With an all new UL-specific S harkNose design, the Ultralite 5 deliver s improved inflation, per formance, comfor t, and ease of use, with the shor test "ground roll" of any light wing we have flown.
Liz
Dengler Managing Editor editor@ushpa.org
Kristen Arendt Copy Editor
Greg Gillam Art Director
WRITERS
Dennis Pagen
Lisa Verzella
Jeff Shapiro
Erika Klein
Julia Knowles
SUBMISSIONS from members and readers are welcome. All articles, artwork, photographs as well as ideas for articles, artwork and photographs are submitted pursuant to and are subject to the USHPA Contributor's Agreement, a copy of which can be obtained from the USHPA by emailing the editor at editor@ushpa. org or online at ushpa.org. We are always looking for great articles, photography and news. Contributions are appreciated.
Bravo, Mexico. Cover Photo by Erika Klein
Accident Review Committee by Chirs Santacroce 12
2023 USHPA Awards by Liz Dengler 14
Jon Lindberg by Jade Chun 18
The making of a light wind legend
2023 Red Rocks Skills Fly-in by Paul Richey 24
Site Intros by Julia Knowles 28
The Lady Birds Fly South by Pacifica Sommers 34 An all-women's XC clinic and tour in Colima, Mexico Challenging the
ERRATA On page 51 of our Spring issue, the sentence should read, ‘There were 52 flights of over 100 miles and, by my rough count, 16 flights of over 200 miles.’ Thank you, Pete, for pointing out the correction!
HANG GLIDING AND PARAGLIDING ARE INHERENTLY DANGEROUS ACTIVITIES
USHPA recommends pilots complete a pilot training program under the direct supervision of a USHPA-certified instructor, using equipment suitable for your level of experience. Many of the articles and photographs in the magazine depict advanced maneuvers being performed by experienced, or expert, pilots. These maneuvers should not be attempted without the prerequisite instruction and experience.
: USHPA has been my career for over 19 years. Now, I go on glide to the next chapter of my life. It is impossible to express the gratitude and joy I’ve had serving the national pilot community for as long as I have. It has been an epic flight!
We’ve achieved important milestones during that time, and I look forward to watching USHPA’s evolution. There are too many memorable moments to list, but here are a few of my favorites:
Advocacy has been one of my deepest passions because it can have a significant and lasting impact. However, with increasing demands on time, engaging as much as I desired became challenging. Yet, I was able to advocate on FAA legislation, tariff relief (still pending), and UAVs and work with other sports organizations to increase recreational access or change the legal landscape by voicing opinions on cases that could have precedent-setting implications.
Sharing the gift of flight through the Veterans Affairs grant program was one of our most inspiring moments. The stories of healing and rebirth touched each of us deeply. Over two years, we were granted $265K and were able to train 55 pilots. Galen Anderson did the heavy lifting to create and maintain the VA program, and I know he received immense satisfaction from it.
The most significant and most challenging milestone was forming the Recreation RRG. Losing insurance was USHPA’s biggest existential crisis as the loss could have closed most of our iconic sites nationwide. Creating the RRG with Tim Herr and several key volunteers was the most intense period ever at USHPA. We raised millions of dollars for the required capital and created the company in
Going on Glide
Martin Palmaz
record time. The transformation went beyond insurance itself, as almost every aspect of USHPA has changed since then.
I am amazed by the continued growth of women’s participation in our sports. Their energy and dedication are changing our community in positive ways that benefit all of us. It will be wonderful to see this continue to blossom.
Recently, I’ve been laying the groundwork for a new flying site in Colorado Springs. Built with deep community integration, it holds enormous potential to be a crown jewel that showcases free flight. I will describe this effort in detail in a future article.
Numerous people have contributed to my success and that of USHPA. It would be impossible to mention them all but I must thank a few for their support and guidance over the years.
The most important relationship in USHPA is between the president and the executive director. USHPA has been fortunate to have many exceptional presidents during my tenure. Before Rich Hass became the longest-running president in USHPA’s history, he was secretary and my mentor. For six years, his leadership provided the stability and foundation I needed. Paul Murdoch had the unfortunate luck of becoming president just as the insurance crisis began. His endless optimism, keen observations, and relentless humor couldn’t have come at a better time. During those two years, I worked 60 to 80-hour weeks, and he kept me sane.
During my tenure, Alan Crouse, Kate West, Steve Pearson, and Bill Hughes also served as president and were invaluable partners in serving USHPA’s mission.
While Jim Zeiset (JZ) was not a president
during my tenure, I always felt his presence. In my early days, I went to a fly-in where JZ and his wife Amy sponsored a full buffet dinner on launch. The incredible stories I heard that night revealed the depth and spirit of our history, which have stayed with me throughout my time at USHPA.
USHPA’s staff works tirelessly to support each of you and develop programs to enhance your experience as pilots. They deserve our collective appreciation for achieving so much with our small organization's limited resources and ever-evolving challenges.
Executive Director Jayne DePanfilis saved USHPA from the brink of bankruptcy and restored it to health. Thanks, too, for hiring me and showing me the ropes.
I’d also like to thank Ken Andrews, Mark Forbes, Ken Grubbs, Jon Harris, Tim Herr, Randy Leggett, Steve Rodrigues, Chris Santacroce, Bruce Weaver, and innumerable others. You know who you are. Please support and join your local chapters. Their efforts make all the difference in protecting and preserving free flight nationwide. Encourage expired members to join. We are a very lean organization; every member’s support makes a real difference in our resources
and national impact.
There are few activities that one can do that create so much inspiration. We have many challenges ahead of us, and I hope some of you will pick up the torch to keep moving our mission forward. USHPA will be in good hands under James Bradley, the new interim executive director. Please give him your support. He will need it!
I’ve met amazing pilots from across the country, and I look forward to flying with you as “just” another pilot member. It is the peak of flying season, so grab your wing and take a bite out of the summer thermals while you can.
I’ll leave you with a poem created for me.
suspended from a fear i chose to face or fly from fly with paragliding above my life as i thought it was returning with the sense i was so lucky and still am to fly or fail free to enjoy the ride ... paragliding
k. galloway becoming // poetry
: Farewell, good luck, be safe, and fly far!
NAVITER OMNI & OUDIE N FANET+
The new Naviter Omni & Oudie N Fanet+ feature an all-new hybrid live-tracking to provide the highest level of pilot conspicuity by tying together peer-topeer Fanet+, FLARM, and cellular internet connection to Open Glider Network (OGN). With this interoperability: General aviation aircraft and sailplanes equipped with FLARM, Fanet or OGN will be aware of your position and users will be able to see and navigate to each other (team fly) even when there is no cell connection. Plus, if the Omni/ Oudie N Fanet+ is connected to the Internet via internal SIM or phone tether, it will act as an OGN repeater for other users who are outside of cell coverage or not otherwise connected to the Internet. It offers increased visibility for search and rescue to areas that do not have cell coverage. For more information, please visit www.flytec.com or email info@flytec.com.
OZONE FORZA 2
The Forza 2 is now available with an updated structure that allows a wider range of flying positions. The choice of frame and pod sizes makes it adjustable to all body shapes. This is an aerodynamic, durable, and highly comfortable tool for serious XC missions. Wind tunnel and competition-tested, it is the highest-performance traditional-fairing harness that we have flown. www.flyozone.com.
OZONE PHOTON LYGHT
The groundbreaking Photon is now available in a lightweight version, the Photon “Lyght” (the Y symbol is for our fellow math and physics nerds out there). Coming in at 800g less than the Photon in the ML size, the reduced sail inertia of the Lyght improves handling and performance across the board. Better launch, higher agility, and less sail movement on glide all make for a level-up in an already class-crushing wing. Carry weight and pack volume are also, of course, reduced. www.flyozone.com.
Do you have questions about USHPA policies, progra ms, or other areas?
EMAIL US AT: info@ushpa.org Let us know what questions or topics you’d like to hear about!
Interested in a more active role supporting our national organization? USHPA needs you! Have a skill or interest and some time available?
VOLUNTEER!
ushpa.org/volunteer
For questions or other USHPA business
+1 (719) 632-8300 info@ushpa.org
ASSOCIATION James Bradley
: Dear USHPA member and fellow pilot,
As you know, USHPA’s board of directors has asked me to be your Interim Executive Director and I have agreed. USHPA’s mission is to ensure the future of free flight and everyone on the various USHPA teams is deeply committed to that. My first goal as Interim Executive Director is to achieve a smooth transition so that everything behind the scenes continues in good order. My second is to continue to work with the board and the committees to expand and improve our services. What drives us is supporting your development as a pilot, and your ability to have great places to fly, great pilot communities, and great events to go to. —Wishing you good flights and safe landings, James Bradley
Preparing for the Epic Flight or Fight
by Martin Palmaz
: Flying captivates us in a way that is not easily expressed. We imagine our biggest dreams and feel empowered to achieve them. We train, observe, learn, assess, and prepare, and when the day is perfect for that epic flight, we trust we’ve done everything to succeed because we’ve worked to understand the conditions and achieve our goal.
A thorough plan also prepares us for the unexpected. No one wants these situations to occur, but you must plan for them. We use protective gear for hard landings and search and rescue devices in case we end up off course, and have proper medical coverage in the event of an accident. Not having a plan and the tools you need for unexpected circumstances could have
devastating consequences.
Just as carefully as we prepare for our adventures, the Recreation RRG prepares for the unexpected mishaps that result in claims. While that process is not nearly as pleasant as preparing for your next flight, it is just as important. The analogy to free flight illustrates everything they and we must do for success when it matters most.
As ultralight (FAR Part 103) pilots, we are all responsible for assuming our risks and for our own safety. Despite our best efforts, there are times when things go awry, which may result in damage to ourselves or third parties.
As an organization, USHPA provides a vital member benefit—insurance. Some people say, “I don’t need that.
The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association Inc. (USHPA) is an air sports organization affiliated with the National Aeronautic Association (NAA), which is the official representative of the Fédération Aeronautique Internationale (FAI), of the world governing body for sport aviation. The NAA, which represents the United States at FAI meetings, has delegated to the USHPA supervision of FAI-related hang gliding and paragliding activities such as record attempts and competition sanctions. The United States Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, a division of the National Aeronautic Association, is a representative of the Fédération Aeronautique Internationale in the United States.
I’m never going to use it.” In reality, you use it every day because many landowners who have granted access to a flying site require that they be named on our policy.
Additionally, chapter officers want this coverage as they work to support local flying. If you aren’t a member of your chapter(s), please join and support them. Without the hard work and expenses chapters take on, many sites around the country would not be accessible.
Chapter renewals are a painstaking process but one that ensures we are prepared for a crisis when it hits. You have to pack the reserve and inspect it before you need it. The same is true for our risk management plans and coverage. If you don’t put in the effort, it won’t work.
The other element USHPA provides members is third-party liability coverage. When you need it, you really need it. Ask any member who has faced a lawsuit in the tens of thousands of dollars or a chapter officer who has been called to testify. The RRG pays for defense and supports you every step of the way.
“When my chapter was listed on a lawsuit by an injured spectator, I was terrified. I had never navigated the legal system or been served before. I volunteer for my club because I love to share free flight with my community, not because I'm an insurance policy expert.
Fortunately, the RRG had my back. They did almost all of the work and guided me through the process in a supportive and straightforward manner. All of those hoops we jump through to file paperwork and sign waivers paid off. I'm incredibly grateful for the protection from our policy and for the help from RRG staff when the unexpected occurred.” – Chapter officer in the Rocky Mountain region
We know elements of risk management seem burdensome and some details may seem trivial or unimportant. There are some items where that might be true, but most are there for a reason. Additionally, everything has its limit, and we acknowledge that volunteers don’t have unlimited time. In collaboration with Recreation RRG, our goal is to make the process as efficient, effective, and affordable as possible. It will take time and resources to make improvements, so please be patient while we do. In the meantime, please continue to provide feedback (info@ushpa.org) about how policy changes or requirements impact you and the chapters. This feedback helps us understand and modify the process to support your needs.
REGION 1
NORTHWEST
Alaska
Hawaii
Iowa
Idaho
Minnesota
Montana
North Dakota
Nebraska
Oregon
South Dakota
Washington
Wyoming
REGION 2
CENTRAL WEST
Northern California
Nevada
Utah
REGION 3
SOUTHWEST
Southern California
Arizona
Colorado
New Mexico
REGION 4
SOUTHEAST
Alabama
Arkansas
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Missouri
Mississippi
North Carolina
Oklahoma
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
West Virginia
Virginia
REGION 5
NORTHEAST and INTERNATIONAL
Connecticut
Delaware
Illinois
Indiana
Massachusetts
Maryland
Maine
Michigan
New
New
Ohio
Pennsylvania
Rhode
Vermont Wisconsin
Bill Hughes President president@ushpa.org
Charles Allen Vice President vicepresident@ushpa.org
Julia Knowles Secretary secretary@ushpa.org
Pam Kinnaird Treasurer treasurer@ushpa.org
James Bradley Interim Executive Director executivedirector@ushpa.org
Galen Anderson Operations Manager office@ushpa.org
Chris Webster Information Services Manager tech@ushpa.org
: A P3 pilot with 250 hours was flying a B-rated freestyle wing at a windy desert site. The pilot was making hard turns near the top of the mountain when the conditions became stronger. Despite the pilot’s efforts to push forward using appropriate speed bar, they were blown back over the mountain. While descending behind the mountain, the pilot noted the wind approaching 30 mph on the front side of the mountain and that they were in the rotor. The pilot was low and decided to deploy their reserve parachute before any deflations, wagering the risk of deflations was high. They deliberately and successfully landed in a tree, under reserve, and were not injured. Clearly, the pilot’s decision to fly in such strong conditions and their less-thanideal choice to fly at the top of the mountain contributed to this incident. Here, we choose to focus on how the pilot handled the situation once it manifested and highlight their decision to deploy the reserve parachute. The choice to deploy a reserve parachute is a personal one. Pilots are reminded
to have ongoing discussions with their instructors regarding specific scenarios and emergency procedures to implement, depending on the situation.
: A P2 pilot with 65 flights was visiting a coastal site with a beach landing zone. It was the pilot’s sixth new site since being certified. While attempting to land in a crosswind, the pilot collided with the cliff terrain, resulting in a fractured tibia and fibula. The pilot remarked that more information about site-specific techniques could have helped. Most pilots are accustomed to having the freedom to direct their glider into the wind for every landing. However, certain site restrictions, like a beach environment, prevent landing directly into the wind. We remind pilots that this may be a skill they should consider learning with the assistance of an instructor in a non-threatening environment.
