Thirsty Thursday

 Joe waits at launch as Pete H performs one of his super landings

 Martin J gets his Asymmetric collapses done

Pete H celebrates his EPC tasks and first high flight

Another nice day forecast and another day in the field planned. heading the fuel station on the way to fill the winch resulted in a long wait as nearly everyone had decided to fill up jerry cans, can't understand why !!

With a nice NE wind set in Rodney started procedures on his Paramotor having carried out further adjustments but to no avail still no joy in getting into the harness but the rest of the flying was good.

Martin J (Plymouth) and Pete H (Tavistock) were both back and were joined by Joe H (Helston) all  on paras.  With the wind filling and easing through the day the guys played with both towing and ground handling as conditions dictated.

Pete H had a cracking day with things "falling" into place and both his flying on the line and off it improving dramatically.  By the end of the day and with another 8 flights his credit he had completed his EPC flights and made his first high flights and circuit to look a very happy man, well done.

Martin J also made the most of it working through his remaining CPC tasks including his Asymmetrics and taking them all in his stride.  Again his flying on and off the line improved further with him almost looking like a natural. 7 more flights to his tally and only another day or so and he should be ready for the hill. 

Joe had a blinder having missed the early towing and joining us later he timed it well.  With the other guys leaving a little early he stayed on as the wind settled and put in a total of 12 flights seeing him complete all his flying tasks and catching up with a bit of theory on the way.

Cpt Kev made a return to the winch and again good to see him back at the sticks.

Well done to the guys with and EPC and 2 CPC tasks being completed between them.

Wonderful Wednesday

With the high pressure continuing and the easterly easing it was off to the tow field for some fun. 

Rodney G was there with his Paramotor to join them fully charged and complete with spare batteries to boot.  His unit worked fine and his take off was perfect as was his landing. however the small snag of not being able to get into his harness in flight made things less than comfortable so after a couple of short flights he headed off to try and sort it out.  Difficult to tell if the harness is as made or has been altered by a previous owner, hmmmm.....

Emil k was back after a long lay off and was joined by Peter H (Tavistock) on his second day and Martin J (Plymouth) on his sixth.  With the wind undecided on direction the guys all got in some useful ground work before it finally settled down as Pete C arrived to drive the winch, nice to see you back Pete.

Everyone had a fine day putting in plenty of flights and moving  well into their flying tasks with Emil and martin approaching the end of their CPC's popping in 9 and 8 flights each.

Pete H worked hard on his EPC tasks over his 9 flights making steady progress, he just needs longer arms to keep the brakes up!

Rick h now tow converted on his hangy had fun flying his Wills Wing U2 on the line and looked well sorted by the end of the day.

And the sun shone in a blue sky from start to finish :)

Runway Run Around

 On the march and between jogs, any one recognise the glider ??

 Done and dusted, well done to all

30 litres of Doom Bar , hmmmmmmmm .......

Well that's what they called it and that's what it was.  Meeting up with the KHPA Boys and Girls at St Mawgan we joined in with a fun run to support the Air Ambulance  which costs £33000 a week to run, wow.

The plan wa for us to "run" the 4 K "race" carrying Paragliders on our backs and a Hang Glider fully rigged.  Guess what, that's what we did.  In fine style the team made it around not only not coming last but also attracting a lot of attention for the club.

It was a fun day in perfect hangy carrying conditions and even good enough to let the guys have a bit of ground handling play at the end on the ASKA although they did resist the temptation to soar the hangers at ATC's request!

Kaz had a bonus of winning 30 litres of beer in the raffle and Ray that of seeing lots of  lycra about, although not sure all of it was good .......

Well done to all who came and well done to Steve D for organising the KHPA troops into action, not sure we want to fight a very big war though.

Very Vindy Vault

We returned to Vault hoping for some more flying and what a different day.  it was windy enough on arrival and got windier by the time we rigged.  Launching on the T2 and having to pull the bar in the whole time confirmed that it was somewhat breezier than Keith Sutherlands wind meter measured.

