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BASE104

Social climber
An Oil Field
Topic Author's Original Post - Jul 19, 2017 - 02:40pm PT
So I am sitting here just south of Salt Lake City, and I just got my P2 Paraglider rating. I've got 31 flights and just over 9 hours in the air, which is quite a bit for so few flights. The skydiving and BASE helped me in the air, but hurt me on ground handling, the hardest thing to learn.

This is a really fun sport.

Cedar Wright and Matt Segal have become obsessed with it, and their misadventures and adventures are chronicled in a short film by The North Face called "Fledglings." It is funny as sh#t.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPg8pU7nguA

I'm stopping off to fly Villa Grove on the way home, and plan on hitting the Owens Valley late next Spring for an extended stay.

It really is addictive, and a lot of fun. It is by far the easiest way to fly, you can pick up quality used gear for cheap on the European market (where it is HUGE), and that makes it the cheapest way to fly.

I've had some flights that ended with sunset, or because the last ride of the day was leaving the LZ, and I had to catch it. It is cool to stay up for hours.

Salt Lake is a good place to learn. I learned from Jonathon Jeffries at Utah Paragliding, and unlike most schools, he doesn't force you to buy a completely new rig upon completion of the course. Most schools force you to buy from them. That weirded me out. Skydiving was never like that.

L

climber
Just Livin' the Dream...
Jul 19, 2017 - 03:06pm PT
Awesome!!!!

I got my P2 hang gliding, but decided to give it up because I could either fly or climb--not enough time for both--and climbing was too important. And hang gliding was too dangerous if you didn't do it regularly.

Is Paragliding different as far as time commitment and safety factor?
BASE104

Social climber
An Oil Field
Topic Author's Reply - Jul 19, 2017 - 03:43pm PT
From what I can tell, paragliding has a much higher passive safety margin. Meaning that if you have a collapse or something, on the A rated wings, you just release the brakes and it will clear up immediately.

Wings are rated from A to D, based on how they perform in safety checks by the Germans. It is really accurate.

You can still fly into the ground or have a midair collision, but with a little common sense, you will be aware enough to prevent that. So Paragliding is much easier to learn.

You can still get hurt, though. It is like most things. You can make it as safe or as dangerous as you feel like. Flying a D wing in massive thermals is pretty hairy, but flying a ridge in an A wing is pretty mellow. You will likely be flying on your own the first day of class.
ms55401

Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
Jul 19, 2017 - 04:10pm PT
is this the stuff Dave Turner used to post about here? his stuff looked fun but scary

I just got into downhill mountain biking and probably don't need yet another activity where breaking my neck or worse is a nontrivial likelihood

sween345

climber
back east
Jul 19, 2017 - 05:12pm PT

INCOMING!

[Click to View YouTube Video]
BASE104

Social climber
An Oil Field
Topic Author's Reply - Jul 19, 2017 - 06:57pm PT
There is a flyer here who is into falconry. I had never seen it in person. He was training a juvenile red tailed hawk, and it was uber cool to watch it sit in the ridge lift, only a few feet off the ground.
Reilly

Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
Jul 19, 2017 - 09:20pm PT
paragliding has a much higher passive safety margin

When I was in Chamonix last year an instructor took a turoid on a tandem flight.
Imagine the toroid's surprise when not long after takeoff he noticed the
instructor had gone silent. In fact, he had just plain GONE! The n00b
managed to land safely!
BASE104

Social climber
An Oil Field
Topic Author's Reply - Jul 21, 2017 - 01:16pm PT
That is a weird one. It would be hard to reach the steering toggles as a passenger. Other than that, steering is simple. Just don't land downwind or hit an object.

I've left SLC and am headed to the San Luis Valley to fly the western edge of the Sangre de Cristo range for a week or two. We've been getting afternoon thunderstorms that start around 11:00am, so they will be morning flights.

You have to get used to setting the alarm to 5:00am, and being in your harness at sunrise an hour later. At first the flow is pretty laminar, but by 7:30am the thermals are kicking in, and you can then stay up for hours.

That is pretty damned fun.

I gave this thread a stupid title. I'll start a new thread with the term "paraglider" in it. Supposedly Cedar Wright and Matt Segal do nothing but fly their asses off these days. No climbing at all. Cedar has a P4 rating, which is the top rating, and damn hard to get. By living in a van, he flies every flyable day, and racks up flights, hours, and overall experience very quickly. I've never heard of anyone getting a P4 that fast.

