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

M1 Two 1 foot altimeters • 0 to 20,000 feet and AGL • Analog varia readout -1700 to +1700 fpm Average Vario readout • Audio vario • Selectable audio sound • Volume control Feet or metric selectable Variable vario sensitivity • Temperature readout • Low battery indicator Auto flight timer • 128 flight memory Duration High altitudes High rate of climb/sink • Accumulated totals year warranty

•I •I I res Electronic compass Automatic direction finder 3 altimeters Peak value recorder ( 100 flights) Yorio dynamic filter Analog vario to :t: 2400 fpm 5000 fpm Digitol vorio to Average vario l to 60 sec TE compensation Adjustable stoll olorm BoromettH' Thermometer Battery check (life 200 hours) Feet of metric Real time dock Upgradeable flosh memory 2 Yeor worronty Optional airspeed probe Optional hong gliding mount Optional vario holder

1) 1

ntents (USPS 0 17-970-20 - ISSN 0895-433X)

16 Hang Gliding Interviews: John Stokes kY Jim (Sky Dog) Pfllmieri

T he pilor who soars wirh rhc birds.

22 Torrey Pines To Little Black by Hurchinson ?mom A new Southern California record and the Torrey sccrer.

30 Landing Strategies And Courtesies - Part II © 200 I by Dennis Pagen

Turbulence from rip vortices, crossing winds and switching winds.

34 The Flytec Championship by Connie Bailey flnd Steve Kroop One of the most impressive meets in U.S. history. in several categories.

40 Product Review: The Brauniger IQ Sonic by Mark "Foiger" Stucky A look at this miniatu re variomerer.

Columns lncident Reports, by Bill Bryden ...........6 Wi.og Tips, by Rodger Hoyt ................ 15 Product Lines, by Dan Johnson ......... 55

)U NF 2001

Departments Airmail ........... ............ ............................4 Calendar of Events .......... ..................... 14

Classified Advertising ....................... ... 44 Index co Advertisers ............................ .54

Dear Editor, T have learned tbar GPS systems are now illegal in Russia without a permit. If you try to bring a GPS with you into Russia you may be breaking the law. If yon sell a GPS to Russian pilots you should make sure they arc aware of this new law (apparently enacted in 1999). I am told that this law was necessary in order to fight crime in Russia. Patricia Ormsby 'fokyo, Japan

hospitality and interest in keeping us happy was fantastic. Although the flying was the main excuse to go, we also visited d1e Mayan ruins of Copan, hiked in the jungle at Pico Bonito, and spent a week swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving on Guanaja Island. l fonduras is an excellent place to be in the middle of winter. If you arc interested in taking Gustavo up on his fine offer and wam info about what to expect, feel free to contact me at billarras@hotmail.com.

Bill Arras Redmond, OR

Dear Editor, Most of the rime you see the letters in the mag and never hear about the outcome or resolution of the problem. Fortunately, we have a great story ending for you all concerning the "E" in Lake Elsinore, California. After asking for letters to save the "E" I got a whopping two responses. But never mind, good news anyway. The company thar was supposed to build the project gave up! This was most probably due to the precarious Southern California energy situation that we have all heard so much about. How about that for progress? Thanks to you two guys for your help. Come fly the "E''; you'll like it, we promise. Mike Flilbcratb Mission Viejo, CA

HONDURAS

POSTMASTER;

CHANGE OF ADl)RESS TO:

1.4ANC GLIDING, co B0901, 1no.

130X L330, Colorado Springs,

2001 VmuMr 31, lssu1 No. 6

Dear Editor, The Airmail section of the Febrnary issue carried an invitation from Gustavo Erazo to fly with him in Honduras. I e-mailed him immediately and less than three weeks later Rick Christen and [ were on a plane to Ifonduras. The flying was and Gustavo's

Dear Editor, I take issue with a recent lctrer in which the writer claimed that hang gliding and paragliding have little in common and therefore the two magazines should continue to be separate. The writer even compared paragliders to sailplanes, that while sailplanes are very interesting, articles about them have no place in J fang Gliding magazine. Far from it. Paragliding has many things in common with hang gliding. One, we arc both foot-launched. Sailplanes arc not. Two, we both use the same flying sites. Sailplanes do not. And most importantly, we are both members of the same organization, USHGA, which sailplane pilots arc not. In fact, there are good reasons to combine the two magazines. It is not a zero-sum game. Adding articles about paragliding wouldn't subtract from articles about hang gliding, and those who don't want to read them would not be required to do so. 'T'he same format as exists today could be used: hang gliding articles every month with additional paragliding articles every other month. Our magazine would become thicker and more enticing in the mailbox. An added benefit would be the elimination of retooled articles and editorials that often appear. Nothing is more depressing

HANC CLIDINC

than to open magazine to sec that the fcarure article is a from Gliding magazine the previous month. Finally, exposure to each orhcr's sports might heighten inrcrcst in trying it. Panicipation in the other spore can only deepen our involvement in and commit· menr to the organization we support in common. I still vote for one magazine ro represent our organization. James B. Brown

Japan

Dear Editor, son and I recently spent rhe best break ever at Quest J\ir. l had a fow momhs earlier and been to received my Novice rating. Ross had wanted rn rry. Even though he w;1s barely 14 I really did 1101 expect him to advance beyond flying tandem, however, he proved to be quite adept. I looked up one day and there he was 011 his /1rst solo. Ir was one of' those special moments in lifo you savor again and :1gain as a par· Clll.

J\frcr a few more flights, our time had ended all 100 somi. It was somewhat sad ftJr us to say goodbye, but it made ir easier leaving with great memories and great friends. We also knew we would be back soon. Parents have asked me if l w;is concerned about n1y son learning to fly a hang glider. I wasn't, hut I didn't under· stand until it snddcnly hit me: not only was the instruction fost rate, it was just a given that Ross was in good hands. In closing I'd like to thank the sport of h:mg gliding and the wonderh1l staff at Quest Air (especially "Awesome Bob"). You sec, my son and I also lefr Florida with a shared passion that's way cooler than anything peers, coaches, or other activities can oiler. J\s a parent of a 1ccnager, it just doesn't gcr any better.

]LJNF 200 I

Dear Editor, Over the past holiday my wife Alli and I went to Ins California to visit my brother and his family. Aware of the popularity o/'hang gliding in warm and sunny Southern C:alif<.m1ia we began planning our trip by looking in !fang mc1Lf?;az111,e fiir a potential host to make our dreams a reality. To our delight we found WindSports Soaring Center located just minutes from the L.J\. airport. The ad in the magazine mentioned full.-scrvicc walk--in with etc. I mrned iatcly rentals, we got 011 the phone with Kris of' WindSporrs, valicfating the promise of glider rcn tals and ;i guided tour of a mountain site ar 2,200 feet /\CL We packed our harnesses, helmets, radios and varios and boarded the plane. Kris explained rhar the Sylmar Hang ( ;tiding Club's site at !(age! Mountain, also jusr minutes from I .. !\., is a Hang IfI site. Hang ]l's can Oy with inslTUctor noff. I'm a Hang IV, b111 since Alli is still a Hang II we arranged for the instructor signoff. This turned out to be great bccat1Sc the instructor supervision also served as a site guide for us both. Once in L.J\. we went to WindSports and arranged to have the rental gliders delivered to rhc SI-I GC L'/. on the next potemially soarablc day. I was ro fly a Wills Wing XC and Alli was to fly a Wills Wing Falcon 170. When we arrived at the LZ we met up with our guide and my wile's instruoor/supervi· sor, Hungary Joe, our driver and other pilots, ready to conquer the day. Unfon unarcly, the winds shifted 180 and after a long wait we broke down. The next day we tried again and made i r ro the rop of Kagel Mou main by early aficrnoon. Once scr up on top, we ro wait ic)r a as there was a slight tailwind. J\frcr a couple of hours Hungary Joe kicked the din and noticed that it blew in our face. Joe said,

"You just need a little wind to come up and it's okay to launch!" I was ready and yelled a loud "CI .EJ\R" as l ran down the slope. Once airborne I turned to the right in search of a thermal and found a nice one 200, 300, 400 feet per minute up as I cored and found myself 1,000 feet over launch. I sraycd with it ro reach l ,1100 feet over. While thcrrr1aling I noticed Alli launch and head straight out toward the LZ. After a few minutes of technical di/::. ficulties with my new push·to-talk radio system I began a nice dialog with Alli as she descended, and watched her execute a nice landing in rhe designated I Z. I then decided to cross the dam. I found some more lift 1here and got back to nearly l ,000 feet over when Alli handed the radio over to local hotshor pilot Andy. Andy proceeded ro give me a guid· cd tour via radio of the Sylmar Hang Cliding Club area. I flew over to "Locals," "'fhc 'Tclwcrs," and "The 2200" under his direction. I was actually sinking the whole way but was comfortable with my copilot 011 the radio, really enjoying the scenery. As I got back across the base of rhc dam I bubbled around in some light lift bm couldn't get back up high again, and decided to go out and land. I cornplcrcd the Oight with a nice Lrnding in the Hang IV LZ at the base of the mountain. The locals, most of whom decided not lo due to light winds, greeted me with applause, beer and much celebration. Alli and I would like to thank rhc Sylmar Hang Gliding Club, Kris, Joe, Mike, Andy, Lisa, Lynn and all the others we met on our trip for giving us such a warm welcome. If any pilots have future plans to visir rhe Los Angeles area and would like to fly, l can highly recommend calling WindSports and the Sylmar I-Tang Gliding Club. J\ud we welcome all traveling pilots ro visit the Tennessee 'free Tclppcrs at our home site. Jeff and Alli Dodgen (423) 949·3:384 WindSpom Soaring Center (818) 988011 1, www.windspons.com

1ew by USHGA Accident Review Chairmrm Bill Bryden e'll examine the aggregation of inciclent reports for the year 2000 and sec what xzitems stand out. Submissions were down s11hstantially from last year, 38 versus and 1 thank those who did contribute. 'The office relocated and I suppose a few might have been misplaced during the move, but certainly not 30 or 10, so clearly either accidents arc down or pilots didn't report as many incidents. Again, we had a couple oF requests that reporting be available on-line. lt has been for three years, and we bavc mentioned 1his several times. You can print out a form and mail in a report, use an on-line form and submit it electronically, or just: send us an e-mail with the relevant data for the incident. The USfiGA website is at www.ushg,1.org. It seems that some instructors arc not informing new pilots about submitting reports, and some instructors arc failing to report accidents used themselves. Incident reports are for statistical and safety improvemenr and arc not used t:o a pilot's or instructor's dctrimenr. Please help with this process. The US1IGA considers accidents to be events resulting in injuries for which a prudent person would seek professional medical attention. Incidents include acci-dcnts and include just about any event, beyond just whacking a landing and bending a downtube, in which things could have been much worse and rhat can provide educational data. We want reports filed for both accidents and inci-dents. In examining this year's reports, we see a similar phenomenon to last year in that a majority of the reports involved experienced pilots. We suspect: that this is in pan because they arc more familiar with the reporting process, better understand the importance of it, and due 10 their

onry

longevity in the sport may have a stronger motivation ro submit this infrmnation. Adv:mced-rated pilots ;1lso make up the largest segment of our membership. The incidents break down as follows: Student (S) Beginner (H l) Novice (H2) Intermediate (H3) Advanced (l-14) M:ister (I-I5) Unknown/not reported

3%>

orY<i 16% 22%

54<Xi ()lJ1>

The reports were categorized accord-

ing to rhe phase of flight in which the incident occurred or in which the pre-dominant problem occurred. For example, an inciclem in which a pilot screwed up his approach decisions, forcing him to crash short of the would be categorized as an approach problem ratber than a landing problem. 'The grouping included foot-launch (not row), tow-launch (surface--bascd tows including foot-·launchcd tow), aerotow, in--flight inci-dents, approach to landing, landings (problems with the actual landing, unrelated to approach errors), and other. The distribution of the reported incidents was as follows: Foor--launch

22%

'Tow (surface)

5ry;>

Aero tow In--flight

27%

Approach

24%

Landing Other

19% 3%

Many of the problems, especially dur-ing approach, were related to bad decisions. One was a downwind landing. Three pilots simply overshot the LZ and had crashes. Three pilots did not assess conditions correctly, couldn't make the primary LZ, and tried to land in tiny clearings and crashed during the attempt. Two had equipment-related problems: One was hanging a bit low and the control bar hooked under t·he parachute con-" tainer on the harness while he was diving down through a gradient, and the other stepped on a tow bridle when landing. Vive pilots had fimdamemal technique problems that led to their crashes.

We had eight reported foot-launch incidents. Only one pilot launched unhooked and it tragically ended in a farality. Probably most of the other seven foot--launch crashes were in totality or in part due to bad launch technique. Two launch incidents were in 20--mph or greater winds, which influenced the crash, but pilot decisions were certainly key in establishing vulnerability to the winds. Equipment contributed to one reported launch crash when a pilot tripped on his harness during his launch run. In six of the events, the glider go1 airborne and turned back into the hill, crashing. R.cmarkably, only one aerorow incident w;is reported. Like some of the aero-tow incidems in the past, ir was cart relat-· ed. The pilot was launching in a crosswind, pushed out to force the glider off' the cart, a wing lifted, and he crashed. Similarly, a platform launch went awry when a control bar safety latch was not released prior to commencing the tow. 1'his has been extremely serious and even fatal in the past, bur this pilot was lucky. A static-line tow developed problems when tension dropped right afi:cr launch, and as the glider settled a wing clipped some com stalks. We had 10 reported in--flight problerns. 'Jwo pilots got caught: in venturi winds in a gap, couldn't penetrate, and crashed trying to land. ]wo pilots experienced tum hies and successfully deployed their parachutes. One chute deployed accidentally while a tandem flighr was on final at l 00 feet, resulting in significant but recoverable injuries. Three pilots were scratching close to the hill, got turned, and ended up in the trees, and one was just too close 10 some trees in the LZ and clipped one. There were no reported hang glider mid-air collisions. One pilot h::id an equipment-related accident resulting from a fold in rhc leading-edge Mylar which compromised the flight performance of the glider. There were only two tandem-related accidents. One involved the parachute that deployed inadvertently while on final. 'fhe other was a blown launch with a resulting arm injury. Considering the continued growth of this facer of training and flying, this was a very welcome statis-

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tic this year. In the "other" catego ry we had only one report. A row plane had a glider release shortly after takeoff and the rug pilot attempted a low-level 180° turn back to the LZ, but dragged a wing tip on the ground and crashed. Examining injuries, the number of reported injury types was as follows : o significant associated injury Head and face eek Back and pelvis Feet and ankle Legs and knees Arms and hands Shoulders

14 3 2 0 1

3 10

4 3

As in years past, arm, hand and shoulder injuries comprised a major portion of the injuries. Our prone, headfirst-type position is likely a significant contributor, especially considering that these injuries comprise only about six or seven percent of paragliding injuries. The number of foot and ankle injuries was down significantly last year. It is unknown if good ankle-supporting footwear is being wo rn more, but this would clearly help reduce occurrences . We discussed rhis extensively three years ago. The number of fatalities was down dramatically, wi th the lowest h ang gliding fatality rate since 1971 which had only two, and 1970 wh ich h ad no reported fatali ties. Of course, back then the sport was in its infancy and the number of participants was quite low. I hope last year's number is a trend and not a statistical anomaly. We had only three reported deaths in 2000. Very good. To summarize those, the first was Richard Morris Zadorozny who died April 26 when he launched without being hooked into his glider. Richard was an advanced pilot with at least 14 years of hang gliding experience. He was a very active pilot, flying once and often twice a week year round. Our second loss was an intermediate skill-level pilot, bur not currently a member. Ken Bernard crashed at a mountain sire in New Mexico wh en the leading edge Mylar got folded under during glider assembly and nor detected prior to flying. Our last tragedy was losing Larry Zoellner who died in ovember. He released early from an aerorow on a new glider he was having some trouble controlling, a wing clipped some trees and he crashed to the ground. I was saddened that on e seaso ned pilot who survived a horrific encounter with a rotor and power lines, reasonably unscathed , scared that he planned to stop flying. On the other hand, I was heartened that tl1ere were several pi lo ts who reported plans or already had moved back to simpl e, easy-to-fly gliders like Falcons, ere. , and planned to fly in m ellower conditions. T his is a mature decision which I'm confident will keep all of those pilots in the sport and having more fun. Maybe their actions are the best lessons we can all learn from the incident reports from the year 2000. •

