Trains Planes and automobiles

Oh what to do, the forecast was such that it was a choice between the hill and the tow for hangs, we opted for the hill at Chapel but after a quick visit and watching the Paragliders scratching around we headed to the tow field.

Louie D (Bristol) was back after yesterdays fun on the hill and a 2 year break on the line but was soon back into the swing of it moving well into his EPC tasks  and getting to the point of high flights before we stopped play.

Ian L (Bristol) put in an appearance looking to get some airtime in having not flown for 9 months.  Ian's first flight was fine and a nice landing rounded it off to give him a big smile.  His second was not so good with a lazy launch and lack of airspeed contributing to a premature landing and a visit to Treliske.

As the saying goes it never pays to be helpful and Ian's enforced delay in returning to Bristiol meant that Louie's lift home kindly offered earlier was no longer an option hence the train!  Oh and the automobile, well that was at Chapel ...........

Quote of the day "right right right right right right .........."

Gorillas in the Mist

Well they were not really gorillas but they were in the mist!  We headed to Perranporth in the hope of some good hill work with a fun group of hangs to see what we could do.

The wind was lighter than forecast and the sky damper but we pressed on and whilst Tom G (Exeter)  and James C (Exeter) got on with some theory Louie D (Bristol) and Lee H got the condor rigged for some tethering.

Both Louie and Lee had a good day putting in plenty of "flights" and moving from one face to the other as the wind backed and veered again.  By the end of the day Louie was well back into it as the last time we saw him was 2 years ago and Lee had grasped the basics and we look forward to getting him going in the tow field.

Tom and James both did a fine job passing their EPC's so that's out of the way and they can relax again until the end of their CPC's.

Interesting day which whilst not as planned worked out fine and got the guys further down the training road.

Quote of the day "I can see the sea"

Banging at the BOS

So having stayed at home for the first two days of the Mid Wales Round of the British Open Series (BOS) Hang Gliding competition we loaded up the van and headed north on Sunday afternoon. Tim j and myself were just about to leave to pick up Daisy when Kaz popped her head out of the door and decided to join us, so a bit more kit into the van another glider on the roof and off we went.

Dropping in to see Bill and Sue at their new house on the way broke up the drive and showed us how the other half live, smashing view of the Malverns, lots of wine in the Cellar and some very nice gardens :)

Morning campers, peace and tranquility at Foxholes

Yummy

Camping at Foxholes we set up tents and headed to Bishops Castle for a pint or two and some food nice.

Rigging under a good looking sky

Under starters orders

Monday saw us off up the Mynd on what turned out to be a fairly blustery day but plenty of lift around on the hill at least. 90k race to anywhere soon saw gliders up and away and a large gaggle leaving at cloudbase with me as one of them.  Over the back was a little trickier and lots went down at the 20k mark including yours truly but others struggled on with several making the distance and Justin n winning the day.  Still it was my first thermic flight on my new T2 C and what a fab' piece of kit she is :)))))

My new wing gets the thumbs up

Following and early retrieve we nipped back up the Mynd and Kaz took the opportunity to have a fly on her Hangy.  Having the whole of the ridge to herself she had a fine time in still bouncy enough conditions playing with the passing clouds.  a super top landing then it was off to the Pub again for refreshments.

Shedsy and Shedsy

Tuesday the winds were lighter and conditions on the hill (Mynd) tricky. Still swifts on the hill tempted Rob G off and that was enough for several others to follow and soon a gaggle was on its way on an 80k task. Plenty were left to watch and wait, another couple of chance came by and I took one of them but did not make the most of it  and after a second attempt found myself derigging in the bottom landing field, still nice company.

Tim J looking like he means it 

The evening saw us having a ball in the pub where Kaz had managed to arrange for BC/DC to play for us (local rock band) and things went lively to say the least. Plenty of dancing , head banging and "singing" made for a top night and a few headaches.........

shape of things to come ??????

Final day and yes it was back up the Mynd for more fun.  It was a while before the wind came on and the thermals out but when they did it was very nice indeed.  Soon it was off to cloudbase with a gaggle of gliders including sailplanes and over the back.  The lead gaggle suddenly found themselves in trouble and several went down at Wenlock edge including some top names and me!  But 2 made it on to  with Geoff b landing very close for an excellent effort.

