The Somerset Branch - Paramotor Club.org

This is a post brought forward from a conversation some time ago during 2007.

Someone asked a question on our forum at the Lambourn Paramotor Club about the best method for landing a PPG.

“What confuses me is why you wouldn’t want to land like that all of the time, slow and on the spot certainly appeals to me!”

The question was in itself quite revealing. What followed was an interesting focus on trimmer settings for landing in different surface wind conditions. I reproduce here an post that Clive Bunce, a Dudek Paraglider importer offered and below that, a response of mine to enlarge on and frame what Clive had said.

I offer this post for your interest and comment should you feel so inclined.

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This is the one that gets knickers in a twist. The technique is called for when the wind is light, typically less than 5mph. You know there is going to be some running involved and therefore an increased risk of falling over.. hmm.

The wing is not visible to you during the critical phase of the launch, as the canopy rises from the ground, if it drifts off to one side, the launch will probably be abandoned to the tune of rustling nylon, much of it potentially over your head which in turn means that the motor needs to be shut down pretty quickly… hmmm. Am I building a picture or refreshing an unhappy memory here? I think this is why this method is disliked if not feared by newbies like me.

Here are a couple of tips that I have picked up from the generous that enabled me to produce the occasional decent forward launch.

Layout - ensure that the wing is laid out at 90 degrees to what wind there is, or is likely to be. Crescent shaped, flat with no impediments to the wing rising cleanly. Lines all free and able to ascend with the wing. Tips unfolded and certainly not caught beneath lines.
Mental preparation and rehearsal - forget the failure rate you might have accumulated during earlier training. Think of a successful launch every time. Mentally rehearse how you are going to perform the motions, cover each stage, its order and what you expect to see and feel through the risers.

Thanks to Jeff Goin for the illustration - my words on the graphic.

Smooth, determined execution - having set yourself up for the forward launch, take your step back, pause…. then go for it. Not ferocious aggression as this will probably collapse the leading edge of the wing, just flowing proportionate force sufficient to encourage the ‘A’s to fill the wing. As it rises, pause or ease your rate of forward movement for a moment until the drag subsides (felt through the harness) as the wing flows to the overhead - then keep moving. Track into wind, [check wind indicator, running into wind is pivotal] - sense the wing’s position through the risers or ground shadow - if able, look up to confirm it. When you are moving and the wing is tracking well above you, smoothly increase to full power and run leaning backwards slightly into the motor.
Keep your arms up - elevating your hands (and therefore the brakes) stops an errant input turning the wing or introducing drag that might arrest your progress and collapse the wing behind you. If you sense that the wing is leaning to one side or the other a timely brake input on the other side may correct the situation. When you have speed enough to fly, smoothly drop your hands to the liftoff position feeling for pressure from the brakes. And away you go.

These are really notes to myself - thanks for listening…

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Within each branch there will be someone who is interested in either blogging or web design. This person will be the administrator of the dedicated Branch Blog. What you see here at the Somerset Blog www.paramotorclub.org/somerset is an example for demonstration purposes.

Our intention is to have the ‘front end’, the blog opening page accessible to all. From the front page there will be a link to a small forum that is a Branch Members Only area. This enables a level of privacy to be enjoyed in an area where messages can be left for each other and arrangements made to meet for flying or social meetings.

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Mon 5 May

The Henge

Finally got to try out the Arcus for ground handling.

Using a borrowed harness (Thanks Norman ) got clipped in and attempted to build a wall.

Why is it that after four solid days of steady east southeast 10mph+ winds, on the one day I get to play it drops to less than 3mph?  

Anyway, a couple of reverse launches, very short lived of course, then the moment I have not been looking forward to. Forward launch take 1.

Check harness and A risers for tangles, step back, park heart behind front teeth and away we go.

One, two, three steps, feel like I’m tied to a tree as the wing goes up intio the air. At this point I must have looked quite a sight. A grown man running full pelt with a big kite over his head.

Trouble was I was running forward but being blown backwards at about 2 mph. The 3 inches of clay that had plastered itself to my boots meant I was going in the direction of what little wind there was.

It was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened and my feet went one way while the rest of me and the wing went the other!

Much mirth ensued as I rosetted the wing and carried it back up the field for take 2.

Take 2

one, two, three steps then the tree was behind me again. This time I had removed most of the clay so I was making headway. wing dipped left so ran left and applied appropriate brake, wing dipped right, same again. On I went. Just as my chest was about to explode I was running out of field so stopped, turned and brought the wing down.

I know it’s something that everyone here has done, but the feeling of elation I felt at that precise moment was amazing! It has got to be the most fun I have had with my clothes on for ages  :D  :D 

I decided to quit while I was winning. Picked up the wing and headed back up the field. good timing as it happened because no sooner had I packed it away it started to rain a little.

I was still sweating buckets and getting my breath back fully half an hour later as Norman and I were planning a possible trip to Lambourn in the near future.

Thanks Norman. I’ll pick up a harness of my own this week and go out at any given opportunity to fine tune, then it’s all systems go for Lambourn. Judging by the cardio vascular workout I got today, I might need a smaller harness before long :wink: 

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Then indeed it bodes well for this evening matches almost exactly James Lynch’s study of the Somerset levels. If you like painting you could do a lot worse than visit James’ website. No-one I have seen has managed to capture the beauty and grace of a decaying thunderstorm like him bar perhaps…. Canaletto. A free flyer, his love of the sky is evident; but as a painter his talent is magnificent. I keep seeing his paintings in the unique Somerset sky and across the landscape, that is no mean feat for an artist.

I got my bonce burnt yesterday kiting with Mark and again today disentangling my left riser after my rendezvous with an apple tree, kiting in stronger winds than was wise. We live and learn - no damage to anything other than pride fortunately.

I am still looking for the right combination of time off and weather to get up to Lambourn to finish my training with Simon. I can feel in my water that the time is drawing near. The personal trainer is hired and the trainers and gym kit dragged from the bottom of the wardrobe. This summer is going to be BIG!

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From Dan Burton’s fantastic collection.

Lemmings Fly-in 2006 from Dan Burton on Vimeo.

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Paramotoring is seeing changes on the way with its insurers seeking greater definition in the way that training and flying operations in general are managed. It is not difficult to understand why, the Insurance industry thrives on being able to understand and quantify its risks, how else can you set realistic premium levels and limit liability.

Reading around the bazaars there are other developments as well, the BMAA has decided to withdraw from the paramotoring training scene altogether. We can only speculate as to the reasons why at the moment because information is a little thin on the ground. Early indications are that this move has been taken for.. insurance reasons.

I am sure we all hope that these will all ultimately be beneficial moves, I certainly have some misgivings about the way the sport is developing and being marketed. We wait for news of further developments.

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