Wenchman Training

Forecast .... light winds in the afternoon and Sunny .... reality moderate gusty breeze and sunny so at least we were half way there!  Still a late start saw us in the field where Todd A (Torquay) was hoping to finish off his final tasks for his CPC and John R (Indian Queens) was hoping to get back up on the Paramotor.

With conditions on the bouncy side Todd concentrated on his ground handing and made excellent progress moving from struggling to almost looking like a pilot in a couple of hours.  Seriously he did really well and it's always so good to see it click and instead of masses of brake being used and bodies fighting wings it becomes almost poetic, whoops getting a bit carried away now.

Getting set on the Hangy 

Phil studies the technique

John R arrived early afternoon and concluded for himself that it would not be a good idea to fly so we spent an hour or so on theory and cups of tea sat in the sunshine out of the wind.  With the  arrival of Phil L who had had enough of his nice warm office we took the opportunity for Kaz to have a go at towing hangers. With myself as pilot and Phil as Marshall Kaz quickly got the knack of it and mastered the double release back off after a couple of tows.  So with Kaz looking good we thought it would be time for her to tow a less experienced pilot ....... Yep Phil was next and popped in a couple of nice tows getting the chest release sorted on the way.

Sweet landing

Phil looks a bit less relaxed as he does his first chest release flight ........

............ but a lot more relaxed as he comes in after it !

Whilst not the most productive day as far as flying went it was still a good one with some useful and necessary ground covered.  Nice to see Pete L drop by and hope to see him back in the air soon.

Quote of the day "it's painted"

Tucking and Diving at Carbis

With a Tandem Pg flight planned we headed to Carbis B early arriving on site at 08.30 just behind Nigel W and at the same time as Steve M who did a quick spot of topiary on the "car park" (much appreciated by all) before walking to the front.

It was bright and sunny but light so whilst flyable you had to keep a close eye on the gulls to go up and a close eye on the sink cycles not to go down!  Michel K (still raving about the Delta 2) joined us after an hour or so and finally Al K made up a full contingent.  Conditions slowly improved but not good enough for us to encourage a 5 hour round trip for the Tandem so they will come another day.  A good slot saw us all playing with bits of lift before the cold got to us and we nipped in for a warm up.

20 minutes on the ground got the blood moving and with Al and Michel doing well over Carbis kaz and myself opted for one last flight before heading of to the dentists...... Looking at the sea you could see various patches of wind coming in which we concluded could well spell good lift so I wasted no time in getting off, ideal steady lift soon saw me hundreds of feet up and whilst Kaz got set to go a nice core saw me circling up to a couple of grand (nice but cold).  The drift was due east up top so something strange was going on and with large areas of lift it was easy to get about.

Kaz launches at Carbis before the excitement

Kaz launched and I  watched her along with Al and Michel who had come back from Carbis scratch the ridge, strange.  next thing Kaz nips in for a top landing and change of underwear having experienced a nice frontal collapse as the wind swung off to the east down low making conditions uncomfortable .......  Thinking an XC trip may not be wise i flew over to the Hayle side before losing height to land in an easterly breeze at launch.  A few lessons learnt / re learnt and especially just how quickly conditions can change ........ even when it looks good for the guys up high don't get to excited as down low it may well be a different story even only 5 minutes after someone else has launched ...... Will Geordie Have His Cat Aboard Today .......

Quote of the day "it's a

bit rough"

A new Buzz on the Hill

In fact 2 new Buzz Z 4's on the hill to be precise :))  Hoping to catch an early breeze before the wind was forecast to drop off we headed to the hill early arriving at 07.15 just behind Sam a from Devon!!  It was already light but as we had Shaun S (Penzance) and Paddy B (Penryn) already on route for their first taste of the hill we opted to stay. A little bit of a breeze filled in seeing Sam and Kaz make the most of it as the guys arrived so at least showing them what hill soaring is all about!