: A P3 pilot with more than 200 hours was flying a low-angle site and trying to soar. The
pilot remarked that they were using the brakes to maximize sink rate and extend the flight as long as possible. On making a 180-degree turn, the pilot realized that they were too deep in the brakes and the glider was stalling/spinning. The pilot remarked that they were around eight feet off the ground as the event started, so it was not possible to recover. The pilot met with a rock and suffered a heel fracture. Feedback from the pilot was that having a “light touch” on the brakes was not one of their cornerstones but that they normally had a high level of awareness about when too much brake was
being applied and when to release. The trio of factors that led to the incident were the desire to soar, the close proximity to terrain, and too much brake held for too long. We remind pilots to apply brake inputs with a relaxed arm so they can more readily feel subtle feedback from the glider. Finally, the paraglider as an aircraft is demanding in that it is not tolerant of too much or too little brake, and its demands tend to change from moment to moment. For this reason, keeping a margin for error in the form of altitude (distance from terrain) is recommended.
USHPA AWARDS Liz Dengler
Honoring the 2023 recipients
: Each year, USHPA honors exemplary pilots and community members with the USHPA awards. The themed awards and commendations show our appreciation for those who have contributed significantly to the free flight community. USHPA is proud to recognize eight individuals for their outstanding achievements this year.
Presidential Citation Alan Crouse From USHPA President Bill Hughes: The Presidential Citation is USHPA’s highest award and may only be awarded to a person once. When considering the list of worthy candidates, I decided to focus on our volunteers. USHPA is an organization that can only function because of the many people willing to volunteer their time and expertise to the board and especially to the committees, where so much of the work gets done. Most members are probably unaware of the amount of work these volunteers do behind the scenes. Development of training standards and curriculums—volunteers. Reviewing our finances, the audits, and taxes at the end of the year—volunteers. Writing the rulebooks and overseeing our competition process—volunteers. Reviewing
and approving applications to become new Instructor Admins—volunteers. Staying on top of FAA activities and proposed changes and working to maintain our exemption— volunteers. I could go on for quite a while.
One of these volunteers has stepped up every time I have asked and for years before I was ever involved myself. The phrase “Sure, I could do that,” comes to mind when I think of him. For over ten years, Alan Crouse has always answered the call. He’s served as a director and president and has contributed countless hours to committees. He is currently serving on the Finance Committee and is also chairing a sub-committee working with the Recreation RRG on our insurance needs for pilots, chapters, event organizers, landowners, and instructors. His ability to remain calm, see all sides of an issue, and provide concise analysis has been critical in many policy decisions over the years. He has also served on an IT advisory committee to guide an upgrade to USHPA’s IT infrastructure and has provided expertise on numerous HR and finance policy decisions.
So it is with great pleasure that I award the Presiden-
ALAN CROUSE
TIKI MASHY
tial Citation to a model example of the kind of person that USHPA depends on to get stuff done. Working behind the scenes, not looking for glory or rewards, voluntarily doing the work that keeps free flight available to us all—Alan Crouse.
Rob Kells Memorial Award Tiki Mashy
One of USHPA’s most prestigious awards, the Rob Kells Memorial Award, can only be awarded to an individual or group once. This year, the award is presented to Tiki Mashy, who has shown continued commitment and service to the free flight community throughout her years of flying.
“Tiki Mashy has dedicated decades of her life to growing the sport,” said one nominator. “Aside from running a top-notch flight school program, Tiki has donated hundreds and hundreds of hours as an USHPA board member and as a member of countless committees.”
Tiki’s passion and dedication to the sport and the pilots make her a well-deserved recipient of this award. As one nominator said, “Tiki has been instrumental in bringing pilots into the sport through her flight school and mentoring existing pilots, helping them develop their skills in a safe progression. She has dedicated her considerable energy and determination to growing the sport despite any difficulties or obstacles she has faced. Tiki has served with distinction and remarkable integrity for years on the USHPA board of directors, helping to guide the association toward staying focused on what is best for the pilot members.”
Best Promotional Film Jem Moore
Awarded to the filmmaker(s) whose work is judged best by the committee, considering aesthetics, originality, and a positive portrayal. In 2023, this work was deemed to be “A Dream of Flying” by Jem Moore. The film offers a glimpse into the history of free flight and the formation of the longstanding Lookout Mountain Flight Park in Georgia. According to one nomination, “Jem produced an amazing documentary about the history of Lookout Mountain Flight Park in Georgia and its owner, Matt Taber. It’s a great promotional movie for the sport and deserves wide recognition.” If you have the opportunity to see the film, it’s well worth a watch!
2024 USHPA AWARDS
MAKE YOUR NOMINATION AT: ushpa.org/page/award-nomination-form NOMINATIONS ARE DUE OCTOBER 1.
PRESIDENTIAL CITATION - USHPA's highest award.
ROB KELLS MEMORIAL AWARD - Recognizes a pilot, group, chapter or other entity that has provided continuous service, over a period of 15 years or more.
USHPA EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE AWARD - Outstanding service to the association by any member or non-member.
NAA SAFETY AWARD - The NAA presents this award to an individual, recommended by USHPA, who has promoted safety.
FAI HANG GLIDING DIPLOMA - For outstanding contribution by initiative, work, or leadership in flight achievement.
FAI PEPE LOPES MEDAL - For outstanding contributions to sportsmanship or international understanding.
CHAPTER OF THE YEAR - For conducting successful programs that reflect positively upon the chapter and the sport.
NEWSLETTER/WEBSITE OF THE YEAR (print or webbased).
INSTRUCTOR OF THE YEAR AWARD - Nominations should include letters of support from three students and the local Regional Director. One award per sport per year may be given.
RECOGNITION FOR SPECIAL CONTRIBUTION - For volunteer work by non-members and organizations.
COMMENDATIONS - For USHPA members who have contributed to hang gliding and/or paragliding on a volunteer basis.
BETTINA GRAY AWARD - For the photographer whose work (three examples needed for review) is judged best by the committee in aesthetics, originality, and a positive portrayal.
BEST PROMOTIONAL FILM - For the videographer whose work is judged best by the committee in consideration of aesthetics, originality, and a positive portrayal.
Commendation David Beardslee
Since the early years of hang gliding, David Beardslee has quietly contributed to the advancement and safety of the sport. According to one nominator, “He might not realize how much he has contributed to untold thousands of beginner pilots over the decades. He does it almost unconsciously or unintentionally.” Over the years, he has worked as a mentor to the greater flying community, offering advice and voicing safety concerns when applicable. “He explained things calmly and logically and always with a touch of his special sense of humor. He told us and showed us how to fly safely, and I drank in the information,” said the nominator. Even today, David can still be found at his local sites offering advice to newer pilots. “For most days of his life, he has functioned as the de-facto safety director at whatever site he happens to be at that day. There’s no telling how many injuries he has prevented and how many lives he has saved through his efforts. I believe that he has no concept of the great contribution he has made to free flight. But I know. I’ve been watching him for 42 years.”
Commendation Max Marien
Spearheading change is never an easy path; acrobatics in paragliding is no exception. The U.S. lags behind other countries in this area of expertise; however, according to one nominator, “Max Marien is single-handedly spearheading the charge to grow the sport in the U.S.” Max has worked to organize a U.S.-based acro competition with both U.S. and international pilots, has established a $10,000 junior scholarship for pilots under 25 to train in acro, and has also sponsored a team of acro pilots to train and compete at even higher levels.
Commendation Spencer Balona
We all know how challenging it is to maintain site access and make the space somewhere pilots would love to spend time. According to one nominator, “Spencer has single-handedly started the process of breathing life back into the Dunlap flying site in California. His support for flying activities is exceptional, but his efforts in providing a great campsite at the LZ (complete with yurts, showers, BBQ pits, and a host of other amenities) deserve a sincere commendation. He is also available to take pilots up to launch and provide retrieves.” We always need more people like Spencer to keep our sites friendly and accessible.
Commendation Reavis Sutphin-Gray
There are times when we can take leaders in our community for granted. Especially when they’ve been in the game and helping advance the sport for a long time. “Over the last seven or more years, Reavis’s willingness to contribute his technical expertise in a variety of critical areas has made him an essential member of everything from coordinating rescue efforts (Kiwi’s especially) to X-Alps supporter (multiple times for Gavin and now Logan) to critical task committee member of nearly all competitions to competition weatherman to XContest Admin for USHPA and of course DJ extraordinaire at the closing party of many competitions,” said one nominator. “His positive impact on our organization and its members is incalculable, and his tech-savvy is unmatched. He is always a pleasure to work with and raises the bar in everything he does.”
Commendation Jabe Blumenthal
Securing land and maintaining a property for free flight
DAVID BEARDSLEE
MAX MARIEN REAVIS SUTPHIN-GRAY
is a huge feat, and Jabe Blumenthal made tremendous contributions to the sport by securing 1,200 acres of land known as “The Ranch” to be used for teaching paragliding. Another 1,000 acres are part of a public hiking trail system, and all 2,200 acres have been placed in a permanent conservation easement, so it can’t ever be developed. Jabe has also happily supported the schools that have operated at the private Ranch since 1995 (now used by Aerial Paragliding). “Without his financial support and significant time in securing, overseeing, and maintaining the land, these last 25 years of
pilots coming out of the schools would not have been possible. This award is a small token of gratitude to Jabe for his incredible support of our school and the sport of paragliding,” said one nominator. According to Jabe, “What I’m trying to promote, and model is not just support of paragliding (though I do love and support it) but the idea of large private land owners letting their lands be used by the public (or for wilderness protection) as much as possible and not for gain.” Thanks again, Jabe, for your contribution and support.
GOLD LEVEL PARAGLIDING SAFE PILOT AWARD
Joshua Ogborn awarded October 2023
BRONZE LEVEL PARAGLIDING SAFE PILOT AWARD
Sean Mathis awarded April 2024
The Safe Pilot Award can be awarded to any free flight pilot with a minimum of 100 safe consecutive flights. The level of the award correlates to the number of safe flights, with Bronze awarded for 100 safe consecutive flights, up to 5th Diamond awarded for 5,000 safe consecutive flights.
JABE BLUMENTHAL
Jon Lindburg: The making of a light wind legend
by Jade Chun
50 YEARS OF SOARING AND SINGING
: It’s been said that Jon doesn’t find the lift; the lift finds Jon. Jon Lindburg has been flying hang gliders since 1973, 50 years, virtually nonstop. He has logged more airtime than just about any pilot on earth. He can fly when no other hang glider pilot can, in winds so light that even paragliders have trouble staying up. He can handle strong winds, too—he just doesn’t enjoy it unless it’s smooth. His characteristic laugh can be recognized anywhere, and if you hear someone in the sky belting out a song, off-key, that would be Jon.
At the Point of the Mountain in Utah, Jon often sits alone, away from social gatherings, in sensory mode, looking for signs only he seems to be able to see. Other pilots watch him to get a read on conditions. At the South Side, if he is low, don’t launch! At the North Side, he often benches when no other hang glider can. He is a weather expert—more
accurate than public forecasters, from decades of experience and an uncanny sixth sense. Because he is so experienced and such a fixture at the site, Jon has been a mentor to beginning pilots and experienced pilots new to the area, touching the lives of countless people.
Jon is unbothered by cold and heat alike. Until recently, he had no high-tech clothes and would fly in bitter cold winter weather in worn-out sweats under jeans with a cheap jacket. He is an eternal optimist and a hard-working guy. He excels at his job as a car salesman (he is so obviously genuine!) and puts in long hours, yet gets plenty of airtime. What makes this man so different? How did he become the legend that he is?
Jon was born and raised near San Francisco, California. When he was 12, his family moved to Hawaii to be near his grandparents. At age 17, he and his brother, Guy, moved out of their parents’ house, found jobs, and camped on Makapu'u Beach. That was a pivotal moment, as that beach was where hang gliders landed! They were enamored.
Jon’s first flight was off a 300-foot hill. He never ran at the bottom nor used wheels; with a Rogallo, you could get away with that if you had a little talent. Back in those days, pilots sat upright on a small seat reminiscent of a children’s swing. There were no harnesses, just a strap around your waist. The whole contraption was tethered to the heart of the glider with polypropylene rope. Jon always loved music, so he fastened a tape deck to his upright, flipping tapes midair. He flew for hours at a time, many days a week, every month of the year, thanks to the constant trade winds coming into the islands.
In 1977, Jon and Guy moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee, to fly at Lookout Mountain. Now, without
1976 Jon Lindburg launching off Makapu'u in his Cumulus 5B. Photo by Mike Benson.
“Jon always loved music, so he fastened a tape deck to his upright, flipping tapes midair. ”
the consistent, reliable ocean breeze, Jon had to wait for cycles and wonder winds to get airtime. He spent the summer traveling with the competition circuit, learning to find lift all over again. That winter, the brothers drove across the country to fly at Torrey Pines in San Diego, California. It was like a baby Makapu'u, with airtime reminiscent of Hawaii. He fell in love with the place, knowing he would be happy there regardless of flying. Jon became obsessed with airtime and getting high in the sky. He had still been flying seated, but the newer gliders
were more tail-heavy and harder to launch, so he started flying prone. His skills skyrocketed after this switch. Flying newer gliders prone allowed him to be the benchmark at Torrey.
Jon loves the ocean and can read water like no other from sitting and watching at Torrey Pines for 17 years. The amount of information he can get from even a tiny reservoir is astounding. On the
1977: Jon Lindburg landing at Makapu'u Beach in his Olympus 160. Photo by Lani Akanoa.
2021: Jon Lindburg with his dog Shadow on his Wills Wing Falcon 195 at the Southside Point of the Mountain. Photo by Jade Chun.
1976: Jon Lindburg, Guy Lindburg, dog Frodo in Makapu'u landing area. Photo by Lani Akanoa.
days Torrey wasn’t soarable, the mountains called to him. He had to prove he could thermal and fly cross-country and wasn’t just an ocean pilot. On a memorable flight at Mount Laguna Fly-In, he launched from East San Diego and flew to Palm Springs over the no man’s land of the Borrego Desert.
Moving to Salt Lake City in 1994 was a game-changer for Jon. He could still work 50+ hours a week but now get a lot of flying time because here, the best air is early morning and late in
the day. The master of dawn patrol, he was often flown out by 9 a.m. In 2006, Jon retired his topless to fly a single-surface Falcon. It was life-changing: the set-up was faster and he could easily fly in lighter air, getting above the paragliders. He became more confident landing in strong conditions, and he was able to self-launch into stronger winds. All this expanded his airtime window. Jon needs to be challenged. Easy lift is not nearly as satisfying for him as when he has to work hard to get up. Gimme air is not his thing. Flying a tandem,
1978: Jon Lindburg flying seated with his tape deck in his Olympus 160. Photo by Guy Lindburg.
1990 Jon Lindburg at Torrey Pines with Wills Wing AT. Photo by Guy Lindburg.
1996 Jon Lindburg’s first day on his new Laminar topless glider at the North Side of the Point of the Mountain. Photo by Ron Almon.
both solo and with a passenger, was one of the few challenges left. Flying solo increased his airtime by allowing him to launch and stay up in even lighter wind. The paraglider crowds were never a problem for him, but now he was guaranteed to be above them all. And the bonus was being able to take up a companion when conditions were favorable.