H ANG GLIDING

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the magazine. MlJST reside Both Divisions· $39.50 (Must sign separate release.from Full Member) ...................... . _ ....- ........................... with foll member of same division.) Name and USJ IGA number of filll member ·-·-······----····-............ - ...----··-·-··--·

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In consideration of the benefits to be derived from membership in the USHGA, and the parent or legal guardian of a minor, for themselves, their personal representatives, heirs, executors, next of kin, spouses, minor children and do agree as follows: The following definitions apply to terms used in this Agreement I. means launching (and/or assisting another in launching), flying (whether as pilot in command or otherwise) and/or landing (including, but not limited to, crashing) a hang glider or paraglider. 2. or as a result of the administration of

means the following, including their owners, officers, directors, agents, spouses, employees, officials (elected or otherwise), members, independent contractors, sub-contractors, lessors and lessees: a) United States Hang Gliding Association, a California Non-profit Corporation (USHGA); b) of the person(s) sponsoring and/or participating in the administration of Pi/ot~proficiency rating(s); c) of the hang gliding and/or paragliding organizations which are chapters of the USHGA; d) The United States Of America and each of the city(ies), town(s), county(ies), State(s) and/or other political subdivisions or governmental agencies within whose jurisdictions Pi/otlaunches, flies and/or lands; of the property owners on or over whose property launch, fly and/or land; e) All persons involved, in any manner, in the of hang gliding and/or paragliding at the site(s) where D "All persons involved" include, but are not limited to, spectators, hang glider and/or paraglider pilots, assistants, drivers, instructors, observers, and owners of hang gliding and/or paragliding equipment; and All other persons lawfully present at the site(s) during g) the 1/1/l;J!.&;,P,I.J&;,V any and all liabilities, claims, demands, or causes of action that I by the negligence (whether active or passive) of any of the na;;,'l,.,;,r1,J1a;;v may hereafter have for to the fullest extent allowed by law. I A against any of the loss or damage on account of If I violate this agreement by filing such a suit or makiug such a claim, I will pay all attorneys' fees and costs of the .....,......,.......,., I shall be and ,.,....,.,11' ..,

If any part, article, paragraph, sentence or clause of this Agreement is not enforceable, the affected provision shall be curtailed and limited only to the extent necessary to bring it within the requirements of the law, and the remainder of the Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. F. I at least 18 years of age, or, that I am the parent or legal guardian of am making this agreement on behalf of myself and If I am the parent or legal guardian of I the for their defense and indemnity from any claim or liability in the event that Not suffers even if caused in whole or in part by the negligence (whether active or passive) of any of the n11,;;,1.a;;;,1.:11a;;;v

I have Ad11!t Pilot's Jignat11re

Date

Jigriatt1re ofPilot's Parent or Legal G11ardian ifPilot 11nder /9 yms ofage.

D:lte

MMR 12.97

USHGA is issuing its annual call for nominations lo the national Roard of Directors. Eleven positions arc open for election in November 2001 for a two-year term beginning January 2002. USI-IGA members seeking position on the ballot should send to headquarters for receipt no later than the following infonna1ion: name and USIIGA number, photo and resume (one page containing the candidate's hang/paragliding activities and viewpoints, written consent to be nominated and that they will serve if elected). Candidates must be nominated by at least three US! !GA members residing in the candidate's region.

2001

Nominations arc needed in the following regions. The current Directors, whose terms arc up for reelection in 2002, arc listed below. Ballots will be distributed witl1 the November issue of [!!1NG GLIDING and PA R!1GLID!NG magazines. USHGA needs the very best volunteers lo help guide the safe development und growth ofthc sports. Forward candidate material for receipt no later than August 20 to: USHGA, PO Box 1330, Colorado Springs 8090 J .. 1330.

3 4 6

Mark Forbes Jamie Shelden Scott Gasparian John Greynald Lawless Jim Zeisct Frank Gillette Jeff Sinason Nominulio11.1· are not needed in Region 7.f<Jr I his elect !rm.

Nominal ions are no/ needed

in Region 8/i;r this e/cclion

Randy Leggett

Matt Taber

Kent Robinson

Nominal ions are not needed in Region! 2.fi;r this election

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

The following form is for your convenience.

*************************************** ************************************************** 1 hereby

nn11'111, 'Clfi'

REGIONAI. DIRECTOR ELECTION NOMINATION FORM as a candidate frff Regional ·-·-··- ----··------~·-·--··-··--- -----·-··-·---···--····--········-------·-·

Director for Region

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

2002 Regional Director Election if three nominations arc received at the USITGA office by August 20, 2001.

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

UNTIL NOV. 15: 2001 Region 9 Regionals and Region 9 Yearlong XC Contest. ·I 'he Regionals rota ls three weekend flights in Region 9 fron1 March l May 28. The Almost Yearlong Contest acknowledges a contestant's longest flight on ;my day between March 15 and November 15. Classes for Rookies, Sixty Miles, Open, Rigid and Paraglidcrs. Entry fees $10 and respectively. Contact: Pete Lehmann, 1plchmann01);10J.com, (412) 5811 Elgin St., Pittsburgh, PA 661 15206.

UNTlL DEC. 31: 200 ! Hdcon Htmf;

Gliding Contest. Now i11cluclcs any other single-surface flex wing. Sponsored by manufacturers, dealers, instructors and the generons. Support invited. Where: All of the U.S. as divided into four sections to make skill, nor flying sires, the determining factor for the winners (plus the rest of the world as a single group for foreign entries). For complete information and enrry forms (c-·mail preferred) contact: http:/I tckfl igh t. rri pod.com/ falconxc.html, tek@snet.net, or SASE to ·!ck Flight

Products, Colebrook Stage, Winsted, CT 06098.

JUNE 22-24: Wild Wild '\.\lest Regioru1h. Competitive racing for all levels of pilots over a time-proven course. A great opportunity to improve your skills and learn about competition flying. Pun competition with some of the best pilots in the West. Sierra sites include Slide Mtn. and McClellan Peak with wide-open I Z's. Location: Carson City/Lake 1\ihoe, NV. Includes: party, T-shirts, Silver Belt Buckle Awards. Registration $100 until May 30, after. Contact: Adventure Sports, 883.:7070, advspts@pyramid.net.

Tate, Meer Director/Organizer, 11716 Fairview Ave., Boise, ldaho 837 U, (208) 376-7914, (208) 484-6667 cell, Zoolisa@aol.com.

JlJT Y 8-1

Che/cm XC Chelan, WA. Class A-sanctioned meet. Since l 979, one of the nation's top events of the summer, for hang glider and paraglidcr pilots. MeN running before and after. "Chooseyour-rask" competition: straight-line, outancJ.-rctmn or triangle. Contact: http://www.cloudbasc.org/Chcl an Comps, Russ Gclfan, (206) 367-8963, n1sslfboc@l10mc.com.

AUGUST 11-18: US. 5-10: 200 I Red Bull Wings Over

!lspen, Aspen, CO. Paragliding Cross Country will be replaced with Paragliding Acrobatics. ·rhe competition will feamre three disciplines: Paragliding Acrobatics, Hang Gliding Aerobatics, and Hang Gliding Speed Run. l 5 pilots in each dis ciplinc will compete for a $36,000 prize purse. 1\Jr more information or if yon arc a rop pilot and would like to compete, contact: Od1ar Lawrence, fly0'redbullwings.com, or visit www.redbullwings.co111.

JULY 6-8: 2001

Mountttin Meet,

Moore, Idaho. $50 entry fee. Open-distance X-C along a specified route. T<rns of prizes, handicap scoring, barbecue, great shirts, wondcrfol bonus LZ's, super extraspecial trophies, nice people, great incentives frir early registration! Contact: Lisa

'foxas, Austin Air Sports, Hearne, TX. Contact: sburnsCiilaustinairsporrs.com, (979) 2799382, www.austinairspons.com for more info.

OCT. 8-lA: 'Tree '111ppers 'l;:cim Chfillenge, 'Jcnncssce's Sequatchie Valley. 'This 11th epic event follows last capacity turnout, promising fun, learning and fan.rastic flying as tenm help their less-experienced pilots gaggle to goal. Bring a team or show up and we'll set you up with one, but register soon. At $95, including meet shirt and keg parry, a week of free hot breakfasts and fireside fun atop the scenic Sequatchie, and a prize pot topping $2,000, spaces are sure to go early. And you'll save $20 over the late registration (postmarked Sept. 7 and later). Registration and info at: membcrs.aol.com/wcathersci/challenge.htm

Hi\NC GLIDINC

or contact Steve at sbellerbyG:Daol.com (416) 5882396.

UNTIL SEPT 4: Himggliding t!t Yosemite National Park. Por information and registration visit www.yhga.org. 23-30: Sandia Soaring !lssociation X-C Challenge. Big X-C from Sandia Crest. Seven days to make your best X-C's! Last year l 00-rnilers were common and a couple over 200 miles were logged. 'frophics: f .ongest Flight, Cumulative Three Best Days. $100 entry ($125 after June l) gets you guide pilots, free oxygen refills, Tshin, maps, barbecue party and more. Bonus: X-C seminar by top pilot Dave Sharp. Minirnnm rating Hang 3, 50 hrs., with mountain thermal, footlaunch and turbulence experience. Drivers available. l-lang gliders Class l and I[ only. Contact or send registration: Sandia Soaring Association, EO. Box I It 571, Albuquerque, NM 8719 I. Visit www.flysandia.org with questions or to print a copy of the registration form. Register early as spots arc limited. 3: La/::eview, Oregon Umpteenth Annual Festival ofFree Flight.

JUNE

Registration on June 29, pilots' meeting and registration on June 30 at 9:30 J\M at Chamber of Commerce headquarters. Ely June 30, July l and 2, awards on July 3. Pun and prizes for hangies (Sugar HillLakeview Trophy Dash, Spot-Landing Contest), and Baggies (Most Accumulated Miles, Spot-Landing Contest). Ply Lake Coumy's friendly skies, land in our friendly LZ's and party with your buds. Kegger at Jules and Mary's place on July 1 and you can fly in! The best "no-hassle" free flight event on the Left Coast. Contact: I ,ake County Chamber of Commerce, 126 N. E St., Lakeview, OR 97630, (54]) 947GMO, or "General" Gilpatrick, l .akeview Air Force, (541) 947--3330, freeflite@transport.com.

)UNE 2001

AUG. Eighth Annual Mt: Nebo End Of Summer Fly-1i1, with the Central Arkansas Mountain Pilots, at Mr. Nebo State Park, Dardanelle, Arkansas. Pilots must be a current Hang 3 or better to fly. Camping and cabins are available through the State Park. Contact: James Linscome, (501) 890-4849, wispy@tcainternet.com, or Dave Dunning, (501) 967--0570. For information on cabin and camp site reser-vations call Mt. Nebo State Park at 1-800-

~y Rodger H~yt

SEPT 15- 16: Ninth Annual

McConnellsburg Hang Gliding Festival, McConnellsburg, PA, Region IX. Pun flying for Hang l I (with Observer) to Hang V. Capitol Hang Glider Association and the Maiyland Hang Gliding Association will donate proceeds to McConnellsburg Fire and Rescue. Contact: Carlos Weill, (240) 631-3821. Check www.mhga.com for details.

JUNE Bend, OR Demo Days. Fly a variety of Wills Wing hang gliders. WW Rep: Jim Reynolds. Contact: Oregon Desert Gliders (541) 389-3899, rrirtcr@bendnet.com. JUNE 8-9: Redmond, WA Demo Days. Fly a variety of Wills Wing hang gliders. WW Rep: Jim Reynolds. Conrnct: Cascade Soaring 898-8163, fax (425) 898-8553. JUNE 8-9: Sumner, WA Demo Days. Fly a variety of Wills Wing hang gliders. WW Rep: Jim Reynolds. Contact: Rainier Hang Gliding (360) 897-6463, freeflyt@nwrain.com www.nwrain.com/,,freeflyt/. JUNE 30JUlY I: Rising Pawn, GA Demo Days. Fly a variety of Wills Wing gliders. WW Rep: Rob Kells. Contact: Lookout Mtn. Flight Park ('706) 398-35/r 1, fax (706) 398-2906, fly(,Dhanglide.com www. hangglide.corn. JUNE 10: Mountain Wings blowout/pig~ at the Ellenville Airport, NY. Contact: Greg Black, .mtnwings<2hcarskill.net, www.mmwings.com.

yd rate or die," warns rhe slogan. In flight, your mouth can become drier than an Al Gore campaign speech. A simple and cheap (vastly preferable to complex and expensive) in-flight water dispensing system can be made utilizing any old plastic sofr drink bottle. Purchase an appropriately-sized rubber grommet: and about four feet of clear vinyl tubing at your favorite hardware store. Drill a small hole in the bottle cap. Insert the grommet into the hole, then thread the clear tubing through the grommet (it helps to angle-cut the end of the tubing to facilitate insertion). There should be sufficient tension between all components to seal against leakage. Mount the water bottle in a convenient location in your harness or on your glider. Route rbe tubing to avoid interfer-· ence with crucial components such as parachute handle, zippers, etc. Make sure to orient the bottle so the end of the pickup mbe is at the lowest point. ln flight, after taking a sip, usually the elasticity of the bottle itself pulls rhe water back up the tube, hut sometimes it helps to blow back into the tube slightly to prevent siphoning and dripping. 1 use a JGounce bottle, but l'vc seen others Hying with the two-liter size!

Hewe a hot tip? E-mail rbhoyt@go.com or mail Rodger Hoyt; .956 Ave., Central Point; OR .97502.

The Pilot Who Soars With The Birds

by Jim (Sky Dog) Palmieri

I also had a large sweet gum tree in my backyard chat provided a lofty perch from which to launch, do my free-fall, and deploy my parachute. The plan was simple enough: gee my mom's purse, scuff a sheet into it, climb che tree, jwnp off a limb, then, as I was freefalling, reach into the purse, pull out che sheet, hold on and float to earch. Easy enough. I goc che purse, sheet and my best-gripping tennis shoes, climbed che tree and jwnped our! I was introduced to three chings that day: graviry, sudden deceleration, and my guardian angel. Noc rwo seconds after I jumped, I hit a limb with some nee-like branches. This promptly knocked che breach out of me and gave me a wakeup call to realiry. Flight would have to come in a different way. J P: This sounds like a tough way to enter the sport offlying. As a kid I had an almost iden-

tical experience, even with a pair ofnew tennis shoes. When were you first exposed to hang gliding?

j ohn with Osceola, the one-winged eagle. Photo by Al Cecere, AEF.

JP: john, would you please introduce yourself

to the hang gliding community. JS: Well, my name is John Stokes. I am 44 years old and have been a hang glider pilot for nearly 26 years. The American Eagle Foundation employs me. It is a non-profit organizacion, sponsored in part by Dolly Parton's cheme park, Dollywood. My official cicle is Educainmenc Director and it sounds like I ought to be doing infomercials, but in reality I work wich hawks, eagles, falcons, vultures and owls. We use a lot of the birds in a show at Dollywood called "Wings of America. " We also rehabilitate and breed bald eagles, golden eagles and ocher raptors. JP: When were you first exposed to flight? 16

JS: My father exposed me to flighc ac abouc four years of age. He was always caking me to che local airport in Meridian, Mississippi, where we wacched planes cake off and land. He also bought me a variety of flying model planes including rubber-band and gas-powered models. My firsc actempc ac personal "flighc" occurred ac che age of four or five. Ac the cime, chere was a celevision show called Ripcord. On this show, che heroes skydived and pa.rachuced to rescue che lady in distress or to foil a bank robbery. I choughc chis was che coolest cl1ing! When cl1e guys were free-falling wich cheir arms extended, chey looked like birds to me. This all looked pretty easy. The parachute container looked like one of my mom's purses. The parachuce looked like a bed sheet to me. I had chese items at hand!

