Happy Chappies and Beef Burgers

 Fergi flies high on his first soaring flight at Chapel porth

 Classic shot

Happy chappies after their first hill soaring flights

 Over to Perran and Fergi scratches the lift

 Rounding off a perfect day in light lift at Perran while the BBQ gets going

What started off as a tricky call on site selection turned out good in the end and in fact near enough perfect.  Split between perran and chapel we opted for Chapel to avoid the crowds and the radicals and take advantage of the low tide.

On arrival it was definitely a hangy day so we carried forward and got rigged and ready for the tide to drop. Phil l was along for some more experience and Dave D to hopefully get his second soaring flight in.  Paul h flew around on the ASKA although by now the wind seemed to be on the drop. Kaz took off on her hangy and had a cracking flight so things looked good.  As the tide dropped out the wind followed suit and by the time it was safe for the hangy boys it was on the light side.

So change of plan, we got Steve W and Ian F ready for their first hill soaring flights on the Para's a quick test of the air on the delta and it was perfect. Steve led the way and made it all look far too easy with a cracking soaring flight followed by a super top landing and grin to match " ******* awesome" was his landing comment :)  Ian was next off and not to be out done also popped in a super flight settling in quickly to the ways of the hill and also popped back in on top with an equally big grin.

During the low tide slot they managed a total of 3 flights each racking up around 45 minutes each before the beach dissapered and stopped play.

In between their flights John C (Falmouth) took the chance for his Tandem flight on the Paraglider and we had a fun 20 minutes in a mixture of good lift and scratchy conditions giving us varying views of the cliffs! Still we managed to get back in on top nicely to round off a good one.

With the hard wiork over we upped sticks and headed to Perran where things were now quieter and the beach still big.  Steve and Ian took the chance for another flight each in very different conditions making them work hard at staying up.  Steve managed to slip back in on top but the lift dropped on Ian seeing him on the beach along with a few others.

Good to see James C making the most of it on his hangy and showing the Paras just how good hangies can be in light conditions and showing several more experienced hangy pilots just how to top land Perran when the wind is light......  Jack S was also there upping his daily record to over 30 flights in a day on his Para.

So overall a good one with a nice social BBQ in the Parapit to round it off yummy :)) 

Fitting it in at Freathy

It was always going to be a matter of timing with a flyable slot forecast between the wind easing and the rain starting.  At Freathy on arrival it was windy around 34 mph so we sat it out for an hour or so before there were signs of it easing a little.  Another hour and it was noticeable so I rigged the tandem whilst what appeared to be nearly the whole KHPA Hang Gliding fraternity did like wise! In fact there were no South Devon pilots on site it was a Kernow take over, but then it is in Cornwall!

By the time we were sorted things looked a lot better and with Carez testing the air it was time to get flying.  Steve L (Plymouth) was up for a tandem flight having tried a Paragliding one in Turkey and survived. We had a great time in cracking conditions flying the cliffs and being joined by more and more pilots.  A super flight was followed by a super landing and big smiles all round.  Thanks for your patience Steve whilst we waited for the wind to ease back.

 Nice to see a whole gaggle of ex students making the most of it and having fun and doing well in what were not the easiest of conditions.  Phil l took the chance to get up on the tandem with me to suss out the top landing and Dave L took the chance to have a play with the ASKA on the ground and quickly got the measure of it.   

With the wind picking up again and the rain on the horizon we packed up quickly and headed west back into deepest Cornwall and safety......

Making the Most of the Morning

We got out a little earlier as the forecast was to shut down by around lunchtime due to stronger winds and rain.  Setting up in the "normal" field we popped in a few tows before the direction changed and so did we moving to the filed next door.  From then on it was on the nose and looking good.

John O (Sidmouth) and Tiege S (Hereford) made full use of the lines putting in the tows which by the end of play saw John with 8 under his belt and well into his EPC and Tiege with 5 more to his credit and completing his CPC tasks including Slow flight Appreciation (intentionally0 and stalls.  Well done guys.

Andrew W (Holsworthy) came along to start his Paramotor training and did the hard work bit on the ground so ready for his next day out to get onto the winch.

