USHGA Hang Gliding February 1991 by US Hang Gliding & Paragliding Association

February 1991

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• MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION • 111111·---------I

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Uu\ijrffE[O) SuAulES HANG Gl~[DH~G ASS~"~ ij~(C" P.O. BOX 8300, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80933 (719) 632-8300 FAX (719) 632-6417

revised 1190

The 1991 USHGA

Hang Gliding Calendar

---------------------------------------------Please rush me _ _ _ 1991 USHGA Hang Gliding Calendar(s) at $9.95 each. Shipping Charges Quantity Shipping 1-3 $3.00 4-6 $4.50 7-9 $5.50 10 $6.50 Shipped by first class or UPS - Canada & Mexico add $.75 per calendar International surface add $1.50 per calendar - International air add $5.00 per calendar

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USHGA Books PAlL\(,1 !DlNG

RIGHT STUFF FOR NEW HANG GLIDER PILOTS by Erik Fair Reprints from Hang Gliding magazine. Light humor, overviews, techniques and personalities of our sport. Very fun to read!

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F.A.R. (not shown) FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATIONS covering ALL types of aviation.

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HANG GLIDING FL YING SKILLS by Dennis Pagen

HANG GLIDING FOR BEGINNER PILOTS by Peter Cheney

Our most popular book! Highly recommended for the beginner to intermediate pilot. Covers launching, landing, equipment, and much much more!

Covering all aspects of paragliding, i.e., skill levels, background equipment, XC, tandem, etc. Over 140 illustrations.

The OFFICIAL USHGA training manual. Over 200 pages with more than 160 easy-to-follow illustrations. The most complete training manual for the beginner to novice pilot!

HANG GLIDING TECHNIQUES by Dennis Pagen

FL YING CONDITIONS by Dennis Pagen

Continues where FL YING SKILLS left off. For the novice to advanced pilot.

Micrometeorology for hang gliding.

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Please send me (check the following): RIGHT STUFF $8.95 -FAR $8.95 =HG Flying Skills $9.95 _ HG Flying Techniques $7.50 _ Flying Conditions $7.50 _ Walking On Air $19.95 _HG For Beginner Pilots $29.95

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Columns

Features

25 USHGA Reports

12 Thermaling: The Key To Modern Hang Gliding

Board of Director election and 1990 survey results, by Pat Robbins. Financing USHGA into the '90s, by Dan Johnson, USHGA Treasurer.

hy Pete Lehmann The fourth in our series of World Team member articles. Pete offers some iconoclastic ideas.

19 Gaggling

30 Hang Gliding 101 Page 12

71 Product Lines

22 Little Lifesavers

by Dan Johnson

News about UP International, Glider Sport International, and more.

A skinflint's guide to safety accessories.

38 Flaps On The Wing by Michael Sandlin Further experiments with a tailed, flapped hang glider.

Departments

43 The Demise Of The Klingberg Wing by Ro! Klingberg What happened to the promising Klingberg Wing? Some important lessons were learned about rigid wing hang gliders.

50 Escape From Winter by Michael Boyle Some philosophical humor about learning to fly.

59 Speed To Get There First by Davis Straub Davis proposes that flying at "max L/D over the ground" speed may often be more appropriate than flying at Speed-to-Fly.

FEBRUARY 1991

Page 43 COVER: Bob Schutte soars his Sensor 5 l OE over Santa Barbara, CA. Photo by Bob Trampenau. CENTERSPREAD: Norm Huebner launching at Elmira, NY. Photo by Bill Sharkey.

7 9 11 16 62 69 69

Airmail Update Calendar of Events Ratings Classified Advertising Index to Advertisers Stolen Wings

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES IN PUBLICATIONS: The material presented here is published as part of an information dissemination service for USHGA members. The USHGA makes no warranties or representations and assumes no liability concerning the validity of any advice, opinion or recommendation expressed in the material. All individuals relying upon the material do so at their own risk. Copyright © 199 l United States Hang Gliding Association, Inc. All rights reserved to Han/i Gliding and individual contributors.

Gil Dodgen, Editor/Art Director John Heiney, Doug Rice, Leroy Grannis, Eric Raymond, Photographers Harry Martin, Illustrator Tim Rinker, Design Consultant Office Staff

Jerry Bruning, Executive Director Pat Robbins, Advertising Greg Huller, Member Services Cindy Evans, Member Services Stu Clark, Member Services P.J. More, Office Operations Patti Sparks, Member Services Jeff Elgart, Merchandise Services USHGA Officers and Executive Committee:

Gregg Lawless, President Jim Zeise!, Vice President Russ Locke, Secretary Dan Johnson, Treasurer REGION 1: Gene Matthews. REGION 2: Ken Brown, Russ Locke, Connie Bowen. REGION 3: Bill Bennett, Sandy King, Gregg Lawless. REGION 4: Mark Macho, Jim Zeiset. REGION 5: Mike King. REGION 6: Ron Kenney. REGION 7: Rod Hauser. REGION 8: Randy Adams. REGION 9: Pete Lehmann, Jeff Sims. REGION 1O: Rick Jacobs. REGION11: Carl Boddie. REGION 12: Paul Voight, Paul Riker!. DIRECTORS AT LARGE: Dan Johnson, Jan Johnson, Dennis Pagen, Peter Zimmerli, Glen Nicolet. HONORARY DIRECTORS: G.W. Meadows, Tom Kreyche, Mike Meier, Rob Kells, Fred Stockwell, Terry Reynolds. The United States Hang Gliding Association Inc. is a division of the National Aeronautic Association (NAA) which is the official representative of the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI), of the world governing body for sport aviation. The NAA, which represents the U.S. at FAI meetings, has delegated to the USHGA supervision of FAl-related hang gliding activities such as record attempts and competition sanctions. HANG GLIDING magazine is published for hang gliding sport enthusiasts to create further interest in the sport, by a means of open communication and to advance hang gliding methods and safety. Contributions are welcome. Anyone is invited to contribute articles, photos, and illustrations concerning hang gliding activities. If the material is to be returned, a stamped, selfaddressed return envelope must be enclosed. Notification must be made of submission to other hang gliding publications. HANG GLIDING magazine reserves the right to edit contributions where necessary. The Association and publication do not assume responsibility for the material or opinions of contributors. HANG GLID· ING editorial offices: 6950 Aragon Circle, Suite 6, Buena Park, CA 90620 (714) 994-3050. HANG GLIDING (USPS 017-970) is published monthly by the United States Hang Gliding Association, Inc., 559 E. Pikes Peak Ave., Suite 101, Colorado Springs, Colorado 80903 (719) 632-8300. FAX (719) 632-6417. Second-class postage is paid at Colorado Springs, CO and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: SEND CHANGE OF ADDRESS TO: HANG GLIDING, P.O. BOX 8300, Colorado Springs, co 80933-8300. The USHGA is a member-controlled educational and scientific organization dedicated to exploring all facets of ultralight flight. Membership is open to anyone interested in this realm of flight. Dues for full membership are $39.00 per year (of which $15 goes to the publication of Hang Gliding), ($42 Canada & Mexico, $47 foreign); subscription rates only are $35.00 ($38 Canada & Mexico, $47 foreign). Changes of address should be sent six weeks in advance, including name, USHGA number, previous and new address, and a mailing label from a recent issue. FEBRUARY 1991

Volume 21, Issue No. 2

AIRMAIL SAVE MY MAGS Dear Editor. I have been contemplating cannibalizing my entire collection of Hang Gliding magazines to create an eye-catching pictorial scrapbook. Covers from early Ground Skimmer to the present day will show both the evolution and breathtaking beauty of our sport. Our magazine, with its outstanding content, has to be one of the finest aviation publications around. The efforts of those very talented pilot photographers shouldn't be restricted to us pilots alone. How about a hang gliding picture book like those you see on other sports? Past books on hang gliding have had lots of interesting info but few good pictures. I bet you could dig into the photo files, put together a good sample piece and sell it to a fine publisher. I keep hoping I won't have to take out those scissors. Nicholas Caci E. Taunton, MA

HIGH COST OF HANG GLIDING Dear Editor, What does it cost a pilot to go hang gliding? I have examined my own expenses so that I can be truthful to myself about the costs of this pleasure, and hope that this letter encourages others to do so. The truck. If I didn't hang glide my wife and I could share our 1986 Honda CRX, so that the whole cost of my 1986 Toyota 4Runner has to be counted as a hang gliding expense. Total cost from September '89 to September '90: $8,571 including payments, insurance, maintenance and gas for flying. The flying equipment, including repairs, assumed to have a useful life of three years: $2,300/year. Includes glider, radios, varios, oxygen bottle, special clothes. The driver: $10/day. But you say that your wife, girl friend or significant other drives, or that you swap rigs with the other pilots to go up and retrieve. Well great, but that is just another way of paying for the driver, the costs being paid in divorce, unhappiness, other vacations that you have to take away from hang gliding, time to get the truck and more wear on your

truck, or a lost opportunity to go cross country without a chase. However you do it, you still pay it. Some of these ways of paying for a driver are much more costly than the $ IO you owed, so you just might consider finding a driver who will do it for money and let your wife and/or marriage off the hook. I have seen so many unhappy women on launch or in the landing zone, taking care of their notso-thoughtful husbands. The time bomb is ticking. The trip. Olie's Mexican Safari gets me clown to Mexico and keeps me there cheap. The cost for ten clays with airfare in February 1990 was $1,300. The memberships. But wait, what about the cost of being a USHGA member and belonging to the local hang gliding club and getting keys to the regulated sites and paying for the insurance of the sites not covered by the club clues? The total yearly cost for me for these items is $74. Hardly worth the calculation. The total. From September 1989 to the end of August 1990 I got to fly 102 times. The cost of flying: $129.07/flight if you include the trip to Mexico. $128.96/flight if you take out these ten clays of flying. Yes, flying clown to Mexico and hang gliding for ten clays straight cost about the same per flight as staying home, and most likely not getting any flights during those cold February clays. I flew for 135 hours during those I 02 flights for a cost of $98/hour, or about twice the cost of powered flight, when you just count the cost of the plane rental. There are other hidden costs-the cost shared by the public for the launch and landing sites and the costs of maintaining access to them. When you look at all these costs it's clear that the cost of USHGA membership and supporting your local hang gliding club is trivial. The cost of drivers is a small part of the cost of flying and if you would just go out and find them, they are a lot less expensive then a new wife. Going to Mexico to fly is a deal that gives you a good chunk of flying when your local sites are under a blanket of snow, and doesn't cost any more than staying

AIRMAIL at home. Your efforts should include site preservation, with a value to you of at least $5-$10/flight. Davis Straub Seattle, WA

HIGH COST COMMENTS Dear Editor This letter is in response to the letter from Bob Schwartz published in the January, 1991 issue of Hang Gliding magazine, concerning hang glider prices. It is a rather bold move on Mr. Schwartz' part to attempt to tell hang glider manufacturers how to run their businesses. Like all businesses, manufacturers will see themselves through economic expansions and declines and will react to those situations to the best of their ability. Some may make it in the long haul and some may not, but I am sure all manufacturers are poised to take actions they deem necessary to see themselves through an economic downturn. I do not believe the manufacturers want to tell Mr. Schwaitz how to sell houses, so let the manufacturers run their businesses. I can honestly say that when I test flew and purchased my glider last year, although it was expensive, I knew I was getting a quality product. I wish I could say the same thing about the various houses I have looked at recently. David Swift San Diego, CA

X-C DROP STREAMERS Dear Editor, I really enjoyed Rodger Hoyt's article in the Jan. '91 issue about landing out after an X-C flight. The drop flag (for detennining wind direction before landing) is an interesting gizmo, but is it really a good idea to drop such a potentially lethal object from the sky? A few years ago I started using a length of crepe paper streamer (about 30 feet long) weighted at one end with a couple of quartersize washers~a simple but effective device to check out the wind before landing in an unfamiliar field. I keep two or three rolled up in the chest pocket of my harness where I can

get at them if needed. Sometimes I'll tape two contrasting colors together for better visibility. I usually get one ready when I'm down to about 500 feet and landing may be a few minutes away. I'll already have some idea of the wind direction from observing trees, grass and ponds during the flight, but it's still nice to know what the wind is doing in the intended LZ. If I have a general idea of the wind direction I try to drop the streamer at the upwind end of the field at about 200 to 300 feet AGL, or lower if the field is small; that way I can watch it fall during the downwind leg. I hang on to the weighted end and let the streamer unroll before I drop it so it won't get tangled up during the drop. They fall pretty fast, but even so, if there is any wind they will also drift while falling. When it reaches the ground, depending on the wind velocity, it gets laid out by the wine!. If there is little or no wind it just piles up. If I've managed to drop it where there is plenty of room, I'll use the streamer as a spot and try to land as close to it as I can. Sometimes I'll misjudge the drop and lose one in the trees or something, but I've still had the benefit of watching it drift. Give it a try. Practice a few times over your home field before your next X-C outing. It's fun and it works. Dave Dunning Russellville, AR

COVER PHOTO NO-NO'S Dear Editor, I noticed in Russ Douglas' December issue cover photo that the position of the gate on the carabiner relative to the parachute bridle is backwards. I have always been of the opinion that one should position the parachute bridle on the opposite side of the locking gate. If the pilot has to deploy his chute it would more likely than not hang up on the knurled nut which locks the gate, possibly flipping the carabiner sideways and loading it in its weakest mode, across the gate. I also noticed that the backup loop is sitting right on top of the locking nut and could possibly result in

the same side load situation if the main loop ever failed. David Jones Salt Lake City, UT

HANG GLIDING AT OSHKOSH Dear Editor, My intention to write on the subject of Oshkosh was piqued upon reading Stan Jones' letter in the December issue. I met Stan briefly when I traveled to Oshkosh '90 with Chris Kendall. It would seem that few hang glider pilots know much about this event (by far the largest, and in my opinion the most important annual aviation gathering), while even fewer of these enthusiasts know much about us. Tl1e scale of the event, and number of people involved, is absolutely boggling. During the seven-day event 800,000 people and nearly 15,000 aircraft attend. Ours is the only form of aviation not operating and displayed at this great gathering of folks who love to fly. There is no better showcase for our endeavors than Oshkosh. John Heiney could wow these folks. While in the ultralight flying area I have repeatedly overheard remarks by attendees as to the agility and grace with which the trikes carve through the air. These people would love to see us fly in 1991. And I bet our membership would jump 10% the following month. A proper demonstration could earn us the respect we deserve, and move us toward acceptance by the rest of the aviation community which has for so long eluded us. A few of our most articulate spokespersons, a half dozen pilots and gliders and a couple of tow rigs-or, better yet, Bobby Bailey's tugs~would do the trick. Let's do it! Christopher Starbuck Decatur, GA

Chris is a pamplegic hang glider pilot who recently hurt himself in a fall 011 a staiiway. He ll'ill be at Atlanta VA Hospital, \!AMC, Roo111 754, 1670 Clair111011t Rd., Decatl/r, GA 30033, until the end of February. He' cl enjoy receiving so111e letters from fe/1011· pilots.~ Ed. HANG GLIDING

WANTED: 'fIHJLY GREAT HANG GUDIN<; PHOTOS Got a hot photo? H's time to start digging through your photo collection for that ONE hang gliding picture that you consider worthy of the 1992 I !ang Gliding Calendar. Watch for details in the March issue. HGMA·CElffWIED Gl,InER OMISSIONS The list or certiJ'ied gliders in the January issue of I fang Gliding omitted two models: the 220 Lite Dream manufaeturecl by Delta Wing, and the I IP J\T 150 from Wills Wing. J\n updated list, sorted by manufacturer, will lx: published in the: March issue. UP INTERNATIONAL MOVES UP International, formerly or l .ake Elsinore, California, announces a move to new facilities nt thc Morgan County Airport, Mountain Cirecn, IJtah. The new hangar and building were designc:d and constructed spe cifically to house the company for efficient, lower cost production. !\long will1 the move came a restrncturing of the firm. The new President is Terry Reynolds, 199 I World Team member, Hon" orary l ISi IG/\ Director and Mastcrraled pi]01. Dick Cheney, whose nrcat Salt Lake h11ilt vir1ually all of Sails and ih Ille sails, as well as many Comet, Sport and I IP J\T sails, is Chief Or>cntlir1g Officer. Chief Executive Officer is Dave Steller. Dave comes lo !JP from a high level position with a major ski industry manul'ac" t urcr.

The company seeks to regain ils former stature in the hang gliding industry and is in the process of n:vamping its c111irc product line. The first major move in this direction is thl, soon lo-he released TRX graphite frame glider. ( 'ontact: IJP lntcrna1ional, !f054 West 2825 North, Mountain Urccn, Morgan Counly J\irport, lltah 84050.

CROSS COUNTRY m1•,u1,ff,'"''• Schutte Sails announces that it is now the U.S. distrihulor for Cmss Cou111ry magazine. Tilt: l"ull-·color nrng,uinc is produced in France, and, according to the distributor, is considered Europe's most compreltensive hang gliding puhlica1ion. Cross ('01111/ry is published himon1hly in threG dirforent languages (French, English ancl Japanese). The

publisher offers quantity discounts t'or five or more subscriptions. Contact: Cross Country magazine, Casiano Dr. 4113, Sanla Barham, Cl\ 91105 (805) 687-4661 FAX (805) %8-0059.

STATE AVIATION OFFICIALS GET A TASTE OF BANG GLWING AT KITTY HAWK KITES

J\viation and aeronautics spt:cialisls got their feet off !he ground at Kitty I lawk Kites in Nags llcad, Nor1h Carolina. During a break in the ccrcmonies commcrnorating the first night of Orville and Wilbur Wright (Dec. 17, J(){n), lhl: visitors took !tang gliding lessons al Jockey's Ridge. From lcfl arc: Bruce Weaver ( instructor); Raymond Rought, director or aviation, State ol' Minn<> sota and f'irst vice president or the National Association or State I\ vial ion Officials (N/\SJ\0); Blake Rcirschneider (instructor); I larold Buker, director or aviation, Stale or New I lampshire and treasurer or NJ\S/\0; Mac Converse or 1hc Norlh Carolina Aeronau1ics Council, Chapel llill, NC; Marshall Sanderson, North Carolina Department of Trnnspona1ion, J\viation Division, Raleigh, NC; Midge Packard, NC Department or Trnnsporta1io11, Aviation Division; Clrnrlic Hostetler, Director or Aviation, State or Pennsylvania, and second vice president or NJ\S/\0.

TELEVISION SERrns HIGHLIGIITS HAN(; GLIDING IN Ci\NAl>A Millc1mium Tclcproductions or Dccrricld Beach, Florida, recently filmed an or its national ca hie series, "Aclvcntun: Quest," in the gh1cier""ridclled Purcell Range near C.oldcn, llrilish Columbia. I\ scg mcnt or the show l'ealurcd state-oC-thc"art hang gliding. (,reg Brauch, an extremely col orr1i1 personality from Kalispc:11, Montana, is a regional cross-counlry champion who was profiled and interviewed in the scgmenl. Greg

launeliccl from a (),OO(Hoot peak adjacent to lite Bugaboo Glacier with a camera mounted on the tail or his craft This required some precise cou11tcr-bala11cing and some minor control compensatio11, hut Greg executed a t'lawlcss 42-minutc rlight, landing exactly on the mark, and bringing home spcclacular /'oo1agc. J\s some readers know from experience, soaring glacier J'ielcls is tricky business, with crosswinds through the passes and strong sink pouring down the glaciers. Greg considered the flight one of his most exhilarating ever, even bea1ing out his Swiss J\lps rlighl in 1989. The J\dvcn1urc Quest series focuses on the attitudes and evolution of advcn1urc sports worldwide, and is scheduled for pre"" micr airing 011 The Learning Channel in March or 199 I. Contac1: Millennium Telcproductions, 806 S. Mililary Trail, Deerfield Beach, FL, 3:1442 (305) 480 8282, FJ\X ()05) 480 8225.

"HOT FLYING" VIDEO !I \'/a/ion Weck Video, a unit of McCirnwIlill has released "Hot Hying," a 60--minulG collcclion of their most exciting flying footage. In addition 10 acrobatics from lhc Thunderbirds nnd other international flying teams, lhc video features disastrous cpisodGs from the pioneering days of flight lcsling, rigorous in-the-cockpit training witlt stalls and spin test, a cockpit ride with a 1csl pilot in the F· 14, a dangerous landing on a carrier flight deck covered with snow and ice, guncamera footage or the l .ibyan M iG-21 en counter, dogfighting in the arc Iic, and more. Contact: McGraw-I fill J\ viation Weck Group, I l J\ vc. of Ilic /\mcricns, New York, NY 10020 (212) l

YOUTH SOARING SCHOLARSHIP J\ main award or $500 towards sailplane t'lying lessons and lesser prizes arc at stake in the third anmwl K11auf'f"..(,rovc c,say contest. /\11y young pl:rson intercs1cd in may apply, if" bc1wce11 the ages 14 and and not an J.'J\A-licenscd pilot. I\ special form and an essay on some aspect or soaring l'light are due by May :l t, I lJ9 I. Contact: John Campkll, 195-2 Robert Quigky Dr., Scot1sville, NY 14546, 1ltc Soaring Society of J\mcrica, or any soaring site in the U.S.

UPDATE AOPA 900-LINE SERVICE This new service, AOPA CONNECT, makes available a wide array of aviationrelated information, including the latest on legislative and regulatory issues. Cost is $2 for the first minute and $1 for each additional minute. The number is (900) 896-2808.

manufacturer also announces plans for the release of two new sizes of their recreational model, the Aero.

SMARTOW WINCH - SMOOTHIE RELEASE Brad Lindsay of Reel Altitude announces the release of his Self-contained, Modular, Automatic-Rewind Tow system. The new winch incorporates a narrow-width, large-diameter hub which eliminates the need for a rewind mechanism. The SMARTOW system is mounted on a swing arm, similar to a motorcycle rear wheel assembly. Actuated by a calibrated spring, the entire winch pivots, showing immediate changes in line tension due to thermals, pilot-induced changes or vehicle speed. The entire winch rotates. According to the manufacturer the benefits include: less abrasion on the tow line, accurate line tension readings, simplified rewind procedures and smoother pay-out. The modular design allows for truck bed or bumper mounting, or boat mounting for parasailing. A hydraulic pay-in option can be used, making it suitable for trailer-mounted step towing. The spool is made of 308 stainless with a chromoly square tube frame. The company also announces the release of a new release, the "smoothie." The product features a non-directional release line and no mechanical parts or rings. Contact: Reel Altitude (602) 992-7243.

Place Pilot 1. Steve Moyes 2. Thomas Suchanek 3. Carl Braden 4. Danny Scott 5. Drew Cooper 6. Steve Blenkinsop 7. Alan Beavis 8. Mark Newland 9. MickO'Dowd 10. Ken Hill

ISRAEL FLYING SAFARI Israel Flying Safaris of Bat Yam, Israel, announces its hang gliding flying tours of the holy land. The safaris include: reception at the airport, hotel booking, air-conditioned vehicles, full day guide and driver, daily briefings with maps and radios for X-C flying, towing, and other activities like sailing, surfing and diving. Contact: Avron Tai, P.O. Box 239, Bat Yam, Israel, tel. 03-588-180. ENTERPRISE WINGS NEWS Australian hang glider manufacturer, Enterprise Wings announces the release of their 139C Combat for lighter weight pilots. The span is 31' 6" and the glider sports a smaller control bar. Morningside Flight Park of Claremont, New Hampshire is the company's new source for spare parts. The 10

AUSTRALIAN NATIONALS RESULTS The following are the results of the recent Australian Nationals held at Mt. Buffalo: Glider XS 155 XS 155 Foil Foil XS 169 Rumour Foil Foil XS 155 Foil

REGION 9 X-C CONTEST RESULTS The 1990 Region 9 X-C Contest came to a close on Dec. 1, 1990. Although it was a wet, hazy and low cloud base year in the East, X-C flights were recorded in every single month of 1990. The season began early in Region 9 when Pete Lehmann registered a 37-miler on Feb. 12 from the infrequently flown "Dump" site in central Pennsylvania. March was a mediocre month with numerous but short flights. April 8 saw the winning flight from Zirks, West Virginia by Tony Smolder. The flight was made under clear skies, with weak climb rates for the last 50 miles of the flight. Dulles International had to be skirted at the 70-mile mark resulting in a crosswind track to a landing at Catharpin, Virginia. On April 13 Dave Deming set a Daniels site record of 35 miles and took fifth in the contest. Another site record was set by Pete Lehmann on May 19 with a 58-miler from the Fairgrounds site. Long-time pilot John Scott recorded a third place finish on May 30 with a flight from Templeton, Pennsylvania. Lany Huffman took fourth place with a flight from Templeton on July 1, launching just shortly after a frontal passage, while other sites to the east were being bombarded by showers and thunderstonns. Pete Lehmann wrapped up the X-C year with an unusually long flight for November of 52 miles, during which he followed some Lake Erie clouds across the countryside. Two new categories were created for the 1990 contest but either interest in Out & Re-

turns and Triangles is low, or pilots just don't like to take turnpoint photos, as only three pilots submitted flights in these areas. The most notable of these was Lany Ball's Triangle flight at North Mountain, West Virginia during which he used the famous climber's Mecca, Seneca Rocks, as one of his turnpoints.

RESULTS Place Pilot 1. Tony Smolder 2. Pete Lehmann 3. John Scott 4. Larry Huffman 5. Dave Deming 6. Lany Ball 7. Rick Hudson 7. Danny Loudermill

Glider Total Miles 162 Axis 15 HP AT 158 476.5 Comet II 165 72 XS 155 94.5 Sport 167 35 HP 170 28.5 Attack Duck 32.5 Spo11 167 12

Out & Return 1. Tony Smolder Axis 15 2. Danny Loudermill Sport 167

33 9

Triangle 1. Larry Ball 2. Tony Smolder

17 25

Formula 154 Axis 15

ACAPULCO, MEXICO AEROBATIC MEET The following are the results of a recent aerobatic hang gliding meet held in Acapulco, Mexico. The meet was organized by Las Alas Del Hombres and judged by Kerie Swepston, Chris and Joe Greblo and Juan Cmral. The organizers wish to thank: Mexicana Airlines, SEFOTUR (Guerrero) for the prize money, Enrique Perez Claudin, CICI (a local water park and landing site), the Hotel Copacabana, Coca Cola, Pacific Airwave, Wills Wing and UP International. 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th

Aaron Swepston John Heiney Larry Tudor Ron Young Ted Boyse

6th Tom Low 7th Chris Bolfing 8th Jersey Rossignol 9th Bob Vogel 10th Sergio Segura

ICPPROGRAM The ICP program has a specific structure which has not always been adhered to in the past. Effective immediately, ICP administrators will strictly comply with the instructions of administering this program. Please call Patty at headquarters for additional info1mation. HANG GLIDING

Calendar of Events Calendar of events items WILL NOT be listed if only tentative. Please include exact info1mation (event, date, contact name and phone number). Items should be received no later six weeks prior to the event. We request two months lead time for regional and national meets. Until Dec. 1: 1991 Region 9 X-C Contest. All flight data must be received by Dec. 15. Must be Region 9 pilot and current USHGA member. Contact: Tony Smolder (304) 622-4475. Feb. 2: Hang Flight Systems Radio Clinic, 9 AM - 2 PM, Santa Ana, CA. Pass or don't pay. Novice and Tech. Contact: (714) 542-7444. Feb. 9-10: Haney's Point 2nd Annual FlyOut, Atkins, AR. Fun and games. Contact: Sail Wings (501) 227-4920 or (501) 641-1902. Feb. 21-March 9: World Championships, Governador Valadares, Brazil. March 14-17: ToITey Windsprints. $150/ glider, first 30 pilots only. Contact: Joe Bill Henry, Torrey Pines Flight Park (619) 452-3202 FAX (619) 452-3203. March 16-17: 2nd annual aerobatic clinic with John Heiney. Rain elates March 2324. Contact: Silent Flight (916) 938-2061. April 11-14: World Freestyle Masters, Crescent Head, New South Wales, Australia. Contact: tel. (065) 66-0166 FAX (065) 66-0546.

