Manic Monday

It was always going to be a busy one with the weather having backed up students but the forecast looked good and hopes were high to get things moving.

However even the best laid plans get put aside and whilst we can control many things the weather is not one of them!  On arrival in the field it was breezier than forecast putting things on hold from a towing point of view. So whilst we waited for the wind to ease back as forecast the guys and gals played ground handling  and the taster days got going on the basics before joining them.

 

Happy jack, always full of life

Lunchtime came and went and still conditions were top end........ early afternoon saw Kaz doing theory and exams with a group whilst Tim and myself looked after the tatser days.  finally things eased back enough for Ian L to get going on the hangy and he put in 5 nice experience flights in readiness for going to the hill.

 

getting ready at launch

Bit by bit the wind continued to drop until finally we could get the paras on to the line although just to keep us on our toes it also decided to change direction seeing us chase it around the field (fields) several times just getting in the odd tow with each move .  At 18.00 it actually settled down to the direction and speed as forecast and things really got moving.  Steve and Phil on the Taster days joined in with John S (Stithians), John S (Helston), Wyn D (Penryn), Anna P (Gwithian) and Jack E (Polzeath) who were now all high flighting.  Steve made it look all far to easy as he put in three cracking flights across the field to end his day with a big grin. Phil found it a little more challenging after a long day but not enough to put him off coming back as he booked second day with us.

 

Double trouble in the two John's (Speaky and Snake)

The two johns and Wyn matched each other flight for flight and worked deep into their CPC tasks making the most of the conditions when they arrived.  Anna P had a cracking evening finishing off her CPC flying tasks and looking very very pleased with herself.  Jack popped in a couple of fun flights one of which resulted in a small XC into the field next door, guess it's all part of the learning curve.....

Anna P gives the thimbs up after her final CPC task flight

It was another late day seeing us leave the field at 21.00 but well done to all especially Tim j for his endless patience and swift relocation's of the winch through the day.  Lets hope the weather settles down a bit.

Quote of the day "I'm finished"

Hedge bangers and wire hoppers

Once again the forecast was such that we opted for a late start and once again it proved the right thing to do with the troops assmebling at 13.00 in the field.

Yesterdays participants were joined by Jack E (Polzeath), Colin B (Dartmouth) and Anne W (Dartmouth) all on paragliders so making it a little busier.

Whilst everyone put in some ground handling I set out the winch and by the time they were were sorted we were ready to tow.  With 4 tows out of the way the wind began to act strangely and it took a good 40 minutes before it finally did a 180 which saw us switch ends  and reset everything.  Just ready to go and the wind picked up seeing me testing the air and both Paul on the winch and myself deciding it was a bit top end.

Colin decided this would be a good time to get his wing out but unfortunately he was a little to close to the hedge resulting in his wing becoming part of the BT network and him part of the hedge.  Lesson learnt glider and pilot recovered and the rest of the guys went well up wind into the field ........ 

The wind eased back and late afternoon saw things moving once again with everyone forming and orderly que.  The Johns and Wyn made the most of it and worked right through until 20.15 puttting in the high flights racking up 5 flights each as they progressed into their CPC tasks.  Anna P finshed off hers and had a celebration smile on her face after doing a couple of super Asymmetrics.  Anne W popped in 3 tows which after a long time away helped to get her back in the swing.  Jack E now CPC'd had a couple of nice flights one resulting in him getting a little carried away over the wires and into the next field .............  Colin gave it a miss as he recovered from his experience earlier in the day but gave encouragement to Anne from the start gate which was appreciated.

Another late one and once again thanks to Paul H for helping out and passing on some of his skills to Kaz as she got to grips with towing students.

Getting Going and flares

Daisy was not there but it is such a nice picture!

The forecast was not good in the morning so we decided to wait until mid day before heading to the field which proved to be pretty much on the nail.

With the two Johns keen to crack on after their ground handling afternoon being joined by Wyn D who after his Taster day was also keen to get going we were always going to see plenty of towing!

Towing started as soon as the guys were ready and they all got into the groove quickly making my life easy. Kaz joined in the fun on her hangy to again sweeten up her light wind flat field landings  and Anna P joined in after getting some good ground work in on her new Ozone Mojo 3.

 

 Wyn D looks like he means it as he waits for the line to return

John Sp completes his S turns in readiness to head to the top

Everyone had a great time with the Johns and Wyn putting away 11 flights each seeing them all finish on a high flight at the end of the day having completed their EPC's !  Anna P got to grips with her new wing and moved into the final stages of her CPC tasks and with the end in sight got really enthusiastic.