Sure enough at 12.30 the wind picked up, some weird wave clouds appeared and things got to breezy to fly so we called it a day. We had just popped the hangies into the garage when the first rain drops fell, ideal.

Tiege made use of the afternoon to catch up on his theory and pass his CPC Exam so not long before the hill for him  So much in such a short time................

Thermic Tuesday

Phippsy does a demo' flight as flying gets going

The para's watch as Tiege heads to the top

Peter H does a super take off

Getting in there Peter h thermals under a classic sky

Mark gets off on his Paramotor at the end of the day as the sky mellows

Doing the paperwork John O decides to go for a full EPC

It was already an active sky when we hit the field with nice clouds everywhere and birds soaring away.  This gave challenging conditions throughout the morning with us picking our times and our students to suit.  Still everyone did well and progress was made.  Lunch time saw things get a bit breezier so we took the opportunity to pop in a couple of tandem flights With Gavin St Agnes and Happy birthday) and Heather W both having super flights giving stunning views along the coast and including a bit of thermalling to top them up.

Things began to mellow in the afternoon and we managed to get the less experienced on the line just before the wind began to move around influenced by some strange convergence cloud.  A couple of winch moves and finally we settled in a NW breeze to round off the day with some cracking towing for the last couple of hours.

Gary W (Dartmoor) who was on his second day of a two day Taster did well cracking release flights and moving into gentle turns and my suspicion is we will see him again sometime.... John O (Sidmouth) who was back to start his EPC following a Taster day a few weeks ago did well despite having to wait for good conditions and then made the most of them getting nicely into release flights.

Anna P had to wait as conditions played up but still managed a couple of flights and got her speed bar task underway but unfortunately missed the better conditions later on.  Miles T moved well into his CPC on the paraglider with weight shift and put in a bit of thermalling practice along the way.  Pete H did the same and added speed bar to his abilities and also getting stuck into some thermals!

On the hangy side Tiege S (Hereford) continued as Tiege does and consolidated his high flights before moving to the base bar and finally prone so not long to go now before CPC is sorted :)

 Mark down on holiday took the chance for a bit of encouragement on his Paramotor and had asuper flight as we packed up at the end of the day and jack s took the chance to sort out his speed bar settings.

Good to have Paul h back out on the winch giving some super towing and thanks to Jack s and Dredgy for their help in the filed always good to have.

Oh yes and thanks to the RSJ team for the Big lift early in the morning ............

The longest day

 Jake C sets off in the other field

 Tiege follows suit

 Off to the top to round off a good day for Tiege

 Stusrts face says it all after his first Paramotor flight, I can't print what he said!!!!

Well apparently that was what is was and i have to say we made the most of it!  Despite a tricky start with the the wind switching around totally against the forecast we managed to get a lot done by the end of play with some big smiles all round.

The hangies got the ball rolling with Ian L (Bristol) and Jake C (Somerset) popping in the high flights in breezy enough conditions whilst Tiege S (Hereford) moved towards the end of his EPC flights on the good old mars (still going).

 The Paragliders got the ground handling underway with Gary W and Beverly T (Portreath) along for taster days starting from scratch, Alan H (Bideford) already a Hangy pilot and having done a day on the Paraglider with us 2 years ago practising alongside Anna P (Gwithian) and Stuart C (Saltash) who was sweetening up ready for the Paramotor.

John B worked hard on the hangy as he started day one of his EPC course but paced it nicely so not to burn out too early.

Early afternoon saw another switch in the wind and a drop in speed so it was time to get the Para's underway. Gary and Beverly had a fab time both putting 3 nice flights across the field to complete their taster days.  John B got his first tows on the hangy and by his last couple he was getting the hang of it as he relaxed and let the glider do the work.

Alan and Anna popped in plenty of flights moving Alan into release flights and turns whilst Anna cracked weight shift and had a go at speed bar as well.

Once again the wind changed as some cloud moved back in so i took the chance to get Stuart going on the Paramotor with a couple of practise launches and aborts which showed all his hard work had payed off.  Whilst he rested in preparation for the Big one  we moved the hangies into the field next door for a better tow and the guys had a cracking end to the day with Ian and Jake having a ball and putting in their best flights to date as they moved onto the base bar and dealt with the nil wind landings a treat.

