ready to make my next transition into Lee Canyon. I continued to work my way up along the Mt. Charleston range and finally topped out at 13,877'. This was all new territory for me but I was ready for the next transition, so I decided to head for the town of Indian Springs which is approximately at the 40-mile mark. I was pretty excited at this point because my previous personal best was 40.7 miles. I
knew I was going to break my old record! I was three hours into the flight at this time and my lower back was really starting to hurt (it was sore before I left). I was also getting hungry and thirsty. I was planning to head toward Highway 95 and land near Indian Springs, and needed to stay on the west side on the highway because everything to the east is restricted air. I was looking for an LZ and saw these two wide-open areas, which I thought were some kind of industrial facilities. They both had large yards with plenty of room to land, and I identified them as my potential LZ's. However, upon further thought I realized that they were both prison facilities and that landing there would not be very prudent! This was the first sign that my mental capacities were starting to fade. I headed for the highway and was planning to continue along to pick up more distance and then land. At about 1,500' AGL I decided that I was done, but low and behold, I ran smack dab into a 1,600-fpm thermal. My thought was, "If they are going to give it to me, I am going to take it!" The next thing I knew I was up over 11,000' again and heading out. As I reached the 52-mile mark I began to realize that there was a serious opportunity to beat Kevin Biernacki's state record. One of my problems was that I was not sure what that distance was. I thought it was just less than 60.8 miles. I started to get my energy back, realizing this possibility. Continuing on again, I was now close to five hours into the flight and at about the 57-mile mark. I had excellent altitude for a glide to Continues on page 31
Paragliding: Novembec 2002
27
ituated in the southeast corner of France and bordering Italy and the Mediterranean Sea, the Alpes Maritimes is claimed by many to be one of the most spectacular, varied and picturesque flying regions in Europe. The area offers a complete variety of flying conditions, from easy soaring to mega crosscountries. The area has the most consistently flyable sites in the whole of Europe (they are flyable on average more tl1a11 300 days per year), and they offer thermal lift in tl,e winter as well as the summer. There is also a lot more to do time t11an just flying. The area is famous for its warm climate, beautiful beaches, mountains, food and cultural heritage. In January, February and March you can often chose between skiing, flying or going to the beach.
S
28
Why is the we ather so good?
This is due to the special microclimate of the Cote D'Azur (the Riviera). The Mediterranean Sea to the south prevents the area from getting too cold in the winter, and the Alps to the north protect it from north winds and the colder weather of central · Europe. It is also far enough from the Atlantic to be shielded from the low-pressure systems tl1at can cause so much bad weather. What is the flying like?
Flying in the south of France is fundamentally different from flying in northern Europe. In northern Europe the wind is more influential than the sun, so when you chose a flying site the wind direction is the most important factor. In the sunny south of France the sun is
ary consideration, and as a result, practically all sites face south toward the sun. Conditions are quite different throughout the year. In the summer, the conditions do not get incredibly strong due to the sea influence. For strong X-C conditions you need to travel to Col de Bleyne. The summer is normally flyable day after day, witl1 blue skies and gentle breezes. In t11e winter, cloud base is often higher and the thermals normally weaker, but you can find good thermals in December and January in the middle part of the day. In spring and autumn the weather is more changeable, with the best cross-country conditions mixed in with some worse days. The amazing thing about the Alps Maritimes is that the conditions are always better than the weather forecast, and even when there is Paragliding: N ovember, 2002
bad weather elsewhere, more often than not you can still fly here.
courses for both beginners and experienced pilots. He also runs the 4WD up to launch.
Access: There is a road directly to launch, and a very big, flat, easy LZ.
This is not a complete list of the flying sites. There are several more smaller or less popular sites in the area.
Access: Get a lift in the paragliding school's 4WD , or walk to the lowest takeoff area in about 30 minutes.
Greolieres Paragliding
This is a good thermal and crosscountry site, in fact, the longest flight (258 km) made within the borders of France originated from this launch.
There is good ridge lift mixed with thermals, and out-and-return flights are possible. Very easy takeoff and landing.
