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More brake and more power and off you would've gone by the sound of it Neil. Good luck for the next go...!!!

BTW I see you have a Synth. Do you set trims to full slow ? I find my Nucleon very fast to run with if I dont. Especially in nil wind. I'm currently practicing wrapping the brakes around my hands, without squeezing the throttle trigger. Anyone got any clues on that ???? I dont seem to have cracked it yet.

Dave

I find it a lot easier to switch off with some height and just let the throttle go, as in drop it and let it hang. That way it free's up that hand more like a paraglider. Got the idea from Pierre Aubert.

Cheers Dan

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Do you set trims to full slow ? I find my Nucleon very fast to run with if I dont. Especially in nil wind. I'm currently practicing wrapping the brakes around my hands, without squeezing the throttle trigger.

I can slow my takeoff speed alot with about 75 % brake input whilst at full power.

Unless I've interpreted that wrong, it sounds like a potentially dangerous practice. :? Take off runs on a Nucleon (or any wing) should always be as fast as physically possible with hands up and no brake until your feet go light, then a dab of brake should be enough to 'unstick' you from the ground and commence the climb out with little to no brake input. Anything else is just inviting a stall. Even if you've gotten away with so much brake before, an ill timed gust could easily increase the AoA beyond the critical stall point.

Perhaps a slower wing or an engine with more thrust to push you forward would help ? I don't find the Nucleon too fast to launch in nill wind, but I guess having longer legs helps. It is surprising though how forgiving the wing is - I have a mate about 18 stone with a bad knee who physically can't run very fast. Once he reaches his personal max speed (in a few steps) he jumps into the harness and whacks an armfull of brakes on - often hitting the back of his cage on the floor (hence his "Bouncing Bomb" nickname) and flapping like a bird until airborne. A heartstopping technique to watch but surprisingly effective ! :lol:

PS - the optimum take-off trim setting on the Synth is '0' (neutral) while the Nucleon is full slow. Both respond to slightly faster settings in stronger wind.

PPS - Well done for getting back in the harness - its a very easy sport to talk yourself out of (I've done it myself and seen many hill pilots overcome by "groundsuck"). Clearly you've got most of the committment back to be set up and ready to go at 5:30, so hopefully no hesitation next time .... :wink:

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Thanks Dan (Poz) I wanted to keep the power though. Guess I'll just have to practice more whilst up there with nothing to do.

And Alan. I might've neglected to mention that the brakes should be ruduced, slowly, as one leaves the planet. But I can lock my arms out straight down and walk, with power, into wind. It doesn't stall until I drop my shoulders too. That's the Atis. Not sure about the Nuc yet. Brakes are so long I imagine it'd be hard to stall without wraps. And no wraps for takeoffs. Only for landings BTW

All at ground level folks and with an instructor for anything new

Dave

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I can lock my arms out straight down and walk, with power, into wind. It doesn't stall until I drop my shoulders too. That's the Atis. Not sure about the Nuc yet. Brakes are so long I imagine it'd be hard to stall without wraps.

Not sure if that means you have short arms or wide shoulders .... :lol:

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LOL. AND deep pockets Alan.

You need to be quick on the kill switch, when the wing stalls, and no more than 2 feet AGL. It really helped that I had a breeze and an hour of one on one tuition with Clive Bunce, that day, or I'd probably never have done it either. Or the power landings that I enjoy now. I do feel that, actually knowing how much brake it takes , to stall your wing, can give a pilot a clear safety advantage. If you dont know quite where the stall point is, you might have a worry about it.

Dave

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Here you go Neil - this photo perfectly captures that "feeling of lightness" you describe - and shows about as much brake as I ever need to pull with the Nucleon to "unstick" from the ground. Having long legs definitely helps though. Hope you get out this weekend to practice for the fly-in. :)

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