In fact at height it was 30mph and a bit although very smooth with gentle lift everywhere.  The hardest bit was getting down again which took some time as the air was so bouyant, still I made it in the end.  a bit of lunch and a lot of chat and we gave it another go mid afternoon with Big grey leading the way.  Conditions were a bit lighter at 25 mph and the lift just as smooth. we had a fun time zooming around the place before calling it a day.

On the way out i met Paul h and Gay j  who called in on their way back from up country and was talked into returning to the hill with the ASKA. Amazingly by now the wind had dropped further in fact so much that it was on the light side for the ASKA!  Still after a quick flight Paul had a play with it and that was enough to convince him he wanted one so watch out on the hill for a very fast Paul  on a very small glider coming your way soon.

Variable at Vault

 The best bit of the day

 Phil gets in on the act chased by Big Grey (who's not actually grey)

Then the fog came in

On a typical Vault Bay forecast we went to Vault bay to see what would happen.  On leaving home it was windy on arrival it was light, pretty much as expected.  Still patience is a virtue and slowly conditions began to improve. After a couple oftest flights the lift picked up and soon pilots began to launch a make the most of what was there.

Phil L (Illogan) took off on his new Ozone Buzz Z3 for his third hill soaring flight of his hill conversion and did a fine job using the light lift to stay up until it increased a little and made life easy.  Phil had a super 20 minutes before coming in and doing a super top landing at the east end showing his spot landing practise was all worth it.

With some tandems arriving we gave Phil a rest and joined in the fun by taking Maria O (Falmouth) up for a flight. In now super conditions we had a great time mixing it with the rest and even playing with some passing low cloud before landing back on top.

 Nathan  (Bristol) was next on whats more it was his Birthday so ideal timing.  With a bit more weight on board and the wind dropping again the lift was not so plentiful.  We still had a good time with Nathan soaking up the whole experience and getting a super view of a pair of Peregrine falcons from above, nice.  Slipping it back in on the front we timed it just as the lift shut down.

Amazingly that was it for the day as the wind stayed light and finally a bank of fog rolled in putting the curtains on it.  Typical vault excellent when its on but very unpredictable.

Great to see Tony P back in the air and having fun, keep it regular Tony ;)

Happy Bunny

 Rigging up for an evening flight

 Up and away Kieth gets "solo"

Flying from your own land, ideal

Had a super phone call last night from Keith B (Dartmoor) to let us know he had flown his new Fly Products Race C Paramotor on his Dudek Synthesis wing and loved it. It was also his first time out of his own field.

To say he was pleased and excited would be an under statement. So good to see somebodies dream come true with Keith achieving exactly hat he set out to do.  Keith will now build his experience before returning to us for his final Pilot rating tasks in a month or two with a bit of luck. Nice one and thanks for letting us know :~)

High Flyers

 Martin gets ready for his first trip to the top of the line (and it's a long line)

 Phil looking cool under the Calypso

Pete inflates on his first flight of his taster day

A bit of a change for the day by heading to the Tehidy Barton field as the wind was forecast west so hopefully down its length.  It was the right choice and with a pleasant breeze everyone got set up quickly to make the most of it.

Whilst Rodney (Falmouth) struggled with petulant paramotors which were not keen to play ball the guys got going on the winch with Phil L  (Illogan) leading the way on the Hangy.  Phil had another wicked day converting onto the Calypso and finishing of his CPC tasks and building experience for the hill. The extra tow length saw him nicely up around the 700' mark giving him plenty of time to try a bit of speed flying, giving him a runny nose, nice.

Martin J (Plymouth) still looking very pleased with his new purchase slotted in and quickly finished off his EPC tasks before heading to the top of the line to start his CPC ones. So good to see him getting to grips with it and once again not a foot wrong on landing :)

Simon L (Plymouth) did a fine job finishing off his final CPC tasks by performing some very impressive Asymmetrics but dealing with them in fine style and enjoying them so much he thought he would do them again!  he played for the rest of the day again building experience for the hill.

Peter H (Tavistock) was along for a Taster Day having done some paragliding 20 years ago and did really well through the whole process resulting in 4 super flights and a release on the final one.  Hopefully we shall see him back again soon.

