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I've been idly interested in hang gliding since I was five and could watch them from my backyard in new mexico. I already do motorcycling though and picking up additional dangerous sports feels like tempting fate. And I don't live anywhere good for it right now anyway.
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Aug 4, 2020 01:44
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FBS posted:I've been idly interested in hang gliding since I was five and could watch them from my backyard in new mexico. That was kind of my attitude too, I have a couple bikes I take to the track sometimes and ride up in the twisties around here. But also flying is crazy fun so I couldn't resist.
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Aug 4, 2020 16:06
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mad.radhu posted:That was kind of my attitude too, I have a couple bikes I take to the track sometimes and ride up in the twisties around here. But also flying is crazy fun so I couldn't resist. Sounds like you need to get a bitchin' headband and combine your two hobbies.
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Aug 4, 2020 16:39
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good lord
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Aug 4, 2020 20:17
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if I ever need a way to go out, i'll remember this
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Aug 4, 2020 23:59
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This is a really good video that is making the rounds demonstrating ground handling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzWeD01lhwI
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Aug 6, 2020 19:35
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hi I made a small video about soaring out on the coast, I hope you enjoy it but if you don't I apologize in advance https://youtu.be/s2LKuSNzryw
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Mar 29, 2021 01:30
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this seems very cool but also incredibly dangerous
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Mar 29, 2021 01:59
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I did a shake down cruise with my pulk just now, and someone asked "is that your kite?" No but I guess I look the part of a kite skier, so half way there I guess
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Mar 29, 2021 02:09
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froward posted:this seems very cool but also incredibly dangerous Injury rates actually aren't as high as you'd think, last I saw I think it was roughly comparable to motorcycling - but in the same way, it's sort of how dangerous you make it. Flying a very high performance wing and doing acrobatics is much less dangerous than soaring around on the coast on a training wing.
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Mar 29, 2021 16:44
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I went and did a Cross Country flying clinic down near Santa Barbara, it was a great experience. Here I launch, gain some altitude in rising thermic air, then follow world-class pilot Mitch Riley across the town of Fillmore, CA to land at a public park (bonus: my wing collapsing over Vons and sending me into a recoverable spiral, very exciting). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLg7IjsHlqs
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Apr 14, 2021 01:33
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mad.radhu posted:Ibonus: my wing collapsing over Vons and sending me into a recoverable spiral My palms are sweaty from just reading this
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Apr 14, 2021 17:46
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Proust Malone posted:My palms are sweaty from just reading this It's actually really interesting, modern intermediate class paragliders are amazing. the fix for most problems your glider might have in the air is just taking pressure off the controls so it can reinflate, which can be counter-intuitive but as you see in the video it sorts itself out in about a second.
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Apr 15, 2021 04:10
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I have my first lesson booked for this saturday, starting to get pumped (although I dunno if you leave the ground on day 1). Assuming I can get the hang of it there may eventually be another bay-area paragliding goon!
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Apr 15, 2021 21:21
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DuckConference posted:I have my first lesson booked for this saturday, starting to get pumped (although I dunno if you leave the ground on day 1). Assuming I can get the hang of it there may eventually be another bay-area paragliding goon! oh hell yeah, if you're gonna be out at Ed Levin i'll probably see you at the park.
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Apr 16, 2021 05:53
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DuckConference posted:I have my first lesson booked for this saturday, starting to get pumped (although I dunno if you leave the ground on day 1). Assuming I can get the hang of it there may eventually be another bay-area paragliding goon! i'm gonna fly over you quacking
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Apr 16, 2021 05:55
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mad.radhu posted:i'm gonna fly over you quacking Haha that would be something! What does your wing look like, I can come say hi next time. Also can confirm thread title now.
