“Valley winds are always strongest at lower levels. Higher up the mountainsides, the valley winds tend to be very light. “On launch, the lulls between thermals can be very pronounced. Despite having nice thermal cycles, lower down the thermals might already be getting badly shredded by the strengthening valley wind.” Honza Rejmanek gets into the […] …read more
Category: para news
BGD Cure (EN C) on review
“The Cure is a light, joyful wing. Flying one for the first time is a bit like emerging from a very long winter, taking some high class drugs and going dancing at a summer festival – it’s that much fun!” We give the low-down on BGD’s new high performer, including its reaction to collapses and […] …read more
Naked Pilot: Asher Zalchendler
“When I was in my early twenties I though the movie Point Break was an instruction manual for life.” Meet Asher Zalchendler in Cross Country 170, June 2016. See what else is in Cross Country 170, June 2016. …read more
Icaristics: Understanding brake range on your paraglider
“Nearly all wings have 7cm of slack at the top of the brake range – this stops the brakes pulling down the trailing edge when you push on the speed system. “There are two main ways to measure brake travel. Firstly, brake range to stall, and secondly, brake pressure based on deflection.” Bruce Goldsmith argues […] …read more
DHV Safety Tests: under pressure
The DHV Safety Tests on EN A and EN B gliders are well known – but many manufacturers are deeply unhappy with them. They point out that, unlike the EN tests, the DHV Safety Tests are flown on only one size of each wing, in variable conditions, using home made data loggers and with no […] …read more
Single Skinners: AirDesign UFO
The single skin paraglider, pioneered by Ozone with the XXLite, has come to age with EN B certification awarded to AirDesign’s UFO. “We can now officially declare the everyday suitability of this incredible glider!” said Stefan Stiegler. See what else is in Cross Country 170, June 2016. …read more
Throw: James Bradley digs deep
When James Bradley threw his reserve during a competition in Switzerland, his ‘confidence bubble’ disappeared as quickly as his parachute bloomed. Time to quit, or time to dig deep? A fascinating insight into one pilot’s internal battle to recover the joy in his flying. See what else is in Cross Country 170, June 2016. …read more
Looking back: The Gathering, 23 May 1971
“Below me the hill stretches away how far? A quarter of a mile? Could be. Pretty steep. Down there the thousand-tongued crowd stands around cars and chatters and buzzes and waits to see me break my fool neck.” Read anything about the early days of hang gliding and you come back to ‘The Gathering’, which […] …read more
Solar Impulse 2 takes off again
In March 2015, former hang glider pilot Bertrand Piccard co-piloted Solar Impulse 2 on an amazing attempt to circumnavigate the world. They managed 19,957km before over-heating batteries forced them to stop. The mission restarted this April. See what else is in Cross Country 170, June 2016. …read more
Review: Apco Lift EZ, paramotor wing
“This is an efficient wing with plenty of energy to make take-offs and landings easy. It’s a wing that will happily take you from school to your first forays into competitions; you’ll only outgrow it if you find yourself pylon racing”. Marcus King gets the skinny on Apco’s Lift EZ in Cross Country 170, June […] …read more