So a good day all round with Martin gaining his EPC (Pg), Simon his CPC (Pg) and Phil his CPC (HG), all we need now is some hill weather.....

Quote of the day  " thank you for making me buy this "  :)

Lively in the field

 Phil looks on as Dave floats about

 Classic pose as Phil takes his turn

 Martin J on his new wing heads up the line

 James looking relaxed

Rick coming back to land

Cracking piccies taken by Richard, sorry there are none of him !

On the way to the field the sky was looking good, in fact very good. On arrival it still looked good in fact very very good!  Resisting the temptation to tow straight away and do a demo' flight which may well have ended up in Falmouth judging by the cloud street we settled down to work.

Richard M was along for a Taster day with a view to starting a Paramotor course and we soon had him working through the ground based activities. Along side him Martin J (Plymouth) on his EPC Paragliding got his new toy out and began to play with it.

Despite challenging conditions due the passing of regular thermals they both did really well and by mid day were looking pretty good.

By now the hangies had arrived and were rigged and it was time to start towing. A couple of demo flights confirmed it was going to be a fun day as birds thermalled down the field from the winch to launch.  fortunately we picked our slots and everyone had a fine time getting used to conditions which put them through their paces.

Richard did really well ending his day with a release flight and convincing him to sign up for a full course.  Martin had a ball on his new Gin Bolero 4 giving him a bit more sink rate and making his landings tippy toed, big smile there.

On the hangers James C and Dave D honed their skills ready for the hill with James adding chest releases to his list of achievements. Phil l moved to the end of his CPC tasks and the next day out should see him well sorted and Rick H completed his Tow conversion on his bid to return to Hang Gliding.

Tim did a fine job on the winch dealing with the conditions and keeping me sane!  Nice to Rodney back i9n the field although a bit bouncy for his return to the Paramotor, maybe tomorrow.

Mixing it at St Agnes

 Looking good out front as we rig the hangies

Looking good over the back too :)

 Taking the ASKA 17 for a fly whilst waiting for Cloud base to lift a little

Is it a Big Pilot or a small Glider ?

A Breezy NNW forecast to veer to the north saw us (me and Tim) at St Agnes with hangies rigged and ready by 11:30 so much for an early start!.  With the wind at around 22 I took another chance to fly the ASKA to show Tim what it would do.  Despite his looks of doubt he was surprised just as I was when i first flew it to see it pop up and fly up and away with little drama, "not what i expected " he said, not sure what he did expect but he had already asked where the car keys were.......

Next it was onto the hangies and with Tim launched I press ganged a passer by into launching me in the freshening breeze. We spent a fun 45 minutes up and down the ridge working the passing lift before finally a decent bit came through and took me with it.  Tim was a bit off to the east and by the time he made it over the best of it had gone but he made a fine effort to try and get up there with me.

Up to cloud base at 2000 ASL then a cold drift in the murky stuff to Redruth, a crosswind to Fourlanes and the sun then back to base and a bit of cloud hopping to keep in front of the rain before missing the next climb at Culdrose.  An unorthodox landing in rotor behind a hedge saw the end of this years first XC for me.

It was pretty windy by the time I landed and back at St Agnes it was very windy so windy that Tim could not make it back to the front having worked back in the thermal.  He measured 28 to 32 mph and the various wind stations history show the same.

Lets hope a few more days like this to come :)

ASKAing for it

 "Pushing" forward to launch in a fresh breeze

 

Spot the ASKA

On a late whim we headed to Chapel porth more for a walk than a fly but did pop the AKSA 17 in just in case. On arrival it was a little off to the left but not much and strong enough at 24 -26.  Jerry was just leaving as it was way too windy for normal Paras and Big G and Andy C just arriving with their Hangies.

10 minutes later I was up and away on the Mini wing and having a ball. Feeling more confident and with loads of lift around it was amazing to flying in such conditions under a canopy.  Building up the turns and relaxing I let the ASKA do its stuff and it certainly did it.  My third flight saw some nice sea thermals coming through so it was time to try a bit of thermalling and yes it does! 

