Pointers from the pros

Hi all...

I am currently flying paramotors but two weeks ago started hang gliding lessons. Im also a high time GA pilot. Heres the thing...Im having a problem with the hang glider in that I cant seem to relax my grip on the down tubes. No matter how much I concentrate on a loose grip, as soon as the glider lifts me off the ground I give it the death grip. So what happens when I take off is that the glider seems to alway go into an unrecoverable wing over. By unrecoverable I mean that the glider quickly wings over to the right (or left) and I go as far as I can in the opposite direction and it keeps banking until the wing hits the ground.

Im hoping some people here can give me some pointers. Seems like maybe Im making a common newbie mistake, but I cant seem to get a handle on it. My instructor helps alot, but some input from others would be helpful too...

Thanks....Ross

PS...The wing Im flying is a Falcon 195. The wing I ordered is a Falcon 225 (because Im going to also fly it with a trike attached)

I'm not sure this will help, but it often seems like when concentrate the hardest on avoiding something, that winds up being exactly what you do. At this point, you should only be flying from a small training hill, and taking a short flight into a landing. Less than 20 seconds, anyway. I'd recommend that as you balance the glider before shouting clear, you find a point on the horizon to focus on (your instructor probably has told you this already). DO NOT think about your grip or your hands, just keep focusing on that point/landmark/whatever. Aggressively launch as though you were going to fly to that spot (and it should be something ridiculously far away, like a water tower or something). You will see your wing/nose angle and any bank you're getting into in your peripheral vision - make corrections as necessary.

You're using the right glider for training, it's light and handles well; sounds like you have an instructor as well. Those are all good things.

If you still can't get it, perhaps a long ground-handling session with the instructor, on flat ground, in a 10 MPH headwind will help - you can get the feeling of controlling and 'flying' the glider without ever leaving the ground.

Good luck,

Ross,

Two very important things.. 1. The glider will fly itself needing only to be flown when corrections in heading are needed. If it won't fly hands-off, don't fly the glider. 2nd: You will fly where you look - common amount students they tend to fly exactly where they look, meaning if a student sees something they don't want to hit, and focus on it because of worry, they will infact hit it!

One other item, if the instructor is worth his salt, he will have demonstrated that the glider you're about to fly, flies hands-off!

Dan

He has domonstrated that. He accually demonstrated a one handed takeoff. I did do a full day in about 15 knots of wind. That helped...I guess I just need to try to relax. One of my problems is that Im not used to aircraft with no motor. Usually when I no longer hear a motor running Im setting up for an emergency landing. The paramotor accually falls like a rock when I shut down the motor...Unless I can find some real good thermals or ridge lift.

I expect Ill be flying the Falcon 225 with the trike most of the time, but I would like to get to atleast a hang 2 at some point. There is only one hang 1 site here a couple hang 2's and a number of 3' and 4's...mostly 4's...all mountain flying.

My next lesson is on Friday...this will be #3. Im still on the 60ft hill. The istructor said I could go to the 150ft hill if I wanted. Im about 270 lbs clipped in and maxed out in the 195...my takeoff run is around 100ft or so. He thought the steeper gade might make it easier. I decided to stay on the bunny slope for now...atleast until I get a feel for the glider.

Thanks very much for the tips. Thanks to Brent too. You both have basically reinforced what my instructor has told me. I think some more practice on the small hill will get me more comfortable.

Thanks again...Ross

Something that always helped me was to slide my hands up and down the downtubes during flight to make sure I wasn't gripping.

One thing I tell GA pilots is to imagine your body is the stick. Don't call it a control bar or you'll picture it as the yoke. Don't think about your grip and concentrate on your body as the control stick. This has helped a lot of GA pilots. Congratulations on being seduced by the dark side of aviation.

Ross, What you describe sounds like a stall to me. The white knuckles sure won't help, either. If you are planning to fly up into the sky, rather than down the hill, you *will* have a problem; this is a glider. Plan on skimming low, down the hill (I am assuming you have wheels on the glider - do NOT fly anything, ever, without wheels until you get good at this hang gliding stuff!) So skim down the hill, no more than five feet high at first. Fly a bit fast! Wheels will 'cover' for you if you get too low. (You would only 'bounce' off the wheels, then continue flying normally.) As with any aircraft, when it does not respond to a control input, you do not have sufficient airspeed. You must gain speed first. This is done by launching faster, not by going higher up the hill. I can not explain why your instructor does not see that the glider is 'ignoring' your inputs, but you might have to change instructors here, in your own best interests. If that were a powered plane, what would happen if you took off too slow and then gave it full up control? The same thing that you are now doing with a hang glider, right? This thing is an aircraft, a real one. Your instructor should be able to fly the glider 'hands-off' for most of the duration of a 'bunny-hill' flight. If you see that, maybe you will relax. I once had a student with 'control' problems, so I took the glider (near the bottom of the hill), with no harness, and ran down the hill with it, as if to launch. When the glider was up and flying, I aimed it at the ground about thirty feet in front of me and gave it a gentle push with both hands. I stopped and ducked the tail wires, then just watched. It glided long and smoothly to the ground, the wheels touched, they rolled a bit, and the glider nosed over nicely into a parked position; all with no pilot aboard. The student gaped for a minute, picked up the glider, and had absolutely no problems from that day on. I often did this, using that glider, so yeah, I knew exactly how to throw it. It got the point across. I always told my students to hold the bar Lightly. Rather than a tight grip, I would have them wiggle their fingers (sort of a ripple pattern) on the bar to show me that they were not gripping too tightly as they flew past. I would have them flare with all fingers pointed at the sky (sort of a slow 'shout Hallelujah' move). The control bar stays nicely between each thumb and palm, and I never worried if they had too tight of a grip when I saw their hands were open. Suppose for a minute you were to grab the controls of a Cessna in a 'death grip', what would happen? Would the plane fly any better? We both know this is counterproductive. The thing to avoid is that stalled take-off, so you will not need full opposite corrections (futile with insufficient airspeed, anyway). If it is at all possible, I strongly suggest that you get a well-qualified tandem ride, even if you need an airliner to get to it. About 30 to 60 minutes in a hang glider will help you more than words can convey. Let the good pilot deal with the launching and the landing, you just fly it for a while, with no dirt around you. Do not continue to risk your bones with an instructor that, from your description, does not impress me. I might even demand to see a current instructor certification from USHGA there. All the best to you,

All excellent responses, you are not the only one who have this response, all new HG pilots had that (almost all . Remember, all human being as soon as their feet leave the ground they try to grab on to something.( normal behavior) When you fly a HG you are hooked on to the glider already. NO need to grab the down tubes, you NEED your hands to steer the glider. So relax, you are low and slow on the training hill, nothing will happend to you, like Rod said before make sure you have air speed,Walk, Jog, run hold the down tubes as low as you possibly can (feel the down tubes going up inside your palm untill they reach the end at the base tube, while You are still on the GROUND !!! now is the time to get airborn ) , more air speed better control, don't aim high, skim the ground, make sure your tip of your shoes touching the gras. You doing fine in couple of weeks you will lough about this. Happy landings DAN