At a fly-in at Marshalls in California one year, winds were light, and all of the nearly 100 pilots
who attended had floaty sled runs into the LZ—except Jon. He launched, found a thermal, climbed, and stayed aloft for an hour and a half! He was so high he had to do 360s and wingovers to get down and join the festivities. Someone joked he put helium in his tubes.
These days, Jon attends competitions to support the sport and see old friends. At the 2017 Dinosaur Meet in Colorado, day 6 was elusive thermals,
1988: Jon Lindburg setting up his Sensor Model C at Torrey Pines. Photo by Guy Lindburg.
1998: Jon Lindburg at the Dinosaur meet with his Laminar with tail. Photo by Mindy Wheeler.
2019: Jon Lindburg soaring alone at the Southside Point of the Mountain, dawn patrol. Photo by Jade Chun.
conditions where Jon could shine. He was the only sport pilot to get out of the start gate after a save so low that he had gotten out his landing gear. I passed many topless gliders on the side of the road while chasing him. He flew the entire course by himself and was so high he flew past goal.
At the end of the day, Jon values safety over winning or showing off. One day during the meet, he flew over goal where rotor had one pilot break an upright and another break his arm. Jon flew over the adjacent town and had a no-step landing in a big field next to the road.
In 2020, Jon found out the hard way that he had a genetic heart condition. He ran out of energy during a flight, crashed, and broke his arm. Several months later, just as he was starting to fly again, his doctor discovered the heart condition, and Jon underwent emergency open heart surgery. It has affected his ability to get to high altitude but has not swayed him from flying as much as possible at lower altitudes, joyfully singing his heart out.
Currently, his garage holds 14 gliders in various states of wear, including a brand new Sport 3 in the green and yellow colors of his collection. At almost 70 years young, if you see him deep in thought, he is most likely thinking about conditions and calculating the next time he can soar and sing. His dog Shadow sits loyally by his side, dreaming about running free at the South Side, chasing his beloved owner as he lands. It is a happy sight.
2019: Jon Lindburg launching solo on his Wills Wing tandem at Fort Funston, CA. Photo by Jade Chun.
2019: Jon Lindburg soaring above the paraglider crowds at the Southside of the Point of the Mountain. Photo by Jade Chun.
Accident Assistance Fund (AAF)
Members Helping Members in Times of Need
The AAF is the first initiative launched by the recently created Development Committee. The AAF will help cover medical and other expenses resulting from free flying accidents*. If you’re interested in helping your fellow pilots in times of need, please consider making a tax-deductible gift to the AAF. To kickstart the AAF, two generous members have agreed to donate $5,000 each, for a total of $10,000 in matching funds. This is an incredible opportunity to double the impact of your contribution to the AAF.
Scan QR code for more details on the AAF and how to make a tax-deductible donation.
* The AAF will only have access to funds donated by members and earmarked for the AAF. The AAF is not insurance and is not intended to be a replacement for insurance, but rather to help with insurance deductibles and unforeseen medical and other expenses in times of need. USHPA encourages all pilots to practice safe flying and stay current and maintain proper medical insurance coverage. Details of the AAF are available on USHPA’s website including eligibility requirements, application process, and fund management.
2023 RED ROCKS SKILLS FLY-IN
by Paul Richey
: I was looking at the Central Utah Air Sports Association (CUASA) website and considering signing up for the 2023 Red Rocks Fly-in when I saw that there would also be a Skills Fly-in a week later from October 9-14. I had previously been to a Red Rocks event in central Utah, and though I had several flights, I was intimidated by the big mountain feel and my lack of knowledge of the area. A low save brought this feeling home when I barely avoided landing in some forbidding terrain after taking the wrong line off the Cove launch. I had been a P2 pilot for several years but struggled
to build up flight currency and confidence after a bumpy start in my training, work demands, COVID restrictions, and taking two summers off to hike the PCT. Maybe this was what I needed to jump-start my flying.
The Skills Fly-In was a new event in 2023 organized by local, Stacy Whitmore. Stacy is a pioneer of Monroe area flying sites and has been president of CUASA for 17 years since its inception in 2005. In 2013, he organized the first Red Rocks Fly-in, which now hosts several hundred pilots each fall and includes the
Paul Gilbreath climbing above Cove showing the other three launches, the Sevier Valley, and Monroe in the distance. Photo by Paul Gilbreath.
XRedRocks hike-and-fly competition.
When asked why he decided to add another fly-in, Stacy responded, “I had been getting requests for a more beginner-friendly event, more like the early fly-ins. It is an event where we could introduce newer pilots to our big mountain sites, work on the basics of launch and landing skills with video review, build good members of the flying community by discussing principles in the Pilot’s Code, practice active flying skills using a flight simulator, and, most importantly, have a safe and fun week of flying.”
The basic daily format started with an 8:30 a.m. meeting to discuss weather, flying plans, and the learning goals for the day. Weather permitting, we would have a morning flight followed by lunch and classroom discussion, then a 3:30 p.m. meeting before a second evening flight. At the first morning briefing, pilots gathered around, eager to hear the flight plans for the day. But first, Stacy asked us to open our fly-in booklets to the Pilot’s Code of Conduct and to look at Article 7, which states:
BE PRESENT IN THE MOMENT: “Within the peace of your soul, your safety lies. All personal issues are suspended while flying. Be focused 100 percent on the task at hand. If internal weather is cloudy, don’t fly.”
This, along with other articles in the code, set the tone for the week, and several times, we were reminded of our responsibility to assess the tasks at hand, the risks involved, and our skill level for any launch or flight situation.
Monday, October 9, was a great flying day and the highlight of the week. A perfect west wind beckoned us to an early morning flight off the 11,171-foot launch on Monroe Peak, one of the highest free flight launch sites in the U.S. It is a 6,000-foot descent over 5.8 miles along a complex ridge line to the Canyon View LZ. During the 30-minute sledder, we were rewarded with stunning views of the distant Tussar Range, the Sevier Valley, and the stands of golden aspens below.
After lunch and a classroom video review of our Monroe Peak launches, we headed up to the launch on Cove. Cove sits 8,700 feet on the broad shoulder of the 10,365-foot Signal Peak and is a 3,300-foot descent over 2.5 miles to the LZ. It offers north, west, and south launches and is known for its epic evening glassoffs. Winds Monday afternoon dictated the somewhat challenging north launch, but a thorough site briefing and Stacy’s great coaching got us all in the air for a magical flight. There was lift everywhere, and it was easy to climb thousands of feet and stay up until sunset called us to land. This flight was a highlight of the week for me. I rocketed up to where I could look over the
Pilot Paul Richey (orange wing) and Mitchell Harris (red wing) heading out off Monroe Peak launch. Photo by Veronica Brown.
tops of Signal and Monroe peaks before a long glide over to soar high above the White Cliffs on the shoulder of Monroe Peak.
A strong Pacific storm made Wednesday and Thursday un-flyable. Still, the days offered extra time for classroom discussion of Monroe area weather and wind patterns, further video review, and flight simulator instruction.
Over the four flyable days, we made multiple flights off Cove, and we were able to experience all three launch sites, each with its different wind aspect and particular challenges. As we grew more familiar with
the complex mountain terrain, pilots began seeking out bits of lift and thermals, taking into account the effects of the sun aspect and wind direction. At our final briefing on Saturday, Stacy concluded the week with Article 2 of the Pilot’s Code: THE AIR UNITES US AS ONE COMMUNITY. He offered us a final reminder of the importance of not having an agenda and enjoying the company of like-minded souls without pushing the limits of our skills, the weather, or any other outside pressure.
Initial site briefing by Stacy Whitmore. Photo by Paul Richey.
Skills fly-in group photo on our final morning on Cove.
We left the fly-in not only as better pilots but also as wiser ones!
Fellow participant David Bixby summed up the fly-in like this: “For me, the Skills Fly-in was the perfect opportunity to further all the new skills and knowl-
edge I had learned in my P2 training. One of my most memorable moments was climbing to over 16,000 feet from an evening launch from Cove. I was cold but had the ride of my life. A sunset big-ears descent back to the warm skies around 9,000 feet was an experience I’ll never forget. Cruising into the manicured LZ, I had a smile as big as the Utah sky. There aren’t a lot of places or programs where P2s get a chance to do something like that. I’m grateful to Stacy, my fellow aviators, and the community for making this a tremendously educational and inspiring experience.”
I personally left Monroe with a new confidence and an increased skill level and felt richer for the experience. As I drove home, I kept thinking of my final flight off Cove. It was mostly a sledder, but as I cruised down the mountain, I saw a hawk coring a thermal ahead of me. I pulled in and joined it until it looked up and darted off in surprise. For the first time, I really felt like I was flying!
The 2024 Skills Fly-in will be held October 7-12. Visit the CUASA website for more information.
Pilot Kim Zollinger heading off Monroe Peak; the first flight of the Skills Fly-in. Photo by Veronica Brown.
Site Intros
by Julia Knowles
: Summer often finds free flight enthusiasts spreading their wings and traveling to new sites. Although I do love the cozy quiet of winter, there is magic in the arrival of longer days and an encouraging warmth to the air. As we pilots enter a new flying season, I would like to share some tips on site introductions for traveling pilots, mentors, and fledglings just leaving the nest of their school.
SEEKING OUT A SITE INTRO
Perhaps you are a new or visiting pilot, eager to get in the air to bag a flight already. Formalities on the ground take away from airtime. Not always. In fact, sometimes a site intro can increase your airtime by cluing you in on sources of lift or sink. Consider the steps outlined below to get the most out of your first launch. A good site intro increases your safety margin and can lead to more rewarding flights by providing local insights you will be glad to have while in the air.
Know yourself
The first, and sometimes most challenging, step is to be objective about your own competency. Before looking at a new site, pause to consider what type of flying is within your wheelhouse and what is still above your pay grade for now. Perhaps you have accrued hundreds of hours of coastal soaring, but mountain flying at high altitude is all new to you. Maybe you have never landed in a small, tight LZ before. It is natural, expected even, to seek opportunities for growth via new experiences. Just know where you stand so you don’t introduce too many new factors simultaneously.
I prefer to take on one new major challenge at a time: a new site, a first midday flight at a site, or a flight on a new wing I’m still getting to know. Consider having your own number in mind of how many new variables you can process simultaneously and easily. At a new site, it’s safe to assume there might be
hazards you have not anticipated on the ground that you could encounter after launching. Build that into your equation.
Do your homework
You can learn so much before arriving at a new site; the research process can be pretty fun. Have any of your peers flown there before? Ask them about their experiences—what was fun and exciting, and what surprised them about this site? Bonus points for any wild retrieve stories. Is there a local club that has compiled an online site guide? Check it out to absorb the key points that the locals choose to emphasize; the author has probably introduced more than a few pilots to this site.
Hop on Google Earth to get a lay of the land, noting things like trees or buildings that could cause rotor when launching or landing. What is the typical wind direction? Does it look like a long glide to make the LZ? Is the terrain simple (a single ridge, all the same height) or complex (gullies, ridges, and bowls where you could experience rotor or get pinned back by venturi)? With that in mind, how much of a safety margin should you build into your flight plan? There is no need to obsess over details here; just get a general lay of the land. Try to
identify one good thermal trigger and one spot you might need to watch out for. Come up with a good question or two to ask in person once you are on-site, and start monitoring the forecast to give yourself a baseline.
Find the locals
There are a few ways to get linked up with the local community for a site intro and some company in the air. Ask your instructor, mentors, or peers whether they could connect you with a knowledgeable local, or check online for contact info on the local club’s website. You can find a directory of USHPA chapters at www.ushpa.org/page/chapters ; there may be additional clubs in the U.S. that are not USHPA chapters, too. Many clubs or regions have chats on apps like Telegram or WhatsApp; see if you can plug in a few days before you arrive to absorb a bit of the culture and know what weather conditions you might encounter.
Once you have made contact, provide some brief context of your experience, such as how long you have been flying, where you typically fly, total hours of airtime, and what wing/glider you fly. This helps your local contact understand what information you will need and what conditions you might look to fly in.
Show Up
You have done your research, and it’s finally time to go fly! Wait … what if nobody else is there? To your eyes, conditions look good, so where the heck are the locals? If you find yourself in this situation, pump the brakes. There is typically a great reason that the locals
Local ace pilot Joe Stone takes flight on the tails of a visiting pilot at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in 2020, both assisted at launch by Mark the Beard.
Ella Gambel models good launch posture while offering a site intro to an eager pilot at the Point of the Mountain in Utah.
aren’t out and about, and sometimes it isn’t obvious to a new or visiting pilot’s eyes. Maybe folks are sitting it out because winds are forecasted to pick up significantly, or overdevelopment is imminent. Perhaps a forecasted shift in wind direction will cause dangerous rotor at launch. Microscale nuances often are not resolved in general forecasts; local institutional knowledge can be crucial to interpreting such quirks. Assume that there is more to the picture than you realize, even if you did your homework and think you have a well-developed picture. To put it in perspective, I’m still learning the subtleties of sites I have flown for nearly a decade!
Before you head up to launch, get eyes on your new LZ. Sometimes, I’m so excited to get in the air that bypassing this step is tempting, but it is always worth the detour. Assessing your LZ will build confidence and unlock bandwidth to focus on flying rather than becoming a source of anxiety or ground suck. If you are a newer pilot or have some pre-flight jitters, take time to walk the LZ. Find the ideal spot with the fewest obstacles and cleanest air while visualizing yourself
on final glide, coming in for the perfect flare. If you can picture yourself executing an effortless landing, it is much more likely that you will, in fact, do just that!
At Launch
You’re finally up at launch, and conditions feel great. Your local contact has given you an intro, pointing out bailout LZs and thermal triggers and hazards to avoid. It all matched what you expected to find based on the info you checked beforehand. You’re prepared with a straightforward flight plan that suits your current skill set and builds in a safety margin to accommodate the perceived complexity of the site. You talked through your flight plan with your local contact and got a positive reaction. Time to rock and roll!
When I’m launching a new site, I like to hang back and feel out cycles for 20 minutes or more before I lay out. This gives me a chance to feel out what I’ll be experiencing shortly in flight. Are there stronger, punchier cycles coming through every 10 minutes? Better push out front to start and triple-check my speedbar. Now, rather than being caught off guard, I
Locals kick off the flying season at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort a few years ago. The site is currently closed as the community works to fund insurance coverage.
feel confident and prepared with a plan. If gliders are already up, I can gain tons of information by watching them fly through different pockets of air. This can help me identify thermal triggers, sinky spots, and areas where I can expect turbulence. All of this synthesis on the ground frees me up to relax, enjoy, and absorb more while in flight.
Have Fun!
You have prepared yourself well; now go enjoy your flight! There is nothing quite like the awe of getting above a new launch for the first time and taking it all in from a bird’s-eye view. Learning a new site is both exciting and rewarding. Every time you line up a landing at a new LZ or judge glide without your usual reference points, you deepen your experience as a pilot. One flight at a new site is often worth a handful back at your familiar home site in terms of progression!
