Paience is a virtue (2)

malcolm gets the hang of it looking good on his third ever flight

Fiona in the classic "position" on the line

Cynthia gets us all "excited"

Having shifted everyone forward a day as the forecast for Sunday was not too good we arrived in a sunny field with the cumulus already building.

Steve E (Saltash) was along for a Taster Day on the Hang Glider whilst Fiona A (Torrington), Cynthia C (Porthleven) and Malcolm C (Porthleven) were all along for a go on the Paragliders. It was a busy morning getting the guys up to speed but by a late lunchtime we were there.

Conditions were now fairly bouncy up to on the Hang Glider and too much for Paragliders so the students waited patiently whilst i made regular "test" flights up into the thermals to asses things. By mid afternoon it was OK for Steve on the Hang Glider down low so he put away his first tows and did a fine job of it too.

With things still popping off it wasn't until well gone 18.00 that we got the Paragliders going. They all had a fun time with Fiona and Malcolm putting in three excellent flights each across the filed at heights up to 60'. Cynthia, now known as "challenging Cynthia" kept me on my toes and came to an arrangement where we traded her final solo flights for a Tandem which she thoroughly enjoyed to round off a great day.

There were some cracking quotes but probably the most printable was " you can grab as much as you like"..................

Sausages and Handcuffs

Ashley sets up for his first landing
not sure if it's happiness or relief

Martin does a first class launch on his Doodle Bug

Not mention internal body searches! It was an interesting day in the filed where we were up to Powered Hang Gliding with Ashley R from Plymouth who was on his Mosquito NRG / K4 combination.

Ashley had a full day going through the theory stuff before "hitting" the field in the early morning. After setting up his wing and adjusting the harness and limit lines it was time for a demo' flight which is always fun on other peoples kit, not much pressure then. Next it was Ashleys turn and after a few warm up runs he was up and away for a fine 15 minute flight before dropping back into the field at the agreed location. BIG SMILE, something to drink and he was off again into what was by now an active looking sky.

By the end of the day he had put away 3 good flights, learnt lots and burnt up plenty of fuel (energy). Good to see Martin R along with him who enjoyed a couple of flights on his Doodle Bug/ Java combination in the bouncy conditions and kept us entertained with his stories as a customs officer, now you know where it came from.

Coady had a day off and made good use of it at Godrevy where he could be seen working his Rush up to several thousand feet before heading off inland.

Hedge Trimming

Mick F does a classic take off
Mick trying the chest release for the first time

Coady a man at one with his "work"

Steve J follows Micks lead in take off technique

Steve climbs out in to the sun

It should have been a chilled day in the field with only a couple of hangers on both of whom were well into their CPC tasks however, in the morning they decided to keep me on my toes with a variety of antics. Mick F (Hampshire) was back and up for it making it look easy on the tow but keen on getting low on airspeed on landing approach resulting in some poor turn corrections and out of wind landings. Steve Jewell (Oakhampton) made it look tricky on the tow but was nice and smooth off it (most of the time) so between them we could have made one good pilot!

One who shall remain nameless fell into the old trap of twisting whilst trying to turn leaving him short of height on approach so removing some growth from the top of the hedge before performing a remarkably good landing, time to stop for lunch.

A theory session settled my nerves then we were back at it and things got better. Soon both pilots were converting to the chest release, sorting out prone flying and looking good with landings into wind near the windsock. To make things better Pilot X joined us and put in a quick 100' release flight before heading to the top of the line on a hang glider for the first tow. What a tow it was pretty much like an arrow up to around 600' releasing into buoyant air followed by a lovely flight down and good landing.

Mick and Steve both got a go on the Calypso, unfortunately Mick suffered a line break half way up but did a fine job of sorting it out but Steve took it to the top and had a cracking flight and landing enjoying the gain in performance and lightness of handling.

All's well that ends well and that it did, two more hang glider pilots on the verge of completing their CPC's, who's next??

Wierd Wave again

Rob P gets in the air on his taster day and does a fine job

Nathan L relaxed on his flights at the end of his taster day

Helen K looking good at take off on her first flight on a paraglider

Gliders and "gaggle" of pilots

Wierd wave clouds to the south

After a few days on the hill it was back to the field where we had a mixture of Taster days and Trainees, once again the the Hangers outnumbered the Para's.

Nathan L (St Austell) and Helen K (Hayle) were along for Taster Days on the Paragliders whilst Rob P (Minehead) made the trip down for a go at Hang Gliding. The guys all did well through the morning session and by after lunch we were ready to roll.
Graham A put away four flights on the Hang Glider to add to his tally and is getting the feel of it but has a little way to go, too much kiting and Paragliding maybe?

Once again there was a lot of wave couds around even more than I have seen before and conditions were a bit odd to start with no doubt related to it.

Mick Ford also on the Hang glider had a useful afternoon sorting out his 180 turns and spot landings being as happy as ever.

Then it was down to the Taster Days. Rob got them going and did well on the tow line moving form "moon walking" through to 10 -20 feet on the Hang Glider rounding off his day with a superb flight and perfect landing to give him the true feel of what it's about.

Nathan led the Paragliders off and put away three excellent flights each one getting higher until he was comfortably approaching the 60' mark and looked well pleased with his day.

Helen took it all in her stride making it look easy also putting in three good flights with the last landing looking like she had done it lots before and even starting to crack the nodding dog bit.

Jane (Pete C's sister came up for a couple of Tandems on the Paraglider and had a fun time, have to say Pete's towing on those flights was as good as I have ever known, can't think why.

Good to be back in the field and you never know we may have found another couple of students as a result we shall see. Piccies when get a minute

More flying than you can shake a stick at

Rick gets ready for his first soaring flight on a Hanger in 25 years

Off and away, told you to keep your legs together for the photo's!

Gabriel A takes off as pilot in command on the Tandem whilst I hang on

Dangerous Derek looking less dangerous on his first soaring flight

Rebbekah S sets up nicely for here first top landing after a cracking soaring flight, she's back !

Graham A heads for the beach on his second ever flight off the hill

Phil Sambles racks up the airtime, nice colour co ordination

Snails doing what snails do

WoW WoW WoW what a day at Perranporth (again).

We arrived to find a brisk NW wind so got the gliders rigged and ready. There was a good crowd of hangers all looking forward to getting some air. After a quick conditions check flight We got the ball rolling with a bit of tethering to check the guys out whilst Gabriel A (Bristol) put in some acclimatisation flights on the site in readiness for his Tandem conversion.

Next we got Rick h off for his first soaring flight on a Hang Glider in 25 years and what a fine job he did of it enjoying a nice 20 minutes before popping the Mars back on top.

Then it was my turn to take Gabriel up to show him the ropes on the Tandem and let him have a go in the air. After a couple of these to get the landings sussed Derek J (Cardiff) who had driven down for the day and Rebekah S (Exeter) came up on the Tandem to show them the site in preparation for their soaring flights.

Rick put in another flight looking smoother than the first and did another cool top landing then it was the real work. Gabriel A took the controls and made his first Tandem flight as pilot on the Hang Glider with myself as passenger. He did really well and i didn't get airsick, a very acceptable top landing followed and it wasn't long before we were off again. By the end of the day he had put in four flights as pilot in command and was far more relaxed so completing his flying tasks for his Dual rating on Hang Gliders, well done G.

Rick put in another couple of soaring flights this time on the Calypso and enjoyed the extra performance dealing with it well on landings to give him four flights for the day and a huge smile.

Dangerous Derek was next again on the Calypso and put in his first soaring flight starting off a little ragged but he soon smoothed out before putting in a good top landing with a grin from ear to ear.

Then it was Graham A's turn (Torrington) who was "up" for a top to bottom giving him his first experience of a Hanger off the hill. Graham did a good job getting time to play briefly with the ridge lift before popping the Mars onto the beach.

Rebbekah S lined up on launch and didn't hesitate at taking the opportunity to getting back to hill soaring after her confidence building flights on the winch. She did a super take off and was soon hundreds of feet up looking smooth and co ordinated like she had been doing it for years. after a good twenty minutes she lined up for a top landing and after one fly by she made a very acceptable one with a look like all her Christmas's had arrived at the same time!