True to say it does sacrifice some lift for speed but what do you expect from a 17 sqm wing but it more than makes up for it in its ability to get you up and flying when your normal Paraglider would stay firmly in the bag.  Despite my initial reservation I have to admit  that the quality of flying it can give is way above (literally) my expectations making it much more than a ground skimming glider.  Come and try it.

Finally here are some comments from Michel after he flew it :-

I really enjoyed today, thanks again.


I would add to your comments that ground handling is actually easier than with the Rush. The wing goes up without overshooting and stay solid above you with very little to do to keep it there.

You might even add that Michel was so impressed that he is going to order one if the price is not likely to give him a heart attack!

Cheers

Michel

>
"One more opinion about the wing. I don't know whether if it was to do with the site and condition but I thought on the ground the wing felt more like learner wing, reluctant to go right overhead without that extra pull on the A risers, unlike the more advance wings which just want to go forward unless you stop them. I think having the trim halfway on take off my help, I'll have to try that!"

Roll on the time when he can fly it again :)

One step back two steps forwards

 Plenty on as the sun comes out

 So thats what cloudbase is like

 Martin gets a nice launch set up

 Anna gets back on the right track and has FUN

Bird on a Bike (You turn your back for one minute Phil!)

It was a slightly damp start in the tow field and the cloudbase was a little lower than we would have liked still not low enough to stop things from moving on.

Neil and Adam were back on the hangy and joined by Rick H (Truro) who was along for a tow conversion to help him back into flying.  Neil had another cracking day and moved onto the Calypso whilst perfecting his landings and also playing with prone, his flying is looking really neat and hopefully his experience with us will set him up his flying career.

Adam really got it cracked quickly moving onto the base bar and prone flying with his turns neat and tidy and his landing tippy toed.

Rick picked up the art of towing easily and after a couple of low level ones he was off to the top and into the mists. Tomorrow he will hopefully return to complete his endorsement and fly his own glider (Wills Wing U2).

On the Paragliding front many of yesterdays suspects were back along with one "new" one.  Despite damp wings and light wings they all gave ground handling a shot before heading over to the tow line.

Joe H (Helston) had another good day pushing well into his CPC as did Ian F (Hayle) and Simon W (Truro (not Plymouth)) all doing very well and looking very pleased by the end of it.

Martin J was back and moved along into his EPC after a few recap flights but we still need to work on his landings ....

Anna P worked really hard practising her ground handling with Kaz and Bill and it showed on her return to the winch.  We took her back a few stages and then moved forwards again with super results.  Annas towing improved dramatically and by the end of the day she was floating around with the best of them and the envy of some at her landing skills. Well done to all concerned.

Nice to Miles t drop by just to say hello and Adi pop his head in before news that Carbis was on saw him disappear just as quick!

Thanks again to Tim Phil and Bill for keeping the well oiled machine spinning.  Looks sunny and light tomorrow and whats more we should have Keith along with that shiny new Paramotor of his.

In Full Flow

 The hangies hang out together at the start of the day

 Miles has no mates but he does not seem worried

 Anna heads up onto the blue

 James gets his hands on the Calypso and lets it flow

 Somebody must be doing something right !

 Steve looks like a perect pilot as he heads to the top of the line

Adam launches for his first flight to the top

It was a busy day for us in the field with 6 Para's and 3 Hangers on the go, not as many as we can take but as many as we like to take to ensure everyone gets plenty of flying in and progress made.

Once again the forecast proved pretty much on the nail and a 09.00 start saw us setting up for a NW tow in near perfect conditions.  Whilst half the Paragliders practised ground handling the other half and the hangies got on the winch.  First off was Neil T (London) who was down to finish of his tow rating and sort out his foot launch and landing skills having just learnt but mainly on "the wheels". Neil had a great day putting away 9 tows and looking good by the end of the day and never once landing on his knees, hopefully problem sorted.

Next for the Hangies was James C (London) who after just two weeks in Cornwall had finished his CPC Tow and was doing consolidation ready for the hill. James had a fun time and soon converted onto the Calypso on which he spent the rest of the day playing and practising, again no muddy knees over his 9 flights.