OFFERING A SITE INTRO
Providing a site intro to a new or visiting pilot can be incredibly rewarding. I enjoy these opportunities to see my home site through new eyes and, perhaps, be reminded of what I often take for granted. However, it also has the potential to feel burdensome without a good plan of attack. To offer an effective intro, I have found the following recipe to work well and
encourage you to craft your own before arriving at the hill with a new pilot. You can even practice on local friends (or your dog) to dial in your spiel beforehand!
Know your site
Good information is crucial to a good site intro. Ensure that you are familiar with the current status of your site: landowners’ rules, unique hazards at launch or in the LZ that could change over time, minimum rating requirements, bailout LZs, and so on. It helps if your local club or school has an up-to-date guide that you can share with new or visiting pilots ahead of time. Since things can change from one year to the next or from spring to fall, check to ensure you are current before you share info.
Sometimes, we operate on autopilot at sites that have become familiar to us. Recall your first flight here. What were you most focused on at the time? What do you wish you had known then? Is there an obvious reference point below which means it’s time to push out to the LZ? Key points might be so ingrained that you could forget to point them out in the field. Do a quick mental roundup before you have a new pilot standing expectantly in front of you!
Know your audience
Before you start delivering content, take a moment to
In the Tetons, the Curtis Canyon site sees a high volume of visiting pilots each summer.
consider who your audience is. What is the overall experience level of the pilot, and has any of their experience been at similar sites? Can they anticipate the local hazards, or are they relatively new to this style of flying? Have they flown almost exclusively in one area, or are they accustomed to traveling and sizing up new spots?
Since we aren’t all mind readers, I encourage you to ask a few introductory questions to get a sense of whom you’re working with. Your audience ought to substantially shape the actual content of your site intro. Asking questions has the added benefit of building rapport, giving the new pilot permission to seek clarifications or ask their own questions as needed.
Keep it simple
Once you get into the meat and potatoes, your actual site intro should take, at most, a few minutes. Your new or visiting pilot should already have the skillset required for this site; your job is to help them under-
stand the nuances. You are here to be a friendly face with a local perspective, not an instructor per se. If you find yourself needing 20 minutes to help this pilot feel prepared, you should both consider whether they might benefit from professional instruction instead.
Hit on a few key points specific to this site, keeping it straightforward and easy to recall. A new pilot has a lot to digest at a new site: an unfamiliar launch and landing zone, a community of pilots they may not know, and new sights, sounds, and surroundings which can be a lot to synthesize. Imagine yourself as a baseball pitcher, with your visiting pilot at bat. They are more likely to knock this flight out of the park if you lob them a few slow underhand “pitches” (key points). Make eye contact, toss out a pitch, and give them a moment to connect with it before you proceed to the next. Pelting them with dozens of fastballs might cause the pilot to miss your “pitches” altogether!
Preparing for a sunrise soar at a new site. Sometimes the anticipation is as thrilling as the flight itself!
Check for understanding
Once you communicate key points, give the pilot a moment to digest and ensure you’re all on the same wavelength. When you told them about the rotor zone behind that building near the LZ, were you both looking at the same building? Have they picked up on what’s important to know and why? A great way to check for understanding is to ask what their flight plan will be, from launch to landing. As they run through their flight plan, it ought to become clear whether they have connected with your “pitches.”
CONCLUSION
Flying a new site with a new community provides you with a broader perspective on our sport and how various pilots might approach challenges in different environments. It also exposes you to a range of mentors from whom you can glean bits of wisdom to carry with you to the next site. Take advantage of any chance to debrief with a local after landing; they may offer valuable insights on your flight. A quick thank you to the locals for their time is always great form, too.
Within our local communities, we naturally want to look out for each other and take pride in our home sites. Many have been hard-earned thanks to volunteers overseeing maintenance and working with landowners to ensure continued access over the years. Whether you are seeking out or offering an introduction, I encourage you to lean into the experience as an opportunity to strengthen connections and a sense of community within our sport.
Free flight is as unregulated as aviation gets, thanks to our FAR 103 exemption. It is our responsibility as pilots in command to be informed and current. Site intros should not feel like a burdensome hoop to jump through; in fact, they should leave us feeling more empowered to enjoy a fun new launch, hopefully alongside some new free flight friends if we are lucky. I highly encourage pilots of all ability levels to get out and explore some new sites this season anytime you have the chance!
The Lady Birds Fly South
An all-women’s XC clinic and tour in Colima, Mexico
by Pacifica Sommers | photos by Sarah Lockwood
: Just outside the picturesque town squares of Colima, Mexico, the participants of the Lady Birds All-Women’s XC Clinic and Tour stepped off the astroturf of the La Cumbre launch and into the sky. Known for friendly mountain and flatland thermals, easy logistics, good food, and proximity to the beach, Colima truly delivered.
The seven pilots attending the clinic were all P2s with less than 10 hours of thermalling when we ar-
rived in Colima, including one pilot who had learned to fly at a ridge soaring site and had never flown in thermic air. Throughout the week-long clinic and tour, pilots were able to set new personal bests for flight time and distance, with many of us flying our first-ever XC crossings.
Sarah Lockwood, an experienced XC and competition pilot as well as an entrepreneur and somatic coach, has been pushing for years to organize such
A stoked group of Lady Birds after our first team XC.
a clinic. She previously founded the Santa Barbara and Woodrat Women’s Fly-Ins, which are weekend events designed to bring together female pilots. This clinic represents the next step in the progression of skill-building for new women pilots.
“I’ve always created events and experiences that I wish I’d had as a newer pilot,” recounted Lockwood. “This was a dream tour and genuinely one of the best group flying experiences I’ve ever had!”
Lockwood was joined in leading the clinic by Galen Kirkpatrick, fresh from the podium in the Monarca Paragliding Open the week prior, where she won the women’s class and took third overall. Kirkpatrick is the current U.S. national champion and a former Panamerican champion. In guiding and coaching paraglider pilots, she is passionate about empowering students to achieve their goals. She uses her background in theater and improvisational comedy to bring humor and fun to the process.
The tour was offered through The Paragliding Academy (created by Ari Delashmutt), which shares the mission of helping pilots pursue personal growth, communication skills, and leadership through the challenge of paragliding. Ari has been running tours in Colima for many years and shared his knowledge of flying and of the town, local connections, and nearby attractions for seamless logistics.
Besides daily flying, the clinic included ground school workshops on essential topics in XC flying,
from executing turn angles in thermals to effectively utilizing instruments during flight. The leaders emphasized the importance of teamwork and communication in finding lift, ensuring safety, and coordinating efficient retrieves upon landing.
The clinic’s goals went beyond technical skills and included helping pilots grow in the sport as people, increasing confidence, and working through fear. The organizers fostered a supportive environment to establish lasting friendships that will strengthen the women’s flying community.
“I don’t manage and deal with fear the way most of my male pilot counterparts do,” shared participant Amy Krzyminski. “Spending time with other women pilots talking about topics that, quite frankly, are sometimes embarrassing and hard to bring up in a coed setting was fantastic. These conversations helped me to reframe my experiences into a ‘protective vest’ rather than something scary that happened to me. I also learned concrete ways to calm my nervous system when I start to feel overwhelmed or anxious in the air. This was monumental in changing how I feel when I’m flying; rather than this underlying squeeze of fear, I’m more able to relax, enjoy the view, and most importantly to me, at least, have fun.”
The unique atmosphere of an all-women’s group set this clinic apart. That is not to say that male pilots and coaches or mixed-gender groups cannot be supportive. However, before the clinic, I didn’t realize
Galen giving a briefing for the day on the large astroturf launch.
how hard I have to work to affirm, even if only to myself, that I belong in the typically male-dominated free-flight community. As female pilots, we do not often recognize that extra subconscious effort to fit in until we find ourselves in a group where that effort is unnecessary, and it just feels effortless.
“Part of the way through this trip I just felt this feeling of total support both on the ground and in the air,” added Krzyminski. “Like this sisterhood of pilots was all working together in a thermal, not just watching to see who was rising up faster, but supporting and celebrating everyone to rise up and be the best versions of themselves in the air and on the ground.”
Participant Michelle Chevalier agreed. “One of the most surreal moments of the trip for me was hearing someone in the sky shout ‘YES GIRL!’, only to look across a thermal as Sarah joined me—climbing together and working together to get to the top of lift. Having joined this group of ladybirds at a time when
I saw myself only as an intimidated imposter, I could not feel luckier for the support, mentorship, and quiet confidence I have found among them. As these dynamics continue to grow in paragliding thanks to those who intentionally foster them, I hope many others can be so lucky, too!”
The rare sense that we had nothing to prove allowed pilots to feel our feelings and fly accordingly. Sometimes, that meant celebrating pilots for decisions to take a rest day or land early. Sometimes, that meant pushing our limits and sending it to set new personal bests, celebrating the pilots with the longest flights of the day. As a result, we all witnessed substantial growth not only in our flying skills but also in our confidence and resilience. Throughout the week, pilots progressed from learning thermaling skills and techniques to making XC crossings over flatlands (a first for many of us). By the end of the clinic, we were encouraged not just to follow our guides but to make
Nothing better than being greeted in the LZ by an ice cream truck!
decisions and XC moves more independently. These flights laid a foundation for future progression in XC.
The whole group also brought an adaptable attitude. For a few days during the middle of the week, El Niño’s influence manifested in high clouds, leading to lighter lift. Undeterred, the group found alternative skills to focus on, improving through kiting or sledders on those days. We also explored more of the city of Colima and the nearby Pueblo Mágico of Comala in the evenings.
As the clinic drew to a close, new friendships were cemented, with plans to visit one another’s home flying sites and reunite at future fly-ins. Against the backdrop of whales spouting in the awe-inspiring colors of sunset at the beach, the final evening was a celebration, not just of individual achievements but of the collective triumph of the first Lady Birds All-Women’s XC Clinic and Tour in Colima—the first, hopefully, of many more.
Amy flying in front of the volcano.
Michelle, Galen, Martha, Shelby, Amy, Olivia, Sarah, Pacifica, and Haoxing.
Challenging the Mountain of God by
: “Frank, I have bad news for you,” alerted my Tanzanian mountain guide, Mathew, approaching me as I hiked down to the campsite. “You do not have permission to fly tomorrow.”
“What do you mean I don’t have permission? All of my permits have been filed and paid for!”
“The lodge radioed me that information. I’m sorry.”
I immediately sent an SMS via InReach Mini to my contact with Paraglide Kilimanjaro for confirmation. Known for their paragliding treks to the summit of Africa’s tallest peak, the outfit had been crucial in arranging logistics for this one-of-a-kind personal expedition, which included a flight off Tanzania’s only active volcano, Ol Doinyo Lengai (Mountain of God). Towering 6,300 feet above the valley floor at an elevation of 9,718 feet, Ol Doinyo Lengai is part of the Ngorongoro volcano chain along the Great Rift Valley, which crosses the southern border of Kenya into northern Tanzania. The region is best known for its concentrations of wildlife and diverse geology.
Frank Kraljic
As a teenager, I serendipitously learned about this mountain, flipping through a National Geographic magazine while waiting for a friend inside a coffee shop in Flagstaff, Arizona. Ol Doinyo Lengai is one of only a few volcanoes in the world where the rock’s melting point is cooler than typical basaltic lava. The crater floor is populated with short 20–40 foot tall flutes exploding mud-like molten rock rich in carbonatite that, when cooled, appears like tortured concrete. The sculpted result is a landscape reminiscent of early artist illustrations of the lunar surface. I promised myself I would visit this alien destination, and now, a couple of decades later, I made it, but with another purpose: to also paraglide off this active volcano. Or so I thought.
“Civil aviation is in place; it’s the wildlife authority that wants fees and paperwork,” said my contact. “If you fly, you risk being arrested on landing. We are pulling out all the stops and putting pressure on them to allow you to since your visit fees and an
aviation permit are in place.”
When I first thought of combining paragliding with this trek, I naively assumed that launching off of this mountain would not be a big deal to accomplish on the legal side. It’s not part of a national park, and it’s not exactly a tourist destination. The Maasai once made ritualistic sacrifices there, but that was some time ago. Although consistently active at a low level, the last major eruption occurred fifteen years prior in 2007. It coated hundreds of square miles with powder-like ash, turning the surrounding Lake Natron area into a dust bowl.
However, I now know that paragliding in Tanzania is a big deal. One flight, anywhere in the country, requires permits filed with local offices and the Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority, and the airspace must be cleared of traffic based on your intended flight time and path. All of which took weeks to arrange
“It’s landing in the Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority (TAWA) area that is the issue. Civil authority HQ spoke to wildlife authority, but no resolve. So sorry.”
“Can I land elsewhere?” I texted.
“You might make it to the east out of the area if your glide is enough. But that is into the wind. Weather on August 30 around 6 a.m. is east-southeast around 5kts gusting strong.”
The team and I started our ascent a couple of hours after midnight and summited five and a half hours later, shortly after sunrise. The air was calm—a contrast from previous mornings with sustained 25–30 mph surface winds. I was fortuitous in my date selection, finding a pocket of days to easily launch and land in manageable wind.
However, piloting Niviuk’s 18m Skin 3P, an ultra-lightweight single surface wing, posed another challenge: glide ratio. Even with a tailwind, there was no way I would pull off a 10:1 glide to exit TAWA’s jurisdiction, 11 miles to the north. Maybe with a 30 mph tailwind, but then I would have far worse problems. The sun had set, and I had finished dinner when I got the final word:
“Sorry, Frank. No permission … We advise you not to fly … Current fee they want to apply is more than
The volcano Ol Doinyo Lengai towers 6,800 feet above Lake Natron Road is the only active volcano in the Ngorongoro volcanic highlands in Tanzania.
Pilot Frank Kraljic traverses the inactive south crater summit scouting a suitable launch site. Photo by guide Mathew.
USD 3,000 for you to do a flight. We are not willing to agree to these kind of charges for paragliding, and further discussions are required.”
The southern Milky Way overhead was a persistent sight on that moonless night south of the equator. Village lights and campfires dotted the valley below, walled in by an escarpment delineating the Great Rift Valley— its plateau silhouetted by light pollution from distant Nairobi. I could have sat on the steep slope facing out from the crater rim and incited the illusion of being suspended in the air but instead chose to face inward. At night, lava bubbling inside multiple cauldrons emits a soft crimson glow that occasionally erupts onto the deck and fades away as it cools. One fissure, dormant during the day, is particularly energetic and sometimes violent sounding, like muffled fireworks over a boiling grumble. Like thermal cycles rolling onto a launch, active volcanoes shift their mood from quiescence to liveliness in cyclical periodic waves. During my time, Ol Doinyo Lengai preferred an active state post-dawn and post-dusk.
Watching the Earth come to life is not only visually captivating but a meditative experience as well. I had traveled 9,000 miles and spent thousands of dollars to get here, a destination I’d wanted to witness for half my life. Could I just be happy with being here? The conditions for flying are ideal. How can I pass on this opportunity? When am I going to find the time to come back? And even if I do, there’s no guarantee the wind will be right when I return. But if I do fly tomorrow, there’s the risk of getting fined thousands of U.S. dollars and arrested—that would be a story. Personal interests aside, paragliding would also put my guide, the lodge, and Paraglide Kilimanjaro in a difficult position with the government. There’s gotta be a way to make this work. The mountain finished exploding—time for me to retire as well.
