Anyone try paragliding?

On Sat, 21 May 2005 22:04:19 -0600, "Michael 182"
wrote:
Very good info. I may reconsider... Thanks,

Michael, don't let all the scare stories scare you. Yes, paragliding
has its risks, just as does GA. Like GA, those risks can be reduced
by good training and careful decision making, and also like GA, can't
be eliminated. It's all about flying within your limitations and the
limitations of the aircraft.

I have around 200 hours now in _powered_ paragliders (following around
600 hours GA). Powered paragliding (PPG) is about the most fun I've
had in the air, and the motor gives the flexibility to avoid the
thermic conditions required to keep an unpowered paraglider or hang
glider aloft. A year or so ago, I looked at the statistics. The
number of PPG pilots in the U.S. isn't all that large and data is hard
to come by, but as near as I could figure, the fatality rate per hour
is about the same as GA (though the risk of a minor injury is higher).
Unpowered paragliding is somewhat (but not horribly or unacceptably)
worse.

To answer your original question, GA experience does help as general
background... not so much at first, or for the actual flying, but if
you continue with it there's some stuff that you won't have to relearn
(aerodynamics, airspace, regs, etc.)

-Dana
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On Wed, 31 Aug 2005 19:59:55 -0400, Dana M. Hague
d(dash)m(dash)hague(at)comcast(dot)net wrote in
::

Powered paragliding (PPG) is about the most fun I've
had in the air ...

A subscription to this magazine will give one an idea of the state of
the PPG art: http://www.ultraflight.com/

"Dana M. Hague" d(dash)m(dash)hague(at)comcast(dot)net wrote in message
...
On Sat, 21 May 2005 22:04:19 -0600, "Michael 182"
wrote:
Very good info. I may reconsider... Thanks,

Michael, don't let all the scare stories scare you. Yes, paragliding
has its risks, just as does GA. Like GA, those risks can be reduced
by good training and careful decision making, and also like GA, can't
be eliminated. It's all about flying within your limitations and the
limitations of the aircraft.

With a big emphasis on "the limitations of the aircraft". One huge problem
with a paraglider is that the wing can be compromised by turbulent air or
thermic action at the worst possible time, during your approach to land.
When you're 30 feet above the ground and your wing is suddenly 50% collapsed
due to localized turbulent air or a nearby thermal lifting off, no amount of
training is going to help you deal with the 30 foot plummet you are about to
experience because there isn't going to be time to recover.

One very important thing to keep in mind is that conditions that a GA pilot
wouldn't normally give a second thought to can be very significant to an
aircraft like a paraglider or an ultralight, especially when your legs and
feet are your landing gear.

"BDS" wrote in message
...
"Dana M. Hague" d(dash)m(dash)hague(at)comcast(dot)net wrote in message
...
On Sat, 21 May 2005 22:04:19 -0600, "Michael 182"
wrote:
Very good info. I may reconsider... Thanks,

Michael, don't let all the scare stories scare you. Yes, paragliding
has its risks, just as does GA. Like GA, those risks can be reduced
by good training and careful decision making, and also like GA, can't
be eliminated. It's all about flying within your limitations and the
limitations of the aircraft.

With a big emphasis on "the limitations of the aircraft". One huge
problem
with a paraglider is that the wing can be compromised by turbulent air or
thermic action at the worst possible time, during your approach to land.
When you're 30 feet above the ground and your wing is suddenly 50%
collapsed
due to localized turbulent air or a nearby thermal lifting off, no amount
of
training is going to help you deal with the 30 foot plummet you are about
to
experience because there isn't going to be time to recover.


Well spoken description of a significant risk. IMHO this risk increases
with the higher performance PGs. It claimed one of the very best PPL/HG/PG
(several time national champion) pilots I have known.

One very important thing to keep in mind is that conditions that a GA
pilot
wouldn't normally give a second thought to can be very significant to an
aircraft like a paraglider or an ultralight, especially when your legs and
feet are your landing gear.