The sites
Orientation: South, 300 meters to 1,000 meters vertical. Greolieres is situated 25 km from the coast, tucked behind the first range of mountains in a deep valley with Chieron Mountain towering 1,770 meters above the village. It is one of the few sites in France were you do not need a car to go flying. The takeoff and landing areas are walking distance from the village. The local paragliding school, Cumulus, is run by Pierre, who speaks English and provides
Col De Bleyne and Paragliding
Gourdon Paragliding
Hang Gliding and
Orientation: Southeast, 300 meters to 800 meters vertical.
Hang Gliding
Location: 15 minutes north of Greolieres, 40 km southeast of St. Andre. Orientation: South, 400 meters vertical.
Access: A 15-minute drive to law1eh from the village of Gourdon, with a dirt road for the last kilometer. There is some ridge lift, but mainly thermals and convergence. The site offers easy top-landings but the LZ is not large. The lowest and biggest landing field is a six-kilometer glide from launch. There are lots of possibilities for nice out-and-return flights, and a convergence often sets up right over the site. It can get busy on weekends.
Lachens - Hang Gliding and Paragliding
Orientation: South, west and north, 800 meters vertical. Access: A 30-minute drive from Greolieres or Gourdon, with a good road to launch. This is a very nice site that can take most wind directions, although it can get too windy. Lachens features big landing fields, toplandings and great X-C potential. St.Andre Paragliding
Hang Gliding and
Orientation: Southwest, 700 meters vertical. Access: A two-hour drive from Nice. There is a good road to launch, but since it is on the north side of the mountain it is often covered with snow in the winter (from December to March). This is an excellent X-C site that frequently offers smooth ridge soaring in the late afternoon. It can be windy on launch in the summer from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. The official landing field should be treated with great caution, as the wind there changes direction frequently due to three valleys that funnel winds into it at different speeds and from different directions. There is an alternate LZ farther up the main valley, which is generally more forgiving. I recommend that you speak to Aerogliss, which administers the site, before going up to launch. They are located next to the lake at the official landing field. Kennedy -
Hang Gliding Only
Orientation: Southwest and southeast, 400 meters vertical. Access: Kennedy is situated right above the picturesque village of Paragliding: November; 2002
Bar sur Loup. The last kilometer is a dirt road that goes all the way to launch. There are three launch ramps that cover most wind conditions. This site is often soarable with mild thermals. Roquebrune (Monaco) Paragliding (Hang Gliding Possible)
Orientation: East, south and southwest, 686 meters vertical. Access: A 20-minute drive from Monaco via La Turbie. Follow signs for the Monte-Carlo golf club. Roquebrune has a carpeted launch area right above the principality of Monaco. The LZ is on a beach called the Golf Bleu ' and it is closed for flying from June 1 to October l due to the number of people on the beach. Roquebrune is great for winter thermaling, aerobatics, SIV, and getting a tan in the winter. In addition to flying here it is nice to visit the three major towns on the coast - Cannes, Antibes and Nice - each of which has its own unique character. Cannes is famous for the film festival, and now has festivals going on year round. Antibes is more traditional with an old port full of yachts, and good pubs with live music. Nice is the largest of the three towns with art galleries, an old market and a booming nightlife. Other interesting excursions are St. Tropez with its elite atmosphere, Monaco with its race circuit though the 30
streets, Vence with its art galleries and shops, the spectacular Georges du Verdon, and the old market town of Castellane which is a 40minute drive to the north. For more information about flying or accommodations in the area ' contact Arna and Bruce Goldsmith at www.chateau-de-max.com. Useful websites for the area www.nice.aeroport.fr (information on all airlines that fly to Nice, as well as rental car companies) www.provenceweb.fr www.angloinfo.com www.ecole-cumulus.com .www.ascendance06.com www.aerogliss.com www.wunderground.com
Continued from page 27
stardom, but knew that I couldn't go much farther because I was really not thinking clearly. I looked at my aviation sectional map but I was off the map. I crossed U.S. Highway 95 to the east and was going to fly a diagonal across where the highway jutted out, and was going to cross over some
terrain features where I thought I might pick up another thermal. I was cruising to victory when, at 61.7 miles, I ran smack into a headwind and began sinking out in this valley, and I didn't know what to do. I made some turns and the next thing I knew I was totally disoriented. I looked at my GPS and nothing seemed to make any sense. I looked over the lay of the land and it didn't seem to make sense either. For a few minutes I was totally confused. (Some who know me might ask, "What's newl") I saw a road and cut back to it, seeming to lose some distance but landing at exactly 61 miles. Paragliding: Novembe" 2002