Anna P pops her new wing above her head and sets off

Kaz had fun and kept the Johns amused as she put in the tows, by the end of play she put in a cracking full flare landing in nil wind conditions landing as tippy toed as you like, I think half of Camborne must have heard her reaction!

A fairly late day with us rapping at 20.00 hrs but well worth it and many thanks to Paul h on the winch for staying out.

Two is company

Forecast a bit breezy for towing but with two very keen guys on the phone we opted to head to the field where at least we could get some ground work done in preparation for a days towing when conditions permit.

John S (Stithians) and John S (Helston) had both completed EPC course on the hill but were up for completing on the tow before heading back to the hill for soaring to speed up the process.  We had a fun few hours checking out their basic knowledge of glider checks etc before getting some very useful ground handling underway in the fresh enough conditions.

with a few tips and pointers the guys were soon improving their techniques until by the end of play they looked pretty sweet.  A well worthwhile exercise and something students (and pilots) really need to keep practising if they want to make their lives easy.

Looking forward to getting the guys onto the tow line soon.

Back to "normality"

Ian L comes into land after completing his CPC tasks

In contrast to yesterday things were a bit busier but in fairness not too busy, just the way we like it.

Ian L (Bristol) and Alan H (Bideford) were both back to carry on on the hangy and Para respectively and were joined by young Jack E now working well into his CPC on the Paraglider and Dan B, Darren N, Ian Kand Wyn D all on taster day Paragliding experiences.

Whilst Kaz worked with the taster days I got the others going on the winch and things swung into action.  Ian, Al and Jack all did well steadily moving through their flying tasks and ticking them off leaving Ian and Jack completed by the end of the day and Alan only a few flights away.

 Dan gets the ball rolling on the Taster days

 Ian demonstrates the open leg technique

Darren looks cool with a nice breeze up his shorts

Early afternoon saw me help out on the Taster days whilst Kaz took over the launch gate to keep the guys flying and it was not long before the guys were ready for their first tows.  The guys all did really well and whilst Ian specialised in demonstrating the full variety of techniques the rest picked out the best bits and made it look easy!  We had a really fun afternoon with plenty of ribbing going on but big smiles all round.

Alan H just looks cool

Well done to the guys on getting their CPC's a bit more experience in the field then off to the hills :)

Two lucky lads and one Lucky lady

It was good to get back out into the tow field and it was useful for it not to be too busy so allowing us to get back into the swing of it . 

Ian L (Bristol) was along on the Hangy and Alan H (Bideford) was on a Paraglider they were joined by Kaz who decided to take advantage of the quiet day to pop in some flights on her Hangy to sharpen up her light wind flat field landings.

Things got going early and in near perfect conditions the guys rattled off the tows putting away 33 tows between them whilst Kaz put in 5 of her own.  By the end of the day Ian had pretty much finished his CPC on the Hangy and Alan was into the final flying tasks on the Paraglider having started the day as just post EPC, so lots done.  Kaz had a great time and with a little encouragement got her landings better and better and nice to see her back on the tow again.

Lovely relaxed day with everyone behaving and looking forward to more of the same tomorrow

Chopping and Changing at Chapel

With a variable forecast we headed to Chapel armed with Hangies, Para's and ASKA's to make sure we had all bases covered!  On arrival we thought Hangies but a quick call to Paul H on the front changed our minds to Para's so to cover the options we took everything!

With three tandems due to arrive Kaz tested the air on her Paraglider and with the wind easing back that seemed to be the right machine.  By the time the first tandems were on site it was definitely a paraglider day so we wasted no time in getting into the air. Wayne H was first up and we had a cracking flight starting off in light conditions seeing us scratching around before the wind and the lift filled in giving us plenty of height to play before spiraling down to land with big grins.

With the wind having filled in darren H (Waynes brother) was next up and we opted for the hanger which proved a good choice giving the guys both a different experience whilst flying the same site.  Darren despite his nerves had a ball having plenty of "moments" and suprising himself at how much he enjoyed it.

Martin F had now arrived for his tandem and with the wind on the change again we gave the Paraglider another shot but by the time we were set to go the wind filled in again so it was all change.  we had acracking time on the hanger with Martin getting a good shot flying it and having done a day of hang Gliding some years ago his interest was rekindled, maybe we shall see him again if he can make the trip down from Cambridgeshire.  As the wind dropped again we sneaked back in on top just in time to round off a lovely day.

Good to be back in the air in the UK and lets hope the weather continues.........