Flight Park (619) 452-3202 FAX (619) 452-3203. April 27-30: Jeff Scott Challenge, Kagel Mt., Sylmar, CA. Contact: Andy Beem (818) 988-0111. May 4-5: Haney's Point Spring Fly-Out. Atkins, AR. Fun & games. Contact: Sail Wings, (501) 227-4920 launch, or (501) 641-1902. May 10-12: 19th Annual Hang Gliding Spectacular. June 2: 7th Annual Triathlon of Windsports. June 8-9: 9th Annual Rogallo Kite Festval. June 26: Wit-Bear's Festival of Fun. Aug. 15: 43rd Anniversary of Rogallo Wing Invention. Sept. 22: 2nd Annual Flying Wheels Rollerblade Spectacular. Oct. 19-20: 4th Annual Outer Banks Stunt Kite Competition. Contact: Kitty Hawk Kites, P.O. Box 1839, 3941 S. Croatan Hwy at Jockey's Ridge, Nags Head, NC 27959 (919) 4414124 FAX (919) 441-7597. June 21-23: Region 2 Regionals, Reno, NV. Contact: Ray Leonard at Adventure Sports (702) 883-7070. July 28-Aug. 3: 1991 National Team Championships, Dinosaur, CO. Five per team. Minimum of 450 WTSS points

guaranteed. Each pilot's entry fee $225 postmarked before July 1, $275 after. Contact: Chris Reynolds/GenTech Corp., Box 281, Conifer, CO 80433. March 14-17: Torrey Windsprints. $150/ glider, first 30 pilots only. Contact: Joe Bill Henry, Torrey Pines Flight Park (619) 452-3202 FAX (619) 452-3203. March 16-May 19: Region Nine Championship. Open window cross country, any site in Region, weekend flights; best three totalled. Contact: Pete Lehmann (412) 661-3474 BEFORE 9 PM. May 9: Swiss Championships, south of Switzerland (Italian-speaking). Americans invited. Contact: Zurcherstrasse 47, Postfach 1301, CH-8620 Wetzikon, tel. 01/932-43-53 FAX O1/932-42-82. May 25-June 2: Lariano Triangle Competition, Lake Como, Italy. June 21-23: Wild Wild West Regionals. Contact: Adventure Sports, 3680 #6, Research Way, Carson City, NV 89706 (702) 883-7070. July 1-14: Women's World Championships, Kossen, Austria.

SINCE 1!177. ROBERTS fHSTffUMEH(S HAV£ ·BEEH RECOONfZE'D FOR' THEIR SENS/TfVTTY ANO QUICK RESPONSES.

April 13-20: 1991 East Coast Championships, Dunlap, TN. One of four World Team points meets this year (450 points guaranteed). Limited entries. Contact: Sequatchie Valley Soaring (615) 9492301. April 15-16: Hang Gliding Technician Seminar. April 13-14: Demos. Contact: Ray Leonard, Adventure Sports, 3680 Research Way #6, Carson City, NV 89706 (702) 883-7070. April 18-21: Torrey World Paragliding Meet. Contact: Joe Bill Henry, Torrey Pines FEBRUARY 1991

The author thermals a German-registered Australian Foil in France,

his ar!iclc is the result of an increasing frustrnlion I feel when piloU, !'lying on ridges in thermal conditions, and later listening to them discuss thcrmaling tech11iq11cs. Too many pilots do 1101 recognize that they arc flying into a thermal, and even il'thcydorccognize one for wha1 ii is, they don't do a vny job or climbing. It is ckar lo me that there arc held fundarnenlal misconceptions about the nature of thermals, and the best techniques to he used in working them. This is meant to serve as a thought-provoking stimulant f'orolder pilots who could profitably chanpg tlKir ways, and as a general introduction to thennaling for newer l lang II' s and Ill's, In my view the problem can he divided into !wo pmls. The first is the question of how of'trn thcrrnals me present. J\11 too m,rny cxpe-

l'icnccd arc unaware of the fact lhal !hcnnals arc almost always present in some form or another. The rLosul! is Iha! lhcy often do 1101 Cly with an eye to tl1ermaling even !hough thermals are present. The second point has todo with thcrmaling technique. It is my observation that the vast majority of pilots rly too shallowly banked 360's when therrnaling. The explanation for these rial 360's i:; that "they arc mon: c!Ticicnt." I will try to explain below that 1hcrma/i11g is more complicalccl than simply l'lying slowly at a shallow bank angle, In fact, the traditional approach is often decidedly inelTiciL:nt il'you want to gt:t into and stay in lift. This can apply even to weak lil'L

rc(:ogn11:e a lhcrmal when you encounter it. This may sound silly, hllt many experienced pilots do not recognize thermals ror what they arc, and dismiss them as turlrnlcncc, ridge lil't or convergence. Furthermore, pilots arc often influenced to overlook thermals by the: ideal scenario we have all grown up with: lar)!l\ strong, smooth lil't associated with a cloud. ln fact, much thcrnrnl lift is small, weak, raspy and unassociated with a cloucl. Even experienced pilots arc often misinwith which usable formed aboul the thermals arc present in the atmosphere. To demonstrate the degree or misunderstanding thal exists about thermals let me give some

examples. WHEN CAN EXPECT THERMALS'? llcl'orc learning techniques, it is necessary to

Between rain showers and under ,111 over cast sky a pilot launches from a mountain into

I lANC: G1m1Nc

ridgc·soarnblcconrlilions. I !Gsoon todo 360's and climbs until he nc:ars the low cloud deck. the 360's, a very cx,n,,i·i,•11<·,•d Hang IV sarcastically asks, "What docs he think he's doing, thermaling?" ! le was. On a high wind, blue sky day lhe l'irsl pilot lo launch rnclios down lliat he's getting 1,000 foe\ over launch in 1hermals. Another l !ang IV says lhal iL's loo windy for workable thermals to be prcsenl. It must b,: ridge lift that's him up. It wasu 't. Finally, on a windy day an inexperienced l lang Ill s1nys in Ille turbulent ;iir afler all the I fang !V's have landed. The lll tcntly tries to 360 in what he thinks is lift. By rndio1hc Jiang IV's ask il'hc turning in turbulence. Ile 1mins 7,000 reel for lhc day's bes! TheSl, illustrntions or misconceptions held by pilots arc lrnc stories, and I can cilc many more. I have tllernrnled in 11Jc mi 11, snow, under clouds, on hot muggy over water, and snow covcrccl landscape. The lesson here is tlwi thermals arc almost always prcscnl, and a pilot is likely to he rewmclcd for assuming that every bump is Jin, and lhcn to work it .lllst because you arc rlying in ridge lift al your local site do nol assume !hat the bumps you arc experiencing arc mechanical turbulence. It is nearly thcr111al Iii'!, dcspilc what you may have been told by your "bcltcrs." HOW WORK I.IFT !laving made Ilic assumplion that all bumps 11101· be workable Iii'!, what do you now do'! Count lo three, and turn? Push oul and keep your turn as lfat as possible lo minimize your sink rate as I was NO! Facli of these techniques has a certain validily and situation in which can usd11lly bl: applied. llowcvcr, the;y arc of purely secondary in1porlancc. In thcnnaling the critically important matter is inlo the thGnnaL When you cncmmtcr a hump, turn into i1 hard, and now! Do 1101 flat turn. Use a stcc:ply banked turn 10 ensure you remain in the I hcrmal. Wl: arc flying from small mm1111ains in c:astern conditions, and usually with a fair bit or wind present. These things mean that 1hc lhcrmals we cncounlcr arc likely 10 be fairly small and Cast moving. For these reasons we must quickly turn hard, and maintain a sleep bank ,rnglc 10 get into, and remain in best part of a lhermal. These two things, a quick turn and maintaining a steep !Jank angle, arc 1hc cardinal

That pilot did not understand that Nelson was

only climbing bcca11Sc he was "incflicicnlly" banked in a tight 360 which enabled him 10 stay in !he thermal. Because my insistence on steeply banked \urns is a1 odds wi1h what most pilots believe and practice l would like to explai11 tha1 there is both literary and practical support for this po-sition. First, read sailplane litcra1urc, most or which is relevant to hang gliding. There exists an enormous body or sophisticated writing on all aspects of' soaring flight, and thcrmaling in particular. bible is Helmut Rciclmrnnn 's Cross-Coul/lry Soaring, in which he makes the lhe following comments, "Once we know where we want to go, we should 1101 be overly con-ccrncd over performance losses caused by hard

rules l'orcap1uring thermals. l rc:alize that there arc many s11b1Jc1 ics and exceptions to tlrnl stale· men!, bul ii is my conviction that the vasl majori1y or pilots do not understand lhe critical truth or these two rules. i\n example of this incomprehension oc-· curred over Memorial I )ay al l lyner, Pcnnsyl· vm1ia. In clumping conditions, Nelson J!owe, the East' top-ranked competition pilot, lau11chccl and eventually found a nasty lilllc lccsiclc thL,mrnl. The only way to work the lirt was severely banked turns. ll worked, and he was the only person 10 gel over launch until condilions improved lalcr in the day. While Nelson was climbing out 1hc llang JV next to me was criticizing him for his inefficient turns.

TOP: Com1Jar·e the shallow bank in Lhis photo to sleep··banked thermaling lum in the Litle-page pho!o. ABOVE: Launching al i\mberl, France.

gc11ing into 700 fpm bctlcr lifl, it is worthwhile several times over." And, " ... It is more impor tant lo ccnlcr the thermal rapidly; the most gorgeous lextbook circle is ofl it t lc practical use if only half or it is in the updrnl'L Thcrcfon:: first, center !he thermal, t/Jen be sure you arc flying in a clean and coordi11atecl manner." (I !is emphasis.) Finally, it should be pointed out that sailplane pilots have also undergone a shift in their thinking toward cmplwsi,.ing the improved pcrl'ormancc gained from more banked

turns. They too once believed that flatter 360's were the way to go. On the practical side I can offer the benefit of my experience of flying in competition with many of the worlds' best hang glider pilots. Without exception the Moyes', Lee's, Pfeiffer's, Tudor's etc. use steeper bank angles than will be found at most local flying sites. The first time this lesson was driven home to me was when Ricky Rawlings was devastating the competition at the 1986 Nationals. A fellow competitor, Mike Neuman, noticed that from miles away you could spot Rawlings in a gaggle by his unusually steep bank angle and the fact that he climbed at an incredible rate relative to everyone else. Irrespective of glider type, the big boys now commonly use steeply banked turns. It is time for the recreational pilot to reap the fruits of these lessons learned and proven in competition flying.

BASIC THERMALING RULES 1. Tum in all humps. Most are lift, and only with experience will you figure out how to distinguish lift from turbulence, and how to detennine what lift is workable and by what technique. Gather experience by turning. 2. Crank and Bank. Forget about nice smooth, flat 360's. With time you will learn when and where to use shallow banked turns. For now focus on getting into and staying in the lift. That is best done by quick, steeply banked turns. 3. Concentrate on your vario, and feel your glider. Learn to coordinate what your vario's sound is telling you with what you feel your glider fly through. Some varios react more quickly or slowly to changes in lift, so you need to develop a feel for the vario' s reaction times and what they mean in relation to your glider's motion. 4. Continuously adjust your bank angle and speed to maintain the highest possible climb rate 011 your Faria. It is unusual to be able to get into a thermal and climb efficiently by simply flying one bank angle and speed. Thermals are rarely homogeneous perfectly shaped cylinders as they are sometimes illustrated. They will vary in shape, strength and location from one second to another. It is therefore critical for you to continuously update your knowledge of how you are climbing by monitoring your vario and being aware of what your glider is telling you about changes in the air. On the basis of the vario's information you must then immediately move your glider around

the sky to maintain or increase your climb rate. Remember that your glider only climbs as well as the pilot. You must continuously fly it. You are a pilot; not a passenger. 5. Be aware ofthe rate and direction of the thermal' s drift. Once a pilot has gotten into a thermal, the most common error is to underestimate the rate of thermal drift. Thermals often move very quickly at the low altitudes at which ridge pilots encounter them. If you begin to lose the thennal, extend your 360 downwind. I cannot count the times that pilots have reported thermals to have "broken up," disappeared, etc. when another pilot has been above and downwind of them and still been climbing. Thennals do not smoothly move downwind at a constant rate. Be sensitive to what you feel, and what your vario tells you. Thermals can resemble corkscrews or irregular snakes as they rise from the surface. Thermals will even move upwind if there is a large cloud upwind into which the the1mal is being drawn. Be flexible.

"Crank and Bank. Forget about nice smooth, flat 360's. With time you will learn when and where to use shallow banked turns. For now focus on getting into and staying in the lift. That is best done by quick, steeply banked turns." CONCLUSION We have now arrived at the encl of my se1mon. I suspect I have irritated more than a few experienced pilots with my assertions that many pilots have grave defects in their approach to thermaling. I apologize for any hurt feelings caused by my presumption, but I thought this harsh approach necessary to cut through some of the more durable myths of hang gliding. I hope that some experienced pilots may be provoked by this article to break out of long term patterns, and that newer pilots will take to heart an alternative view of thermaling-a point of view not always heard from their mentors. Finally, please do not misunderstand this

article's emphasis on the importance of steeply banked turns as a blanket endorsement of that technique for all circumstances. It is only meant as a critically important starting point for an overhaul of one's approach to thermaling. There is much much more to thermaling than was touched on in this short article, and, yes, flat turns have a valid place in the realm of specific techniques to be employed in specific circumstances. Once you get into a the1mal you must become flexible and employ ever weapon in your armory of techniques to wrest the best climb rate from a thermal. But you must first get into that thennal before you work it. Attacking the core with steeply banked turns is the necessary tool to accomplish that. •

Pete Lehma11n is a 38-year-old Masterrated pi lot and derelict semi-academic. He first encountered hang gliding 12 years ago while living in Germany where he acquired the equivalent ofa Hang I. f1I the intervening years he has flown a thousand hours, and many thousands ofmiles across the U.S. and otherparts of the world. His primary interests in hang gliding are cross-country and competition flying. He presently holds the Pe11nsylvania State distance record. Pete has been appointed U.S. World Team Leader because none of the pilots hate him ... yet. This is the fourth in our series ofarticles by your World Team members. The 1990 World Team needs your support. For a $10 donation we' 11 send you an enamel World Team pin; $20 will get you a World Team tank-top shirt and $40 is good for a World Team sweatshirt with hood. For larger amounts raised, you are eligible for some great prizes, depending on the a11101111t! See the October issue for details, or call the USHGA offices for more information. Everything from hook knives to BRS 'chutes, hamesses and a,1 all expense paid trip to Brazil as a guest of the Team is up for grabs! Donations of $10 or more will a1110111atically ellter you in the product raffle, with prizes ranging fro111 T-shirts to an FM radio, oxygen system, Kev!arjidl-face helmet or the top prizethe new glider of your choice! All donations should be made out to the United States Hang Gliding Foundation, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933. The money will be targeted for the Tea111ji111d and your contributio11 is tax deductible (less the value ofpri:es received). HANG GLIDING

WORLD TEAM RAFFLE PRIZES Thermal Snooper, Air Bags, Harnesses, Varios, Altimeters, Helmets, Bumper Stickers, a Glider of Winner's CHOICE!, Flying Gloves, Windvanes, Sweatshirts, Windsoks, T-Shirts, Stained Glass Glider, Videos ... and much, much more! Be sure to enter! THE USHGA WORLD TEAM WOULD LIKE TO THANK THESE CONTRIBUTING SPONSORS: Pacific Airwave, Wills Wing, UP International , Leo M. Bynum, Dig Log Circits Co., Publitec Editions, Mission Soaring, High Energy Sports, The Airflow Imaging Co., Sentek Instruments, Mantis Harness, Mountain Wings, Hang Flight Systems, Pro Hang Gliders, Sky Life, Sierra Cloudbase Video, FL YTEC/DODECA, AIRCOTEC/ DODECA, Crystal Air/Sky Gear, Morningside HG, Paul Voight/Fly High, Lookout Mtn. Flight Park, Silver Wings, Sail Wings Hang Gliding ,Wasatch Wings, Thermal, Hang Gliding Emporium, Raven HG School, McLaren Products, Air Wear Sports, Pendulum Sports, Sandia Soaring Assn., Roberts Glider Insturments, Sequatchie Valley Soaring, Desert Hang Gliders, Hall Brothers, Coroalla Flight/Fly Amer. , Systek

,--------------------------------------------1990 U.S. World Team Fund-Raiser/Raffle Lots of hang gliding equipment prizes, including a GLIDER of your choice from:

Wills Wing -

Pacific Airwave -

UP International

$10.00 gets you a World Team pin. $20.00 gets you a World Team tank top. $40.00 or more gets you a team sweatshirt with hood. ONE ENTRY PER PERSON PLEASE. Enclosed please find: 0 $10.00 for a World Team pin. 0 $20.00 for a World Team tank top. Circle one: Sm. Med. Lg. XL 0 $40.00 for a World Team sweatshirt with hood. Circle one: Sm. Med. Please add $5.00 more when ordering an XXL size. 0 Other contribution of$ to help out the team. I understand I'm entered in the raffle with a donation of $10 or more. Make checks payable to U.S. Hang Gliding.Foundation.

Lg.

XXL

NAME: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-

ADDRESS: _ _ _ __ _ _ __ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ __

CITY: _ __ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ __ STATE_ _ _ _ _ZIP_ _ _ __ PHONE: (

)_ _ _ _ _ _ _SOCIAL SECURITY NO. _ _ _ _ _ _ __ Send to: USHGA, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933

RATINGS RATINGS DECEMBER, 1990 The following ratings were processed in December, 1990. this does not necessarily mean they were awarded in December.

Safe Pilot Awards LENNARD BARON MARK E. NEISSER WAYNER. BENFIELD JAMES GARNER JONATHAN SZAREK

Lilienthal A wards

Bronze BRUCE COLBOURN MATTHEW YODIS MARK E. NEISSER KEVIN CAMERON DAVID WINNEBERGER JAMES GARNER DANGRAVAGE WILLIAM K. MARTIN

Silver BOB SUMMERS ROBERT C. HOWE MICHAEL J. HEILMAN MICHAEL G. BADLEY Gold ARTHUR J. BARRICK DAVID G. BROYLES

BEGINNER RA TINGS PILOT: City, State; Instructor/School Region 2 DICK FERRIS: San Francisco, CA; K. Dearborn/Airtime of SF - MARC CALOUETTE: San Jose, CA; R. Palmon BRUCE LELLA: Mammoth Lakes, CA; K. Castle/Awesome Air -ALAN KENNY: Milpitas, CA; R. Palmon/Mission Soaring Ctr. - TOM TUTTLE: Mammoth Lakes, CA; K. Castle/Awesome Air- PETER BREINING: Stanford, CA; W. Anderson FRANK L. PINTER: Antioch, CA: R.

Palmon - JON C. DAMREL: San Jose, CA; R. Palmon/Mission Soaring- MARY ELLEN FENNESSEY: San Francisco, CA; G. Keoho/Kitty Hawk Kites - GORDON GILL: San Jose, CAR. Palmon - CHRIS KIBLER: Crowley Lake, CA; M. Gibson/ Awesome Air Region 3 JERRY RINALDI: Campbell, CA; R. Palmon - PETE RAZDOBREEN: San Mateo, CA; R. Engorn/Mission Soaring TIM MULDER: Shafter, CA; K. deRussy ROLAN P. ANGEL: Santa Barbara, CA; K. deRussy(Hang Glider Emporium - ERIC ZARTH: Westminster, CA; D. Engel/ Southland HG- DEB KNAUSS: Coronada, CA; J. Ryan - ADAM FLECK: Carpinteria, CA; A. Hagemann - JASON HENRY: Carpinteria, CA; A. Hagemann Region 6 SAM MONY: Kalamazoo, MI; B. FiferSHELLY HADLEY: Russellville, AR; L. Haney/Sail Wings Region 7 CURT STAHLBERG: Oak Creek, WI; B. Kushner/Raven - SCOTT ZIMMERMAN: Northbrook, IL; A. Mantas/Spectrum HG MARK GARLANGER: Stevensville, MI; R. Kreske - T ANMA YA SANDRA FEURIG: Madison, WI; B. Kushner Region 8 RICK SHARP: Burlington, VT;R. Coxon/ Kitty Hawk Kites - BOB WILLIAMS: Woburn, MA; J. Hannus/Aeolus - DANIEL JESTER: Bristol, CT; B. Umstattd/JVItn. Wings - SHARON ROYS: Bristol, CT; B. Umstattd/Mtn. Wings - FRANK CHAFFIN: Woburn, MA; J. Hannus/Aeolus - LARRY POWELL: Boston, MA; J. Hannus/Aeolus - MICHAEL NIELDS: Salisbury, CT; P. Voight/Fly High HG WADISTON CLEBER OLIVEIRA: E. Boston, MA; J. Hannus/Aeolus V ANDERLEI B. DEANDRADE: Everett, MA; J. Hannus/Aeolus Region 9 MARK BAILEY: Fairfield, OH; J. Lazard - RICHARD R. MILLER: Lexington Park, MD; G. Reeves/Kilty Hawk Kites KIERAN DALY: Washington, DC; J.

Middleton/Silver Wings -ANDREA BROOKS: Saxonburg, PA; P. Brooks/ Daedalus Region IO RICHARD GOLDMAN: New Bern, NC; G. Keoho/Kitty Hawk Kites Region 11 TODD SHARPE: Austin, TX; S. Burns/ Austin Air Sports - PETE HAMMER: Richardson, TX; D. Broyles/Kite Enterprises - MARK LIPFORD: Plano, TX; D. Broyles - ROBERT SHULER: Frienclswoocl, TX; S. Bums/Austin Air Sports - MARK ALLEN CONOVER: Houston, TX; H. Wise Region 12 PERCY SCHMIDT: APO, NY; G. Elhart/ Nova-Air- CARL LARSON: Massapequa, NY; D. Guido/Susquehanna FP - ANDREJ WOLSKI: Rochester, NY; R. McGovern

NOVICE RATINGS PILOT: City, State; Instructor/School Region 1 MICHAEL GREENLEE: Ketchikan, AK; J. Ryan Region 2 ROBERT KEV AN EDDY: San Jose, CA; J. Woodward/Natural Flying - KHOSRO AFKHAMI: Sacramento, CA; J. Anderson Region 3 KATHIE ZOGLMAN: Reno, NV; R. Leonard - JEFFREY STEINKAMP: Capistrano Beach, CA; K. deRussey/Hang Glider Emporium - ROLAN P. ANGEL: Santa Barbara, CA K. deRussy/Hang Glider Emporium - PHILIP SLACK: Santa Monica, CA; J. Grcblo/Windsports Int'! STEVE CLARK: Newport Beach, CA; D. Skadal Region 4 DA VE WESTWOOD: Orem, UT; C. Stockwell/Southwind - ETHAN KAUFFMAN: Salt Lake City, UT; K.

HANG GLIDING

RATINGS Stowe/\Vinclrider - JEFFREY JOHNSON: Mesa, AZ; D. Gordon/Arizona Winclsports JEFFREY P. VROOM: Basalt, CO; G. Middleton/Snowmass Windsports Region 6 ALLEN L. TARVER: Little Rock, AR; L. Haney/Sail Wings - SHELLY HADLEY: Russel ville, AR; L. Haney/Sail Wings JAMES ZEN BOULDEN: Ft. Smith, AR; J. Flatte/Fort Smith HG Region 7 RODNEY TOMPKINS: Allegan, MI; D. Gordon/Arizona Windsports Region 9 STEVEN W. MOODY: Pittsburgh, PA; J. Hostler/Mtn. Top Rec. - JAMES WATSON: Dayton, OH; C. Thoreson/ Lookout Mtn. FP - RALPH F. MILLER: Lexington, KY; C. Thoreson/Lookout Mtn. FP - DENNIS MEDSKER: Florence, SC; J. Reynolds/Lookout Mtn. FP Region 10 TODD BLEICHFELD: Ft. Lauderdale, FL; B. Umstattcl/Mtn. Wings - DAVID POLLARD: Charlotte, NC; B. Burri! RALPH JENKINS: Greenwood, SC; M. Taber/Lookout Mtn. FP - JAMIE F. ALEXANDER: Mableton, GA; J. Reynolds/ Lookout Mtn. FP - ANNE KOSKI: Atlanta, GA; C. Thoreson/Lookout Mtn. FP - JENS EVLING: Marietta, GA; C. Thoreson/Lookout Mtn. FP - GERARD PALS: Memphis, TN; C. Coleman/Lookout Mtn. FP Region 11 KEVON KLEIBRINK: lubbock, TX; D. Duecker/West Texas HG Assn. Region 12 RICHARD BISHOP: Cooks Falls, NY; P. Voight-GREGG J. SHULTS: Wooclbourne, NY; P. Voight

INTERMEDIATE RA TINGS PILOT: City, State; Instructor/School

CA; K. Dearborn/Airtime of SF -JAVIER LOPEZ: San Francisco, CA; J. Greenbaum/ Airtime of SF - CATHY ST ARK: Chico, CA; D. Thomason/Silent Flight HG MICHAEL ALEXANDER: Modesto, CA; K. Muscio - ROGER HUMPHREY: San Rafael, CA; J. Greenbaum/Airtime of SF Region 3 MICHAEL A. COOMBS: San Diego, CA: J. Ryan - MIKE PEKIN: Monterey, CA; B. Christie - ARADLANA SINGH KHALSA: Altadena, CA; J. Greblo/ Windsports Int'! - JOHN MIERKE: San Diego, CA; G. Meadows -TODD WHITMER: San Jose, CA; J. Schinnerer Region 4 MATT A. LUCE: Estes Park, CO; J. Wilber - TERRY HAWKINS: S. Jordan, UT; C. Stockwell/Southwind PAULA SMITH: Fountain Hills, AZ; B. Holmes/Sky Sails of AZ Region 5 PERRY JONES: Helena, MT; M. King Region 8 TONY STELIK: New Britain, CT; P. Voight Region 9 KRISTIE IMMORDINO: Glenside, PA; G. Reeves/Kitty Hawk Kites Region 10 STEPHEN COX: Vero Beach. FL; J. Greenbaum/Airtime of SF - JEFFREY D. DODGEN: Atlanta, GA; J. Reynolds/ Lookout Mtn. FP - TONY SANDIDGE: Lookout Mtn., GA; J. Reynolds/Lookout Mtn. FP

ADVANCED RATINGS PILOT: City, State: Instructor/School Region 2 ALAN MARKERT: Petaluma, CA; R. Reiter - PAUL GADD: Chico, CA; D. Freeman/Chico Cloud Street Gang - PAUL GAZIS: Sunnyvale, CA; D. Woo Region 3 IRINA MATVEENKO: Los Gatos. CA; P. Denevan/Mission Soaring - ADAM SANDAHL: La Habra Heights, CA; D. Engel/Southland HG - STEVE POLLARD: Escondido, CA; R. Mitchell/Torrey Pines - DE-HWEI MARIA WOO: Campbell, CA; D. Buchanan - BILL D. SODERQUIST: Temecula, CA; P. Burns Region 4 TOM LARSEN: Telluride, CO; R.Whitley. J. Zeiser Region 5 DON SCHULTZ: Gooding, ID; C. Kastner Region 10 ROBERT C. HOWE: Winter Park, FL; C. Bowen Region 12 WILHAD REUTER: Stormville, NY; G. Black/Mtn. Wings - PATRICK KENNEDY: Nutley, NJ; P. Voight/Fly High HG

MASTER RATINGS CHRISTOPHER ARAI: Oakland, CA

Region 11 REED MURRAY: Austin. TX: J. Hunt/Red River Aircraft

FOREIGN RATINGS

Region 12 MICHAEL FELANO: Schenectady, NY; T Aguero - DAVIDS. BROWN: Peakskill, NY; G. Black/Mountain Wings

NOVICE: GARY VENNING: Hamilton HM CX, BERMUDA; J. Reynolds/Lookout Mtn. FP INTERMEDIATE: MARTIN D. BERESFORD: Tokyo, JAPAN: A. Whitehill/Chanclelle

Region 2 KEVIN MCCRARY: Santa Clara, CA; E. Gama- MARIO WATKINS: San Rafael. FEBRUARY 1991

photo by John Heiney

Hang Gliding! Paragliding! See What The United States Hang Gliding Association Can Do For You! :~/ I ; }

Your Membership in the United States Hang Gliding Association entitles you to:

• • • • • •

A 12-month subscription to Hang Gliding magazine or Paragliding, The Magazine beginning with the next issue Liability insurance and property damage insurance Membership voting privileges The new, revised edition of the USHGA Handbook Pilot Proficiency Program ratings Lilienthal awards and flight achievement awards

l.rr ·I

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Additionally, you will be eligible to apply for any of the following special programs: • Theft of glider insurance • Participant accident insurance • USHGA' s VISA Gold card • USHGA expanded merchandise program Your membership also helps support: • USHGA instructor certification programs • USHGA membership development programs • USHGA administrative operations • USHGA special projects and events A full membership (U.S. only) in USHGA is $39.00 per year until March 31, 1991.

