Learning to Fly

For the past few weekends I've been out with my new friend Adam, learning how to handle a paraglider. You might be thinking, "Wait a minute - I thought he had a hang-glider?" In which case, you would be right. However, interior Alaska, with its mellow weather and lack of open landing sites, is much more conducive to paragliders which can "spot land" and fly in weaker winds. Just so happens, I e-mailed a paraglider instructor in Fairbanks and he lives right across the road. We became friends quickly.

As you can imagine, snow and cold make this a little tricky. Here I set up for an attempt to get a little controlled air. If I remember correctly, this launch in zero wind wasn't successful.

I am learning more than I am even aware of. Pre-flight inspections involve triple-checking all connections and clearing the lines of tangles. The lines (risers) are actually very resistant to tangling.

Apollo likes paragliding weekends, as it means we go out to an open field and he gets to run around for a few hours.



Here I perform a forward inflation in low winds. The wing comes up pretty well, but doesn't quite make it overhead so Adam gives me the "abort" call. The voice you hear in the videos is his. His patience and wisdom are priceless!



In this one, the forward launch goes well, and I get the wing inflated and make a forward run. This gives me the ability to control the wing as if I were flying, but still safely on the ground. The run goes well, but I failed to put the wing down in a controlled deflation. I've done it since!


So far, my new hobby has taken to me places around Fairbanks I wouldn't otherwise have gone. Last weekend, I was granted the best view of Denali I've had in Alaska, from the top of Murphy Dome. (Keep in mind Denali is 200 miles away in this shot) The ultimate goal is to get certified in Girdwood (Alyeska), near Anchorage, by the end of the summer.