D Derek was soon up there again looking much smoother than on his first to add another twenty minutes to his airtime and whilst it could be said his top landings was not as neat as it could have been I have seen worse....

Graham a gave me some more exercise with another top to bottom and by now the wind was on the drop resulting in a scratchy flight back up whilst dodging the suicidal Paraglider pilots.

Good to see Phil S out again putting in the time and adding another three or four flights to his log book just when he needs it.

It was a very happy bunch off Hang Glider Pilots that left the site after a long and full day at 22.00 hours. Trey and get some piccies up soon.

Tethers-tandems-to to bottom

Pilot X gets soaring with a little help

gaining height and getting more confident
Pilot X heads to the beach to round off a super flight

Kev gets the sky to himself late in the day

Wave clouds upwind and super smooth lift on the hill ,hmmmm

Kev enjoys the air and the sunset

WoW what a day! It was on at Perranporth from when we arrived at 10.00 till when we left (and way beyond) at 19.30. The day started with Andy F on his second day with us having some nice tethering along the top on the Mars in a brisk wind making life easy. He was joined by Rick H (Truro) who used to fly in Cornwall 25 years ago and now wants to get back into it. They both did well until the wind eased back a little so it was time for lunch.

Next it was up for a dual flight on the Hang Glider with Andy and we had a fun time in the what was by now dropping lift. In fact it dropped that much that we were up there for well over an hour before we managed to scratch up enough height to slip it in on top, that's value for money!

A bit more tethering ensued as the wind filled a little which finally wore Andy out. With the odd Paraglider testing conditions it looked like the wind would ease further but it was not the case and pretty soon the wind was back.

Phil S dropped by and put in his first light at Perranporth on his Hang Glider having a cracking time and performing a very good top landing, then to prove it was not just luck took off and did it again tacking up well over an hours airtime.

Kev T came up for a flight on the Hanger with me and enjoyed every moment despite having something stuck in a painful place......

As we packed the gliders away things mellowed again and with plenty of wave clouds in the sky I tested the air on the Mars to find it super smooth and very lifty. Pilot X took the opportunity and was rewarded with a super soaring flight (their first on a solo Hanger) looking very tidy before taking the Mars to the beach for a top class landing, nice one.

Kev T rounded off the day getting up and away as we packed up on the Paraglider and had a super flight looking good when we left, rumour has it he had to land due to no navigation lights.

More tomorrow i hope

.....and still they come

Andy F gets "stimulated"
Andy gets going with plenty of attention

Looking good and the concentration shows

A "quiet" day in the field where it was a little breezier than forecast but still turned out a good one. Andy F was down from Bristol (on his birthday) for the start of a 2 day Taster session on the Hang Glider. The morning saw him work his way through glider rigging, introduction and basic ground handling before getting to grips with the machine itself. Despite challenging conditions he did a great job and was soon ready for the winch.

By the end of the day he had put in a good number of flights across the filed doing a fine job staying relaxed enough yet on the ball enough to keep the glider flying well before putting in some good stand up landings. With the wind picking up we quit whilst ahead after a bit more ground work playing with base bar conversions.

Pilot X was also along hoping to get in their first high flights but unfortunately conditions did not play ball. looks breezy tomorrow to so think Andy will get a taste of the hill.

The Thermals came

Steve J gets the day going on the Mars
Andy J has a cracking Taster Day getting untethered on the Condor

Coady gets hooked up with Kaz ??

Coady climbs out over the field

Andy follows Coadys progress up and away

Bill N heads off up the line for a "bouncy" one

Packing up under a lovely sky

Forecast was for a light SW in the field but on arrival it was definitely from the North so we set up accordingly. Andy J (Oregon USA) had driven down from London for a Taster Day on the Hang Glider and spent the morning getting the basics sorted. After lunch he was joined by Steve J now on his CPC Hang Gliding and Pilot X also on a Hang Glider. They all did well well putting away the flights with Andy moving swiftly through "moon walking" to 20' flights and even getting off the tethers. Steve and Pilot X cracked the Mars and were both looking set for high flights on it when after one from Steve the wind flicked to the SW as the convergence moved overhead,
Just at this point Pete C returned and was first up the line after we moved the winch, he was rewarded with a cracking flight getting up to 1500' before reaching the coast then flying around the field for 15 minutes or more and landing back at launch. Bill N gave it a crack on his Buzz Z the first time he had towed it and managed to pop a weak link at the top of the tow as a thermal sucked him off the end of the line.