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Apr 17, 2021 22:50
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DuckConference posted:Haha that would be something! What does your wing look like, I can come say hi next time. I fly an orange Hook 5, black wingtips. I was gonna go practice spot landings yesterday but the weather was right so we went up to Pacifica instead, ended up flying in formation with a couple hawks. How was the 50ft hill? mad.radhu fucked around with this message at 17:35 on Apr 18, 2021 |
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Apr 18, 2021 16:53
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mad.radhu posted:I fly an orange Hook 5, black wingtips. I was gonna go practice spot landings yesterday but the weather was right so we went up to Pacifica instead, ended up flying in formation with a couple hawks. How was the 50ft hill? We ended up mostly on the 40ft hill on the other side due to the wind, but I got airborne for a few seconds a couple of times before the wind got too gusty.
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Apr 19, 2021 01:04
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DuckConference posted:We ended up mostly on the 40ft hill on the other side due to the wind, but I got airborne for a few seconds a couple of times before the wind got too gusty. hell yeah, 300 foot hill's up next I was soaring up at Mussel Rock on Saturday and my gopro caught hawks doing barrel rolls https://i.imgur.com/4EQk5zD.mp4 mad.radhu fucked around with this message at 20:42 on Apr 19, 2021 |
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Apr 19, 2021 20:23
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I'm now committed to doing the rest of my lessons to get into the sport! Had my 4th lesson today, it seemed like amazing conditions for the people launching off the 1750' hill but the winds were a little too squirrelly for us beginners on the 300'. In less positive news I failed 4 launches in a row this morning (and number 5 wasn't spectacular) but at least I did better on the subsequent flights. Landings are coming together though which is a good thing for my knees/butt.
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Apr 24, 2021 22:12
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DuckConference posted:I'm now committed to doing the rest of my lessons to get into the sport! Had my 4th lesson today, it seemed like amazing conditions for the people launching off the 1750' hill but the winds were a little too squirrelly for us beginners on the 300'. hell yeah! Totally agree that conditions were too switchy for beginners, but oh boy was it rad up on the top. Definitely the most thermic air i've seen at the park, I stayed up for like 85 minutes flying to Mission Peak and back, which I've never done before. Don't worry too much about failed launches, it's something that comes with time and practice - and every launch is different. You're never going to be launching with the exact same brake pressures into the exact same air, so why bother about a bad one? I failed three launches up at the top today because I had a knot in my brake lines, then had an amazing flight, A lot of this sport is just mental. Now landings on the other hand, those are important. If you haven't heard it yet expect to hear this phrase a lot: "Launching is optional, but landing is mandatory"    
mad.radhu fucked around with this message at 00:56 on Apr 25, 2021 |
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Apr 25, 2021 00:53
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What do people use for warm-weather gloves? The first pair of sailing gloves I tried from amazon are a bit meh
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May 7, 2021 21:01
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In warm weather I use leather Mechanix gloves, just make sure that when you're rosetting your wing you don't run the lines over the seams - it'll abrade away the stitching and they'll come apart after a while. For cold weather at the coast I bought some windproof cycling gloves that work pretty okay.
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May 7, 2021 22:32
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mad.radhu posted:In warm weather I use leather Mechanix gloves, just make sure that when you're rosetting your wing you don't run the lines over the seams - it'll abrade away the stitching and they'll come apart after a while. For cold weather at the coast I bought some windproof cycling gloves that work pretty okay. Thanks I'll check them out! At first I felt like I didn't need them much but doing some kiting and accidentally catching lines on my foot while rosetting have made them seem more useful.
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May 9, 2021 01:26
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Especially when kiting in stronger winds, I highly recommend gloves while learning - if you get snatched up or dragged by the wind it can end very poorly for your hands.
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May 10, 2021 16:57
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Things have been moving quickly since I've been able to get a decent number of flying days in, wing*/harness/etc. should be ordered soon and a number of us will probably get our P2 rating soonish. The instructor let me squeeze one last flight in for the day this morning, and on the last flight the air was a little bumpy with a lot of being on and off the brakes and the wing falling back/surging. Apparently I took a small collapse at some point in that flight but I didn't even notice it amongst all the active piloting I was doing which is weird? *joining the orange hook crew. It's definitely the best colour that wing comes in.
