Post your flying stories and flight reports here. Make sure to attach pictures if you got em!

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By PilotGuy
#1390
I got my first solo yesterday! It was a good launch, good flight, and a decent landing about 30 feet short of the bullseye. The only downside was that I only did it once! Anyway, I've got some pictures here, and although they're nothing spectacular I thought I'd show them off. Enjoy!
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ready_for_takeoff.sized.jpg (110.87 KiB) Viewed 1074 times
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User avatar
By PilotGuy
#1392
Two more.
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flying3.sized.jpg (108.14 KiB) Viewed 1070 times
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flying1.sized.jpg (122.65 KiB) Viewed 1070 times
Last edited by PilotGuy on Sun Nov 19, 2006 6:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
By PilotGuy
#1401
yep, posted the same photo twice. Fixed now.
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By PutMeInTheSky
#1409
Congrats on the solo! What a feeling! I can't wait to get more in myself. If I don't fly tomorrow, it's back to the big hill to re-clear... again.

What time did you get off? I can't believe I didn't see it! I'm almost always up super early with my blinds up, checking the sky every two seconds to see if anything's in the air. I'm either doing that, at the big hill clearing, or up top myself to see if I can get a flight in.

Only five more and I don't have to clear the hills again. I really hope I can get those in within the next couple of days.
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By f1ydream
#1417
PilotGuy - that's awesome... congrats. i'm sure it's feels so good to solo for the first time.. how long have you been training? how many lessons did u take before first solo?
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By PilotGuy
#1418
sg wrote:In the pic where you are running, you look like you have good form, good angle of attack, looking straight ahead.

Did you rotate the nose down further as your ran off the ramp?
How many more steps did you end up taking after that pic was snapped?

The streamer shows no wind at all. True?
Thanks sg :D I didn't make any pitch movements during the run (that I know of), I just kept that angle, but as soon as I realized my feet weren't on the ramp I pitched down and sped away, still hearing the cheers from Matt (on the keel) and Steve (photographer). I'm sure that picture was just before my last step, because I didn't go past the red warning stripe. I was surprised at how easy it was to launch from the ramp instead of the hills.

There was a quartering headwind, about 3 mph and maybe 30 degrees from the left. Had to crab a bit to get to the field, and got bumped around a bit while I was still close enough to the slope to get the turbulence off the trees. When I got back to the top Matt said that he wouldn't have sent me if he knew I was going to get bumped a few times like that, but he said he was happy with the flight and thought I handled it fine. :D
User avatar
By PutMeInTheSky
#1420
You see.. I was thinking about going up top that morning, but it didn't look like something I wanted to get in yet. I'd probably handled about the same before though. The first time I flew in any cross, Matt threw me off... er.. launched me. I wasn't sure then either, but he assured me I'd be fine... and I was.

We're all so lucky to have found a passion such as this. Many people live their whole lives not knowing what true passion feels like.
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By PilotGuy
#1421
PutMeInTheSky wrote:Congrats on the solo! What a feeling! I can't wait to get more in myself. If I don't fly tomorrow, it's back to the big hill to re-clear... again.

What time did you get off? I can't believe I didn't see it! I'm almost always up super early with my blinds up, checking the sky every two seconds to see if anything's in the air. I'm either doing that, at the big hill clearing, or up top myself to see if I can get a flight in.

Only five more and I don't have to clear the hills again. I really hope I can get those in within the next couple of days.
I launched at about 10:45, 11:00 perhaps. The British guy, Collin, went around the same time. I didn't even bother waking up early this morning to try, I could hear the wind whooshing through the trees.
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By PilotGuy
#1423
f1ydream wrote:PilotGuy - that's awesome... congrats. i'm sure it's feels so good to solo for the first time.. how long have you been training? how many lessons did u take before first solo?
Thanks f1ydream!! It was thrilling and at the same time, wonderfully relaxing. Just wish it had gone on longer.

I came out for the introductory day in September and decided I needed to do it for real. I cleared the big hill for the first time in October, and I've been waiting on the weather since then. Reclearing is annoying, by the way. In terms of lessons, it was 2 on the small hill and 3 on the big hill. Now I'm going to work toward an aerotow rating whenever possible, since that seems a lot more versatile than the mountain launch.
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By PilotGuy
#1454
I know what you're talking about. I'm also a computer guy and have decided that my job, if I continue to have one, will be the thing that pays the bills so that I can do stuff like fly and travel and stuff. I don't ever want to fall into the habit that 90% of people fall into, where they slave away, have dinner, and then do it all over like you said. What's the point of existing then? I'll admit that I'm lazy. Somedays all I want to do when I get home from work is watch a movie and bum around, and you need that sometimes, but the day I realize that that's all I day will be a bad day.

Anyway, back to flying. You're right, this is quite a passion and I'm glad that I've found it and hope to stick with it for a long time. I think what is so appealing to me is that it's a combination of lots of things that I like. The outdoors, nice views, scientific/engineering principles, skill, luck, and of course... flying! Maybe I should write a poem or something. :D
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By phantomflier
#1536
Hey PilotGuy!! Congrats on your first solo! I had mine just a few months ago off Lookout's new ramp and it was incredible. It was kind of anti climactic because I was already an h2 and had several solo high alt. tows. But I tell ya, nothing beats that feeling of running off that mountain, am I right? Maybe I'll get my video of that launch posted soon. This hang gliding thing is truly a passion, and I am so thankful I have found it. However, like any addiction it has the ability to destroy lives. I would love to fly all day every day. I have a wife and two wonderful kids. THEY are the most important thing in my life. I hope I can always keep that in perspective. I have already seen my entire family experience hang gliding in some way or another (training, tandems) and I want to be able to see them fall in love with this as much as I have. But I can't do that if I am not around as a father. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Let's really remember all the things we are blessed with every day
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By HuttoRhino
#1677
CONGRATS !!!
Well, the addiction is official :lol:
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By PilotGuy
#2694
SG, somewhere I saw that you asked if I'd been flying lately but I can't remember where I saw that, so I'm replying here.

I haven't been to the mountain since my second solo, I've been horrendously busy lately. Normally that wouldn't be a problem, since I'm good at ignoring all that stuff, but the weather has not been a slam dunk lately. I find it difficult to justify going all the way up there and putting off all my other stuff in the hopes that the forecast is wrong.

I skipped my family gathering over Thanksgiving so that I could go to the mountain, is that a good sign? :mrgreen:
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By knumbknuts
#2699
Amen,

I thought I would have soloed by now, but my last seven lessons have been canc'ed due to weather. Then, the days I work and it's nothing but green on the Crestline weather graph. Bah.

Santa Ana Claus put coal in my stocking.

Anyways, gratz Pilot Guy! :mosh: