Big Air Night Paragliding Films - VIMFF - Sat. Feb 9 19:00

Hi,

After months of rain, looks like a sunny long weekend coming up with a fantastic evening of paragliding films to keep your mind soaring while your feet may have been grounded for a while. 

Some great new film entries on paragliding at the upcoming VIMFF (Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival) this Saturday (Feb.9) afternoon Adventures in the Southern Hemisphere and Saturday night's Big Air Show. It's at the Rio theatre at Broadway and Commercial.

We will be MCing the event, and look forward to meeting new and familiar faces.

We will also be presenting our paragliding multimedia presentation:The Sky is Your Playground:

Join iParaglide as we take you on a guided tour of paragliding: from taking your first steps off the ground to flying ever greater adventures in the sky.  With dramatic images from around the world and breathtaking videos that are sure to inspire all that seek to soar with the hawks and eagles.   

The Show starts at 19:30 but doors open at 18:30 and early arrival is recommended as sometimes the show is sold out by 19:00.  VIMFF details are here. 

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Flight Club, Winging Ceremony and Best of Awards: Nov 23 18:00

Hi, 

It's time for our annual paragliding gala celebration for 2012.  Welcome to Flight Club.

We are inviting all pilots that came out for their first flights, Novice pilot graduates, and former grads out for our paragliding season finale.  Of course, friends of pilots are also always welcome.

Share a beer with flying friends and relive the most exciting flights of 2012,  exchange photos and other media, and plan upcoming adventures. 

We will be issuing some very special wings to our new paraglider pilot graduates during the winging ceremony.

Then we will celebrate our Best of Paragliding 2012 Awards, with the winners of Best Paragliding Video, Photo and Blog announced. 

Relax knowing you can enjoy a few drinks and get home safely using skytrain, just stumbling distance away. 

 

Yaletown Brew Pub is a high energy venue, with great boutique beer and food, at 1111 Mainland Street. 

Flight Club is Friday night November 23 starting at 18:00.  Please arrive on time so we can all celebrate the winging ceremony together. Please RSVP your spot by responding here.

Looking forward to another epic Paragliding season end celebration!

Paragliding SIV Sep1,2: Directions

Looking forward to a great paragliding SIV (Simulation of Flight Incidents) weekend!

Beach is remote, so must bring:

• recently repacked paragliding reserve parachute and harness with back protector
• helmet, life vest, hook knife, gloves, and boots with ankle support
• two FRS radios fully charged & bring chargers (ONLY motorola large AA powered) & zip lock bags, duct tape for possible water landings
• food & water in coolers
• sunscreen & bug dope
• folding chairs
• warm clothes for being on paragliding tow, towels and change of clothes in case of splash down spare
• tripods, video and photo cameras, DSLRs especially welcome

Hook knives, tow bridals and life jackets can also be rented by paraglider pilots for $30/day. 

Friday night, August 31, at 20:00 we meet at the house across from the GREENWOOD INN, park at 1370 Greenwood Street, immediately to the right of the Greenwood. Directions from Vancouver: 

• Take Hwy 99 North from Vancouver to Pemberton (30km past Whistler)
• At the traffic light, turn left (north) into the Village of Pemberton.
• Follow traffic circle towards the left (west) over railway tracks to 3 way intersection.
• Turn left (south) onto Prospect St
• Go to stop sign, turn right (west) onto Aster St
• Follow to the right at stop sign and go up the hill (north) on Dogwood St
• Shortly after you pass the Log-house B&B turn right (east) onto Greenwood Street and follow to the end of the road into the cul-de-sac.
• Greenwood is the last B&B at 1371 Greenwood Street
• Please park at 1370 Greenwood. It is okay to park on the grass as well. 

We will do some simulator work and watch some paragliding SIV videos so that we can focus on towing and doing the maneuvers during the day.

