pilots, and I’ve met fantastic people. I’m not a coastal pilot. I like flying thermals in big mountains. For eight years my husband and I went to Turkey and flew Babadag. I logged well over a hundred flights from there. The top of the mountain is around 6000 feet above the sea. The beauty of Babadag is that if you don’t like the conditions up high, you can fly out over the sea, where the air is smooth and glassy. It’s a great place to test yourself in more challenging conditions, while always having the option of flying out into smoother air over the sea. SK: Where else have you flown? KG: Internationally, I’ve flown in Turkey, Spain, Greece, Corsica, Australia and Mexico. SK: How about the US? KG: In addition to all our Bay Area sites, I’ve flown at Big Sur, Elk Mountain, Potato Hill, Dunlap, Tollhouse, Hat Creek, Herd, Whaleback and Anderson Flats in Northern California, Marshall and Torrey Pines in Southern
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HANG GLIDING & PARAGLIDING MAGAZINE
California and sites in Washington, Oregon, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Alaska and Hawaii. SK: What are some of your most memorable flights? KG: One was at San Marcos, in Mexico. We had been waiting for hours, in howling winds, hoping for a glass-off flight. All of a sudden, the winds died down and the glass-off turned on. We launched at 7000 feet and, without even turning, were smoothly lifted up to 14,000 feet. We all decided to fly back to Jocotepec, the town where we were staying, and land in the soccer field near our B&B. The whole town came out to see us land. SK: And other flights? KG: Another memorable flight was in Alaska. We took a helicopter ride to the top of a 6000-foot glacier and were dropped off, just before midnight during the summer solstice. The launch was really challenging. First, we were at a high altitude, so the air was really thin. Also, it felt like it was slightly catabatic. On top of that, we had to
run through knee-deep snow. And it was fairly flat. So it was a challenging launch. Because of the absence of wind, we were all doing forward launches. The first couple of guys blew their launches and tumbled down the slope in the snow. I thought to myself that if I didn’t get off the first time, I might have to spend the night up there, because I wouldn’t have the energy to hike back up and try again. Since we didn’t make arrangements for the helicopters to come back and pick us up, we were extremely motivated to get off that glacier. SK: So what happened? KG: I was starting to get cold, and, after watching a couple of people blow it, I knew I had to go next or I would lose my nerve. I just remember running and running and running, and hearing people shouting, “Run, run, run!” It seemed like I was running forever, and then I got that wonderful feeling when everything gets light and your feet leave the ground. That was very exhilarating. Everyone eventually got off, and we all had spectacular half-hour sled rides down to the floor of the valley. SK: What was Alaska like? KG: Alaska was gorgeous. We flew at the Alyeska ski resort. The great thing about flying there is that there is a tram that goes to the top of the mountain that runs every six minutes, all day long. You can buy a daily or weekly pass and take as many rides as you want. In June, the days are so long that it stays light all the time. You can literally fly all day and most of the night. You lose track of time because it never really gets dark. And Alaska is big. Everything there looks larger than life. The mountains look bigger, the sky seems brighter and the air feels clearer. I really want to go back. SK: So what is your advice to other paragliding pilots? You see some pilots who think they have to become com-