It remained a bit bouncy for the students for an hour or so then eased back allowing Steve to put in another good high flights and Andy to round off his day with a final one across the field. We packed up under a super sky with a cloud street right over the launch and birds circling , must bring the BBQ next time.

Just to finish Andy off we then took him for an hours surfing, think he's worn out now .....

Hang Up's

Derek J concentrating on his approach

Who said "Inviting behind" and who's is being talked about??

Calypso flies high near the end of the day as Big ray gets in some ground handling

Rebekah S launches on one of her many

Calypso - Sky - Cloud oh and a bit of twisting

Graham A gives the Pink one a go

back to the one he loves as he prepares for the chest release

Well there must be some kind of revolution going on as we had a full day of Hang Gliding going on and took two more calls from customers wishing to try it, is it just us??

It was a bouncy day in the field with a cracking sky setting up over the field from 10.00 onwards making it an interesting day.

Derek J kicked things off on the Mars converting to a chest release with ease, carrying out his slow flight appreciation exercises, moving onto a 5th generation glider and gaining his CPC tow by the end of the day. He has had a cracking two weeks with us learning to Hang Glide, achieving far more than expected and is set up for hill soaring as soon as the weather permits. Nice one Derek and well done hope to see you again soon.

Graham A had an intersting morning trying various gliders till he found he liked and then spent the rest of the day completing his EPC and moving into his CPC with high flights on the Mars along with conversion to the chest release as well. He was well chuffed by the end of the day and it was nothing to do with the comment about his inviting behind........

Rebekah S (alias Rachel) did well in the conditions had put away a good number of tows all with nice stand up landings so is ready to move on either on the tow or hill as conditions permit.

Nigel D was back to keep his hand in having last been with us 2 months ago when we got him back in the air. Looking a bit rusty on his first couple of flights he soon settled in and was looking fine by the end of the day.

I took the Paraglider up a couple of times but it was always on the challenging side so tandems were put on hold to another day.

Pilot X even managed to sneak a flight in before the wind switched at 17.30 making it a good time to wind up another super day. day off tomorrow then back out again on Tuesday by the looks of it.

The thermals are coming

Andy's best side practicing PLF's
Andy M takes off on one of his Taster day flights

Joe W looking good and in position for his first release flight

Rebbecca S ready to go

It was all go in the tow field under a glorious sky. Andy M was along for a Taster day on a Paraglider which he had as a Christmas present and wasted no time in getting to grips with the ground work before lunch. Joe W kept him company having decided to pursue his EPC course following a Taster day a couple of weeks ago.

The hangers got the day going on the winch with Graham A leading the way putting away four flights in succession to sharpen up his turns before heading to the top of the line for his first high flight on a Hang Glider and a very nice one it was too. Derek J put in several good flights on the Mars and is now looking almost relaxed as he puts her down pretty much by the windsock every time. Rebbecca S kept at it and dealt with the unpredictable conditions well sorting out her landings nicely, her confidence is back and it shows in her flying, ready for the hill again I reckon.
On the Paragliding front Andy M had a top day ending with three super flights across the field getting up to 60' and performing some nice landings to boot. Joe W moved nicely into his EPC putting in release flights and starting gentle turns, again his landings were on the Mark.
Dave L finally got to fly his Mojo three and did really well in the thermic air dealing with the tow up nicely and being rewarded with some nice lifting air on the way down giving him something to think about in order to land by the windsock. Mick L (is back) and put in a couple of tows the last of which saw him thermal up after releasing before we talked him out of it in order to keep him in the field.

Pete C could be seen having a fun time at Godrevy also playing with the thermals so a pretty good day all round, looks like more of same tomorrow.