Gordon R finally gets his hands on the British Open Trophy 

Bit of drama on the hill when a Sailplane got it wrong and ended up splat on the front but fortunately no one was hurt.  Bit more drama when Kaz drove down the hill and the drive shaft broke on the van resulting in a very long retrieve to Cornwall on a low loader, still worse things happen at sea and we did have a good laugh on the way!!

well saves on diesel I guess .......

So a fun time away and plenty of flying, lovely camping, good company and top memories...SE Wales next time :)

Quote of the comp "were you born during the war"  nice one Mike

Doubling up at Chapel

what a playground

The low cloud was forecast to clear and clear it did around mid day so off to Chapel we headed where the wind was smack on (thanks Adie) and looking like good for Paragliding.  Katy (Tintagel) arrived for a tandem flight and by the time I had carried the Tandem Pg to the front the wind filled in so i went back and got the Tandem Hangy which was ideal as this was Katy's preferred choice.

Steve M was up on his Paraglider whilst we rigged and whilst not blown out it was fresh enough so confirming the Hangy as the way to go.  As the sun shone Katy got ready and in no time we were up and away for a super flight cruising the cliffs flying with  the seagulls and Peregrine and watching the rock climbers on the cliffs just above the pounding surf.  Katy was really interested in the way the glider flew and by the end of the flight I think she had pretty much sussed it!
We came in for a peachy landing to round off a lovely flight and experience for Katy.

Katy after a super flight

Kaz perks up a little

With Kaz feeling a little under the weather and the wind easing back again I nipped up on her Buzz Z4 for some fun flying, what nice wings they are:)  Back down again as the wind picked up a bit then off to get the Delta 2 as it dropped again.  By the time I was back at the front Kaz had put in a quick flight but landed just in time as the wind picked up again.  Ok change of plan so I popped up on Kaz's hangy for some more fun before landing near the back to save the carry back.  Finally as the wind dropped a little again I got to fly my Delta in what were probably the best conditions of the day.

I never tire of this view (north)

or this one (south)

With bits of kit all over the hill it was a bit of time pulling them together, think I got them all!  Good to see Sam A making some fine decisions and finally getting some good flying in on his hangy and looking like he was having a ball.

nice to see a familiar face back on the hill ;)

Quote of the day "Wow that's amazing"

Oh what a perfect day ;)

Boys Toys and Todd flying, nice 

Well it was for Todd A and can't say it was a bad one for me either.  With Todd heading off to France on his holidays he was keen to get his hill endortsement sorted before leaving tomorrow!  the weather had not played ball over the last few weeks so things were getting tight.

Still with a forecast slot for early in the morning we got set for an early start with Todd arriving at base at 07.00 having already ridden down on bis motorcycle from Totnes.  A quick cuppa to warm up and we set off for Sennen with me on the Bonnie for what turned out to be a cracking ride as we took the coast road, lovely.

Arrival in the carpark and only one other vehicle in it but it was a big one! men in masks, what could be going on??  The wind was off and light but the signs on the water looked good so we wasted no time in rigging, by the time the gliders were out the wind was on so i was up and away into nice lift to test the air.  With Todd ready to go I was back down just as a visiting [pilot from the Southern Club, paul arrived to join in the fun.

With a rattle and a flutter the large vehicle suddenly exploded along it's sides and a few thousand pigeons emerged.  Quite a sight as they circled around before heading off in a northerly direction, an enquiry from the driver revealled they were heading for Ireland, rather them than me.

it's along way to Ireland !

Luckily Todd was not yet up there but he soon was and had a fun time for 20 minutes soaring the ridge whilst we waited for the lorry to move from the ideal landing spot!  Paul joined him briefly timing It just wrong as the lift dropped off seeing him on the beach followed by Todd a few minutes later!

Strange cloud as visitor Paul floats by

Paul hitched a lift back up with the refuse truck and i sold a course to the driver, ideal :) Todd arrived by foot but ready to go again as conditions improved which the did steadily.  Paul popped in another flight which whilst a  little longer than his first still saw him on the beach, Todd waited.  Patience is a virtue and it paid off as a few minutes later he was away in good lift and loving it, a nice soaring flight and top landing was followed by 3 more with the being a cracker in the freshening conditions.  To say he smile was big would be an understatement!