I was not sure where I was. I did have an excellent cell phone signal however, and called everyone to let them know I was down and safe and that I might have the state record. I was finally able to access the 24-ounce bottle of water that was buried in the back of my harness. There seemed to be no cars anywhere on the road and I realized that I had a four- or five-mile walk ahead of me. I saw U.S. Highway 95 about four miles to the west of me, and what looked like a town about the same distance to the south. I called Kevin Biernacki, who now lives and teaches in Salt Lake City, to see what his state record was. He told me 62.5 miles. Damn! I was at 61.7 and on cruise control. Oh well. I told him where I thought I was, near Beatty, Nevada, and he told me that this was 100 miles from launch. He suggested that I was near Indian Springs, but I told him that I had flown past there two hours previously. As I continued to walk closer to what I thought was a town, I realized that it was some sort of industrial facility. I was still several miles away, didn't see any cars coming or going, and was starting to get worried because I had not eaten and my water was gone. My boots were killing my feet, making it impossible for me to go much
farther than those buildings in the distance. I was thinking that I should have just walked toward the highway. As I got closer, however, I started to see some cars coming and going. I was not in some ghost town and I was relieved that I would get some water soon. I walked right up to the front guard gate and saw that armed guards were posted there. I was delirious and still didn't have a clue where I was. I walked up to the guards and asked for water. They were very nice and provided me with the fluid of life. I asked them, "What town am I in?" They replied that I was at the Nevada Test Site. They also informed me that I was trespassing on federal government property. I still hadn't realized the seriousness of my mistake.
They ended up holding me there for well over two hours while they thoroughly checked my background. At first it was casual, but after a while I started to worry. I was starting to feel better now that I was rehydrated. I was very lucky and grateful that the Nye County Sheriff let me off with a trespassing ticket. It could have been much worse. Upon returning to town and talking to my co-pilots, they all asked why I crossed U.S. 95. I didn't know. I am convinced that I was dehydrated and functioning with diminished mental capacity. I put myself in a very dangerous position. The irony of the whole story is this: It was the best flight of my life for distance, 61 miles exactly and my longest flight ever at five hours and seven minutes. I should have been ecstatic, but I was a little sad. Continues on page 35 31
Does this mean I'm going to switch? I wouldn't consider it a switch, but an addition to the joy of free flight I've come to appreciate. I really enjoy wrapping up a thermal or running a ridge with any kindred spirit: eagles, hawks, sailplanes and paragliders. It brings a smile to my spirit. The shots here are some from my most recent flying trip. I hope you enjoy them!
$Ome of the best days • gthe most of those of free flight, only blaze back up the
friends.
,
Continued from page31
I now know where my two technical mistakes were made. My first mistake was not planning for this long flight. If I had had access to water and food, who knows how far I could have gone. I literally cost myself the state record by not planning properly. Dehydration is a very real and serious issue when flying cross-country, and it is also easily avoidable. After that flight I have a whole new appreciation for the many pilots who have prepared properly and been rewarded with great flights over the years. I now realize that if I want to be like the great pilots, I have to properly prepare myself, and that means not missing any detail in my preparations. Which brings me to my second mistake. Upon looking at the GPS printout of my flight, I realized that all I had to do was hit the speed bar. This would have given me the penetration necessary to clear the feature in front of me. While I was in the air and in a state of confusion, I did not see the opportunity that was right in front of me! The state record was
mine and I lost it by not planning properly. I guess we never know when we are going to be blessed with these magic moments in life. But even if we are given these opportunities, lack of preparation will let them just pass us by. Sometimes the simplest thing can cost us more than we ever thought.
PARAGUDING
In retrospect, I am very grateful for the flight I had. It was a personal best in many respects and I am very happy to have had that opportunity. It was a great chance to learn from my mistakes and also to appreciate the great gift of cross-country paragliding. I would like to offer my personal thanks to all the members of the Desert Skywalkers who have made paragliding in Las Vegas the best! I would also like to thank my instructor, Kevin Biernacki, who has given so much to me and the sport of paragliding. And last but not least, I would like to thank Super Fly for all their support over the years. They are the best. Period. By the way, my flight was made on an Ozone Electron, DHV 1-2.
