Hang Gliding & Paragliding

Transcription

1 30 Hang Gliding & Paragliding

2 Big Spring Hang Gliding Nationals 09 words & images by RickerGOLDSBOROUGH A rriving at the 2009 Big Spring National Hang Gliding event in Big Spring, Texas was a honor in itself, and having the privilege of watching the top dogs fly was icing on the cake! However, I was about to be completely overcome with the Hang Gliding Competition disease. First came the fever, next came stronger symptoms, and, finally, I succumbed to the malady. I am now sick with love for Hang Gliding Competitions. So, as with many things in life. the event is not what you expect it to be, and what you are afraid of turns out not to be what is important. In fact, the things that I was concerned about when I signed up for the comp were never thought of again, once I was in the air. The administration of the competition was flawless, the pilots were helpful, and the town was very accommodating. It was easy to see that a lot of work had been done over the years by David Glover and a handful of others to make this competition happen. In fact, evidently it all started with an idea and a phone call to the director of the Big Spring Airport, Jim Little, who then involved Terry Wolford, Big Spring events coordinator, and Davis Straub, Hang Gliding events and weather guru. It may sound as if this type of event is difficult to arrange, but, in fact, it starts with an idea and someone like David Glover who takes the first step. After the idea and the willingness to take the first step, the rest will follow. (Kind of like, Build it and they will come. ) Hmmm! I am starting to get an idea. Of course, you also must have pilots willing to participate and having exceptionally good pilots helps. This being said, I would add a huge thanks to all the pilots who attended. You guys rock! I was totally surprised by the helpful nature of all the pilots. And I mean the big dogs, such as Jeff Shapiro, Jeff O Brien, Zac Majors and Davis Straub. Each day brought new assistance, such as Derreck Turner tutoring me on what to do and not to do. Derreck, who turned out to be in the above cat- [above] Campbell Brown falls just short during the spot landing competition. [opposite] Jeff Shapiro awaits launch, meditating, sleeping or maybe just relaxing. You never know. Hang Gliding & Paragliding 31

3 [above] Towing up. [below] Eric Donaldson threatening to use his designer knee pads. egory, totally impressed me with his humble attitude. For that matter, I did not see even one pilot walking around with a chip on a shoulder or an attitude of I am better than you. I could drop more names, like Larry Bunner, Glen Volk, Alex Cutty, Mark Stump, and Mark Bolt, and the list goes on and on. Not a single pilot had a less than positive attitude. They ALL were willing to help me with my first comp; no one was holding anything back. For new pilots who are thinking of doing the Big Spring comp, but not sure if you want to take the plunge, I have listed below some information that may assist you in your decision making. Keep in mind that comps are not for everyone, but it is my belief that everyone should do a comp, and I have listed below some of my reasons. All comps can t be alike and different challenges are associated with each. This article is about Big Spring, with the thought that I hope to do more comps and provide similar information about each of them if it is helpful to other pilots. Why do a Comp? You get to fly with the best of the best, your skills will be put to good use and tested daily, you learn great stuff fast, and you get to fly often and far. The support you get helps build confidence, and the seasoned pilots that compete are very willing to answer the dumbest of questions. Don t be shy. Ask questions. The excitement is hard to explain and the information available is more than anyone can take in at one time. (I have said many times that my brain only holds 64k, and I have to dump out data to put more in.) 32 Hang Gliding & Paragliding