JS: My firs c exposure to hang gliding can1e in 1974. I was accending Memphis Scace ac che cime and was burning off some cime in che universiry library. I was reading a Reader's Digest and saw an article, "The Flyingest Flying." This arcicle described people in California flying off hills with giant kites. I had always dreamed of flying and cried a few rides in small planes, but chis didn't feel like cl1e flying I did in my dreams. The flying described in che article sounded like the dream of flying I was hoping to attain. I finished che arcicle wich a hunger to know more about hang gliding. Luckily, I happened across some Ground Skimmer magazines in che library and I devoured chese. I didn't know it, but Memphis Scace's Aerospace Program had a fledgling hang gliding club. I saw some ads in the magazine for hang glider kits. T he closesc place to me was located in Nashville, and che company was called Cloud.man Glidercrafc. They offered ready-co-fly models too, but chey were about $100 more. I sent away for some informacion and wicl1in a few days, I had a brochure. I also received information from several ocher companies, but Cloud.man was che closesc to me. A 16-fooc scandard Rogallo kit cost $350. I saved my money and in cl1e spring of 1975 I bought my first hang glider. I HANG GLIDING

Lookout Mountain Hans Glidin9 800. 688. 5637 - www.ltanalide.co1111

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JS: I first focused on soaring flight by watching vultures that ranged over my neighborhood. I even tried to lure thcrn in for a closer look by pretending to be dead. It didn't work, however, but I watched these birds intently and tried to imitate them hy flying with my arms extended. The graceful arcs amazed me. A lot of times the birds spiraled up and out of sight. This made me want to do the same. when [ started hang gliding, I flew with turkey vultures and have done so many times. [ have, like many pilots, flown with a variety of rap tors. My favorite birds to fly with arc black vultures. These birds seem to be curious about us and, unlike rheir vulture cousins, are unafraid to fly close.

john with Osceolri and Dolly Parton at Dollywood prior to did not !mow Osceola was behind her and was caut,ht in rt moment had never seen a hang glider before, let alone put one together. C:ons1ruction was pretty simple and I had all the essential 10ols, including a nico press. The glider did eventually fly, but not until I was directed to a hill with sufficient slope and heigh1.

mentors and how

JS: A fellow named Rick Boggan, a Memphis pilot, was the person responsible for getting me in the air. 'The 16-foot standard l built was taking quite a bearing on sornc shallow slopes. l was trying to launch a 4: 1 (at best) glider off 8: I sloped hills. Also, rhe manual that came with the glider described the launching method as one would launch from a seated position. I had a simple, super--uucomfortable, blue-balls prone harness, so the recommended manual launch position didn't jibe with the harness Thad. l was working at a gas station ar the time and had my glider out washing mud off the sail. T'he control bar had some matching, yet graccfol curves in the down1ubes that weren't there when I first attempted flight. A fellow in a white VW bug made a U-turn in front of the station. This artist, hippie-looking guy got out and w;indered up to my glider and said, "ls this your kite, rnan/" l said, "Yeah." "What happened to your control b,ir?" he asked. When he asked this, I knew he had some knowledge about hang gliding. J told him I had been trying 10 fly it but couldn't get off the ground. F[e introduced himself'and said he was a pilot :rnd had been flying f<)r

six months. Rack then, he was an expert in my eyes. He recommended a hill where he guaranteed T would get off the ground. 'Two days later I met Rick at the hill and sure enough, I flew and it felt like it did in my dreams! Rick was a natural pilot and helped pioneer many sites in rhe region. He later quit the sport after one of his friends was killed at Petit Je::m Moun tain in Arkansas. Rick, however, is one of' those pilots who could quickly return to flying because oFsimple, natmal ability.

JP: When didyou firstfi1cus on the beauty of flight throu{sh the ofbirds rfpref

JP: What have you learned 11boutyourself and what impact hr1,sflying with bird, ofj,rey fMd upon you and especit1l61 your flying? JS: Flying with Osceola, the one-winged bald eagle, has made me look at the world through a differenr set of eyes. I try to envision what flying was w him before he was shot. Obviously, T cannot see the detail or have rhc range rhat be has with his incredible vision. A times I have seen him looking down intently watching something on rhe ground. I've tried to see what he was watching, which may have been a flea on a mouse's back, and then realized how limited my eyesight is. As humans, we tend to arrogantly think we have the best of everything. Eyesight defr-

HANG Gt IDINC

nircly is much more developed in birds. (Personally, l don't think that humans have die highest brainpower on the planet. I believe that honor lies within one of the cetaceans, possibly in Orcas. What separates us from them is the fact we have opposable thumbs and can make things.)

What are some ojjl()u most memomhle flights?

JS: The first Aigh1 I made with Osceola ranks as one of my most memorable. He had nor flown in over 13 years. /\11 of this time, ground-hound, he watched hawks and eagles as they soared overhead. We aerotowcd to 2,000 feet and released over J,ookout. As soon as we released, a p:iir of red-tailed hawks passed under us. Osceola watched these birds 11ntil they flew out of sight. On the way home, I tho11gln about that moment and got a little choked up! l fow he must rniss flying and all the freedom he had. I am currently writing a book about this experience and hope to have it ready later in the year. 'I 'he second most memorable flight I had was at Sheba Crater in /\rizona. Butch Pritchett, a west 'lc:nncsscc pilot, and I had trudged our gliders through loose cinders up to the bench takeoff 'fo make things worse, we watched as the locals drove to the top. We set up and launched into the smooth glass-off, benched om way up and stayed above everyone who launched off the rop. The view was incredible! Looking down at the hiva flows from both Merriam and Sheba craters was pretty neat, and seeing the Colorado River gorge and the Painted Dcsen from the air was awe inspiring. The wildness of the area made me foci insignificant. If a pterodactyl had flown by, I wouldn't have been smpriscd. 'fo end a perfect flight, Butch and l had great landings, and as we broke our gliders down we heard coyotes in the distance. Nice end to a great day. Another memorable flight l had was at Mt. Magazi1Jc in Arkansas in 1980. Three of us from Memphis, Joey Mannon, John Christof and I, had gone for a soaring flight. [ was flying an Olympus 160 and was a liuk light for it, but launched into abom a 15--mph wind. I got away okay and Joey took off next. He had to wail for a lull as the winds were increasing. We soared together for abont I 5 to 20 minutes, waiting for Christo/' to launch. He didn't have a wire crew and was au-empt]UNI 2001

ing lo find a lighter cycle. Finally, we saw him rurn his glider away from launch. I le had given up. 'fhe wind speed had increased to 35 mph! l noticed that 1 had the bar ro about my waist and then to my knees and wasn't going frlrward. In fact, I kept watching a rock outcropping below me, and it was slowly moving forward. I was losing ground as the sun was starting to get low in tbc sky. There we were in the classic situation: being up and not able to get down. Joey and I had an aerial conversation on what we could possibly do. Our plan was Lo try to make it to the end of the mountain and hope for the best. I said a whispered prayer frir help, and it was answered. /\bout 1Cl minutes before sunset the wind just suddenly diminished! We were both able to penetrate our to the landing fleld and landed safely, but whar a nailhirer that was.

Of'all the people you have shared the sky with, who has heen the most memorahle or most influential to you? JS: Oh gosh, I've flown with a lot of great pilots over the last quarter century. Cerra inly, Larry' li.1dor. He h:is made flying look easy. Kenny Brown, Gary Englehardt, Dennis Pagen, Butch Pritchett, and early in my career, Rick Boggan and Oliver Gregory were pilots who taught me much. Two people whom I've never met also have influenced me. Bob Wills was a tremendous pilot and l eagerly read every article about him. I can't leave th is section without mentioning Burke Ewing. Burke's tandcrn flights with his dog, Curtis, in the late 70's inspired me to take Osceola back ro rhc sky. It may be a bit delayed, hut th:inks, Burke.

Whrit are youfworitcflying sites and sites tofly with birdr? JS: I guess my number one favorite site is Point of rhc Mountain, Utah. You cm do so many things there, bird-like things that you can't do at too many other sites -

self.launching safely in 20-rnph winds, hovering, flying inches above the terrain and then zooming up ro 200 feet, toplanding and then walking back ro the edge and launching again. If you've never flown there, do yourself a favor and get out there. I guarantee that once you fly there, you'll be back. I also like Lookout Mountain. ln terms of convenience, Lookout is a great place. I've also flown with a variety of' raptors there, including golden eagles :ind osprey. /\!so, if' the wind is not blowing into the mountain, you can alw;1ys acrotow. [ like flying at Kitty Hawk, especially during the Hang Gliding Spectacular in May. Hying close to the ground and in a variety of conditions challenges pilots of all levels. Also, the pilot camaraderie dur-ing lhis event is tremendous. One more sire l really like, even though [ haven't flown there in a while, is l·fcnson's Gap. The ramp is incred-iblc, the valley beautiful, the air is good and the people great. I prornisc to rejoin the 'lcnnesscc Tree Toppers this year. JP: l would have to agree with you.

Hawk on the Outer Ranks and Henson'., Gap arc my twojauorite sites home. They too are special to me. John, you h1we ti set ofeyes thtit arc unique. What do you see tis thejitture of'our sport and what needr to he changed to rnake the sport srifer and more userfriendl.y. JS: 'rhe f'ururc of om sport exists within the concept of the flighr parks. As our pilot population continues to :igc, I believe that acrotowing will account for nearly half rhe flights in the next 1Cl years. J\lso, strong clubs thar can purchase their local launches and landing fields will at least preserve some of' our flying sires. /\nything thar makes our spon more accessible to the masses will help. l would also like to sec someone develop an cmcrgcncy airbag that could be 19

deployed in grave situations when a safe landing looks impossible.

When I spol<e to you thctt you toned Couldyou please discuss the reasonsfor so? Well, l guess several factors have contributed ro this: age, wisdom and rime to fly. When I was younger I flew in all sons of conditions. I remember launching at Lookout Mou main, a number of rimes, in 25-mph plus winds with a person on the nose, two on each side wire and one on the keel. These were twanger launches to be sure. l usually gained several hundred in rapid order, and aldrnugh rhey were I wouldn't launch in those conditions today. I also remember a spring flighr at Whitwell during which f was working a particularly rhermal. l was up so quickly that my cars were popping. Sud·· clenly, l was spit ma, and over the falls I went. Undisrurhed the sintation, [ start· cd talking out loud to the thermal as I reentered the core, doing my best Rocky Balboa: "Come on, you ain't so bad! Ts th,n all you've I was determined to besr rhat thermal, and I did. Speaking of thermals, l once got rolled over in a thermal at 6,600 feet above azine Mountain in Arkansas. I was looking ar the clear blue sky framed by my control bar. It happened so fast that all I could do was hang on. The glider rolled upright on its own and held wgerher, and l decided ro

hend to the landing field. If that happened to me today, I would definitely scare myself! 'Today, J generally ,ivoid flying in the strongest pan the day nnd wait for the thermals to be and benign. I also don't have as much rime to devote 10 flying ;is [ once did. In the late I 980's I got to fly several times a week. I was in rune with my glider. But with a change in my job and the move ro Dolly· wood in 199 l, flying time has been greatly reduced with my flying skills. Like riding a bike, one doesn't fi)rgct how to fly, bnt one can become rnsry. Dming this rime J was still trying to fly compctition .. level gliders, but wasn't at the skill lev· cl T needed ro fly them. J got scared a fc:w tirncs and thought, "Damn, l'm not having any fun." l decided to do so1ned1ing about it. I loved hang gliding too much to quit. l noticed that Alan Bloodworth, who was an instructor at I.ookour Moumain Flight Park, regularly flew E1lcons. He could have flown any glider that was in Lookout's inventory. I asked him why he llew the FaJ .. con and he simply replied, "Cause it's fun!" Hmmm. I decided to relll a 195 Falcon, flew it for an hom and had a blast! A fr:w years when I did a number offlights with fc)r the Disney ( :hanncl, Man loaned me a new E1l· con for the filming (thanks Matt). I was so impressed with the glider that f eventually bought one. This glider bas brougl1t back the fun o('hang gliding for me, not unlike I had in my early days of flying.

A few years ago I brought my Falcon up to the launch ramp and did a hang check. An intermediate pilot suggested thar conditions might be a little strong frlr my skill level. lk asked me how many mountain flights 1 had. l replied, "Do you mean this monrh, or in the last 24 Somewhat stunned, be asked, "You've been flying for 24 years!" I nod, ded, and he continued, "Then why arc you flying a Eilcon?" l simply answered, "Cause ir's fun!" My other glider is an old Pac.Air Mark [V 17 and I break it out when the winds arc a little stronger, when penetration is needed. The Wills Wing Eagle inrerests me and I am considering pur· chasing one btcr in the year. I will, however, keep my Falcon. By simply flying gliders below my skill level J have seen the fun return ro my flying and the anxiety level drop.

lfindyour response J too enjoy/lying a Falcon ofien do when J travel to Wal!.aby Rt.inch to aerotow. For 1n°r·/Jr1°,w1 £hat too .fr:w when they tall.: thr1t is why is called the hm. John, ifyou could change one thing in your approach to the sport; what would it be? JS: Simply, it would be the time [ have to fly. 1 hope to win the lottery one day so I Hi\NC GIIDINC

can fly as much as I want to, and so I can go out and study the smartes1" bird in the world, the Raven.

As a sl,illed and veteran pilot; ifyou could give advice to new JJilots, and intermcdicttc pilots, and the old-timers, what would it

mywo1:l<: 'fo pilots of all skill levels: Fly with

some kind of wheels. I am not saying that you have to fly with huge training wheels, but something definitely bigger than the little "knuckle protectors" which do nothing more than keep your basctubc from getting scratched. There arc a number of wheels out there such as the screw··together type that J use when J travel and rent a glider. However, my personal favorite is the pneumatic-tire type. These offer some decent protection, especially the way the Wills Wing kit mounts them on the out·· side of rhc hasetube. I'll be glad to show the 12-inch scar on the back of my left arm to anyone who wants ro argue against wheel use. Eleven years ago l didn't think J needed them either, but a simple nose--in on a cross-country landing left me with a painful spiral fracture of my lefr humerus. Wheels would have prevcmcd tlrnt fracture. 1cl new pilots: Learn ar your own pace. Some people learn more quickly than others. Don't be discouraged if it is taking you longer to learn something than one of your classmates. The sky will always be there waiting for you. Tel intermedi:u·e pilots: Don't be so quick to get rid of your intermediate glider. /\!so, listen to your inner voice. If it is telling you that conditions may be too strong or something isn't right, stop and analyze the situation. Err on the side of caution. ·n) advanced pilots: Please fly safely and help pilots with less experience to fly safely too. Pass on what you have learned. Also, try to get a pilot who has left the sport to try one of" the new-generation single-surface or intermediate wings. Remember that this sport is supposed to be fun!

JP: 0/,ayJohn, I am going to put you on the hot-scat and ash you your opinion about a politically charged fr,ue. Since both hang glider and paraf!Jider pilots shctre many ofthe sites youf!.y, what is your opinion of'this increasing phenomenon? I think we need to find a way to coexist ]Ui"L 200]

niptors. mainlyqf doing with raptors to the wild. I do shows, not be Mt only at Dollywood, where We.have over half a million people .a yea.r at our "Wings of.Arnerica" show, but at schools, state pai-ks and for groups. fo the past I have done programs at the l Nationals a.nd the East Co,1st Championships. Ar our facility we also have a breedbald golden and ham owls, progrnr:rt has pro"' dnced birds that have been rele:ased into the wild. We also do some rehabilitation.of injured and orphaned raptors. I guess I have prnbably over 23 years, some 1,000 red-tailed hawks. Autom.obiles have hit a majority, a few have been shot, and some have been orphaned. I continue to be impressed by the tot1ghness of tbis bird. ".l}aining these birds hasals0·been fach has its own personali~ ty; some are smarter than. 6thers, only like certain people. THe vultur.es ,.,~'""L'·" the most intelligent birds with our paraglidcr brethren. ln some areas and al some glider and paraglider pilots seem ro do pretty well together. But I have witnessed a few hostile situations and heard snide cornments about them, mostly coming from the hang glid-ing side. l wimcssed an ugly encounter this past summer that was started by a hang glider pilot and was directed at a group of paraglider pilots who were standing on launch. These paraglidcr pilots were not flying, but watching several hang gliders fly. /\frer the confrontation I was so embarrassed by the hang glider pilot's actions that I went over and apologized to the paraglider pilors on behalf of the hang gliding comm11nity. I know rhat a lot of hang glider pilots arc feeling like our sites arc being taken over hy these upstarts. 'Jwenty··tlve years

with whkh we work They learn very quickly and are very c.uriou.s . The biggest ch,i:llenge ls to kciep birds from being bMed. In our shows we Hy a heads the mnnber of birds over audience, Surpdsi11gly, vultures always steal the sµow and to be the favorites ofo1u crowds. Speaking of our Dollywood sh<JW, hang gliding is four to a day. We show a clip of Osceola ha11g gliding and crowd?s reaction from t:e:ars to cheers. Ffis story has gone aro1m.d che world and we have had visitors Europe, and Australia come to "hang gliding " We have also had number: of people from the come to see him.. I keep hang gliding information handy tc:, give to visitors ,tnd I hope a few of the people have gone on to take lessons or at a tamforn

flight. In all this, I don't tell.the visitors that I am the pilot who took vv·"~'"'"' flying. It is not irnportant to rne for them to know who did it, but why it was dorie and that hang gliding is a great sport. If anyone is interested in more information about Osceola, the web address is: http://www.geodties.com/Pipeline/3155 or http://www.eagles.org. There is also a link a.t the USlIG.Ns website, http://www. ushga; org. • ago we were the upstarts. I'm sure that some sailplane pilots didn't take too kindly ro rhc inv;1sion of their sites either. I even had a sailplane pilot comment to me, upon learning that I flew hang gliders, that what I flew wasn't even a real aircrafr. He also said that if he ever saw one of "us" in the air, that he would leave a lasting on that pilot. This made me pretty mad. 1n other sports you can sec some para! ]el behavior, such as skiers versus snowboarders, canoeists versus kayakers. Our numbers arc too small for squabbling and there is strength in numbers. I would like to try paragliding one day. I can sec some advanrages it has over hang gliding and I'm sure some paraglider pilots will try haug gliding too. We ho1h love flying and we should use this as a bond to bring us closer together. Ill 21

NEW SOUTHERN CALI

'' I

don'dmow ifl

feel like flying today. " "O kay. Well, if you change your mind and wane co f1y the glider lee me know." "Thanks Dave." I looked at the wind. The paragliders were getting lower now. I had pulled my Exxcacy out of che car-top tubes, but ic still sat on the ground in ics rwo padded bags. Winds moderate for April were making me a bit lazy, even coo lazy co take a ride o.n Dave Ledford's beautiful ATOS which was already set up! Thirty lolly-gagging-around minutes on my part later, Doc Dave Fishbach had the ATOS up in the air. When he came in on final I suddenly made up my mind: "I guess I'll cake a flight. " "Okay, " said Ledford. Nice smooch Torrey winds in the five o'clock ocean breeze. I cruised down south co the mansions, careful co avoid flying over che one owner's property who didn't like us in his airspace, especially when Bill Clinton was his occasional house guest. A bic north of where Clinton had been staying I caught a nice pop and rode it up and back co around 1,100 or 1,200 feet, passing over RC Dave in his Sensor circling in che bowl, outlining another lift pocket for me. After a while chat one died our coo, so I watched the cliff f1ow like a movie below me and headed back up co che north face. I caught another life pocket and cook ic co around a thousand, but ic really wasn't doing much either so I headed out co sea, chinking about what a nice Aighr I'd had as a result of Ledford's generosity. I like co go way, way our sometimes, just co see how far I can gee coward China before I feel uncomfortable.

Somewhere berween a quarter and half a mile our over the ocean I still wasn't losing much altitude, but ac only around 750 feet MSL I chickened our and headed back, intending co circle down co final approach and land. As I soared back in over che breakers I noticed something strange. I still wasn't losing. If anything, I

was gaini ng. Finding che center of chis new life pocket, I slowly rose.

*** You might have noticed rwo thin gs: the curio us acronym in che title of chis article and the wo rds "life pocket" instead

TORREY PINES TO LIT~ AND THE TORREY 22

H ANG GLI DING

RNIA COAST RECORD

of rhermal, which srans wirh rhe same rwo lerrers as rhe firsr rwo in rhe acronym. Some time ago, I discovered a secrer rhar will allow yo u ro ger higher rhan anyone else ar Torrey. The Torrey Secrer (LPMLFATJ) will help you ro do just char - in certain special condirions, on certain special days, and nor always.

Bm when ir works, ir really works! There are rhree pans ro The Secret. Firsr, "LP, " or rhe words "Lifr Pockers ," imply rhat they really aren'r thermals. Ir seems rhar insread of a remperature gradienr, ir's like a pressure gradient. Hence the name. Second, "Move Like Fronrs." Right.

by Hutchinson Persons

Picrure in your mind one of rhose U.S. wearher maps with a front - colored flags and all moving down rhe coast of California. Now think of the same thing on a micromereoro logical basis, like a lirde mini-from moving so uthward along rhe cliffs ar Torrey Pines or yo ur favorite flying sire. As rhe mini-from passes north

~LE BLACK MOUNTAIN )ECRET (LPMLFATJ) JUNE 2001

Hutchinson Persons (lefi) and Dave Ledfim::l at the Little Black LZ to south, momentarily, the air becomes

more buoyant:, the wind velocity increases, the pressure builds, and even the direction can become more perpendicular to the cliff. Catch the right lift pocket in line with the right geography on the cliff and up you go higher and faster venically than anyone else! There is one final aspect of'The Secret: the ATJ or "And They Jump" part. That's the part where one minute you're in a nice lift pocker which has halted temporarily to make a certain section of the cliff much more ideal, and suddenly it's just gone! Actually, like its big brother, the front, it's still there, bur it "jumped" down the cliff a little ways. Fly south a bit and you can pick it up again and take it up quite :1 bit higher than the guy on the cliff who's dropping out in the old location. Cool,

Think of it as applying the macro to the micro. The 'forrey Secret may be applicable to flying in lots of other places besides Torrey Pines. We'll just have to sec. Wrire me (hp@doitnow.com) and let me know what you think. LPMLFATJ: Lift Pockets Move Like Fronts And They Jump.

* So there I was, following a nice llfr pocket that started surprisingly way out over the ocean. I was catching the jumps the pocket made to the south just right, although this one was very vertical and had very little jump to it. At times it even seemed to flow westward momentarily before drifring lnck to the cast. Eight lumdred, nine hundred, twelve hundred. 1 flg-

And t~1ey'II also receive 21 $ gift certificate redeemable off their 1st lesson from a participating school.

med soon this one would peter out as they always did at "Boring Pines," a name we old-timers sometimes call Torrey Pines because you usually just fly back and forth, back and forth. In the l 970's 1--Ierb Fenner once flew 'Torrey for 24 hours continuously, taking lunch and bathroom facilities with him. But instead of dissipating, 10 minutes later l found myself at the new FAA limit in our local airspace, 1,800 feet MSL, and way back over Interstate 5! I started to fi:el excited! What should I do? Should l try to make ir to Encinitas up the coast? What about inland to Little Black? Charles Lindberg had been one of the Grst to fly from Mount Soledad in a sailplane and soar 'forrey, landing on the beach in Del Mar just north of the 1orreyDel Mar gap for the very first Coast Distance record. Ifotorically, sailplanes have occasionally flown on a good day from Tcirrcy to Yuma. Usually they work their way up on the south end over Mount Soledad and go from there 10 Mount Laguna. Little Black Mountain is much closer only 11.5 miles. No one had ever made Little Black from 'Torrey Pines before in a frim-launch, mainly because the lift never seems to go too high on the coast. And the freeways, housing developments, power lines, and lack of good, close, alternate LZ's near the coast, combined with the proximity of Miramar Naval Air Station, create a daunt· ing combination. But recently the FAA HANG GLtDINC

Iittle Black in the distance. changed the lines on the sectional, hri11ging a better, railer flight corridor (not all rhat far to the north and cast of' the worldfamous glider port) closer a corridor that allows a ceiling of 3,000 feet, rising to 4,800 feet forthcr west (sec sectional). So [ drifrcd back, back and to the north, as l rose imo the sky. \lv'itl1 Bill Gates' $5,000,000, fivc--bcdroom country cottage and eastern Del Mar far below, it looked like 1 could just glide all rhe way. Looks can be deceiving. You don't noricc it when you're in the air, but the te1Tain slowly rises all the way back to Rrrncho Pencsquiras. 'I 'he landing area at I .inlc Black Mountain is 400 to 500 feet higher than rhe takeoff at· forrey. As quickly as I had gained, l began to lose altitude. Several miles later l was bummed. Would rhis be just one more aborted attempt? Running out of altitude lower and lower, rrying to make myself small in the airstream l hoped only that T could make it over the looming higb--tcn-sion power lines between me and one oF the nice graded future neighborhoods near Route 56, so that I didn't have to walk too I had no radio. Not even a cell phone. l hadn't planned this. At about 900 feet MSL l was getting ready to set up my landing, searching for hidden fences and power lines and plan-ning my base and final, when Dave's vario began that beautiful sound we all love so much "blip ... blip, blip." And up I ]UNE 2001

went Slowly at first, hut rhis one just kept going cmd y,(Jing rmd going to nearly 2,700 foer as I drifred a mile or two closer to my goal in the process. Now it was in the bag! But nooooooo! Again, wirh the prize almost in hand, I began to lose. And soon I was down to 1,200 feet MSL, with the ground much higher above sea level. I won-dered, would I have to land cifier coming so dose? This time my anxiety was shon-lived, as a final huhblc came to my rescue, lofting me to nearly 2,000 feet MSL and allowing me to cruise victoriously 400 feet over the ridge and above the ]00--foot training hill where two paragliders were soaring. Now after 6:00 PM, too late in the day to go any farther, I rook the lifr up and over the top of the moun rain. After l felt that the microwave towers had radiated my sex

organs long enough l Acw to the landing area for a perfr:ct threc--steppcr, amid the whoops of Rod Mi rchcll and his hang gliding students who had a pretty good idea where I'd come from. They had been flying all alone when suddenly I just appeared. I borrowed paraglider pilot Mario's cell phone and called my best friend and driver cxtraordinaire, J. Leslie Morgan. "Where are you," she asked?" 'Tm at Little Black!" "Wow!" Leslie and Dave showed up a bit later to collect his glider. "I hope you're not mad ;ir me for making off with your glider," I said. But Dave Ledford, as usual, was his mag-nanirnous self, and congratulated me on the flight. Rod bought me a congratulatory drink at the local Mex restaurant.

2.),--

Black Mountain. The prize is still there, and now that you know my secret, you've got a shot at it too. I fang glider pilots have flown front Little Black to the desert. It was too late for me that day, but sorn.c day someone in a hang glider, or possibly a paraglider, will fly from 'forrey all the way to Yuma!

* One final word regarding "signing in" at TcJrrey. Some pilots who've flown the site for many years have made casual comments about how they "never sign in." Let me remind everyone that David Jebb pays $30,000 a year in insurance to keep the sire open. His liability is very high. Ir is important rbat we pay our fly26

ing fees lO defray costs. And it's important to sign in as a legal requirernen t of the site rules which the city requires to limit Dave's site liability by keeping track of everyone flying. So don't make the mistake I made and frirget to sign in. h's the only reason I won't offi . . cially win the glider port prize offered for the first Right from 'forrey Pines to Little

Hutchinson Persons holds both Torrey Pines records: Inland Distance from the coast to little Blach Mount1.1in in an JJTCX,; and Coast Distance from Torrey to only feet short of the beginning ofthe soarable h1cinitas Cliff'at Swamis, just north ofthe lagoon inlet, in a Ghostbuster. Dczve Ted/rm:/ previously held the lrJrrey Cor1st Distance record tojust north of Chrtr!ie'., Resttiurant on the beach, just south of the lagoon in a Sensor. Bil! Liscomb set the Coast Distance record to the Encinitas gtzp bejrJre Dave in a Quiclesilvcr in the 19701·. II I IANC CUDINC,

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copyrz~ht © 200 I by Dennis Pagm

Last month we tried to exhaust the subject of conflicts during a crowded landing. (f we didn't exhaust it, we at least tired it out plen·· t:y. This month we'll continue our quest for problem-fee landings with a look at other things that can go wrong. ,,,..._ _'llllo wit: turbulence from tip

vortices, crossing winds and switching winds. Each of these items is commonly encountered and each of them can be handled as well as possible with a few little tricks. Let's peer into the bag.

LANDING WITH VORTICES The vortices in this case are the organized swirls that are produced at the tips of all wings. These vortices are stronger the slower a glider flies, so the period after roundout, including flare, is particularly apt to produce virulent vortices. Of course, you won't encounter your own vortices, but you may encounter those of a glider landing

Downdraft

Figure 1: Tip Vortices

immediately before you. The problem is one of control. An airplane's vortices can flip you over, while those of another glider can cause momentary loss of control. When this bappens close to the ground as when landing, the conse· quences can be bitter. Figure l shows how vortices behave. They are left swirling by a pass-· ing glider and move slowly downward and outward as tliey grow larger. When they hit the ground they tend to move apart more due to the downward flowing air entrained between them. When produced by a glider of our they can last for more than a rninure, espe· dally on a still, stable clay. I recall landing directly behind

another glider in a narrow field with no other options. The preceding pilot had a perfectly smooth final to flare, while I was fighting like a Smno wrestler just to keep my glider somewhat under con· trol. The organized vortices continually attempted t:o turn me to one side by dropping or stalling a wing. The standard aircraft trick for avoiding vortices in a landing situation is shown in Figure 2. Ifere we sec rhat the following pilot's track is above that of the preceding pilot, and the landing point is beyond that of the first pilot. Remember, vortices are no longer pro· cluced tlie moment the glider quits flying. Unfortunately, rhere arc occasional situations in which you cannot remain above a preceding pilot's path. If that pilot is flying slowly, the problem is even worse, for you might catch up and encounter stronger vortices. Also, rhe slower he or she is flying, the greater the energy in the vortices, and if you are forced to fly very slowly, the less control you will have. If you are met with this situation, your best escape procedure is to move to the side, speed up and bypass the churning air as shown in Figure 3. If you are a leading pilot in this situation, your responsibility is to fly as fast as you safely can, as low as you can. Remember, ground reduces vortices, so fly low, close to the ground as part: of your final before flare. 'T'he worst thing you can do as a leading glider is to fly a slow, floating final. Don't cause an accident. Sometimes the pilot in front of you will be oblivions to your presence (or to reasonable courtesy rules) and you don't have room t:o cast out to die side. Your only defense is to maintain as much maneuvering speed as the pilot in front allows, then focus on keeping the glider straight. The turbulence you experience may be like that of entering a thermal. Make quick, strong controls to catch an induced turn the instant it happens. Now ask yourself, "Flow did l get into this situation in the first place in light of last month's strategies?"

CROSSWIND Another commonly encountered situa· tion is a wind crossing to the normal or

HANC CLIDINC

above first pilot's path land him or her .

. Avoiding Vortices

• Top view If caught close behind a slow

glider

up and pull to

the

to avoid vortices.

Wind

Figure

Moving out of

Way of Vortices

Figure · Crabbing Landing in Crosswind desired landing direction in a field. The desired direction can be dictated by flcld length, field slope, setup, ohsrructions or simply habit. When the wind doesn't suit your ideal, you need a strategy. The primary and simplest strategy when the wind is light is to land as you would normally with only a few additional considerations. Chances arc you will be crabbing due to the crosswind, so your touchdown may be with a bit of sideways movement. Don't trip. /1. fast final and good flare will largely negate the affects of a light crosswind. In a stronger crosswind you will he crabbing even more (sec hgurc Ii), so crosswind effects arc again diminished. ·rhc landing should proceed as normal along the chosen path. Do nor 11are orously or the downwind tip rnay stall

)UNI 2001

fhst. These matters were discussed in more derail in our article that appeared in the March 19<) 3 issue of !-!ttng GlidRemember, more pilots get in trnublc ng to make last-second gyrations and jukes to point into the wind than do those who go ahead and land with the wind crossing to their path. Be that as it may, in strong winds l prefer to make an adjustment into the wind as low as 15 feet ofTthe ground. The reason for this action is to of'foet the effects of wind gradient (drifr and uneven stall) and avoid a severe cross if the wind is switchy.

SWITCHY WIND STRATEGY Besides the prospect of landing along with a swarm of other gliders, perhaps no other landing complication com-

m:mcls our attention like switching winds. l 11 a severe case, strong thermals can cause a 15--mph ground wind blowing one direction, soon followed by an equally strong wind in the opposite direction. hnnmatcly, these conditions arc rare, hut in protected sites the wind will ofre11 vary considerably as thermals tear away from the ground. l .ct's look at several possible situations. hrsr, consider a wind switching up ro 90° with a foirly open landing field. The situation is depicted in Figure 5. The best snategy i 11 th is case is to split the difference hctween the extremes of the wind's direction and use rhis as your landing direction. In the figure the pilot heads along the bisector of the angle between the maximum of the wind's variation. In strong winds, a last-minute, careful adjustment may be made to head more in to rhe present

Downwind, base and final

Left extreme

Current wind Lose altitude in rnid,field.

