Richard Leishman Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 (edited) Hi All, I took my first flight on Sunday evening, absolutely amazing. I have always wanted to do something like this but did not think it would happen due to myself being scared of heights. Around two years ago my mother started pestering me to do a hot air balloon ride as it is something she has always wanted to do. I reluctantly said yes and this took place around six months ago from Nottingham with Virgin Balloon Flights. Absolutely loved it and felt so safe in the air. Since then I have put my fear down to a fear of falling as I can not go 2 meters up a ladder without shatting myself! My first paramotor flight: I took off fine with the first run with a reverse; there was so much going on that I didn't get time to think about what I had just done until I got to just over 500ft. I levelled out and put the brakes up, took a look around and almost shat myself (fear of falling). My tutor lets me fly around but asked me to stay close to the field. After 15 minutes, he asks me to proceed to 1000ft where I circled the field a few times while he continued to talk to me about what I was experiencing and what to expect. He then talked me through performing a quick decent manoeuvre back down to 500ft which made me sick. On coming into land, I didn't listen to my tutor properly and were a little premature on my braking. One of the strange things I noticed is that when you have been so high, 3-4 meters off the ground feels like you are touching down. I ended up stalling at around 1 meter and elegantly dropped to my feet and then forward to my knees. Later on in the evening, I did some research about sickness, and I am going to try ginger root tablets next time I fly. Enough of that anyway. The real reason I am writing this. I get the impression they are like gold dust, but I am looking for an old harness that can be used for ground handling. It would be nice to have a harness so that I can play around with my ozone spyder and possibly let a friend or two feel what ground handling is like. If you have anything, please let me know. Thank you for your time and happy flying! Edited August 14, 2018 by Richard Leishman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Harcourt Posted August 14, 2018 Share Posted August 14, 2018 Try here for harnesses: http://www.skyads.aero/ad-category/harnesses-paragliding/ there’s a few cheap one’s here and new one’s often... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Leishman Posted August 14, 2018 Author Share Posted August 14, 2018 Thank you Scott. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cianpars Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 I've come across a few people that are using a builders harness from Screwfix for 30 or 40 quid and added a couple of carabiners. Was thinking of doing that myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Leishman Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 (edited) I ended up buying a training harness from UKPPG as looking out the window over the field was eating me up. I do not feel 100% confident to go on flights on my own yet, will have a few more with my trainer. OMG i see what you mean! https://www.screwfix.com/p/jsp-spartan-3-point-harness/8452g Edited August 16, 2018 by Richard Leishman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick1 Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 Top post, I share the fear of heights/falling and I think most people do. The more you fly, the more you desensitise and the irrational fear reduces but I still get the odd uncomfortable moment every now and again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cas_whitmore Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 (edited) I can’t imagine what it’s like to be nervous of heights ‘ and then doing your first flight . Big step . cas . Edited August 16, 2018 by cas_whitmore Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cianpars Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 Part of the reason I originally learned to fly (in gliders 35 years ago) was to conquer a fear of heights (I think it was more a fear of falling too). I literally shook for my first few flights and gradually, as I got used to it and began to trust my aircraft and ability, the fear gradually wore off. Since then, I have over 400 glider flights, Over 120 hours PPL and a few hours on microlights. I did get a twinge again when I started microlighting, being able to look straight down at the ground, but again got used to that very quickly. Any new experience may seem daunting at first, but I think, like anything, if uncomfortable at first, that will soon wear off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hann__ Posted August 16, 2018 Share Posted August 16, 2018 The first time i had ever been in an aeroplane i jumped out! There was a period of time for a couple of years when i had taken off in a `plane but never landed in one.. (parachuting) On 14/08/2018 at 13:28, Richard Leishman said: He then talked me through performing a quick decent manoeuvre back down to 500ft which made me sick. What was this maneuver, spirals? I hate anything that spins round and round, fairground rides for example make me feel nauseous for hours afterwards, which is one reason i`ll never do anything fancy on a PPG.. How these dudes do SATS and tumbles is just bewildering to me, both the technical execution of them and the effects on the pilot, i gotta stop after just one moderately tight revolution. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Leishman Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 1 hour ago, Hann__ said: What was this maneuver, spirals? 1 I am not too sure on the name Hann, but it was a swaying pendulum effect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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