Totally Happy Todd

The breeze was now fresh so we called it a day and headed home for another smashing ride on the bikes and more tea.

A few hours work at home where it was a little misty and the sun came out so it was pop the new hangy on the van and off to St Agnes to try her out on the ridge before the upcoming comp,.  There were plenty at St Agnes but no one flying although a few floppies had flown and Carez had flown his stiffy reports were mixed with only a few hundred feet o be had.  still conditions were changing as the sun came out so I rigged as Carez derigged.

Super Babe gets her first taste of Cornwall, what lovely clean tips

It's always good to take caution and even more so at StAgnes and even more so with a new wing.  After a bit of a delay to check conditions and the performance of the seagulls it was time to go for it.  Yep conditions were a bit weird or was it the glider??  Squirrely would sum it up and whilst never a fear of going down things were strange on the ridge.  Settling down and climbing out a nice section of smooth air appeared and next thing it was dead smooth in a 40 feet per minute climb, wave :)  That would explain it, topping out at 1300' ATO the view was lovely and it was time to play with the glider , yep it's lovely and look forward to getting some proper thermalling in soon.

So a cracking day and whats more rounded it off with fish and chips at Godrevy to watch the sun go down, nice.

Tea at Godrevy for seagulls

Quote of the day "well that will be you then!"

Releasing and Revving

A misty start to the day saw us hang on until early afternoon before heading to the filed where we met up with Jenny (Falmouth) who was along for her second day on the hanger after a few weeks off whilst  travelling.

The wind played tricks for a while so we used the time with a bit of theory whilst it settled down to a light NW.  Then it was all go with Jenny finishing off her low non release flights before moving into higher release ones and doing a fine job of them too.  She put away a total of 9 flights with her confidence building on each one along with the height.  By 17.30 she was full and it was time to turn our attention to Big G (Pool) who was along for a go at Paramotoring for a change.

Big G with a Big Glider and the Big prop ready to go

After a bit of ground handling practice and running around with the Paramotor it was time to go for it.  Grahams previous powered HG experience paid off and he made a cracking job of it taking off nicely despite the light wind and climbing away.  He buzzed the field and looked pretty sweet from the word go and then after 15 minutes came in and performed a near perfect landing, ideal.

off and away and look the grass has been cut :)) but not by Big g.........

Life can only get easier for him with a bit of wind and hopefully we will see him back soon to complete his qualification.

Quote of the day "I always make a lot of noise"

Instability

Actually it was not that bad although there was some lift around as the sea breeze kicked in but instability was to follow as Stuart C worked his way through his final tasks on his Paragliding CPC.

Stuart was joined by Henry G (Truro) and Jeremy S (Taunton) both on the hangy with Henry coming back for his second day after a long break and Jeremy starting from scratch.  Whilst I got Jeremy going on the ground work Kaz did some theory with Stuart and Triston J (Torquay) had some more fun flying on his Paramotor.

Jeremy S ready to go on a non release flight

nice in flight position

and a nice landing to round it off 

Jeremy at 17 just soaked it up and seemed to have a never ending supply of energy which soon saw him ready for the winch.  Henery joined us after lunch along with John R who came by to keep his hand in on the Paramotor.

Just what Stuart needed :)

With the winch up and running Stuart cracked on with his remaing tasks seeing speed bar, big ears and Asymmetrics soon out of the way before having some more relaxed flying.  Henry quickly got back into the swing of things and moved deeper into the CPC tasks with higher releases and gentle turns. Jeremy never stopped and was soon off tethers and even moving into release flights by the end of the day having put away no less than 15 tows, nearly as many as JIm did a few days ago, but this was Jeremy's first day!

John R had a couple of fine flights on the Paramotor looking more confident and even like he was enjoying it so ready to have another go on his own kit.

Yep another super day and long may it continue, good to see the hangies at it it seems each week we pick up another one!


