| Author | Message | ||
     Xl1200r |
Anyone done it? Still do it? I've been trying like mad to scratch a wicked itch to go flying, I have an intro lesson on Sunday in Ellenville, NY. Doesn't seem to be an outrageously expensive way to get in the air and seems a bit more exciting than sail planes. | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
http://www.hanglide.com/news/?page_id=5 | ||
| 86129squids |
I'd LOVE to try someday. Seems very similar to motorcycling in a visceral sense... I remember seeing a really cool show about an injured/crippled eagle or hawk that was taken up in a glider- watching that bird and its reactions brought tears to my eyes... I managed to score some half off passes to a zipline tour in the Smokies, gonna take my honey later when the leaves get nice... that's the closest I can do for now. Got a GoPro or something ready for the trip? Post pics! | ||
| Rde48 |
Funny, I was just talking to my coworker about this at lunch today. I think I have always wanted to try since seeing Ponch and Jon try it on an episode of CHiPs. Hey maybe that's why I always wanted to ride a motorcycle too. I hadn't really thought of that before. | ||
| Xl1200r |
I'll be sure to have a camera when I start mountain flying, but I don't expect to be more than 30 feet off the ground this weekend. The only real drawback is by the time I'm able to solo off a mountain, I'll need to have my own gear - glider, harness, the whole lot. So that adds to the expense. Worst part is I'll need a vehicle that can transport it. Something tells me my t-top camaro isn't going to take a roof rack well... | ||
| Doerman |
I thought hang gliding was out and paragliding in. When I lived in Utah, paragliding was all the rage. The gear seemed simple enough to. I did not do it myself - a friend of mine did. He really seemed to enjoy it. Have fun this weekend! | ||
| Jim2 |
I'm sure hang gliding is a blast but I just want to say that sailplanes can be very exciting. You won't see that from your standard into ride. You've got to get your license and find out for yourself. Paragliders are a flexible wing just waiting to fold over on one end. It happens all the time. A gust of wind folds the end and then they spin in. Those things are dangerous. | ||
| Aesquire |
Been a Hang glider pilot since 1975. ( My first Glider was made of wood. Enough said. ) Modern gear and training are a world away from the bad old days. Still a hoot though. "The Flyingest Flying" Paragliders are very easy to carry, and fly surprisingly well. They do have issues and limitations, as do all forms of aviation. ( I'd love to have a F-86. The limitation is.... can't afford one. ) The Crew down in Ellenville used to really have it's act together. Haven't been there in years. Love the mountain there, and the training hill is pretty decent. Do it, Enjoy. If you get the bug for it, start with a used glider, and have it checked out by the shop. Just like motorcycles, the high performance models are not for beginners. Too fast, too hard to turn and, too heavy. That adds up to hard takeoffs and landings for a beginner, and not a fun flight. Yes, some bikers start out on Electra Glides. No, they don't have to learn how to carry them in a wind. Even the basic beginner/training gliders outperform the old ones, but the technology hasn't changed since the late 1990's, except for the instruments. Golly gee they got small. What used to be the size of a big man's fist is now wristwatch size. Could be smaller still, but then you couldn't read the dial. Initial ( not the tandem demo flights ) training is how to carry, and control a 40+ lb. wing. That is, believe it or not, the hardest part. If you want to be good at it, you will have to learn about winds, weather, and some basic aerodynamics. ( but not the hard math part ) Do it. Have fun. Report back. | ||
| Xl1200r |
AWESOME. We did a quick ground school, did some flat ground running and then it was up the hill. My intro class was me and a 14-year-old girl who was incredibly shy, so I was first to do pretty much everything. The wing we used today was MASSIVE - 330 sq feet. It was 54 lbs according to my instructor, which I understand is rather light, but damn it feels heavier than that, and using odd muscles to keep the wings level and nose pointed right. Those first 3 steps off the hill were pretty nerve racking but once the harness pulls on you it settles in pretty quick. My first flight was a touch low and my stomach was grazing along the top of the grass, but I got a good flare in and actually landed my first flight on my feet, there might have been one step in there - NOT BAD! The next three - eh, not so much. 2 straight up belly landings and the 4th flight was actually fairly good, but my flare was early and my legs not under me, so it was a 6ft belly flop to the ground, but unscathed. The last flight we FINALLY had some wind and I got some good airtime, my feet were probably 5ft above the instructor's head, maybe a little less. The wind was such that I had to make a couple correcting turns, had good speed control and finally stuck the landing with a 2-step. I hung out a little after and watched some of the second-day students fly the smaller gliders, just trying to observe and absorb. Right before I left, they were unpacking and showing off a brand new wing that a woman got from her husband as an anniversary present, a Will's Wings Flacon 3 (she was alos very new, maybe 3rd day or so)... this could get expensive... | ||