Shauns new toy and we get our first look at the Buzz Z4

Ever optimistic we cracked on with a bit of ground handling and hill introduction before breaking out two new Ozone Buzz Z4's for the guys. This was my first look at them and they do look noticeably different from the Z3 with smaller cell openings and more cross bracing inside but fortunately still using sensible durable lines, nice.

Matt gets set for a go on the hangy whilst the guys play

Shaun kindly let me have a ground handle with his wing which confirmed the ease of inflation of the Z3 remained in a nice and controlled manner along with easy going ground handling charateristics.  So the guys spent a n hour or so getting used to the wings which to be fair are very different from the good old school Elements sharpening up their skills nicely.  The threat of rain finally materialised when a large cloud that had been out to sea made it's way in and you could see the gust front coming.  Ideal I quickly popped into Shaun's wing and gave it a test fly as the front approached bringing in the wind.  Once again super handling, very much like the Z3 but with a little more performance a perfect successor to such a good wing.  Five minutes was enough as the white horses were galloping in so it was back on top with a big smile.

Paddy, all dressed up and nowhere to go as we wait for the wind 

The rain never really made it to us passing by to the south and the wind came and went backing to the south as it dropped.  We waited it out and slowly the wind that could be seen out to sea made it's way in and came back onto the hill giving enough for the keener pilots scratch a little but slope landings were the order of the day.  However it was ideal for the guys to get more time in with their new toys and they made the most of it.  There was also just enough breeze for Matt (Plymouth) to get going on a Taster day on the hangy and soon he was floating along the top landing on the Condor making us run for a living.  Matt did really well relaxing bit by bit although his keenness to become airborne needed curtailing!

Matt gets his feet off the ground on an early run

Late afternoon saw Graham A (Devon) crack and go for a nice flight to the beach to keep his hand in. this inspired Shaun and Paddy and soon they were both set for their first flights off the hill.  In light conditions they both did cracking flights on their new wings doing themselves and us proud and even finding some lift on the way!  What's more they were back up on top in double quick time and joined graham A for another flight down, that's enthusiasm for you.

You can never do enough of this .....

So a fun day in the Sun and whilst not as flyable as we hoped still a very good and useful one, well done guys.

Just about summed it up !

Quote of the day "I'm in love with it already"  and that's someone who only tried one of the Z4's for 5 minutes on the ground:)) and then ordered one ........

halfy halfy

That's the way it panned out with half the day in the field followed by half the day in the classroom.

A cracking looking morning saw us head to the field where the sky was blue and the wind light but already convergence cloud could be seen building up not a good sign that early in the day.  Cracking on we wasted no time in getting going and soon Todd A (Torquay) was off to the top of the line to continue his CPC tasks. Todd now well settled into his flying made good use of the available time putting away Active flying and Speed bar tasks along with some good spot landings before the rain arrived.

Joining him was Paddy B (Falmouth) who having completed his CPC tasks spent the morning having fun and building experience as well as practising Big ears along the way.  Spot landings to paddy have always come easy and today was no different.  By the time Shaun S (Penzance) arrived the convergence cloud was pretty much on us and the first drops of rain fell so we nipped towing in the bud and headed home for some theory work.

Just about sums it up .....

Over several cups of tea the guys refreshed their theory before Todd and Shaun took their CPC exams both doing a fine job and passing nicely followed by a debrief on the incorrect answers by Kaz so learning along the way.  With enthusiasm high we headed to the "shed" where the guys tried on harnesses for size and shape followed by helmets and generally getting kit sorted as they need their own from here on.

 A check of the weather showed the chance of some hill work tomorrow and the possibility of an early start for Shaun and Paddy , we shall see.   Well done on passing your exams guys and it won't be long before Todd joins Shaun and Paddy in gaining his CPC rating :)

Quote of the day "nice helmet ........"

Rain stop Play!

With a nice forecast all be it the chance of the odd shower in the afternoon it was another day in the field and things looked good.