UNITED ST A TES HANG G LIDIN G A SSOCIATIO N, INC. • P.O. Box 8300 • Colorado Springs • Colorado • 80933 (719) 632-8300 or FAX (719) 632-6417

Ti1e British aristocracy. bless their collective contracted hearts, had a name for any sort of animal grouping. This was, no doubt, an adjunct to their passion for hunting, and woe to he who did not know the correct term for the game he was pursuing. We have all heard of schools offish, prides of lions and coveys of quail, but these aristocrats were also quite conversant with a skulk of foxes, a gam of whales, a pod of seals, a parliament of owls, an ostentation of peacocks, a drift of hogs, a singular of boars, a route of wolves, a crash of rhinoceros, a business of ferrets, a paddling of ducks and, of course a gaggle of geese. ivlost pilots are familiar with the latter expression. However, the onomatopoeic term "gaggle" applies on! y to grounded geese. When these garrulous waterfowl are flying, the group is known as a skein. Therefore, identifying a group of pilots in the same thermal as a gaggle is a misnomer that would leave a blue blood haughtily sniffing the air. But pilots in general, and hang glider pilots in particular, have always flown in the face FEBRUARY 1991

of tradition. So gaggle it is,and this month we'll explore the ins and outs of gaggle flying to see if we can't better duplicate the long-distance flying capabilities of a goose heading south.

READING A GAGGLE Glider pilots usually fly distances by boarding a themial elevator, then getting off to slide through sink until the next cycle of lift is found. The only difficult matter in the whole process is finding the lift. When other pilots (or birds) are in the air they greatly facilitate matters by accurately identify thermals. When a great number of pilots are all following the same route-as in a competition-matters are even more simplified and the significance of gaggle lore comes to the forefront. The first thing to note is what a gaggle tells us from a distance. Sometimes we see gliders in the distance strung out vertically in a thermal and sometimes they arc bunched up like a swarm of albino gnats. This reflects the different types of thermal conditions: columnar or bubble form.

A thermal column forms when there is a large area of superheated air to supply the thermal at its trigger point. Bubble thennals occur when air heated on the ground is of limited volume (over a field, perhaps) or the heating is so intense that bubbles pump out in succession, being replaced by cool air from aloft that shuts off the thermal for a while until it too is heated. Both types of thermals can often be found on the same day in the course of a flight. Watching a gaggle in front of you can tell you what type of thermal is up ahead. When gliders are spaced vertically, we can be sure we are seeing a constant-feed thermal and this warrants flying a bit faster to reach the thermal since we are fairly sure that it will be there when we get to the gaggle 's location. On the other hand, when a gaggle is of limited height we can't be sure of lift beneath the thermal bubble, so more caution is needed and altitude should be conserved. Only if you are sure that your glide will allow you to intercept the gaggle should you pull on the appropriate speed.

Occasionally a hot spot will pump out one bubble after another and multiple gaggles will f01111 stacked to the sky. In this case, pilots falling out of an upper bubble and those coming in from a distance will encl up in a lower bubble gaggle. Generally, this thermal condition is almost as reliable as a column so you can be less conservative on your approach, although you may have to wallow around a bit in the between-thermal chop if your timing is off and you have to wait for the next cycle. Predictions of this sort are al ways a calculatecl gamble as indicated by an example from the 1990 pre-World meet in Brazil. A large group of pilots approached another gaggle of about 30 pilots stacked up several thousand feet, all circling like whirligigs and climbing with glee. By the time the gliding group reached the area the lift suddenly shut off. I was with the hapless late group, half of whom ended up hitting the deck while the rest of us piddled around in didclly lift as we gradually drifted on to other thermal triggers while losing precious time. This story illustrates that even columns glistening with gliders for thousands of vertical feet have a limit to their duration and this limit is very difficult to predict. Of course, cross-country flying would soon get boring if it were totally predictable. Two things can aid your calculation of thermal duration, however. The first is simply observing what other thermals have acted like during the clay, tempered with the realization that they should last longer as peak heating occurs and continue to do so toward evening, although they get weaker. It is reasonable to look back to see what happens to a thermal after you leave it as indicated by pilots behind you on course. This can give you a very good idea as to what thermal longevity is. Of course, most of your attention should be directed to what's happening to the gaggles up ahead. The other clue to thermal duration is cloud formation. It has been detennined by meteorologists that it takes several thetmals or a goodly column duration to form a cumulus cloud that doesn't erode away immediately. If you find such a cloud in the younger stages, chances are it will harbor a durable thermal since thermal tracks tend to follow one another. If you see a gaggle up ahead climbing in a blue sky while clouds abound elsewhere, chances are the thermal is very unreliable and caution should be taken as you glide toward the hot spot. The final thing we'll try to learn from reading a gaggle is the themrnl 's nature. The nature of a thermal relates to size, multiplicity

of cores and strength. By observing a few circles as we approach a gaggle, we can see the thennal's general size and layout. If multiple cores abound, we should also observe pilots with discrete or overlapping circles. Finally, strength can usually be discerned by watching the bank angle of the pilot. It's a pretty good rule of thumb in a given area and especially on a given day that the steeper the bank angle, the stronger the thermal. Note that it is almost impossible to determine climb rates while you are gliding, since your rate of sink and distance from a gaggle greatly distorts the apparent climb rate. All of the preceding makes one assumption: that you carefully observe the gaggle behavior in the minutes that it takes you to glide from your last thermal to the next gaggle. Observation is one of the most important tools of a good pilot. Some pilots swear that certain types of sunglasses help them spot gliders in the distance and thereby give them more information sooner.

LINKING GAGGLES Some bright fellow-probably Euclid or one of his cronies-said the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. But he didn't reckon on the real world where considerations of motivation and gravity conspire to keep us from flying the straight and narrow path. When flying cross-country, we go from thennal source to themrnl source, cloud to cloud or gaggle to gaggle on a route favoring our ultimate destination. Detours are not uncommon. The most reliable link-up is from gaggle to gaggle. Sometimes it behooves us to go well out of our pathway to reach the sure thing. I failed to do this in one competition and was kicking rocks a few miles from goal while other pilots that did detour to the obvious gaggle got up and flew over my head with heart-rending impudence. However, we always must be aware of the gaggle cluster tendency whereby we tend to follow the security of the flock. This point was dramatically demonstrated to me on another flight in Brazil. In this case, about 20 of us had to cross a blue hole to reach a turn point. I saw a series of healthy clouds to the east and longed to go join them. I tentatively split the difference between a path straight to the tum point and that to the nearest cloud. Then suddenly the pilots gliding about a mile ahead began circling. That was it for me and I clove in to the rest of the pack like a sheep. As I clicl, however, I noticed Judy Leclen (Great Britain) head for the clouds. I lost

sight of her as I concentrated on thermaling, but we both made goal that clay and I found out that her wise detour gained her five or ten minutes of time as she was able to cruise in abundant lift under the clouds. The point to be made here is that while gaggles are fairly reliable indicators oflift, they are not indicators of wise decision making. I don't know how many times I have landed out with a whole gaggle plopping clown in the surrounding fields. We learn to use gaggles as information sources, not traffic directors.

IN THE GAGGLE MIDST After a long, insecure, elbow-tucking glide, there is nothing like hitting the upper-cut below a gaggle. As you wind up in the punch of lift, your mind can ease its fear of failure and concentrate on thennal-maxing mode. However, there are times when the lift below a gaggle is elusive. Climbing pilots as little as 25 feet above you may be in lift that dwindles at your altitude, but more often than not the core is simply tight and you missed it. Often thennals tilt, even if there's not much wind aloft due to the commingling of thermal tracks. As you approach a gaggle, try to detect this from the gaggle position and favor the upwind side. If you still can't locate the lift, try wider circles until you find some up air, then wrap around it and adjust yourself into the core. It goes without saying that you should begin circling in the same direction as those above you, even if you are 1,000 or more feet below when you enter the thermal. Gliders often reach the top of a thermal and their climb slows, which allows lower gliders to catch up. On many occasions I've seen lower gliders circling opposite those above, and the whole gaggle compressed into one big mass of confusion. Not a pretty sight when you are in the midst of it with gliders zinging every which way around you. Sometimes you enter a gaggle between a clockwise group above and a counterclockwise group below (or vice versa). Here a choice of circling directions must be made. In my opinion, it is better to circle in the direction of those above since you can watch those below and turn the other way if they catch up to you. Unfortunately, in a thick gaggle everyone's efficiency suffers. This is because sometimes a core warrants a circle tighter than two or more gliders can reasonably squeeze into, especially if turbulence lurks in the thermal mass. In this case, all gliders flatten out their bank angles and climb more slowly. Sometimes you can find a

HANG GLIDING

separate nearby core that al lows you to out-climb the rest of the gaggle. Other times, if you are near the top of a gaggle, you can find an opportunity to turn inside other pilots at your level, thereby gaining an increment of lift that lets you climb above them readily and keep gaining on them as you clear out the top with a more efficient circle. This is a common enough experience in groups of local soaring pilots. To excel in gaggle flying you must keenly watch the other pilots orbiting with you. Their progress keys you into the best lift. If you see another pilot at your level surge up as he goes around you, try to adjust your circle to center on that surge. If he is equally competent he will be doing the same. Working together in this manner helps both pilots. Remember, in cross-country competition, everyone in your gaggle is your friend until final glide. In engineering school we had a saying, "cooperate and graduate." Be on the lookout for multiple cores. This phenomenon tends to be the rule rather than the exception. Some cores tend to rise faster than others, but they also tend to be sporadic, so it's not unusual to jump cores only to find the pilots who stayed put eventually catch up and pass you. The closer another core is, the longer pilots have been climbing in it and the more they are out-climbing you, the more reasonable it is to leave your core for the more attractive one. The final matter to point out is to not fall prey to gaggle psychology in the matterof cloud base fixation. A good percentage of any gaggle will take a thermal on up to the stratosphere if it goes that far. In the words of Chris Arai, "Don't waste time on slow climbs near cloud base." If you know the area and know the day (observation, remember?) you can improve your average speed considerably by only using the stronger lift during the better part of the day. All of this is a judgment call, of course, but with modern cross-country competition, the winner is he who exhibits all the necessary skills and takes a few calculated corner-cutting risks. To be a good gaggler you must learn to look for the next gaggle while thermaling, concentrate on the gaggle while gliding, read the gaggle itself as you approach it and understand that message in the behavior of the individual pilots within the gaggle. This is no small challenge, but success comes with awareness and practice. We have tried to apply the awareness, now go find a crowded sky and practice. Your reward will be a flight in which you climb through a thermal-clogging flock to become a successful gaggle of one. Ill

FEBRUARY 1991

Tudor Sets Two World Records With

303 Mile Flight On Wms Wing HP AT Hobbs, NM - Wills Wing factory pilot Larry Tudor flew his HP AT 158 into the record books twice in one flight here recently, when he launched on an incredible 303 mile flight from Hobbs to Elkhart, Kansas. Tudor became the first pilot ever to fly a hang glider more than 300 mil"· ,Jarir "is go~I before Ja-mch 9 • '·e "f);,.. 0

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Wms Wing Team Wins Fourth Consecutive League Meet Title Telluride, CO - The Wills Wing factory team continued their domination of the highly competitive Manufacturer's League M, by winning their fourth consecutive team title here recently. All three team members were flying Wills Wing's top of the line competition glider, the HP AT. In 1987, Wills Wing placed first, second and third in the team standinJZs in the Lea)Zt1e Meet, as W( _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ·-.,.bot

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Wills Wing HP AT Pilots Take Top

National and International Ranki Wills Wing HP AT Pilots Larry Tudor, Jim Lee and Randy Haney have garnered the top U.S. National and International competition rankings based on their recent competition performances. Tudor is both the number one ranked pilot in the world and the top ranked pilot in the T1 · ~·1tes. Jir» tee ~ Wms Wing HP AT

158 H~~rankeil.

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Highest Measured L/D In a recent L/D contest held in Europe, the Wills Wing HP AT 158 recorded the highest L/D of all gliders

tested, at .l~.49,: 1. Other competing gliders, in_ th, Four Six Team Pilots order of f1msh m the contest, were the Enterprise • • Wings Foil Combat 152, the Airwave Kiss K2 l Choose Wms Wing HP AT For Moyes XS Race, the Bautek Zephir CX, the Alf Kiss K2 155, and the Seedwin~c Sensor 510 E World Championships Four of the six pilots qualifying for the 199 l U.S. Team FA! World Championships have chosen the Wills Wing AT 158 to fly in the World Meet. Known for its superit combination of climb and glide performance, the HP A'1 expected to perform especially well in the conditions ex at the site of this year's contest, which is to be held in B Many foreign pilP'" ' ··P. also er' n the HP AT fort~ 0

much is your life worth? Juries have answered that q11estion with multi-million dollar awards as supposed comprnsat ion for wrongl'ul deaths. some dispassionate scicn-· tis ts have argued that if reduced 10 base minerals, a human being is worth only slightly more than l11c price of a McDonald's Happy Meal. Most or 11s would agree thnt life's value cannot be measured by monetary standards alone. Our lives, like an irreplaceable work ol' art, arc priceless. Y cl when it comes to purchasing an but potentially lifesaving piece of hang gliding equipment such as a rocket -deployed parnchutc system, many of us balk like Leona I lelmsley on the threshold of a Motel (i. Safety often carries a price lag, and despite the incstirnablc value we place on our lives, practical considerations force us to balance our safety aspirations with our finances. There arc, however, numerous items that, owing to their low cost, even the most parsimonious pilot can't afford to resist. l<'or less than the'. price of an average "f'lashing blue light special" you can purchase safety equipment so cffoct ive that it must be regarded as essential. To stimulate your thinking, here are a few about safety accessories "on the cheap."

pilots may balk al: spending hundreds of dollars for such high-tech safety devices as ballisticallydeployed parachute systems. are some safety jcJr which money is no excuse.

TELLTALE I\ foot-long scrap of yarn attached at eye level to your l'ront flying wire, this simple device is invaluable for alerting you to wind conditions where and when they arc most critical: right at your just prior to initiating your takeoff rn11. If purloined from granny's knilling the price can't be bcat--free!

BACKUP CARAIIINERS Evcrnot ice that your parachute bridle is allached 1101 lo you, but to your carnbincr') Ir your carnbincr broke, your glider would go one way, your chute another, and you a third and most unpleasant dircclimi. But a small carahincr, a clrnin repair link, or even a loop or strong rope passed through both the harness main support lines and the parnclrntc bridle eye will your paraclrnlc a11ached lo YOlJ in the even! of carnbincr failmc. The Quik-Link can be found in various load al any hardware store for a measly $2 or less.

BACKUP HAN(; LOOP In English class we learned that redundancy is bad; in hang gliding redundancy is good (wrilc that on the blackhoanl one hundred times). You

II. "tell tale" made from scrap yarn. Granny's

loss is your gain.

Steel carabiner is backed up by a steel Quiklink. Rubber bands keep harness mains from up onto carabincr gate.

f L\NC Ci.lDINC

parachute in the conlaim,r un1il you pull the chute handle, thus releasing the pins. There were several unin1enlional chute deployments before tlicse simpk devices became s1andard equipment on modern harnesses, and even many ballistically-dcploycd systems still require sa/'cty locks. If your harness docsn 't have them you can get retrofit components for under $8.

The chute exits from lhe bottom on !his BRS system, so safety lod,s were placed m1 the lo unintentional de1ptc,yn1e11t. us1, this lype of lock a handdeployed system.)

need a secondary hang loop in case your pri· mnry should fail. It should be of equal or greater slrcnglh lhan your main loop, and one 10 1hrce inches longer. Since ii 's frequently mounted in a slightly different location than the primary, being longer prevents ii from interfering with glider handling during normal flighl. The mlditional length also prolects ii from in .. flight wear, and alcrls you to failure of' your primary when you drop down closer to the basctube (obviously, don '1 make it so long that you drop onto the basctuhc). Backup hang loops, a prerequisite for every flight, arc ultra-cheap Ii/'c assura111·e for $5 to $13, depending on the type.

HOOK KNIFE On a maiden flight wi1h a virgin glider, an Oregon coastal pilot somehow found himself in the surf' on top of his inverted kitG as the ocean breakers tried to in1roducc them both 10 Moby Dick. The situation could have been disastrous if he'd not had a hook kni/'c~ .. it went lhrnugh his hang loops faster than Roseanne Barr lhrough a cheesecake, leaving him free to spl:1sh lo shore. l·'.vcn if you don't !'ly nc<1rwatcr, hook kniv1cs can sl:rvc lo liberate you from your paraclrntc if being dragged by slrong winds after touchdown 11ndcr canopy. Tile Rolls of hook knives, with doub[c .. sidcd blade, shcalh and spare blades, will only sci you back a pal1ry $ !3.95. STEEi, CAIV\HINERS '])' .. shaped, with a Jocking gate, and rated al I J ,000 pounds bre,1king a higlHJual ity steel 'bincrwill give you more pcaccol'rnind 1han sal'e sex. They're sold by most hang glicJ .. or mmmrnincering dealers, but don'I be !empted hy the cheaper alurninurn variety, or

Backup hang loop. Don't leave the ground without one.

oval shaped notl··locking units, regardless or their rated s1reng1h. Due lo 1heir propensity to s\ress-crack, aluminum carabincrs arc rapidly becoming more obsolete than keel pockets. J\t a comparatively exorbitant (by this article's standards)$ IS $20, a steel carabincr is a for which you should save your lunch money.

PARACHlJTE SAFETY LOCKS A blossoming parachute is a gratirying sigh1 to a pilot whose glider has broken in night. Bu1 a flier who's just suffered a11 inadvertent chute deployment might well say the same words as the l'orcig11cr referring to the obviously myopic race horse off the I rack: "It 110 look so good 1"

Parnclrnle sal'ely locks consis1 or small, curved pins attached 10 the chute deployment handle, which arc inserted through bungee loops through grommets ou the harness parachute container. They erfoctivcly lock your FEBRUARY 199]

Doug McClellan exclaims that when you're flying over nothing but wet, you'd gladly pay $13.95 for a hook knife.

RUBBER HANDS These clas1ic t:llipses can do more lhan keep your Sunday paper rolled up. When wrapped around the lower portion of your carabincr, between lhc gate and your harness mains, they will keep your carabincr from turning horizonially (during ground handling or in-flighl turbulence) and suspending you from the gate, a precariously weak section of the carabincr. Costing less than the proverbial dime a dozen, as Bob Barker said: 'The price is right."

TOWING PREFLIGHT CHECKLIST Truck towing is a complex procedure, ofkn requiring 1hc coordination of multiple crew members. AI leas I one professional low operalor has devised a system for managing the preflight chaos: permancn1ly affixed directly in front of the pilot, scrawled in fol! pen on a piece of scrnp plywood, is a preflight checklist, Before the "go to cruise" command is given, each item on the list is read aloud and verified. This routine has contributed to thousands or safe tow launches further proof that the best things in life are free.

FJRST AID KIT With the exception of Torrey Pines, most hang gliding siles arc11'1 convenient to medical racilitics. Whether you assemble your own first aid kil, or purchase a commercially marketed unit, a ruclimcntary collect ion of medical supplies can be oh· taincd cheaply enough lhat I here's no excuse 110110 have om,. S1ore it in your harness and learn how to use ii. It is always distressing Tow pilot and passenger go over preflight checklist. Pholo by Nancy Landes. lo see pcnny--pinching pilots flying dilapidated gliders with distorted paint, or by postponing repainting until m:xt c!owntulJcs, faded and threadbare harnesses, or year. Hang gliding equipmcnl is not the place 10 stint; economize possibly, bul never comprofrayed tubularnylon parachute bridles. All hough this arlicle proffers some inexpensive safety mise. That invaluable life of yours is dependent enhancers, it should no! be inferred that one can on your gl icier and accessories. makl: like Scrooge McDuck regarding safety. Save whl,n you can, but spend when you should. II Hang gliding isn't analogous to house painting, where you can save money by buying cheaper

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USHGA REPORTS

1990 USHGA Regional Director Election Results by Pat Robbins he following regions are now represented by the following reelected or newly elected directors: REGION I REGION 2 REGION 3 REGION 4 REGION7 REGION 8 REGION 9 REGION 10 REGION 12

Gene Matthews (reelected) Connie Bowen (reelected) Sandy King (reelected) Mark Mocha (reelected) Rod Hauser (new director) Randy Adams (new director) Jeff Sims (reelected) Rick Jacobs (new director) Paul Rikert (reelected)

The remaining regions (5, 6 and 11) are represented by directors elected in 1989, who are currently fulfilling their duties. In Region 8, Randy Adams was elected by write-in votes. Candidate Glen Nicolet was elected at the November Board of Directors meeting as Director-at-Large following his notification to the election committee of a professional relocation out of Region 7, to Albuquerque, New Mexico in Region 4. Glen regretted having to decline his Region 7 nomination

during mid-election, but could not bypass a job transfer opportunity. Rod Hauser subsequently received the most votes for this region. The vote count for the 1990 election of directors for 9 regions was 1,058. The ballot was sent out to 7,836 eligible members for a return rate of 13.5%. This is a decline in response of 1.9% from the 1989 election, when 7,496 ballots were sent out and I, l 57 were returned. Breakdown of votes by region: Region I 108 Region 2 194 Region 3 177 Region 4 115 Region 7 107 Region 8 63 91 Region 9 Region IO 134 69 Region 12 USHGA directors in all regions thank you for your votes. Congratulations to all elected directors! •

We Know You Are Out There! by Pat Robbins

few months ago the USHGA Headquarters staff challenged the membership to respond to the questionnaire sent with the ballot on the November issue of Hang Gliding magazine. Our thanks go to the members who took the time to respond to the questionnaire in a thoughtful manner. The cumulative results of your questionnaire answers are listed below. Your comments will set the direction for issues that USHGA will address in 1991.

FEBRUARY 1991

The top ten (there were 16 categories) items of interest were: 1. Site procurement 2. Public relations 3. Magazine 4. Insurance 5. Safety and training 6. Competition 7. Better infonnation 8. Merchandising 9. Budget and dues IO. Paragliding

Major improvements you would like to see in 1991 are: l. 2. 3. 4.

More and better site procurement Better public relations National site guide Better articles and more color pictures in the magazine 5. Embrace paraglider pilots 6. Need to "limit landowner's liability" 7. Better liability insurance 8. Include medical insurance 9. Tandem and towing program improvements 10. More emphasis on safety 11. Membership campaign 12. More timely renewal of liability insurance USHGA staff members are actively working on many of the items on the "wish list" for 1991. Site Procurement Guide: Sandy King is presently chairing a committee which is writing a guide for the purchase and management of a new site. A report on the committee's progress will be presented at the April, Board of Directors meeting. Public Relations: The year 1991 was one of our busiest from a public relations standpoint. Numerous newspaper and magazine articles on hang gliding were published and state tourism offices featured hang gliding in their ads. On television, Rescue 911, 60 Minutes, National Geographic Explorer and a number of sports network shows also covered hang gliding events this year. Mitch MacAleer and Jerry Forburger participated in the Olympic Festival in Minneapolis, while John Heiney executed repeat performances at the Chicago Air Show and the Colorado Springs Balloon Festival. A Fourth of July Fly-in opened the Hobbs New Mexico touring meet. The updated USHGA Public Relations Guide is available for member/club use in their efforts to promote local club activities. National Site Guide: Currently, localized site guides are available from hang gliding and paragliding clubs. Admittance regulations apply to some club sites. To reach clubs in a designated geographic area, you may reference the Hang Gliding Organization Directory or call the Headquarters office.

USHGA REPORTS Magazine: A goal in 1991 is to improve and expand the content, advertising and quality of Hang Gliding magazine. Paragliding Division: Russ Locke's December, 1990, article in Hang Gliding magazine discussed the fonnation of a paragliding division. USHGA members may join the paragliding division, receive Paragliding, The_Magazine, and apply for paragliding ratings based upon the APA rating system. A fee of $15.00 will be charged for this additional membership. A person joining the USHGA paragliding division as a full member must pay a full USHGA membership fee with their application. Paragliding ratings must currently be obtained through AP A certified instructors or a USHGA member holding a paragliding instructor rating. Liability Insurnnce: Final claims, statistics and demographics for 1990 are currently being processed by our insurance carrier. While we await a rate quote for 1991, we have received assurance of a renewal of liability coverage. Medical Insurance: Headquarters is actively negotiating with an insurance caITier for the best rates in the area of excess medical insurance. The information we are receiving in the Headquarters office is that the membership (77. I% of those responding) is in favor of this type of insurance. A great percentage of the respondents state they currently have basic hospitalization coverage. A proposal is being prepared for the Insurance Committee for discussion at the April Board of Directors meeting in Seattle. Safety: Russ Locke has challenged the membership to a fatality-free year. Your responses to the questionnaire show that there are a great many accidents which go unreported because pilots consider the accident to be too minor. It is necessary for USHGA Headquarters to be informed of all accidents, so that a true evaluation of each year's safety statistics can be recorded. Let's not forget Doug Hildreth 's annual accident report summary and his monthly articles which promote hang gliding safety as well as report on the causes of reported accidents. Membership: Direct mailings, introductory offers and promotional material which highlights USHGA benefits and encourages participation is being sent to expired

members, one-month members and inactive members. Thank you for your response to the 1991 questionnaire. This year's response percentile was 14.7% (1,344 responses) compared to 15.4% last year.•

Demographics For your general information, the demographic profile of those who returned questionnaire responses is as follows: Average Age: Sex: Average income: Average education:

Married vs. single:

36.9 years 6.7% female 93.3% male $40,932 57.5% college grads 33.2% some college 9.3% high school grads 55% married 45% single

Ratings:

Hl-7% H2-17% H3-27% H4-42% H5-7%

Most popular glider manufacturers: l. Wills Wing 2. Pacific Airwave 3. UP Repack chute in 1990? 56.4% yes Chute type: 89 .4% hand deployed 10.6% ballistic Compete in Regionals: 5.2% yes Insurance: 88. l % have own hospitalization Towing: 35.2% yes Tandem towing: 22% Type of towing: 57% truck 20% foot 11 % aero 12% boat Tow device: 21.2% static line 69.7% pay-out winch 9.1 % stationary winch

Financing USHGA into the '90s Report and Graphs by Dan Johnson, USHGA Treasurer RED TO BLACK Six years ago your association was in terrible shape. Reel ink ran throughout the accounting statements. The statements themselves were so poor your directors didn't know how, where or why your association was losing money. Back in early 1985 your board rather arbitrarily chose a figure of $10 as a membership clues increase, hoping this might stem the tide of loss. The increase was hotly debated, as no director wished to raise clues, especially while all were uncertain as to exactly what the problems were. It was, however, a good decision. We know this through the clarity of hindsight. As we concluded 1990, our nowprofessionally-executed financial statements

illustrate that USHGA has operated in the black and will end the year with a modest surplus. Rather than review the dry figures, graphs are used to portray the essential figures (they proved quite popular last year).

METAMORPHOSIS As you peruse the financial status via the graphs, know this: While the scenario is vastly improved from those glum clays of 1985, it is not all black ink, nor is the future anything like secure. Credit, where clue, must be given. Under President Russ Locke, a team of dedicated staff and directors transformed the association. The $ l O clues increase bought some time. All spending growth was stopped. Programs were cut-notably the director's travel reimbursement. Other savings were HANG GumNG

USHGA REPORTS

•

Revenues grew in all areas for 1990 .