Did any of you watch this gut-busting short film (less than 15 minutes):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPg8pU7nguA
Studly

Trad climber
WA
Jul 21, 2017 - 01:56pm PT
Paragliding used to be big here. Not to be a downer, but two of my friends are crippled and one dead from it. Just like anything its all good until it isn't.
I can appreciate your stoke however, and would love to fly myself. Seems like the ultimate experience, along with base and wingsuits.
Bob Harrington

climber
Bishop, California
Jul 21, 2017 - 02:22pm PT
Inyo SAR has had a busy week, including this (from the Inyo Sheriff's facebook page):

The last mission over the weekend was an injured male paraglider on the side of Mt. Tom near Bishop. The victim crashed into the side of the mountain while flying, sustaining serious trauma and multiple broken bones. The CHP H-40 helicopter (already on the Eastside assisting with the Mt. Whitney mission) inserted an Inyo SAR member at the base of Mt. Tom to hike in and provide medical care. However, due to the heat H-40 was unable to fly to the crash site. Late in the afternoon, a Chinook helicopter from the California Army National Guard flew from Stockton, and was able to successfully hoist the victim and the rescuer from the crash location.

Inyo SAR and the Inyo County Sheriff's Office would like to thank the CHP – Central Division Air Operations crew and the California Army National Guard for their professionalism and skill while aiding in the weekend’s missions.

The Inyo SAR team works in cooperation with and under the authority of the Inyo County Sheriff’s Department. Interested in joining SAR or donating?
Reilly

Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
Jul 21, 2017 - 04:31pm PT
I admit that paragliding looks fun but as a sailplane pilot I kinda like
having a structure around me - that ground is sooo hard! I also like
lying on my ass and drinking a cool drink, picking my nose, and taking pics
without worrying about things going south on me, or north. Most sailplane
deaths are due to old age - a wreck can be expensive but it is rarely fatal.
BASE104

Social climber
An Oil Field
Topic Author's Reply - Jul 27, 2017 - 08:44am PT
Paragliding is like most things. You can make it as dangerous or as safe as you want to. First by your gear choice, second by site choice, and third by conditions that you are willing to fly in.

That said, it does have a lousy safety record. I've seen zillions of flyers since I started, and have never seen an accident, but they can happen. I hear of them just like you guys do. Kind of weird seeing that one on Mount Tom. PG is HUGE in the Owens Valley, and they do hundred mile flights on a regular basis. It is generally a safe place to fly, but during the summer, the thermals are too intense during the middle of the day, so everyone lands to wait them out before flying in the evening.

It isn't anywhere close to Wingsuit BASE or alpine climbing as far as most sites go.

A wings now have terrific performance. They pass a slew of induced collapses, spins, all kinds of stuff. They get an A rating if they come out of those problems just by releasing the brakes. An A wing is close to a D wing from ten years ago, by performance. You can fly an A wing and stay up all day.

That is the fun part. I have 1350 skydives, so I know what it is like to fly a canopy and land, but we never enjoyed the flight much. It was all about getting down and packing for the next jump.

This is a lot more subtle. Hearing that vario starting to beep like crazy as you watch the ground recede is a cool experience. Then it is a race through sinking air to the next thermal. It is like kayaking an invisible river.

I readily accept the risk, but I have no plans to do anything stupid or too dangerous. Different sites have different difficulty ratings. So like climbing, you usually know what you are getting into before your feet leave the ground.
BRB

Trad climber
venice, ca
Jul 27, 2017 - 09:00am PT
I believe Matt Segal was the pilot who crashed on Mt. Tom
Reilly

Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
Jul 27, 2017 - 10:40am PT
Base, yous guys have varios? What's next, heads-up displays in yer Google shades? :-)

Does anybody wear a regular chute for emergencies? Obviously, I know nuthin'.
BigB

Trad climber
Red Rock
Jul 27, 2017 - 11:20am PT
BRB... you were correct! it was Matt Segall that crashed on MT Tom. Hes ok in a general sense of the word....broke both arms, pelvis, back, etc... but expected to be "better" in 6-8 weeks :/
ms55401

Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
Nov 6, 2017 - 10:38am PT
on the cusp of being 20% of the way to being in the ballpark of half-commitment to checking this activity out

thus the bump
NutAgain!

Trad climber
South Pasadena, CA
Nov 6, 2017 - 10:58am PT
ms55401 I echo your sentiment! I have a multi-year fascination that is not explored mainly because of free time. I wouldn't pursue it as a thrill-seeker activity, but rather more of a kick-back like hanging out at a cool belay activity, with some intellectual stimulation of weather and terrain awareness.
AP

Trad climber
Calgary
Nov 6, 2017 - 11:48am PT
How much time have you spent waiting around for the right conditions?
What is the ratio of wait time vs flying time?
Gnome Ofthe Diabase

climber
Out Of Bed
Nov 6, 2017 - 12:08pm PT
Any one know what ever became of Scott Franklin ?

I'm not sure but I had heard that he had been un-lucky,
had a kite collapse due to another flyer, crashing into his rig.
WBraun

climber
Nov 6, 2017 - 12:53pm PT
Any one know what ever became of Scott Franklin ?

Scott Franklin from Bend Oregon?

I'd like to know too .....
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