Jupiter was the only obvious “star” remaining in the pre-dawn sky. Our campsite was nested at the bottom of a steep pit beneath a saddle connecting the active crater and an extinct peak. Even with its protection, one could hear the earth moving next door. My guide
Lake Natron guide Mathew takes a break on the steep hardened carbonatite western slope after four hours of hiking toward the summit.
greeted me as I exited the tent, “What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to fly.” I paused for dramatic effect. “But it depends on where I can launch. If I can launch to the south, I can use the mountain to block me from the rangers’ sight, then glide low to the north side of the base and meet you where we started the hike.”
“Okay, let’s go.” He was surprisingly enthusiastic.
A gentle 3–5 mph breeze accompanied the sun from the east-southeast with slightly stronger gusts. A launch in that direction would put me in direct sight of the ranger station. We hiked to the summit of the adjacent peak and walked its ridge from east to west, now facing the target LZ. The wind was behind my back and occasionally cross, wrapping around the cone.
This wasn’t going to work. Even if I launched into the wind undetected and hid behind the mountain (assuming nothing sinks me), at a 6:1 glide around the crater’s base, a suitable LZ could be problematic. That’s what I told myself, yet in reality, I didn’t want to chance the repercussions. We walked down. Three and a half hours later, I was sitting in a Land Rover, drinking my first Coca-Cola in years reading a final message from my contact.
“[We were set to go] with the exception of the wildlife authority trying to make lots of money under pressure and not wanting you to fly without
a ridiculous fee. We will sort it out. Lots of meetings. [We’re] sure it will be resolved in time. All these negotiations take time and speaking to the right people.”
Looking back, I wish I had flown, but that’s easy to think in hindsight. Flying off an illegal site without anyone knowing and escaping uncaught may seem like a thrill, but when authorities are watching and know who you are, that’s a different story. It could have put free flight operations in the region at risk and created problems for Paraglide Kilimanjaro. Walking away was the right move.
The truth is that sacrifices for adventure do not always equal success. But that is the experience of the journey. I could wallow in this expensive defeat, curse at the authorities for squashing my vision, and be bitter that others benefitted from my loss (about a year after my attempt Jake Holland, Tom de Dorlodot, and Horacio Llorens managed flights here), or accept that this is part of that journey, part of the adventure. For every flight, we sacrifice our time, money, and efforts with the aim of a safe and accomplished task, only to try it again and again, with failure or success. Hopefully, the conditions and parameters for future free flights in seldom explored territories like Lake Natron will be resolved. In the meantime, my friends and I look forward to sledding off Kilimanjaro in the near future.
Hornitos (small cones) inside the active north crater consistently erupt carbonatitic lavas—the only volcano on Earth to do so—which during the day appear like mud, but glow red at night.
Controlling PIOs on Hang Gliders by Richard Nakai
: After learning to hang glide in Santa Barbara, California and graduating from my Pacific Windcraft Vision to a Wills Wings Sport, my instructor warned me about the possibility of pilot-induced oscillations (PIOs). At high speeds, this glider may oscillate in roll, a common problem for pilots who recently leveled up to more advanced gliders.
The Problem
In Figure 1, you can see this key PIO moment. Notice the pilot is high-sided at peak bank angle (red), injecting high energy in roll when the wing is stationary and, thus, not actively opposing the pilot’s corrective action. When the wing is level rolling through at maximum rate (the 0-degree stick figures), the pilot is lagging behind and still providing some roll input that keeps the PIO energized, which is noticeable in all except the first instance at 0-degree bank angle. The pilot and wing are synchronized in roll motion. Think about it this way. When you’re pushing your child on the playground swing, you wait until your child is all the way back at “peak bank angle” and then you provide a push. You actually have to back off on
If you have never experienced or witnessed a PIO, you can find numerous YouTube videos of hang gliding PIOs to help you understand this situation. One thing to note is that they all have one thing in common—the pilot is high-sided at peak wing angle to bring the wing back to level. At this moment of maximum bank angle, the wing has paused its roll, so it has zero momentum, but the pilot is exerting maximum roll authority in an effort to level the wing. Counterintuitively, doing this actually feeds energy into the PIO. Of course, pilots do generally figure out how to control PIOs, but it can take some practice. Years ago, on a windy post-frontal, steep slope launch in Ventura, California, at The Avenue, I witnessed a pilot launch a Magic Kiss in 30+ mph winds. Instantly, he began to oscillate. Why? He was feeding energy into the PIO, just as described. Once he got close to the ground, his airspeed dropped, and the PIO resolved. You will read about this one solution a little later in the article.
1.
Figure
Figure 2.
how hard you push because at this point of “peak bank angle,” your child is not actively opposing you, as in the case of pushing early, before your child swings all the way back towards you. If you don’t back off on your push, your child will go weightless for a moment at “peak bank angle.”
The Solution
One obvious solution to killing these PIOs is to reduce your airspeed. This always works because hang gliders are designed to be roll-stable at trim speeds. However, there are times when you want to maintain high airspeed to clear terrain as when flying over a wind shadow of an upwind ridge or to penetrate upwind efficiently to that safe landing zone.
Before discussing the strategy to actively control PIOs, consider what the pilot does when flying straight and level between clouds. When turbulence bumps the right wing up, the pilot quickly weight-shifts right to level the wing but then recenters in the control frame before the wing levels out. The wing settles level to the horizon. Stabilizing a PIO requires very different thinking.
I have noticed that extreme PIOs seem to be two-dimensional actions in roll with negligible heading changes, especially that day at The Avenue. So, what must a pilot do to stabilize a swinging pendulum?
In Figure 2, you see the pilot centered in the control
frame, not high-sided, at peak bank angle. Shortly after that, the key position is just before the wing rolls through level when the wing’s roll rate is maximum (magenta). Here, the pilot applies maximum control input to slow down the wing’s roll rate. This can be counterintuitive because the pilot’s maximum control input is applied quite early before the wing swings up to its maximum bank angle.
Let’s go back to the playground. When your child is tired and wants to stop swinging, you move to the center beside your child. When they’re swinging past you at near maximum “roll rate,” you reach out and briefly slow them down, applying “maximum control authority” for just a moment. Do this a few times, and you will bring them to a complete stop. This same strategy is used to kill PIOs.
Let’s unpack the diagram a bit so that the pilot can use this playground strategy (Figure 3). The key point here is providing maximum control input quite early (magenta), even before the wing swings through level (0 degrees). Between peak wing bank angle (first stick figure) and this key point (third stick figure), the pilot hustles ahead of the wing, getting to the opposite side of the control frame as fast as possible (also fifth and seventh stick figures) to apply maximum control input. This begins to slow down the wing’s roll, but remember to keep your body rigid to apply control input to the wing. Once you’ve done your “parent” job of reaching
out and grabbing your kid, let the wing continue to roll past you so that you’re near the center of the control frame at peak bank angle. Now, hustle your butt to the opposite side of the control frame to do your “parent” job once again.
Applying maximum control input before the wing swings through level matches my experience. Some other experienced pilots have confirmed this key point to me. Give it a try away from terrain and at high altitude so that you can always reduce your airspeed to kill the PIO if things go awry. Remember that actual flying control won’t be this smooth, but hold the playground swing set metaphor in your mind as you practice.
Now, an experienced pilot will use punchy roll control to exert braking and then recenter in the control frame. There are YouTube videos of experienced pilots doing speed runs without any PIOs. You will see punchy roll control and recentering to keep the wing very well-controlled and glass smooth. When the pilot is very advanced, it is not obvious why the pilot is making control inputs because they are making inputs well before the wing even begins to roll, by feel and intuition only.
When a recreational pilot is just learning to control PIOs, the proper control input will be more obvious.
The bank angles will be larger and more easily viewable by GoPro. When debriefing after a flight, someone suggested that I could just grab the control frame and hold my body rigid at the start of PIOs to avoid exciting the PIO and allow it to dampen. This works. However, it is also wise to develop skills in killing PIOs for instances when you need to regain control positively.
Can the wing PIO under different conditions? Yes. If you roll onto final approach and slip the turn, when you come out of the turn, your airspeed will be high, and you can be subject to PIOs. I’ve experienced this dropping into a tight LZ. If you are on tow, you can induce PIOs. During truck or static line towing, with a high angle of attack to gain altitude and turbulence bumping your wing, if you exert maximum roll control at peak bank angle, however small the angle, and delay recentering, you can induce PIOs. In normal flight, you can also experience PIOs when the control bar is pushed out beyond trim. The glider may get bumped and begin to roll, and then side-slip into a high-speed PIO.
Practice killing PIOs at high altitude, and you will be prepared for these other situations. The more skills we have, the more safely we can explore this glorious, wide-open wonderland.
Figure 3.
Inversion Layers
by Dennis Pagen
: In flight, we encounter lots of the good stuff: thermals, convergence, glass-offs, streets, glories, wonder winds, and friendly pilots, among others. But we also have to contend with the bad: turbulence, cloud suck, thunderstorms, venturis, gust fronts, sinkholes, and, of course, inversions.
Inversion layers are a sordid fact of the aerial lifestyle. In some areas, they are much more common than others, but we all should be familiar with them in order to maximize our performance or at least understand why we bounce off a seemingly impenetrable ceiling. So here, we offer a brief take on the layer cake that makes up our atmosphere.
HEAT ON HIGH
Here’s a five-star generality: the air above us typically gets cooler as we go higher. Most people have driven up a mountain or perhaps gained altitude in their wing and felt this cooling. It is expected. Some of the causes for this cooling effect are less density the higher we go, so there are fewer molecules retaining energy; almost all heating of the atmosphere comes from the ground in the form of solar radiation; heat in the air radiates and the higher we are, the easier it is for this radiation to escape upwards, rather than being reabsorbed. In fact, the average cooling around the world is 3.5 degrees Fahrenheit per 1,000 feet of altitude gained. But
this average is rarely what we see, for local conditions, cloud cover, and air mass movement bring different amounts of cooling. In fact, on a reasonable thermal day, the atmosphere cools off at least 5.5 degrees Fahrenheit per 1,000 feet. But we don’t need to obsess about the numbers because the cooling of the air varies daily with location, cloud cover, and pressure systems. We only care if the air is stable or unstable (unstable means thermals are possible).
But here is where inversion layers disrupt the party like a helicopter parent. An inversion layer is a layer of air in the atmosphere where the temperature gets warmer or cools less than desirable as we get higher. In other words, the normal state of things are inverted, which is why we call them inversion layers. The thickness of such a layer can be less than 100 feet or more than 1,000 feet. The temperature increase may be a degree or more, or it can simply be less cooling than in the air below or above the layer. For example, consider a thermal rising in air cooling at 5.5 degrees/1,000 ft.; then it climbs into a layer where the temperature drops only 4.7 degrees/1,000 ft. If this layer is thick enough, the thermal will slow its climb and eventually stop.
From the above, we should understand that inversion layers tend to suppress thermals, which is why they are listed above in the bad category. They can also be
(left) Photo 1: A tumultuous turmoil of clouds at the inversion layer. (right) Photo 2: layers in the wave clouds over Mt. Rainier, Washington.
associated with shear layers and spreading clouds, as we will visualize below.
INVERSION GENESIS AND EXODUS
There are four common ways in which inversion layers form. First, when a warm front moves into an area, the approaching warm air mass is less dense and gets lifted up over the cooler air it will eventually replace. As a result, a layer of warmer air sits on top of the cooler air below—an inversion. Secondly, warm air on one side of a mountain chain influenced by higher pressure can flow across the mountains and ride over top of the cooler air on the other side—an inversion.
The third method of inversion formation is when a fairly narrow valley fills with cool air sliding down the mountain slopes at night. In the morning, the valley will be filled with air that is much colder than the gen-
eral air mass, and we have an inversion. Several times, I witnessed this process at Tennessee’s Sequatchie Valley. We had a good northwest-soaring day followed by a clear night. Sometime in the middle of the night, I awoke to find the wind blowing 15 to 20 mph out of the back as the air dumped into the valley like Niagara Falls. This went on for hours, and the next day, despite the good soaring forecast, it wasn’t until the early afternoon that the solar heating eventually produced thermals that could break through the valley’s inversion. In fact, it is quite normal for the ground to radiate heat in the night and thus cool the air above it. This surface cooling creates what we call a ground inversion. A ground inversion is the main reason we usually have to wait until late morning or early afternoon for good, reliable thermals to develop.
The final of four inversion generators is thermals.
Almost all the heat in the atmosphere comes from the sun heating the ground, which in turn heats the air immediately above it. When the ground layer of warm air gets thick enough or warm enough, it mixes upward, thus spreading heat from the ground up (which is why it tends to be warmer at ground level than aloft). The most efficient way to spread heat upward as quickly as possible is through climbing blobs of warm air, which we call thermals.
We mentioned before that thermals climb until they hit an inversion layer, but let’s assume there isn’t one. In an area that is moist enough, thermals climb and cool as they expand until they hit the temperature of surrounding air that turns the water vapor in the thermal to water droplets, forming clouds. In general, all the cumulus clouds formed by rising thermals have their bases at the same height. As a result, for as many hours as thermals rise, they transport heat upward and drop it off at about the same level. Thus, we can have ground heat concentrated aloft, and a day or two of this process can create an inversion layer. Note that a considerable amount of heat energy is released when water vapor condenses (the latent heat of condensation). Also, while the cloud exists (before it evaporates), the sun heats it.
When a thermal gets stopped by an inversion layer, their combined moisture can make the air humid enough to form a cloud. This cloud will build up laterally until it covers much of the sky. This is a condition we call over-development (OD). An inversion above the cumulus layer usually stops vertical development and is one of the main reasons thunderstorms do not appear on good, moist thermal days. We should also note that thermals transport more than just heat upwards—dust and water vapor get carried aloft as well. These particles will absorb the sun’s radiation much more than clean air, so the heat of radiation is captured and distributed at the layer where the thermals stop.
Now that we have a picture of what causes inversion layers, let’s see how they are dispersed. One of the most common ways inversion layers disappear is simply by fronts and new air masses moving through the area and wiping the slate clean. A new
air mass—especially a cold mass—can replace the old, tired air with a fresh mass ready to produce thermals again (and perhaps gradually go through the process of inversion layer creation outlined above).
Another way inversion layers disappear is when they exist in high-pressure systems. High pressure often sets up after a front passes because it is high pressure that impels fronts along. We know air gradually sinks in a high-pressure system, so the inversion layers in an air mass dominated by high pressure sink as well. After a few days, an inversion layer can sink to the ground and disappear.
The final way to dissolve an inversion layer is to have dry ground with good solar heating, producing strong thermals that bust through the inversion layer and continuously mix the air with cooler air both above and below the layer. If the mixing is great enough, the inversion can disappear or spread out vertically while getting less intense.