1989

thousands of dollars of income (does not equal 100% of all revenues)

D 1990

100 -.--------,

200 190 180 170 160 150 140

350 340 330 320 310 300 Membership

90 -t----------1 80--1 70-1------1

60 50 Magazine

FEBRUARY 1991

Other

IPlease Note: Each graph uses a different scale to aid in reading the figure:

Source: USHGA Office Analysis

realized by using the smallest possible staff, housing that staff in low cost (substandard) quarters, and providing less money to committees that serve specific member interests. Such changes weren't popular with members; with the changes came much longer response times for example. You can't expect a staff of three to accomplish what a staff of eight can, at least not in the same amount of time. As usual, "You get what you pay for," and we clicln 't pay for much during those very lean years in the mid to late '80s. As things began to improve-partly because of the breathing room afforded by the 1985 clues increase-changes began to happen. As we look back, most of those of changes (but not all) were for the better. A first attempt at hiring an executive director ended unhappily. All the old staff members were eventually released (some with severance pay) as the whole office was moved away from its birth state of California. A new executive director was hired from the insurance industry. All new staff were hired, and the new director took a year refining the employment mix. I will not repeat the successes of these many, often difficult changes. Suffice it to say that today your USHGA is well organized, effectively serving the needs of the member (as was rarely the case in the mid to late '80s).

Programs

Merchandise

But Membership (dues) growth lagged. percentage of overall revenues of USHGA from l989 to 1990

==--t--,, All categories grew

as a percentage except Membership. t - - - + - - - - - - - - - - - - - - , - - - - - - 1

40 30

•

1989

1990

Membership

Magazine

Merchandise

Programs

Other

Source: USHGA Office Analysis (may not equal 100%)

MEDICINE BALL What was the cost of all this improvement? As members, you will pay a $10 clues increase after six years, which translates into improved services, upgraded office and computer equipment with greater support capability, and a professionally organized office facility. What is USHGA's financial status today and what will it be in five years? Your organization ended 1990 with a small surplus as in 1989, but at the present membership

clues rate, USHGA will suffer increasing financial difficulty over the next five years as the result of rising costs. If we do not increase clues, what might happen? The association will increasingly be forced to cut back on programs and services, as costs like printing, postage ( 1991 promises a whopping increase), insurance, shipping, and taxes continue to increase. One or two people would have to be let go and services would take up to 25% longer than today's fast responses. Other valuable employees might leave for new jobs, convinced that the

USHGA REPORTS Listen to another comparison: The Soaring Society of American (SSA) has twice our membership. Those members just saw their clues increase to $45 in the first of a series of announced increases. While SSA has about twice the dues income, it need pay no costly liability insurance premiums. Such coverage is not one of the SSA's member benefits, since their members' aircraft are fully FAA-regulated, and they are thus able to obtain insurance which they pay for individually. For USHGA, insurance is a major expense that must come from clues. You get more for your money.

The primary cost of running USHGA headquarters is salaries and wages for the staff. ~~~~~~~~~---'~

160

140

120

100

Salaries/Wages

(fJ

.9'

(f)

Source: Unaudited 1990 year-end USHGA records.

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Headquarters Expenses Association holds no future or security. What is the simplest solution? Raise the member dues. Listen to one comparison. Let us take a look at the pattern of clues increases for USHGA--even back to a time when it was the Southern California Hang Gliding Association. YEAR 1973 1974 1977 1978 1980 1982 1985 1991

DUES INCREASE PER YEAR $ 5.00 DNA I 00% (I year) $ 10.00 $ 15.00 17% (3 years) $ 20.00 33% ( 1 year) $ 25.00 13% (2 years) 9% (2 years) $ 29.50 $ 39.00 11 % (3 years) $ 49.00 3.8% (6 years)

The chart shows that the planned dues increase-when amortized and compounded over the last six years-is below the rate of inflation and cannot account for the large improvement in member services, not to mention a more professionally equipped headquarters. You can take your medicine in small, more palatable closes, or swallow the bad stuff all at once and put it behind you. One result of the latter approach is that additional

services can be considered. With the fonner, the association would probably limp along each year, barely breaking even, unable to add new programs because funds wouldn't allow it.

THE "JUST SAY NO" CAMP Of course, some naysayers believe USHGA's clues and expenses to be completely out of hand. Dissidence is a time-honored American tradition, and without it we would be poorer. What about not having a clues increase? How instead might we cut costs? Certainly, planned improvements like a larger magazine with broader circulation, more interesting merchandise, or updates of our new four-color brochure would have to be scrapped. Training books wouldn't be possible, nor would Special Edition magazines, nor videos, nor other membership growth activities. Funding for all committees would have to be cut to the bone. Travel funds which allow our executive director to

Printing continues to be the dominant expense in producing USHGA's award-winning magazine. $5,751 $11,304

Total Magazine Expenses: $223,063

Source: Unaudited 1990 year-end USHGA records.

Printing

Direct Labor

Post & Ship

[]

Typesetting

Ii Photo Prep

Magazine Expenses HANG GLIDING

USHGA REPORTS Merchandising has increased to become a more important revenue center for USHGA. $4,501

Total Merchandise Sales $94,943

$5,863

Calendar

D Publications D Apparel [O

Accessories

Ill Back Issues

Source: Unaudited 1990 year-end USHGA records.

Merchandising Revenues secure savings or further cooperation with other sporting associations would not be available. USHGA could again cut the director travel reimbursement-always controversial funding-but this saves less than you may think, since it only pays a director 50% of his airfare expense alone (no lodging or meal expenses), and only reimburses airfares al bargain rates. It's so small an amount that some directors dee line the financial assistance. USHGA could also cut staff, however this would delay all membership and associated services. With a staff of only eight people it is difficult to cut, say, 5%, since laying off one person represents about a l 3o/c cut all at once. The Association could hold back salary increases or other employee benefits, but it then risks losing valuable, experienced employees. As programs on the budget chopping block would be put there hesitantly, odds are that operational costs would increase faster than cutbacks could be made. Thus, at best, USHGA would run unprofitably; at worst, additional and immediate program or personnel cutbacks would have to be implemented.

FEBRUARY 1991

business need, overall priority, and consistency 1vith the plan. To ensure that sound financial controls are in place and to gain the benefit of their recommendations, the board of directors authorized funds to retain a CPA for a full audit of 1990 financial activities. The report (to be completed in the second quarter of I 991) will independently attest to USHGA 's present economic status. It will also serve to assist the executive director in monitoring and managing the initial cash accumulation. USHGA is always open to ideas on managing the Association. Please work with your regional director to get your ideas in circulation. You can also run for director yourself. Chances are good that a serious effort to get elected will be successful. Then you can influence these decisions direct\ y. USHGA will certainly be a better organization if more people try to make it the best it can be. •

CURRENT ACTION PLAN No, like it or not, downsizing is difficult and not always a rapid cure. We could try, and it would take our best effort. Or we can increase clues (along with other increases, like a substantial hike in advertising rates). Your finance committee, executive committee, and executive director felt the clues increase was the best choice. Their decision was backed by your full board of directors. A clues increase to $49 annually (full members) will become effective with memberships clue on or after April I, l 99 l. In the initial year or two a cash accumulation will be produced by this increase. How will USHGA assure that an early reservoir is still available when it is needed by the mid'90s? To address this and other questions our executive director prepared a comprehensive five-year preview. This projected evaluation of USHGA revenues and expenses illustrates the predicament we face without a clues increase. Further, the projection discusses a number of options to increase revenue in other areas like advertising, merchandising, and other member services. Such a projection also helps determine how the director can draw upon the cash accumulation to meet expenses when needed. However, such expenses will be subject to review and justification on the basis of

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HANG GLIDING 101

Hang Gliding Equipment What to Buy & How to be Sure the Old Stuff is Still Serviceable © 1991 by G.W. Meadows Here it is the month of February and because of deadlines for the magazine I don't know how successful we are so far concerning our fatality-free year, but I am confident that we're moving along quite successfully at this point. This is the time of year during which many of us do our flying on video screens and in log books; much more time is spent thinking about flying than actually taking to the air. While we're spending time reading and planning this season's flying, let's take a look at our equipment. This is a great time of year to not only purchase new equipment, but to do a good, thorough annual on our current equipment. Accidents that occur as the result of poor equipment maintenance are 100% preventable. This article will deal with what equipment to purchase and how to check out what you already own so that your in-the-air hours will be more relaxed.

NEW EQUIPMENT If you're planning on purchasing new equipment for this season, then I hope you have either a good job, a generous mom or spouse, or a recently deceased distant aunt who was wealthy and thought well of you. In short, all the new equipment out there is really getting expensive. That's not to say that it's not worth it. Gliders are getting much more sophisticated, with all kinds of exotic materials to make them last longer. Most new gliders are now built with higher tech 7075 aluminum for the main spars and ribs. (Remember recambcring your 6061 ribs every week?) One new glider that should

have just been released by the time you read this even uses composite materials for the main spars. VG systems arc constantly being improved. From levers to friction-reducing pulleys, the manufacturers are definitely not just sitting back and watching things happen. Yes, I feel the new gliders are worth the money, but that doesn't make it hurt your pocketbook any less when you fork over that chunk of change to your grinning local dealer. So before you blow the college fund, do your homework on the glider or other equipment that you're considering buying.

CERTIFICATION There is absolutely no reason to consider buying a glider that is not certified by a recognized organization. Here in the U.S. it is the HGMA. Before a glider can receive the HGMA's stamp of approval it has to pass tests that prove it is very strong, stable and maneuverable. Certification is one of the consumer's only assurances that a glider is as safe as it can be. You should definitely support the manufacturers who support glider certification. HARNESSES There is no governing body for certifying the strength of harnesses, however many harness makers do tests and have the results on file, and will be glad to send you copies of the findings. If you're buying a new harness you practically can't go wrong if you stick with a proven name or design. There are some new smaller companies that have recently started building harnesses and they certainly deserve a look. If you have questions about the

strength of a given harness ask a few dealers about them. If you can't get any agreement on the suitability of the harness, then you should probably stay away from that particular model. Remember, not all dealers sell the same brands, and you sometimes can get a more honest opinion by calling up a dealer who's not in your area (letting him know right away that you will not be purchasing from him), and saying that you'd like his opinion on a particular brand you are considering. He now has nothing to gain or lose by giving you the used car salesman approach and you're more likely to get honest feedback. Hopefully you have a good, trusting relationship with your local dealer and this won'( be necessary.

HELMETS In a sport such as ours it seems extremely stupid to fly with a hockey, bicycle or kayaking helmet. They are obviously designed for lower impact speeds, and in a hang glider crash may do little more than keep your brains in one easy-to-carry container. Get a good helmet-a full-face one if you can afford it. Your head is worth the extra bucks. PARACHUTES There are several good manufacturers of hang gliding reserve chutes and they are easy to find. If you buy a used chute, take it to your dealer and have him check it out; it may need a new bridle or some V-tabs. Make sure you know how to use your back-up system and

HANG GLIDING

HANG GLIDING 101 WARNING: The Instructor General has determined that using the information contained in this article without the assistance of a USHGA-certified instructor can break or kill you. Seek professional help! have it repacked every six months, or after getting wet or being abused in any other way.

V ARIOS AND ALTIMETERS I ain't even gonna touch this one. There are so many out there and more corning every month. Suffice it to say that the one that costs the most isn't always the best. Before you go buy an instrument that can pop popcorn while you're flying, make sure that you really want to eat popcorn in the air. That's a short rundown on what to look for in new equipment, but if the cost of new equipment has you liking your old stuff a little more every clay, then let's take a look a how to revitalize your current equipment for another year's service.

GLIDER First let's find an abnonnally warm day for this time of year, take the glider out and give it a nice bath using a very mild soap. Sail soap can be obtained at your local marina. Get a soft brush, wet that puppy down and go to work. You'll be surprised at how much better your glider will look when you're clone. After you've got it clean, take a look at its vital parts. The first thing to check is the wires. Run your bare hand along the entire length of each wire to check for frays. Visually inspect each wire for pennanent kinks. If any wire has a frayed area, replace it. If any of the lower wires have serious kinks replace them. You want to especially check where the wire enters the nico, since this area is particularly vulnerable to kinkage. If your lower side wires have two good seasons of flying on them, it'd be a good idea to replace them no matter how good they look. If you have any questions about your wires ask your dealer. JANUARY 1991

Next let's look at the bolts and hardware. If you vaguely remember that last season you had some not-so-good landings, then you will want to pay extra attention to a couple of areas. One is the bolt that goes through the apex of the control bar (not all gliders have this bolt). Bad landings can bend this bolt more easily than you'd think. Another area of concern is the downtube/ basetube fittings. Hard landings will often bend or deform these and now is a good time to replace them. Also, check the crossbar junction plates. Some gliders are designed so that these relatively inexpensive plates will bend on a hard landing rather than put the stress on the crossbars. Next, look at your noseplates. (I would suggest that you plan ahead at this point and have already purchased some new locknuts to replace the old ones when you're done.) Remove the bolts at the nose (one at a time) and pull the tube away to check the hole in the tube and nose plate for elongation. Pay close attention to how everything is put together BEFORE you take it apart. Replace one tube before removing another. NEVER TAKE ANY PART OF YOUR GLIDER APART IF YOU ARE (A) UNSURE OF WHAT YOU'RE DOING, (B) DON'T HA VE THE PROPER TOOLS, (C) ARE IN A HURRY. After returning all the parts at the nose to their original position (with new locknuts), take a look at the crossbar restraint system. Some gliders use a cable drawback system. Check the cable and all hardware in\'olved. Remember, this is one of the more critical parts of your glider. If this part should fail, your glider would become an instant dart. Now check all the bolts on the entire glider. Most will be obviously fine. If you have any questions about a bolt, ask your dealer. While you're checking the bolts at the

crossbar/leading edge junction, check the plate that services the same area. A thorough check of this area can be accomplished by taking the sail loose from the frame at the tip ( with the glider in the relaxed position) and gently pulling the sail up toward the nose until the crossbar/leading edge junction is exposed for inspection. If you have any doubts about how to do this leave it for your dealer or a flying buddy who is familiar with this procedure. While you have the leading edge exposed now is a good time to begin your tubing inspection. Check the exposed leading edge for bends and dents. After reinstalling the sail on the leading edge, sight clown both leading edges from the keel area to look for bends or dents. The same should be done for the crossbars, keel and downtubes. The absolute best way to check each tube for dents is to take the sail completely off (a job best left for your dealer). Short of that, laying the glider on its top (control bar up) and crawling inside with your shoes off is the best way to do a "hands on" inspection of the tubing. If any part of your glider looks even slightly questionable, have your dealer check it out. When you have the glider completely set up, check one side against the other to make sure the entire glider is symmetrical. Each leading edge should have the same bend; both washout tubes should point at the same angle; the reflex bridles should put the same amount of reflex in both sides of the glider. All of these things are most easily viewed looking from the front of the glider with the nose at about eye level. Be sure to check the sail out completely. Look for tears and fraying material. The trailing edge is the most important area to be really picky about. If you have questionable tears, ask your dealer. Before you put the glider away make sure that it is dry, including the tubing.

HANG GLIDING 101 HARNESS It's amazing how dirty a harness can get with a year of flying on it. It's equally amazing how nice your harness can look after a good bath. To wash your harness, first remove the parachute completely. Make sure you don't have anything left in the pockets, wet it down and take a soft bristle brush with soap and scrub away. Make sure when you're done that all the soap has been washed out. Hang it up and let it dry for a couple of days. All this can be done in a bathtub, or you can wash it outside and let it dry inside. Do not reinstall the chute until the harness is completely dry. Visually inspect ALL webbing. Beginning at the carabiner, look at and feel the mains all the way down to where they join the harness. You're checking for frays or

~&Vario:

any other anomaly. Also check for loose threads where the webbing is sewn together or to the harness. After finishing with the mains, check out the leg loops for the same problems. After you have checked all of the webbing on the harness, check all the other support lines. Any lines found with wear points should be replaced. Check all the knots for security. Retie any questionable connections. While checking the harness out, take a look at your carabiner. If it's not steel, replace it with a steel one. If you already have a steel carabiner, check the spring mechanism to make sure it is in good working order. Also, check the lock and make sure it is in sound mechanical condition. Do a general overall check of your harness to be certain it didn't sustain any structural damage during the last season.

DEALERS Your local dealer can answer all your questions concerning the annual preflight of your equipment. If you'd like to save yourself some time and effort, you can just drop off your equipment at your dealer and he can perform all of the above se1vices for you (for a fee of course). That's why he's there. Make sure that your equipment is in good repair before you start flying this upcoming season. Having good equipment is a large part of being safe. When in doubt, check it out. DON'T FLY WONDERING! •

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HANG GLIDING

HANG GLIDING 101

Goodbye Old Friend or, What Do You Do With A Worn OutWing? by Dave Dunning So, I finally scraped enough jack together to order a new glider. I'm glad that's done, but now the waiting game begins. What was that delivery time again? Six to eight weeks ... eight to ten weeks? Five to six months? In the meantime I'm still jumpin' the old wing and hoping it will see me through until the new one shows up. Don't get me wrong, it's old but still airworthy. How do you decide when your old glider has flown its last flight? What do you look for? Is it the faded colors of the sail, maybe that annoying flutter in the trailing edge that you just can't seem to tune out anymore, or the half-heard comments of your fellow pilots when you start to pack it up: "Hey Dumbo! When are you going to stop flying that old rag and get yourself a real glider?" Old gliders don't really die, they just get reincarnated as other stuff. Tubing that is still sound can be used for spare parts on other gliders. It can also be cut, drilled and shaped into almost any style of roof rack you care to create. The uses for an old sail are almost endless; they make great camping rain tarps. My old 510 will live again as wind flags that I'll be putting up in our LZs this spring. I'd still like to make a windbreaker out of some old spectrnm cloth. There's probably a market out there for someone: "Give us your tired, your worn out, your faded hang glider sail and we'll make you a one-of-a-kind jump suit. Only $87.95 plus postage." The majority of beginners in hang gliding start out on used gliders because they don't want to lay out the big bucks for new equipment. If the seller of the used equipment isn't the original owner, or even if he is but hasn't kept an accurate log book, the buyer may have no idea how much airtime the wing has seen. A lot of new pilots just want a glider and may not know what to look out for when buying used equipment. If the price is right, it will sell. While an airframe can go on seemingly forever in a sort of Frankensteinian way, the JANUARY 1991

"The majority of beginners in hang gliding start out on used gliders because they donft want to lay out the big bucks for new equipment. If the seller of the used equipment isnft the original owner the buyer may have no idea how much airtime the wing has seen.// ol' sail definitely has a limited life span. Depending on how well the sail is cared for, between three to five hundred hours of airtime is considered to be the safe usable life of a Dacron sail-cloth wing. A wing can also

age considerably just by sitting in sunlight soaking up a bunch of ultra-violent rays. A lot of pilots routinely stretch this "age envelope" by continuing to fly a glider well past this time frarne. If you can't drop a ping pong ball through it, it's still okay, right? Several generations of single surface gliders have been put out to pasture as trainers until they get so beat up that they have to be put away for the last time. The amount of airtime a sail has racked up is probably the best gauge to go by when deciding to retire a wing, if you know the number. Then there's the amount of abuse it may have endured: nose wacks, tree landings, etc. A lot of things go into figuring when a glider is on its last pair of downtubes, but you also have to go by the old "gut feeling." My old 510 still flies great, but when I look at it now, I know it's time to get out the scissors and convert it into wind flags. If your glider is really worn out, retire the darn thing. Don't push your luck flying a glider that has obviously seen better days. •

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hursclay Mau and I drove: from St. I .ouis to Jasper in Northern Arkansas en route: lo Larry fly.in al I Point. Due 10 a fro111al systc:n1 thro11gll 1he area, the: wind swung rrom the south to nortl!wesl in under lwo hours so we headed further south arriving at the point ,ilkr lunch. (iradually pilots from as far away as Tc:xas and Louisiana trickled up the road to launch where [ .arry has all the mod· cons n,quircd for a gre<il hang gliding weekend. J\s approached wc all huddled around the rirc to try to warm, and 1alk or filled the air. Excilc:mcnt was mounting as the weather service called Cor post frontal easterly winds ror for I l'oint. I lawn broke with a breeze slrnighl up the ramp. Larry had organized two cornpeti· lions · open if the weather was and a spol landing competition if it wasn't soarahle. llnforlunatcly the slrntus clouds never broke and lht: wind wasjus11oo light lo so practiced their soar Ilic spot landings. With lhc added incentive of a $50 and the presence or a camera man from Channel 4 News the launches and

landings were impeccable in the I ighl conditions. By mid.afternoon had flown at least once with Malt, Danny (TX) and Donna (J\R) 10 extend their in light Down in Ilic landing field the wind had been slightly hut this didn't pose any serious problems, and many pilots landed close enough tot he spot 10 make Larry measure the distance. J\t lhe end or the day rive pilots were a hair's breadth apart. That we all went lo Marlha's Kilchen ror some good southern and hack to launch to a cosy fire where en tcrt ai ncd us on 1he banjo. Sunday the winds were so liglit lhal went separate dircclions to fly. M;i!1, Roh, Gerald, Mark and l went truck towing Richard's and all got some smool h

tows in the dead air. Danny, Kelly and John from Texas didn' I seem to walll lo tow with all lhcse mountains around (?) so they and flew with Dave, Tappy, /\Ian, Donna ct al at the poinl. Despite the conditions everybody had a great lime and many friendships were formed and renewed. Personally, I think that with more cooperative wc:atlll'.r the has tremen· dous poh:ntial for pilots or all abilities wilh silcs for mosl wind directions, lowing possibilities and good ol' Southern hospital·· ity, thanks to J ,mTy Cor the event. It wcnl so smoothly 11ml he's 1hinki11g or having another in early Spring. Sec you all !here. The final in the spot·landing competition were: rirst, Don J\ndriw; second, Rob Simpson; third, Dave Evans. BELOW: Mau Nagel over launch at 1990

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The author's "Sundog" in flight: flaps down 011 final and legs too. Photo by Dave Slowe.

home-built tail-dragger takes ol'fwith flaps,

Michael proposes that eventually flaps will yield performance gains in soaring, allow steep landing approaches ,Dith minimal energy retention, allcYw selection of the safest effective ioing for the existing launch or landing conditions, and allow a noncollapsible wing to jcJld to a small, practica I

::m

ailerons and other unlikely gear ... Well, here we have the Sundog, the latest product or my ongoing !111111 for the best way to use flaps on a hang glider. Sundog (son of Sky Puppy, as presented in/ !angG!idi11g,.lu11c J 988) is an experimental rigid wing hang glider with flaps, ailerons, and fixed !ail surfaces. I designed and built Surnlog to sec how well naps would work on a full span wing, and so far, they work just fine. Although Sundog has not yet continuously soared, enough high flights have been performed to check out all thc flap positions, do some 360's, and generally feel out the design. The results so far arc generally positive, and seem to indicate that naps will have a place in hang gliding. In flight, the flaps arc doing what they're supposed to do, allowing me to fly fast when I want to and slow when l have to. /\djusting the flap position (which is done with a pull rope that locks to the hasctube, like a conventional V(, control) has an effect like a change in wing size, so I can select the size I want al any time. For takeoff and minimum sink l'light I use about JO degrees of flap, which reels to me like my other hang glider, a conventional 167 square root sailwing (my body weight is 160 pounds). With the naps fully retracted, the Sundog feels small (trims fast and has a high stall speed), and seems to have nice glide performance. For the

I lAI\C CurnNc

truly floataceous I use about 45 or flap, which makes for wonderfully slow landing speeds with almost no energy retention. This last quality allows me to dive into the landing area and touch down with almost no ground ski111, so I don't worry much about overru1111ing my landings. arc fun in the air. lt 's "di.il·a Pull the rope lo f'Joal or lei it in for speed, just like a super V(i system in reverse. The rope travel is only aboul eight inches, b11t the pull forces arc moderate. The view nice too. Flaps arc comrnonplacc, but is there any olhcr aircrnrt in the world where the far1hcst forward is the pilot's head'/ Y 011 have to look hack to sec your wing. Pitch control is by Ilic usual sailwing melliod, pilot weight shirt fore and art, and sc'.crns to although ag,1inst !he horizontal tail phrnc requires !Heavier pitch forces than normal Some shmlcning or the tail boom may relieve the forces a litllc, iJ'adcquatc trim can be rc:Wined. J\s with rny old i\colus, which was cs:,c11ti,1llv a tailed there a "pitch o matic'' cllccl, ,1 usually benign bu! gn.,alcr tlwn nornrnl lcndcncy \ll nose up in up··gusts and nose down in Since: this is what yo11 would normally do while soaring anyway, I don 'I sec and can be crn111tcractcd it as a I;lap position clrnngcs arc csscnlial ly m,11trnl in pitch, requiring 110 pilot action. Most of the abovG is no different than l discovered Puppy back in I 9S7, but Sundog isdilTc:rcnt hccm1sc it has a much greater ailerons J'or cffcclive span and roll control. (I lricd rudder control, but it didn'I work with this great a span.) The ,iilcro11s arc cable rigged to the pilot's harness so as to allow hin1 to roll lhe wing using sidc··to-sidc body motion in the normal sailwing manner. This allows the pilol to change posil ions and put his hands wherever he wants while slill in full Iurn control. These ailerons arc effective, fast and scnsilivc, but righl now the is unstable in roll and rc,quircs constant attcnlion lo rly, as well as a lot oJ'higli.siding in the turns. This may he a rcsull of lhc low wing dihedral angle (which was e:stahlishcd to make ground hall· dling easier) and slop in the control system (which was introduced to avoid ovcr·strcssing the control system in high acceleration m,.t·· neuvcrs when the hang loop stretches). I think both of these factors can Ile dealt wilh in fu1urc modiricatio11s, with which I cxpccl lo produce kinder ancl gcnt lerroll charactcrist ics. '!'here arc FFBRUi\RY 199"1

TOP: Tired but happy author on lhe training hill with Sundog. The fl;tps are fully deployed. Photo by Dan Sutherlin. CJ•:NTER: With proper design a mm-collapsible wing can be folded and stowed on a car-top rnck with room to spare! Pholo by Dan Bowell. ABOVE: "Walking the Dog" with a little help from the tail wheel. Photo by Dan Sutherlin.

HARNESS ATTACHBD ~LLBRON CONTROL SYSTEM

PILOT'S CONTROL MOTIONS ARE NORMAL AND NATURAL HANDS

ARE

FREE

SUNDOG SPAii ..

. 36. I

FT.

RRER. 135 SO. FT. RSPECT RRT/0 . .. 9. 7 LUICTH.

flRP SPAii..

. . 11

FT.