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May 15, 2021 04:35
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Congrats on the soon-to-be P2! Good timing, mussel rock will hopefully be more flyable on weekends in the next couple months. The Hook is great, there's tons of orange ones in the bay for a reason. The air being bumpy later in the day makes sense - the last few days have been pretty thermic out there, as it gets later in the day there's more heat getting baked into the ground and releasing, that's why most of the instruction for new pilots takes place early in the morning, but a lot of P3/P4 pilots are waiting until then to launch. Conditions dangerous for a student to be in might be what a P4 pilot is looking for in order to gain altitude. That being said, we were out at the park yesterday doing our P3 tests with Jesse (woohoo!) when a dust devil released in the LZ right as a pilot was coming in to land. Jesse immediately jumped on the radio and talked her through basically a micro-SIV trying to get her down safely as she was buffeted around, losing and gaining 30 feet every other second. That poo poo was absolutely terrifying, but she managed to get down safely (and frankly miraculously). Right before that a hang glider banged into the training hill and the pilot broke his arm. Kind of a stark reminder - launching is always optional, but landing is mandatory. Once you're up, you might not get the opportunity to pick your landing conditions.
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May 17, 2021 14:37
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Yeah I kinda gathered from the chat group that something happened on sunday, that sounds pretty intense. Are you going to get your P3 soon do you think? Are the tests for the spot landing requirements or other aspects of your flying? I'm not sure how long I'll be waiting for my gear once he gets the order in so that might end up being my limiting factor for getting my P2 and flying more independently, but hopefully it's not too long of a wait. Definitely looking forwards to the higher launches at Ed Levin (even if it's just longer sled rides to start with) and trying out Mussel Rock. I also finally picked up a gopro to start recording some flights, gonna try a knee mount so I can see what my hands and the wing are doing and maybe grab a selfie too.
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May 17, 2021 19:12
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DuckConference posted:Yeah I kinda gathered from the chat group that something happened on sunday, that sounds pretty intense. Yeah! I filled out my P3 rating paperwork last weekend, should be getting an update in the mail soon - heading up to Oregon over Memorial Day to fly near Medford. Should be a good time. There's some additional requirements specified in your flight skills for the P3 test, but it's all stuff that you sort of can't help but develop on the road to P3, it's not a big deal. Gear will probably take at least a couple weeks, maybe longer depending. Spring is when a lot of folks refresh their stuff, so who knows. The step up to the higher launches at Ed is really awesome - even if they're just sled rides, it's a big change to actually have time to look around and take in what's going on instead of just going straight into a landing approach after a couple of S turns. mad.radhu fucked around with this message at 23:38 on May 20, 2021 |
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May 20, 2021 23:30
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This looks very fun, but is it easier to do if you're using an engine? I've seen the tucker gott vids and I think i'd like to try it out.mad.radhu posted:Injury rates actually aren't as high as you'd think Right, it happens when you hit the ground! 
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May 30, 2021 14:41
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Crankit posted:This looks very fun, but is it easier to do if you're using an engine? I've seen the tucker gott vids and I think i'd like to try it out. I mean depending on where you are geographically, yeah powered paragliding is something that can be more popular. Personally I really like the challenge of trying to find and stay in lift, plus flying without any engine noise or earplugs is awesome. This weekend I was up at Woodrat in Oregon flying, which whipped huge rear end. ~My girlfriend~ flew far enough to land at a local winery so when I went to pick her up we just grabbed lunch there and watched people land, it was rad. play "spot the pilot"  
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May 31, 2021 23:07
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mad.radhu posted:I mean depending on where you are geographically, yeah powered paragliding is something that can be more popular. Personally I really like the challenge of trying to find and stay in lift, plus flying without any engine noise or earplugs is awesome. Plus the chance of rapidly deconstructing a $6k motor if you stumble and fall during landing. It does look interesting though and I might try someday. quote:This weekend I was up at Woodrat in Oregon flying, which whipped huge rear end. ~My girlfriend~ flew far enough to land at a local winery so when I went to pick her up we just grabbed lunch there and watched people land, it was rad. That looks awesome! When did you move to the pod harness? In the space of a few days I got my P2 rating, got to fly from a launch 1750 feet above landing, and then joined some other recent students and flew for the first time without my instructor on the radio. Last week was quite a week.
