Preparing to Fly

Kinga Masztalerz is a Polish pilot who spends half her year in New Zealand and the other in Europe, chasing an eternal summer. She is one of the very, very few women to undertake big solo vol biv trips and has crossed the Southern Alps in New Zealand and the Dolomites in Italy on her own. A hard-core climber, she is physically and mentally very strong and has the fitness and determination to complete these trips. She has just been selected to compete in the 2019 X-Alps - one of only six women ever to get a place. Here she talks about her adventures and motivation. To see her beautiful movies go to her youtube channel.

Our latest podcast with Matt Senior and Jesse Williams is on dust devils. The Scientific American describes dust devils as small, rotating columns of air that we can see because of the dust and debris they pick up from the ground, resulting from a mini-weather system that occurs when one piece of ground heats up faster than the ground surrounding it on a hot, calm, dry day. They are also defined as heated thermal sources that should have been triggered but have become super heated, so that when they do release they do so with a surprising vehemence. Extremely dangerous near the ground, expert pilots do use them in competitions and during cross-country flying. In this podcast we talk about the dangers, safety, some tips and just how beautiful they are.

Greg Hamerton is well known as the Paragliding Evangelist at Flybubble UK. His videos and articles on techniques, safety and adventures are a fountain of knowledge and entertainment. Greg was a competitor in the 2016 X-pyr and here he shares some insights into the 2018 route and some tactics that the competitors might employ. There is a condensed video version of this podcast where you can follow the route on Google Earth. You can see this at X-Pyr 2018

Simon Blake is a pilot from the north-west of England. Having learnt to fly paragliders, he was very diligent about noting down his flights and what he learnt from them. A few years ago he put his collected experience into a book called Prepare to Fly, with the very apt subtitle Paragliding tips I wish Id learned sooner. If you havent read it yet, its a goldmine of information for both new and old pilots. This is the authoritative guide to what you can do - in every aspect of your flying - to prepare in advance. He covers everything from packing before the next flight, equipment use, weather knowledge, flight planning, competitions, cross-country, accident management, etc. Everything you can possibly prepare for so that you can decrease your mental load and concentrate on the important things - enjoyment of flight, safety or results. Simons book covers it all!

The X-Pyr started in 2012 with just a dozen competitors. The first edition was 438km from Hondaribia on the Altantic coast to Port de la Selva on the Mediterranean. The biannual race flourished from there, with top hike and fly competitors from all over the world now coming to compete in the race. Having been an X-Alps supporter twice, Jesse Williams competed in the 2016 X-Pyr. Jesse did exceptionally well in the race... his first ever hike and fly comp and he came 5th! Beaten only by Maurer, Mayer, Durogati and Arevalo. He battled injury, but continued until the last minute. He gained a place in the X-Alps as a result and comported himself very well there too. Jesse is back for the 2018 X-pyr, with a lot more experience and a new supporter. After endless, minute preparation last time, including making his own rucksack and having loads of kit, Jesse is taking a different approach. Here he talks me though some of his thoughts on this years preparation and race, the differences between the Pyrenees and the Alps, this years route and how he hopes to make it more relaxed and fun! Please support him in his 2018 race.

British acro pilots Lee Tryhorn, Alex Colbeck and Jack Pimblett set up the British Acro Paragliding Academy to promote the discipline and help pilots to progress in an organised, safe way. The BAPA aims to get British acro to the highest level.

Every pilot has had a site briefing and most have provided one, but there is a dearth of guidance on how to effectively do one. In this podcast Judith Mole mulls over some of the critical information that should be given, how to give it and what not to do! Listening is key for the briefer, as is asking the right questions of the new pilot. Each briefing will be different, but this podcast aims to help those coaching and briefing new(er) or visiting pilots to do this in an effective way, keeping the pilot safe and our sites secure.

Originally from the Isle of Wight, Lawrie lives and flies in the Peak District. A member of a flying family (his dad, uncle and cousin all fly), he was connected to flying from a young age. He was an instructor at Airways Airports for many years, but having a proper job now means he can only get out to fly for pleasure these days. Having won the British Paragliding Cup in 2014, hes really got into comps and recently broke the UK declared tandem record with fellow young hotshot Theo Warden. He is sponsored by Cross-Country magazine. In this podcast Lawrie answers questions on the secret of his flying success, which flying site/area is top of his flying bucket list and which flying-related book he would recommend most.

Juan Sebastian Ospina, commonly known as Sebas, was born in Colombia, has lived for many years in England and now lives and works as a tandem pilot in Switzerland. A member of the UK national team, he is a multiple record-holder in a variety of countries. He holds the Colombian distance record, the UK declared triangle record and is the British pilot to have flown the greatest distance abroad with a flight of 400km in Quixada, Brazil. Sebas answered questions on whom he most admires in the sport, what makes a good pilot and if he could have a wild card entry into any comp, which one would it be? This podcast was recorded in March 2016, shortly after he broke the Colombian distance record. Sebas will be competing in the world championships in 2017. We wish him good luck.

Tim Pentreath is an Advance UK XC Team pilot from Bath. He has been flying for many, many years and last year finally made his first 200+ km flight in the UK - joining a small, select group of people to have achieved this. He is Mr. Advance in the SW and also keeps and informative and entertaining flying blog at https://flyaszent.wordpress.com/ In this podcast he answers questions on whether he does mental training for paragliding, his fantasy retrieve and if he could fly over any impressive building which would it be? Enjoy.