SEA BREEZE
A special case of our inversion classification is a sea breeze. For pilots flying along the coasts, the sea breeze is an almost daily familiar occurrence. Briefly put: cool water next to warmer land creates a surface flow from water to land and a counter flow aloft from land to sea. These flows are accompanied by a slow rising of air over the land and a broad sinking of the air over the
cooler water. The air at the surface moving onto the land tends to be very stable for several reasons: the entire air mass is warmed and made more stable by compression, the bottom is cooled by contact with the sea, and evaporation humidity helps the sun heat the entire mass more uniformly because the water molecules scatter the sun’s heat rays all around.
The result of a sea breeze is to suppress thermal rise; even though a thin layer or air can be heated at the surface, any thermal breaking off will slow and disperse in the stable air. The cool, stable air of a sea breeze can push inland and act like a small cold front, lifting the warmer air it is replacing. But unlike a true cold front, the cool replacement air is stable and shackles thermals to the ground.
Pilots familiar with flying coastal sites—Torrey Pines, California; Cape Cod, Massachusettes; Mt. Ste. Pierre, Canada; Stanwell Park, Australia; Wilderness, South Africa, and many others—know how smooth, steady, and thermal-less the sea breeze can be.
In other areas, the sea breeze can move in later in the
day and shut down thermal soaring. Often, Elsinore in Southern California has a sea breeze front moving through that induces pilots to launch just before it arrives. In the World Meet in Turkey (for both hang gliding and paragliding), we were shut down like clockwork by three o’clock due to the sea breeze moving in from the coast along a broad river valley. In Greece near Thermi (east of Thessalonica), the mountains were above the sea breeze layer, so we could thermal soar to our heart’s content, but once we got below about 1,800 feet AGL, we sank through smooth, stable air to the ground. The same was true in the Los Angeles basin when flying from Crestline and in Grenada, Spain. The sea breeze often suppresses thermals as you get close to the coasts of the Delmarva and Florida peninsulas, where we have many competitions and free-flying experiences.
WHERE TO FIND THEM
If you fly in the East (U.S. east of the Mississippi), you don’t have to look for inversion layers—they’ll find you.
Inversion layers are commonly associated with frontal movement and high-pressure systems, which the eastern U.S. enjoys (or suffers from depending on how wet or dry it has been). Often there are multiple inversion layers at different layers as shown in Figure 1. In the arid West and extreme South, fronts usually just do a toe tap, then move on. In fact, in the arid areas of the Owens Valley, California; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Lakeview, Oregon; and Chelan, Washington, I have never encountered an inversion layer. Perhaps they occur occasionally at those sites, but we have had thousands of competition flights at all of them, and I don’t recall inversion horror stories. On the other hand, in the hot and arid areas of Greece and Spain (somewhat close to the sea), I have encountered inversion layers that significantly affect flight performance. In Algodonales, Spain, an inversion layer allowed the meet winner to excel and become World Champion. As a side note, more humid areas, such as Florida, North Carolina, the northeastern U.S., Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Japan, and France, tend to have lids on the lift due to cumulus cloud formations. Cloud base is as good as an inversion at stopping your climb. During our post-cold front long-distance flights in the East, we usually don’t encounter inversions, but those good conditions only last a few days.
HOW TO FLY IN INVERSIONS
We have written about flying with inversions in the mix in books and articles, so we won’t get too detailed; the technique remains the same. First, perfect your weak thermal flying skills. This perfection not only means being able to turn flatly and fly as slowly as possible while still maintaining good control, but also learning to move your centering position and tighten up on a better little core. Second, learn to turn more tightly in general while thermaling to remain in the best core. This latter practice can be done in almost any thermal and tends to take a pilot a couple of years to perfect, although competitions or a thermaling/cross-country seminar can accelerate matters. Outside observers can help you visualize how steep you are turning. Third, it is important to know when you hit an inversion layer so you can go into “inversion mode.” Then exercise Patience (capital P) and struggle with each passing lump of lift.
Here is the payoff: being able to turn slowly lets you maximize your climb rate in weak lift. Often, a thermal will slow its climb as it nears an inversion. Then, once you have reached the inversion, it is critical to start turning tighter. The reason for this action is that a thermal entering an inversion will often break apart and pare down to only the best small core. If you wish to rise through the inversion, you must stay within this core. If there is a different wind velocity in the inversion, the core may suddenly drift more. Thermal drift is easier to follow when turning tighter. As the thermal breaks apart, it often becomes turbulent, so you need good control to wrestle with the thermal. A steeper bank results in a faster stall speed as well as other cardinal speeds, so you have better control. When flying, the typical signs of an inversion are a slowing of the climb and an increase in turbulence. Besides the breaking apart of thermals, there can be shear turbulence if the inversion layer represents a different air mass moving with different velocity. In at least one case, I recall hitting strong turbulence every time I reached about 500 feet above the mountain. Finally, all pilots went down to land since we couldn’t climb much. Photo 1 from the day shows a tumultuous turmoil of clouds at the inversion layer.
Once you climb through the inversion, which may be a few tens to hundreds of feet thick, you should notice the turbulence getting much less, and the thermal getting wider, smoother, and stronger. In fact, I have found thermals above an inversion to be very easily worked once they reform and consolidate together. But just because you are breathing easier and have survived through one inverted layer doesn’t mean you can go to the moon. As we have seen, there can be multiple inversion layers, but that’s life in the big sky. Just keep on plying your skill as best you can and learn with every flight. Photo 2 shows layers in the wave clouds over Mt. Rainier, Washington. They look like pancakes without the maple syrup. They are moisture layers turning to clouds as they are lifted, but moisture layers often are inversion layers, as the moisture is carried aloft in the process outlined above. Note that in the photo, the wind is flowing from right to left. The upslope winds are producing cumulus cap clouds, but these clouds are not towering in the stable air.
YOUR INVERSION STRATEGY
Perhaps the easiest way to deal with inversion layers is to bounce up against them, recognize them, yoyo below them, and then go home when you’ve had enough. The better approach (in this author’s bumbling opinion) is to fight to climb into them with the techniques outlined above. Perhaps you will only climb up an extra 50 feet or so, but you are learning to stay with a thermal tampered and hampered by an inversion. With time and experience, you should be able to climb higher and higher into an inversion and eventually bust through one. I’ll be the first to admit that there are plenty of times when an inversion is too strong or too thick to conquer, but there are plenty of times when you can triumph. Such a feat can be one of the most rewarding in flying.
For those who really want to put out the effort (which should include competition pilots), you can
look at the daily soundings for the temperature profile, or lapse rate, near your site and flight time. Then, you note the intensity and thickness of the inversion and see what happens when you give it your best effort. In that manner, you will learn what type of inversion you can penetrate successfully. Eventually, you will have a good idea of when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em. Wasting time trying to penetrate or even get close to an inversion will not get you as far or win you a good place in a competition.
New Online training!
Of course, most pilots don’t compete, but still, trying to outwit an inversion is a lot more fun than simply flying back and forth polishing the knob. Once you triumph over an inversion layer you will be eager to do it again and, eventually, consider them as more of a challenge than a challenger. Maybe they won’t go from totally bad to good in your log book, but perhaps you’ll tolerate them with affection like a bad dog. USHPA is excited to announce a new partnership with Skygear Hub to deliver USHPA training material at glidertraining.org
This online course fulfills the 8-hour in-person ground school requirement. Spend your valuable time on the hill practicing, not studying! Also includes P2 checklist and flight log tools for tracking your progress, and a student management portal for instructors.
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Que Chevére!
95 kilometers in Valle de Cauca by Douglas Dillon
: During the winter, U.S. pilots have three choices: hang up the cape until spring, throw on extra layers and pretend they’re having a good time, or go to a place where the weather is warmer. In my case, as a low-airtime pilot living in New York City, the third choice was an easy one. I was going to chase hours in Piedechinche, Colombia. Little did I know that this slice of paradise would give me one of the most unforgettable flights of my life.
Upon landing at Cali Airport, I was greeted by James Ramirez, a local professional tandem pilot in Piedechinche and one of the trip organizers. He brought me to the Siga La Vaca Hotel to meet his partner, Tom McCormick, an exceptional South Jersey-based pilot who has been traveling to Piede chinche for over a decade. The two of them wel comed me into a wonderful group of pilots from around the globe who embraced me as a newcomer. One of the first things Tom emphasized to me was the level of caution somebody should take in the first 48 hours of flying at unfamiliar sites. As a new P3 with stoke to spare, I humbly obliged and spent the first two days flying closer to launch and the LZ, taking in the immaculate weather and scenery of the Cauca Valley.
Conditions on the third day looked like any other: near perfect, with a slight breeze. The sun beamed over the green landscape as we rode to launch, where pilots eagerly plotted the beautiful lines they would carve into the sky. During breakfast, Tom and a handful of pilots had been chatting about going big and punting it up the valley as far north as the day allowed.
After greeting the site owners and triple-checking all our equipment, the group geared up for launch. I had no plan of flying any tasks and wanted to take this week in Colombia to maximize my airtime so I could work on my thermal navigation. I clipped in and made my pre-flight check, then took off right before noon on my Gin Evora to sniff out the first
John Murphy (upper left) flying a line in the foothills.
Photo by Douglas Dillon.
Approaching Zarzal. LZ is the large field sprinkled with pom pom shaped trees. Roldanillo can be seen in the distance to the left. Photo by Douglas Dillon.
climb of the day. Tom took off second, followed by fellow pilots in the group, John Murphy and Dan Evans.
After the first big climb in front of the launch, I saw Tom, John, and Dan beginning their transition north. I couldn’t resist myself and joined the pack. As a pilot on a lower B-wing, my main priority was topping out every climb to the base before making my transitions to preserve as much of my height as possible. I wasn’t nearly as quick on glide speed as my seasoned compatriots on C- and D-class wings. However, when it came time to transition, I wasted no time and stepped on the gas. This flight was my
unanticipated introduction to team flying. As we spread out 20–50 meters from each other, we sampled a much wider column of air, making our search for thermals much easier.
At 1:30 p.m., the team waved past Buga, a town with elbow-like topography that causes anabatic air to split off into northerly and southerly directions with help from the daily El Pacifico. This tailwind helped us pick up our average speed, putting us over Tulua at 2 p.m.
Until the Tulua turnpoint, the team followed a line tracing the mountains and the foothills. Upon passing Bugalagrande, however, the flying became
much more technical. The once-sunny mountains to our east were now cloud-covered, and blue holes over the foothills impeded our visual aid. Since our chosen line had done us well for the past 50 kilometers, Tom, John, and I stuck with the line tracing the foothills while Dan decided to run towards the mountains. After reaching my maximum altitude of the day, I looked down at the clock; it was 3:53 p.m. Directly below the clock was my map with a turnpoint labeled Zarzal (our goal) in bold blue letters. I let out a few joyful expletives before refocusing and trying to fly with maximum efficiency.
I got cozy steering the C-risers, trying to catch John and Tom, who were preoccupied cutting into the headwind with their sharp wings like a hot knife through butter. However, I suddenly flew into a pocket of sink that tanked my precious altitude. I quickly scanned the air for any sign of upward lift and, to my delight, spotted a single Gallinazo Negro (black buzzard) steadily climbing over a bone-dry farm field between me and Zarzal. I tucked my head down, hid my arms behind my risers, and tried to grab any bit of rising air that was left. Fifteen minutes of scratching later, I was finally within the final glide of Zarzal. The El Pacifico wind strengthened as I began shedding altitude over the chosen LZ, and my ground speed dropped to 5 kph. It wasn’t until I was 100 meters above the ground that I realized I was landing in a field inhabited by the biggest bull I had ever seen, which I carefully avoided.
Following Tom and John, I began my final approach, and 95 kilometers from launch, I touched down after 5 hours and 35 minutes. I immediately unclipped and ran over to my colleagues to congratulate them on the incredible day we had just had. Not even two minutes into packing up, a familiar wing began descending into the LZ: Dan had emerged victorious from his trip to the mountains. After a few high-fives and selfies, we realized we needed to find a way back to Siga La Vaca. Upon
shuffling through a fence and a backyard, we discovered a pickup truck parked in front of a townhouse. After checking that the truck could fit all of us, Dan approached the homeowner, Juan, to ask about a potential ride. A few phone calls and Google translations later, Juan agreed to give us a ride; his wife even made us empanadas. In the meantime, we entertained the local children in the neighborhood with parachute mini figures we had packed in our harnesses to spread the joy of free flight.
After loading the pickup with four worn-out pilots, Juan trucked us back south through the valley. One tiring ride later, we stumbled out of the truck and headed to the restaurant for dinner and a beer to celebrate. We asked Juan to join us, but he declined, so we all paid him and gave him a warm handshake. The subsequent days were spent trying to match that incredible flight, which couldn’t be topped. On my last day, it rained for the first time after a monthlong drought due to El Niño. Regardless of the unfair but much-needed rain, I was stoked to have left Piedechinche with 30 more hours and a few fun stories. During the long journey back to New York City, I felt an enormous sense of gratitude for the Colombian people and their love for the community. Furthermore, I felt grateful for the fellas snoring beside me on that truck ride back from Zarzal. Free flight is only half the fun without the support and companionship of the free flight community.
Tom McCormick flying toward a large cloud in the hopes of finding a climb. Photo by Douglas Dillon.
Post Landing selfie in a cow pasture in Zarzal (Left to Right): Dan Evans, Tom McCormick, John Murphy. Photo by Douglas Dillon.
Fly-in with a Mission Virtual Sky, Real Training by
: The other day, I decided to try a downwind/uphill landing on the training hill at my local mountain site. I flew upwind, turned to base, then dove my hang glider back toward the dirt mound, practicing keeping my eyes up and body relaxed. I came up a bit shorter than I anticipated, pushed my hands forward to flare before the glider was level, and watched one wing rise while the other dipped toward the earth in an imminent crash—but no problem. I paused the game and reset the glider a few hundred feet above the LZ for another try.
This is possible because of a virtual reality hang gliding simulator called Freeflight Experience (FFE). Creator Thomas Low brings together his background as an aeronautical engineer with his experience as a hang glider pilot since the 1970s, aerobatic competitor, and hang gliding instructor into a realistic flight simulator he’s been developing since 2021.
For Low, the simulator has four purposes: helping current pilots practice and advance their skills, training new pilots, keeping older or non-current
Erika Klein
pilots active in the community, and attracting new people to the sport. Handheld controllers let players mimic the motions used to control real hang gliders (alternatively, you can set up a control frame and play in an actual harness), while intricate glider physics and detailed atmospheric models create a lifelike soaring experience. You can even get a feel for flying different gliders.
“The flight dynamics are extraordinarily well modeled with high fidelity to the differences in flight characteristics between Falcons and T3s,” says Steve Pearson, who served as the chief design engineer and managing partner at Wills Wing from 1977 until 2022.
