admin (Simon W) Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Hi all, I wanted to let you all know that Paramotor Training ltd are now proudly sponsoring Paul Mockford (Paranoob) as a pilot. A little vague I know, but in a nutshell we will pay for events, competitions and equipment as needed to help him to make cool you tube vids and provide the school some good positive exposure to a growing audience So welcome to the team @Paul Mockford Check out his you tube channel if you have not already! SW 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alan_k Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 He is rather a good ambassador for the sport, well done Si. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 Unfortunately, many of us don't watch anything that needs listening to. If has subtitles then ok, otherwise not! This is because we like to be able to skim read and just watch what we want to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin (Simon W) Posted February 8, 2019 Author Share Posted February 8, 2019 Although I do mostly agree. I can prove that it is a very valid way to attract new students. We have had at least 10 people in the last 12 months who said they were inspired to be there by seeing a Tucker Gott video. Paul also gets mentions now, which I am sure will continue to grow through 2019. I think the people who are looking to 'learn' (granted it's a small percentage of the population) will watch these videos as I did when learning to fly the Heli. (over and over again in fact!) lol SW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capotec2015 Posted February 8, 2019 Share Posted February 8, 2019 I signed up to his channel (among others) from the beginning when he was learning ground handling.It has been a pleasure watching him progress. Paranoobs channel is fantastic and I for one will continue to watch all the content he puts out.... 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asquaddie Posted February 9, 2019 Share Posted February 9, 2019 Even though I've been flying for over 10 years. I signed up to Paul's channel from the start. It was funny (in a good way) watching Nigel (hands posing guesture) teaching him from the start to what he is doing now. He does show the sport in a safe and doable manner. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dklude Posted February 9, 2019 Share Posted February 9, 2019 Paul does a great job. He'll be a great ambassador for the sport and Paramotor Training Ltd alike. Good on ya Simon and Paul 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Mockford Posted February 9, 2019 Share Posted February 9, 2019 Thank you Simon! REALLY pleased! The channel is (in my head) aimed at anyone behind me on the journey, and constantly inspired by the help and encouragement I get from those further along, so aligning with a training school is perfect. Looking forward to more adventures, flying with more pilots and helping to get more people into the sport! See you all at the fly-ins! 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nik B Posted February 11, 2019 Share Posted February 11, 2019 Great move, I've been watching Paul's channel for ages. Very positive image and entertaining. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin (Simon W) Posted March 9, 2019 Author Share Posted March 9, 2019 Happy to keep our sponsored pilot safe and comfy! SW 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidG4 Posted April 1, 2019 Share Posted April 1, 2019 Some nice videos. Thanks for posting them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funnydan85 Posted April 3, 2019 Share Posted April 3, 2019 @Paul Mockford has done a great job with the Paranoob channel. It is nice to know what struggles everyone else has with getting into the sport. i have only one flight to my name but with the weather getting nicer I'm hoping to get to double figures in the coming month with @admin (Simon W) 's help. Paul has also been great when i have asked for his advice as a noobie. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SolentSkipper Posted August 29, 2019 Share Posted August 29, 2019 Paul is an absolute inspiration and a fantastic ambassador for the sport. His videos which I have watched from day one to the present have been helpful, informative, relevant and above all, honest. So much so, that I am now keen to commence training this autumn...! The most difficult thing for me is deciding where and when to do my training - I am almost now at the point of information overload and internally debating a whole range of questions such as :- 1. Should I train in the UK or nail it by going overseas and then consolidate here - keen to get going but the UK 'summer' and being based on the Isle of Wight presents logistical problems which may prolong training and drag it out to the point of skill loss in between sessions 2. Is Dell Schanze's training really that super - on face value I could easily go to the States for a couple of weeks and compared to others training blurb, seems more intensive and outcome focussed with real results although he is a bit Marmite and there seems to be lots of 'exchanges' between him and other training centres about who is good / bad / indifferent 3. Should I do a (initially more cost effective) paraglider course and then a power conversion as a staged approach 4. Is all training equipment use at the students own cost if damaged - heard horror stories of anywhere between £2000 and £5000 cost incurred as a result of heavy landings / damage etc and all at student cost 5. Accommodation when training (as well as travel costs) are extremely prohibitive - an example is a ferry off the Isle of Wight costing up to £150 return plus accommodation overnight assuming weekends only equals around £200 per weekend - that's another £1000 minimum to add to training costs before I've even started...hence overseas options appearing more attractive... All above just thoughts but great that Paul and Clive and others have inspired me to get into the sport - all feedback gratefully received...! Gordon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin (Simon W) Posted August 29, 2019 Author Share Posted August 29, 2019 Hi Gordon, 1. Personal experience would suggest that the UK has a higher standard of training than Spain. Quite a few people are coming back with a CP rating without the very basic knowledge required to set the kit up let alone stay safely. Also, the weather in the UK is different and you will almost certainly be a better pilot by learning in varied conditions. (a requirement in all other forms of aviation is that you have flown in varied conditions which totally makes sense) 2. I will let someone else answer that one! LOL 3. This is not a bad option but will take considerably more time overall 4. Pick your school carefully, go and see them, ask for confirmation of this in advance. 