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ONLINE WWW.USHGA.ORG Paragliding: Novembec 2002
35
Top-landings by Peter Reagan Early-evening desert site
very experienced pilot approached launch for top-landing and was aiming for a clear spot next to a parked car. A cross gust pushed him into a collision course with the car. He stared at the car for a moment, then tried to turn away, but side-slipped into the vehicle, resulting in minimal personal injury but totaling the car! Evening, mountain site, still a fair amount of thermal activity
An experienced pilot set up to top-land on a fairly crowded hilltop. There were cars parked at both ends of a ridge, and pilots setting up in the center. The pilot prepared to land in the cleared area, but just above the ground made a turn to jog right in order to miss a glider on launch. A sudden gust from the left pushed him farther than expected and he impacted a parked car, causing dents in the tailgate of a jeep. Midday desert site
A very experienced pilot approached the top in moderate turbulence. His wing suddenly surged and he was able to get it back over his head, but picked up a lot of ground speed and was unable to avoid a pilot carrying a balled-up glider toward launch. At least $400 damage was done to the glider. Coastal small mountain site, midday moderate winds and thermals
A very experienced 43-year-old pilot enjoyed a soaring flight, Paragliding: November: 2002
but then on initial approach to the main LZ he observed a pilot emphatically waving his arms, pointing to the west (90° cross to the mountain face). He mistakenly interpreted his signal to mean that the winds had turned westerly, something that happens frequently at this site. He also observed a streamer farther down the LZ indicating south, but decided that it might have been possible that a localized switch in the winds had taken place, due to a prominent spine to the right (west) of the main LZ. The main LZ is known to generate strong turbulence in west crossing winds. He aborted the initial approach and flew up the spine with the goal of top-landing on the "upper bench." The approach was good and under control, but just moments before touchdown he observed that the streamer on launch indicated a predominant south wind, so he turned to face the wind just before touchdown. The landing was relatively normal and under control. With low to moderate speed and the wing level, he turned around and brought the glider down. At the moment his left leg first contacted the ground he felt that there was still some "turn inertia" in his body mass, and there was a
momentary pang of pain shooting up his leg as it twisted. He packed up the glider and hiked down the mountain to meet friends, but it soon became obvious that he couldn't fly again that day. No major injuries were documented. Mountain site, end-of-day glass-off
A few other gliders had made toplandings. A moderately experienced pilot was 1,000 feet over and decided to top-land with the rest. The toplanding site is tricky with a knoll and trees on both sides. He pulled in big ears for the descent from 800 feet over, and let them go at around 100 feet over. Then everything started going wrong. First one of the ears did not come out fully, and he was concentrating on getting it open while drifting over the tree line by the slot. There were two large surges in rapid succession. The pilot pendulumed straight for the ground from 20 feet. The pilot's legs hit first, but then his buttocks, causing excruciating pain. His main injury was an Ll fracture, resulting in hospitalization and weeks of bed rest but an anticipated full recovery. There have been many landing accidents this year. One fairly impressive subset of these involved top-landings, as did all of the examples above. I think we need 36
to consider again what we are trying to do when we top-land. An old pilot adage states that launches are optional but landings are obligatory. However, under almost all circumstances there is an important exception to this. Toplandings should almost invariably be optional. There are a few sites where landing at the bottom would place one in a canyon or in the ocean, but generally sites should not be chosen which have no solid LZ at the bottom. Top-landing by definition requires that one penetrate down through soarable lift to reach the spot. Somehow you need to sneak around the lift or degrade your glider's performance. Common techniques include approaching the spot from low enough behind so that ridge lift and thermals coming up the front do not reach you. This can expose you to turbulence or even rotor. Or you can get well below launch and way out front, then fly downwind toward the spot and try to side-hill below it before you get lifted too high. Big ears are often a part of the picture. It's less common to spiral down, since this often causes one to drift back too far. In any case, circumventing lift m these ways almost always compromises your control to some extent, and at the same time places you in a very active zone in the air, where control is more important than usual. Tops arc often smaller than bottoms, and the air is thinner. Add obstacles such as cars, trees, irregular terrain and pilots setting up to launch, and you have 37
a situation much closer to the edge of the envelope than a valley LZ. There is only one way to improve your statistical chances of success without injury, and that is to be ready and willing not to force the landing, and to keep flying, unless the opportunity presents itself to land. Many accident victims chose to top-land in order to avoid a hike. All would have preferred the walk instead of the injury.
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There are a few other details worth noticing in this group of reports. The victims tended to be very experienced. Skill is not enough to yield dependable top-landings. We all have to be prepared to go around. And even for one of the most experienced pilots, object fixation played a role. Finally, I was fascinated to see the amount of property damage that occurred, including one car that was probably totaled. It's amazing how much damage a flying body can do without necessarily sustaining personal injury. Note also that a percentage of these reports didn't involve serious injury or damage. This suggests that people are more willing to report their incidents. We really appreciate this, and we appeal to every pilot to help us all advance the sport in this important way.
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.
. .
n:o~m-ally Thermal Strengths There are a number of factors that affect thermal strength. These
swept with cooler win air and thus does not !We'
up
its potential. One such situation
at the bottom of cooler overlying
is beach areas. We have all burnt
air pressing down. In fact, the hot,
our feet on those littoral sands but
humid, summer doldrums are what
beaches are rarely great thermal
we Eastern pilots dread, because
producers because the constant
the few thermals that do develop
The more readily a surface on
inflow of the cool, stable sea
are weak. In the case mentioned
the ground is heated, the more it
breeze attenuates the effects of the
here it should be apparent that
imparts this heat to the overlying
heated surface.
there are many factors that affect
are in two main categories: the temperature profile of the air and the intensity of the solar heating. Let's look at the heating factor first.
'
both the amount of surface heating
air. Thus, we should expect to get good thermals above such surfaces. Take a barefoot walk across the landscape on a sunny day and see what you feel. Did your feet get burned on that blacktopr Did you enjoy the cool of the grass/ How about the medium heat of bare dirt or fields in cropsr We know from experience and common sense that the surfaces that heat most are more likely to produce the best thermals. But we also know that no surface stands alone. Everything is affected by everything else surrounding it, because the
38
A big factor in intensity of heating
and the lapse rate.
is the humidity in the air. When the atmosphere is dry, the solar
Two more factors that affect the
influx goes right to the ground
solar heating of the surface are
with nearly its full power. But in
the sun's position and the amount
humid conditions, a good portion
of cloud cover. We acquire an
of the solar radiation gets scattered
almost unconscious knowledge of
by the suspended water molecules,
the sun's diurnal variation. We all
so the air itself takes up heat and
know that only mad Englishmen
less is available to heat the surface.
and dogs go out in the heat of
You might think, "That's okay,
the day in the heart of Africa. So
what we want is heated air and we
we know that the peak heating at
just bypass the surface exchange
the peak of the day provides peak thermal production. But put a little fudge factor in there because
Paragliding: November; 2002
there is a lag in the whole process,
as the thermals spend more time
bird who gets to be in the landing
so peak thermal production
building on the ground and are
field feeling like a worm. Learn to
usually occurs a half hour to an
less interrupted by vigorous, cool
understand the behavior of your
hour after maximum sun height.
downdrafts. We've also seen it
own site( s) in this regard. Does it
Speaking of sun height, we should
happen that the approach of a
happen nearly every good thermal
all be aware that June 21, when
stratus layer is accompanied by
dayr Does it never happenr What
the sun is at its peak height, and
pre-frontal unstable air, so the
are the conditions when it does
December 21 when it is at its low
thermals actually get stronger even
happenr (Hint: Clear nights with
point, are the acme and nadir
as the solar insolation weakens.
little upper wind, so a deep ground
of thermal production, all other
So, you can never talk absolutes in
inversion forms . Note that these
factors being equal.
this game, which is what makes it
are the same conditions conducive
a game in the first place.
to dew and frost formation.)
the surface and thus thermal
What You Can Use
Once you have figured out
production simply by blocking
This article speaks mostly in
your sites, carry your newfound
the sun's rays and scattering or
generalities in order to set the
awareness with you when you visit
absorbing the energy. Cumulus
stage for our later discoveries.
other sites. As you gain knowledge
clouds denote
However, we
and experience you will perhaps be
thermals rising, so
can still glean
able to predict thermal behavior
we are happy to
a few straws of
at other sites. It is this type of
see them around
learning from the
understanding that helps create
as long as they
general discussion.