The final Hangy was Adam W (Penryn) who made good progress by finishing off his EPC tasks before heading off to the top of the line to start his CPC and guess what?  Yep all good stand up landings here as well and another 9 flights to his credit.  So if you have a problem with your hangy landings give us a call.......

Miles T (Illogan) led the way for the Paragliders and on his third day did very nicely finishing off his EPC tasks before heading to the top of the line to start his CPC.  Having to leave early he still managed 7 flights and got home on time.

Joe H (Helston) on his second day polished off his non release flights before moving into releases, then turns and then bigger turns and finally he to completed his EPC tasks and ended the day with a high flight to get a taste of his CPC and 10 more flight under his belt.

Steve W (Plymouth) was back after a short break and again on his third day polished off the EPC tasks before heading to the top of the  line.  By the end of the day he had moved nicely into his CPC tasks and looking very comfortable as he relaxed back into the harness.  Another 9 flights to his log and the airtime starting to build.

With some good ground handling practise done the other half joined in the towing with the guys pushing Anna to the front.  Anna P (Hayle)having done some good work wit her ground handling never quite settled on the tow on her 4 flights despite a good effort so we decided to give her a rest and try again tomorrow.

Ian F (Hayle) hopped on the line and after an overactive start soon smoothed out to do some lovely flying and completed his EPC tasks before finishing off the day with a couple of high flights to get going on his CPC.

Treeve T  (Hayle) followed suit and had a cracking time completing his EPC before also having a couple of trips to the top of the line to round off a perfect day.

Phil L(Illogan)  also manged to sneak onto the line after unwrapping his brand new Ozone Buzz Z3 and ground handling it for a while. He had some super flights looking very at home and enjoying its super flying characteristics and extra performance, his verdict :)

With 75 tows put away and most of the guys doing a good day and a halfs work things worked out well, all helped along by some lovely weather, super towing (Tim), nice bike riding (Phil0) , excellent instruction and assisting (Kaz and Bill) and the guys being organised.  Nice

Quote of the day "Nice helmet Steve" Steve blushed .........

High speed wings

 Michel heads to take off on his first try of the ASKA 17

 Up and away and habing fun (don't tell Terry)

Need I say more

Well kind of.  With the wind veering back to the WSW and freshening I took the opportunity to nip out to Chapel Porth and finally get the ASKA 17 out of the bag.  In a fresh 22 mph + I played with a bit of ground handling to get its measure before tentatively going to the edge and taking off.  I need not have been so worried, although more nimble than a full size wing it was reassuringly stable and predictable.  Not only did it go forward but it also went up in fact much better than I expected, certainly not a plummet machine.

Top landing was easy and collapsing it a doddle.  Michel made an appearance and wasted no time in having a go putting in 3 flights an looking more and more at home on each one, even trying to jump the cove on one flight despite the wind being well off to the south and the tide in!  His verdict, "lots of fun" "another toy for his toy box" and yes much more stable and user friendly than the other speed wing he has tried.

Even as the wind eased back the ASKA had no problem in staying up in 18mph with it flying the whole length of the ridge.  Trimmers on saw a big increase in speed suggesting that in stronger conditions getting around would be no problem.

Quick as it is it was no match for a pair of Peregrine Falcons that were flying and |I had the pleasure of seeing one do a vertical dive past the front of me whilst flying before it pulled out and zoomed along the cliffs just to show off. Well spring is coming and I guess it's the mating season so showing off was in order.

Not sure how long I can hold onto the ASKA but let us now if you want a go and tighten up your harness and forget about weight shift, you won't need it...........   Yes Bill Yes

Patient Phil

 Phil up and away on his first hill flight

Classic shot as Phil enjoys hill soaring for the first time

No not that kind of patient!  Based on the forecast and a gut feel not to miss out on the hill if the wind played ball we headed to Perranporth for an early start to catch the tide and hopefully get Phil L (Illogan) his first hill soaring flights on a Paraglider.