POSITIONS

AILERON CONTROL CONTINUOUS LOOP

CABLE,

WING PANEL

FLAP

CONTROL -------

PULL-ROPE FLAP ACTUATOR

§Mll~QQ

STRUCTURE

PR I KARY 2024-T3

gliders that take a lot getting used to, but I don't want Sundog to be one of them. Ground handling the Sunclog is similar to nonnal sailwing ground handling except you pick up only the front encl, letting the tail wheel roll along on the ground behind you. This has the advantage of not requiring any static balancing, nor does the pilot ever have to lift the glider's entire weight. (Sundog weighs 90 pounds but I never pick up more than about 70 pounds.) Launching requires the pilot to set his flaps as required for the terrain and wind"Let' s see, do I want the big wing for this launch, or shall I trim it a little smaller?"-and run down the hill until his tail rises into flying position, after which he's doing a normal hang glider launch. At restrictive sites, or in light winds when as much flap as possible is desired, I use an assisted launch technique wherein someone holds up the tail for the first two or so steps. This feels like a normal hang glider launch and allows launches off rounded benns

•SIMILAR TO A CONVENTIONAL V.G . .SYSTE:M •PULL & LOCK ROPE TO LOWER FLAPS

and short ramps, although steep cliff launches have yet to be attempted. The big problem in ground handling is keeping the wings level, especially when standing at launch. You might expect the ailerons to do the job, and in fact they work well when the wing has been set down and is just rocking around on the basetube. However, when you pick up the wing, roll control becomes very difficult because supporting the weight (of the front end) of the glider requires the pilot to step away from the high wing, which aggravates the situation by actuating the ailerons in the wrong direction. The positive side of this is that the roll control problem goes away as soon as you start forward into the launch run, and if standing at launch is a problem, that just means there's a lot of wind and the launch will actually be an easy one once you get stable and get going. I've pushed the nose up while flying with moderate and fast flap settings to test the slow flight characteristics of the wing. In both of

these flap settings the glider responded favorably with heavy bar return pressure, buffeting vibrations, and general balkiness, without any signs of sudden stalling or rolling off to one side. I didn't push to ultimate stall because I want lots of airspace when I do that test. My rocket-deployed parachute is always ready for action, but this kind of excitement I can do without. I don't really expect spin recovery to be a problem since I can move my center of gravity way far forward with ailerons neutral, and that should restore controllable flight. Sundog is constructed mainly of 2024-T3 aluminum tubing, cable braced and fabric covered. There are some areas of thin plywood and balsa, but I find myself using more and more small tubing instead of wood just because it's so quick and easy to make parts from. This was all a garage operation, using a hand drill and hacksaw, mainly. I was careful to avoid the use of any specially machined parts, since I wanted to demonstrate that homebuilding does HANG GLIDING

not require them. Convenience of transport and storage was one of the controlling ideas in the Sundog design. It doesn't matter how good your aerodynamic perfonnance is, if you can't store the wing in a garage and transport it on a n01mal rack along with other gliders, you might as well scrap it. Sundog wings get small by having the flaps and ailerons fold back onto the main wing section, yielding a footprint of 18 by 2.5 feetpretty small for a hardwing. The wings are stacked one on top of the other and strapped down onto a cartop rack, along with the disassembled keel and tail bundle, for transport. In good conditions the time required for assembly or disassembly is comparable to those of complex conventional sail wings. The major problem I encountered developing Sundog's ailerons was quite unexpected. In the conventional airplane manner, I built it with a 2.5 to 1 differential (with IO degrees up on one side you get four degrees down on the other) to prevent adverse yaw and eliminate the need for a rudder. What resulted was "proverse yaw," a tendency to over-yaw into the turn and then keep sliding sideways in the original direction. This made for many spectacular and exciting crashes on the training hill, and some exciting video footage, but this was not what I wanted. The eventual cure was to take out almost all of the aileron differential, and since then I have not noticed any yaw problems. Surprisingly, the adverse yaw I was trying to avoid has not yet showed up.

FEBRUARY 1991

I've been told that some early Fledglings (tailless, swept-back rigid wings with wing-tip turning rudders) had body-actuated tip rudders, but these were replaced by hand-controlled rudders because of concern about turbulence problems. This "turbulence amplification" might happen when a turbulent gust tips the wing a little relative to the pilot, actuating the roll control in the same direction, thus tipping the wing even more. I'll be watching for this effect, but for now it doesn't worry me greatly. I've never heard of anything like this from any Quicksilver pilots, and if the effect were serious I think it would be happening to sail wing pilots right now (maybe it is happening!). Just don't get close to me in the air for a while yet. All that thrashing around on the training hill gave me a pretty good idea of Sundog's crash safety prospects, which I think are okay despite the far forward position of the pilot. When flared, Sun dog tends to drop its tail rather than going over on its nose, so nose-ins (or beak-ins) are not common and tend to be gentle. As with all hang gliders, to be protected by the glider structure in a crash the pilot must be upright, not prone. Crash techniques differ, but I still follow the Rule of Maximum Destruction: maximum destruction of the glider results in minimum damage to the pilot. In impact situations I have always held the glider out in front of me and tried to destroy it, and my experience with Sundog indicates that this is still the way to go. During some of the slow flying the tail

planes were vibrating a little in torsion around the tail boom, so the stiffening l accomplished by splitting the aft rigging and attaching it to the horizontal tail plane has not yet totally suppressed this effect. It will probably be necessary in the future to spread the aft rigging attach points even farther apart than they are now. Future prospects certainly include more test flying, some soaring, and more modifications, at least the ones already mentioned. New flying and launch techniques will be developed, although it may be that steep cliff launches will still not be possible (the tail may be in sheltered air while the main wing is out in the blast). On the other hand, gliders with tails may never have to face the tuck sand-tumble problem that swept sailwings have never been able to overcome. Eventually, I expect flaps to do four things for hang gliders: I) they will yield performance gains in soaring; 2) they will allow steep landing approaches with minimal energy retention; 3) they will allow selection of the safest effective wing size for the existing launch or landing conditions; and 4) they will allow a noncollapsible wing to fold to a small, practical size. Aesthetically, I think Sundog looks good, but I have to admit I came closer to reinventing the Cessna than to reinventing the sailplane. Anyway, it's different, and I hope some people find it stimulating, because the whole point of this exercise is to generate excitement abmtt new directions in hang gliding. •

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by Roi Klingberg PREFACE design of aircrar1 is 1101 an exact science but rather a hlending of art, intuit ion and science. To create a rndically new wing the must unlcaslJ his intuition, but it is his tcchnic,il skill that provides the safety 11ct. Cmrenlly, there arc scvcrnl groups of people on various high--pcrl'ormancc sailplane-like hang We arc surely on the dawn or a new era in personal aviation. Rapid progress is being by leaps made and the 1eclrnology is and bounds. J\s dark, u11known phc110111cna arc and explored, risks will he taken. The technical skills of the designers and pilols will be tested. By designing a11d building F1,:rm11i\RY 1991

my I signed up to take a few of these tests. I believe I passed all or 111cm cxccpl for one, as you will sec. The article you arc about to read is somewhat mid the technical informa1ion may nrnkc it a bit dry. But there is an important story to be lold and failure often presents the l1t:sl opportunity to learn. II is my hope that all readers will heed 1hc information presented here and thereby avoid any unnecessary injuries or dealh. J\s we have seen in lhc past---such as when we wcrll rrom "standard" wings to today's high-pcrf'onnancc flex-wings- ---some people paid 100 high a price f'or !heir run. Unfortunatt,ly, lhcy were also ofkn known as customers. rm sure thal as the new supcrwings arc

ckvclopcd, some or them wi 11 go on sale before they arc really ready. So, please he careful and makt: sure you know the background of what you arc buying and flying, along with the qualifications of the designers and builclcrs. Finally, let me say thank you lo all of the engineers who either gave me guidance or worked on the Wi11g and made it as successful as ii was. ]Jere's a toast 10: Bob Parks, Dave Watson, l'hil Boyle, Dave Duff, Marslrnll Lee, Jack Huang, Pelc Redding, Jim McVernon, Sum Jlall, Jim !Jerold, Bob Dietz, Jim Wade, Doug Mci\llistcr, Mark Fahyonic, Charlie Fortcnbach, and lasl hul not lcasl, John Rashid. I'm sure J'vc left a couple of folks off the list hul as they say, it's lime for the show.

Figure 1 1.6

Re= 3,000,000

1.2 Lift 0.8 0.4

Angle of Attack (degrees)

c---~----c____::::-,~~"'.':,

NACA0015

Modified NACA 0015

FAILURE ANALYSIS:

THE KLINGBERG WING Before the Wing crashed on March 25, 1990 it had about five hours of flight time and had showed no nasty tendencies. On the day of the crash I watched as the Wing stalled and went into a spin. I could not believe my eyes. I had designed the Wing to not spin, unless forced to do so. Stall. Spin. These two words combined together can cause even the most experienced pilot to cringe. Stall-spin accidents cause 30% of the deaths in light aviation. The FAA has mandated that all new private aircraft be made spin proof and some flight schools have even removed spin training from their courses. Most stall-spin accidents occur on turn to final approach or on the departure turn. In the various soaring sports the story is somewhat different. This article will focus on the causes of the stallspin accident of my Wing. A stall-spin can be caused by several factors. These include pilot error, aft CG location, tip stall and other possible factors. In this case I know the Wing was not forced to spin. The stall was gentle and there were no large control inputs. The nose should have simply dropped and the Wing continued on straight and level, with a minimum loss of altitude. The CG location is a possible problem due to the length of Monte's legs. He may have been in an aft position. But, there was so little of the glider in one piece, after the crash, that I will never know

for sure where the CG was at the time. When the model was flown with an aft CG there was only a small tendency to spin unless it was in a negative static margin condition. This leaves the other significant possibility-tip stall. The following text will discuss the possible cause of a tip stall.

Tip Stalls When flying both sailplanes and hang gliders the pilot spends a large amount of his flight time near stall speed. The reason for this is well known; it is simply because the minimum sink speed of any aircraft is only slightly above stall speed. So, in order to obtain the maximum climb rate the soaring pilot will fly at the minimum sink speed. This presents some special considerations for the designers of sailplanes and hang gliders. Designers of soaring aircraft are well aware that one of the most popular forms of operation is ridge soaring. Taking into account that ridge soaring is often performed very close to the ground, the designer will endeavor to provide a glider that is spin proof or spin resistant, because sizable amounts ofaltitude are required to recover from a spin. This means the designer must compromise. Usually he will increase the washout (twist) in the wing to ensure the root (inboard) section of the wing will stall before the tip. This has two impacts on the design. One, it lowers the maximum lift coefficient, which increases the stall speed. Two, it decreases the maximum LID (glide ratio) at higher speeds because of decreased wing efficiency factor (lower effective wing span). Now, for hang gliders, which are usually highly-tapered, swept flying wings, the addition of washout comes in quite handy as one of

the main contributors to pitch stability. Twist combined with the proper airfoil sections, sweep and taper will yield a stable flying wing. Contrary to popular thinking, the pilot hanging below the wing is a very small factor in pitch stability. Ever see a wing fly off without a pilot? They do quite well. The pilot hanging below the wing contributes mostly to dynamic pitch clamping, not static stability. So, when I designed the Wing, I used the amount of washout required to achieve static pitch stability with the given airfoils and planfonn configuration. The washout was set at eight degrees. This was quite a bit less than the divers being built in the early 1980's and would deliver superior high-speed performance. I achieved the reduction in washout by using airfoil sections that have low pitching moment coefficients. The airfoils I selected were the NACA 23018 for the root and the NACA 0015 for the tip. The airfoils between the root and tip were derived by performing a linear interpolation between the root and tip airfoil coordinates. The NACA 23015 (same airfoil but thinner) was used, I believe, for the entire Mitchell Wing. I had decided to use a different airfoil at the tip in order to reduce the drag at high speeds and reduce the required washout. The NACA 0015 is a fully symmetrical section and has zero pitching moment all the way to the stall point. All I had to do was make sure that the washout required for pitch stability was adequate to ensure that the root would stall before the tip. This would prevent accidental spins. The crash indicated that I was unsuccessful. Working from the standard data available on the NACA 23018 and the 00 I 5 I had noted that their stall angles of attack were approximately 16 and I 5 degrees respectively. You can

Figure 2 Glider Airspeed

Glider Airspeed

I Laminar BL

Turbulent BL

Airfoil Surface

HANG GLIDING

Figure 3 Re= 3,550,000

l.4

Re = I ,780,000

1.2 1.0

Re= 445,000 Re= l 18,000

0.8 0.6 0.4

0.2 0

4 0

12 4 8 0 0 Angle of Attack (degrees) 8

note the stall angle forthe 0015 in Figure I. This data is taken from Reference I. What this means is that the root section would stall at I 6 degrees angle of attack and with eight degrees of washout the tip would be flying at an eight degree angle of attack. This gave a margin of seven degrees before the tip would stall, ensuring that the root would stall firs! and lower the nose well before the tips lost their ability to generate lift. At this point the gremlins worked their way into the design.

Reynold's number and its imponance to aerodynamics. Reynold's number (Re) is a unitless parameter used to define the conditions of a given flow field. See Equation l.

Re 1001 = 36(6.75)/0.000157 = 1,547,771

Re = vc/uEquation 1

Re,ip = 36(2.25)/0.000157 = 515,924

where: U= kinematic viscosity= 0.000157 ft. 2/sec. v = airspeed of glider in ft/sec. c = local chord of wing ( distance from LE to TE) in ft.

So, you can see that the Re for the root of the wing is a great deal larger than the tip Re. In fact the root Re is in the nmmal range and the tip is operating in the supercritical range. What does this mean in tern1s of performance and stability? Well, it means more than I ever believed at the beginning of the project. When the Wing was being designed in 1983 it was duly noted that the wing tip was operating at a supercritical Re. Several other engineers and I were concerned about the effect this could have on performance and stability. The flying R/C model showed no problems but we knew the wing tips of the model were operating at an Re of about 50,000. This was well within the subcritical region so there was a question as to whether the model accurately represented the stability of the full size wing. You may be asking why I simply didn't look up the data for the correct Re or simulate it with a computer program. \Vell, I gave it my best shot, but at the time there was very little data available. The only low Re work I was aware of was for model airplanes, such as is given in Reference 2. I also knew that the work

Reynold's Numbers The gremlin at work was simply Reynold's number. Before we proceed I should explain

Separation Bubble (Shaded Area)

Figure 4 FEBRUARY 1991

The value of Re tells the aerodynamicist whether the boundary layer of an airfoil will be laminar or turbulent. The boundary layer is the t1ow field that goes from the free stream velocity (your airspeed) to a speed of zero at the airfoil surface. This is shown in Figure 2 along with the difference between turbulent and laminar boundary layer conditions. There are three main regions Re is divided into, subcritical (less than 60,000), supercritical (less than 1,000,000) and normal (greater than 1,000,000). For most of the four- and five-digit series of NA CA airfoils, the boundary layer is turbulent in the normal Re region. Tl1e state of the boundary layer on any airfoil detennines many of its performance characteristics such as drag, lift and pitching momenl. These factors, ofcourse, are important to the perfonnance of any aircraft. Yet, for flying wings they can be the deciding factors when it comes to stability. For flying wings operating at relatively low speeds, the Re takes on special importance. Let's take a look at my Wing design for an example. Assume a speed of 25 mph (36 ft./ sec.), a root chord of 6.75 fr. and a tip chord of 2.25 ft. At sea level conditions the Reynold's numbers will be as follows.

c__;_____: : :,-:. ._ A

c Figure 5

on simulating low Re flow using computers was just beginning. Most of the usable hard data available was for Re = 150,000 and lower. I didn't think this would apply well to the work I was doing. After discussions with other engineers we decided that flow at an Re of 500,000 would be more like the flow at 1,000,000 (a well understood region) than the flow at an Re of 150,000. This turned out to be wishful thinking. Little did I know, but the answers to my concerns appeared in Reference 2. Unfortunately for me, that document makes most of its concerns about Re's of 150,000 and less. The data I needed was presented in only one figure and the text basically skimmed over its importance. But still, I came up short on my research and missed the data which is shown here in Figure 3. It is four graphs of lift versus angle of attack for different Re. It clearly shows that for Re less than 1,000,000 there is a drastic reduction in the maximum lift and angle of attack that an airfoil can achieve. Ignorant of this fact I proceeded with development of the Wing while keeping in mind there could be some problems with the flow conditions at the wing tips. At the time my biggest concern was the possible effects on yaw stability. To be prepared, I built in hard points at the tips so vertical stabilizers could be installed ifneeded. I felt that the first few short test flights would tell the full story.

Testing Yet, before I could proceed with flight testing there was some ground testing to be done. This 46

ground testing consisted of"flying" the Wing in place with a strong wind blowing. The Wing was fully tufted to watch the stall formation. Also, an airspeed indicator and scale were employed to collect lift data. During this testing the Wing was run up through stall several times as the tuft behavior was filmed. The video indicated that the wing tips were not stalled when the root section began to stall. Full stall formation was indicated by reading the lift scale and noting when the lift of the entire wing began to drop. This meant that the nose would drop and regain flying speed before the tips stalled. I even noted the large nose-down pitching moment at stall and the fact that I still had aileron control. All was well, or so I thought. After the first few low-altitude flights were completed I was very happy with the pitch, roll and yaw stability. Also, I was extremely pleased with the balance of the pitch and roll controls and found them to be effective down to speeds of five miles per hour. Of course all of these flights were made in calm to light wind conditions while in ground effect. Needless to say this did not represent the reality of flight while out of ground effect and flying in turbulent conditions. So, I still had a few reservations about stability, especially dynamic stability. As stated previously, with the pilot in the wing, pitch damping might be such that in turbulence a pitching or even a Dutch-rolling motion could develop that the pilot might not be able to stop. During the high altitude flights no problems cropped up so I stopped worrying. These flights seemed to be a complete success when after every flight Monte would relate to me how nice the Wing was flying and it was the most fun he had ever had while hang gliding.

The Crash After some flying in Utah and Colorado we traveled to Torrey Pines. We wanted to demonstrate the Wing for a large group of people and do a series of tests, which included stall tests. I felt that testing at Torrey would be fine because the Wing was flying very well. Also, Monte could top land, enabling me to make quick changes and continue with the testing. As I wrote previously, on the first flight the Wing crashed. I was devastated and shocked. Everything had been going so well. By now I'm sure your saying, "Come on Roi, cut to the chase and tell us what went wrong!" Well as I said, sometimes these things are not as simple as they first appear.

Bubble

Up Elevon

Figure 6 Laminar Separation Bubble This accident was caused by·a little known and complex phenomenon called laminar separation bubble. In addition the problem was compounded by having the control surfaces running all the way to the wing tip. I will attempt to explain laminar separation bubbles and their impact on airfoil performance. Please note that at no time during the explanation will my hands leave the ends of my arms. Just kidding. (I have to try and keep my sense of humor about all of this stuff.) The following applies to non-flapped (no control surface) wing sections. Generally speaking all airfoils, at an Re of 500,000 to 1,000,000 have a laminar boundary layer (BL) up to their point of maximum thickness. This is because of the pro verse pressure gradient, which means the local pressure is continuing to drop. This is the low pressure area that generates lift and "sucks" us up into the air. Once the flow passes the point of maximum thickness, an adverse pressure gradient forms. This gradient causes the local flow pressure to return to atmospheric pressure. The pressure must return to atmospheric by the time it reaches the trailing edge or a vacuum would form. This vacuum is, by definition, impossible. For the notmal range of Re the point of maximum thickness and the start of the adverse pressure gradient will cause the BL to become turbulent if it isn't already, due to surface roughness on the leading edge. It is this turbulent BL that keeps the airflow attached to the wing. You see, air molecules are a lazy bunch. They always want to continue in a straight line. When we force them to go up over an airfoil and they reach the peak (point of maximum thickness), they want to continue in a straight line and part company with the wing. The turbulent BL serves to transfer energy from the free stream flow into the BL and impart some motivation (energy) to the BL air molecules and cause them to follow the down-sloping surface HANG GUDING

Stall Point I

, Lift Loss I

Lift

Angle of Attack

Figure 7

of the wing. In the lower regions of Re this process happens in a special way. In the Re region of approximately 100,000 to 750,000 the BL is not likely to become turbulent at the maximum thickness point and continues along in a laminar fonn. Eventually though, the air molecules win out and begin to separate from the wing and flow in a straight line. When this happens a bubble (partial vacuum) forms on the aft portion of the airfoil as shown in Figure 4. You can now see the source of the phrase laminar separation bubble. This bubble then proceeds to cause a region of very stagnant air and loads of drag. The size of the bubble is determined mostly by the rare of pressure recovery in the adverse pressure gradient. For example see Figure 5. In case A the maximum thickness point is quite far forward and there is a long positive curving region for pressure recovery. This means the adverse pressure gradient is gentle. For case B the maximum thickness point is in approximately the same location but the curve of the suli'ace reverses and this negative curve region causes a rapid pressure recovery. In case C the maximum thickness point is quite far aft and this also causes a rapid pressure recovery. It is this rapid pressure recovery that places loads on the flow and thereby causes the separation bubble to form. So, we can generally state that the most FEBRUARY 1991

gentle pressure recovery will yield the smallest separation bubble. In addition to the three cases of Figure 5, but a little harder to understand is the fact that changing the angle of attack will cause a steeper pressure recovery region. As the angle of attack increases, the air, as it passes over the maximum thickness point, "thinks" it sees a very steep pressure recovery region. This causes the separation bubble to grow in length and create more drag. As this bubble grows the end result is a premature stalling of the airfoil. At higher (normal) Re the BL is turbulent, there is no separation bubble and the flow stays attached to the airfoil longer, yielding a higher stall angle and more lift. One way of looking at the phenomenon of laminar separation is by imagining a buckle in your living room carpet. The carpet can be attached at all of the edges but you can still have this" bubble" in the middle. There is nothing happening under this bubble, but if you push it to one edge it will allow the carpet to release from the tack strip. This same event is what happens with a laminar separation bubble. The angle of attack causes the bubble to grow and when it reaches the trailing edge the flow '·comes loose" and the airfoil stalls. This is what caused the tip stall and subsequent spin of my Wing. But this is not quite the whole story. Loss Of Effective Washout You may remember that I stated there was a seven-degree margin between root stall and tip. Well, that was for a nonnal Re. With the Wing having a tip Re of 500,000 the stall angle of attack, at the tip, was reduced to only 10 degrees. This data is shown in Figure 1 and is relatively new as a result of the work being done on predicting bubbles. The full report is available from Reference 3. So, what I thought was a comfortable seven-degree margin had been reduced to only two degrees. In addition there were two other factors compounding the problem. One, l had modified the airfoil section and two, the control surfaces extended all the way to the wing tip. Let's take a close look at the first problem and you will see how it relates to the second. Shown in Figure 1 is the outline of the normal NACA 0015 airfoil section along with the outline of the modification I made. The reason for this change was to facilitate constructing and hinging the elevon. By ''pinching" the airfoil together at the hinge line I was able to avoid having a rather large aft spar and it also allowed for a thin elevon section which would

be easy to transport. This turned out to be another mistake. At the time it seemed like a great idea because the resulting shape was similar to the 63 and 64 series of NACA airfoils which are known for their low drag. The problem was that by pinching the aft section together I had steepened the pressure recovery region by forming a reflex in the airfoil surface. This reduced the stall angle of attack even further. The stall angle was now between eight and nine degrees. The reduction in stall angle of attack is a direct result of increasing the laminar separation bubble size because of the steep adverse pressure gradient. This means that under the best possible conditions there was only one degree of margin between root stall and tip stall. Disaster was laying in wait. But that isn't the end of the story. As I stated, the elevons ran all the way to the wing tip. This means that the airfoils which were operating at the lowest Re also were changing shape every time the controls were deflected. For example, when reducing speed the elevon is deflected up as is shown in Figure 6. In this case the air wants to take the easy way out and simply bridge the gap from the maximum thickness point to the elevon surface. This further increases the size of the bubble and pushes it very close to the trailing edge. So, I had three factors working to increase the size of the bubble: low Re, a reflexed airfoil surface and finally a moving control surface causing even more reflex. What does this mean in real life? It means that if the Wing is flying near stall speed (and it was) and a little gust or thermal comes along (very possible with the light winds that day) the local angle of attack for the wing tip could have been pushed passed stall by a vertical gust of wind. How strong a gust? Assuming the tip was flying at one degree short of stall, at a forward speed of 25 mph, then simple trig tells me that a vertical gust of 0.63 ft./sec. (or 38 ft./min.) would cause a tip stall. Not much of a gust at all! Hysteresis Loop There is another factor to consider when a wing stalls at a low Re. This factor is the hysteresis loop, and it has nothing to do with women. Hysteresis loop simply means that, once an airfoil is stalled, it must return to a much lower angle of attack in order to regain any lift. This loop is detailed in Figure 7 and is a direct result of the laminar separation bubble. The airfoil has to be returned to a low angle before the airflow will reattach. Remember, air molecules are a

C ------Figure 8. Generic Liebeck Airfoil

lazy bunch. The reality is that you really have to dive at the ground in order to get flying again! By now I'm sure you're saying you have never seen arm waving of this caliber and are asking how I can be sure all of this was really happening. Well, see for yourself. Shown in Photo I is the Wing flying at Marina Beach. The air was smooth and the elevon is deflected upward for slow soaring flight. Take a close look at the last three rib bays. See how the fabric aft of the spar is pushed in? That is the laminar separation bubble doing its thing. The fabric is actually being sucked inward. Because the wing is open in the cockpit area, the pressure inside the Wing is lower than normal. Under cruisingflight conditions the low pressure inside the wing would be overcome by the lower pressure on the upper surface of the tip, thereby drawing the fabric outward. When the separation bubble is present the local pressure is higher on the outside of the wing and the fabric gets pushed inward. In fact, the fabric flexing inward is making the problem worse by causing an even more rapid pressure recovery and more separation. Nasty little things, these gremlins!

Conclusion In summary, what happened was that the airfoil selection for the wing tips and the subsequent modifications to that airfoil caused a low stall angle of attack when operating at Re below 1,000,000. This low stall angle of attack was probably combined with local turbulence, and these factors resulted-in a tip stall and an unintentional spin. What can be clone about this problem? Well, I can't give you the whole answer here (see the sidebar "Liability the Law and Hang Gliding") but I can give some general answers. First, and most importantly, I would advise not to use any of the NACA aiifoils at an Re of less than one million, especially the symmetrical four-digit series and the whole family of 63, 64, 65 and 66 series, the so-called "laminar

flow sections." These sections could be used at higher Re or else be restricted from operating at angles of attack greater than eight degrees. In addition, using any of the "Liebeck" type sections (Figure 8) could cause problems, and if operated at low Re will surely give very poor performance. Second-and I'm still studying this factor-is that the taper ratio (root chord divided by tip chord) should not be less than 1/2. Third, if a glider is designed which has airfoil sections operating at an Re less than 1,000,000 they should be carefully designed to have the smallest laminar separation bubble possible. The only means I know of cunently for doing this is by using a code that was developed at MIT. This code was used to design the aitfoils for the Daedalus human-powered aircraft which flew from Crete to Greece. The code has also been used to successfully design high-perfomrnnce airfoils for model aircraft and is verified in Reference 3. Fourth, the fabric on a semi-rigid wing should be designed to be drawn very tight so the performance of the airfoil sections does not change with different loading conditions. Fifth, the control surfaces on a wing of this type should not run all the way to the tip. In this manner the designer can accurately predict what the flow conditions will be at the tip and compensate for potential problems. Finally, I would say it is very important to either vehicle test or wind tunnel test airfoil sections (not the whole wing) to accurately know the stall angle of attack for the projected Re region. They should be tested in both smooth and rough air conditions.

Future Plans At this time I plan to continue my work on a research basis only. There is no way the current design can be "fixed" without a complete redesign. A new series of airfoil sections would have to be invented and tested to prevent the

separation bubble problem. I'm sure the current design could be fixed so it was safe, but any of the fixes would ruin the performance advantages of the Wing. I believe that if performance is sacrificed it becomes hard to justify a retail cost of $10,000 to $15,000. The Wing could be built "as is" and be placarded against soaring at speeds near stall speed, but the current activity in aerobatics shows that pilots pay no attention to written flight restrictions. I think our sport has enough problems with its public image without having people die in a new design just because they exceed the flight envelope. Our gliders must have designed-in, very generous safety margins. So, the best answer is to, as they say, "Go back to the drawing board and start from scratch," and this is what I am doing. I'm not committing to build another full size aircraft. I'll do the research, record the results and when the liability situation changes the information can be published. Currently my work shows that we have probably been using the wrong wing planform (top view) since the early clays of pure flying wings, the mid-l 930's. It seems that the straight tapered wing is not very efficient (span efficiency, e) at higher speeds. Also, it doesn't do all that well at lower speeds. I think I have a new planfonn that will increase high-speed efficiency by about 50% and low-speed efficiency by 10% to 15%. I believe that one clay, in the not-soclistant future, we will have a wing with an L/D greater than 30/1, or maybe even 35/1, that will be car-toppable, weigh less than 90 pounds and assemble in as little as 15 minutes. So, stay tuned, I'm sure the best is yet to come. •

REFERENCES

1. Theory of Wing Sections, Abbott, I. H. and Von Doenhoff, A. E., Dover Publications, Inc., 1959, McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1949.

2. Aerodynamics of the Model Airplane. Part I: Ai1foil Measurements, Schmitz, F. W., 19391942, Berlin Press, Translation, 1942, Translation Branch of the Redstone Scientific Information Center, U.S. Army Missile Command Redstone Arsenal, Alabama, also Nov. 1967, RSIC-721. 3.Aiifoilsat LowSpeeds,Selig, M. S., Donovan, J. F., and Fraser, D. B., Soartech 8 published by Stokely, H. A., Virginia Bch, VA. I 989.

