No. 423 The magazine of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association2 SKYWINGS JULY 2024 attitude It is hard to compare the two activities, but certainly there is a similar level of exhilaration, excitement and satisfaction to flying XC that is hard to compare with anything else. But sex is a fairly high bar, so let’s try that. What potentially spoils a perfectly great XC or coast run is uploading it to a flight contest league and finding out that other people flew further or higher. That’s the good thing about sex, there is no league for it (as far as I know – please don’t tell me if there is). It’s something we rarely even discuss. After sex the feeling is one of satisfaction, love and contentment, hopefully. It would certainly spoil it if somehow there was a local ranking system to upload your statistics to, like endurance, heart rate and hormone levels, and then to discover that your neighbour had perhaps more vigour or stamina. Or they got a points multiplier for doing some challenging technique. To my mind that would spoil the moment. So why on Earth do we seem so determined to belittle our amazing XC performances by comparing them to everyone else in the country? It must happen every good UK flying day, that someone who did a great and satisfying XC flight, pushing their skills and experience to the limits, lands feeling entirely contented. But later on, after checking the leagues, discovers that people who they barely know have flown further. It’s a total let-down. As if your lover whispers, ‘I’ve had better.’ All that euphoria and joy dislodged by jealousy, or feeling you might have pushed harder and done better. Perhaps we need to step back and try to care less about the distance and focus on the experience. Sure, upload the flight if you have the temperament not to care how it compares. But if you are more the competitive type, if you care ‘how you did’, then consider not posting it. The joy should have been in the flight. You should feel really good about having thermalled up to the top of a climb and gone gliding into the finest of views. This can be the highlight of your life! Or just the highlight of your month, week or weekend. But if you feel your last attempt wasn’t good enough then your keenness might tip into desperation. Then it gets dangerous. There’s plenty of luck involved in flying XC. None of us ever know what share of luck and skill delivered our XC results. But for sure, if you put your flight on a league you are going to find every day that you have been beaten by pilots who were simply luckier than you on that particular day. So perhaps flying is as good as sex, but only until we compare our performance with others. Then the magic is gone. The advantage of establishing that XC is as good as sex is that, if perhaps it’s been a while since you ‘got lucky’, you might make up for it with a glorious XC flight? Getting to cloudbase requires skill but also a degree of ‘getting lucky’. So, if you need to feel the Earth move, one of your choices is getting into a +5m/s up. That can certainly feel climactic! However the similarity ends with competition XC. It’s a race, and the person who gets to goal with the quickest flight is the winner. It’s the other way in sex – it isn’t about trying to come first, if you’ll excuse the pun. Racing is the equivalent of wham, bam thank you ma’am/man. The accepted consensus is certainly that makin’ love a little slower is more satisfactory for both parties. Likewise, why would I want to rush to finish the flight I’m enjoying so much? Why put on full bar in the final glide if it’s going to put you on the ground earlier? A longer flight should be what we strive for, with time to look around, soak up the view and enjoy some slow living. What I might be trying to say here is that, when I compete at my first British Championships at St. Andre in September, please forgive me if I’m not that competitive. In my mind I’ll be winning if I come last. Photo: Robin W allace It’s an awkward topic, so apologies, but bear with me. I do hope everyone reading this has had sex. If not, that’s something to look forward to. Also, I hope all readers have flown cross-country. If not, that too is absolutely something to look forward to in your flying career. Because, arguably, flying XC is as good as sex. Why I don’t want to win the British Champs … and is flying XC as good as sex? ROBIN WALLACE, ROOKIE COMPETITION PILOT WHO STUDIES THE XCLEAGUE EVERY DAY4 SKYWINGS JULY 2024 regulars features JULY 2024 SKYWINGS 5 THE BHPA LTD 8 Merus Court, Meridian Business Park, Leicester LE19 1RJ. Tel: 0116 289 4316. SKYWINGS MAGAZINE is published monthly by the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association Ltd to inform, educate and entertain those in the sports of Paragliding and Hang Gliding. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, their Council, Officers or Editor. The Editor and publisher accept no responsibility for any supposed defects in the goods, services and practices represented or advertised in this magazine. The Editor reserves the right to edit contributions. ISSN 0951-5712 SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DELIVERY ENQUIRIES Tel: 0116 289 4316, THE EDITOR Joe Schofield, 39 London Road, Harleston, Norfolk IP20 9BH. Tel: 01379 855021. E-mail: COVER PHOTO Seb Ospina tests his European Champions Team Gold and Individual Silver medals Photo: Marcus King (@skytribe)/Cross Country THIS PAGE Gordon Jessop flying at Crete Road, Folkestone, overlooking the Channel Tunnel complex Photo: Dave Lowe DESIGN & PRODUCTION Fargher Design Ltd. Killane House, Ballaugh, Isle of Man, IM7 5BD. PRINT & DISTRIBUTION Newman Thomson Ltd, One Jubilee Rd, Victoria Ind. Est, Burgess Hill, RH15 9TL. ADVERTISING Tel: 07624 413737 Email: SKYWINGS ONLINE All issues of Skywings magazine are now freely available DEADLINES News items and event/competition reports for the September issue must be submitted to the Skywings office by Monday July 29th. Letters for the August Airmail pages should arrive no later than Friday July 19th. Advertisement bookings for the August edition must arrive by Thursday July 11th. Copy and classified bookings no later than the following Thursday July 18th.6 SKYWINGS JULY 2024 news Mayday in Iceland! In May Karl Hinzer and Bobby Frankham travelled to Iceland to join a paramotor trip organised by Cathal Fowler of Paramotor Ireland. Good weather allowed them to explore the spectacular Skógafoss waterfall (see June Skywings, page 25), the glacier and ice field at Rangárþing eystra, and the ‘shrinking’ glacier at Sólheimajökull. Both pilots also flew to inspect the wrecked US Navy transport aircraft at Sólheimasandur Sands in southern Iceland. The shell of the aircraft has remained relatively intact for over 50 years and become something of a tourist attraction. The aircraft is said to have been returning to Keflavik from Hofn on the south-east coast in the winter of 1973. Encountering severe icing, the crew were forced to put down on a frozen river at Sólheimasandur. All seven crew members were rescued by helicopter; parts of the aircraft were salvaged, the remains written off and left at the scene. The location is relatively accessible and organised tours take visitors to the site. Without a paramotor, the walk-in takes a couple of hours; search-and rescue units are regularly deployed to assist go-it-alone visitors who miss warnings of severe weather. The photograph was taken by an American tourist who happened to be passing when the Karl and Bobby arrived. The Buttermere Bash Bash regular Peter Maher writes: ‘I don’t know who was more excited, me or the kids, but as the week of the Bash finally arrived at the end of May the forecast looked hit and miss! Luckily Gordie Oliver always seems to pull in a favour or two with the weather gods, and by Thursday morning the rain disappeared and the sun showed its face. The main field was almost full and the quiet camping field, where we were, was starting to fill up. ‘The kids – Hedley (13) and Alfie (10) – managed to find Gordie, and before long they were both clipped into a Moustache and began three days of relentless ground handling. As usual the atmosphere was friendly and relaxed, and I lost count of the amount of conversations I had with like-minded strangers. ‘On Friday and Saturday night we were treated to the Ospreys sky-diving team, the acro paragliders and the Jet Parahawks, not forgetting Bobby Frankham and his fantastic airship, which amazes me every time I see it. After the flying demos the bands kicked into action and the field was buzzing. On Friday evening I clipped into the paramotor and went for a short flight above the hills to watch the sun set over the festival. ‘On Saturday morning I woke to the sound of hot air balloons inflating – my cue to get out of bed and clip into the Miniplane. I took off just after the balloons had climbed out over the campsite and headed out towards Great Gable, then on to Scafell Pike. From just under 3k above the summit of Scafell I had probably the most spectacular view I’ve ever had from the paramotor. ‘The rest of the weekend consisted of a few short flights on the Dragonfly, then watching everyone else fly whilst enjoying a dip in the lake. Massive thanks to Gordie and all his team for putting on another fantastic weekend of flying, music and fun! We’re already counting down the days until next year.’ [Photo: Peter Maher] RAeC awards night At a glittering ceremony at the RAF Club in London’s Picca- dilly on May 16th, the British Class 1 flexwing team from the 2023 Worlds stepped up to accept the Royal Aero Club’s Prince of Wales Cup, awarded for their Silver-winning performance last August. Rob Mansley accepted the Ann Welch Memorial Award, recognising his key role in BHPA paraglider and paramotor training, and Marc Asquith was presented with the BHPA President’s Trophy for good works too numerous to detail here. Awards were presented by HRH Prince Michael of Kent. A supporting cast of partners added lustre to the event, as did BHPA Chair Jenny Buck and Office Manager Michelle Lanman. It is reported that the canapes were exquisite. Seriously, great respect to all involved; these accolades are hard to come by and reflect unstinting effort. [Photos: Liz Isles Photography] ‘Three days of relentless ground handling …’ (R-L) Alfie and Hedley Maher and their great friend Paul Guy (answers to ‘Junior Guy’)Long Mynd D-Day site record - 238km The season got off to a rough start for British hang gliding teamster Jeremy Soper, aka Soperman. ‘ “Hotel Subaru”, in which I’d spent the past four summers hang-touring, was written off in a multicar pile-up,’ he reports. ‘A few weeks later, a botched take- off almost sliced my nose clean off. Huge thanks to the Devon air ambulance for scraping me off the hill, the other pilots for scraping my wing off the hill, and the surgeons who spent most of a day and night reconstructing my schnoz. ‘Eight months recovery, they said. The prospect of the season being over before it had even begun, compounded with my recent unemployment, made for a depressing existential crisis. I tried to imagine a future without this potentially fatal pastime of ours, but each version involved me taking up something like storm chasing or ice climbing – equally daft but not as fun. Six weeks later, seeing all the greybeards when I went to receive the RAeC’s Prince of Wales Cup with the British hang gliding team proved that it’s theoretically possible to combine aviation with longevity. I wiped the blood off my kit, repaired my glider and ordered a new helmet. ‘The D-Day anniversary seemed an apt date to face my demons and throw myself off a hill again. A mellow boat around on the Mynd was on the cards. Next thing I knew I was drifting over the back at 3k with some paragliders. Taking Tony Smith’s advice, given that I’d never got much past Wenlock Edge before, I left them for a more southerly line. Either I’d forgotten how to thermal or it was a slow day; climbs averaged less than 2-up and fizzled out before cloudbase. I soon flew off my preloaded map and my new fixed visor fogged up, not that there are many mountains to ogle in the midlands! [Tony landed at Edge Hill for around 100km.] ‘Preoccupied with trying to keep the mist at bay with improvisations of the Wim Hof method, it was only when I recognised the Cambridge colleges, where I’d spent four years trying to fill the space between my ears, that I realised I’d racked up some miles. I landed at Swaffham Prior after 238.13km in 6 hours 25 min, a new personal best distance and Mynd site record. The legendary Soperman Sr was only a few minutes behind, bearing a punnet of strawberries. What a way to ease myself back into the saddle!’ 162km Coast-to-coast XC record On Wednesday 5th June an arctic airmass and a north-westerly promised fantastic flying conditions in the south-west. A number of pilots attempted big flights from Woolacombe, taking advantage of sea thermals to get an early start. Jamie Goodread and Andy Brown, both on Ozone Photons, flew 170km to a declared goal at Swanage, beating their own PBs and the site record of 162km set by Richard Osborne in 2015. Jamie flew direct, while Andy flew a slightly different track to Seaton on the south coast, then surfed the sea-breeze convergence line to Swanage. The right conditions to go XC from the coast in summer are rare – the air needs to be cold enough to generate sea thermals, and the land needs to start working before the sea breeze prevents the transition from coastal to inland flying. The weather gods smiled on Jamie and Andy to allow an epic coast-to-coast adventure; their flights are believed to be the longest from a UK coastal site.. French double act claims 18 paragliding records! In knocking off a 110km triangle from Bourg St-Maurice near Annecy on May 19th, young French PWC pilots Capucine Deliot and Daphnée Ieropoli were able to claim no less than nine female World and European records between them. These include Renata Brummer’s 2010 world triangle distance record, and the previously unset Junior Triangle distance, free distance and speed (19.4km/h) records. Their joint claims also stand as European records, with the addition of Brummer’s 100k triangle speed mark.8 SKYWINGS JULY 2024 safety matters ‘I quickly got my gear, set up on the south-facing slope and pulled the glider up. It all looked great and I turned, ground handled for a moment, then launched. Attempting to weight shift to the right, I felt constricted and unable to lean right, and found that my right-hand shoulder strap was wrapped around the outside of the carabiner. I turned away from the ridge