Not to be left behind Tiege completed his EPC flights and popped in his first high flight much to his delight.  To make life easy both Jake and Tiege flew the gliders back into the normal field to save the carry, nice one guys.

Whilst the hangies derigged Stuart got back into the Paramotor and after a couple of goes got it cracked and was up and away for his first paramotor flight.  He did really well as he circuited the field  in super light  conditions before coming and doing an A1 landing.  We could hear his shout of joy as could Canborne i think.

A long day saw us leave the field at 21.20 tired but happy. Many thanks to Tim J for staying on to pull the guys into the air and to Phil l for helping out till the end.  Days are getting shorter now ............

Jacking it up

 Jack floats by as Phil l gets set to join him

 Ok "Tits to the ground" taken to the extreme

 Steve W puts in the ground work as conditions get fickle

After a showery day things cleared up a little late afternoon and we headed to Perranporth to hopefully get some hill soaring in.  The rain cleared and the wind swung on and Kaz tested the air.  looking good so Jack S (Truro) wasted no time in getting into the air on for his third soaring flight.  He did a super one sharing the air with Kaz before putting in a nice top landing.  Straight off again he repeated the flight to gain his Hill qualification  and so passing out from the school and into the hands of the club coaches. 

 Whilst Jack continued to fly as a qualified pilot we spent some time with Steve W (Truro) who had also arrived in the hopes of his first hill soaring flight. However conditions were less favourable with Jack scratching up and down and sneaking for a mixture of slope and top landings.  Steve was prepared to wait but made full use of his time with some ground handling and by the end of play he was looking very sweet.

With the wind backing we knocked it on the head so Steve will have to wait a little longer but at least he is nicely prepared  for next time.

Jack flew until  we went putting in a total of 27 flights ! so guess his take off and landing techniques are sorted.........

Tricky Towing & a bit of Paramotoring

It was always going to be a challenge with heavy showers forecast but on arrival things looked a lot nicer with hot a sunny weather in the field although off to the west it was heavy cloud.

We set up quickly in t shirts and shorts then just as we got good to go the cloud came over us and the rain came down.  Still we waited it out and finally things looked better although there was still dampness around.

Tiege S (Hereford) made use of the damper time on the hangy and popped in 7 flights moving him onto the Falcon, into release flights and starting turns as well.  he had a ball putting in a days worth in a few hours.

As conditions dried out  a bit Richard M (Exmoor) put in his second flight on the Paramotor and did a fine job of it with a great launch and landing to match, hopefully his new wing will be here for the next time he is down.

The Paragliders then joined in the fun with Miles T (Illogan) making  along overdue return and settling in quickly. Jack was in the same boat but managed to make headway resulting in him getting his EPC cracked and doing his first high flight.  Ian F (Conner Downs) got upon his new Gin Bolero 4 and looked very settled on it from the word go.

As forecast the wind then filled in and conditions got a bit bouncy so we rounded off the day with some cake (Kaz's birthday) and a bit of theory. Not a bad call all things considered :)

Carlsberg Day

 Happy hangies with Dave D giving the thumbs up after his first soaring flight

 Happy paras as they get ready to fly with some ground handling first

I love it when a plan comes together and today was one of them.  Based on the forecast we planned on towing till early afternoon then off to the hill as the wind filled for some hill conversions and that's what happened!

In the field we got Tiege S (Hereford) going on his first day on the tow and he made the most of it with 8 flights across the field which saw him go from "moon walking" to untethered 20' by the time we stopped play 9ran out of petrol).  Alongside him Jack S (Truro) popped in some more flights on his new Advance Alpha 5 and looked well ready for the hill..

hangy Dave D (Newquay) made a welcome return and got his hand in back on the Calypso giving us both the confidence to take him to the hill with us.