Track bisects the of the wind's HC>r>r,,i'"'''' extremes.

of wind

VIE)W

in a Varying Wind

Figuro B: Switchy wind Landing Strategy

wirnl

direction.

The second possibility ncrnrs in narrow field. Tlie worst case in this situation is a wind swapping 180° as shown Ill G. Herc the wrong choice can result in a direct t;1ilwind landing neg;irivc fun! The strategy with the best chance of avoiding such a fare is to com· rnit ro the landing final direction at the List possible moment. How do you do this? The answer is depicted in the me. Begin hy losing altitude off to the side of' the cenrcr of the field. Using 360° rnrns is best in this situation. Mon· itor the wind indicators, and once you arc at the height you have to choose a landing direction, make your setup according to the rnrrcnt sock informa·· tion. ff the field is short, do a downwind, base and final approach. If the field is long, fly to the center of the field and do a 90" turn to head in the chosen

Refinement of this technique involves watching the sock for the timing of If the wind blows for a minute or more in one direction you may chose to dive down quickly and take a cycle. Tf multiple socks or srrcam· crs exist along a field and one shows land near that sock in more rhc direction it clic1ares. Finally, if a wind is sliowing extreme, sudden switches, be rc,1dy to perform the downwind emergency procedure (sec Hang Gliding, July 1997). 'fhis technique has saved pilots in practice numerous times learn it. Landing is akin to waking up from a lovely flying dream. It can be gentle or abrupt. There's nothing that can spoil a grcar dream like a rndc awakening or ending. But we have strategics to case our passage from cl ream to earthly

rcsponsibilirics. We have presented some of the tricks for dealing with the complications of landing in this and the previous article. Learn them, review them in your daydreams, and use rhem when the simation demands. 1111

Note: Many of the items discussed in these articles are covered in more detail in our books, Hang Gliding 'fraining Manual and Performance Flying. The r;,,·pw,n,·,,, helou; jirovide an easy

Landing in ... I) traffic 2) crosswinds 3) tailwind It) swirchy winds 5) obstructed/small fields

(,'/idin,~ !vfrmwt!

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149 151 ],ig

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THE FLYTEC C" by Connie Bailey and Steve Kroop

one n The staff at Quesr and Flytec rook a collective deep brearh, rolled up our sleeves and dove into preparations. Company was coming and we wanred everything ro be perfect. For weeks rhe flighr park resembled a kicked-over fire-ant hill, rhe fever-pirch acriviry growing ever more frenzied as the date approached. The Florida air was filled with rhe smell of fresh paint, the bang of hammers hitting nails and me usual humidiry. You couldn'r walk by the easr hangar withour

===J=:=::::=;:r:~~;;~i~;i~;,==;;~==--:: =-==~~"'.')

rripping over the fleer of half-assembled c: launch carts, and liner went from rhe endangered lisr ro extinct. Everything was planned om from rhe sraging and launching right down ro the menu for the week. We felt ready. If we could do chis, we'd be more than ready ro rake on hosring the Pre-Worlds and World Championships. Then, ir was upon us. A world-class competition is a bright, many-colored, deceprively laid-back beast. Ir roars in, bringing irs own highly rarefied atmosphere along wirh ir, a nomadic microcosm char had rouched down ar our place once again. Ir would have been easy ro become overwhelmed had we nor planned so carefully. Even rhen, no amount of forerhoughc can fully prepare you for che sensory-overload realiry of me day-ro-day running of such a large evenr.

Ar d1e first pilots' meeting we explained rl1e staging and launch procedure we had worked out. Our initial reason for limiting rhe field ro 90 was speed of launch, and we had devored a significant amount of time prior ro ilie comp discuss ing various options wi rh experienced aerorow competition pilors. Still, unsurprisingly, a few competirors expressed reservations about our sysrem at d1e meeting. Unfazed, we remained confidenr and adopred a "crust us, chis will work" arricude in from of the pilors. Amongst ourselves, we realized that our repuracion for having the safest, mosr efficienr compericion launch sequence in ilie spore was on ilie line. The firsr day we exceeded even our own H ANG GLIDI NG

PIONSHIP •

1nutes ~=-..--,,:,,. hang gliding- breakfast

in the club house, the pilot briefing, equipment check, the migration to launch, the .-/'~ ' open window, the lull, news 1 • goal, the download, 3· from _ _ dinner and bed. Then, Saturday dawned, the last day. Conditions were nor as soarable during the launch window as they had been on previous days. Consequently, there were nun1erous reflighrs. Our crew took up the challenge and go t 175 gliders up in 85 minutes. Whew! Or, as one spectator remarked, 'Tm retired Navy. I served on an aircraft carrier in WW II and I ain't never seen nothin' like this! " At iliis point we realized iliat we had stressed over noiliing. Our system could have easily accommodated 120 competitors or more. Perhaps we might be forgiven for a few self-administered pats on the back. Then, suddenly, it was over. The flying circus quickly broke camp, folded its tents and moved on ilirough the night - a portable, perpemal parry/sporting event on its way to rhe next stop along the circuit deep in the Florida outback. T he dust settled. The door of an abandoned portapotty flapped in tl1e wind and a lone batten bag tLU11bled forlornly across the field. Though the noise and activity was enough to drive you batty yesterday, today you miss it.

f-:.: -

expecracions by launching all competitors plus 20 reflights in less than 60 minutes. We now had nothing to prove. Our faith in the system was justified. The pilots' meetin g on day two was oddly quiet abo ut the subj ect of staging and launch. Not a discouraging word was heard from what's normally a pretty demanding bLU1eh. Launch was even more efficient the second day, if you can believe it, and by day three we were launching the field in less than 50 minutes. We had beaten our own personal best by 10 whole minutes with more gliders than we'd ever handled before. G uinness would've been proud. By the third day things had become as routine as they are ever going to get in JUNE 200 1

It might be kind of corny, but so what, the finest part of the Flyrec Championship was the way so many disparate people, from the organizers to cleanup crews, pulled together and pulled it off We are proud to have been a part of such a successful event and look forward to next year (unless our therapist advises against it).

THE FLIGHT STUFF A brief overview of ilie daily flying follows. A much more derailed and iliorough account of each of ilie days' flying can be fo un d in Davis Straub's O z Report on-line at http://www. davisstraub.com/OZ. Day One: 62-mile triangle - The lift was less than predicted and the winds aloft were greater iliat predicted. No one, not even Manfred made goal, but yes, he did win the day making the greatest distance on course even over ilie Class 2 gliders. Day Two: Day canceled - Moderately strong and gusty winds. A large number of competi tors had reservations about the conditions. Paris and Revo flew for fun anyway. Paris flew a 13 1-mile dogleg. Day Three: Day canceled - Very strong and gusty winds. Day Four: 92-mile straight line to goal - Lift was strong and ilie crosswind on course was less than predicted. Thirty-four pilots made goal. Brian Porter had tl1e fastest time in Class 2 (03:00:1 3) and Manfred Rul1111er had tl1e fastest time in Class 1 (03:04:40). Day Five: 49-mile dogleg - Lift was stronger and winds were much lighter than predicted. Sixty-six pilots made goal. Brian Porter won the day in Class 2 (0 1:2 1:24) and Manfred Ruhmer won tl1e day in C lass 1 (01:30:32).

Two ofAmerica's finest: Team FLytec members Bo and Paris.

11/\NC CLll)!NC

nay Six: 92-milc straight line to goal Strong lift and moderate crosswind. Fifry-nine pilots made goal. Steve F.lkins won the day (02:49:5/i) in Class 2. and 'l<irnas Suchanek won Class 1 (02:30:56). Mark Poustincl1ian set a 11ew Florida and East C:0;1,t hang gliding record, launching from Quest Air and flying 225 miles ro Tifton, Georgia. Day Seven: (i6--mi\e out-and-remrn Strong lifr, strong crosswind and periods of ovcrdcvclopment. ']welve pilots made goal. Brian Porter won the day (02:2/i:OO) in Class 2 (over half an hour in front of everyone else) and CerolfHeinrichs won Class 1 (02:57:30).

THE GOOD STUFF The top l O finishers in Classes I and 2 are listed in rhe chart to the lefi:. A cornplcte listing of daily and cumulative scores can be found ar lntp://www.flyrec.com. In addition to the above prize money, Curt Warren was awarded the "Best New Competitor" and $300. ( :hris Zimerman was awarded the "Most Improved C:om-pctitor" and $300. Mark Poustinchian was awarded a brand-new r:lytcc 4030 CPS Access flight computer, cornplcte with instrument pod and (a dollar for each mile) for breaking the East Coast hang gliding record. Landowner hanl,

Menefee received the "MVP" /\ward. Jim Yocom was awarded "Best Sportsman" and received the latest Moyes racing harness. This puts the cash prizes at $1 and torn! prizes at $12.,%5 for the 200 I (:hampionship.

IN APPRECIATION We would like 10 mention by name a few key players from the cast of thousands. We hope that anyone not singled our will understand that a complete list would f111 this entire rnagazine. Thanks ro our friends for creating a veritable fleer of row planes: Austin /\irsports, Bailey-Moyes Microlites, Central Florida Flyers, Cloud Street in Colorado, Craig McMillian, FlightStar, Florida Ridge, Johnny "f ligh-' I " Killy I!awk Kites, Lookout Mountain, Northwing and Wallaby. Thanks ro tug pilors exrraordinaire Ric "Many Hats" Agudelo, Bob "The Invisible Man" Bailey, Karnron Blevins, Rod Brown, Steve "After" Burns, Steve "Big Dog" Flynn, Neil "The Quiet Man" Harris, Jim "They C1ll Mc Jim" Prahl, Rhen )UNf 2001

"Frankly, I don't a damn" Radford, Jim "Buck-Fifty" Richardson, Tyler Pirate" Ross, I ,es "Is More" 'faff; Alan Brown, Mike "The Hangar Hermit" 'fomczak and Just Paul. Thank you to our brilliant task and wea1her comminee: Davis "We're not in Kansas anymore" Strauh, Jerz Rossignol, Paris "Ice Man" Williams, Steve "Revo" Rewolinski, Chris Arni, and occasionally,

Bo "Hillbilly" Hagcwood. I-fats o{f to the most dliciem ground crew to ever take the field: Barb Flynn, Our Lady of' Launch, L.A. and Roger Evans, ( Roach, hank "Yellow Cloves" Menefee, Rick Squadrito, Mike McFadden, Ken Wilson, Johnny Benson, the tag team oC Dixon and 'fony Wilmer, George "Put a fork in me, I'm" Dunn, M ikc Eberle, Do 11, Dan, Willy, and of

.17

course, Lori Brown, die Coddcss of rehy-· dration. Thanks ro the crew at go::il, Duncan "Jiighlander" McBride, Mike McFadden and "\l(/e love LA." Evans, with special help from Arny Zcisct. \l(/c hate to talk with our mouths frill bur thanks to rhc f<Jod crew, Connie "No

Color/iii Nickname" Bziilcy, Ric, Riley zind Darian Agudelo, as decorative as they arc frmctional, with the additional ralcnrs of Pam Bowen, Saniautha Souv:rnkhot, and of course, Hank Camp, our answer to Star· bucks. Thanks for the music ro the lovely and talcii ted Awesome Bob Lme, Patrick Shook and the Deja View Band. A big haud ro our sponsors: Flytcc, Nonhwing, Moyes America, North American Paragliding and Ameriecm Rock (Jim bing. Last, bur cerrainly not least, a very spc· cial thanks ro the Meet Organizer, Flytec's own Steve Kroop, Meet Steward/Score· keeper C.W. "Inside Dealer" Meadows, zinc! to our new Meet Director David Glover. Thanks y'all! We couldn't have done it without you! II

by Ride Agudelo c:ll, I did it. I got to fly a tug during all five clays of rhe Flytee Championship. I came to Quest Air in November of 2000, a Flang Il pilot with a mission to learn as much about flying as I could. Boy, did I come to the right place. 'f'his is nor only the home of the Dragon· Hy but rbe home of Bobby and Connie Bailey, two brilliant minds in the world

of hang gliding. There's Bo Hagewood, the national hang gliding champion, Russell Brown, Campbell Bowen, Jim Prahl, and the list goes on. While [ wzis working on my I lang TV I started to learn how 10 fly the Dragonfly under the guicfance of Bo l fagcwood and finished my training with Jim :iml Russell. They trained me with rhe intention of using me as .J hzickup pilot during rhe competi· tion in April. When comp day came I was rczidy. I was a l fang [V pilot and had my ArP from the US HCA and pilot rating from the USUA, and l was assigned to the 91/i

Miami 'fog. I took it up that morning and flew for a while but decided that on a day like this I should fly something that [ was familiar with. I traded with Jim Prahl, and got into the Quest Air() 14.

The day was on. During my stay here J had impressed the Quest crew with my cooking skills and had been asked to cook for the mzisscs during the competition. So, along with Connie and Riley we organized dinner :rnd brezikfost for the seven days of com-peti rion. The clay would start with the arming of the coffee urns and bringing om the fruit, breads and cereal in order to be ready for the hungry morning crowd of pilots. Shortly afrer cleaning up it was off to 1he pilots' meeting, and then out to preflight the tug that I would be flying. Holy mzickcrcl, I arrived here a rlang n with only two different flying sires under my belt, and now, aft:er intense training with rhe hcst Dragonfly pilots in the world, here [ was, ahour ro row up

Continued on pilge 48.

by }amt Wheatman auivcd ir1 time fol' the first prlt)ts' meeting of the Ch,impio11ship Air Soadng venrt'r ~,11r1 began myweeklong sui:veyofwhat I foci the beamifi1! sportin the world. .andrh~ir pilots ,)re favori,t~: fon11 of wildlife to photograph, the flock of migrarory wild things that descc~nded upon Quest Air was exceptional. T'he diversity of domestic international specimens provided photographic stalking opportuni·ty\ Throughout rhe I metpilots from all over the world, indudii1g Poland, Switzerland, Gerrnany, J;,ngrn1no and Brazil. to name a Of course, om own homegrown were all over U.S. If you arc a hang glider pilot and have

sh(lre, .if on!Jyou arc watching or Think what other sport ble? Is there ,inythingyou'd like:: to ask of our national or world charnp.i<ms? As a

pilotwith surern "the comp sccm:/'.I was looking forward. to what I find. Theflrst

of competition opeo.<;'.tj.wi.tha steadily mounting pilots setup their gliders and themselves for.the rask at hand. I soon learned that most comp pilots arc aercrto'w pifots, which added an exrrachallenge to firsi: lau.m:J1cs. Jn up; some

tiotts t() Ul()te.ase. CUJJ;ll) ratJJS, dill! .,Lrn.tc~ thatbegin Jfavesdropping ,m a dissection (if the(}·· ries of aerodynarnics ldt n1e wonclerir11ff anyqne re,1lly docs know why Wt hqppeiJ.S! The scene was of p.ilots helpirig pifots; teacb1.ng, learning and having ag<)Od I IANC CIJDINC

JUNE 2001

PRODUCT REVIEW

he Brauniger IQ Sonic Miniature Vario by Mark ''Forger" Stucky

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HANG GLIDI NG

Im a budget minimalist kind ofguy and don't fly with a fancy CPS-

itde has changed in the five years since I reviewed the then-current crop of miniature audio varios - the Mallettec Mini Vario and the now-discontinued Flytec Micro Vario. Recently, Brauniger encered the market with the futuristic-looking IQ Sonic, a vario chat has one feature the ochers lack: a sink alarm. The $199 Sonic, like the ocher miniature variomecers, is marketed as a minimalist instrument or as a backup vario for cross-country pilots. The Sonic stands out with its slender, curving, translucent purple housing which is more reminiscent of an iMac than the black, boxy mini varios of yes teryear. It is larger than the other minis, measuring 3-1/2" long, 1-112" tall and 7/8" thick. The Sonic is molded into a slight concave curve and the banana shape helps match the compound curves of modern helmets. The vario comes with a small patch of velcro for fastening to the helmet and the latest models also include a shore safety lanyard. You power up the Sonic with a small, three-position toggle switch, giving you the ability to select up audio or up audio with a sink alarm. Like the Malleccec, the Sonic advertises 200 hours of battery life bur achieves ic with a single $5 .95 nickel-sized lithium watch battery. With the older varios, to have a bet-