towards the bottom landing, a substantial concrete walkway at the bottom of the cliff, adjacent to the sea. ‘The wind had been coming from the south for some time, occasionally swinging to the east, but now appeared to be at 90 degrees to my beats up and down the concrete. On my final beat, heading directly to a point on the western side of the concrete, the wind shifted slightly. Either that or I had misread the wind direction now having an easterly component, boosting lift and speed. I flew past my expected landing spot, over the concrete and down onto the beach, and with a splash I was up to my ankles in the sea. The glider flew over my head and into the surf. ‘Fortunately the sea state was mild. The tide was on its way in, with high tide within 30 minutes and what seemed to be a very gentle slope. My first thoughts were, ‘My iPhone and my keyless car keys – I can’t get them wet!’ Second thoughts were that I had better get the glider out pronto before it all gets out of hand. ‘The glider was not budging; it was upside down with the nose facing out to sea. This miracle of a flying machine had immediately filled with water and morphed into an incredibly heavy, rigid, underwater wing. Every time a wave retreated back down the beach the glider followed, lines and stitching straining, with me attached. I found a deep crack in the ground, wedged my feet in and leaned backwards, attempting to extract the now ridiculously heavy wing. But the water- pressurised wing was going in whatever direction the sea pushed – it was literally flying underwater, with me still attached. I had no control whatsoever. ‘A couple of bystanders jumped to my assistance. One grabbed my harness and gave much-needed purchase. His daughter grabbed my left riser and pulled with all her might while I struggled to get my right carabiner unclipped. I had to time it with an incoming wave, run towards the wing and unclip the second I felt slack, then repeat with the opposite side. Having extracted myself, I removed my harness, jacket, phone and keys, leaving them well above the high tide mark, then set to recover the glider. ‘As the waves pushed the glider up the beach on the incoming cycle, I jumped on it, attempting to pin it to the ground so that it wouldn’t retreat back into the sea with the wave. After what seemed like an age the leading edge blew out just above the cell openings, dispensing plastic rods and allowing water out as I lifted the trailing edge and dragged the now- emptying wing up the beach. ‘At no time did I realise the danger- ous situation I was in. Whilst I had been unlucky – or foolish – enough to get into this situation, I had been very lucky that the sea state was so calm, the tide was incoming, and I was only knee deep and could extract myself from my harness. I didn’t have a knife or line cutter and could easily have got myself caught in the tangled mess of lines. ‘My wing was written off – the leading edge required repair to 30-odd cell openings; the Loft was left with a glider for sewing practice. I had escaped relatively OK other than a severely wet and bruised ego. It could easily have been much worse. ‘On my return home, while my kit was drying out, the first thing I did was attach a line cutter to my harness.’ We publish this alarming account in full to illustrate the hidden dangers of landing in even quite shallow water. BHPA advice has always been that landing a hang glider or paraglider in water will almost always result in the pilot drowning. The only exceptions are prearranged arrivals into calm, warm water close to manned safety boats, as seen at SIV courses and hang-gliding aerobatics competitions, although there have been some close calls even in these circumstances. [Pilot Handbook, 4th ed, p189] Over the years, at least six BHPA pilots have drowned after landing in water. Although the account above features a paraglider, hang gliders present very similar problems and have also proved fatal. Never treat the possibility of a water landing lightly! Manufacturer’s Safety Notice Advance Progress 3 and Easiness 2 harnesses (certain serial numbers) In a reported incident the yellow plastic release splint came away from the reserve handle so that the parachute could not be released. Owners of these harnesses (Progress 3 harnesses with serial numbers lower than 1147390, and Easiness 2 harnesses with serial numbers lower than 1147140) must immediately inspect the reserve handle – the handle and reserve container may need to be changed before the next flight. Replacements will be provided by Advance free of charge. Full details are at Advance, Uttigenstrasse 87, 3600 Thun Landing a paraglider in the sea ‘It started off as a touch-and-go day at a coastal site with low cloud threatening to move in. As conditions became stronger I packed up my glider and kit in the car and returned to watch and parawait. When the wind eased, one of