From personal experience my preference for free flight is hang gliders.
While they are a flex wing they have a ridgid frame and have much better
penetration and fly more like a traditional wing. Soaring them is a truly
exqusite experience. Current models are well developed and proven designs,
and even intermediate types offer good performance.

On Thu, 01 Sep 2005 01:05:00 GMT, "BDS" wrote:

With a big emphasis on "the limitations of the aircraft". One huge problem
with a paraglider is that the wing can be compromised by turbulent air or
thermic action at the worst possible time... no amount of
training is going to help you...

True. However, the training I refer to includes how to avoid these
conditions, often (at least by powered paragliders) by flying in the
calm air of early morning or evening.

One very important thing to keep in mind is that conditions that a GA pilot
wouldn't normally give a second thought to can be very significant to an
aircraft like a paraglider or an ultralight, especially when your legs and
feet are your landing gear.

No argument there.

-Dana
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tuttie wrote:

I used to teach paragliding and have some not-so-positive opinions on
the subject...
....
If you fly in laminar air--say at the beach--where there is no thermal

On hot summer days, the sky above the Swiss Alps is literally filled
with paragliders. Summer days over mountains... not exactly what you
would call a no-thermal situation. Despite, there are very few
accidents, in fact, there are even years without any accident at all.
Modern equipment is very safe, if it is well maintained. Paragliding is
very safe, if done carefully.

Stefan

I was witness to a paragliding accident in which an expert parachutist
(over 1000 jumps) died. The winds were about 5mph right about sunset.
He experienced a wingtip deflation and spiraled in to slam his face on
a rock.

When I got to him he was attempting to breath and air was excaping
through his forehead. I gave him CPR for about an hour before the
paramedics arrived.

Now go tell the family of that young man that Paragliding is "safe" .

Sorry my friend, but if you think thermaling in the alps is "safe" you
may be dead wrong some day.

Antonio

Antoñio wrote:

Sorry my friend, but if you think thermaling in the alps is "safe" you
may be dead wrong some day.

Paragliding is not less safe than other aviation activities. There is
still a risk in everything you do, of course.

Stefan

Stefan wrote:
Anto=F1io wrote:

Sorry my friend, but if you think thermaling in the alps is "safe"
you
may be dead wrong some day.

Paragliding is not less safe than other aviation activities. There is

still a risk in everything you do, of course.


Interesting that this should come up today. I was watching a show
on TLC last night with a video shot from a paraglider that crashed. I
wasn't aware of their susceptability to turbulence. At the beginning,
the pilot and ground crew seemed concerned because the previous day
there had been turbulence that caused some scary moments. Right after
the pilot reported that conditions seemed better, he hit some
turbulence. It appeared that one side of the canopy collapse, sending
him into a hard spiral from which he could not recover. Eventually,
he had to cut away the canopy and deploy a reserve. He ended up
crashing into a tree. Funny part : Right after he told his buddy that
he was in a tree and would probably break his leg if he fell, the lines
gave way and down he went. He didn't break his leg.

Overall, I was surprised that the canopy could collapse so easily
because of turbulent air. I've skydived several times (similar
looking system) and have never heard about this. Here in Central AZ,
skydivers are always jumping, even when the 110F+ temps are creating
some nasty convective turbulence. What is it about paragliding that's
so different. All I've noticed is that the paraglider canopy looks
thinner and is often pointed at the ends.

Just wondering,

John Galban=3D=3D=3D=3D=3DN4BQ (PA28-180)

In article .com, tuttie wrote:
1. You are under a wing that can and does collapse. In fact, in any
sort of thermally conditions you *will* experience a partial to full
deflation.

Really? The paragliding people around here go out and *soar* their
paragliders quite deliberately in thermal conditions. They get some
pretty good altitude gains too. Sometimes they make us glider pilots a
bit envious because they can launch straight into the lift. If we're
using the winch, if there's no lift in the immediate vicinity of the
airfield we are stuffed...

--
Dylan Smith, Castletown, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net
"Maintain thine airspeed, lest the ground come up and smite thee"