Todd gets back into it with a classic launch stance

Todd A (Torquay) was back and joined by Paddy B (Falmouth) who is nearing the end of his CPC tasks, Graham A who having not flown for 3 months since completing his hill rating fancied some refresher work, Mark S (London) who came along for a bit more towing and experience and Emil K who was starting a Paramotor conversion having learnt paragliding with us a while back..  The wind took a little while to settle but we soon got underway into a light NNE.

celebrating a good one :))

Todd was up for consolidating his high flights before moving into his CPC tasks and gave us (and himself) a challenge with a variety of techniques making it unwise for Kaz to pull him to the top, guess he had slept since last being out when he looked pretty good!  Still it was not long before he got it sorted and was looking good and popping the high flights in and moving nicely into his CPC tasks.  Paddy finished off his CPC tasks and had fun just flying around and building experience.

 Graham A (Devon) made a fine job of getting back in the air on the tow looking like he had never been away and smiled the whole time, back to the hill for him feeling confident I hope.  Mark s popped in a couple of tows and worked on tighter turns as having come from hang gliders had not quite worked out the delay time in a Paraglider, well at least an Element!!

Billy Whizz (Graham A) follows suit with a cracker

Emil meanwhile had practised ground handling with the Paramotor on his back before doing the run around bit to get the torque sussed.  Finally he did a few practise take off runs and aborts in readiness for his first flight.

Emil gets the hard work out of the way

Then the rain came, it had been sitting all around us all morning but finally closed in and sent us scurrying to the van where we spent the next hour or so doing theory in one van whilst Emil took his hill exam in the other which he passed making him fully qualified on the Paraglider so watch out for him on the hills.

.......... and relaxes

With it plainly not going to clear we headed home to complete the theory side and for Todd and Paddy to take their EPC and CPC exams respectively which they both passed, well done.

Lets hope for a full day tomorrow but at least it means we keep up with the theory side:)

Quote of the day " I think it's going to miss us" ..................

Thanks to paddy for the piccies (once again)

A Bit of this and a Bit of that

After a blow out yesterday on the hill we headed to the tow field on a forecast which was due to see the wind drop through the day.

Kaz on the other hand headed to the hill for some flying and to take the Delta 2 out of its bag for Michel to test fly, those of you who were there no doubt got Michels feedback and if not it's worth asking him. Needless to say another one is on order ;)

 Meanwhile back in the field Barney A (N Devon) got on with his second day on the hang Glider but this time in very much lighter winds and did some ground work with Tim whilst John R (Indian Queens) and Paddy B (Falmouth) took their EPC Pg exams as the breeze was still fresh enough for Paragliders.

 Barney looks like aman on a mission as he waits for the lines

By the time the guys were sorted the wind eased and they got the Paragliders out for some ground handling whilst Barney got his first taste of towing on the hangy.  Barney had a top time moving through ground skimming flights and quickly up to release flights and gentle turns by the end of the day.  he did a great job with the previous days experience helping out although we still have a little work to do on flying speed ...

Told you he looked like he's on a mission !

setting off for his first flight without the tethers :))

The wind soon eased further and Paddy joined in on the winch whilst John assembled the Paramotor in rediness for his first go on it.  Paddy despite his nerves finished off his CPC tasks with some excellent Asymmetric collapses and concluded they were no where near as bad as he thought, he didn't even use the spare pair of underpants that he brought with him and even Freda looked impressed.  from there on paddy could relax and enjoy the rest of the day.

John gets up on the Paramotor for his first flight ...

Kaz joined us as the wind had now dropped on the hill and brought a late lunch.  It was now Johns turn and with him clipped into the Paramotor and the wind in his face he went for it.  A super take off soon saw him up and away on his first flight making it look all to easy. He climbed away and circled the field getting used to the wing under power.  a combination of light pilot and lifty air meant that less than half throttle was more than enough to keep him going up and even on tick over it took a while to come down!  Still down he did come and after a good 10 to 15 minute flight he came into the field to make a very nice landing in light enough conditions, fantastic.

.... and keeps on going up !!

I do belive he was even more nervous than Paddy but his smile was just as BIG as he came back across the filed to a round of applause.  With the clouds gathering and the wind freshening we called it a day and what a good one it was.