the more experienced pilots top landed next to me to report that conditions were now fantastic, with loads of smooth lift. It would be a great opportunity for a flight for me, a low-airtime pilot of just ten hours experience. BHPA club coaching courses Oct 19-20 Unallocated Stef Blankley 0116 289 4316 Nov 23-24 Scottish HPF Mark Mortimer 07811 433040 Dec 7-8 SE Wales Alistair Andrews 07575 280508 Jan 18-19 Unallocated Stef Blankley 0116 289 4316 Mar 22-23 Unallocated Stef Blankley 0116 289 4316 26.04.2024. P rated pilot aged 54 Experience: 350 hours (25) Site & conditions: Hill Farm, 0-5km/h, not turbulent, rain, snow Glider: Ozone Photon Incident: The pilot launched in drizzly conditions which increased during the flight. They applied full speed bar which they released at approx. 75ft agl. Their descent was almost vertical and they landed very hard. The pilot cited the wet wing as a factor, being at or close to parachute stall in unaccelerated flight. Injury: None 01.05.2024. CP rated pilot aged 40 Experience: Not reported Site & conditions: Corndon, 0-5km/h, not turbulent Glider: Niviuk Kode P Incident: The pilot made excessively deep control inputs on their take-off run. The paraglider stalled and then surged, and the pilot fell face-first onto the slope. Injury: Serious: internal 02.05.2024. P rated pilot aged 67 Experience: 445 hours (23) Site & conditions: Sandsend, 15-20km/h, light turbulence, flight In clouds, fog Glider: Niviuk Hook 3 Incident: Having rounded a headland, the pilot experienced significant lee turbulence and sinking air which forced a beach landing. The pilot touched down in the sea but managed to land the paraglider on the beach away from the water. Injury: None 04.05.2024. CP rated pilot aged 56 Experience: 53 hours (9) Site & conditions: Newhaven, 10-15km/h, not turbulent Glider: Ozone Mojo 6 Incident: The pilot did not check the pins securing their emergency parachute as part of their pre-flight check. The emergency parachute dropped out of the harness during flight. The pilot landed without injury. Injury: None 04.05.2024. AP rated pilot aged 71 Experience: 980 hours (55) Site & conditions: Talybont, 10-15km/h, moderate turbulence Glider: Ozone Photon Incident: The pilot experienced a collapse on their landing approach and landed on their harness airbag, injuring their wrist upon impact. Injury: Serious: hands, arms, shoulder 07.05.2024. CP rated pilot aged 48 Experience: 8 hours (4) Site & conditions: Cringle Moor, 15-20km/h, not turbulent, flight In clouds, fog Glider: Gin Bolero 6 Incident: The pilot inadvertently flew into cloud above the ridge and lost sight of the ground. They used big ears and speed bar to rapidly descend, attempting to maintain a straight course. On emerging from the bottom of the cloud they realised they had turned through 180 degrees and were now heading downwind. They landed downwind and sustained injury. Injury: Minor: feet, legs 11.05.2024. CP rated pilot aged 40 Experience: 10 hours (2) Site & conditions: Kettle Sings, 15-20km/h, moderate turbulence Glider: AirDesign Vivo Incident: The pilot lost control of their paraglider following an asymmetric collapse and impacted the ground. Injury Serious: lumbar spine 11.05.2024. P rated pilot aged 53 Experience: 120 hours Site & conditions: Blorenge, 10-15km/h, moderate turbulence Glider: Independence Geronimo 3 Incident: The pilot was attempting a slope landing and collided with a wall after encountering sinking air. Injury: None 18.05.2024. P rated pilot aged 57 Experience: 900 hours (20) Site & conditions: Weybourne, 10-15km/h, not turbulent Glider: Skywalk Chili 3 Quick facts ab bout the NG series: (²) Surface )(k Max load )ih (k)ih (k NG NG light The world´s leading rescue systems Use of high-q• even at low sp g, g • Available in 3 certified acco • New, innovativ • Excellent sink to a jump from • Very reliable o • Intelligent, ligh uality lightweight materials peeds gp sizes as NG and in the light ver rding to EN12491 ve X-Flare concept for high effic k rates, each just over 5 m/s, equ m a height of about 1.3 m opening and extremely good pe htweight construction for fast op pg , NG 14 NG 12 flfhX NG 10 rsion NG light, ciency uivalent endulum stability penings, 33 14040 Serie 2912020 Serie 2510000 Serie (m²)g)(k 1,49 1,85 1,3 18 1,6 ,1 g) 1,45 g)weight (k concept -FlareX- s to the , thankface -Nearly flat top sur innovative X weight (k 1, for oL r fast opening w canopy height projected surface area bution across the large -geneous load distri --flares for homoX stability pendulum outlets for air defined Precisely concept. BHPA Accident and Incident digest The following is an edited digest of Incident Reports submitted to the FSC between April 26th and May 25th 2024. ‘Experience: 20 hours (5)’ indicates 20 hours total airtime and 5 hours within the previous six months. The complete database of reports can be found Next >