Put this together, and you get all the practice you could want with no driving, no setup, and no risk. Low continues to improve the simulator, but for Southern California-based Hang 4 pilot Nate Hallahan, “It’s already realistic enough that the normal flying you do in real life feels natural in the sim in most respects.”
Pro pilots can benefit, too. “FFE helps to keep my
At Coupe Icare 2023, the Fédération Française de Vol Libre Comité National Delta displays Freeflight Experience. Courtesy of the French Hang Gliding Federation.
head in the world of hang gliding, thinking about where to find the next lift (watching clouds as I circle), looking for hawks or other gliders, and comparing speed to fly-to-climb rates,” says 10-time U.S. national hang gliding champion Zac Majors. I asked Majors and a few other pilots how they’ve used the simulator so far.
Use FFE for…
Exploring sites before trips: FFE can give you a preliminary view of launch, the LZ, likely thermal spots, and bailouts at new sites. The game offers over 40 sites (including several international locations), with more on the way. Northern California pilot Soham Mehta, Hang 4, has used FFE to prepare for flying trips and competitions in New Zealand and in Monroe, Utah. “Being a new country and on a rental glider, I thought it would be wise to simulate a few flights before going there,” he says. “Flying the simulator does help build confidence for real flying, especially when used strategically.”
XC and competition flying: Whether you’re new to cross-country flying or want to explore new routes, FFE can help. “They say it’s difficult to ‘leave the nest,’” notes Greg Lloyd, a Hang 3 pilot who’s used the simulator to fly XC from his local site in Ontario, Canada. “[FFE] helps users experience their first XC flight and break down the walls of the unknown.” Hallahan, too, uses the game to push harder on XC flights than he typically would. “I’ve also been seeking out other land outs that I would normally never consider, or even come across,” he says. Majors appreciates the ability to use vario apps in the simulator to set tasks and looks forward to using the simulator for friendly virtual races.
Instruction: “I’ve already heard firsthand of instructors using [FFE] as a teaching aid and as a precheck for judgment,” says Hallahan. I can confirm this as well. Recently, a newer pilot visiting my local site (Crestline in Southern California) used the
simulator with his instructor as part of a site intro and reported that the experience helped him feel more prepared. After mentioning the pilot while talking with Low, he added, “I’m really excited by the potential for schools to teach year-round with students that are distant, keeping them engaged and excited about the sport.”
Experimenting with new techniques: Try new landing approaches or aerobatics in a simulator first, risk-free. I got the idea to try the simulated downwind/uphill training hill landing from Hallahan, who calls it “pulse-pounding” even in VR. Low also plans to add features like drogue chutes and already offers aerotowing at certain sites in FFE. The simulator’s handy “teleport” feature lets you reset the glider for multiple tries without redoing the entire flight, maximizing your training time.
Thermaling practice: In all honesty, thermaling has always been one of my weakest flying skills, and I never really knew how to improve it. Even FFE was frustrating at first because—even when I toggled the view to make thermals visible—I’d still fall out of lift exactly the same way I have in real life. Instead of ending up on the ground, with the simula-
The view from the “pilot” playing the simulator at Coupe Icare 2023 to draw in passersby. Courtesy of the French Hang Gliding Federation.
Tips to get started with FFE
Use a suitable gaming system: Currently, you’ll need a gaming computer, a VR headset, and a fast Internet connection. Low is working on offering a standalone VR headset version and exploring additional ways to increase access.
Manage motion sickness: Dizziness and nausea can be common even if you don’t usually experience motion sickness. Try playing the game in short intervals, using third-person instead of first-person view, holding the auto-fly function (right trigger on the controller) if the glider is out of control or oscillating, and start by setting the game to headset-only leaning controls to reduce movements from your hands. If you start feeling sick, stop playing until later. Over time, your tolerance will likely increase.
Follow a progression: Just like in real hang gliding, you don’t want to immediately jump off a mountain on a topless glider. Start with the built-in tutorials to learn to control a virtual single-surface beginner glider, then progress to ridge soaring sites like Fort Funston and Point of the Mountain to refine your controls (and reduce your chances of motion sickness) before heading to thermaling sites and higher performance wings. Reach out if you need help: Low is happy to answer questions and is seeking feedback to make the simulator even better. If you have an issue or an idea, let him know!
tor you can just keep practicing (including teleporting yourself into position above thermals as many times as you’d like). Low designed thermal bubbles and columns to mimic reality in their shape, drift, and interaction with the weather conditions and terrain. “The thermals may not be 100% accurate to how they may be at a site, but the way they are generated is close enough that you could reasonably
expect to find them where you do in the sim,” Hallahan observes.
Understanding flight computers: FFE lets you practice using a variety of vario features, including setting and following tasks. You can also run apps like XCSoar on your smartphone and display it in VR, a function Hallahan has used for practice. “You can’t do this any other way on the ground, and it’s not safe to try to learn while flying,” he notes.
Committed to improvement
FFE already offers many tools you can use to improve your flying, but it’s not perfect. “The weak points are the same as any other sim: you cannot feel physical forces,” says Hallahan. Motion sickness is a common issue that may deter you from the game, but—like me—you can likely overcome it with practice. You may also encounter bugs, like the time I came in to land at Andy Jackson Airpark, flared near the cone, and promptly fell underground. (That particular issue was fixed with a reset.) There’s room for other improvements too, and Low is ready to implement them. “Thomas is very responsive to emails, suggestions, and critiques, and he clearly wants to make this the best that he can,” Hallahan says. Some current features were added as a result of Hallahan’s own feedback.
Train with a simulator
Flight simulators may increase your skills, confidence, and safety, and I encourage you to try one, whether it’s FFE ($70 at freeflightexperience.com; $50 for USHPA members until the end of 2024 with code: ABREAK4PILOTS), another simulator, or a combination. The sailplane simulator Condor 2 (starting at $60 at condorsoaring.com) is another game I’ve found helpful for practicing thermaling, XC, and landing approaches, and it supports sites currently unavailable in FFE. I’ve only played those two simulators, but some other options include Glider Sim (https://store.steampowered. com/app/1422940/Glider_Sim/) ($25 on Steam/ Meta Quest VR) for paragliding and hang gliding and Microsoft Flight Simulator (starting at $60 on Steam) for sailplanes and powered aircraft, with a
third-party hang gliding add-on you can download online (free widget at thehangglidingfiles.com).
For Low, a simulator like FFE is a way to improve safety while drawing people to the sport—and, at its core, sharing a deep love of hang gliding. “I’ve gone back to my hang gliding memories, like having a hawk pull up and hover below me or seeing my glory on a cloud,” Low says. “I’ve tried to sneak in those peak moments to reach people and strike a nerve with the same ‘oh my god’ experience.”
BUYERS SHOULD SELECT EQUIPMENT THAT IS APPROPRIATE FOR THEIR SKILL LEVEL OR RATING. NEW PILOTS SHOULD SEEK PROFESSIONAL INSTRUCTION FROM A USHPA CERTIFIED INSTRUCTOR. USED HANG GLIDERS should always be disassembled before flying for the first time and inspected carefully for fatigued, bent or dented downtubes, ruined bushings, bent bolts (especially the heart bolt), re-used Nyloc nuts, loose thimbles, frayed or rusted cables, tangs with non-circular holes, and on flex wings, sails badly torn or torn loose from their anchor points front and back on the keel and leading edges. USED PARAGLIDERS should always be thoroughly inspected before flying for the first time. Annual inspections on paragliders should include sailcloth strength tests. A porosity check isn't sufficient. Some gliders pass porosity yet have very weak sailcloth. If in doubt, many hang gliding and paragliding businesses will be happy to give an objective opinion on the condition of equipment you bring them to inspect. BUYER BEWARE.
CALENDAR
The event calendar shows all USHPA-sponsored events including sanctioned competitions, ACE events, board meetings and instructor, admin, or towing cliniccs. For student cliinics, tours, fly-ins, and more check the Classified listings.
* Sanctioned events pending approval.
JUL 23 > USHPA REMOTE BOARD MEETING > The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. (MT)online via a Zoom conference call, and all members are invited to attend (remember to register by the deadline). Many members have expressed an interest in better understanding how USHPA operates, who makes decisions, and the organization’s financial picture. Come to a board meeting and find out! Registration deadline: July 22, 2024 at 5 p.m. (MT); registration link: https://www.ushpa.org/page/online-board-meeting
JUL 30 > USHPA REMOTE BOARD MEETING > The meeting will be held online via a Zoom conference call at 6 p.m. (MT), and all members are invited to attend (remember to register by the deadline). Many members have expressed an interest in better understanding how USHPA operates, who makes decisions, and the organization’s financial picture. Come to a board meeting and find out! Registration deadline: July 2, 2024 at 5 p.m. (MT); registration link: https://www.ushpa.org/page/online-board-meeting
* SEP 1-6 > RED ROCKS WIDE OPEN > Reliable weather. Big Air. Bigger vistas. Five launches that take different wind directions. HUGE XC potential through some of Utah’s most incredible natural wonders. Welcome to the Red Rocks Wide Open! This is an USHPA National Championship series Cat-2 event that promises strong conditions and long tasks that take advantage of deep, tall mountain ranges, and high-desert flatlands. Participants should be very comfortable with flying in strong thermals at high altitudes. Oxygen is highly recommended (tank refills will be available for $10 each during the comp and practice day). Systems are available to buy and rent. Garmin InReach or other satellite tracker with messaging capability is mandatory. For more information: https://www.usparaglidingcompetitions. com/red-rocks-wide-open-event-information/
NAA Encourages pilots of all levels of experience to set records. Dozens of records are established each year. Know the rules before you fly.
Your FAI Sporting license must be valid.
Your Official Observer must not only be a member of USHPA, they must be independent and not be perceived to have a conflict of interest.
Initial notiication of a record claim must be filed via the NAA web site within 72 hours of the attempt.
Learn more at naa.aero/records
SEP 24 > USHPA REMOTE BOARD MEETING (TENTATIVE) > The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. (MT) online via a Zoom conference call, and all members are invited to attend (remember to register by the deadline). Many members have expressed an interest in better understanding how USHPA operates, who makes decisions, and the organization’s financial picture. Come to a board meeting and find out! Registration deadline: September 23, 2024 at 5 p.m. (MT); registration link: https://www.ushpa.org/ page/online-board-meeting
NOV 19 > USHPA REMOTE BOARD MEETING The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. (MT) online via a Zoom conference call, and all members are invited to attend (remember to register by the deadline). Many members have expressed an interest in better understanding how USHPA operates, who makes decisions, and the organization’s financial picture. Come to a board meeting and find out! Registration deadline: November 18, 2024 at 5pm (MT); registration link: https://www.ushpa.org/page/online-board-meeting
CLASSIFIED
Rates start at $10.00 for up to 200 characters. ALL CLASSIFIEDS ARE PREPAID. No refunds given for cancellations. More info: ushpa.org/page/magazine-classified-advertising
HAWAII > PARAGLIDE MAUI > Call Paul Gurrieri for information about flying on Maui. Our school offers beginner to advanced instruction, year round. It takes 10-14 days to get your P2 license. +1 808.874.5433 paraglidemaui.com
NORTH CAROLINA > KITTY HAWK KITES > The largest hang gliding school in the world, teaching since 1974. Learn to hang glide on the east coast's largest sand dune. Year-round instruction, foot launch, and tandem aerotow. 1902 Wright Glider Experience available. Dealer for Moyes, Wills Wing, and North Wing. Learn to fly where the Wright Brothers flew, located at the beach on NC's historic Outer Banks. Also visit our NH location, Morningside Flight Park. +1 252.441.2426, +1 877.FLY.THIS, kittyhawk.com/hang-gliding
NEW HAMPSHIRE > MORNINGSIDE > A Kitty Hawk Kites flight park. The northeast's premier hang gliding and paragliding training center, teaching since 1974. Hang gliding foot launch and tandem aerotow training. Paragliding foot launch and tandem training. Powered paragliding instruction. Dealer for Moyes, Wills Wing, and North Wing. Located in Charlestown, NH. Also visit our North Carolina location, Kitty Hawk Kites Flight School. +1 603.542.4416, www.flymorningside.com
VIRGINIA > BLUE SKY > Full-time, year-round hang gliding instruction, scooter towing, platform towing, powered harnesses, part-time aero towing, part-time paragliding, custom sewing. Wills Wing, Moyes, Icaro, Swedish Aerosport, Woody Valley, +1 804.241.4324, www.blueskyhg.com
PARACRANE TOURS 2024 > Paracranetours 2024. Veteran guide Nick Crane leads paragliding tours and spectacular flying in the tropics of Costa Rica in February and the Alps of Europe in September! Small groups allow maximum flexibility to fly the best sites in the best conditions. Pilots and non-flyers love our tours! www.paracranetours. com nick@paracrane.com
THERMAL/WINGLISTICS CLINIC: AUG 30, 31, SEPT 1, 2024 - $650 Thermaling efficiency. Reading terrain features for thermal triggers and reservoirs. Reading & understanding cumulus cloud formations & what they tell us about the type of thermals that are feeding the cloud types that may not be necessarily advantageous for thermalling. How to “work” cloud base. The best launching & landing techniques to use during thermic conditions. Learn your wing’s language and more. Contact Ken Hudonjorgensen at Twocanfly@gmail.com or +1 801.971.3414.
THERMAL/WINGLISTICS CLINIC: JULY 5-7, 2024 - $650 Thermaling efficiency. Reading terrain features for thermal triggers and reservoirs. Reading & understanding cumulus cloud formations & what they tell us about the type of thermals that are feeding the cloud types that may not be necessarily advantageous for thermalling. How to “work” cloud base. The best launching & landing techniques to use during thermic conditions. Learn your wing’s language and more. Contact Ken Hudonjorgensen at Twocanfly@gmail.com or +1 801.971.3414.
SITE PIONEERING/MT FLYING CLINIC: AUG 3, 4, 2024 - $550 How to safely pioneer a mountain flying site, fly in the mountains, analyze the safety and potential for any particular flying site and quickly and appropriately plan the best approach to a safe landing zone. Weather tendencies, patterns and considerations. Contact Ken Hudonjorgensen at Twocanfly@gmail.com or +1 801.971.3414.
SITE PIONEERING/MT FLYING CLINIC: JULY 27, 28, 2024 - $550 How to safely pioneer a mountain flying site, fly in the mountains, analyze the safety and potential for any particular flying site and quickly and appropriately plan the best approach to a safe landing zone. Weather tendencies, patterns and considerations. Contact Ken Hudonjorgensen at Twocanfly@gmail.com or +1 801.971.3414.