HANG GLIDING

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Liability, The Law And Hang Glider Design If you read the article on the Klingberg Wing flight testing, you probably noticed that Monte and I had the intention of producing a few of the Wings. Well, this has all changed. Within a couple of weeks after the crash I felt I knew most of what went wrong and knew it could be fixed. I proceeded with preparing for production by contacting a lawyer specializing in contract law, so an agreement could be written. The plan in the back of my mind was to incorporate and lease the production rights to Monte. In doing so I thought I would be well protected from any potential lawsuits involving property damage, injury or death. Well, I quickly found out I was wrong. My lawyer informed me I would be at risk unless one or several conditions were met. He told me that if the corporation could supply sufficient capitalization I would be protected. If it wasn't capitalized and there was no insurance, the courts would allow the litigants to sue me for my personal assets. Another method of protection would involve having the potential manufacturer acquire product liability insurance. I was informed that any potential customer or their relatives could sue, even if waivers were signed. It seems that in the U.S. we can not sign away our right to sue. My first question was about what might entail sufficient capitalization. The answer was a shocking $1,000,000 minimum! Not a good answer. I even asked about manufacturing overseas, but if we did that and the Wings were sold in the U.S. I would still beat risk. So,I pursued the option of getting liability insurance and soon learned a few more lessons. Upon meeting with a business insurance specialist I learned that not only would the manufacturer need product liability insurance but I would also need design liability insurance. I believe he mentioned that I would be protected by this insurance even if the manufacturer had too little, or no product insurance. He also mentioned that there probably wouldn't be any underwriters for product insurance on hang gliders, although he did say Lloyds of London might do the underwriting. When I asked what the yearly premium might be for design insurance he looked me square in the eye and said, "How much money do you have?" I laughed, but he wasn't kidding. When all was said and done it seemed the yearly premium would probably be in the area of $100,000. This got me to realize that no matter what I did, if I didn't want to risk losing everything I own in court, I was going to have to spend everything I had up front. They get you coming or going! Needless to say the only option left, to avoid risking my personal assets, was to have nothing to start with; they can't take it away if you don't have it. Well, that's not my idea of fun. Ifl'm going to the trouble of developing a new aircraft for production, I want at least a chance of making some money. After all, it's the American way. So, where does this leave me? Well, I didn't want to think I had done all of this work for nothing. I have always believed engineers should dedicate their lives to improving the technical aspects of the human condition. I felt the Wing was my way of making a contribution. It seemed that maybe it was a just fact of life that I couldn't make any money in the process. This was a disappointment but I thought I still had the option of giving away the design details in some publication. In that way somebody who didn't mind the financial risk could pursue further development. But there was one last catch. When I visited my lawyer again he thought that the process of publishing the design details would imply a level of design credibility. In other words I would be saying, "Here is a good design for a hang glider." He said this would be a very gray area and quite possibly leave me open for a lawsuit if someone built a Wing and got injured or killed. Now I understand why Burt Rutan got out of the homebuilt aircraft business! I'm sure some of you are saying that I'm Just being overcautious and really have nothing to worry about. Well, maybe so, but I like the things I own and have no intention oflosing them in some lawsuit brought by grieving relatives. So, I'm sorry guys, there won't be a production Klingberg Wing and no published design details. It is not the way I wanted things to turn out, but hey, that's life.•

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r,,,r·m1:11·v and racing ano(licr month or cold and gray. This winter lrns been espr:cially tough for me. My girlfriend of two-ancl a.half years just dumped me. She says, "lt 's not that there's anyone else," which is worse; she lcl't me for nobody. Being wi1h nobody is better than wilh this somebody. [ know how she feels. r come home from work, sil on my bed, stare at mysel r irr the mirror and after a l'cw minutes l walll to leave me. So I shirt my slarc out the window instead and sec a construction-· paper gray splinll:rcd by bare br:mchcs clawinµ nt the pane. It's gray inside and out. Then [ gel whal I l'ccl is an understandable urge lo fling myself'offa very high place. But I would never lie so rash. After all, I was an English major in which means that I never do anything without reading a book about it first. Besides, in America 1990, you don't just rush out and do something unless you're properly accessorizcd. Even a polential suicide-by-

( by Michael Boyle

H ANC CL!DlNC

plunge-to-pavement knows full well that GoreTex has lower wind resistance than, let's say, a wool pant-suit. Whether you 're jumping out a window or merely heading out fora jog, it won '1 do to hit the pavement in dumpy gray sweatpants and Pro-Ked sneakers. Let me make this clear: I was not suicidal. What I craved was a non-lethal form of excitement to jump-start me out of an emotional stupor brought on by a long Michigan winter and a short Canadian woman. With that goal in mind I find myself in the Community News Book Center browsing the magazine rack (the outdoor adventure section) when I notice a copy of Hang Gliding magazine. I instantly feel a memory stir inside me, a clusly bit of crumpled paper almost forgotten. I was eleven years old and I made a list of some exciting, adventurous things I wanted to do before I got a heart condition and bad knees. The list included: touring the country on a motorcycle; living in a foreign country; learning to ride a horse; and flying a hang glider. I've clone all those things except hang gliding. So what, that the motorcycle was a 1972 Kawasaki that I pushed as far as I rode; so what, the foreign country was Canada; and so I fell off the only horse I've ever ridden. The point is that in each of these circumstances I acted out a dream creating-if only temporarily-a reality worth living in. Looking out my window at the gray, I knew it was time to create some livable reality. March 6th: Two weeks later I'm heading south on 1-75 just past Toledo. Doubt seeps in like cold air from the window. Why am I doing this? Couldn't I just go out on Saturday night and party? But there are times in your life when taking a running leap off a mountain seems like the most logical next step. Besides, I had already sent my $25 non-refundable check and I was scheduled to start my first hang gliding lesson in two clays at Lookout Mountain Flight Park in Trenton, Georgia. I saw their ad in Hang Gliding magazine: ·'We specialize in getting you your first mountain flight!" I called the next day, registering for the "Mountain Package." which the friendly Georgian voice on the other end assured me was for the ambitious, go-getter type. I signed up anyway. It wouldn't do to let her know that f was emotionally iffy. I could imagine the scenario: "So Michael, why did y'all decide to give hang gliding a whirl?" "Well, I'm pretty depressed right now. My girlfriend just left me and it doesn't help that it's constantly cloudy and 28 degrees outside. So I thought it would be good FEBRUARY 1991

to get above all this crap. You know, see things from a different perspec!ive ... I don 'tknow why she left me. In my mind I imagine flying high above the earth and spotting Susan and she's barely the size of an ant. That's it, I think I want to reduce her to ant-status. And ... " ''Mr.Boyle, excuse me, can y'all hold just a minute?" (Frantic background whispering) "Ah, Mr. Boyle, I forgot lo ask you a few standard questions. First, is there a history of mental illness in your family?" Click.

"I allow myself to imagine the moment of launch when I push away from the mountain and for a second I' 1n falling, but then, just as my stomach is preparing to evacuate my body, the wings fill with the breath of life and my body soars like only my mind could previously. In my tent, as I drift off to sleep, I feel ready to conquer the mountain and deal Mother Nature a serious blow to her ego." "Hey. he hung up. What a nutcase!" No. Best to feign confidence and worry about it later. Further south on 1-75 I pull over at the "Buckeye Traveler's lvlall: A Traveler's Paradise.'' (When did truck stops become "traveler's malls?'' Yuppie truckers?) The menu boasts in a clown-home way: "\Ve're not an exclusive gourmet restaurant, but we're pretty darn good al what we do!" If their goal is to serve the usual greasy fare at exorbitant prices to pay for the new pastel carpet and wallpaper, then I'd say they're belter than pretty darn good. Sally the waitress eyes my open copy of Hang Gliding magazine and asks me about it. f tell her my plans and she raises her eyebrows saying, "Honey. all that drivin · must have shook

somethin' loose upstairs!" I laugh. She doesn't. Near the coffee pots Sally says something to another waitress and the other one looks over at me. When I meet her stare she gives me the briefest smile, then nothing-like throwing a pinch of sugar at me. Surrounded by the unbelievers. Back on the highway, just past Goldbug, Kentucky, a Toyota van passes me on the left and two young children stare out the back window with dull, long-distance expressions. I smile and wave and suspicion makes them crane their necks to observe me, as if to say, "Hey mister, we may be traveling on the same road, headed in the same direction, but that doesn't make LIS related! Besides, we're going to visit Goofy, not be goofy." I wonder what dreams they're carrying and if they'll ever fulfill them before they get crumpled and tossed into some dusty mental corner. And I wonder if it matters anyway. The next afternoon, Wednesday, March 7th, I enter "Georgia: The Adventure State," and soon after arrive at Lookout Mountain. I set up my tent in the LZ, which is located directly below and south of the mountain and the Flight School's launch ramp. From my tent, looking up at the ridge of the mountain, it doesn't look incredibly high. Near dusk I wind up Piney Road to the highway that traverses the mountain ridge from east to west. I arrive at the school but it's already closed and no one is around. I feel a mixture of excitement and dread as I carefully tip-toe to the end of the concrete launch ramp and look out across the valley, and then sharply clown at the fields below. The wind is suddenly strong in my face and hair. In one of the green squares below [ can barely make out a gray speck. Is that my tent? That little voice starts LIP again: "Ah, maybe this isn '1 such a hot idea. I mean, this is a real mountain, not one of those man-made ski bumps in Michigan. Besides, if man were meant to fly he'd have wings." Maybe this flying business is a colossal mistake; just another example of big-heaclecl Man trying to side-step Mother Nature and getting a painful lesson in the more natural Natural Order. But I didn't come 700miles to be scared off by about a quarter mile of vertical distance. That night, sitting next to my campfire. and after a few beers. I allow myself to imagine the moment of launch when I push away from the mountain and for a second I'm falling. but then,just as my stomach is preparing to evacuate my body, the wings fill with the breath oflifc

and my body soars like only my mind could previously. In my tent, as I drift off to sleep, I feel ready to conquer the mountain and deal Mother Nature a serious blow to her ego. Later, around four in the morning, I'm jolted awake by a loud droning noise. A moment later one side of my tent is lifted completely off the ground-the wind is attempting to give me a free introductory flight. I quickly sprawl out in a sky diver's pose: butt and legs outstretched, stomach clown, body rigid. As the wind moans my mind races: What is this? Tornado season? Is that why the school offers a $100 discount for classes in March? "Okay class, today we're going to start with the basics: how to launch, how to land, and what to do in the event a hurricane-force wind drives you helplessly up the eastern seaboard. Any questions?" At the first break in the wind I plunge into my boots and, still in my long-johns, head to the car to grab anything of significant weight. I settle on a toolbox, a tripod, a suitcase and a Coleman cooler stuffed with food. I throw these in the tent. I pull out the remaining stakes-they come out with the ease with which you pull a finger from your nose-and restake with four large screwdrivers. As the wind starts up again I dive inside. The tent strains, but holds. No, Mother Nature will not be conquered, though she might indulge my silly human fantasies for a few fleeting moments. Thursday, March 8th: 1wake up to find the mountain missing. It's been consumed by a thick layer of cloud which hangs clown in wisps snagging on the trees at the base of the mountain. No chance of beginning lessons today. In a steady drizzle I drive up to the Flight School. I'm introduced to Pete and Matt, both instructors, and Dave the repairman. Pete and Matt have that tanned, windblown look reminiscent of California surfers. Dave is a little grayer, with the beginning of a beer belly and a threeclay growth, definitely the more terrestrial of the three. But none of them talk like surfers. As they look out the window at the valley not once do I hear the words 'awesome', 'totally', or 'bitchin'. I do hear 'wind-graclient','thermal development potential', and 'glide ratio'. From their talk I glean my first lesson-which is that hang gliding is a weather-dependent thing. I'm left with "maybe tomorrow." Tomorrow. Again, no mountain. Just gray cotton-like fog hanging in the trees and steady rain. By mid-afternoon wet is seeping in my tent and in my brain. The only book I have to read is a small green Gideons Bible. I found it on the

bathroom floor of an Ohio rest stop. So, in a dangerously bored state, I peruse the index entitled, "Where to find help, when ... " which is followed by a page number. I'm mildly amused at how many of these references could be applied to my life: Anxious, Backsliding, Doubting, Facing a Crisis, Lonely, and Needing Guidance. My personal specialty is Anxious, although I'm also strong in Backsliding and Needing Guidance. But ever since I tip-toed to the end of the launch, peering into the Void, I'm working overtime on Doubt. I look up the appropriate passage-in this case Matthew 14: 28-31-and read where Jesus beckons Peter to come to Him, but Peter nervously points out that he would have to walk on the water to get to Him. But Jesus again says "come" and Peter starts out: But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid: and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched out his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, 0 thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" Personally, I understand Peter's hesitation; it's based on gravity and mass density-the laws we earthlings must live by. If the wind gets boisterous and I begin to sink out of the sky, I have this nagging Doubt that the cupped hand of the Lord will save my freckly white butt from certain disaster. No, I'll stick with Doubt until something better comes along. Something like Skill. Or Courage. The next three clays dawn clear and dry with temperatures in the 70's and 80's. Under a sunny sky the land is more friendly, and ready to make up for past differences. I finally make it to my first lesson and the "bunny hill," which is about 50 feet high. That's about the same height as a two-story house. The first day our group does well. Granted, we learn first hand what Georgia dirt tastes like, but overall our instructor is very pleased, though guardedly so. He warns us about the infamous "S"-curve of learning a new skill: you start out slow, then quickly get good, only to come back the next clay and perfom1 like you 'vc never even heard of hang gliding before. But no one listened; we were much too excited to entertain this ugly pessimism. After all, each of us had already completed a few flights-a "flight" constituting a clean takeoff, 5 to 10 seconds in the air, and a landing on any part of the body other than

the face. Secretly, we entertained images of jumping off the mountain to the acclaim of our peers, the pride of our instructor, and the grudging respect of Mother Nature. The next day, bright and early, we were eating dirt again. But by my third and final clay I complete the required flights from the bunny hill to gain the United States Hang Gliding Association's Beginner Rating. This means that I am authorized to jump off a smallish hill and a few seconds later land on my feet, which is actually very exciting. And as for my dream of flight? Reality is never the same as one's dream of reality. For a lot of people that's frustrating; for me, that's real-life mystery; I never know what the hell's going to happen. When I get back to Michigan one of many excited friends asks me, "So, did you fly like an eagle?" I answer proudly, "No, more like an overweight pigeon." But I did fly-IO seconds, IO minutes, those are trivial details. The point is that I flew, and now that my mental bulletin board is minus one list of dreams I've got room for a new one. Who knows what foolish and wonderful ideas will make that list, but returning to Georgia to hang glide off Lookout Mountain is first on it. Just thinking about it gives me more than enough courage to go home, face the cold, and enjoy my time spent on the ground. • Michael Boyle isa graduate ofthe University of Michigan with an English Literature degree. He has worked as a printer, salesman cmdfreelance photographer. Most rece11t{y he has been working as a stand-up comic in the Ann ArborDetroit area andfree-lancing as a humor writer.

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AGREEMENT: I understand this insurance will not reimburse me for the theft of accessories unless stolen simultaneously with the entire airframe and sail. I further agree that the cost of this insurance is fully earned and that I am not entitled to a credit in the event I sell or dispose of the identified glider prior to the expiration date of my certificate. However, I may replace my original glider with a different glider during the coverage period so long as a written notice is received by the underwriter prior to a covered loss. I understand that I must obtain and forward to the company a legible copy of the pertinent police report, at my own expense, if I were to file a claim. I also understand and agree that coverage will be in effect on the first day of the month following approval of the application by the underwriter. NOTE: A photocopy of this application shall be as valid as the original.

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On Board years ago I talked with Kevin Bye as he set up his GTR on top or Chelan Butte with his eomputer/eakulator on the basetubc. He had programmed, in Basic, llclmut Reichmann 's Speed-to-Fly computations and swore that he had time to punch in his expected rate or climb in the next thermal as he topped out in the one he was in. Kevin Bye, when he is flying, is the best X-C pilot in the Northwest and had just beaten everyone, everyday in the Chelan X·C Classic. Then, in the last issue or I fang (;/ic/ing magazine for 1990, Chris Arai lays out, for all of you who haven't had the chance to read Cross Co11n11y Soaring, the Speed--to-Fly curves. Chris Arai is ranked number six among American X-C pilots and is on the World Team. Surely these two pilots have the credentials to make us listen carefully when they advocate flying at the Speed-to-Hy speed. J\s an X-C pilot ranked at 47th, I can't bring my superior flying skills lo bear on this issue, but I trust that you arc open to a well supported argument from any qnartcr. ff you have read Chris' article then let's take it one step rurthGr.

a pilot his goal in a of landing short. may a pilot to goal flying at Speedeach thermal.

PEllRUi\RY 1991

First Conditions Imagine that the task for the day is to fly a (i(). mile course as fast as possible. The launch is at 5,()00' and the su1Tounding countryside and goal arc at 3,000'. The thermals top out at !0,()00' and a pilot climbs in them at an average rate or 300 feet per minute at minimum sink. Consider further that the thermals arc spaced 10 miles apart with the rirst thermal at launch and the last ten miles rrom the and that there arc no air masses between thermals. In the last thermal the pilot climbs only lo the altitude necessary to get him over the goal with 200' to spare, assuming that he pulls in the bar to the Spc:ccl-To-Fly speed on the final glide. Our glider has a area of l S8 sq. rt. with a loading or 1.8 ft. and an aspect ratio or7.S7. The downtubcs arc faired and the pilot wears a strcarnli11ed pod. Sct1i11g his for 300 fpm our To-Fly pi lot (Case I) flies al ;j.() mph bet ween thermals, at mph with a minimum sink rate or2 I 3 rpm i11 thermals, and gets to the goal int wo hours and .'i6 minutes with a lowest altitude before rinal or 5,28T. Ir lie had been al the corresponding to his Maximum L/D 12.49 (Case 2), he would have flown at :n mph between

Horizontal Sink LID Speed Rate

Case '1 Case 2 Case 3 Case 4 Case 5

'1 '1.44 '12.49 '1'1.'15 '10.34 9.54

40 33 27 38 36

308 233 213 323 332

Minimum Minimum Time to Sink Altitude Complete Rate Course 2'13 2'13 213 228 244

5,283 5,772 5,264 4,894 4,465

2:56 3:05 3:34 3:10 3:24

Table 1 First Set of Conditions thermals, never gotten lower than 5,772' and arrived nine minutes behind his time for Case 1. If he didn't have a good feel for airspeed or was unable to measure his airspeed so that he inadvertently flew at minimum sink throughout the course (Case 3), he would have arrived a good 38 minutes later. Under these conditions it is best to fly at the Speed-To-Fly speed, as both Max L/D speed and Speed-to-Fly speed keep you high enough above the ground and Max LID speed is five percent slower over the course. Let's look at two cases highlighted by the work in an earlier Hang Gliding magazine article from February I 989, "Drag and Hang Glider Performance" by Kevin Caldwell. Assume that instead of airfoil downtubes our pilot has round downtubes (Case 4). In this case, assuming that he flies at his Speed-To-Fly speed between thermals, 38 mph, and at his minimum sink rate in thermals, 223 fpm, he completes the course five minutes behind Case 2. If, in addition to the round downtubes, he had been wearing a cocoon harness (Case 5), he would have completed the course 28 minutes behind Case I. These additional considerations illustrate that drag is a more serious detriment than whether one flies at max LID speed or Speed-To-Fly speed in a low-drag glider. If you are going to compete in National X-C meets you had better have the least drag-producing equipment possible. Second Conditions What if the thennals on our 60-mile course had been spaced at 15 miles instead of ten? First, in Cases 3, 4 and 5 our pilot would have hit the ground before getting the first thermal out on the course. Flying at minimum sink speed or 60

having a glider/pilot combination with excessive drag proves to be a disaster. In our SpeedTo-Fly case (Case 1), the pilot completes the course in two hours and 56 minutes, but gets clown to 3,074' out on the course. In our max LID case (Case 2) the pilot completes the comse eight minutes behind, but his lowest altitude is 3,658', certainly a lot safer margin. While the Speed-To-Fly speed got our pilot there first it did so at great risk of his hitting the deck and with only a small margin over the max L/D speed. Third Conditions Let's assume another set of course conditions, the same as our first set with thermals placed I 0 miles apart, but in this case let's assume that our pilots are going into a five mph headwind and experience lift of 400 fpm in thermals. Our Speed-to-Fly pilot takes both the headwind and the strength of the next thermal into consideration in calculating his speed-to-fly speed between thermals at 43 mph I. He makes the goal in three hours and 20 minutes, but has a number of saves at 3,321'. Thank goodness those

Case 1 Case 2

thermals were so evenly spaced. Our pilot who flies at the max LID speed (Case 2) takes 21 minutes longer and doesn't get lower than 4,405'. Our pilot who last flew at minimum sink wises up and flies at the speed corresponding to the max L/D over the ground (Case 3). He takes into account the headwind (the Speed-to-Fly speed accounting for headwind but not for lift in the next thermal). He flies at 33 mph, never gets lower than 4,433' and gets to the goal l 6 minutes behind our pilot flying at Speed-To-Fly, who almost didn't get there. The pilots with the greater drag hit the ground before the first thermal on the course, and if our Case 3 had chosen to fly at minimum sink he wouldn't have made it either. Fourth Conditions Lets modify the course conditions one more time. This time assume that tl1ere is no headwind, that the thennals lift our Case l pilot at700fpm, and that in between thermals the air mass is moving clown at I 00 fpm. This time our pilot flying at Speed-To-Fly (50 mph), doesn't make it to the first thermal out ten miles on the course. By flying at max L/D our pilot in the second case completes the course in two hours and 34 minutes and never gets lower than 3,954'. In Case 3 our pilot accounts for the sink he experiences between thermals by flying at 36 mph and covers the course in two hours and 22 minutes. Our Case 3 pilot has the best L/D over the ground-8.85. Best Speed To Fly For three of the conditions illustrated, the best speed to fly between thermals is the one that I It is not possible with a speed ring to include a tail or headwind in calculating speed-to-fly or speed to maximize L/ D in existing conditions without consideration of the next thermal 's lifting strength. Our pnots would require an onboard computer to determine their correct speed.

Horizontal Sink LID Speed Rate

Minimum Time to Altitude Complete Course

1 '1.44

3,074 3,658

12.49

40 33

308 233

2:56 3:04

Table 2 Second Set of Conditions HANG GLIDING

Horizontal Sink LID Speed Rate

Case 1 Case 2 Case 3

10.19 12.49 12.47

43 32 33

371 226 233

LID Over Ground 9.01 10.54 10.58

Minimum Time to Altitude Complete Course 3:20 3:41 3:36

3,321 4,405 4,433

Table 3 Third Set of Conditions

corresponds to tile best L/D over the ground. This speed is the highest speed for the conditions the pilot is actually experiencing between thennals and is equal to the Speed-To-Fly speed if we ignore that component of the Speed-ToFly calculation that includes the predicted (and in these cases, actual) rate of climb in the next thermal. While the true Speed-To-Fly speed gets our pilot there first in three of the four cases. in two of those cases the pilot must save himself at less than 400 feet. The max L/D over ground speed gets our pilot to the goal only a few minutes behind the pilot flying at Specd-ToFly, with plenty of altitude to enter each thermal. Only in cases where the pilot is quite certain of getting lift before hitting the ground, can a cross-country hang glider pilot afford to fly at Speed-To-Fly. If the pilot is experiencing a tailwind or general light (100 fpm) lift between thennals then the chances of getting the next thennal is increased and the Speed-to-Fly speed is superior. The probability of finding a thermal is a direct function of the L/D over the ground. If the probability of finding a thermal is not very high then you want to increase that probability by flying at your max L/D over the ground. So why is Reichmann's work considered so fundamental by sailplane pilots? A sailplane has a much greater L/D than a hang glider. On many clays, the probability of a sailplane pilot finding the next thermal is much greater than for a hang glider pilot. Therefore, our concerns about flying slower in order to maximize the probability of finding a thermal are of much less concern to a sailplane pilot, ancl Speed-To-Fly is consequently more important.

Technical Concerns Of A Good X-C Pilot If Speed-To-Fly is not as important for X-C hang glider pilots, then what technical elements arc important? My observations of world-class pilots over the last two years lends me to believe that the following elements are key. The Launch The pilot must choose his takeoff time to maximize the probability of getting the best possible conditions out on the course. The best conclitions are characterized by having the strongest thermals placed the closest distance apart, with enough other pilots out on the course to mark the location of these thermals. The pilot must be aware of general weather patterns to see if conditions are deteriorating in spite of the fact that few people have launched, and be able to trade off the value of these two competing factors. The First And Subsequent Thermals The pilot must be able to core thermals efficiently, to gain the greatest altitude in the least time. He must be able to find thestrongestcores and continually change his coring pattern to

Horizontal Sink LID Speed Rate Case 1 Case 2 Case 3

8.57 12.49 12.00

50 33 36

514 233 258

stay in the strongest lift, and at the same time fly safely in a large gaggle. Finding Lift The pilot has to increase his probability of finding the next thennal on the course. He has to be able to see and interpret the flying patterns of other pilots, the cloud formations, and the effects of the varying ground. He should fly with a team whose members can provide additional clues to increase the probability of finding the next thermal. He may choose to wait in an area of lift if his analysis determines that the present conditions out on the course are not strong enough to risk further progress and that he must wait for conditions to change. Flying Speed He must choose the correct speed to fly between themials using the math underlining the above analysis. This speed is based on his evaluation of the probability of finding a thermal within a certain distance, his elevation when he tops out in the present thennal, and the predicted strength of the next thermal. This calculation must be made continually. He will fly at the speed corresponding to his max L/D over the ground ifhe has a moderately good chance of reaching the next thermal with sufficient altitude. He will fly at SpeedTo-Fly speed with a calculation for the predicted lift in the next thermal if he knows for sure that he will make it to the next thermal with sufficient altitude. Final Glide While it is almost over at this point, the pilot needs to be able to choose the altitude he will climb to in his last thennal before he stuffs the bar and heads for the goal. It is this last climb and last glide combined that detennine his final overall speed. •

LID Over Ground

Minimum Time to Altitude Complete Course

7.17 8.73 8.85

2,637 3,954 4,036

N/A 2:34 2:22

Table 4 Fourth Set of Conditions FE!lRUARY 1991

CLASSIFIEDS ADVISORY: Used hang gliders should always be disassembled before flying for the first time and inspected carefully for fatigued, bent or dented downtubcs, ruined bushings, bent bolts (especially the heart bolt), re-used Nyloc nuts, loose thimbles, frayed or rusted cables, tangs with noncircular holes, and on Rogallos, sails badly tom or torn loose from their anchor points front and back on the keel and leading edges. If in doubt, many hang gliding businesses will be happy to give an objective opinion on the condition of equipment you bring them to inspect. Buyers should select equipment that is appropriate for their skill level or rating. New pilots should seek professional instruction from a USHGA-eertified school. ROGALLOS AIR-ZONE-A -Towsters have the new Phoenix Soft Release and a Pagen glider dispenser. Just bring your harness. Jeff Reynolds (602) 482-9723.

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HP II - New blue L.E., magenta undersurfacc, low hours, superb handling, sail in excellent shape, will split shipping, $1,200 OBO. (702) 345-0612 HP II - Full race, extra batten, white/blue, flies great. $1,400. Vision MK IV 17, $1,400, Paul, eves (714) 676-4425 LIGHT DREAM 165-Like new, 20 hours, designer colors, $1,450. Reuven (818) 347-8266. MAGIC IV 166 - New side wires, clean glider, I 00 hours, $999. (907) 688-6080.

SPORT AMERICAN 167 - Red, gold, white, speed bar, good condition, $1,200 OBO; Ball M20 vario[Thommen TX18 Altimeter on ball clamp, $250 080; Radio Shack 5 watt 40 channel CB, $65 OBO (30 I) 729-0773. SPORT 167 - Euro, full race, excellent condition, 15 hrs ai11ime, garaged, $2,000 (602) 893-2523. SPORT 167 - White top, blue L.E., rainbow undersurface, 15 !lights/IO hrs., excellent condition, beautiful glider, $2,000. Bob (303) 420-4132. SPORT 180-Full race. Clean, flown in Montana 70 hours. Wasatch wing cocoon, 6' with chute. Make offer. (406) 2521421 or (406) 652-1648. STREAK 160-Low airtime, like new, harness, parachute, Colver vario. All $1,200. (714) 974-5981.