Super Summer Soaring Sennen

Whats happening? it all to much like Summer  and whats more it's flyable at Sennen so that's where we headed.  Arriving to find it just becoming nicely soarable Kaz wasted no time in getting into the air on her Paraglider to check out conditions before i took the tandem up.  Although a little light to start with things quickly filled in and it was not long before Ollie G (St Ives) was clipped in and we were up and away in super conditions.

 We had a great time enjoying the view and checking out he sights and the sea was so clear you could almost see the fish. Ollie got plenty of time to have a go at flying the wing and did a very good job of it too. Its always good to take youngsters up as their level of enthusiasm is something else, be good to see you learn sometime Ollie......

Nick T was next up  and again we had a cracking time in varying conditions as the wind and the lift came and went mainly going towards the end of the flight which whilst giving us plenty of airtime as we scratched up and down did finally see us having to walk back up the dunes.........

We rounded off the end of the day with Kaz and myself going tandem in what once again were super conditions giving Kaz time to play with the wing and build up a few sharper turns and swingy things, all good fun.

great day and nice to fly with Paul H, Gay J, Nigel W and Andrew S (ex student down on holiday) in an uncrowded sky :)

Getting converted !

 Clive a gets set to run as Luke launches us on the Tandem

Off and away with Rame head in the distance

After a hard few days catching up at home it was time to get out flying again and to get some real work done.

Luke N made the long trip down from the far side of London to have a go at his Tandem Hang Gliding rating having now racked up sufficient hours and experience since learning to fly less than 2 years ago.  We met at Freathy where conditions were spot on and whilst the rest of the county had heavy showers we were blessed with sunshine all day :)

After watching Luke fly his uncles (Mark) glider and having had spent the last week in France with him at the British Nationals i deemed him up to it so off we went.  a couple of flights as passenger with myself as pilot gave Luke the idea then it was his turn.  He did a great job getting better and better with each flight and relaxing more and more.  By the end of the day he was on the ball and I'd be happy for him to take any of my family up so that says it all I guess.

Local pilot Mike gave us a hand on the ground as amazingly there was a lack of pilots out giving us the whole ridge between 4, can't be bad.  Mike took the chance to fly our demo ASKA and had a ball finding it much more user friendly than the Bobcat that he used to fly, ask him.

Clive A from St Ives made the trip up and had a cracking dual flight on the hangy with me in perfect conditions and made a pretty good job of flying it himself.

heading back towards launch on a super flight

Clive looking pretty relaxed after his flight

To round the day off Luke tried out my Wills Wing T2C and had a ball just loving it and landing with the words amazing, fantastic, easy and got to have one all coming out of his mouth so i guess he was impressed.....

Whilst Luke drigged the hangy i had a fun time practising fast flying along the cliffs and racking up a few XC k's for the local league. All in all a very nice day and well done to Luke for making the effort and flying so nicely.

France 2012

On Our way after seeing the "Boss"

Sorry for the delay in the updates but things have been pretty busy since we have been back and some of it even flying!

Here's a brief resume of what went on and if you want the full version bring some beers around and you get the full details .........

Saturday 14th saw us leave Cornwall and head to London where we had a cracking time in Hyde Park at the hard rock concert culminating in 3 hours of "The Boss" playing non stop and being joined by Sir Paul M at the end for some duets of Beatles numbers, wicked.

Sunday saw us cross the channel and make our way down through France stopping near Macon in an Aire to kip before deciding to head to Laragne or Annecy depending on the morning forecast.  Our night was interrupted by a hand coming in through the window and removing my Camel back from the back of the front seat at 2.00am however a good shout and they were gone leaving said item on the floor probably thinking it was a colostomy bag!  Still lesson learnt don't kip over in Aires ......

Kaz reading "the book" ..............

Morning forecast saw us head to Annecy as the mistral was blowing in Laragne and what a good choice it was.  After visiting the old town which is amazingly pretty we checked out the flying site and landing field which has changed since our last visit some 15 years ago or so.  Super launches for both hangies and Para's and super landing field as well what more can you ask.

Annecy old town v pretty (and the town is as well)

Over the next four days we had a great time with Kaz flying her hangy twice and Para once and me getting a couple of cracking flights on my hangy and soaking up the scenery.  Camping (vanning) by the lake was super luckily Mike C was not there else i think we would have pinched his spot. Mornings and evenings cooking up, swimming and chilling it was perfect.