.-.. u.. ,'i'llr;;..r

integratedflight deck, relying instead on a miniature variometer and altimeter watch.

ter unders tanding of their sink race, pilots adjusted the audio threshold so the varios beeped slowly ac their normal minimum sink rate. In the presence of sinki ng air che vario would be quiet, and with any lifting air the vario would increase its beep race and/or tone. This makes it more difficult co judge if you

are gaining altitude in weak conditions and also makes adhering to speed-co-fly theory in sink a bit problematic. A si nk alarm with an adjustable threshold helps mitigate both of these issues. By virtue of having a sink alarm, the Sonic up audio beeps, not in the presence of life, bur in the presence of climb.

ii..n d XC Har, , esses, If V.ou are Loo~ ing for

Ogmfort and Perform1 nce,

these are the harnesses

Looko1tt Mo1tntain Hans Glidins 800. 688. 5657 - www. ltaH9lidE:. cottt

JUNE 2001

T'he sink alarm is user adjustable from -20 to --1,000 fjJin and the pitch of the solid tone increases in depth as the sink rate increases above the threshold. Unlike previous minis, the Sonic also has the nice feature of adjustable volume. At maximum volume it is not quite as loud as the Flytec bm sufficiently loud so that ir can be mounted away from your car. The faint MaLlettec requires an "in-the-helmet" mounting 42

my harness and the volurne was more than adequate. The volume, sink alarm, and zeropoint thresholds arc adjusted using a jeweler's screwdriver, and making these adjustments unscrewing the back of the case. 'The Sonic is factory

calibrated and warns the user not to attempt to change the zero-point setting. I found that the Sonic zero-point was stable and, in fact, never needed to change any of the factory settings. For reference, the Mallettec also retains its zero-point setting for extended periods (months and months). There is a fine line between quick response tirne and indications. You want a vario to register minute changes in climb rate but filter out false indications that can occur from momentary changes in air pressure. 'fhe Sonic walked the line beautifully, responding quickly to real lift or sink but remaining silent while the Mallcttec gave an occasional erratic beep. When climbing, the beep frequency and rone increase as the climb rate increases. HANC CLIDINC

There is also an audible "step" at +260 fpm ro make ir easier to discern a thermal worth spending time in. Helmet-mounted miniature varios can suffor from a problem that is not seen with conventional control bar· mounted varios, namely, the appear-· ance of phantom lift and sink caused by pitot pressure (ram air) changes due ro swiveling your head. This was a real problem with the Mallettec; any "wind in the ear" en1ered the static port and caused the vario 10 go silent (false sink). Conversely, the moment l straightened my head I would be greeted with a sharp lift indication. These false readings only lasted a few seconds bm I found them irritating, especially while scratching in weak lift with other gliders nearby. I )ue to head orienta· tion, this problem is more prevalem for seated or paraglider pilots than prone hang glider pilots. Regardless, the Sonic does a very good job of shielding the inner workings from momentary changes in pirot pressure, and is thus much more 11scable in this situation. l found the Sonic audio very adequate but nor as good as the Flytcc which uses not only changes in pirch but also changes in the way it groups the beeps rogerhcr. This Flytcc "Morse code" makes it amazingly easy for a pilot to figure his climb rate to within 100 fi)m. I don't have the gift of a discerning musical car, ancl with rhc Sonic and rhc Mallcrt:ec 1 can only judge short-term relative changes in climb rates. Overall, the Sonic offers a nice "total package" for a mini vario responsive and accurate lift and sink audio, good volume, and modem looks. For me, the adjustable sink alarm is enough to give the Sonic the award for "choice miniature audio variornctcr." I do, however, have a couple or rccommcndat ions fi)r enhancements. First, I would build upon the "beep group" idea used by Flyrec so pilots can better discern their true climb rate as well as idcntif)r light, medium, and high sink rates. Last, the inner workings arc not as tightly packed as those of their competitors. Brauniger could bundle up the dee-· tronics tighter and reduce unnecessary ]UNI 2001

dead space, resulting in a significandy smaller housing. A smaller, less obtrusive profile would make it easier ro mount on a helmet as well as increase its resistance to getting knocked off I recommend that you check out the Brauniger IQ Sonic for yourself. You may well find it to be a great addition to your stable of flight instruments. II

FLIGHT DESIGN

HANG GLIDING ADVfSORY Used hang should always be disassembled before for time and inspected for cd downtubcs, rnincd the heart bolt), re,uscd or rusted cables, on flex wings, sails torn or torn loose from their anchor points front and back on the keel and le",l,na rdM·s 1F in doubt:, hang gliding busiucss, opinion on the

cq111p111e11t yon them ro inspect. equipment thar is appropriate for New pilots should seek prnfrs. a US! JCA CERTIF[ED JNSTRUC:TOR.

/\EROS STFAL'lll 151 Topless, bca11tif11l glider, excel Icm condition, Ii 1 hours $2,500. Joe (81i7) 895, 58'i8 lllinois.

FALCONS CLEARANCE SALE School me, one season. All sizes $1,250,$2,500. (262) /iTl,8800, info(irlbangglicli11g.com

BRAND NEW, rest flown $2J'S0. No time ro fly. (/,03)

last one $2,400. (262) 4Tl·

/\EROS TARCET 16

AIRBORNE

SHARK, BLADE RACE, STING,

FREE PVC GLIDER STORAGE/TRANSPORT TOBE

ALTAJR SATURNS l/i7, 167 flight park, low hours, clean, priced ro sell. 8800, info<rilhanggliding.com

HJSION SP COMP 150 New, 12 homs, excellent deal, inquire for details, email p1tpwagt?1'mindspring.com (770) 965,·0970.

DOUBLE VISIONS &. FLY2

FUSION 150 Excellent condition, blllelbbcklwhitc $2,500 . .Jim (623) 581,0145,JodiWhirclaw]t?ilaoLcom

FLEX WINGS

AEROS STEAl TH JI l 5 l Marrix doth, very fast, billboard glider, white LF, red w/blne 1111dersmfocc (Aug '00 centerfold) 60 hours, asking $2,790 OBO. Sacramento CA. Cell (916) 80/i,1063, rc1 <).,};({t)yah()o.corn

New and used.

WALLABY RANCH (863) li2/i,0070. FAGLFS 115, I 6/i Rema! hours) clean, priced to inh)@hanggliding.com

at flight park, low (262) /i/3,8800,

FUSION li2/i-0070.

Demo daily. WALLAHY RANCH (863)

GUDERS AEROS STEA] TH 3 151 ! ,ate 7.000, matrix cloth, c;1rhon faired spcedbar, autn,lowcring ALL THE RACE GIZMOS, hom total time. out of comp {lying, aski11g $4,300 OBO. Sacramento CA. ( :ell ('J 16) 8()1(.4063, rcto_,s~byahoo,com

EXXTACY NEW & USED IN STOCK, DEMO DAJLY, WALLABY RANCH (863) li24,,0070.

harness wlchutc, (8(,0) :l09 0256.

low hours, High Fncrgy pod like new. Must sell $2,500.

AFROS STFALT!l 151 w/ki11gpost, BRAND NEW, test flown only $2,'500. No time to fly. (603) 5194250, (253) 709,8'i93.

FALCONS l!iO, l 70, 195, 225 new and used. WALLABY RANCH (86:3) 'i2fi ..0070.

/\EROS STFALTIJ OLEK RACER 151 Comp mylar sail, all orange 11nclersmfoce, 50 sp,m, downmbcs, AWESOME, priced to sell $2,200 OBO. (Ii 15) (16/i

FALCON 170 60 hours, 3 years old, blue/tmgcnta, grear condition, folding hascnrbe, will ship $2,000 OBO. (9/i9) 795,0li2 l, mallcttec(a)mallertec.com Southern Californi,1

35 r for sale, rigid to single surface. Call/email for current list. Wallaby Ranch (863) 42/i0070 Florida, glidcrs(a\vallaby.com ITPAT 145 Old bm sweet, rccl/whire/bluc, flies great, JOO hmm lcfr $500 OBO. (949) 795,0lt21, 1nallctrec(,hmalletrec.corn Sm1thern C'.alifon,ia.

I!PAT HS 999. lliT7.

l ')')2, excellent shape $1,400. (Ii l 5)

Good condition, new leading edge cloth $995.(262) iiTl-8800,

KL/\SSIC 1 /iii Excellent condirion, great climb rate $1,500 priced to sell. ('Vf I) 50/i,5/i 16.

5989.

USHGA CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING Ol~DER FORM 50 cents per word, $5.00 minimum Boldface or caps: $1.00 per word. (Does not include first few words which are automatically caps,) Special layouts or tabs: per column inch. (pl1one numbers: 2 words, P.O. Box: 1 word, E··mail or Web address: 3 words) photos: $25.00, line art logos: $15.00 (1.75" maximum) DEADLINE: 20th of the month, six weeks before the cover date of the issue in which you want your ad to appear (i.e., June 20 for the August issue). Prepayment required unless account established. No cancellations or refunds allowed on any advertising after deadline. Ad insertions FAXed or made by telephone must be charged to a credit card. Please enter my classified ad as follows:

SECTION fJ Flex Wings IJ Emergency Parachutes lJ Parts &Accessories IJ Business &Employment IJ Miscellaneous Paragliders IJ Videos

IJ Towing lJ Schools &Dealers rJ Ultralights IJ Rigid Wings lJ Publications & Organizations fJ Wanted rJ Harnesses

consecutive issue(s). My fJ check, IJ money order is enclosed in the amount

01$ ........., ... - .. ,,...... ,............. ,,....,,,,,,,,,,, NAME:._, ...... _.,, ........- ... ,. . . ... ADDRESS: .................................. _.................- ..... -····-......................._....... - ... .

Number of ,, -·--·._ ... _ ............................... @$.50 Number of words: ..... @$1.00

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

HANG GLIDING

LAMINAR ST 11/ 5162, (106) 897.-5088.

(l03) 1f66,

l'Ul.SF l lM ··~· Fxcellcnr condition, cnsrom sail, ilt'autifid! Sec at www.linetwork.com/Pulse.hrrnl, ((i3 l) 72112')5.

LAMINAR Iii handling $2,000.

PULSES & VISIONS llought-Sokl-Traded. Raven Sky Sports (2(,2) liTl·8800, info(alhanggliding.com

LAMINAR ST, Iii, 13 in stork. WALLABY RAN(:! l (86:l) lt2/i,0070. LA MOUET'J'F. TOPLESS 11 Crcat glider fo1 light pilots. Co{)(I condition, built summer of''99, 100 homs $3,000. Contact Claire (ill Ii) IJ22·0589,

IA MOlJLTTF TOl'I.LSS 118 Cood condition, 100 hours $2.,;lOO. ((150) 557·08.15, ru\1o'J8Crilhorn1ail.rnm

MOYl,S C:SX Ii Excellent condition $2.000 OBO. (Ii I ii) :182 298 J, info(r1lhanggliding.colll

info({hhanggli<ling.com

dition $2,400.

WWXC: 155 ·- l.ikc 11cw $2,750. (909) 2/ili-O?BG J.os Angeles. EMERGENCY PARACHUTES

SPECTR\JM I (i'i lncludcs wil kit, new nose cone, great condition $1,500 or looking fc,t Ulnasport I G6. 1,:ric, li;111gcheck~1lyahoo.corn Sl'FCTRUM C:LLARANC:E SALE Three 165 Spcctrurns in near new condition, w/all options $1,8()0.$2,600. One H1 $1,500. Raven Sky Sports (262) 173·8800, rnlo~1Jha111,gl1t1'1J1g.cnm SPORT AT 167 EURO l.ike new, full race, inter· mediate, ili0-2/iOlhs, 1 owner $1,500 OB() or trade for tandem. (7GO) '!lilt ·6881, juanc1rl(iscos(-alfhhocmail.com

MOYFS CSX Topless, <?. yc:Hs old, ,·xccllcn1 condition $7,690. (61 'J) 2.86-'i601i, boh!.r1'wcbsitl"lr:1flic\>11ildcrs.rnlll

STF/\l.Tl I KP! I 1 ··- Only 8 hours airtime, like new condition, must sacrifice due to work rclarcd injury $3,000 OBO. (209) 5.'32 1302.

Very good condition, red/white, MOYF.S CSX I J7 100 homs, tuhc transported $2.,000. (9/i'l) 2G0-6160.

SUFERSPORT l li3 -- Co()(I condition $500. (619) lt7:3-97ii3, Lbcrts~llncsd.cdu

SX, XTI., XS3, XT, etc. New and MOYES CSX nearly new. Available irnmcdia1cly. Nation's hugest Moyes dealer. WALLABY RANCH (863) 42.li-0070.

SlJl'FRSPOlff 15.l low homs, WW fin l1lf()Ct11\1anggliding.con1

MOYFS SONIC: 165 Blue/red, near new $2,500. MOYES XT PRO I G'i The rnodcl before the SON· IC, two available $1,500., $2,100. (2G2) /il} .. 8800, infc)~il]1a11gglidi11g.com

SlJl'FRSl'ORT 16:J Blue/whire, harness, helmcr, etc. $1,200. (:l05) 223 5828 Florida,

:-i111pcr·ncat custom sail, very $1,900. (262) liTJ.8800,

gahbi IO 1(it\101.com

Used (Juantum 3:lOs, 550s. Sports (2(,2) li73,8800, in!,1~lll1angglidi11g.c:om f!ARNESSES

l !as "Brand CRAVITY SPORTS IN HAWAII New" Jct Stream harnesses for sale. The following is all we have left: 5'8" Jct Stream, Narrow, Red; 5'8" Lazer, Burgundy; 5' 1()" Jer Stream, Wide, Burgu11dy; 5' 1()" Lazer, Burgu11dy: 5'1 O" Jcr Srre:un, Wide, Purple; 5'10" Jct Stream, Narrow, Red; 5'10" Jct Stream, Burgundy. All J Lu nesscs at rhe closeout price of' $/i50.00 i11cl11dcs shipping ro rhe US & Canada. Call (808) 261-78'/3 or Email at parapc·tct11 1a,1a.11,ct HARNESS EXCHANGE 931

Cl!UTES (970) Ml

]{l(;H ENFRCY TRACER POD I lARNFSSFS Sizes &. styles monrlily, $300 500. Cocoons 5'9" $1i00. l(neehangcrs & srir$200 each. L\11 Fl' li7:l,8800, rups also available. in101!lll1anggliding.corn MOSQUITO 111\RNFSSES . - One new $3,250., one used $3,000. (909) 2/;/i.0786 Los Angeles. WILLS WlNC ZS

Large, brand new $(,00. (60:l)

539-li2'i0, (2'i3) 709 859}.

MOYES SX/i Creal condition, pmplc/white, very low hmm $2200. (2(,2) ·47J·8800,

WWZ5 Only $500 OBO. Ron (:llO) 779Sl18, cleniro1,62(iilhormail.com MOYES SX 'i Very clean $1,500 OBO. (Ii I Ii) }82298 I, info(alhanggliding.com MOYES Xl. 1li'i

WWZ'i \l!edium, u11ly 6 flights, i1,ducb para· chute-hand $500. ((, l 9) 4TJ-97ii.3, l ,bcrrsG:f)ucsd.cdu

Excellent condition $1,200 OBO.

(:l IO) 577-5201 x:ll:l.

PARAGI.IDF.RS MOYFS XS I (505) :n:n:in.

AIR SPORTS USA WWW.FLYFORFUN.NET

MOYES XTRl\1.l'J'E Iii; . All whire $1,100 OBO. (2G7.) /il}-8800, i11fo~1,Jianggliding.com MRX2001 LI\MINARS ARE 111'.RE Experience nerlnrm:11110' flex wing available. New and STs also available. (7(,0) '/21 0'70 I, mclaslry~"y,1,1!00.com and www.icaro2000.com

RIGID WINGS UI.TRASPOlff H7, 166 Rental gliders at flight park, low hours, clean, priced to sell. (2(,2) /i/:J.·8800, i11f(>Vhl1;1nggliding.corn

ATOS·~ J ow homs, low price, extras. Day (20:l) li.'386559, Evenings (860) 350·80li l.