4 Safety Some may think that safety issues are compromised in a race. I would disagree. I did not see any difference in safety protocol other than the pilots being more knowledgeable about it. In fact, I would have to say that the safety issue at the comp had more focus than your standard training facility. Some of these pilots do this for a living and, therefore, safety has an even higher priority. There are times when the task committee plots a course over some harsh terrain, but guess what? You don t have to go over it. Go around or don t go at all until you are comfortable. That s what I did one day. We were required to cross over some nasty ground and, even though I was high, I chose not to cross and returned back to a large field where someone else had landed. After playing around a bit and practicing what my friend Ollie had taught me the game of do not land tactics or scratching I finally landed. What I am saying is that you don t have to fly. You decide. If you want to win you may need to push yourself but, by the time you are even close to that point, your skills will be much better, reducing the danger. The better your skills, the safer you are. The more you fly with better pilots, the more you learn and the better your skills become. Make sense? Pearls of wisdom FROM Big Spring Cover your harness boot with many layers of duct tape. It will wear out on the concrete. Carry a large garbage bag in your harness in case it rains and you want to cover yourself, your harness, or your instruments after landing out. Understand how to give your GPS cooridnates to your driver. If you do not have a driver when [above] Wings ready in the hangar. [below] Jeff, Glen and Derreck chilling out before launch. Hang Gliding & Paragliding 33

5 [above] Art lands next to the road and Pam, our driver, is there to retrieve. [below] Jeff O'Brien aims for the cone. you arrive, don t worry about it. They will find you one. Exchange phone numbers before you fly. Bring a blanket or drop cloth to set up on to protect your gear and your butt. Listen more than you talk. There is a lot to learn. Set up your wing early so you have enough room and a good spot when it comes time to get your wing out of the hangar. You don t want to be blocked in. Stage your wing in the staging line early so you have a better choice of when to go to the launch line. Launch early so you can get established early in the air. This allows you to fly with the big dogs and learn more. Don t worry about start times; just fly, fly, fly, and have fun. It s normal to start watching the start times and start circle. It all finally clicked for me on day six. Do not overload yourself by thinking about the race. Pretend you are having fun flying at home. Even the big dogs fly with the idea of having fun. I saw Zippy dive out into the blue one day, while the rest of us were at cloud base waiting for the start time, so he could do a climbing wing-over, followed by another and another. A few minutes later, he was back in the gaggle with a huge smile as if to say, Did you see that? That was fun! Drink lots of water and undo your zipper on your pants before you fly. You will thank me for telling you this when it comes time to get rid of ballast. Always stop to see if you can assist a pilot after he/ she has landed. Do your talking in the air. Most pilots appear to be equal while thermaling in a gaggle and on glide. However, the race where the talent be- 34 Hang Gliding & Paragliding

6 comes most evident is when it s time to play that 3D chess game. Knowing when to go, where to go, and how to go to the next cloud or even out into the blue is a true measure of a great pilot. Fly with charged radios and instruments. Have an idea of where to fly, and fly over primary roads. The tasks usually take you close to them anyway, so there is no need to land in an area that has no roads. I always landed next to a large road, making retrieval easy. (Thank you, Pam, for promptly being there). Watch the clouds, as they tend to quickly indicate rain and gust fronts. It s easy to avoid danger if you watch the sky. Wear kneepads to prevent pains from landing on the concrete, in case a weak link breaks on tow. Wear long pants or spandex pants. This helps protect your legs and makes your harness easy to zip. The launch lines can be long, so relax. (Jeff Shapiro is good at this) Closing thoughts If you only follow the good guys while on glide and do not do your part and spread out to help in the process, you will be scraped off. Watch for the good guys to pull rope, as this is a good indication that they are shifting gears. C ongratulations Glen Volk, Jeff Shapiro, and Zac Major for taking the first three spots of the Big Spring National Hang Gliding Competition They are masters, and I thank all of you for sharing your talent with others. Your humble attitude and willingness to share is contagious. Thanks again to the wonderful drivers who patiently wait for us on the ground. If it were not for you, we would be in lots of pain. Pam, you re the greatest! I thank you and your husband, Art Cayer, for allowing me to be part of your team. This trip set many firsts for me. Sharing it with a quality guy like Art Cayer was simply the best. Art and I worked as a team in the air on the sixth day and, as a result, we out-flew many of the better pilots. After landing, we had a few hours to act like 10-year-old boys while Pam endured our childlike behavior. It was good to be us that day. A big thanks to the town of Big Spring, and let s not forget the all important tug pilots. Every time I flew they dropped me off in the best thermals possible. They were the best ever! [above] Gust front approaching. Hang Gliding & Paragliding 35