Nice :)

Quote of the day " Why would you want to do that??? "

Expecting the unexpected

Looking like a nice afternoon after all ;)

The plan was to head to Perran as the showers cleared for some tethering on the hangy, guess what we arrived at 14.15 just as the showers cleared and the wind veered, perfect!  Whilst we waited for Barney a (N.Devon) to arrive to start his Hang Gliding EPC, converting over from Paragliding, I snuck in a quick flight on the ASKA in breezy enough conditions.

Barney soon found us and we wasted no time in rigging the Hangy and doing the basic introductions.  Withj classic tethering conditions we cracked on and after a demo' flight by Kaz barney was soon harnessed up and hooked in.  His first few hops were classic Paraglider pilot ones with him over reacting as he held the turns to long.

The trickiest part of the day !

however it did not take him long to suss it and pretty soon I stopped talking (yes really honestly) and the glider did what barney wanted, well most of the time.  Each flight got better and by the end of play he was doing base bar conversion and "soaring" nicely with all the tethers nice and slack.  Once again our timing was pot on as by the time we derigged the wind began to ease back to on the light side for tethered soaring.

Barney gets the hang of it

back on the ground for a quick de brief before going up again

Not wishing to miss out on the fun that Wyn D and Glen F were having I nipped back up on the ASKA and had a ball feeling very at home on it and even feeling relaxed! Whilst I then had a go on Wyns Zion Kaz took the ASKA as the wind eased back even further making soaring a bit trickier resulting finally in a beach landing as the sun set.

A useful and fun afternoon on what was forecast to be a duff day, bonus

Quote of the day "how Wyn d, windy enough"

Long Johns

An unexpected change in the forecast saw us scurrying for the tow field and with in a few phone calls we had plenty on. With a near perfect breeze the guys got going with some ground handling whilst we waited for the direction to settle and set the winch out.

It was great to see how everyone progressed with just a little help here and there and plenty of effort from all. By the time the winch was ready Mark S (yes the very same from years ago) who having not flown his hangy for a while had decided to have a go at Paragliding and was along for a go on the winch was brought up to speed for towing and almost looked excited about it.

John gets the run around

Shaun S (Penzance) made big progress with some cracking reverse work and just needs to keep those brakes back when in forward. Todd A (Torquay) also did well although the straight arm technique is not ideal so more of a W from here on please Todd.  Paddy B (Falmouth) having not done much ground work at all did himself proud and with a few tips from Kaz got the basics cracked and looked pretty solid.  Last but not least  John R (Indian Queens) really put the effort in which he needs to more than most as his next step is to get going on the Paramotor .......

Ok Let's see if that ground handling paid off?

With the wind settled and the winch set the fun got going and it was not long before a steady stream of gliders were heading up the line.  Shaun had a fun time just consolidating his flying and spot landings having completed  his CPC tasks last time out and made the most of it looked nice and relaxed.

Todd made us work for our living but steadily got back into the swing of it once he manged to "stay out"of the harness and get the W going and ended up with some nice flights and good spot landings.  Paddy did what paddy does and took it all in his stride working through the "Instability" tasks just leaving the Asymmetrics to go for next time.

Mark had a fine time converting smoothly to towing and taking the opportunity to "refresh" on some of the CPC tasks that were ticked off when he did his hill training elsewhere ........

Sure did :)

Meanwhile John had spent the day working on his ground handling including getting his own Paramotor wing out for a go and in fairness had done a very good job with a vast improvement over the day.  A play with the Paramotor on his back to get the feel of it and the effects of torque was well worthwhile as was a further  ground handling session again with the unit on his back, he did well :))

The day was finished off with a test flight on Johns wing attached to the school power unit which proved all good so next time out it should be up and away for John , watch this space ........

Quote of the day " back flap, what back flap"

Very Vault

Leaving home in the grey overcast sky it was an act of faith (aided by a little research) that we headed to Vault Bay where we arrived just as it brightened up and was nicely flyable :))

Big G and Andy R had already flown Para's but  with the wind increasing they got pinned so it was time to break out the hangies.  Big g was soon off on his Wills Wing falcon having fun whilst the rest of us rigged.  By the time the tandem hangy was rigged the wind had eased a little so i nipped up on the Delta to suss it out ....... well kind of six of one half a dozen of the other.