PULSE 11 M l ligh Energy harness, reserve, helmet, all brand new, I test flight $;3,900. ('):W) (,)J.521 }, hbcycr(ir\:rd1na11.co111

l'Ul.SF. l lM

Cuod condition $2,800 OllO. ($05)

ATOS (small) AND CIJOSTl\USTFR Brand new, in srock Nor demos. Why wait; (262) IJT,.8800, in1o~ilhanggliding.com

WW SPORT AT 167 ·- Very good condition, grcen/wl1ire/hluc, ripstop trailing edge, flies great $850. Joe (847) 8')').5858 Illinois.

ATOS David ('719) (,30 3(,98, ,lavidvildavidglovcr.com. UTTRAI.TCJITS

120 hours, sail in shape, rccl/hlh:ldniaPcnta. folding basctube, ship $ I ,800 795-0421, mallettecvi1rnalkrrcc.com SoutlH'rn C:dil,,rnia.

)UNI 200]

4'i

TRIKE Su up for aerotowing h:tng gliders. /\II accessoric:s, BRS, indudes nice slow La Moucne $10,300. wing. Crcat way to .sLin a new acrotow (507) 895.1240, xchawkc:'\10!.com

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w/han1css> 8/i (, .. 8] 8(,,

DRF/\M WE/\VER I !ANG Gl.lDlNG Tr:1i11 on srate·ortl1e·arr WILLS WING F/\I.CONS. LESSON PACKAGES: One fom hom lesson $100. Three four hour lcssorn, plus rnndrn1 off 2,000fr. $300. Five lessons for $1iOO. Ten lessons plus rnndcm $7'50. '"·""l"tc1c lesson prograrns. Year-round inst-ruction. 1.a1tttc:rnng and landing and thermal clinics available. rates. Tire,.\ of ]'JI help you! for Wills Wing, Spons, Ball varios, C:miclbaks :md more. We love track-ins. I'm your northern California MOSQUITO 1IARNESS DEALER. If you live in central through northern Calif<m1ia, give 111c a call or email to schedule your Mosquito demonstration or clinic. Call or email, scheduling lessons {ivc a week, through Tuesdays. Ideal tr:1iuiug up to l 600ft.

J !ANC GUDJNC: /\ND PARAGUnTNG UST fGA certified instruction, tandem 11ighr instruction, sales, service, repairs,

rcpack1-,) and site tours. San

Diego's center. Visa and MasterCard accepted. li52,9858 or toll free 1.377.Ff.Y TI\AM. Check 11s our and order online at. www.flytorrey.com

m01J1Haio. 1,200fr. 1nountain. Tandem instrucrion.

USHC/\ Advanced Instructor DOUG PRATHER (209) 556,0469 Modesto, C/\.

SCHOOLS & DEALERS

(l rmwvrhg<?l\;ofrcom. net

FLY /\W/\Y !!ANG Cl.J[)IN(; Tarn my Bnrcar (fl05) www.flyabovcall.com/flyaway.hrrn

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THE l !/\NC GUDJNC CVNTER Drive, San Diego Cl\ 'J2 11

or dangerous training bills. 350 days each year. Learn foot Lnmd, sl,ills and quickly. Train with proCcssional at world I )ockweiler Beach training slopes (5 minutes li·om LA fly winter or summer in gentle coastal winds, sand and v,1irh one of /\rnerica's n10st

i11 a thorough

I llCll /\DVENTURJ,: Hang gliding, paragliding school. Ectuiprnrnt sales, service, remals at Southern California's mile high site, Crestline. USHC/\ lnstrnctor Rob Mcl<cnzie. (909) 88},8/i88, www.11yt:1t1ucrn.c111111

AIABAMA LOOKOUT MOIJNTAll\ 1'1.lCl IT PARK

years.

COLORADO

AlRTIMF ABOVF l 11\N(; CLIDlNG lessons) sales, scrvkc. Colorado's mos! experienced! Wills Wing, Moyes, /\ltair, lligl, 1,:ncrgy, flail, Flytec, Connections and much more. Call (303) <,7,i. Airtime! lC0\mLcom

N/\TION/\1. SCI 1001 NETWORK RJNCS LOCALLY. For infonn:1tion call David (719) <i:,o. :3698, da1•1t1~·nc1,1v1cllglovcr.corn

ad nuder ( ;corgia.

prestigious schools

CONNFCTICUI'

Sec

LARCFST I !/\Ne; CLl[)INC SI IOI' ln the West! Our deluxe retail shop showcases the larest equipment and has two virtual reality hang flight sirnul:1 tors. We stock new and Wing, Alrair and Moyes gliders, and all the hot/1'st new harnesses. Trade·

MOUNTAIN WINGS

l .ook under New York.

ins arc welcome.

(719)

( )ur comprchmsivc program, located :1t the beginner sire features: San l'rancisco Bay Area's gently sloped "bunny hills," Wills Wing Falcons of all sizes :md comfortable training harnesses! "FIRST FLIC:Hf"' 15 minute video tour of om begin· ner lesson pro[;rarn shows srudem's skill progression $20 (shipping included). 111 GWrigley Milpitas ( :/\ 95035 (nrar Sm, Jose). (108) 262· l 055, (li08) )(,2, 1388. n1ission(fVhang-·gliding.cont www.hang··glidi11g.com

llN..JC GLIDING

FLORIDA

GEORCIA

'T'hc Acrorow Flight Park Satisfaction ( ;uarnntecd JUST 8 MILES FROM DISNF.YWORTD YEAR ROUND SOARING • OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK • SIX TUGS, NO WAITING • EVERY DIRECTION 50+ Ji!C:J:: demos to USHGA CERTfflFll TANDEM INSTRUCTION By McNamce. Aerornw training & ratings. Dealer for major flight and acrotow cqui1)tnc11t, I homs from Disncyworld. Call 052) li89-9%9.

LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN FUC:J IT PARK ··· Sec ad under Ccorgia. Nearest n1ountain training center to Orlando (only 8 hours).

NO THE HILL WITH IT!

to Trainer Clidcrs: Laminar, Moyes,

Wills, Airborne, Aitwavc, Fxxtacy, l ,a Moucttc) Sensor; also harnesses) varios, cLc.

Ages l :, To h:tvc learned to fly here. No one comes close to om level ol experience and success with randcm acrotow instruction. A GRF.AT SCENE FOR FAMILY AND FRIENDS ...

WE ] JAVE -~ The most adv,mccd known to hang gliding, you in time it rakes on the rraining,BUNNY HILL, and with more air time. YES, WE CAN TEACH YOO FASTER AND SAFER. for year-round training fi,n in the sun, call or write Miami Jiang Gliding (.105) 2858978. 2550 S llayshorc Drive, Coconut Grewe, Florida

10 motels & rcst:mranrs within 5 mins., camping, hot showers, shade trees, sc1les, storage, ratings, XC retrievals, great weather, climbing wall, trampoline, DSS 'JV, ping pong, picnic tables, swimming pool, etc.

l ,800-803-7788 ],aundry) propane, rccrca1-ion FULL llOOK-UPS room. J. 800-803-7788

l.OOKOlJT MOUNTAIN Fl.lCHT !'ARK -- Sec our display ad. Discover why FOUR TIMES as many pilots earn their wings at Lookout than at any other school! We wrote USHGA's Offkial Training Manual. Our specialty-customer satisfaction and fon with rlie BEST FACILITIFS, largest inventory, camping, swimming, volleyball, more! For a trip, imro flight or lesson packages, Lookout Mountain, just outside your COMPLETE training/service center. Info? (800) 688-LMFP.

Flights of over 200 miles and more than 7 hours. Cross Articles in !-!ring and others. h:aturcd on numcrnus TV shows, Dateline NBC, The Discovery Channel & FSP/\:. Visit us on the Web: http://www.wallaby.com Please call us for references and video. 1805 Dean Still Road, Disney Arca, i-;1. 3383'7 (863) li2A-0070 phone & fax

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WARM & COMFORTABLE·- By LMFP! :l2 bunks, hot showers, open all year, 2/i hour self registration. 1-800-803-7788! HAWAII

Malcolm Jones, Lamie Croft, Ryan Clover, Carlos llcssa, Rhen Radford, Tiki Mashy, Jeremie Hill, Tom Ramseur, Roger Sherrod, Neal Harris, Bart P,ml Moncure, Carolina DcC:astro, Bob McFcc, Kerry Lloyd

QUEST ArR SOARJNG CENTER Your vacation gliding location. (.352) li29-02 Ll, fox (352) li29Visit our website m: www.qucstairforce.com or email us: qucsrnir@sundial.net

your

appreciate and Tell them you

saw

Gliding. JUNE 2001

BIRDS JN PARAl)]SE !fang gliding & ultralight on Kauai. Certified tandem instruction. (808) 822-5309 Ot (808) G39·l OG7, bi rds@tb irdsi n pa rad isc. com

Continued ftom page 38. rhe rop hang glider pilots on rhe planet. I parked my plane in line next ro rhe staging area and sat in the shade of my wing for a few deep, calming breaths of air. It didn't work, but it was a worrh a try. We got rhe signal co wind up the engines and we were off. Before I knew it I was 1,000 feet up wirh a hang glider pilot on my towrope. On my right was a 582 climbing out of rhe field wirh me. Up ahead rhere were six rugs doing rhe same thing, starting from about 1,000 feet co having the last hang glider pilot about 40 feet over rhe cop of my wing. Wirh one eye on rhe mirror, one eye on rhe gauges, and a third eye making sure we didn't collide wirh anyone, I could see a gaggle beyond rhe fleer of tugs - not just any gaggle, but what looked like a dust devil that had picked up about 90 hang gliders and was swirling rhem up into rhe sky like a bunch ofleaves. Ir was the most magnificent sight. The pilot behind me pinned off and I

turned back coward the field, amazed co see two rugs comjng at me and two more climbing out of the field, along wirh orher hang gliders scattered all over the sky, eirher on approach or climbing out coward rhe gaggle. I put myself into a 65-mph dive coward rhe field and timed my descent so rhar I could get co rhe field as soon as possible co land. I cleared my final turn and rimed it so that I landed just seconds after rhe 912 in front of me couched down. We had co make short-field landings and hit rhe mark, so slipping into ground effect and straightening out at rhe last minute was all part of rhe aerial ballet. Sometin1es I would make a one-wheel landing and turn in co get in from of rhe next glider up co bat, and back in line co do it all over again. The ground crew, hot on rheir toes, finished a safety check and wound me up. I cook off again wirh anorher tug landing close berund me co fill rhe gap. Before I knew it, it was all over and we

had pulled off 120 launches in less than 50 minures wirh no injuries. I stepped out of rhe plane wirh adrenaline dripping from my rongue and could hardly wait for rhe next day co do it all over again. An older man walked over co me and said, "I worked on an aircraft carrier in WW II and I have never seen anyrhing like this before in my life. " The crazy rhing about the next day was rhat it didn't seem as intense. In fact, at one point we were so organized and flying heads up rhat I swear I could hear, "Da da da da ... da da . . . da da .. ." the Blue Danube Walrz. It was an aerial ballet. We got better. We got all 102 pilots up in less than 47 rrunutes . I've never seen, let alone been a part of, such a well-organized rowing system in my life. I consider myself privileged co have been an integral part of such an amazing accomplishment. Thank you Quest Air and all rhose who helped guide and prepare me for such an awesome experience. •

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ILLINOIS

MICJIIGAN

IIANC CUDE C[{lCAGO Full service aeropark, 2 tow planes. Full time ccrt:ificd instrnctors, ulualighr insrrncrors, Easr Coasr recoi-d 213 miles. (815) 4952212, www.bangglidechicago.com

CLOUD 9 SPORT AVIATION Acrnt:ow spccialisrs. We carry all major brand hang gliders. FREE PVC glider storage/transport tube with new glider pur.. chase. Now in stock: Wills TAI.ON COMP!, XC 155, 4, Sonic 165; Magic Kiss Falcons; Moyes 154. Ourriggcr wheels and other accessories in stock. Call for summer randcm lessons and flying appoillt-· mcnts with the Soaring Club at Cloud 9 Field. 11088 Coon Lake Road West, Webberville, Ml 48892. (517) 223-8683 Cloud9sa@aol.com. hrrp://members.aol.com/cloud9sa

RAVEN SKY SPORTS (312) 3600700, (815) 489-9700 or (262) 4Tl-8800. 2 hours from Chicago, 90 minutes from Palarine or Lihcrryville. The best instrucrors, rhc equipment, the best resulrs in rhc Midwest. 7 days/week, March t:luu November. Training program for combincd/intcgrared foot launch and aerotow cert:ificarion. Apply 100% of your intro lesson costs to certification program upgrade! Please sec our ad under WISCONSIN.info@banggliding.com INDIANA

RAVEN SKY SPORTS (262) li73-8800. Please sec om ad under Wisconsin. infoirhhanggliding.com MAR.YI.AND

MICHIGAN SOARING Delivering VALUE with the best combination of SERVICE, QUAI.TTY & PRICE. ALL brands of gliders and gear. Call Doug Coster 882--474it, wingman@rraverse.com TRAVERSE CITY HANG GLIDERS/PARAGLIDERS FULL-TIME shop. Certified instruction, foot bunch and row. Sales, service, accessories for ALL major brands. VISA/MASTERCARD. Come soar om li50' dunes! l 509 8th, Traverse City MT 4968/i. Offering powered lessons & dealer for the Explorer & used emirs. Bill at (231) 922-281i4, tchangglider@juno.com. Visit om paragliding school in Jackson, Wyoming. Call Tracie at (.307) 739--8620.

AIR SPORTS USA NYC's first and only certified hang gliding, paragliding, rnicrnlights (trikes), powered paragliding. Distributors for Avian. Dealers for most major brands. Full service and cquipmcnr at best prices. The most service in the area. Store address: 29 31 Newrown Ave., Astoria NY. Phone (718) 7'77-7000, WWW.FLYJ10RJ,UN.NET FLY HIGH HANG GUDTNG, INC. S. New York, Connecticur, Jersey areas (Ellenville Mu1.) Area's EXCLUSIVE Wills Wing dcaler/specialisr. Also all other major brands, accessories. Certified school/inst:ruct:ion. since 1979. Area's most INEXPENSIVE prices. Excellent secondary inmuction ... if finished a program and wish to conrin-uc. Fly the mounrain! ATOJ. Tandem flights! Contact Paul 516:l Rd, Pinc Bush, NY 12566, (81i5) SUSQUEHANNA FLIGHT PARK Cooperstown, NY. Certified Insrrncrion, Sales and Service for all major manufactmers. liO acre park, 5 tr,1ining hills, jeep rides, bnnk house, camping, bot showers, 600' NW ridge. We have die bcsr facilides in N. New York srate to teach you how ro fly. c/o Dan Guido, Box 293 Shoemaker Rd, Mohawk NY 13407, (315) 866-6153. NORTH CAROLINA

MINNESO'l'A RAVEN SKY SPORTS (612.) 3/iO 1800 or (262) 173-SilOO. Please sec our ad under WISCONSIN. Baltimore and DC' s full rime park ']'andcm instruction, solo aerotows and equipment sales and service. W c carry Aeros, Airwave, Flight Design, Moyes, Wills Wing, l ligh Energy Sports, Flytcc and more. Two 115 HP

NEVADA ADVF.NTURE SPORTS Sierra soaring at its best. Toms and tandems available. Instruction from certified USHCA instruc1ors with years experience. Sales, service and insrruction hy appoin trnent Carson City/1.ake Tahoe NV. (775) 883.-7070

XC CAPITAL OF THI' CAROLINAS (828) 632-981 0 foothillsfligln@hotmail.com

rugs

Open fields as far as you can sec Only 1 to I. 5 hours from: Rehoboth lk,ch Baltimore Washington DC Philadelphia Come

with US!

Ph li10.6'lli.2700 Fax 410.634.2775 24038 Race Track Rd Ridgely, MD 21660 www.acrospo1Ts.net

MARYLAND SCHOOL OF HANC Cl.lDJNG, JNC. Certified instmcrion, specializing in foot launch. Dealers for Wills Wing, Moyes, High Energy, year-round instruction. (lilO) 527-0975,

LAS VEGAS AIRBORN WATERSPORTS USHCA certified instruction. Sales and service, boat tow, rnonmain soaring, XC. (702) 2607950,

JUSt

NEW JERSEY MOUNTAIN W!N(;S

Look under New York.

