Tiger
Mountain, Issaquah
Great Gallery of Recent Photos
Flying Tiger Mt - Seattle
Paragliding
Julie
Mascavage...
5
solo flights from Tiger Mountain (under radio supervision)
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Seattle AeroBattle
September
16 & 17 (Sat / Sun)
Lake
Sammamish State Park
>>
Paragliding Aerobatic Exhibition Over Water <<
"Some
will Loop... and some will Splash"
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Paragliding:
Submitted
by Philippe of Sup'Air
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My first solo flight!
- John Mann
I knew I was in for something special by the mischievous twinkle in Marc's eye
every time he looked at me waiting at the launch site. The wind had been a
little unsettled and I wasn't sure whether I would be making my first solo
flight or taking a round trip in the shuttle again. But finally Marc told me to
get ready, so I laid out my glider and put on my harness. I knew it was
customary for novice fliers to trail a streamer behind them to warn off other
pilots, but Marc must have been especially concerned about what I would do once
airborne, so I was adorned with about a dozen long strips of yellow caution
tape; from my ankle to my helmet to the tops of my risers.
Then right
before take off he saw fit to put some identifying marks on my face, presumably
to help identify me should I make a rough landing. The wind was favorable, so
Marc and an assistant lofted my glider, I took a few steps and was airborne. It
was exhilarating being in control of things for the first time, but also very
reassuring to have Marc and Lan's voices in my ears to keep me from getting
into too much trouble.
There were
quite a few other gliders in the air, more than twenty at one time and, being a
little unsure of things, I wanted to keep my distance from them. I'm sure this
feeling was mutual. I started traversing
back and forth in front of the King Dome, and venturing South to Last Chance,
keeping well away from the hillside and the other pilots, who all seemed
clustered together where the lift must have been best. But still I continued to gain altitude, rising
high above the launch site.
I actually
began to wonder how I would be able to descend when the time came. The wind was steady and seemed pretty strong
to me, occasionally buffeting me about a bit. This caused a little nervousness at first, but
looking up I could see that my canopy was sure and steady, so I relaxed more
and just tried to get used to the feeling. As I rose higher I ventured farther
North and experimented with different ways of turning, trying to use more body and
less brake.
Looking down I saw a red-tailed hawk soaring
beneath me several times, so figured I must be in a pretty good spot for
catching lift. It was exciting to
actually be sharing the sky with some of natures greatest fliers. I could hear over the radio each time another
glider launched and enjoyed being able to look down at them taking off, a new
perspective for me.
Occasionally
Marc or Lan would check in on my well being and ask me to wiggle my legs in
response to their questions. As it
became later Marc and Lan thought it would be a good idea to get me down before
everyone else was forced down by the evening conditions. Marc asked if I'd like to try big ears, I
wiggled my feet. I had seen it before,
but didn't really know how it was done. Marc
guided be through it, first on one side, then the other, then both. I descended
smoothly and rapidly to the LZ, and under Lan's expert guidance made my
approach and landed on my feet. Not a
perfect landing, but I was happy with it and was glad to have avoided the
blackberries. I had been up in the air
from 6:40 to 7:40, but it just wetted my appetite for more.
Thanks Marc and Lan
- John johnmann@rocketmail.com
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Hope
you join our great Team of Paragliders here at Tiger Mountain, Issaquah.
Paragliding Pictorial Basics at a glance
Best
regards,
Marc, Lan, Kassie, Spencer & Seattle Paragliding Team
c: 206 387 3477