Nebeno

All, anyone had any good experiences with training in the Maryland/DC area? I could go somewhere in Virginia, Penn, N. Caroline, etc as well. Also Ohio (my mom lives there), or Indiana. Otherwise, anywhere else in the states anyone would recommend? What should I look out for when choosing a training class? Thanks. -Ben

Thanks for the advice everybody. I read up on the glide clear issue. There are in fact rivers connecting most of the area I would be traveling. The problem with boats is there are often fallen trees blocking the river and shallow spots some days. I could fly along the rivers though, going on survey trips first, and marking open river and beaches, then basing my altitude and path based on these considerations. I ran into a site that a sells a small rappelling system just for paramotorers who may get stuck in a tree Might have to invest in one of those. Either that, or learn that cool tree branch balancing stuff from Crouching Tiger =) For perspective, how often does an engine fail? In reading around forums that doesn't seem to be a common issue. Not that I wouldn't take the safety precautions just in case, I'm just wondering how big the risk is. Thanks again, keep the advice coming. -Ben

Hello, I have been looking around at various forms of flight in light of my future as a missionary in Papua, Indonesia. The village I will be in is only accessible by helicopter or several days' hike from the nearest town. Neighboring villages are similarly difficult to reach, requiring half to full days hike or canoe up river just to travel a few miles. Most of these villages have clearings with an area a couple hundred feet long. The terrian is extremely flat, with visibility to the horizon in most directions, and mountains about 20 miles to the north. Rains come in quick and hard, but are easily visible from the sky and seem to only cover areas about a mile across. Judging from the tree tops surrounding the village there seems to be little wind. I will be able to speak with the helicopter pilots more about weather conditions. I would like to get paramotor training, possibly a pilots license, and take a paramotor when I return to quickly travel around the jungle. I love to hear some thoughts on this from experiences paramotor pilots. Thanks!