It's not all about the flying

A well used Pilot handbook got used a bit more!

The forecast was promising and after a spell of not so nice weather we decided to go for it in the tow field which after one day of dry windy weather had dried out nicely.

Just before we left for the field guess what, it began to rain! Change of plan and we did a couple of hours of theory in the office giving Graham A (Plymouth) a chance to catch his paperwork up with his flying.  Midday and the rain stopped so off we went joined by Angie I who after a 32 month layoff was back to continue her Paragliding dream.

Angie gets back in the harness after a long lay off

We wasted no time in the field and the guys got the wings out for some much needed ground handling. Whilst I helped Graham sweeten up his techniques in readiness for the hill Kaz got Angie back into the swing of things.  With a bit of sunshine we all soon warmed up whilst the wind flicked from here to there.

getting back into it Angie warms up

Just as we set the winch the rain returned so it was back to the van for a spot more theory which saw Angela pass her EPC exam with a clean sheet:)

Ok so no flying but still a useful day and good to see Angie and graham move ahead with their ground handling in just a few hours which will stand them in good stead for the future.

Quote of the day "How long?"

Hangie Heaven at Sennen

 Peachy comes up for a tandem fly

Well yet another cracking day at Sennen with the sea thermals once again doing their thing and everyone having a good time.

Arriving at 10.30 it was good to see 3 hangies already up including "little Al" who has been out of the loop for a while.  Whilst not overly breezy it was enough to soar comfortably whilst waiting for the thermals to hover us up.

With 3 tandems arriving we cracked on and after a short debate whether to Paraglide or Hang Glide we opted for the hangy as that is what they preferred.

Steve gets to soar over Sennen

Freya just loving it

James S (Falmouth) was first up and after a few unrepeatable expletives on launch he just loved it extolling the virtues of flying the whole flight. We had a fun time cruising the cliffs and playing in the lift before slipping it back in on top for a change of passenger.  Next up was Steve (London) who was down on holiday and timed it just right. A few stone less made all the difference and we had a ball in the lifty conditions.  The air was so clear that the Isles of Scilly looked like you could fly to them.  Another nice top landing and it was Freya's (Gorran) turn who despite a few nerves quickly settled in and enjoyed the whole experience even the more dynamic bits much to her surprise!  Once again such enthusiastic passengers and such a nice site.

Coming into land at the end of Freya's flight

James looking very happy after his flight

Even Patrick B turned up and popped in a nice flight on Al's wing so hopefully we shall see him back up there again soon.  Peachy played with the ASKA on the ground but there was not quite enough for him to be tempted for a first flight on it.

Whilst Kaz, Paul, Nigel, little Al, Tim and Michel all played on their hangies I broke out the Paraglider to see how it would fair. It did pretty good seeing me climb quickly to around 500' ago but in fairness it was more of a hangy day and I missed the ability to zip around so tried the ASKA next.  Yep enough wind but only just enough and whilst it was fun scratching around I now missed the lift!

So to round of the day Peachy joined me on the hangy for a fun flight in what were by now increasingly thermic conditions. We had a grand time and put the world to rights whilst we were up there.  So as the sun set Tim circled up under the cumulus making the most of what was another superb day.

Good to hear that the Paragliders had a good time on the Towans at Hayle with everyone having fun and helping each other out :}

Quote of the day "You can go first"  Freya is so polite ............

Whizzing along .........

The lines get back to launch

An easy day to get back into the field after a bit of a break and what a nice day it turned out to be.  Graham A alias Billy Whizz (Plymouth) was keen to get back into the air and whilst no one else was around to play we decided to give it a go.  With Kaz on the winch end, me at the start gate and Graham on the glider we had it covered.  In classic training conditions it was a relaxed day starting at 12.30 and working through to 16.30.

Nice inflation

Graham had a great time putting away a total of 16 tows to the top of the line and finishing off all of his CPC flying tasks including the "instability" ones.  The smile on his face grew with each flight and whats more his accuracy on the spot landing did too.

Ready for another one

A couple of very civilised tea breaks made it more like a picnic than work.  Nice day nice work and nice to see graham back in the air :) maybe more tomorrow.......

Quote of the day "I don't believe it Phippsy you said nothing!"  well it had to happen one day

Stunnig at Sennen

Kaz gets settled into her new Flex 2 harness

Whoever tells you that the UK is rubbish for flying is just so wrong!  What a super day it was and once again the forecasters hit it pretty much smack on the nail :)

Arriving around 10.30 it was good to see Nigel w and Paul h already up and playing in the Sea Thermals.  Whilst Kaz and Phil L rigged I popped together the Tandem and then my T2 C hoping to get some flying in before the tandem passengers arrived. Sorted I was up and away into a classic sky and soon 900 ATO and flying pretty much wherever I wanted, gorgeous.

With the passengers arriving it was time to land and get some work done.  Whilst Kaz and Phill got their first flights in their new Woody Valley Flex 2 harnesses (that's 3 this week) I got going on the Tandem.

Lawrence W (Penryn) was first up and having done a Taster Day with us back in the summer was keen to see where it could all lead to.  We had a super flight and Lawrence soaked it all up amazed at how much time we had and how slowly things seemed to happen once you have some height to play with.  He  had a go at flying the glider and did not do a bad job at all.  With the air filling with gliders (hangies) and our second customer arriving we slipped back in on top for a tip toe landing and big smiles.

