F1rst timers

The Slug takes to the skies

A slot in the weather appeared and fortunately we were ready to take it and make the most of it so it was off to the tow field to play.

Peter F (Wadebridge) was along for a Tatser day with a view to taking up paragliding and was joined in the filed by Paul H who was out for his maiden flight on "the Slug" a sit under the bar version of a powered HG but by Paul himself and Treeve T who was keen to get a bit of ground handling in on his "new" Firebird F1rst Pg before taking it to the hills.

In very light winds Peter got his day underway and did a good job with the basics before getting in the hand tows ready for the winch.  Meanwhile Paul had set up and was ready to go, lest try a Bunny hop soon turned into a perfect take off, flight and landing with the smile on Pauls face saying it all.  So good to see his work and planning come together to realise another dream.  Whats more it looked right, pretty impressive for it's first time out.

Treeve gets his first flight on his F1rst

With the basics done for Peter and Treeve having  got his first taste of ground handling his new wing it was time to tow.  Kaz took the sticks and after a demo' flight by myself we got going.  Treeve popped in a couple of nice flights before heading off to pick up the kids with a big grin on his face.

Peter got his first towed flights underway and did a fine job improving with each one and finishing off the day with a nice release flight and silly look!  Shame not a few more out as you have to take it when it's here at this time of year.

How good was that Peter returns after his first flight

Quote of the day " that was so much better than I could ever have thought it would be"  guess he will be back then ;)

Sunny Monday

Keith gets set fro his first tow flight ......

What a gorgeous day and what's more we were out in the field in it having fun and enjoying the sun.

It was a quiet day indeed with only one student out but at this time of year and with the weather we have been having not to surprising.  Keith W (Barnstaple) was down for a day Paragliding with a view to tidying up his Paramotoring as well.  Keith had a full but relaxed day going through the basics before being introduced to the winch.

 

...... and returns in one piece

 With no rush he got things nicely sussed by the time Kaz arrived to drive the winch.  By the end of the day Keith had popped in four nice flights and got his first release under his belt looking very pleased with himself.

A good end to a good day

So with Keith set up nicely for his next visit all we need is some more of this kind of weather and the sky is the limit.

Looking very chuffed with himself

Quote of the day "is that Santa?"

Oh what fun we had

Classic St Agnes from Kaz's glider

Another cracking day at St Agnes where there was something for everyone throughout the day.  To start with it was ideal for the hangs with Kaz and myself making the most of it and being joined by Nigel W a bit later.  Paul also had some fun on his ASKA getting some airtime in before the "standard" Paragliders began to launch.

With a bit of everything in the air we had a fine time playing with the sea thermals topping out at a grand on the hangy.  As forecast the wind began to drop seeing more Paragliders launch and the hangies pop back in on top.  Kaz transferred to her Paraglider whilst I stayed on the hangy in lighter but still very nice conditions.

The Paragliders get going

The wind dropped further and even the Paragliders began to think twice but a demo on the hangy encouraged them back into the air which was ideal as the wind filled again nicely.  Rounding off the day with a nice flight on the Paraglider made it just about perfect ;)

Flying alongside Kaz on the Para's

Congratulations to Fiona A for her first flight at St Agnes (and her second) on her Paraglider and to Nigel W for his first flight on his hangy there.  Again good to hear that pilots were having good times at Perranporth and the Towans, anyone at Sennen ???

Quote of the day " A la Carte"  something to do with a HIV course ..........

Looks like Chapel tomorrow ..........

Afternoon Delight

For once the forecast was pretty much spot on,  in fact the wind was a bit lighter than forecast well at least for a short while.  With the wind dropping back as forecast early afternoon and smelling of smoke from a bonfire a trip to St Agnes was on the cards.

Arriving at 14.30 the wind had dropped more than expected so the ASKA stayed in the van and the Hangy got rigged in double quick time.  Paul H arrived with perfect timing to give me a hand launch and hoping to fly his ASKA but with the wind lighter he decided to give it a miss.

Pulling back to the front from the Beacon

The sun sets in the west

Plenty of lift around though and with regular sea thermals it was a fun flight going up and down and thermalling back to the Beacon before pulling forward for more.  An hour and a half saw nice climbs in 2 to 3 ups  and up to 1500'ATO lets hope its like that for the Frostbite  Comp'

....end of a lovely flight

 As the sun set it was time to land packing away just as it got dark, nice surprise flight, and the sea thermals should only get better ;)

Playing at Perran

Dave L gets a go (well a couple actually) on the ASKA One Seven

Well it was depending on what you were flying!  Despite the forecast for the wind to increase from a light breeze to a moderate one of the morning it did in fact go from practically zero to windy in a matter of minutes.  So whilst it meant that Treeve who was along hoping to do continue his hill conversion on the Paraglider did not get the wing out he did finish off his theory side passing both his CPC tow and hill exams in fine style, congratulations.

Back in the air, test flying a Sport 2 155 

With a fresh NW breeze I took the chance to test fly a Wills Wing Sport 2  which we had just repaired and had a ball mixing it with the ASKA's and other speed wings and mini wings that were out, conditions were just about as good as they get for them.

The wind then veered again slightly against the forecast and went up and down a little all day giving varying conditions but staying well flyable for all.  Nice to see a mixture of wings out and get to try the Ozone Firefly 16  alongside the ASKA. Two similar but different wings which will suit different pilots and abilities I feel so if you are in the market come and talk and try to see which one is for you. Also interesting to see the Mini Paraglider performing alongside the speed wings and again it provides another aspect depending on your requirements :)

the que for the ASKA

A small que formed for ASKA demo'ing with Dean f leading the way with some ground handling before Terry jumped on it and was soon up and away having a ball and dialling into it nearly as soon as his feet left the ground.  Dave L was next and after some tentative ground work he was up and away with his confidence building in every beat.  Dean got back in the harness having decided if they can he can and followed suit adding to the fun by seeing just how low he could get it before soaring back up again!  Finally Gary F popped into the harness and joined the fun making easy work of it as i flew around on the hangy with him.

with some good lift coming through there was plenty of height to be had at times

Everyone who flew it landed with a big grin and that's what it is all about, good to see it does just what we hoped it would which is to give confidence to less experienced pilots on it with it's ease of launching,flying and stability whilst being lively enough for the more experienced to have a ball and capable of staying up in the "lighter" conditions but having the speed to deal with the breezier ones, nice.

Guess who ..........

Gather a good time was had down on the Dunes at Hayle where there were a mixture of small wings and standard para's flying and at Sennen where the hangies were hanging out, good day all round ;))

Quote of the day "do you wanna see my helmet"  and at your age Bill .........