Cross Country December 2019 - January 2020

engage brain

You may have noticed that everything moves at quite a pace these days. Social media posts about great flights or new records are like glue in a paper bag – instant hit, then discarded (don’t try that). I’m sure I’m not the only one who thinks it’s gluing up our brains too – making us distracted and disengaged. Well, here’s where we have to engage properly. On launch, about to take off, a step away from being 1,000ft above the ground in seconds. We better switch on, focus, and cut out all the noise because if we don’t, well it won’t end well. Great things happened in Brazil this season. Brilliant pilots engaged with their equipment, weather, environment, team mates and selves and flew a long, long way. Some of them got…

contributors

Nick Greece, is a writer, photographer and former editor of USHPA’s national association magazine. A regular on the competition circuit, his heart is in adventure, whether it’s riding motorbikes through the Himalaya or high altitude flying in the USA. This issue he writes about his trip to Mongolia, on p76 Dr Matt Wilkes is back with the results of his latest project, an investigation into how pilots throw their reserves. A highly qualified adventure medic, Matt has spent the season working on his paragliding in the Swiss Alps as a paragliding guide. Don’t miss these revealing insights on p44 Bastienne Wentzel is a science writer who learnt to fly in 2008 in France. Editor of Lift magazine in the Netherlands, she is an assistant paragliding instructor and loves flying the coast of…

in the core

Antoine Girard Antoine Girard’s film 8000+, a 22-minute edit of his adventures flying through the Karakoram in Pakistan, won the Best Film: Mountain Sports category at the prestigious Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival 2019 in November. The judges said: “For one second, I want you all to think about what you did on your last vacation. This film is about Antoine … and this film tracks what he did on his last vacation.” Jury member Lynn Robinson called it a “unique glimpse” into the world of vol-biv. antoinegirard.fr Team Switzerland Michael Sigel headed up the pack of pilots who were in Brazil in October and November in the chase for distance and records. He first towed in the region with Fly with Andy in 2017, and said they had learnt a lot.…

glauco pinto sets foot-launch record at 621km

Glauco Pinto flew into the record books on 10 October with the longest footlaunch flight ever. He flew 621km straight-line in Brazil, having launched from Tacima, in the north east of the country. His flight was the same day that the Brazilian trio, also flying from Tacima, broke the paragliding world record (see p52 for more on that). Glauco set three official records: Straight distance to a declared goal world record (621km); Free distance using up to three turnpoints world record (631.72km); and Straight distance South American record (621km). Perhaps more importantly, he also set the unofficial world record for the longest footlaunch flight by either hang glider or paraglider. He beat the previous record of 603km, which he’d set himself three years ago also flying from Tacima. We tracked down this…

glauco pinto: 621km

What’s your job? I’m a vet. But for two years I have been on a big vacation! I stopped work, and I am doing informal jobs at the moment. What do you fly? Icaro 2000 Laminar 14.1 and a Rotor harness. I fly with three instruments, a Garmin as a backup, a Digifly and Bräuniger Compeo. And I have a Spot. I have had the same set-up for eight years! When did you start flying? 2003 How old are you? Forty-six. So you were 30 when you started? I was a late student! I was working on a farm that was on an XC route from the take-off at Brasilia, and I saw hang gliders in the sky. I didn’t know that we had hang gliding in Brasilia. One day one landed in the…

in brief

Canungra Cup Matts Eliasson (Gin Leopard) won the Canungra Cup 2019 in Australia. The first comp of the Australian season it saw five tasks over the week, 19-26 Oct. Andy McMurray (Flow XC Racer) won Serial class and Felipe Rezende (Flow Fusion) won Sports class. PWCA Asia Japan’s Atsuko Yamashita (Ozone Zeno) won the second leg of the new PWC Asian Tour in Gochang, Korea in October. She also won the women’s class. The competition did not see great weather and only two tasks were scored – Atsuko also won Task 2. pwca.org/asia. Paramotor Mondiale Dates for the Paramotor Mondiale 2020 have been announced. Held every two years this massive fly-in southwest of Paris, France will take place near Blois, 19-21 June. mondialairparamoteur.com…