Maia flies high on the Paraglider over a sunny Vault Bay

Maia and her family arrived with Maia hoping to come up for a 14th Birthday celebration flight.  With conditions varying from hangy to para we got all set to go on the Hang Glider and Phil L kindly volunteered to check out conditions on his Wills Wing Sport 2.  He looked good for a bit but by the time we were ready on launch with the Tandem he was looking a lot lower!  frustratingly we carried back as Phil descended to the beach where he performed a first class approach and landing in not the easiest of circumstances.  To be fair he was soon joined by Andy r and Wyn on their Paragliders which tells a story.

The tandem flies by as Wyn air's his armpits after a long walk .........

So with a change of plan we broke out the Paraglider and it was not long before Maia was up in the air enjoying the views and the feeling of free flight whilst her family looked on.  Still conditions played tricks with us having to work the lift to stay up before having more lift than we knew what to do with, strange at it was always smooth.   Maia did a fine job making the flight a pleasure and resulting in a super landing back on top, well done.

Coming back in on top to round off Maia's flight

Next up was Yan who was also celebrating his Birthday (40th) and once again conditions were varying  but once again we had a fine time varying from scratching to high flying giving Yan plenty of time to get the feeling of Paragliding along with flying the glider himself.  A lull in the lift saw us scurrying for a landing which we popped in just in time  before the lift disappeared once again.

The rest of the day carried on the same with the trick being  to pick your slot which sam a and myself did nicely resulting in what i believe is the smoothest ever flight I have ever had very spooky.

So fun day all round and great to have two birthdays in one, (ok Maias was actually the day before but still pretty unusual).

Maia

Quote of the day "there's loads of lift .........."

High and Dry

Hoping against hope that the forecast was right for a change we planned a days towing with theory in the morning then moving to the field before lunch as the wind hopefully dropped back.  Don't you just love it when a plan comes together :)  In fact it was better than that with the wind behaving earlier than expected and backing nicely to ENE / E allowing us to use another field which was just perfect ;))

A long tow with short grass and above all dry and no Sheep, what more can you ask .......

 So with Shaun S (Penzance) and Ollie C (Plymouth having had an hour or so's theory we headed to the field and got set up.  A spot of ground handling never comes amiss and the guys made good progress whilst we got the winch set up and sorted.  A demo flight confirmed nice conditions with buoyant air and the long tow giving good height at the top of the line.

Long field, short grass and dry :)))

Ollie on his second day cracked on into his EPC tasks finishing off release flights before moving into turns then higher flights and turns before finally going to the top putting away 11 flights with 3 of them to the top and just loving it, especially the views.  Only the exam and that's his EPC sorted, nice.

Ollie just loving it

Shaun meanwhile had a full on day moving steadily into his CPC tasks putting away speed bar, active flying , Big Ears and Asymmetrics by the end of play and also racking up 11 flights.  Looking more relaxed Shaun did really well and did a great job on the final tasks so seeing him close to CPC, not bad seeing he only started in January.

Shaun on his way to the top

The moment of release .........

John R (Indian Queens) having had to work in the morning joined in the fun after lunch and also had a good day (his third) finishing off his EPC tasks and getting to the top of the line for his final 3 flights of the day and doing some very nice towing with it.

John sneaks back into the field after a slight detour

A good sign that things are on the change as sea gulls floated by in weak climbs and getting the windsock poles into the field took some effort rather than just sinking into a muddy pile, even the van could move around and pull the winch!

The Pink Lady

Nice to see Adie and Phil drop by and offer "encouragement" and help to the students, who knows we may see them back on the line as the thermals return ......... and also Cpt Kev with the wind in his hair.

One thing to remember guys ........ make sure the Go Pro is not on when you go for a pee  ...........

Quote of the day "I'm almost enjoying this"