| Xl1200r |
Jim - I didn't mean to imply saiplanes weren't exciting, and I'd still like to try them eventually, but there's something to be said about strapping yourself into what is essentially a giant kite and jumping off the side a mountain, haha. Aes - re: Ellenville, there are three schools there, one of which is the guy who actually owns the land and doesn't do much teaching anymore, I understand. I went with "Fly High" which was slightly more expensive, but the owner was the 2007 USHPA instructor of the year and the guy who runs the school got the same award in 2010, s I figured it was worth the extra $30. The training hill was nice as well as it covered about 270 degrees of direction which came in handy today, the other school had maybe 40 degrees to work with which had the wind at their backs for a good part of the morning. Looking forward to going back! | ||
| Brumbear |
I was in Ellenville today Mark!!! was coming home from woodridge yogibear camp I saw the green glider at the end of the runway on the little airport but I am not even sure thats where you glide to? did you glide from the ridge above route 52? | ||
| Hammer71 |
Next time stop by, you know Im only 10 minutes away | ||
| Doz |
OOOO, gotta try this !! Then there's always skydiving, wich I've done twice. but the cost is a bit much with that as well... | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Madame G, gave me a flight in a dual para-motor for my 50th birthday, man what a buzz. Easily as much grin factor as a bike. Funny thing about it all was that I already knew the guy that took me up, but had no idea that he did it. He showed me the solo kit too, I love the idea of having a ****-off great parafoil over my head & a 2 stroke lawn-mower strapped to my arse. One of these days..... | ||
| Hammer71 |
Doz, could you picture a bunch of us going and doing this? I could see us all landing in the hospital, oh and it'd probably rain on us. | ||
| Brumbear |
dragging weiner  | ||
| Xl1200r |
Dave - This was right off Rt 209, it's technically in the next town/village/hamlet south of Ellenville, I forget the name. Hammer - For some reason I always think you're on the other side of the river. I'll shoot a text nest time I head down there and have some time to burn. I'm already on the Will's Wing website picking out custom colors for a Falcon 3 (though they've now gone to a Falcon 4 just last month). | ||
| Aesquire |
Mr_Grumpy, the paramotors are very cool. Simply, more power, you go up, less, you go down. Steering is fairly easy, and the control authority is deliberately limited. Generally designed to go about 26 MPH. Period. The solo, backpack powerplant jobs usually use a more advanced wing, and with that advancement, you have more maneuverability, and a higher possibility to mess up. Simply, stability = drag. Since in gliders the 2 performance numbers are lift/over/drag or L/D and sink rate (how fast you go down) Drag is an important thing. A F-16 is not stable, has low drag, and you just eject when the computers quit. If you can. ( it can be impossible to eject when the plane pulls high G's especially negative G's... Hence the F-16's nickname, "Lawn Dart". ) You cannot fly a F-16 manually. There isn't a manual mode. In Hang Gliders, You reduce drag by enclosing structural members, using streamlined tubing & fittings on the stuff you can't hide from the air stream, and making the wing tighter and usually less stable.... There are severe limits to that last. What that means in the real world? A Falcon, the entry level machine, can't go all that fast, since the Cross member is out in the flow, the King post that holds the thing from flopping on the ground ( negative loads ) or breaking if inverted, hangs out in the breeze, as do multiple wires used for stability and structure. The next levels up in performance enclose the cross spars, and have tighter and more streamlined sails. Harder to turn, take off and land. Heavier. The high end gliders, use carbon fiber structural cross spars with internal stiffening to eliminate the King Post, again reducing drag. Usually harder still to control, takeoff, land. Also heavier.... There are exceptions to the heavier bit, but they cost lots more money. Substituting Carbon fiber for aluminum, etc. What's worth knowing about Hang Gliding, Sky Diving, Paragliding, etc. is that these sports have embraced the idea of learning from other's mistakes. That means comprehensive and timely accident reports, and analysis of problems with equipment, training, and technique. They don't always make for recreational reading. Since I went to the trouble to actually learn how to fly, build and repair my own gear, and spent hours in practice, ( LOT's of time on a training hill ) It might be understandable why I have contempt for Bungee jumping. A modern version of a tribal maturity rite, where the young learn to take advice, and yet be daring. Today you just need booze, cash, and stupid. |