On the way it was apparent that the wind was already more to the west than forecast sowe changed course and arrived at Chapel Porth where the breeze was light but nicely on.  Whilst Phil got his kit sorted Kaz and myself tested the air and found it lifty enough but still on the light side for Phil, still no worries we could do with a bit more beach any way.

For the next hour or so the wind and lift came and went giving some nice flying slots followed by some not so nice ones seeing various pilots beach landing or slope landing as well as top landing, still not good enough for Phil.  Low tide was at 11.15 and the beach was massive (for Chapel) with the old ships boiler clearly visible.  A slight change in the breeze saw Phil clipped in and ready to go where he stayed for about 25 minutes whilst we ate sandwiches!  His patence was rewarded and as conditions became good he was second off the hill into some lovely lift which soon saw him up and away.

A cracking flight was followed by a cracking top landing and a cracking grin, his first flight off the hill and all the boxes ticked.  A short debrief and he was off again in slightly breezier conditions needing a take off from the slope which he dealt with well.  The sky quickly filled with other gliders and Phil enjoyed another super 20 minutes as the wind continued to fill.  He got the chance to use both his speed bar and Big ears to good effect before coming back in for another first class top landing.

With the tide well onits way back in he spent the next couple of hours watching and learning from the other pilots as conditions stayed pretty much perfect  until mid afaternoon when things picked up alittle more making it top end.

Good to see so many out and good to see Bill N back out playing after the Flu shame it wasn't Flew Bill

Nice one and lets hope for another day like it soon :)

 

Half and Half

Marie comes back to earth

We made an early start in the field and were up and towing before 10.00.  Adam W (Falmouth) and James C (London) were on the hangy whislt Miles T (Illogan) and Martin J (Plymouth) were on the Paragliders.  We cracked on   as with the forecast to pick up it was a race against time before it blew out.

Everyone got some flying in and made progress although fair to say some more than others........

11.30 saw Marie turn up for a tandem flight as a birthday present to herself and timed it just right having two super flights in super conditions and taking it all in her stride.  By the time we had debriefed the wind had filled in and that was the end of towing.

Whilst the hangies derigged the Paras did a bit more ground handling before we adjorned to the warmth of indoors for some theory.  The hangy boys excelled themselves by both passing their CPC exams one with 100% and the other not far off.

Usefull day and pretty much what it said on the box in the forecast for a change..

Light and Fiesty

 It even makes rich look good

Nice rear !

We got a look and hang in the new Advance Impress 3 Comp' harness today. A very impressive piece of kit and light with it unlike most of it's competitors.  If you are interested give us a call. no Bill no

Nice :)

 The hangy boys look like they mean business

 Simon L comes back down after completing another CPC task

 Kaz shows Martin how to do Nodding dog, or possibly she just bangs him on the head..

 Joe sets off on his first flight

Looks like they did the business ( who's got muddy knees then )

It was indeed a nice day out in the field despite the wind doing a 180 on us just when we were set up for towing!  Still it settled down and gave some lovely training conditions through the day.

James C and Phil L were back on the hangy hot from Tuesdays success which saw them to the top of the line and now on day four.  Simon L (Plymouth) was back on his fifth day to move into his CPC tasks and Joe H (Helston)  and Martin (Plymouth) were both along for Taster days on the Para's with a view to taking up the sport.

Whilst Joe and Martin got on with the basics in conditions that made them work up a sweat the others cracked on with the flying.  The Hangy boys kept pace with each other and settled into high flights, base bar conversions and prone flying all whilst getting their spot landings and planned approaches sorted along the way.  By the end of the day they were looking pretty sweet and had even had time to take in the views.

Simon L got back in the swing of it and it was good to see his towing improve on the line whilst he worked deep into his CPC tasks off it ending up with Speed bar and Big Ears to his Credit, not long now ...

Mid afternoon saw the Taster Day boys arrive and get their first flights in.  They both did really well with each flight improving and both ending up with near perfect landings and canopy collapses on their final flights.  We wont say which one jumped >>>

A Fun day all round  and big smiles from all, lets see if Joe or Martin return, I think they will.

Quote of the day " All you need is a nice flair ---- oh"