 Kaz studies the ramp at Annecy before giving it a go

 setting off on a super hangy flight around the lake and beyond

 Annecy landing field big enough for all

 Our home for our stay in Annecy - perfect

With the weather changing and things improving in Laragne we headed south before stumbling across St Hilaere on the way and it seemed rude not to drop in.  A ride up the Funicular soon saw us on the Pg launch in challenging launch conditions. Still with a little encouragement from a local e both got off fine and had a fun flight before landing in the "target" field, well nearly.  Back on the road we continued towards Laragne before stopping just north of Aspe in another cracking wild camping spot for the night.

heading up to the really steep Funicular at St Hilaere

The morning saw us finally deciding on getting Laragne but then plans changed as we saw the Belgium comp pilots heading towards Aspe saw again it seemed rude not to.  In lovely conditions i joined the comp pilots on the first part of their task and had a great time racing to the first turnpoint without the fear of blowing a task and learning a lot on the way before heading laragne and having a fun couple of hours before dropping into the campsite landing field where Kaz arrived in ideal time in the van.

 Rigging up on Aspe before the comp'

Or home for the week again perfect

The next week was taken up with the British nationals in which we had some cracking flying and a real mixture of tasks with something for everyone. having decided to practise flying fast I had a ball although have to say it did make m arms ache and my eyes water! Cloudbase was up to 11,000' and the thermals were plentiful and generally the wind light so making for super flying conditions. Finishing 7th Brit was not my finest result but and a task by task basis i had some good results and overall it was one of the most relaxing comps i think i have ever flown  Big thanks to all who made it so much fun as well.  Camping wise due to campsite  being a little on the busy side we opted to wild camp at the lake and had a great time although not so sure it would have been so much fun if it had rained!

 getting a just reward after being fasted Brit

 Party night

With the comp over we headed for home taken a diversion back to St Hliaere where we planned a morning flight after camping at the top overnight.  I love it when a plan comes together and it was not long before we had Kaz rigging her hangy by "THE RAMP" and what a ramp it is. Despite initial "no way" Kaz slowly came to the point of thinking possibly and it was not long after that that she found herself clipped in and ready to go.

 Kaz walks the ramp and what a ramp!

 Once away the flying is as spectacular as the take off :)

With the Go Pro on the keel she was gone and "enjoyed" a super flight after the initial free fall and was still buzzing when i arrived in the landing field to pick her up. Fantastic and i guess i will have to do it next time!

The trip home was pretty straight forward and yes it was good to be back in the UK and we look forward to getting back to "work" making new pilots and new friends,

We are back

back from Fun and Flying in France and back into having Fun and Flying here. Bit busy at present catching up biut will bring the Blog up to date over next day or so to let you know whats been going on :)

Cracking on

It was back to Perranporth for Pete and Steve who made the most of the time whilst the tide was in by doing their EPC exams which they both passed nicely.

Whilst the qualified pilots waited for the wind to fill the boys got going on their EPC flights and worked steadily through the day.  Both did a great job and despite trying to pace themselves racked up a total of 15 flights between them seeing Pete complete his EPC and Steve not far behind. To be fair they both flew way above EPC standard and if it was not for me coaxing them out of the lift they would still be up there!  Well done guys and hope to see you again soon.

Ian F took the opportunity as the wind filled to complete his hill conversion and as the masses left and conditons improved he had a fine time along with martin J and Steve W all newly qualified playing in the evening lift boosted by regular thermic help from the beach as the tide came in.

Even Kaz and myself managed to join in and get some flying in with them. Cracking day if only we could have more like this :))

Making the Most of it

It was good to be back out teaching after a long spell of inclement weather and that's putting it mildly!  based on hope rather than the forecast Pete B and Steve P came down from Bristol in the hope of doing a Paragliding EPC.  With a forecast not ideal for towing we opted for the hill and got them going at Perranporth.

In near ideal conditions they worked nicely through the ground based training whilst the experienced pilots on the hill tried to make the most of what little lift there was on the ridge.  early afternoon saw them doing some ground skimming flights  having got to grips with both reverse and forward launches.

Next they were off down the dunes a little for their first real flights and both of them put in 3 crackers looking every bit as though they had done it before.  By the time they had walked back up the sweat was running and the legs fading so we called it a day, well in fact it was more like two days work to be honest.

Simon L got his first taste of the hill putting in plenty of ground handling whilst waiting for conditions to improve. however he decided to make the most of what was there and finished off his day with a brief soaring flight before heading to the beach, still another step on the way.

Russell S  dropped down to hopefully finish off his hill conversion but the fickle conditions denied him his top landing despite two attempts, maybe a bit of weight loss may help........

Fun to see James C playing in amongst the Para's on his hangy (Sport 2) and his unorthodox top landing ended fine despite nearly scalping a few on the ground.

looks good for tomorrow so hopefully the boys will crack on.

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.