great pilots, for after all, a great
don't throw
Perhaps the main
pilot is just like you and me but
a wet blanket
point to recognize
with more skill, more knowledge
on our fun by
is that at many
and more luck. I just wish there
overdeveloping
sites it is a normal
were some way to work on the luck
into sunshine-
process for the
factor.
robbing shrouds.
first thermals of
Clouds in
the day to happen
general reduce
in the morning,
the strength
anywhere from
of thermals,
10:00 am to 11:
as well as their
59 am. Then, after
abundance.
a flurry of thermal
They also alter
activity, things die
Clouds affect solar heating of
thermal behavior. A broad, weak,
down and nobody stays up until
stratus cover may make the day
a bit later when the thermal day
less punctuated with thermal
begins in earnest. It is important to
exclamation points, but also
recognize this occurrence, because
make the thermals more regular
you don't want to be the early
Paragliding: November. 2002
We bypassed the discussion of lapse rates to avoid over-complicating this first installment. But next time we will give the subject its due, because it is important to the understanding of how thermals really work. For more information on the matter of solar heating, and thus thermal production daily variation, see Understanding the Sky, beginning on page 189.
39
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TO FLY: DISCOVER PARAGLIDING TODAY USHGA's 7 minute promotional video, now only $9.95 PLUS FREE SHIPPI~G (in the USA). 1-800616-6888, www.ushga.org
*NEW* SPEED TO FLY with Jockey Anderson. A complete video guide to cross country paragliding. Great air-to-air and in-board footage with Jockey as he takes you around the world, providing flying tips and interviewing the top pilots. Covers thermaling, decision making, competition flying and speed to fly. 70 minutes $39.95 *NEW* A HIGHER CALLING by Dawn Treader Productions. Winner "People's Choice Award" at the Banff Mountain Film Festival 2000. A story of six friends attempting to fly cross country together as a group through western Nepal, where finding launches & landings becomes a daily routine. Become immersed into the Nepal culture upon every landing. Superb editing. 45 minutes $32.95
IN PERFECT MOUNTAIN By Adventure Productions. Searching for the perfect mountain, perfect flight, and the perfect experience that challenges our essence and satisfies our quest for adventure. This paragliding odyssey takes you to St. Anton, Austria; Garmisch- Partenkirchen, Germany; Sun Valley, Idaho; Point of the Mountain, Utah; and Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Features in-air footage, aerial maneuvers, and local pilot tours. 44 minutes $36.95. NOW AVAILABLE IN DVD, same great price. BALI HIGH, by Sea to Sky Productions. A paragliding adventure film. Great flying and a great adventure on the exotic island of Bali, Indonesia. A result of wild imaginations, weeks of filming and three unsupervised pilots in a land of serious fun. Great flying footage. 38 min $29.95. WEATHER TO FLY, by Adventure Productions. A much needed instructional/ educational video on micrometeorology. Dixon White, Master pilot and USHGA Examiner, takes you through a simple stepby-step process showing where to acquire weather data and how to interpret it. For pilots of any aircraft. Learn about regional & local influences and how to determine winds aloft and stability. "Weather To Fly" is an over-all view packed with useful details and includes great cloud footage. A straight-forward presentation that is easy to follow. 50 min. $39.95. NOW AVAILABLE IN DVD, same great price.
Call or fax USHGA (719) 632-8300, fax (719) 632-6417, please add +$5 domestic s/h for 1-2 videos (1-4 DVDs), add $6 for 3-4 videos (Int'! orders, email us at ushga@ushga.org for shipping charges.) Great to impress your friends or for those socked-in days. Order online at www.ushga.org!
VIDEOS, BOOKS & APPAREL - Call USHGA for your Merchandise order form (719) 632-8300, fax (719) 632-641~ email:ushga@ushga.org,www.ushga.org CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING RATES The rate for classified advertising is $.50 per word (or group of characters) and $1.00 per word for bold or all caps. Phone number=2 words, PO Box=2 words, weight range i.e. 137-185lbs=2 words, web site or email address=3 words. MINIMUM AD CHARGE $5.00. A fee of $15.00 is charged for each line art logo and $25.00 for each photo. LINEART & PHOTO SIZE NO LARGER THAN 1.75" X 2.25". Please underline words to be in bold print. Special layouts of tabs are $25.00 per column inch. Please make checks payable to USHGA. Send to: PARAGLIDING MAGAZINE, Classified Advertising, P.O. Box 1330, Colorado Springs, CO 809011330 (719) 632-8300 or fax (719) 6326417, email jeff@ushga.org with your Visa, Amex or MasterCard. DEADLINE FOR THE JANUARY ISSUE IS OCTOBER 20TH.