With no fuelin the winch and the wind filling in we made a swift transition and headed to Sennen Cove to see what we could do there.  On arrival it was nicely flyable for hangies so the guys wasted no time in putting the Calypso together whilst i sneaked a flight in on Paul H's Falcon in seated, great fun :)

Phil L (Illogan) took the calypso up first having not flown a hangy since he qualified 6 weeks ago and did a super flight looking like he had never been away.  Watching him settled Hangy Daves nerves  nicely and as soon as Phil unclipped Dave was in there.  He had a lovely first soaring flight  really getting in tune with the wing after his initial tenseness and learning so much.  20 minutes later he floated in to perform a tippy toe top landing and i can't possibly print his reaction !

Phil was straight back in there and popped in another flight as things began to mellow making his top landing a bit more of a challenge.....

The Paraglider boys had been waiting "patiently" and despite the forecast things began to improve for them with the wind just easing back nicely.  Martin j took full advantage to get two nice flights in and so gain his hill qualification and make him all sorted, well done, so watch out for him on the hills please.

Jack S finally was let off the leash and proved that all his tow practice was worth it by also putting in a couple of cracking flights to get him half way through his hill endorsement, not long now.

So a great day all round and nice to see so many hangies having fun including ex student James C who was whizzing around the place on his Wills Wing Sport 2 135 and going places where no one else would go.  He was joined by kaz, paul and  nigel w on the hangers.  

Canny at Carbis

With low cloud and drizzle we opted not to go to the field but made good use of the time catching up on ppw.  Mid afternoon saw a bit of a clearance and with flyable reports at Carbis and the tide going out we headed there.  Whilst it was flyable it has to be said it was not perfect with the wind on the move. Martin j and Steve W practised ground handling along with Ian F who got his nice new Gin Bolero 4 out of the bag for the first time and found out just how nice it was on the ground.  Whilst the more experienced amongst us got some flying in it was never good for the hill conversions so we quit early and headed home for an early tea.

That was never going to happen and with the sky clearing it was off to the field with Tiege S (Hereford) to get his introduction and ground work on the hangy out of the way in preparation for his first day on the tow.  we had a fun couple of hours getting it sorted and it was a tired Tiege who after a days travelling and an evening running around was dropped off at his tent as the sun set. Lets see how it helps on his next time out.....

Right on for Richard

It was an early start with kaz having the need to fly waking me up at 05.00! so she could get an early flight in before we headed to the field.  On site at Chapel at 05.45 and the wind was smack on at 20mph + great but as we had not taken the hangies not so good.  back home for breakfast and top up with hangies then back out to chapel as towing was knocked on the head due to wind strength and forecast up date.

Let the rain pass whilst Adi sneaked one in then stroll to the front.....not enough wind for anything!  Still with a couple of tandems due out we held on.  Richard P from Plymouth was along who had been down on holiday and this was his last day.  No sooner did Richard arrive and had a chat about how things were a bit light did the wind return and swing smack on making cracking conditions with Kaz and Adi proving it so.

We wasted no time and soon Richard was up and away for a super flight on the Paraglider. we had a great time as Richard settled down and it was not long before we played with the wing and he had a go at flying it.  Once again so nice to take someone up who really appreciated it and made the most of it.  back to earth and we made a nice landing just as the wind filled a bit more, perfect.

By the time John C from Falmouth  was briefed and ready a look at the sea gave me cause to hesitate..... sure enough in the space of less than a minute the wind backed to the SW and conditions became unflyable, something to be wary of.

Still we had some nice flying and made some new friends so what more can you ask, next time John with a bit of luck.

Ducking and diving in Derbyshire

The 2nd to the 6th saw us in Derbyshire for the second round of the British Open Series (Hang Gliding) where we had a fun time.  Flying was to be had on four days out of the five and tasks were set on two of them so something for everyone.  despite being well off the mark with my decision making I had some nice flying and the unusual problem of struggling to stay low, less than 4,500' to keep out of airspace!

Great to see Wayne T  win his first ever task on his shiny new Wills Wing T2 C 154 and great to see just how big a smile it gave him :)  We had abrisk trade in Parachutes as pilots wake up to the fact that a lot of the kit out there is a bit on the small side and some of it a lot on the old side......

Next and final round in August in mid wales and will try to get my thinking head on by then.