5. Think of all the money you will save when you no longer need the ferry !!. On a serious note, again pick a school that are flexible with your availability and the weather. MOST OF ALL, ENJOY!!! Welcome to the Paramotor Club!! SW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSH Posted August 29, 2019 Share Posted August 29, 2019 I agree that paranoob is a great inspiration and as someone who hasn’t progressed further than watching YouTube I’m all too grateful for the info he provides. Well done 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hann__ Posted August 29, 2019 Share Posted August 29, 2019 (edited) 2 hours ago, SolentSkipper said: being based on the Isle of Wight That`ll be a nice place to fly from (around) once you`ve got your training done, coastal flying is really great. I quite often fly from the mainland to the island, most recently was last Friday - did you see me!? (whereabouts on the island are you?) Edited August 29, 2019 by Hann__ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted August 29, 2019 Share Posted August 29, 2019 Of course my experience of Spain was VERY different to Simon's. I found the training to be to a very high standard and came away ready to fly on my own. I did 15 flights in training and 130 flights since then in the last 2 years, of which over flights were on my own! Doing 1 week in Spain is not enough....unless you are my 23 year old son who could just kite and fly straight away. I did 2 weeks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SolentSkipper Posted August 29, 2019 Share Posted August 29, 2019 5 hours ago, admin (Simon W) said: Hi Gordon, 1. Personal experience would suggest that the UK has a higher standard of training than Spain. Quite a few people are coming back with a CP rating without the very basic knowledge required to set the kit up let alone stay safely. Also, the weather in the UK is different and you will almost certainly be a better pilot by learning in varied conditions. (a requirement in all other forms of aviation is that you have flown in varied conditions which totally makes sense) 2. I will let someone else answer that one! LOL 3. This is not a bad option but will take considerably more time overall 4. Pick your school carefully, go and see them, ask for confirmation of this in advance. 5. Think of all the money you will save when you no longer need the ferry !!. On a serious note, again pick a school that are flexible with your availability and the weather. MOST OF ALL, ENJOY!!! Welcome to the Paramotor Club!! SW Hi Simon, Thanks for your words of wisdom and advice - I think we need to chat...! I'm away this weekend but definitely catch up and have a discussion about training... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SolentSkipper Posted August 29, 2019 Share Posted August 29, 2019 3 hours ago, Hann__ said: That`ll be a nice place to fly from (around) once you`ve got your training done, coastal flying is really great. I quite often fly from the mainland to the island, most recently was last Friday - did you see me!? (whereabouts on the island are you?) Hi Hann, Live in Whippingham - was going to pop along and see Pad and the team on the island 3222re paragliding first. Be good to have a beer and chat about your experience and any thoughts on training... Gordon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin (Simon W) Posted August 30, 2019 Author Share Posted August 30, 2019 14 hours ago, AndyB said: Of course my experience of Spain was VERY different to Simon's. I found the training to be to a very high standard and came away ready to fly on my own. I did 15 flights in training and 130 flights since then in the last 2 years, of which over flights were on my own! Doing 1 week in Spain is not enough....unless you are my 23 year old son who could just kite and fly straight away. I did 2 weeks. I don't disbelieve you at all. I think timing played a part in this. Things have changed massively in the last 12-24 months, if you ask any one of the instructors in the UK how many people they have calling them who have already been 'signed off' in Spain (most recently the guy clipped in backwards while showing us his 'skills') It's upsetting. It's also upsetting the industry and reducing the standard to nothing more than self taught. SW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paraflyer17 Posted August 30, 2019 Share Posted August 30, 2019 44 minutes ago, admin (Simon W) said: I don't disbelieve you at all. I think timing played a part in this. Things have changed massively in the last 12-24 months, if you ask any one of the instructors in the UK how many people they have calling them who have already been 'signed off' in Spain (most recently the guy clipped in backwards while showing us his 'skills') It's upsetting. It's also upsetting the industry and reducing the standard to nothing more than self taught. SW Is that down to the instructors or just the time limits? Is it true of BHPA schools also, in which case to they all not have to follow the same syllabus whether in uk or spain? For the record, I am signed up for a week in spain to do BHPA elementary paragliding. From then I will either do another week to do paramotor CP, or do something here. It's really tricky, as people dont want to name and shame bad instructors for various reasons, which I understand. Unfortunately the uk weather, work, kids, on-call, travel time etc makes training in uk really impractical for some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted August 30, 2019 Share Posted August 30, 2019 Simon, I think those are people coming back from Sky Spain? I trained with Skyschool who then moved to Italy and Oman. I am flying across France with all of the Skyschool instructors next week. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin (Simon W) Posted August 30, 2019 Author Share Posted August 30, 2019 7 hours ago, paraflyer17 said: Is that down to the instructors or just the time limits? Is it true of BHPA schools also, in which case to they all not have to follow the same syllabus whether in uk or spain? For the record, I am signed up for a week in spain to do BHPA elementary paragliding. From then I will either do another week to do paramotor CP, or do something here. It's really tricky, as people dont want to name and shame bad instructors for various reasons, which I understand. Unfortunately the uk weather, work, kids, on-call, travel time etc makes training in uk really impractical for some. As sad as it is, the current worst offender seems to be a BHPA registered School I am sure they (the BHPA) will be on the case soon, they have had direct complaints from customers. SW Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted August 30, 2019 Share Posted August 30, 2019 Also, just a thought for you Simon. All the people who have been trained abroad who then come to you looking for more tuition are obviously the ones that did not feel ok by the end of it. You will by definition not get the other 80/90% or more coming to you as they feel fine! This of course could lead to you having a very skewed view on foreign training and why so many of trained abroad think it was the best thing ever. I should add that I first trained to fly hang gliders in the UK and it took me over a year because of the UK weather! I have done both UK and abroad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
admin (Simon W) Posted August 30, 2019 Author Share Posted August 30, 2019 It’s simpler than that. No one should come back ‘signed off as a CP’ without the basic skills required to clip in correctly. This is not a unique situation it’s happening many times a month. Someone is signing people off to a standard that they clearly are not at. It has to stop. SW 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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