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Jun 1, 2021 03:50
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DuckConference posted:Plus the chance of rapidly deconstructing a $6k motor if you stumble and fall during landing. It does look interesting though and I might try someday. The pod was a sort of P3 present to myself, there's a lot of little things about a pod that make it nicer (I think) for the XC flying I want to do (the speed system is more accessible, instruments are easier to see/more stable - plus the Supair Delight 3 has a lot of tiny things like a tree rescue system, replaceable pod if it rips, velcro for a radio speaker/mic, stuff like that). Wouldn't recommend it as a first harness, but I'm enjoying it as a step up so far. DuckConference posted:In the space of a few days I got my P2 rating, got to fly from a launch 1750 feet above landing, and then joined some other recent students and flew for the first time without my instructor on the radio. Last week was quite a week. Hell yeah, P2! Time to really get some airtime. That first glide off the 1750ft hill is a memorable one. Next up is learning a lot more about the weather, to keep an eye out for those good lifty days out there. I know it seems crazy now, but it's absolutely possible to stay up for several hours off that hill on special days.
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Jun 2, 2021 17:19
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Some of the local pilots got a great write up in the paper, it's a nice read on cross country flying: https://www.sfchronicle.com/culture/travel/article/Soaring-100-miles-through-the-sky-Bay-Area-16220004.php
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Jun 3, 2021 16:51
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Had my first long flight last week, was doing some coastal soaring for over an hour which was sweet. In other news I am probably switching harnesses again to find one that fits. I think the non-adjustable seatboard angle in the niviuk konvers is the main issue, I couldn't get into the large without pushing hard off the risers and shimmying, and while I can get into the XL, it's kind of comically large on me. Some harnesses are not made for people with short hamstrings!
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Jun 30, 2021 21:32
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DuckConference posted:Had my first long flight last week, was doing some coastal soaring for over an hour which was sweet. Hell yeah, the coast is a fantastic spot to fly. Also as you mention a great way to actually get enough air time to go "wait a second, I need to adjust everything". I haven't flown any niviuk harnesses, but I found the woodyvalley Wani2 to be really comfortable.
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Jul 1, 2021 17:26
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God, I wish there were paragliding options in my area. One city over there's a flight school, but they only do hang-gliders, as far as I can tell. There's a more local one that does ultralights, but only powered flight (trikes and small closed-cockpit affairs) -- I've done a few trike flights and they were amazing, but it would be nice to have more compact equipment and no motor. The nearest place I can find that actually does paragliding training is an hour and a half south of here. It probably doesn't help that things are relatively flat -- I mean, it feels really hilly when you're biking around, but there's no nice mountains and little in the way of ridgelines or steep hills. The hang-glider schools seem to really favour tow launches (hydraulic or aero), with the one operating out of YKF describing an aero tow as "the only way to get serious airtime in Ontario". 
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Jul 9, 2021 00:13
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ToxicFrog posted:God, I wish there were paragliding options in my area. One city over there's a flight school, but they only do hang-gliders, as far as I can tell. There's a more local one that does ultralights, but only powered flight (trikes and small closed-cockpit affairs) -- I've done a few trike flights and they were amazing, but it would be nice to have more compact equipment and no motor. The nearest place I can find that actually does paragliding training is an hour and a half south of here. What's up Ontario buddy. I also want to try paragliding but the closest school is a whiles out from London and while there is a train from Toronto to London, I don't have a drivers license to get me the rest of the way. Seems like driving is kind of a prereq for this sport
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Jul 9, 2021 02:24
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It wouldn’t fit with your “no motor” requirement, but if you’re surrounded by farm country, paramotor (powered paragliding) could be a good option. You can still foot launch and fly a paragliding wing, just with the addition of a butt fan!
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Jul 15, 2021 17:15
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