Lawrence gives his flight the thumbs up

Next up was Carl A (Braunton) who had made a two and a half hour drive showing how keen he was. Conditions were still classic and we had a ball mixing it with the Sea gulls and birds of prey whist flying over what must be one of the most scenic sites in the UK. Carl just loved it and to say he was grinning from ear to ear after landing would be an understatement.  "that's got to be on of the top 5 things I have done in my life so far" kind of says it all.

Check out the video on you tube on the KernowHPA channel :)

Two up over Sennen

The UK at it's best

Good to take up  such enthusiastic guys and along with Gerry from yesterday it is what tandeming is all about.

A five hour round trip and worth every minute of it

The rest of the day was taken up with fun flying by all and both Kaz and Phil giving their new harnesses the thumbs up and making their landings look easy despite their initial concerns over new kit.  

Hangy Dave turned up and joined in the fun looking very confident going up and down as the lift came and went with the thermals.

Hangy Dave gets a few words of advice from Chief Coach Paul H

Wyn D got to play on the ASKA before as the day drew on the wind finally eased enough to let the Paragliders off and it was good to see Speaky's patience rewarded.

Nice also to meet up with Jason and Lisa who were down on holiday and have a chat about getting Jason back into Hang Gliding having got so close a few years back, watch this space ..........

Quote of the day "why does my hoodie keep strangling me?" you really had to be there ........

Monsters

                                     

Is that a Monster ?

On a lively forecast we headed to Perranporth to get some Tandem flying in and also to keep hangy Dave's hand in until his new wing arrives in December.

On arrival it was breezy with big clouds passing by but the sky looked nice and lifty with sea thermals abounding.  A few Paragliders had made the most of the early morning by flying down low on the dunes before the wind picked up.

Gerry gets his feet off the ground on the Tandem hangy

cranking up the Tandem

Geery M was along for a tandem on the Hangy and it was not long before the showers cleared and we got set to go.  In fresh conditions we had a fun flight with Gerry really getting into it the more we flew and the more we threw the glider around :)  Turns out, for those of you who know Perranporth, that Gerry was the creature of the "Monster" or the large green man half way along the beach, so it was doubly fun to fly over the top of it.  What's more it also turns out that the Monsters predecessor was built by Hangy Dave and his  friend John who were also on site, how bizarre.......

Anyway back to the flying, after a cracking flight and superb top landing Gerry went away well pleased and who knows we may well see him again I feel.

Gerry the giant builder

 Hangy Dave gets to try out his Flex 2

A few more showers passed through and then it was Dave's turn to try out his new Woody Valley Flex 2 harness for the first time.  In bouncy enough conditions Dave had a cracking flight popping up and down as the thermals came through and having to keep the glider in hand as the rough stuff went through, he loved it.  A super top landing rounded off a nice day and the flex got the thumbs up.

Stunning sky and aves up there somewhere

Nice evening at home with the Algo' 2012 reunion, good to see those that came again to share some piccies some videos some food some drink and some stories, thanks guys and gals.

Quote of the day " is that a hob nob stuck in your throat "

New Toys

Kaz's new Woody Valley Flex 2 fits a treat and whats more it's got "lady's' padding

New high quality Alinco's with a choice of single or twin band 

also accessories available including dry cell battery pack 

and they are waterproof!

Ozone Heavy Hoodies variety of colours ideal for the winter

Icaro Fly helmets in some very bright colours

 Must remember to let her down .....................

Putting practice into play

Kaz looking pretty chuffed with her new toy

After yesterdays lesson it was handy that today allowed the opportunity to try it out.  The site was Chapel and whilst not overly breezy and pretty overcast the gulls could be seen playing when we arrived.

Sporting her new hangy transporter (courtesy of Michel) Kaz wheeled her hangy to the front whilst I had to carry mine all the way. It worked a treat and I can see Michel is in for some Bread and Butter Pudding soon.

ready to

We had a fun time with the whole site to ourselves and it was good to see Kaz's flying change from straight forward ridge soaring into thermal hunting and her reap the rewards with some good height gains taking her well out of the ridge lift and pushing me hard to stay on top!

I get to test fly kaz's wing

A couple of nice flights and it was time to go and do some work, still can't complain.

Nice to meet Benet A and thanks for his help in launching and supplying coffee much appreciated.

Thermalling School

360'ing the lift in a nice one

The forecast was for a moderate NNW backing through the day so to catch a slot at St Agnes we were up and away early hoping to chase the winter sea thermals.

take off

The plan was to give Kaz a bit of a hand getting to grips with using sea thermals which whilst in essence are the same as land ones can be a bit trickier to get to grips with.  Armed with hangies and the tandem Paraglider we opted for the tandem hangy as our tool for the day rather than going solo.

Cruising the ridge

We had a fun hour playing in a mixture of ridge lift and thermals with me trying to pass on some of 30 years experience and trying to analyse what I actually do so I could pass it on.  Whilst the climbs were not epic it was an interesting exercise for both of us and worked pretty well. The proof of the pudding is in the eating and we shall see how Kaz gets on next time out in Sea Thermals

end of lesson as we come in to land

Quote of the day "can you feel that"

Well done to hangy Dave who at Perran took the opportunity to get in his first flight with out me  :) and from what I hear did very well indeed :))