MAG!C IV 177 -Sixty hours, $900. (317) 758-9239. AMERICAN WINDWRIGHT- 160 Zoom, Custom built for l 989 league meet. VG, half ribs, faired downtubes, kevlar L.E. 30 hrs., flies great! Excellent condition, Sl,400 (503) 389-8305, Mike. AXIS 15 - Full race, low airtime, excellent condition $1,450. (412) 898-3219.

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C-2 - 1985, low hours, very clean. Black L.E., spectrum D.S., blue sandwich body. Very nice glider $800 (503) 3898305, Mike.

MOYES METEOR 190-Red/white, $500 OBO. Cloudbase spaghetti harness, with chute container, $7 5. (713) 280-9005.

COlvIET C-1 165 - Spectrum cloth, excellent condition, $650. Mike Johnson (818) 338-1222.

MOYES XS - Like being on top of the stack? Call and demo. New prices start at $3,300. (209) 368-9665.

COMET 185 - Low time, overhauled, $650. Raven 229, overhauled, all new wires, $575. (801) 254-9063.

MOYES XS 155-1990, beautiful sail, excellent condition, $2.600. (616) 465-6594.

DREAM 145 - Very low hours, very good condition, $1,000. Kim (619) 729-9504 (CA).

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DREAM 185 - Excellent condition, ideal for training, $1,500 OBO (415) 969-6208.

MYSTIC LITE 177- Never flown, new Airstream harness and parachute, $3,000. Steve Christie (619) 480-9098.

DREAM 220- Excellent condition, only IS flights (6 hrs.), SI ,200. Mark(719) 528-8944 (eves), (719) 590-5359 (days).

MYSTIC 166- VG Full race. J\•Iany hours, good condition. Recent inspection, $400. (818) 366-8996.

DUCK 130- Excellent condition, low airtime, beauty. Best performing 130. $650 OBO. Donnita (619) 438-7804.

NEW GLIDERS - Best Prices! Pacific Airwave, Wills Wings, Seedwings, Delta. Silver Wings (703) 533-3244.

DUCK 180 - Clean blue L.E., rainbow spectrum, S550 (803) 666- 2494.

SENSOR B - 1987, 3/4 race, "C" upgrade, new wires, good condition, Sl,000. (602) 274-5103 eves.

FORMULA 154-Dcmo, like new, low air time, flies great, will ship, $2,300. (703) 533-1965.

SENSOR 510 B VG - Full race, great shape, S 1,300. Jim Lee fiberglass pod, $300. Joe (215) 967-6690.

GTR 162 \VB - Full race option, red with steel gray L.E. Low hours, excellent condition. Sl,975. Gary (615) 4532158.

SENSOR 510 C FR - Two, each factory pilot owned, with optional #8 ribs, spmnvise split lower, Hi-vis colors, pigtail wire compensator, big tail fin, low hours, excellent condition, will ship. must sacrifice, $2,150. Bill (603) 672-6629.

GTR 162 WORLD nEATER - Blue LE., tluoro. yellow undersmface, new v,,jrcs, less than 90 hours $1,200 (213) 451-2016. GENESIS - Grea1 for 120 lb. HII-IV, yellow/white with blue trilam LE., 10 hrs. ainime, con1cs with spcedbar, wheels, down tube pads, S 1,400, Tony (408) 688-0519. HP AT 145. 53,400. HP AT 158, $2,800. Wills Wing Z3, S450. CG 1000 harness, S225. FFE20 gore chute, S300. BRS system, $350. Ball 652 deluxe, $300. Will ship (818) 7610085, leave message.

SENSOR 510 C- Full race, 120 hours, excellent condition. $1,900. OBO Chris (415) 531-2261. SENSOR 510 E - Very clean, sharp colors, $2,850. Steve (803) 292- 8270 (SC).

VISION ECLIPSE 14 (134)-Good condition, extra down tubes. Great for the smaller pilot, $950. Caldera Air Sports, Robin, (619) 934-2125. VISION VM 18- 1984 in good condition, new flying wires, excellent trainer $475. Randy (805) 529-7221 Eves. VISION 20-Excellent shape, low hours, $900. (509) 6273624. VISION MK IV 17 - New August, 1990, full race, speed bar, white, magenta (BJ Panel, SI,900. (805) 252-6!02. VISION MK IV 17 -Two to choose from: Blue - $1,300. Orange -$1,600. (619) 450-9008. VISION MK IV 17 -Great condition. Blue trilam L.E., blue undersurface, S 1,600. (619) 451-3970. VISION lvlK IV 17 and 19-3DCG, camera zippers, trilam L.E. $2,235 ea. Test flown only, shipped anywhere. (303) 750-3226. VISION MK IV 19 -Hot pink, magenta, purple, trilam L.E. faired downtubes, comfort bar, camera zippers, <7 hrs,excellent condition, firm $1,750 (817) 488-7932. COLORADO HANG GLIDING (303) 278-9566 Region !V's oldest, largest, full time shop, 35 new and used gliders: $350-$3, I 00 Too many to list. All insp. tested, with new hang straps and glider bag. Shipped anywhere. MC/VISA/AMEX/DISCOVER accepted. l00% satisfaction guaranteed on gliders. Heavy duty glider bags . ....... .... ..$74 D.O.T. helmets . ..... ,, .... , ... ..$50-$129 Steel bincrs (2 min.) ... ...... ... ········ ..$14.80 Paragliders (demos) .... ..... , ........ ····· .. $900-$2,000 NAS vario/Alt .. ....... ... , .... .. $388 Varios (demos, all brands). ....... ...... .$75-$500

On staff FAA cert. master parachute rigger. Never used chutes ······· ······ ....... ····· .. $265 New NAS PDA chutes . ········ ........ $388 All repackcd/inspec. w/new bridle and deployment bag. Dozens in stock. IOOS"i satisfaction guaranteed on parachutes.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA USED GLIDER REFERRAL - BUY-SELL-CONSIGN, ALL i\IAKES, MODELS. CALL TODAY (619) 450-1894 OR (619) 450-9008.

HANG GLIDING

CLASSIFIEDS THE HANG GLIDING CENTER ivlagic Formula, in stock.... .. New Magic K2 145 . ....... New ......... $2,500 Magic Kiss, like new ... 167SportAT ................. $2,700 HP AT, in stock . .. New Magic III 166, great glider ... $900 Vision MK IV 17 /19, in stock . ........ New Vision MK IV 17/19, used . . ....... S 1.200 .. $425 Equalizers, used s/m . 4206-K Sorrento Valley Blvd .. San Diego, CA 92121. \Ve have instniments and parachutes in stock. (619) 450-9008. *Special travel incenlives on some glider purchases.

Gliders UP. WW .. Pacific Ainvave . Moyes. Foil .. Used Spmt 167 Euro FR. Span AT like new . Vision MK 9, 7 hrs .... Axis 15 lOc .... Light Dream 165 .....

...... call ....... call .. call . ..... call . ...... call ...... $1,350 ....... $2,600 . ... $1,500 ...... $2,495 .. ..... $1,000

VlRGIN[A - SIL VER WINGS. Inc. Certified instruction and equipment sales. (703) 533-1965.

ULTRALIGHTS

SOARMASTER - Trike unit, less wing. Excellent condition, strobe light included, 22 HP twin, $850. firm. (207) 8466028. SCHOOLS AND DF:ALERS ALABAMA LMFP - Two hours from Binningham (see our ad under Tennessee.) (404) 398-3541. ARIZONA

GOLDEN WINGS 1103 Washington Avenue, Golden, CO 80401 (303) 278-7181 ..... $1,800 Vision 19 (used) (Exel Cond) .. Several Spmt 167 . ... S1800 - $2,200 ..... $2,800 HPAT,Demo. Many other good used gliders .. $450 - S 1.000

WANTED- MOYES MISSION 210, Jeff or Vicki (503) 862-2922.

WANTED- Used hang gliding equipment. Gliders, instruments, hamesses and parachutes. Airtime of San Francisco, 3620 Wawona, San Francisco, CA 94116. (415) SK Y-1177.

(805) 962-8999 FAX (805) 964-3337 Orders only: call collect

Aerodyne ...

WANTED - DREAM 220 and/or DREAM 240, may require photograph of glider (415) 487-3424. Ask for Rudy .

ARIZONA WINDSPORTS-Largest hang gliding center in the Southwest. Lesson~ utilizing the world's first manmade trainer hill. All our sites face every wind direction. Highest percent of flyable student days in America. Dealer for Pacific Airwave, Wills Wing, High Energy, Ball and Seagull classic parts. 1327 E. Bell De Mar Dr., Tempe, AZ 85283 (602) 897-7121.

WANTED-SENSOR 510 B or C (805) 687-9741.

SANTA BARBARA HANG GLIDING CENTER 29 Stale Street Santa Barbara, CA 93 IO I

Ball 652 Ball 651 Ball M 50 Brauniger LCD 5 .... Brauniger Alto Vario P2 Afro XC 8000 Afro Cirrus 8000 . Flytec DF 2030 . Flyter Pilot I Litec Vario . HE chute. BRS 4 HG. Helmets Rochelt Karban Fiber Bell Helmet .. UVEX Jet Helmet.

WANTED

......... $595 ..... $495 .... $675 .. S575 . ...... $450 ..... $799 .. $759 .. $1,200 ..... $580 ........ $269 .S345 ... $799 ...... $285 ... $129 .... $89 .$75

DESERT HANG GLIDERS - USHGA Certified School. Supine specialists. 4319 W. Larkspur, Glendale, AZ 85304. (602) 938-9550. ARKANSAS

WILL TRADE - North windsurfing equipment (sails, masts, booms, etc.) for late model glider. Call Scott (616) 857-4109 RIGID WINGS ODYSSEY - Foot launched sailplane. 16-1 glide ratio. ID minute set-up. Excellent condition. Includes transport box. $3,500. Dudley Mead. (415) 775-9560. PARA GLIDERS EQ SPORT - European paraglider (like Corvette) only 3 mountain tlights $2,000, April-July in CA. contact (615) 886-6487.

SAIL WINGS HANG GLIDING-Full-time lessons, sales, service. Pacific Airwave, CG 1000. New, used, rental equipment. P.O. Box 321, Atkins, Arkansas 72823. (501) 2274920. Haney's Point (501) 641-1902. We PROMOTE the sport' CALIFORNIA ACTION SOARING CENTER - In Lodi near Stockton . Personalized USHGA certified instruction, sales and service . Emphasis on special skills and techniques, T.0. and L. Call to demo XS, EZ, \VB. Ask about tow clinic. 1689 Armstrong Road, Lodi, CA 95242 (209) 368- 9665 .

EXCALIBUR's, EDEL's, UP's - Instruction. all equipment, Southern California and European tours. (714) 6548559.

r--------------------------------------~

I USHGA CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING ORDER FORM Section (please circle) I 40 cents per word, $4.00 minimum. Rogal/as Schools and Dealers I Boldface or caps $.95 per word. (Does not include first few words Emergency Chutes Ultralights I I which are automatically caps.) Special layouts or tabs $22 per Parts & Accessories Rigid Wings I I column inch. Business & Employment Publications & Organizations I (phone numbers-2 words, P.O. Box-1 word) Miscellaneous I I photos-$25.00 line art logos-$15.00 I Deadline-20th of the month, six weeks before the cover date of the Begin with 19_ _ issue and run for consecuI live issue(s). My check 0, money order 0, is enclosed in the amount of I I issue in which you want you rad to appear (i.e., June 20forthe August issue). $_______ I Prepayment required unless account established. I I Please enter my classified ad as follows: NAME: I I ADDRESS: I I I I Number of words: @ .40 = PHONE: I Number of words: @ .95 = I I Number of Months: . L ___________________ USHG~.O. Box~300, Col~~Sprmgs~O 80933~~ 632-830~ FEBRUARY 1991

CLASSIFIEDS AIRTIME OF SAN FRANCJSCO - Hang Gliding & Paragliding. USHGA & APA Certified Instruction, Sales, Service, Rental. - Pac. Air, UP, Wills, Sensor, High Energy, Manris, Second Chantz, B.R.S.///Pro Design, Apco Hilite, I.T.V., Edel, Skywalkerand MORE! Large selection of 2nd band gear (buy & sell). Next to Fort Funston. 3620 Wawona, San Francisco, CA 94116. (415) SKY-1177. AIRTIME UNLIMITED-SOUTHLAND HANG GLIDING SCHOOL - Pacific Airwave gliders in stock. Tandem instruction, ATOL towing. \Ve need your used glider trade-

ins. c/o David Engel, 12120 Severn Way, Riverside, CA 92503 (714) 589-0109. CHANDELLE SAN FRANCISCO, INC. Since 1973, complete hang gliding and paragliding sales service and instruction. Dealers for \Vil1s \Ying, Pacific Ai1wave, Delta Wing, Seed wings, UP, High energy, Center of Gravity, Ball, BRS, Second Chantz, ITV, Fircbird, Edel and more! Northern California's most complete repair facility, including 7th class rigger's machine. New and used equipment, spare parts, and demos. Complete training, including introductory lessons, packages, clinics, ground school and tandem. Five minutes frolll Ft. Funston. 488 i\fonor Plaza, Pacifica, CA 94044. (415) 359-6800. COMP A CT \VINGS PARAGLID1NG- lnstruction, sales, service, Southern California and European tours, at Soboba (best site in S. Cal.) (714) 654-8559. HANG FLIGHT SYSTEMS - DIRECTLY across the street from WILLS WING. DEMOS and rentals available to qualified pilots. HP-AT small, medium & large Sport-A T's, Kiss, Mark !V, Genesis, Dreams and Axis. FLY 'EM ALL anddccjde what you like. \Ve sell and service all major brands of gliders and accessories. USHGA certified XC clinics and training program. 1202 E. Walnut, Unit M, Santa Ana, CA 92701 (714) 542-7444 Near Disneyland. HANG GLIDER EMPORIUM- The best training hill in the west is in Santa Barbara, a hang gliding VA CATION PARADISE. High quality PERSONALIZED instrucrion focusing on the skills that most affect your SAFETY. Call for vacation info and glider inventory. Tues.- Fri. 10-5, Sat. 10-4. 613 N. Milpas, Sanra Barbara, California 93103 (805) 965-3733.

THE HANG GLIDING CENTER - Located in beautiful San Diego. USHGA instruction, equipment rentals, local flying tours. Spend your winter vacation flying with us. We proudly offer Wills Wing, Pacific Airwave, High Energy, Ball and we need your used equipment. 4206-K Sorrento Valley Blvd., San Diego, CA 92121 (619) 450-9008. MISSION SOARING CENTER - Serving the flying comnrnnity since l 973. Complete lesson program wjt11 special nltenlion to quality takeoff and landing skills. All major brands of gliders, parachutes and instruments sold. Sail repair and air frame service available. 1116 Wrigley Way, Milpitas, CA 95035. (408) 262-1055. NATURAL 1-JIGH SPORTS - Lessons, equipment, jewelry. Debbi Renshaw-Armenta, P.O. Box 361, Running Springs, CA 92382. (714) 867-7961. SILENT FLIGHT - Fly all winter! Towing year ·round. Demo Axis/Comets. Full service school/dealership. (916) 938-2061.

GOLDEN WINGS -

Sales, service. USHGA certified

instruction. Trmdem Towing Instruction. Dealers for \VilJs

Wing, Pacific Airwave, Delta Wings, Moyes, UP. Clinics: Soaring, Parachute, Instructor, Min. Tours, Towing. l l03 Miners Alley, Golden, CO 80401. (303) 278-7181. LID ENTERPRISES -Sail and harness repair - Equipment manufacturing - Towing winches and supplies - 5000 Butte #183, Boulder, CO 80301 (303) 440-3579. PEAK PERFORMANCE PARAGLIDING SCHOOL Paragliding instruction/equipment sales. P.O. Box 213, Crcsred Butte, CO 81224. (303) 349-5961. CONNECTICUT MOUNTAIN WINGS -

Look under New York.

FLORIDA

TORREY FLIGHT PARK, INC. - At the launch of the world famous Torrey Pines. Glider Port, one of San Diego's highlights! Unmatched convenience for pilots and spectators. Refreshment') and souvenirs at the Clifllrnnger Cafe. Certified Training program featuring tandem soaring lessons. New, used, rental and demo equipment by Delta Wing and UP. 2800 Torrey Pines Scenic Drive, La Jolla, CA 92037 (619)452-3202. TRUE FLIGHT CONCEPTS - USHGA Certified Instruction, Sales & Service. Become a better pilot in less time with our small persorrnlized classes & tandem instruction. Our head instructor has over I2 yenrs teaching experience. Only minutes from our local Kagel fvlountain flying site. 13185 Gladstone Ave., Syhnar, CA 91342. (818) 367-6050. WlNDGYl'SY - USHGA Ce11ificd school specializing in personalized tnndcm flight trnining. Full service sales & repair facility in Lake Elsinore - call for site info. \Vide range of new & used gliders & flight accessories in stock. Paul Burns, 33041 Walls St., Lake Elsinore, CA 92330 Phone (714) 678-5418; FAX (714) 678-5425. WINDSPORTS SOARING CENTER - Los Angeles' largest and most complete school since 1974. We specialize in personalized tandem instruction, sales and repair. Spend your winter vacation flying with us! 16145 Victory Blvd., Van Nuys, CA 91406 (818) 988-0111. "Professionals You Can Trust!"

MIAMI HANG GLIDING, INC. - has the most advanced training program known to hang gliding today. Certified instructors specialized in personalized tandem flight training. Full service and sales of parts for all gliders, makes and moclcls. For more information call (305) 667-2392 or (305) 962-6968. ORLANDO - Solo in one hour. Paraplane (powered parachute). Flights on large private airfield. (407) 351-4510.

LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN FLIGHT PARK -See ad under Tennessee. (404) 398- 3541. GEORGIA LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN FLIGHT PARK under Tennessee. (404) 398-3541.

See our ad

IDAHO COLORADO COLORADO HANG GLIDING/PARAGLJDTNG USHGA School. All brands, rentals, towing. Open full rime since 1972. (303) 278-9566.

HIGH ADVENTURE - Full service facility located on site at Southern California's famous mile high motmtains, Crestline. From sand hill to XC thermal flying, our 20 tandem accelerated training program is quick and thorough. Instructor Rob i'v[cKcnzie. Dozens of new nnd used gliders for sale or rent. Other services include, weather information, mountain shuttle, towing seminars, XC trips, repairs, ratings. (714) 883-8488

COLORADO WIND PARK - ··come up for Air'"' Sales, service, complete instruction on our 500-foot, 360-degree training hill. SI 0/day lodging. Dealing all brands. 5526 S. Pitkin Ct., Aurora, CO 80015, (303) 762-6505 or (303) 6806443. EAGLE'S NEST School of Hang Gliding-USHGA certified school. Dealer for Delta \Ying, Pacific Ainvavc and Wills Wing. P.O. Box 25985, Colorado Springs, CO 80936. (719) 59,1-0498.

TREASURE VALLEY HANG GLIDING - US!-IGA CF!, service/sales, Pacific Airwave, UP, American \Vindwright, La Mouette, 11716 Fairview. Boise, ID 83704. (208) 3767914. ILLINOIS RA VEN HANG GLIDING SCHOOL - Largest and most popular in the Midwest. Traditional curriculum, ridge soaring, mountain clinics, tandem by Brad Kushner. Sales/ service/accessories for all major brands. 300 N. Green Bay Rd., Waukegan, IL 60085 (708) 360-0700. MICHIGAN PRO HANG GLIDERS - USHGA instruction since 1978, advanced instructor, observer, safety is# I. Towing specialists since 1978. 1v1aintain and enhance your basic skills. \Ve still foot launch - none of those platform blues you have been

HANG GLIDING

CLASSIFIEDS reading about. All brands sold and serviced. Contact Nonnan Lesnow. 569 W. Annabelle. Hazel Park. Ml. 48030. (3131 399-9~33. T-N-T HANG GLIDING, INC. - Know how to tly'' Want ro learn to fly? Come see J\,fichiga11 ·s first ATOL lmmch system in action. (3 l3) 382-3977. NEVADA ADVENTURE SPORTS - Spectacular Sierra tours. tandem & lessons. USHGA ccnified Lraining and ratings. Dealer:-. for \\!ills \Ving. Pacific Airwavc, Delta \Ying, UP. Fly the Sierras with a full- service shop. 3680-6 Research Way, Carson City, N\' 89706 (702) 883-7070. NEW JERSEY MOUNTAIN WINGS -

Look under New York.

NEW J\!EXICO UP OVER NEW MEXICO. INC. - Instruction. sales. service. Sandia ivlountain guides. \\fills, Scedwings, Pacific Airwave, Delta. Moyes. Albuquerque, NM (505) 821-85'1~. NEW YORK AAA MOUNTAIN WINGS HANG GLIDING CENTER AND FLIGHT PARK - Now offering PARAGLIDING instruction and sales. Base of ELLENVILLE MTN. Four c.xclusi\'C training hills. Area's only dealer for Pacific Airwave, UP, Seedwings and Delta \Ving with demos in stock. \Ve are the largest, most complete H.G. accessory and repair shop of its kind in the country. lvlany new and used gliders in stock. R/C supplies and kits, Ultra Pod camera systems. VISA and MASTERCARD accepted. Stop in and get your flight pass and gate combo. 150 Canal St., Ellenville. NY 12428. (914) 647-3377. In N.E. 1-800-525-7850. FLY HIGH HANG GLIDING, INC. - Serving S. New York. Connecticut, Jersey areas (Ellenville l'vltn. J. Area\ EXCLUSIVE Wills Wing dealer/specialist. Also all other major brands, accessorie~. Certified school/instruclion. Teaching since 1979. Area's most INEXPENSIVE prices/ repair,. Ex.eel lent secondary instruction ... if you ·ve finished ,1 program and wish to continue. Fly the mountain! ATOL wwing! Tandem flights! Contact: Paul Voight, RD 2. Box 561, Pine Bush, NY 12566, (914) 744-3317. SUSQUEHANNA FLIGHT PARK - Cooperstown, NY. Ce11ified Instruction, Sales and Service for all major manufac(urers . ...J.Oacre part, 5 traininghills,jceprides, bunk house, camping, hot showers, 600' N\V ridge. \Ve have the best facilities in N. New York state to teach you how to fly. RD 2, Box 3-ISA, Cooperstown, NY 13326, (315) 866-6153. THERMAL UP, INC.-Mostcomplcte hang gliding shop in area. Locmcd on top of Ellenville lvlountain. USHGA Certified Instructor and Obse1Tcr. Concentrating on h,rng gliding instruction with emphasis on launching and landing technique~. Dealer for all major brands. Offering experl sales and service with lowest price in area. Large mail ordc:r in\'enlory.

Tom Aguero. P.O. Box 3-+7. Cragsmoor. NY l.2-1.20. (91-f) 647-.,~89. NORTH CAROLINA FLY AMERIC..\, Corolla Flight-All introductory !lights and lesson:-, taught by USHGA l'vla,ter Rated. 1\lh·anced Tandem Instructor. Greg Dc\Votr instruch new through advanced :--tuclent:-. with ATOL and Tanckm. Tm~· from your blanket or doorstep on beautiful Currituck Beach on tht:

FEBRUARY l 991

Outer Banks. Call (919) 261-6166 or write: Corolla Flight, Box 1021. Kitty Hawk. NC 279-19.TY KITTY HAWK KITES, !NC.-P.0. Box 1839. Nags Head, NC 27959 (919) -141-4124. Learn to hang glide on Jockey's Ridge. the largest sand dune on the east coast, just south of where the \Vrighl Brothers' first flight took place. Beginner and ad\'anccd lesson packages and ca1nps offered. Advanced tandem tow instruction, 1500 ft. plus up. Dealer for all major brand gliders, complete inventory of new and used gliders. accessorie..., ,md parls. OHIO MAR[O MANZO - Certified instruction. repair, inspection. CG- 1000, 2259 S. Smithville Rd., Dayton, OH 45420. (5]3) 256-3888 teve,.) NORTH COAST HANG GL!DlNG-Ccrtificd Instruction. New & u"cd gliders. Specializing in Pacific Airwave gliders. Mike Del Signore. 1916 W. 75th St., Cleveland. OH. 44102 (216) 631-11-1~. PENNSYLVANIA \•!OUNT/\IN TOP RECREATION -Certified instruction, Pittsburgh. \-112) 697--1477. C'i\·!ON OUT AND PLAY! \•lOUNTAIN WINGS -

Look unde1· New York.

TENNESSEE CRYSTAL AIR SPORT MOTEL- at Raccoon Mountain. Bunkhouse, private rustic rooms, regular & walcrbeds. video in~room movies. private jacu;:zi room. pooL sky gear gifts. fliers work program. FFI: -l-3::!8 Cummings Hwy., Chattanooga, TN 37-109. (615) 821-2546. Ciwck & Silari Tolh. HA \VK AJRSPORTS - New and in1proved hang gliding! A1tention Novice and beginners! New 360 degree training hill designed and built specifically for you. Conveniently located. Fun! Fun! Fun! Clinch i'vltn. -The longest ridge, two launches. The popular light wind indicator \Vindsok. Brochures available. Yoursatisfaction is the key to our continued growth and success. Hawk Air Sports, Inc., P.O. Box 9056. Knowillc. TN, 37940-0056. (615) -153-1035.

LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN FLIGHT PARK -Since 1978. Southca,;1 's largest USHGA-certified mountain flight school. Complete training. from grassy, gently-sloping training hills ID soaring high nbove Lookout ivlountain. Om specialty: getting you your first mountain flights. Lesson packages. USHGA ratings. glider and mountain bike rentals. camping. local site information. Largest inventory of new and used hang glider:-. aml mountain bikes. harnesses, helmet<:., in-;trumenb. T-shirt'i. Repair services. \Ve buy used gliders, equipment~ Send $1.00 for brochure. rates. directions, accommodations information. Twenty minut...:s from Chattanooga. Tennessee. Route~- Box~ 15-H, Dept. HG, Rising Fawn, GA 30738. (-1041398-35~1 or 398-3433. SEQUATCHIE VALLEY SOARING SUPPLY, INC. Dealer~ for all major brands. Small !raining classe\. with USHGA cenified instruction. including tandem tlights with group rate_, arni!nble. Famous radial nunp located just across the street. Great first mountain !light location with a hug.._. landing zone nnd camping available with a comfortable clubhouse. Fly O\'er 100 miles of ridges and enjL)Y challenging lhermab with two launches. soon to be three, riglll here in ··The hang gliding capital of tile Ea:-.t... Fully stocked pro ... hop. Rentab. :-.toragc. LJSHGA ratings and all the latest fo:-.llions. Proud dc:1lcr~ for \Vills \Ving. Seecl\\·ing.s and Delta \Ving glider:-. '.\·ith rca'."ionable pricing on all product:-.. Bro-

chure. 1naps. site info .. Tennes~ec Tree Toppers Club memberships available. Visa, filasterchargc and Disco\'er Card accepted. For personal service that you can trust call SVS. Rt. 2. Box 80. Dunlap, TN 37327 (615) 949-2301. TEXAS AUSTIN AIR SPORTS - Still the one in central Texas. qiwlity sen'ice .since l 978. Instruction, sales. rental, and a complete airframe & sail repair facility. 1712 \Ya1erston, Austin, TX 78703 (512)-174-1669. KITE ENTERPRISES- Instruction. sale,, repairs, platform towing, Dallas, North Texas area.:? 11 Ellis. Allen, TX 75002 (214) 996- 7706 daytime. (21-1) 727-3588 nights and \\'eekends. Dealer P[ldfic Airwave. RRA=RED RIVER AIRCRAFT - The pro·s shop. We specialize ln turning students into pilots. Flying trips. Jeff Hunt (5[2)-167-2529. Austin. UTAH VULTURE GLIDERS - Glider maintenance shop. Certified school and tandem flying. Denier for Center Gravity harness and Pacific Airwave. Charlie t801) 15-+-9063. WASATCH WINGS - USHGA certified hang gliding school, dealers for \Vil ls \\'ing. l'v1oyes and Pacific Airwave. Flighr operations at Point of the f>•lountain. Call Gordon (801) 277-1042. WASHINGTON AIRPLA Y'N PRO SHOP & Hang Gliding School. The largest full time. full .service hang gliding shop in \Vashington. All major bnmc.ls sold and scr\'iccc.l. 800 t\krcer. Sealtle, WA 98109. (206) 467-86-1~ OR (800) 753--126-1. INTERNATIONAL DEALERS SWITZERLAND SWISS ALP HANG GLIDING SAFARI- For qtrick, ea,y flying i\·lay to October, call or write Ron Hurst, Jostem,tr. 21, 8854 Galgencn, Switzerland, Dir. Dial USA Oi !-41-55645219, FAX#: Ol 1-41-55- 6'15223. EMERGENCY PARACHUTES ALL BRANDS - Bought. sold, and repacked Inspection and repack $20.00 - Parachutes, bridles. in~pecled and replaced. Airtime of S.F,, 3620 Wawona, San Francisco, CA 94116. (415) SKY-1177. NEVER USED CHUTES' -100'« satisfaction guaranteed. $265 each. All sizes, new bridle, deployment bag, re.packed/ inspected by FAA cert. master ngger. (303) 278-9566. TOWING PROTOTYPE PAY-OUT WINCH - Level-wind and all the goodies! Runs great, well pro\'Cll. mounts to any vehicle. Call Ion (303) -1-10- 3579. TOW LAUNCH SYSTEMS - Our reputation for building ~afc. reliable equipm('nl i:-. well known througholll i\orth ,\merica. TLS will custom make your low system for the line dia. you wish lo use. 3/3~" or 1/-+" ultraline ("'Dweebs .. only). COMPLETE TANDEM SYSTEMS WITH LAUNCH PLATFORi\l, $2,386.00. (p('rsona\ instruction included) . For a free info. package. contact. TLS@ 70 IO Mark St.. San Antonio. TX 78218. (51::>18::>-l-1803.

