My flight yesterday afternoon was sweet but short. The wind was a little better than Wednesday afternoon but not much. There wasn't much time. I worked and ran a couple of errands prior to flying. It was a last minute decision. John & Scott were called but couldn't make it so Guinness was my only companion.
I thought that it would be better from the forecast and current condition reports but could tell by the gustiness prior to launch that conditions weren't that great. It was a fun flight anyway.
The wind was out of the northeast and swirling a bit. My forward launch attempt resulted in the wing being blown off center. A reverse launch was then done and the climb wasn't that good so a cross-wind turn was made to maintain a good LZ in the event of a motor problem. Altitude was gradually gained with some rocking of the wing from moderate turbulence. It was smoother than Wednesday but not a lot smoother. It was overcast with a ceiling that wasn't too high, so there were a lot of headlights and other lights on the ground which were very visible making the flight a little out of the ordinary. My strobe was activated prior to launch but it was well before sunset when I landed. The wind was stronger at 500-600 feet AGL which was to be expected. Progress upwind was pretty slow.
Guinness came along and enjoyed pre-launch and after-landing romps in the field. Getting him out was one of the big reasons for this solo trip. There were a couple of observers arriving after my flight. One large gentleman came by the field just prior to my landing and had chased me on the ground after seeing me from a major road near my flight area. He enjoyed seeing me fly and complimented me on my good landing in the somewhat challenging conditions. We then discussed the availability of a larger motor and paraglider for him. He left with a smile on his face as he considered the possibility of flying like a number of us do in the area himself. He will probably not follow through with his flying dream. At least those of us who fly powered paragliders are living the dream and have the privilege of inspiring others.
Then as I was packing up a Department of Conservation 'police' officer drove up. He had similar questions and was very pleasant. We had a nice conversation and he left with visions of our wonderful type of flight dancing in his head also.
Wednesday afternoon's flight was a little rougher. My good friend Scott Clark [a 'real pilot' who is a registered FAA Captain, certified to fly passengers for hire, the chief pilot for Blue Sky Taxi, and a great guy] told me as I headed to the field for a flight told me that it was turbulent air in spite of what was showing on the various aviation weather web sites. He returned my call too late for me to conveniently change my plans due to his flying earlier while giving flight lessons to a student. We had talked earlier about flying in the afternoon and the forecast looked good. With the early sunset this time of the year, flying time comes early and is short it seems. Scott was right. It wasn't very good. The air was pretty turbulent.
The wind was coming and going a bit. The wind speed was in doubt which means that a forward launch is best for me. The wind picked up just before I launched and it pulled me back pretty hard. The wing was dropped and I turned around and then did a reverse launch.
The wind was a little strange. It would be steady for a bit and then a gust would come through at about 30 second intervals that was pretty strong. It could have collapsed a tip of my paraglider I am sure but I was fortunate to be flying either with the wind or into it when the gusts hit. I didn't like it very much so only took about a 10 minute flight.
When landing some pretty significant sink was encountered about 60 feet up but it dissipated about 20 feet above the ground and the landing was uneventful and smooth.
Then drizzle started. It just wasn't meant to be very flyable. Again, Scott was
right.
However, my flight did recharge my soul and attitued. What a great sport! I love it!
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