At just 25, Honorin Hamard is the one pilot to rule them all. The current World and European Paragliding Champion capped an amazing season by winning the XContest online XC league by a margin of over 300 points. We got an audience with the champion’s champion himself. See what’s in the rest of Issue 175 …read more
Author: winguu
Cross Country 175: November 2016
Flying scatters pilots to the ends of the Earth in search of that perfect flight, but the annual Coupe Icare festival in Saint Hilaire brings them back together again in a blaze of crazy costumes, high jinks – and green beer. It is a time to share stories (and the odd hangover), toast the flying […] …read more
Temporary closure of Monaco’s Lai Barai launch
The take-off of Laï Baraï in Monaco is closed to paraglider pilots between 10 October 2016 and 31 December 2016. The restriction has been put in place as a safety measure, as there will be a lot of helicopter activity associated with the Arme tunnel repairs on the A8 motorway below. It is a legal offence to fly from this […] …read more
Sky announce new EN-C Exos
Sky have announced a new EN-C paraglider, the Exos. They say it’s “true to its class” and not overly demanding to handle. Designed for experienced cross-country pilots, Sky say the Exos offers good performance and precise handling. A three-liner, the Exos has a flat aspect ratio of 6.4 and 65 cells. It features Sky’s Leading Edge Optimisation (LEO) […] …read more
Michael Küffer wins PWC La Réunion
Switzerland’s Michael Küffer won the la Réunion round of the 2016 Paragliding World Cup tour, flying a GIN Boomerang 10. Michael finished just 14 points ahead of 18-year-old Simon Pellissier (FR, Enzo 2). The young Frenchman won the last task of the competition, his first ever World Cup event. In third place was South Africa’s André Rainsford on a […] …read more
‘Thank you’ from Steve Nash’s family
Steve Nash’s wife Shirley has sent her thanks to the many people who attended Steve’s funeral at the end of September. In an email, which she asked us to share here, she said: “Thank you to everyone for attending the funeral and for coming to the celebration of Steve’s life afterwards. “I was so overwhelmed […] …read more
Little Cloud: Pretty in pink!
For autumn 2016, Little Cloud have released their Grasshopper pod and reversible Turtle harnesses in a bright fuschia pink. Both of the harnesses are no-buckle designs with front-mounted reserves, and they are still available in their original green too. The Grasshopper is EN certified and available in two sizes, weighing 3.1lg and 3.3kg; The Turtle has a certified airbag, and […] …read more
Skywatch®BL weather station for smartphones
The Skywatch®BL is a pocket-sized weather station that talks to your smartphone. It was developed by Swiss company JDC Electronic SA for outdoor sportspeople and professionals, and is available in three versions. The top-of-the-range model, BL500 pictured above, measures wind speed and direction, atmospheric pressure, UV, humidity and temperature. BL300: measures wind, temperature, humidity. Price around €160 BL400: measures wind, temperature, […] …read more
Hand Gliding: The Ultimate Movie (16mins, full edit)
Hand Glide from 80D on Vimeo. “Sometimes the wind will snap you round the wrong way … you have to be true to yourself, live YOUR dream and it’ll happen.” “Just me, my hand and the wind… you’re never more connected than when you’re with the wind. It’s freaking awesome.” This 16-minute full-ultimate edit has […] …read more
Nova Pilots of the Year Awards 2016
Nova have announced the winners of their annual Pilots of the Year award. The awards, now in their tenth year, reward “outstanding performance as well as outstanding attitude” and are for pilots flying Nova wings. The 2016 awards went to Berni Pessl, Simon Oberrauner and Chris Bessei. Austrian Berni Pessl flew a Mentor 4 and […] …read more