Saturday morning we are meeting at 07:00 at the 12 km beach at LILLOOET LAKE (GOOGLE MAP HERE),  it is 45 mins from Pemberton: 

• eastbound on Hwy 99 leaving Pemberton towards Mt.Currie for 6-10 kms until Mt. Currie: just past the town, hwy goes sharp left. Continue on another approx. 10 kms further east staying on Hwy 99. 
• you cross the river and see the lake. 
• watch for small signs on right side of road: Lillooet Lake, Lodge, Lillooet Lk. (In-chuck-ch) Forest Service Rd . (If road starts zig zagging and heading uphill to north, you've gone too far). 
• turn right (east) onto gravel road at cluster of signs.  Zero your odometer.
• drive 12 kms, there are no signs at beach it is an easy to miss small parking pullout on south side of road. 
• park and 5 minute walk down to beach.

Looking forward to great long weekend of towing and throwing it down over beautiful Lillooet Lake.  We'll be working a safe and optimized progression to help you prevent, recognize and recover from non-standard paragliding flying attitudes!

Keep in mind cell/radio reception in Pemby is poor, so it is important to make the plans in advance and stick to pre-arranged meeting times: cell 604-603-4459, ham 146.415, FRS 7-11.

Simulation of Flight Incidents SIV September 1&2, 2012

It's time. Time to learn the limits of the flight envelope of your paraglider while flying over beautiful Lillooet lake at our upcoming SIV: Simulation fo Flight incidents Seminar!  September 1 & 2 (with 3rd as weather back-up day).

SIV will empower you with vital skills to be able to deal with turbulent conditions and will greatly help in: preventing the development of a extreme flight attitude; restoring an extreme flight attitude to regular paragliding flight; or executing a well timed and delivered reserve parachute toss.

Paragliding SIV should be conducted at least once a season to keep your skills sharp and especially every time you get a new paraglider, so that you can understand your new gliders behavior characteristics at the limits of the flight envelope. 

iParaglide's SIV (details here) is conducted on the September long weekend each year as the weather most often cooperates in that time frame and the lake levels are ideal at Lillooet Lake for towing.

This is a quality course, with a smaller group size to ensure you get lots of flights and learning opportunities are maximized. We use a high-end pro tow hydraulic payout winch and jet powered boat to tow you up to 3000ft over the lake.

Towing for SIV and acro training is the most favored delivery method for a number of reasons:

• you get a flight on the way up to altitude and learn new skills
• turnaround time is more efficient than mountain based flights
• more flexibility for wind strength and direction, not dependent on cycles like on mountain launches 
• pilots can view all participants maneuvers and hear instructions, learning from others flights as well
• hanging out at the beach and watching all the action is more fun than driving up a mountain! :)

Accommodation will be available on a number of levels, from the first class GREENWOOD B&B with hot tub and barbecue deck, to the rustic LILLOOET LAKE SIDE LODGE cabins just a stones throw from our SIV beach LZ, to camping on the beach.

This is my favorite weekend of the year as the "aha" moments abound and the sky bustles with the energy. The grins from pilots who have just learned new tricks and have gotten to know their glider more intimately are priceless.

SIV Simulation of Flight Incidents  Seminar details are here.  Reservations click here. 

Looking forward to seeing you all!

Paragliding Reserve Parachute Seminar: August 25

It's that time of year again when we get pilots thoroughly understanding their paragliding reserve parachute systems. The seminar will prepare pilots for successful reserve deployments should they encounter an unrecoverable paraglider attitude during flight. This seminar is also a pre-requisite for our upcoming SIV (Simulation of Flight Incidents) course.

This seminar covers significantly more material than other reserve seminars and is done in a much smaller group size allowing for multiple repacks. Paragliding Reserve Parachute Seminar details are here.

We look forward to helping pilots practice the important topics to learn: how paragliding reserve parachutes are designed to function; when and how to deploy their reserves; what to do during a reserve ride; and how to repack.