CLASSIFIEDS PARTS & ACCESSORIES

NEW N AS VARIO/ALT COMBO - Extremely accurate+/ - IO ft. at 10,000 ft. One-foot increments alt., digital, radio shielded, up and sink readout and ahmn. Five year parts and labor replacement I 00% guarantee or money back. $380 each. NAS distributing representatives (303) 278-9566.

ARA MID FULL FACE - Superlite full face cover helmet. Excellent vision, yet cold weather protection, $295. Visors S25. Pendulum Sports, Inc. (719) 539-3900. BALL 652's- Deluxe vario, all options, slightly used. New M50's in stock with or without barograph from 5550. Pendulum Sports, Inc. (719) 539-3900.

NEW EQUALIZER HARNESSES! Two extra small . .. .... $400 each One small ..... $420 Used streamliner extra small .. .. .... S200 Used cocoon extra small ................ $180 New light cocoon, medium with ballast .. $250 Call Eric Raymond, Ultralight Soaring Software (714) 6783931.

BELL SOARING HELMETS - White, blue, red and neon. $129. plus NAS Distributing. Call (303) 278-9566. Sold through dealers only. BRAND NEW MAXON RADIOS -$175 shipped! Colorado residents add 3.5'7c sales tax. Colorado Wind Park, 5526 S. Pitkin St., Aurora, CO, (303) 762-6505 or (303) 680-6443.

CRUISE SUPRONE POD- Contact Steve Dyer, P.O. Box 3091, Friday Harbor, \VA 98250. DELTA WING HARNESS - $300, High Energy emergency parachute, $350, AFRO Cirrus 8000 Instrument (airspeed, 2 altitudes, vario with total energy compensation) $550, vi11uaily new, must sell (818) 449-2088, evenings.

HIGH QUALITY HELMET - at an affordable price. Meets and exceeds new 1988 D.O.T. standards. Well finished brushed nylon liner with high strength polycarbonate shell. ONLY $55.00 + S4.00 S/J-1. Great for schools. Dealer inquiries welcome. GOLDEN WINGS, I 103 Washington Avenue, Golden, CO 8040 I. (303) 278-7181.

LINDSAY RUDDOCK VARJOS - Considered by good pilots on all five continenls as the very best sensitivity and stability that money can buy. Many options including the (unique) averaged clitnb rate permanent display. Prices around S800, VISA/MC. Call or write: Bob Fisher, M & B Associates, 11003 Oasis, Houston, TX 77096. (713) 728-4146, FAX 728-0438.

DON'T PAY HIGH PRICES'-Getcolors(white,blue,red, neon) on a high-quality, open-ear helmet, D.O.T. approved, finished brushed nylon liner with polycarbonate shell, only $48. NAS Distributing representative. Call (303) 278-9566 24 hours, for your nearest dealer.

PARAGLIDING EQUIPMENT FOR SALE - A complete line of equipment and accessories available. Whatever your needs, from Alpine descents to ocean, thermal, and ridge soaring, we have it. PEAK PERFORMANCE PARAGLIDERS INC., P.O. Box 213, Crested Butte, CO, 81224. Tel/Fax (303) 349-5961.

PARA-SWIVEL - Don't leave the ground wilhout one! $79.00 + $3.00 S/H. Available as an option by Free Flight, High Energy, BRS, Second Chantz. Dealer inquiries welcome. GOLDEN WINGS, 1103 Washington Avenue, Golden, CO 80401. (303) 278-7181.

FREEFLIGHT RESERVE- conlainer and extra large knee hanger harness - all in fair to excellent condition. Only S 150 takes it all. Call Joe at (714) 924-5229.

LITEK IS BACK! - With a new model E variometer. This $275 instrument has lhe fastest response lime of any we make. l\1any new features: longer battery life, takes Ball clamp both sides and bolfom, all metal rugged, all controls and audio now face pilot, audio level infinitely adjustable, and ... they' re in stock! Free brochure. At your dealer, or direct (VJSA,MC,AMEX) from Litek, (503) 479-6633, 4326 Fish Hatchery Road, Grants Pass, OR 97527.

GRADE A SHEEPSKIN HAND FAIRINGS-Warm hands in all conditions. Endorsed by Kevin Christopherson, "I wouldn't fly without them." Special orders and dealer inquiries welcome. Send $47.00 to Wyoming Aerolites, P.O Box 880, Casper, Wyoming 82602 (307) 235-3367.

MAXON RADIOS - $325. VHF FM 5 watt crystal, includes 3 USHGA channels, charger, case, antenna and warranty. Best prices on Maxon hand-held, mobile and accessories, plus fast, reliable service facility. Maxon 1 watt, S 170. Pendulum Sports, Inc. (719) 539-3900.

QUICK RELEASE CARABINER-$49.95. Extra ball lock pin, $29.00. 10,000 lbs., dealers welcome, patent pending. Thermal 19431-41 Business Center Drive, Northridge, CA 91324. (818) 701-7983. SAILMAKING & RIGGING SUPPLIES - All fabric types. JV!assachusetts Motorized, P.O. Box 542-G, Cotuit, MA 02635. (413) 736-2426.

HANG GLIDING

HOW TO ENJOY 'lfff, VIEW FROM 'l'HF, TOP:

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MBNA America•m is one of the world's leading issuers of credit cards. Committed to ervicin our members' needs, MBNA Ameriers 24-hour-year-round ustomer Satisfaction, one hour processing for credit line increase requests, a lost card registration service and an emergency replacement card service.

wide, the USHGA VISA®Gold card is one of the best credit cards available today because it gives you unmatched security, value and an edge in facing financial challenges.

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CLASSIFIEDS SPORT KELLER HIGH TEC II PODS - Regularly $850! Winter special on demo and new pods: Neon orange, height 5'7"-5' 11 ", chest 43", one flight, $550. Red, height 5'7"5" 11 ", chest 43", three flights, $500. Neon yellow, height 5' 11 "-6'3", chest43", new, BRS holster unit with new frontmounted parachute from BRS, total value, $1,700, your cost, $1,100. Black, height 5' 11 "-6'3", chest 43", used, in excellent condition, $350. Call Hang Ventures at (206) 322-1184 and press 3, then the pound(#) sign, before the beep on your touch tone phone. THE ULTIMATE CAMERA SETUP!! -This QUALITY camera lets you take professional looking pictures easily. It's THE ONLY camera available with ultrasound remote, the best way to take pictures from a hang glider. It also is very light weight, has auto- focus, auto-advance, autorewind, auto-load, auto-flash, built- in wide angle lens, and more! The mount (included) easily adapts to any glider. Just $236 gives you everything ready to go. See why schools and dealers are snatching it up! VISA/MC. CA residents add 6.25% tax ($250.75). Cindy Gall, c/o Semicoa, 333 McCormick Avenue, Costa Mesa, CA 92626. (714) 5401099.

PERFORMANCE PARAGLIDERS INC., P.O. Box 213, Crested Butte, CO 81224. Tel/Fax (303) 349-5961. INSTRUCTORS WANTED - Basic-Advanced, Tandem, also Paragliding. Top pay and great working and flying conditions year round. Send resume to 16145 Victory Blvd., Van Nuys, CA 91406.

*NEW* "HANG GLIDING TODAY" - The official USHGA Headquarters membership video. Produced by Robert Reiter and narrated by Russ Locke, covering member programs and benefits. $9.95 plus $3.00S/H. Send to USHGA Video, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933. MISCELLANEOUS

INSTRUCTORS WANTED-Prefer certified but will train qualified people. Advancement opportunities include tour guiding and management. Western Hang Gliders, P.O. Box 28882, Marina, CA 93933. (408) 384-2622. MOUNTAIN WINGS - Is looking for advanced hang gliding and paragliding instructors. Salaries negotiable. Full and part- time positions available. Manager position available-requires knowledge of computer systems. Call Greg or Judy at (914) 647- 3377. Send resume to 150 Canal St., Ellenville, NY 12428. PUBLICATIONS & ORGANIZATIONS

CROSS COUNTRY - "T" shirts, long sleeved, 100% cotton, with full color design, send $15.00 + $1.50 P/H and size to Windriders "T" Shirts, 17-6th Avenue, Wilmington, DE 19805.

HANG GLIDING FOR REG INNER PILOTS by Pete Cheney. The Official USHGA Training Manual. Learn to fly with the World's finest hang gliding manual. Complete flying instructions from the training hill to soaring techniques. Over 260 pages, with more than 160 easy-to-understand illustrations and photos. Guaranteed to satisfy the most inquisitive pilot. NOW A VAILABLEFOR$29.95(plusS4.00 shipping/handling) Colorado residents acid 6.5% tax. SEND/ FAX/PHONE TO: USHGA, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933-8300, FAX (719) 632-6417, PHONE (719) 632-8300. VISA/MC accepted. DON'T GET CAUGHT LANDING DOWNWIND! Perfect that no-step landing by watching our Windsok. Constrncted with 1.5 oz. ripstop nylon. UV treated to maintain its brilliant color. 5 '4" long with an 11" throat. Available colors are fluorescent pink/yellow or fluorescent pink/white. $39. 95 (plus $4.00 shipping/handling) Colorado residents add 6.5% tax. Send to: USHGA Windsok, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933-8300, FAX (719) 632-6417, PHONE (719) 632-8300. VISA/MC accepted.

**SPECIALNEW PILOT EDITION** -Covering many aspects of hang gliding for the beginning pilot. $4.50 plus $1.50 S/H. SEND/FAX/PHONE TO: USHGA, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933-8300, FAX (719) 632-6417, PHONE (719) 632-8300. VISA/MC accepted.

X-C SMOKE BOMBS -$5.00. Signal mi1rnr, $6.00. Jack the Ripper cutaway knife, $15.00. Silva compass, $100.00 Pendulum Sports, Inc. (719) 539-3900.

SOARING - Monthly magazine of The Soaring Society of America, Inc. Covers all aspects of soaring flight. Full membership $45. Info. kit with sample copy $3. SSA, P.O. Box E, Hobbs, NM 88241. (505) 392-1177.

USHGA DELUXE LOG BOOK COVER - Be proud to show off your flights 1,,vith our deluxe log book cover. American made from "reconstrucled" gray vinyl. Looks and feels like leather and "de bossed" with theMtn. Glider design. Will fit any hang gliding log book! Only $9.95! (plus $2.00 S{H) Colorado residents add 6.5% sales tax. ORDER YOURS TODAY! USHGA, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933. (719) 632-8300. FAX (719) 632-6417.

PARAGLIDE USA- Subscribe to North America's most widely read paragliding magazine. $25/year/12 issues. VISA/ MC 12662 Softwind Dr., Moreno Valley, CA 92388 (714) 924-5229 or FAX (714) 242- 4718.

BUSINESS AND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

VIDEOS & FILMS

ATTENTION - LICENSED HANG GLIDING INSTRUCTORS. Contact us for free information on opening your own Paragliding School. We provide everything you need to start a school) and train you to use our proven methods of instruction. Free introductory Paragliding ground school and flight to Licensed Hang Gliding Instructors. For information on your own Paragliding School, contact: PEAK

VIDEO TAPES FOR HANG GLIDER PILOTS Flatland Flying-ATOL towing and XC flying Texas style with Larry Tudor and Joe Bostik. Mountains High-Festival flying at Silverton and Telluride, CO. TELLURIDE!-World Champion Acrobatic competition. Each tape $37 (Calif. Res. add state tax) plus $3 shipping perorderto: Robert Reiter, 800 Heinz Street #9, Berkeley, CA 94710. (415) 649-8111.

HOT KIWI FEMALE PILOT WANTING BIG AIR AND WILD PARTIES - No seriously, I need some local expertise to show me good XC sites and would like to join up with anyone planning a mission or flying holiday in May-June before I compete in the Women's Worlds in Austria in July. California, Owens Valley, New York or any other areas considered. Contact me before February 26th at 20 Lillington Road, Remuera, Auckland, New Zealand, FAX (64-9) 3662982 or c/o The New Zealand team in Brazil.

USHGA POSTER! - Pull color, 24" X 37" poster of Eric Raymond doing oxygen at 17,000' MSL over the Sierra Nevada Range. $5.95 plus \;2.00 S/H. USHGA Poster, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933 (719) 632-8300.

FEBRUARY 1991

CLASSIFIEDS SALE! - Limited offer! USHGA PORTFOLIO and desk folders. USHGA portfolios feature easy-canying handle, double-flex ··snap-top'' spring-opening closure for c-asy access. Turned edge construction with nylon stitching. de bossed with the mm,tain glider design. NA VY OR BURGUNDY, $9.50'' USHGA DESK FOLDERS have color and grain matched linings and pockl":ts. Gold tone metal corners, turned and sewn edges. 50-~heet letter pad included. Debossed with the mountain glider logo. NA VY OR BURGUNDY, $9.50* Both for only Sl8*. * plus 53 shipping and handling. Send to USHGA. P.O. Box 8300. Colorado Springs. CO 80933 (719) 632-8300 FAX (719) 632-6417. USHGA EMBLEM T-SHIRTS-Theoriginal, revised for the 90's! Bright neon colors. Your choice: a white tank rap or black t- shirt. Both 100<,;f cotton. Please specify type and size. Available in S, M, L, XL. Only $9.95 each (what adeaJI) + S2.00 S/H. Colorado residents acid 6.5'7, tax. Send to USHGA, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933 (719) 632-8300.

STOLEN WINGS MI LITARY DUFFLE WITH EQUIPMENT - Large green duffle containing red \Vasatch \Vings spaghetti harness. \Vith high energy parachute and two f. 1axon 3-channel radios in red cordura cases with ivlaxon headset and Roberts Alt/vario. White helmet stenciled with #39-190. Also, black Region -l championship duftle with HG hardware and smoke bombs. blue Columbia poncho with grey sweater. Home burglarized in Craig. CO. 9-17-90. Scott (303) 824-2-+5-l leave message. 1

MAGIC KISS - Fluro. yellow LE., white chevron, pink undersurface. airfoil. down tubes pitch)'· bar mitts, 2' skull and cross bones on wing tip, over Kiss e,nblcm inlay, many skull stickers on glider. Serial No. KM 83707. Also HP AT 158, serial no. 22504. with Lt. blue L.E., red chevron on bottom, custom plan. Serial No. 22504. Stolen in L.A. with van 6-26-90. Van recovered without gliders. (6 I 9) 274-8254.

BALL \I ARIO - With total energy probe, electrical tape securing battery. Lost in Hemet (So. Cal.) in early Spring of 1990. Located in black fanny pack, can describe the contents of the pack (619) -l80-132l. MAXON - Three-channel radio, lost or misplaced at the Telluride Aerobatics Competition. Serial No. 81171758. (602) 7-+5-6739 days, leave message. BRAND NEW HIGH El\ERGY COCOON -Stolen along with contenls of my vehicle in Durango, CO in early May, 1990. Stripes from toes to shoulder, brown. tan, orange, yd low, red. Red stuff sack with yellow, orange and brown patches. Please contact Tim at (213) 375-8438. LcaYe message.

ULTRA GOLD WINGS - YOURSTATEMENTOFFLJGHT (in fine jewelry) NEW DESIGN Available in 14K gold or sterling silver. Satisfaction guaranteed. Contact Antero Jewelers, 130 F St., Salida, CO 8120 I (7 l 9) 539-7611. 1-lK SS Necklace and chain S 119.00 $39.00 Tie tack or pin 599.00 532.00 Add $3.00 for shipping and insurance. VISA and MASTERCARD accepted. WANTED TO LEASE - or purchase a hang gliding site in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, i\-fassachusects or Connecticut. Send information to P.O. Box 428, Lumberton, New Jersey 08048 or call (609) 859-389-t. HAVE YOU SENT FOR YOUR NEW 1991 USHGA MERCHANDISE ORDER FORM TODA r FREE! CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING RATES: The rate for classified advertising is S.40 per \\'ord {or group of characters). Minimum charge, 54.00. A fee of$15.00 is charged For each line art logo and $25.00 for each photo. Bold face or caps within the text $.95 per word. Please underline words to be in bold print. Special layouts of tabs S22.00 per column inch. AD DEADLINES: All ad copy, instructions. change\, addition5, and cancellations must be recei\'cd in \\'riting I I /2 months prcceding the cover dah:, i.e. October 20 for the December is.sue. Please make checks payable lO CSHGA: Classified Advertising Dept. HANG GLIDING MAGAZINE, P.O. Box 8300, Colorado Springs, CO 80933 (719) 632-8300 or FAX (719) 632-6-+17.

155 MOYES XS-Full race, stolen from side of road at IO I and Scheller exit, between San Jose and Morgan Hill. It was taken away with no bag or ties. Colors are: LE.-orange, main-green, bottom-white. Contact Kevin Dutt. (415) 9342189 ITALIAN MOYES XS - Red LE., yellow, white T.E. Stolen from my home in Binningham. Alabama on June 4, 1990. European tubing, I of 5 in U.S. Call Allen t205) 5958641. STOLEN FROM SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH 2/90- 167 Sport Euro. Full Race. All white with clayglow orange undersurfocc. S300 rew,u-d for information leading to recovery. Call Dave Rodriguez at (801) 572-1000. FIREBIRD COBRA PARAGLIDER-24m2. yellow. pink. orange. Stolen from car in Kentfield, CA on 4-15-90. Call (415) -+56-7272. STOLEN W!NGS ore listed ,is " service to LJSHGA members. There is no charge for this service and lost and found wings or equipment may be called in to (719 J 632-8300 for inclusion in Hang Gliding magazine. Please call to cancel the listing when gliders are recm·erecl. P('riodically, this listing will be purged.

INDEX TO ADVERTISERS Adventure Sports .............................. 24 AirW orks .......................................... 69 Ball Varios ....................................... 42 Big Wing .......................................... 34 Brede! Tours ..................................... 57 BRS .................................................. 49 Cloudbase Instruments ..................... 55 Cross Country Magazine ................... .4 Hall Bros .......................................... 57 High Energy Sports .......................... 57 K&C High Tech ............................... 32 Lookout Mt. Flight Park.. ................. 41 MBNA .............................................. 67 Mcclaren Products ........................... 55 Morningside Hang Gliders ............... 35 Mountaineer Trikes .......................... 52 OA USA ........................................... 35 Pacific Airwave ................................ 72 Paragliding Magazine ...................... 58 Perfonnance Designs ...................... .42 Roberts Glider Instruments .............. 11 Second Chantz .................................. 24 Seedwings ........................................ 55 Sentek ............................................... 35 Sierra Cloudbase .............................. 42 Sport Aviation Publications ............. 57 UP International ................................. 6 U.S. Aviation .................................... 29 USHGA .................... 2,3,4,18,53,54,58 Wills Wing .................................. 21,70 World Team , .................................... 15

. I•

FINGER FAIRINGS

_.,.--

i-'"\~

}

• Always there when you need them • Warm, comfortable, durable, slide easily across control bar • Instant bare hand dexterity for launch, CB, chute, camera • Quality construction, 1/(-in. neoprene, nylon inside and out • Available in red or black S, M, or L only $32.50 dealer inquiries invited

THE AIRWORKS

3900 Van Buren NE Albuquerque, NM 87110 (505)

HANG GLIDING

884-6851

Model Span Aspect Ratio Nose Angle Glider Weight Pilot Weight

144 31 feet

6.7 120 degrees 54 lbs. 110 - 210 lbs.

A smaller Spectrum for smaller pilots, the 144 brings first purchase high performance to a whole new group of pilots. A complete 7075 airframe and battens, drag reducing wingtips, optional streamline downtubes and speed bar, and AT hardware are featured on the 144. If you've been waiting for a high tech, high performance glider that's just your size, see your dealer about the new 144 Spectrum!

Spectru,n 144

165 Spectru,n In just a few months on the market, the 165 Spectrum has taken the recreational pilot market by storm. No glider before has combined this level of quality, performance, and value into a glider that is so much fun to fly and such a pleasure to own. If you are looking for a superior combination of advanced engineering, reponsive and predictable handling, and top of the stack soaring performance, backed by Wills Wing's unmatched record of customer service and satisfaction, check out a Spectrum today!

Model Span Aspect Ratio Nose Angle Glider Weight Pilot Weight

165 34 feet

7.0 121 degrees 60 lbs. 140 - 240 lbs.

~LU~ND 1208 H. East Walnut • Santa Ana • CA • 92701 •

Phone (714) 547-1344 • FAX (714) 547-0972

- - - - - ~ - - - - - - ~ - ~ - - ~ ~ - - - - - - - - -~ - ~ - - - - - - -

ST. PAUL, MINN - This month's big news focuses on the UP company. As many of you readers are veterans of the sport, the history of UP is familiar. The illustrious SoCal builder has undergone several designers, managers, and owners. Each such change no doubt extracted a toll. As '91 begins UP launches into yet i another transformation. • • • To begin, the mysterious Terry Reynolds wing mentioned in December has now popped up ... guess where? Yup! UP will be the builder of the newly named TRX. Check their ad in this issue. Reynolds will fly the TRX in the Australian Nats, then will join fellow '91 World Team Member, Tony Barton, at the Brazilian Worlds. The TRX is a high aspect ratio wing (8:1) with contemporary span (36 ft) and planform (132° ~ose) that tips the scales very lightly (60 lbs) by using carbon fiber spars built in a $9 million shop. If cost can be contained, the new UP might get a leg up on a vexing situation confronting otner U.S. manufacturers: importing aluminum tubing from Europe. Reynolds assures the wing won't be sold until HGMA certification is completed which he expects in January. ••• The story continues for UP with the company being completely reorganized under new ownership! Japan maintains a presence via Chairman Eiichi ' Isomura, whom Reynolds labels, "a successful international businessman and strong sup! porter of hang gliding internationally." i Reynolds himself will become president, we::_1-known sailmaker Dick Cheney will become I Chief Operating Officer, and a "high level ski industry executive," Dave Stetler, will offer his business savvy as CEO. Adds Reynolds, "UP moved to Utah at the end of December and is reorganized under majority ! U.S. ownership." He didn't elaborate on the ownership breakdown and had just departed for Australia as this was written. Reynolds wrapped up his comments saying, "We look forward to reestablishing UP to its former position in the hang gliding industry with , state-of-the-art products and close dealer support." Somehow, call it intuition, I don't think we've heard the last of this story. Address/phone info appears in their ad. ••• Glider Sport Int' 1, developer of the composite rigid wing glider Apex, called with more specs on the new wing. We' 11 see two versions offered: one is cable braced, a "recreational" model priced at about $4,000; 1

----,

another, the full-out cantilevered version, priced at about $6,000 due its 47% use of , composite material (the rec' model has 25%) . Both figures may drop based on new discoveries of lower priced carbon fiber, yet the , company stresses "We don't know if we can hold these prices." Performance on the big span, high aspect aircraft appears to be about 14: 1 for the rec' model, 16:1 on a non-faired cantilevered model, and 20: 1 with full pilot fairing. GSI is taking extra steps to not overstate performance. They wish to verify claims before making a lot of noise. A video tape of test flights certainly reveals a strong glide. Certification has begun and may be concluded as you read this. Weight has been shaved already to "90-94" pounds on the cantilevered model, and is a reasonable 67 pounds on the rec' version. At last report , (updates come frequently) GSI planned to relocate in Southern California. More than other rigid wing efforts I've observed GSI will bear a close watch. The structure and capitalization of the company seems v1ell orchestrated. Last time, I missed a proper ID of the paraswivel developer. The SkyRohr Para-Swivel was originated by Kurt Rohr. But, Denver's Golden Wings will handle the marketing. Call them at 303/27 8-7181. • • • Finally, on the aerotowing fatality referenced last month, not much additional ' information was discovered. The towplane was sold to Bruce Hawk's east Tennessee business 'by the Draggon Flyers hang gliding club of Florida. They reported no problems with it. In fact, Steve Flynn was at Hawk's site to fly the Cobra tow plane only weeks before the accident. Apparently a shackle carrying the flying load on one side failed due to prior damage or fatigue. Witnesses said the flight exhibited no unusual maneuvers. Sadly, the low altitude breakup (100± ft) occurred with no parachute and impacted just 20 feet away from a river that might have lessened injury. The pilot was described as a very careful conventional airplane pilot with increasing time in ultralights. • • • Meanwhile ultralight designer Bobby Bailey and the Florida group had already begun and will continue building two new towplanes (with aileron and other mods). Room's gone. Next time, poop from Europe. Got news or opinions? Send 'em to: 8 Dorset, St. Paul MN 55118. Call 612/ 457-7491 (days) FAX: 612/457-8651. THANKS! !

SOAR UP THE PERFORMANCE tADDER SOAR UP TO PACIFIC AIRWAVE Pacific Airwave builds the ultimate gliders for every level of pilot. Period. Vision MK IV 17/19, a time-proven standard in excellence. If you are a student looking for double surface performance and a glider that will take you to your first X-C flights you are looking for a Vision MK IV. Available in two sizes, the Vision MK IV allows you to maximize your enjoyment with the confidence that comes standard on a glider that is #1 with USHGA Certified instructors. The Vision MK IV is the lightest, most suitable entry level, double surface glider available.

Magic Formula 144/154, for the next tier in your soaring career. Until the release of the Magic Formula there was limited choice for the recreational sport pilot. Now there is one choice glider, the Magic Formula. "Top of the stack" sink rate. Smooth responsive handling. Broad speed range. Pacific Airwave fast set up. 50 MPH VNE. What more could you want from a glider with an already long list of standard features.

The new

.k. 145/155, a superb high performance glider.

Refinements on the top end allow the~to exhibit superb tracking characteristics. Cross bars tensioning is easier with new hardware and design. The V.G. system is the finest ever. Indexed line and a clever pulley/cleat allow for finite adjustment with minimal effort. Dynamically load tested in excess of 10 G's for a 200 lbs. pilot and pitch tested to 65 mph the k.. is a confidence inspiring glider. For serious X-C or Competition pilots, the k.. offers more smiles per mile. Service, we don't just do it, we engineer it into all our gliders. At Pacific Airwave service is our #1 priority. Just ask any hang gliding professional. Pacific Airwave has been continuously setting the standards in customer service and support for years. This same philosophy is applied to every aspect of our design and day to day business.

Pacific AIRWAVE

PACIFIC AIRWAVE LTD D P.O. Box 4384 D SALINAS, CA 93912 D TEL. 408-422-2299 D FAX 408-758-3270