Quote of the day "well that's not so bad after all"

3 on Tuesday

Well after a full on day yesterday Jim D  (Dorset) was back rested and up for more. Jim was joined by Barney A (N Devon) on the hanger putting both of them on day three of their courses.  The "old hands" were joined by Chris M who was down on his honeymoon from London and his new wife Fay had treated him to day off, looking good for the future ;)

Jim gets the Falcon rigged for another day of fun and flying

Whilst I worked through the basics with Chris  Jim set to on his EPC exam and Barney also caught up on some theory.  By the time Chris was ready to go they other guys had rigged the Falcon so we were set for a fun afternoon.

Jim sets off on another flight

now there's something you don't see every day !

Chris had a ball on his Taster day putting the flights across the field and was soon off the side tethers and to be fair I was not doing anything on the Kingpost one except having to keep up!  By the end of the day he was well pleased and yes we would have him back on his "days off".

Jim turns away at the top of the tow

Barney follows suit ....

....... and heads for home

Jim and Barney worked well together and matched each other flight by flight as they moved through the EPC tasks with release flights and turns before moving higher and higher and finally both finishing off with a couple of flights to the top each so starting their CPC's.

Barney just loving it

Jim as cool as ever

They were chuffed to say the least and with bait of luck will be back soon to capitalise on their success, watch this space .........

Quote of the day "I've got a rash"

17 on Monday

No we were not that busy in numbers but that's how many tows Jim D got in on his second day of hang Gliding!

Jim gets set to go at the start of a "busy" day :)

Jim was back after a taster day a couple of months ago and despite a fair drive down from Dorset was up for a full day.  The morning was a little breezy and thermically lively so we caught up with some admin and did some ground handling on the hangy to get his hand back in.

Up and away on one of his 17 flights 

Kaz keeps up the good work driving the winch and pulling the lines

Early afternoon saw the wind flick to the NE as the sea breeze set in and turn into classic conditions so we were off and away with the winch.  Taking it nice and easy as Jim was the only one out we paced ourselves through the afternoon.  Jim moved through his EPC tasks one after the other from non release flights, through releases and gentle turns and into higher flights and steeper turns all in fine fashion.

Jim gets higher and builds on the release flights as well as getting a super view

and the added bonus of some fine looking sheep

By the end of the day he was only a coupe of flights away from going to the top having done at least two days worth of work in one.

the end of a very productive day zzzzzzzzzz

Kaz did a great job on the winch her first full one towing student hangies on her own with no worries as well as keeping us supplied with tea :)  looks like it will be pretty much the same tomorrow so hopefully Jim will get to the top then.

Quote of the day   "how high?????"

Funday Sunday

What a cracking day with lovely sunshine and pleasant winds all day, yummy. Today the Hangies outnumbered the Paras but it was just as good for both.

Keith W (N Devon) dropped by and put in some ground handling before popping in a refresher tow and making the decision to pursue the Paramotor route, hopefully he will be back in a couple of days to get started.

The Paragliders get going

Stuart C (Devon) was back after a 12 month lay off and went the other way deciding to put Paramotoring on hold and pursue Paragliding instead.  Stuart had a cracking day putting away 9 flights and working well into his CPC tasks and just loving it, if he carries on like this it won't be long before he is qualified.

Nice hand position, not so sure about the rest ....

On the Hangy front Tom G and James C (Andover and Exeter) were back again and had a super day moving through the reaming EPC flights and getting the whole airspeed thing sorted finally which saw them turning nicely and even landing nicely!  Tom lead by example (some better than others) and by the end of the day and 9 flights each they had reached the top of the line twice each.  Difficult to explain their reactions but it was pretty good:)

Up and away

 and release

Darren G (Stroud) who had done a Taster Day on the hill a few months ago was back for more and after a bit of groundwork and tow theory was ready for his first flights on the winch. Darren did a cracking job and was soon off tethers and rattling up the flights, finishing off his tenth one as a release. great work and hopefully when we see him again in a few weeks he will carry on just as well.

Happy hangies at the end of the day

Tim on the winch did a fine job overseeing Kaz as she completed her hangy tow training to add to her Paragliding operators licence, well done to both. And well done to Lee K for getting away from the Brea, nice one

Quote of the day "I hope that's mud.........."