STARTING PARAGLIDING by Adventure Productions. Covers basic preparations, weather, proper attitude, ground handling & those first exciting launches. 30 min $29.95. NOW AVAILABLE IN DVD, same great price.
PARAGLIDER GROUND HANDLING & THE ART OF KITING, by Adventure Productions. Learn techniques and tips for easy ground handling with this instructional program. Get in tune with your glider and improve your flying skills while on the ground. Various wind conditions are covered with the successful and proven industry-standard techniques of Dixon White- Master rated pilot, USHGA Examiner and USHGA's PG Instructor of the Year. This is for the beginner, intermediate & advanced pilot who wants to do some brushing up on his skills. Be a master of your paraglidcr. 44 minutes $36.95 NOW AVAILABLE IN DVD, same reat rice. Paragliding: Novembec 2002
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SMALL GIN BOLERO #31247 & Genie II Harness by fraud ring in Singapore at Jl.Gandaria IX No:4, Gandaria kebayoran baru, City: JAKSEL, JKTIND. Also fraudulently ordered by delta_ trikes@astaga.com: Alinco DJ-195 radio, Gin Flight Suit, Gin Reserve and Lazer helmet. Contact granger@parasoftparagli ding.com or (303) 494-2820.
GIN BANDIT - Small purple w/red stripe and GIN BOLERO, medium white w/red stripe STOLEN along with a car SALT LAKE CITY, UT around December 31, 2001. Both slightly used. Also blue, medium Woody Valley Express air bag harness, reserve, and black open face Lazer Helmet. Contact Ryan Swan, (801) 255-9595, ryan@4superfly.com www.4superfly.com
Adventure Productions .................... .45 Aerolight USA ................................ .40 Apco ................................................. 10 Critter Mountain Wear ..................... 13 Dixon's Airplay ................................ 47 Flytec ................................................ 17 Hall Brothers .................................... 16 Independence ..................................... 9 Mojo's Gear ..................................... 16
GIN BOLERO & PARAGLIDING GEAR - Stolen Mav 17th, 2002 from car at REDMOND, WA. Gin Bolero, blue, X-small. SupAir Evo harness, small red/ black w/tan trim & rear mount reserve container w/ extra velcro strips along both sides of the reserve container area, it also has black clips attached to the tops of both shoulder straps. Gin SS 30m2 reserve parachute (inside the harness). Tree kit. Contact Annie Sohn, (425) 493-2289, asohn@combimatrix.com
STOLEN WINGS are listed as a service to USHGA members. There is no charge for this service and lost and found wings or equipment may be called in (719) 632-8300, faxed in (719) 632-6417, or emailed ushga@ushga.org for inclusion in Paragliding & Hang Gliding magazine. Please call to cancel the listing when
Rising Air ........................................ .46 Skyco Sports .................................... 16 Sport Aviation Publications .............. 40 Super Fly, Inc ................................... 48 Thermal Tracker ............................... 37 Torrey Pines Gliderport.. ................. .40 WillsWing ......................................... 2
badbones@risingair.biz www.rlsingair.biz 3171 North 3370 West
Post Office Box 620 Moore, Idaho 83255
SOL AXIOM - stolen with Toyota truck in Salt Lake City, Utah in late March 2002. Wing is size small, purple with pink stripe along the underside; also Sol Charly harness (small/medium), grey Leedom helmet, Flytec vario, reserve. All items were packed in a homemade black and green PG backpack. Contact Damion Mitchell, (801) 5180768 or dzmitchell@hotmail.com
Specializing in ALL TYPES of paragliding & power chute Repairs * Re-packs * Inspections
Located at the base of King Mountain" Prices:
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SECTION Paragliders Emergency Parachutes Parts &Accessories Business &Employment Miscellaneous Powered Paragliders
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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.
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USHGA, P.O Box 1330, Colorado Springs, CO 8090 I (! 19) 632-8300 fax(! 19) 632-6417 46
Paragliding: November, 2002