Hang Gliding Video of Flying Villa Grove

Villa has been on for most of the spring and I managed to capture some wonderfull flights with my Contour HD video camera. The GoPro is the most popular camera among hang glider pilots. I chose the Contour HD as I opted for reduced "fish eye" curvature around the perimeter of the video frame. The video link below shows four and half minutes of several hours of smooth flying at Villa Grove. https://vimeo.com/43355161

May 5th = Mike Chevalier and I launched late and circled up in smooth lift only to be pounded by a virga curtain moving from Bonanza east of Villa Grove towards the west on the Sangre De Cristos. The clouds droping out had us pinned up against the Sangre De Cristos. At 12,000 we took our licks and penetrated west into the rain/virga shafts. Mike and I were thankful in that Larry and Greg were in the LZ calling out the landing conditions while we were setting up our approach to land. It was a fun day watching the weather from launch and then getting nice flights.

Once again spring has come on big at Villa. Several great flights there since the end of March. Rick Maddy and I flew April 17th and had a great flight up near cloudbase. The air was a little rough down low but smoother as I climbed up to 15,000ft. I still haven't edited my video(s) from this year yet. Here's a photo from a flight last fall.

Greg and I helped Larry rebuild the hang gliding launch and are openning a second and third launch in preparation for Colorado Fly Week, June 30th through July 7th (page 21 of the May issue of Hang Gliding and Paragliding Magazine).

TTT Team Challenge

A little out of order but so what. My longest road trip last fall was to participate in the TTT Team Challenge with Rick Maddy and JJ. We camped up near the club house and pavilion. It was a great trip and Hensons Gap is a GREAT place to fly. TTT is probably the most organized well run hang gliding club in the country. Breakfast and dinner provided. Flying by day with various presentations at night by well known XC pilots. We flew in teams, each guiding the other to their respective goals (different for each pilot). I made my 20 mile out and return plus several other flights during the course of the week.

The country side at Hensons gap is beautiful and full of landing areas. Here's a link to a short video. http://vimeo.com/34757492

Dreaming Awake

David Aldrich is producing a movie about hang gliding. Here's the URL for the teaser. http://vimeo.com/20775072

Flying Whale at Villa Grove

We've had spectacular flights all though July at Villa Grove. I finally got my first ride at Whale, an east facing launch at 12,200 ft agl. Larry and I both launched in the morning as this was his last flight prior to his neck surgery. The road up is rough to say the least but the scenery is spectacular.

First Flight in my New CG-1000

Nice harness. I laid in it at Mark Windsheimer's Airtime Above Hang Gliding sail loft and found it to be really comfortable. My first flight, I launched off Villa, zipped up and climbed up through smooth lift to 12,400ft agl. The harness was comfortable and the back plate slider mechanism was very smooth and easy to use. All is good. I turned NW to head toward Whale Mtn and felt some cold air making it's way into my legs at the top of the harness boot. I pulled the zipper cord again and the zipper slider split into two pieces and opened up completely. I climbed above and away from the Sangre De Cristos, let go of the glider and started fumbling with the zipper to see if I could fix it, but after several minutes it was clear the boot zipper experienced a total failure and the harness would remain open with no support for my legs for the rest of my flight. I turnd back toward Villa Grove and decided to prepare to land.

After landing it was clear the zipper slider broke in two at the junction of the upper and lower pieces. Mark examined the broken slider and will replace it and make a small modification to pull cord that will make the whole mechanism smoother. These changes will be incorporated into new CG-1000 harness as they are developed.

The failed zipper slider was frustrating, but much like a broken zipper on a winter jacket, was easily replaced and not indicative of the harness itself. The workmanship, attention to detail, fit and finish of the CG-1000 is top notch and I highly recommend this harness to any recreational XC pilot wanting a single dangle harness.