NEW YORK AAA Fl.JGHT SCJIOOJ. MOUNTAIN WINGS I FLLENV!LI 1: AlR SPORTS. Full service park, 4 500ft. tow field, winch and aero rowing, tandems, two .. placc U.L. training. Airwavc, Altair, Moyes, Acros, learn 2000, Flight Star U.L., MOSQUITO powered harness, WOODY VALLEY harnesses in stock. The V-MITTS $29.00. or (815) 647-3377 l 50 Canal Sr., Ellenville, NY HG Pro.-sliop in the North East.

out

HANC CLIDINC

VIRGIN!!\

TEXAS

•

YEAR--ROUND SOA!UNC • 1·:XCFI.LFNT XC l'LYINC • TANI )IM INSTRlJC:TlON AFRO TOW! NC/Tl !REF Tuc;s DRAC;ClNl'I Y/'l'RlKF INSTR\Jc:·1·10N 'IN rno H)OT l.AUNCI ! CLASSES PARAC:l.llllNC: TOWS WJN< :JI TOWINC FLY-INS AND C:I.JNICS • SAi.LS AND SFRVJC:F 600 AC:RF l'i\CJLITY Stew Burns ')l9.27'J.'J:l82 email: sburnsti1la\pha I .net BOOB Pinc St., I k:mtc TX l785') !'red Burns 28 I .Ii? 1. I li88 email: austituirti1\ml.rnm 3810 Bonita 1.anc, I.a Porte TX ?'757 I

Fttlltimc instrnction and service ;tt BLUE SKY Manquin !'light Park near Richmond. Wills Wing, Moyc'.s, Flight l)esign, Aeros and Ai,wavc gliders. Mid Atl:rntic Mosquito dealer. Steve Wendt ('i/iO) iiT7 655'; or (80/i) 2/i I ./i:)7/i, www.hlue.skyhg.com, l)lt 1eskyl1g(lly;i], no.com l !JCI !LAND i\FROSPOlffS -Sec M;1ryl:111d.

KITTY I IA WI< KITES

Sec North< :arolina.

www.austinai1·spo1ts.com

TANDEM INSTRUCTlON • AFROTOWJNc; • BFACI I Rl·SOlff • BOATTOWINC: • FOOT l.AUNCI I TRAIN INC: CAMI'S 01'1•:N YEAR ROUND • l'AIV\C:Lll)JNC EQUIPMENT SAi.ES AND SERVICE

(800) 33f4777 NAGS

CCl...l JANC Gl.llll"JC!!! JclrI lu11t. Austin ph/fox (5 I 2) li67-7,52') jcffG-1lf1ytcxas.corn www.flytexas.cotn I.earn I JILL COUNTRY l'ARACI.IDINC INC complete pilot skills. Personalized US] ](;A certil,ed

training, ridge soaring, fool & row launching in central

Texas. MOTORIZED PARAGI.IDING INSTRlJCTION & EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE. (')1'5) T79 1 I85. lli75 CR no. Tow TX 78672.

Intcrnet Address: http://www.kinyhawlccom E-Mail Address: info(alkittyhawk.com

KJTF ENTERPRlSES Foot launch. platl'orm launch and arrotow insrruction too. sales,

PENNSYlVANIA

rentals and repair. Ai1w;tvc & Wills Wing. hm Worth and north Texas area. 211 Ellis. Alim TX lSOO).. (')?2) 3')0-9090 nights, weekends,

11 ICI II.AND AFROSl'OlffS

www .ki t(>cn I crpriscs.con1

Sec 1\Jlaryland.

FLY t\T VlRCINIA'S NFWFST TOTAL Fl.lC!IT MANQUl N o/frrs :tcro10wing, t;tndern PARK lessons, {r11ck trnining hill and scootc1 pilots. C:er1il1ed lowing instruu-ion, cquip1nen1 sales, service and through "BLUE SKY" Virgini:t's leading hang

scliool. instruct ion Try :l axis flying wi1h ccnilicd ,md soar the through "FLY RA WUNG". learn to Superl'loatcr. Jnst hours south or W,isil11wttOll llC. tninlltCS NF of Richmond. l·n..c camping clm,c to List J()od, rcsu1t1 rants and 1)om inion tht.'mc park. Visit lL'>' oil \vch \vww.rn:mquin:1cro1ovv.com or www. I)! 11cskyl1g. U)rn.

(5/iO) li.32-6557 MOUNTAIN TOI' RECREATION Certified insrrncrion, l'ittshmgh. (412) l67--li88). C'MON our AND PLAY!

Area's OLDEST Wills TOTI\!. AIR SPORTS Wing dealer. C:enifled instruction available. "] only DEAi. with WILLS". 1(,121 J,akevicw, I louston TX l7MO. (71.o) 937-86 I 1, totalair.spon I ()(f1lhotmail.com

( :cnificd instruction and

1965 Arlington VA.

MOUNTAIN W!NC:S--- I ook under New York. \JTAII

WASI JJNGTON

C:1.0UD 9 SOARINC CENTER The nation's pa1,·agl1Cl1ng and Imig gliding .shop. is now ollcr-

1 IANCTIMF

PUERTO HICO

FLY PUERTO RICO Team Spirit I IC classes daily. tandem instruction Wing dealer. C;Jider rentals for qualified pilots. I'() Box ')78, Punta Santiago, Puerto Rico 0071 I. (7il7) il'iO OS08, tshgG1lrnqui.11er

1i'"'""h '''··'·"""• guide services, repairs and sales

Dealer o/' the MOSQUITO powered harnesses. C::11' for CLINIC dates. l~ight here i11 the p,tcilic northwest. (509) 525-357~. lbbrow11Ghhr11i.rH·J

at Mountain, Utah. Contact us for an informa1ion packc1 or .stop by the shop. (801) 5/(,6/iG(L infot,1lparaglidct.s.rn!ll I 25'56 S. Mimtteman I lr. II I Draper, UT 8/i020.

TENNESSEE I.OOl<OlJT MOUNTi\/N FLICIIT !'ARI< ad under Ccorgia.

Sec

WASATCH WINGS - Utah's only litll svrvicc hang gliding school, Point the Mot1111ain, regional n1Dnt1 tain sites. towing. Dealer l<,r Acros. Airwavc, Altair, Moyes, Wills Wings and much mon'. Call /.ac (801) )itlt-7/i91i, wings(1i\v:1sa1ch.com

www.wa~atch.com/-wi11gs

)LJNf 2001

saw

111

WISCONSIN RAVEN SKY SPORTS l!ANc; CUDlNG AND PAR/\GLIDlN(; -·- The Midwest's Premier aero1ow flight park, founded in 1992. Fearuring INTEGRJ\'f. ED INSTRUCTION of foot·lannch and aerotow tan· prices ro heat in the USA. Seven naining hills all wind dirccdons. J:our tow planes) no !'om tandem 1,lidcrs on wheeled undercarriages. Falcons for tr:iining from rhc very 11rs1 lessons. USU/\ ulrraliglu and instruction. J:rec Salcslscr· vice/accessories all brands. Oprn 7 March rhrn November. C:0111act Brad Box 10 I, Whitewater Wl 53190 (262) liTl·8800 phone, (262) fiTJ.880 I fax, www.hanggliding.com,

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CI./ISSIFIFD AIWERT!SlNG RATl~S The rate for cbssi· lied is $.50 (or group of characters) and $1.00 per word for or all caps. MJNIM\JM AD ( :11/IR( :1,: $5.00. /I li·e of $15.00 is charged for each line an loy,o and $25.00 for each photo. J.lNEART &. PHOTO SIZF NO l.ARCERTHAN 1.7'5" X2.25". Please underline words IO be in bold print. Special layouts of rabs $2'i.00 per colt1rn11 inch. Phone numher~2 words. Email or wch addrcss<,words. AD DE/IDL!NFS: All ad copy, instmc1ions, changes, additions and rnncdlations musr be received in wriring 1.5 months the cover dare, i.e. June 2.0rh for 1hc August issue. payable to USJ I( ;A, P.O. Box 1130, C:olomdo CO 80901-1330, (719) 6:l2·8300. Fax (719) y01 rr classil1ed wirh your Vis:1 or Master( :ard.

Adventure Prnducrions ............................. :33 Aircorcc ........................................... ,........ 14 of Attack ........................................ 5/i Design .............................................. 25 Ccnrcr of' Gravity ..................................... 49 Dan Johnson ........................................... A9

Flighr

........................................... 43

l;lyrcc ................. , ....................................... 9

I fall Bros .................................................. :33 l ligh Energy ,)porr.s ...................................... / High ..................................... .33 Just 1·1\, .......................................................... /

Frnrn 1hc 'I 'elluride Festival in I')81, to rhc modern day co1111wllfio11. Pollow die history of'this dyn:1m-

$24.95 Call US[!CA (719) 63?.8:rno, 6:12-6/i 17, order fron, our web site www.ushga.org. l'kasc add +$Ii domestic s/h. g<1u11c111111,.

f.ookom Mm. Parlc ............. 17,lil ,48 Mojo's Ccar ........................................ 4 J ,48 Moyes ........... ,......................... ,....... ,..... 8,/i:3 Ql!csr Air ........................................ , .......... 9

Rocky Mm. Paragliding ............................. }. Sport Aviation l'l!blicatio11s ...................... I0 Team ,,1ia11cn1},c .........................................JL Traverse Glidcrs ...................... 17

lJ.S. Acros ............................................... AO US! It ~A .......................................... 7, 10, 11,74,27 Wc.11 Coast Arns ............................................... .33 Wills

Back Cover

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A significant period for hang S'r. PAUL, MINN., gliding competition, two events in Florida and a smaller ven::ion of Bassano (Italy) :just finished. over 100 pilots signed up to compete in each of the twin Florida tow cont:esU, with fie] d divided 75% wing, 25% rigid wings. Flex and f1,"w in different: direct compari,,on. No competing g:l ider had a kinrwost:. So many tugs were available than 100 launcher; were made in ••• Both events were won by reigning X·-C contest guru, Manfred Ruh:m.er on l:.tis signature ven::ion t:he Icaro Laminar. He 'd have won too, probably (Jnstead Bob Baier won on his LJ. tE,sr>eE,d) , but the Bassano meet was so off-·andon-aga:Ln that many top ranked it. Online can read long, detailE,d report", thccc Oz Report: ( davisstraub. com) others can read storJ sure to follow in this magazine, but I' 11 take my mma1 view what got flown, by wham, plus few other tidbits. ••• You might think the composition each meel: was identical, that p:Uot,, would merely qo from one contest to the other. In fact, my survi:::,y the 9] uBed for these meets was perhaps 20-2596 differi:::,nt. You gel: some idea of thJ.s based on what countrieE; were involved. Both mc,ets attracted no le,;s than twelve nations. •ream USA was the largest: contin9ent, of course, but barely managed half tbe fic?ld Quest ( 57%) and was under half Wallaby ( 47%) . In ,3econd both venue,; ( the same piloU, in this case) was the 18% <otrong British group. Brazil was weaker at Que13t (4%), ,itrong,or at Wallaby (1J9,;). Most: ot:her countrie:.:: had contestant.:s (l·"'.)%) and most of those pilots attended both meet::;. ••• Of thLs international crowd flyin9 flex win<Js, Moyes brand was unquestionably the strongest, 31-33% of the r:ield for Que,;t, then Wallaby numb0)rs appear) . Next closest wa"' Icaro at 20-26%, followed by Aeros 7%), Wills Wing CJ 6··9%), La Mouette (4.-696), Avian from the UK at J-4%, and AirBorne At the of each event Quest showed 74 entries, while Wallaby listed 76 Among rigid , A.I,R. and their ATOS easily with 46% of the field Que:3t and ri4% at Wallaby. dis Lant was Flight Design and their Ghostbuster at 29-21%, followed by Brightstar at 11-12%. Ji,. pair Guggenmos ESCs and A.eras Stalkers rounded out U1e of 28 rigid wings at Quest VC:ffsus 24 at Wallaby. ••• Yankee flyers amidst this global gat.hering, Paris Williams shown brightly with back··to-back place finL3hes a9ainst the best in thE~ world. Excellent job, Paris! he fl.ew the new Talon, Wills Winq is surely smiling at their i:;ponsorship of this up-and-racing pilot. other names doing well i.n om0 or the other Jim Lee (WW )UNE 2001

'l'alon) Talon)

was 8th al: Quest, while Chris Arai (WW was 8th at WaJ laby; Kari Castle (Moyc,f3 was 10th al: Quest and wi11 again for the U.S. World 'I'earn; Jer:z: Rossignol (Aeros Combat) wari 11tb while Mike Barber (Lit:espeed) was th at Wallaby; Bo Hagewood (WW 'I'alon) managed 18th in both meets and will make the World 1'eam as well. 0th.er Americans in the top 20 of either contest include Mark Bolt (16-WR/Stealth), Chris Zimmerrnan (16QA/Laminar), Bubba Goodman (20-QA/Combat), and Glen Volk (20-WR/Litespeed) . A Of brands placin9 we11, Moyes was tops with 8 of the top 10 of bot:h contests while Icaro took 6 places in the top First Place in eacb an especially coveted prize. Wills had 4 L:he combin0cd top 10 and Aeros had two. A AL1strians, led by Manfred Ruhrner and Gerolf Heinrichs who formed a one·-two punch for both meetc3, had 7 pilots the top 10 in bot:.h meets, followed by the USA at Brazil at 3, Czech at 2 ( thanks to two good finishes by •romas Suchanek), the UK at 2 and Canada at one. ••• DISCLAIMER: Gliders chosen by contestants do not ma.tch sales to all pilots in America or the world Some pilots are provided with ,,ponsored gliders a.nd these aren't your local Many qliders are modified Erorn their normally manufactured condition. eee Obviously from Lhe above rankinqs, Wills Wing found a name for the win9 fonnerly known as their "curved tip glider." Talon won the toss and placed two examples high in the finals. ••• Davis Straub chided me f:or "writing in the future" when said (erroneously, it turned out) U1at the new comp glider would be availahl0, for to demo at Wills Wing' anniversary party at Wallaby Ranch last March. I admit to "leading" L:he event, but that announcement came from the WW-·brand horse's mouth (or e-rna.iJ client:, in l:echspeak). ••• A'I'OS showed its new streamlined, curved and angled control frame at Wallaby. It's sleek and exotic looking; thc'cy're pretty proud of it, too, around $1, 000 a copy. ••• At both meets, well over $20,000 in prizes were prc.c,sented to winners, w:L th Manfred taldng home a big bundle of tJ1e loot. ••• Mark Poustinchian, webmaster for Ques tAirForce. corn s:i te, set a new Florida state record by 225 miles into Georgia in his ri9:Ld winq. Con~:iratulations, Mark! ... interestin9 animation on the website, too, tbough takes long time to load at: dial-up speeds. ••• Well, diver fans, watch your favorite magazine for more detailed articles and photoE,, but outta room. 911111111 , 9ot news or opinions? Send 'E:?m to: 8 Dorset, St. Paul MN '55118. Mesc,ages or to 6'jl-450-0930, or e-mail to CurnulusMan@aol.com. A All "Product [,ines" columns w:LLL be available later this year at www.ByDanJohnson.com '!'ijANKSI

THE WILLS WING

TALON

NO EXCUSES! With the re lease of the nevv Talon curved tip competition class CHRIS ARAI

glider, Wills Wing is offering pilots an opportunity that is unique in recent history. It is this :

you can novv buy a production flex

vving hang glider that is competitive in performance vvith the oneof-a-kind factory vvorks gliders being flovvn by the top competition pilots in the world . Now this may not be what you want. Because the rea lity of PARIS WILLIAMS

world-class competition is that the pilots who consiste ntly win at the top level simply are just that much better than eve rybody

.,,,. I "

else.

II,

So if you need an excuse for why you're not world cham-

pion , maybe you don 't want a Talon. But if you ' re the type of pilot

who doesn't need excuses , vvho wants the chance to compete

rest of the field , this could be the glider for you.

against the top p ilots and likes to be able to run away from the

JIM LEE

Oh, and there's one other thing. The consensus among both the competition pilots and the developmenta l test p il ots is t h at the Talon is the sweetest flying competition class glider we ' ve made in a decade. And the prettiest . The new Wills Wing Talon. Maybe it should be your next glider. RICHARD WALLBEC

.....,,.,,-,LU~

Nti

500 West Blueridge Ave . Orange, CA 92865 tel 714 .998 .6359 fax 714.998 .0647