Ratings
H1
H2
H2 4 Kaley Brinkerhoff TN Scott Schneider
H2 4 Collin Ireton TN Scott Schneider
H2 4 Dain Ross OK Tiki Mashy
H2 4 Jacek Schloemer FL James E. Tindle
H2 5 Enrique Arriaga OH Scott Schneider
H2 5 Christian Alexander Dittmar Greaves WI Scott Schneider
H2 5 Nicolas Alexander Dittmar Greaves WI Scott Schneider
H3 2 Daniel Grimshaw CA Anthony Tagliaferro
H3 4 Bill Buckwalter NC Malcolm A. Jones
H3 4 Eric Casey AL Matthew Taber
H3 5 Sidney Ordog OH Chair Safety and Training Committee
H3 5 Rex Zink MI Malcolm A. Jones
H4 2 Gary Satterfield CA Chair Safety and Training Committee
H4 3 Daniel Garcken CA William C. Dydo
H4 3 Norman Krohn CA William C. Dydo
H4 4 Mark Wayne Bailey OK Chair Safety and Training Committee
H4 5 Alexandre ARAPOGLOU ON Robert Skinner
H4 5 Thomas Hallock IL Tiki Mashy
P0 4 Jose sanchez FL Jay Whiteaker
P1 1 Jaxzel Aragon WA Christopher J. Pyse
P1 1 Emily bernhardt AK Chandler Papas
P1 1 Charles Mawby WA William Purden-Jr
P1 1 Deborah Moseley AK Christopher Grantham
P1 1 Darren Rust MN Alex Peterson
P1 2 Kody Dangtongdee NV Chandler Papas
P1 2 Brent Langlinais CA Jeffrey J. Greenbaum
P1 3 Lora Cook CA William Purden-Jr
P1 3 Fanny Fridlander CA Max Leonard Marien
P1 3 Cathryn Henning CA Max Leonard Marien
P1 3 Timothy Lee CA Jordan Neidinger
P1 3 Priya Patel CA William Purden-Jr
P1 3 Chris Regan CA Max Leonard Marien
P1 3 Priya Saran CA William Purden-Jr
DIRECTOR NOMINATIONS
Directors are the cornerstone of USHPA. They develop policy to support USHPA's mission while representing our members in the sports of hang gliding and paragliding. We’re seeking individuals who can see the big picture, are willing to try new things, and have the ability to understand and work for all our pilots, regardless of any individual affiliations.
DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE who is motivated to help with the protection and growth of free flight? Someone who can create and communicate goals and then follow through? Please nominate them for the BOARD of DIRECTORS of USHPA. You may also nominate yourself! (Sitting directors needn't be re-nominated).
Director requirements include:
• Participate in bi-monthly board meetings via teleconference.
• Actively collaborate with committees.
• Represent USHPA members, both regionally and nationally.
USHPA welcomes and encourages your participation in this process. We also encourage members with unique viewpoints (such as women pilots, younger or collegeage pilots, instructors, etc.) to run and contribute their valuable perspective to the organization.
Find information about incumbent candidates and submit your nomination BEFORE SEPTEMBER 1st at ushpa.org/page/call-for-nominations
P2 2 Nachuan You CA David Oddy
P2 3 Robert Bennett CA Rob Sporrer
P2 3 Matthew Bielke AZ Rob Sporrer
P2 3 Athena Bradburn CA Jordan Neidinger
P2 3 Charles Callender CA Jay Whiteaker
P2 3 Jimmy Capra CO Christopher Grantham
P2 3 Tina Chen CA Jay Whiteaker
P2 3 Tim Cole CA Rob Sporrer
P2 3 Chad Condon CO Jay Whiteaker
P2 3 Ryan Dossey CA Jay Whiteaker
P2 3 Claire filliat CO Johannes Rath
P2 3 Louis Graup CA Christopher Gulden
P2 3 Sarah Kaneria CA William Purden-Jr
P2 3 TANNER LESLIE AZ Chandler Papas
P2 3 Ovedio Lujan NM David W. Prentice
P2 3 Alexander Martino CO Christopher Gulden
P2 3 James Mauerman CA William Purden-Jr
P2 3 Remy Ogden CO Gregory Kelley
P2 3 Brian Quittner CA Christopher Gulden
P2 3 Dakota Rawlings CA Rob Sporrer
P2 3 Jeff Robinson CA William Purden-Jr
P2 3 Behzad Sanikhatam CA Hadi Golian
P2 3 Eric Schweisberger NM T Lee Kortsch
P2 3 Stephen Sorensen CA Nathan Alex Taylor
P2 3 Gosse van der Meer AZ Chandler Papas
P2 3 James Voss CA William Purden-Jr
P2 3 Troy Wilson AZ Chandler Papas
P2 3 Cassie Wilson AZ Chandler Papas
P2 4 Ryan Beale SC Nathan Alex Taylor
P2 4 Michael Boisvert FL Steven Taylor Couch
P2 4 Nickolas Conde FL Charles Chuck E. Gordon
P2 4 Bruce Hale TX Dale Covington
P2 4 Jennifer Ouyang NC Johannes Rath
P2 4 Bruce Trout TN Joshua Winstead
P2 4 AMANDA TUCKER FL David W. Prentice
P2 4 Dalvo Villela FL Marcus V. Santos
P2 4 Quanshuo Wang GA Joe D. Hutton
P2 4 Brad Williams VA David W. Prentice
P2 5 Rick Brown NY David Oddy
P2 5 Andrew Butts AE Jonathan Jefferies
P2 5 Stephen Cavill WI Jonathan Jefferies
P2 5 Irfan Cinel MA William H. Gottling
P2 5 Clay Couturier MI Joshua Winstead
P2 5 Christian Eckhardt VT Andy Macrae
P2 5 Paul gibson MI Christopher Grantham
P2 5 Zachary Gordon CT Jay Whiteaker
P2 5 Ashley Hefner MD Chandler Papas
P2 5 Colin Hodsdon MA Joe D. Hutton
P2 5 Gabe Holm MA John E. Cady III
P2 5 Benjamin Kornblum NY Chris Hoyte
P2 5 Zachary Manor WI Dale Covington
P2 5 Nicholas Mckeage MI David Dexter Binder
P2 5 Shawneen Michaud NH Salvatore Scaringe
P2 5 Greg Ogrinc OH Christopher Gulden
P2 5 Bryan Pan IL Robert Black
P2 5 William Soto NJ Juan Fernando Molano Madrid
P3 1 David Bixby MT Brad Hill
P3 1 Matt Braun OR Brad Hill
P3 1 Cory Brown SD Rob Sporrer
P3 1 Kory Cain AK Scott Alan Amy
P3 1 Landin Hayter WA Patrick Johnson
P3 1 Ryan Jaussi WA Pete Michelmore
Take your ratings and expiration date everywhere you fly. View from the Members Area section of the USHPA website. Print, trim, and store in your wallet. Great for areas without cell coverage. Always available at www.USHPA.org Save the PDF on your mobile device for easy reference.
P3 1 Curtis Knapp OR Jeff Shapiro
P3 1 Bronson McKinley WA Jonathan Jefferies
P3 1 Jason Motyka AK Scott Alan Amy
P3 1 Roy Taylor AK Dale Covington
P3 2 Olivia Bettaglio CA Robert Black
P3 2 Richard hensser UT Chris W. Santacroce
P3 2 Vikram Pratap Singh Raj CA Jeffrey J. Greenbaum
P3 2 Abhinai Srivastava CA Jesse L. Meyer
P3 2 Bethany Lynn Taylor CA Jesse L. Meyer
P3 2 Patrick White CA Robert Black
P3 3 Sandra Acres CA Brian Howell
P3 3 Mohit Athwani CA Emily Wallace
P3 3 Mike Bannister CO Johannes Rath
P3 3 Okan Birinci CA William Purden-Jr
P3 3 Maximilian Carr CO Johannes Rath
P3 3 Jason Gollan CO Christopher Garcia
P3 3 Scott Hatlen CA Emily Wallace
P3 3 Patricia Jaburg CA Rob Sporrer
P3 3 Travis kool CA Dale Covington
P3 3 Joel Maguire CA William Purden-Jr
P3 3 Matt Marcoux CO Johannes Rath
P3 3 Sean Mathis AZ Charles (Chuck) Woods
P3 3 Joseph McIntosh CA Max Leonard Marien
P3 3 Ethan Nyeste CO Brian Doub
P3 3 Bradley Penoyer CO Dustin Miller
P3 3 Scott Rights CA William Purden-Jr
P3 3 Josiah Stephens CO Kelly Myrkle
P3 3 Samantha-Elise Tennant AZ William Purden-Jr
P3 3 Vanessa Tiburcio CA William Purden-Jr
P3 3 Tyler Tworek CO Brian Doub
P3 3 Edward Zhang CA Max Leonard Marien
P3 4 Bruce Arrington NC Austin Kasserman
P3 4 Sam Cook TX Rob Sporrer
P3 4 Alex Juneau LA Chris W. Santacroce
P3 4 Diego Neira GA Thomas McCormick
P3 4 Wyatt Parker LA Max Leonard Marien
P3 4 Mike sainsbury GA Pete Michelmore
P3 4 Renzo Scheidema GA Alejandro Albornoz
P3 5 Daniel Andrews MI Nathan Alex Taylor
P3 5 Sam ashton-fraser BC Christopher J. Pyse
P3 5 Kyle Barbour NY Brian Howell
P3 5 Jim Black NY Rob Sporrer
P3 5 Urs Braun CA Jeremy Bishop
P3 5 Rene Caissy QC Chandler Papas
P3 5 Tony Diehl NH Calef Letorney
P3 5 Roger Espinal NY Thomas McCormick
P3 5 Dylan MacRae AE Jeremy Bishop
P3 5 Ryan Pacholski IL Jaro Krupa
P3 5 Hector Reyes CT Thomas McCormick
P3 5 Robert Skinner NY David Oddy
P3 5 Alexander Zou NY Jonathan Jefferies
P4 1 Alexander Berry WA Matt Senior
P4 1 Seth Brothers WA Matt Senior
P4 1 Daniel Cusick MT Andy Macrae
P4 1 Robin Dittrich WA Robert Black
P4 1 Oliver Edward MT Johannes Rath
P4 1 Lewis England MT Andy Macrae
P4 1 Alex Merk HI Paul Gurrieri
P4 1 Marcel Monaghan HI Pete Michelmore
P4 1 Lee Neale ID Randall Shane
P4 1 Skyler Pinion OR Charles Martin
P4 1 Keal Pontin HI Pete Michelmore
P4 1 Stephen Teller WA Matt Senior
P4 1 Seth Tucker OR Kelly A. Kellar
P4 1 Chieh Yu HI Pete Michelmore
P4 2 Doug DeGeorge CA Robert Black
P4 2 Caleb Harris UT Chris W. Santacroce
P4 2 Tammie Kim CA Christopher Grantham
P4 2 Janica Lee UT Christopher Grantham
P4 2 Dominic Montagu CA Christopher Garcia
P4 2 Jeremy Pottenger UT Max Leonard Marien
INSURANCE
ADV INST PG 3 Christopher Garcia CA Rob Sporrer
TAND INST PG 3 Christopher Garcia CA Rob Sporrer
ADV INST HG 1 Doyle Johnson MN Paul Voight
PL TECH1 HG 1 Doyle Johnson MN Paul Voight
PL TECH2 HG 1 Doyle Johnson MN Paul Voight
ST TECH1 HG 1 Doyle Johnson MN Paul Voight
ST TECH2 HG 1 Doyle Johnson MN Paul Voight
TAND INST PG 4 Felix Figueroa VA Blake Pelton
TAND INST PG 3 Shad Preston CO Gregory Kelley
TAND INST PG 3 Anton Antonov CA Hadi Golian
ADV INST PG 2 Ken W. Hudonjorgensen UT Gregory Kelley
TAND INST PG 2 William Trevor Murchie UT Blake Pelton
BAS INST PG 5 Zoe Sheehan Saldana NY Kari L. Castle
ADV INST PG 3 Logan Walters CA Rob Sporrer
TAND INST PG 3 Logan Walters CA Rob Sporrer
TAND INST PG 1 Joshua Phillips MT Blake Pelton
BAS INST PG 2 Rachelle McEwen UT Dale Covington
TAND INST PG 3 Ernesto Martinez CO Gregory Kelley
ADV INST HG 4 James E. Tindle FL Paul Voight
BAS INST HG 4 James E. Tindle FL Paul Voight
TAND INST
TAND INST
TAND INST
4 James E. Tindle FL Paul Voight
4 Julio Vega FL Brad Hill
4 Julio Vega FL Brad Hill
2 Daniel Kelley CA Hadi Golian
TAND INST PG 5 Brian Faenza NH John J. Gallagher
2 Kevin R. Hintze UT Chris W. Santacroce TAND INST
INST
INST
TAND INST
2 Kevin R. Hintze UT Chris W. Santacroce
2 David Peck UT Blake Pelton
2 David Oddy CA Robert Black
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PHOTO BY ANDRIA LEA
A Morning in the Cornfields
by Siamak Tavakoli
: As the first light of dawn breaks over the horizon, casting a soft and golden hue on the world below, there is an undeniable sense of magic in the air. Morning in the corn fields during the spreading season is when nature and human ingenuity come together in perfect harmony, creating a spectacle that is nothing short of excellent.
Spreading season is a crucial time for corn farmers when they work tirelessly to ensure a bountiful harvest. It is also a time when the fields transform into a canvas of vibrant green, a testament to the potential of nature’s bounty. This time of year, when the corn stalks stand tall and proud, is marked by a unique and enchanting phenomenon—the airplanes that take to the skies to aid in distributing vital resources, such as fertilizers and pesticides, across the vast expanse of cornfields.
These airplanes, with their distinctive hum of propellers cutting through the crisp morning air, symbolize human innovation. Their flights are meticulously planned and coordinated to ensure the cornfields receive the nutrients
and protection they need to thrive. As the airplanes soar above the fields, they create mesmerizing patterns against the backdrop of the corn stalks, their wings glistening in the early morning light.
But the excellence of this morning doesn’t stop with the airplanes alone. It is also the time when paraglider pilots gather in the fields, ready to take flight. These adventurers embrace the freedom of the open sky, and they come together in the spirit of camaraderie. Amidst the cornfields, paraglider pilots meet and greet, sharing stories of past flights and their love for the exhilarating experience of soaring through the air.
What makes this morning exceptional is when the paragliders and airplanes cross paths, both equally aware of the other. As the paraglider pilots prepare to launch from the ground, their wings unfurl, catching the morning breeze. Simultaneously, the airplanes, having dropped their payloads over the cornfields, descend close to the ground. The sight of these two contrasting forms of aviation meeting in the golden light of dawn is nothing short of breathtaking.
With their graceful and slow movements, the paragliders seem to dance in the sky. They maneuver with skill and precision, creating a stunning juxtaposition to the speed and power of the airplanes. This meeting of human-powered flight and modern aviation technology showcases the endless possibilities when humanity’s dreams and the natural world converge.
On this beautiful morning, a sense of unity prevails as the paragliders and airplanes coexist in the same airspace. It’s a reminder that in our pursuit of progress and innovation, we must also cherish and respect the natural world that sustains us. The excellence of this morning in the cornfields during the spreading season is a testament to the wonders of nature, the heights of human achievement, and the ability of both to coexist in perfect harmony, creating a moment of awe-inspiring beauty that will forever be etched in memory.
