Assumed skill level :
It is assumed that the pilot masters the basic techniques of launching, flying towards the landing zone, making an approach and landing.

Purpose / Legal note :
Gathered since 1989, this list of tips is intended for the paraglider pilot who wishes to improve his flying skill and better deal with bad situations. Some advice is trivial but can remain unknown to pilots that did not grasp it the first time around. The author does not encourage extreme maneuvers. The author is not responsible for injuries or damage resulting from the advice given in this document. This document can not be reproduced, in part or as a whole, without the authorization from Jérôme Daoust ( E-mail ).

Level of importance / Revision date / Color :
Each tip in this document is rated as :

L1 : The most important advice. Something you have to do, or else... This event is likely to occur.
L2 : Important. You should do this. This event may occur.
L3 : It will help if you do this. Try to make it a habit. This event does not occur often.
L4 : For your information. Try this if you want to.

About the author :
Jérôme Daoust ( E-mail, see My Photo Album ) has been paragliding since 1989. He learned in Canada, and flew mainly at Mt Yamaska near Montréal. He moved to France in 1993 and flew in the Alps. Living in California since 1996, Jérôme enjoys flying at Marshall within the Crestline Soaring Society club (see External Links/Flying Site). For each of the 3 countries (see Paragliding Association), he easily passed (well...) a new exam to get a license. Although he won a few prizes in local competitions, he doesn't enjoy competing, as it stresses him out, and he has enough of his normal job to do that.

1 kg = 2.205 lb (pound-mass)
1 m = 3.28 ft
1 m/s = 197 fpm (feet per minute) = 2.24 mph = 3.6 km/h = 1.94 kt (knot)
1 km/h = 0.621 mph (miles per hour) = 0.278 m/s = 54.7 fpm = 0.540 kt
1 mph = 1.609 km/h = 0.447 m/s = 0.869 kt
1 kt = 1.151 mph = 1.852 km/h = 0.515 m/s

L1 - 1999/5/26. Group Effect. Seeing many pilots accomplish something may create a strong temptation to try to do the same thing. They may be more skilled than you, or they may simply be taking a higher risk. This is one time where you have to keep your ego under control, and judge for yourself of the skill and risk involved.

L2 - 2005/4/19. Living in the Moment. When flying, you live for the moment. This is good as a mental release from the rest of your life. But this is bad for the same reason, as you ignore risk consequences. Putting a family picture in sight can help.

L3 - 1992/9/1. Maybe your strong ego got you into paragliding. This is also why many people quit. They realize at one point that they are taking too many risks (to show off) and then feel that they are not really under their own control. It is then a good decision for them to stop. If you think I am talking about you, I am probably not, but maybe this helped.

L3 - 2000/8/4. Fame. What is the maximum reward that paragliding pilots can achieve ? Even if you get to be world champion or the one that went highest/furthest, most people don't even know what paragliding is. A few years after your death, the few people who remember you, will not do so because of your paragliding expertise, they will be your close friends and family. Maybe the greatest benefit of performance is self-esteem (if you don't have it already). Clint Eastwood (movie star) said : You're a legend in your own mind !

L3 - 2005/4/19. Risk-taking Creates Anxiety. You are on launch and everything seems good (weather, physical) but you have a vague unpleasant emotion. Think back on your recent flights. Do you remember taking higher risk than usual? When taking higher risk than normal, your mind will pass it on as anxiety later, to remind you of your loss of self-control.

L3 - 2006/12/11. Fear Control. An accident (or incident) you lived or have witnessed, has left you with fears, which overwhelm your flying pleasure. Knowing that:

• People's capacity to visualize a risk is an important part of the attention they give to it. So if you can think of an incident in which a risk has come to fruition, you will exaggerate its likelihood.
• What availability does to you: It plants an image that comes readily to mind, and that image is associated with an emotion: Fear.

L4 - 1999/2/20. Note to self : Paragliding never promised me good flying conditions on a regular basis. Just as any passion, paragliding will make me very upset at times. When a friend tells me that I missed a great day, I will hurt to the point of thinking : "I will quit this unpredictable hobby". The key is to look back at the year that went by, and ask myself if I am ready to lose what paragliding has brought me, and the joys waiting ahead, maybe next weekend.

L4 - 1999/3/20. Keep other hobbies. After the first years, unless paragliding is your business, flying every day may nullify most of the fun, or put you in search of peer recognition for your invested efforts.

L4 - 1999/4/6. Boldness Bell curve. A pilot's degree of boldness follows a Bell curve over the first five years. Pilots start conservatively, due to a low experience level and a high fear level. Midway, the experience level goes up, the fear level goes down, and bolder decisions are made. Boldness generally peaks when a pilot gets his advanced rating. This is the "Intermediate Syndrome". Towards the end, having experienced that bad situations happen to everyone, decisions become more conservative again.

L1 - 2003/12/17. Getting into the harness. Many accidents have happened because pilots are struggling to get into their harness after take off. The worst are those with their brakes in their hands and grabbing the bottom of their harness. The pilot will unintentionally enter a Stall (Full, Recovery), or if they use only one hand to adjust the seat, the glider will go into a Spin (Recovery). See Image: Repositioning harness with brakes in hand. Another bad idea is to let go of the brakes to then grab the harness, a Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) then takes too much take to control (you need to find your brakes again) and they come right back into the hill. A not-so-good idea is to hold both brakes with one hand while using the other to work on the harness, as you can't control a Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) as well as if you have a brake in each hand. It is not recommended to press on the accelerator bar to get better seated right after launch. If you are not automatically in your harness after launch, wait until you are safely away form the mountain, then use the following method. Lean back and lift your knees up towards your chest while pushing (but don't hold) with your hands (still holding the brakes) on all your risers at the height that you had your hands for braking, and squirm in the seat, to help "falling" into it. Practicing this maneuver in your garage by attaching your harness to a couple of straps will also help. Do you have harness lower back straps that are too tight ? A common problem is to have the leg straps too loose which places the harness higher as you run/launch, making it more difficult to get seated after.

L2 - 1990/7/1. Attitude. You don't have to take off. If you don't feel at ease with the flying conditions or with a new launch area, fly another day or at a better place. Beware of the Group Effect and those that fly to show off. I heard many times "Well I'm taking off !", and then you see him parked in the strong wind, sure looks like fun.

L2 - 1990/6/1. If the wind varies by more than 10 km/h (6 mph) in less than 3 seconds, you will encounter turbulent air. Don't launch.

L2 - 1991/7/1. The following applied to a rounded summit launch. As a general guideline, one can still launch if the average wind speed is 20 km/h (12 mph) with gusts up to 25 km/h (15 mph) not lasting more than 5 seconds, and still have a reasonable margin of safety with respect to the wing's air speed. One must measure the wind a far ahead as he can on the launch to avoid turbulence. Incline the wind meter to find the maximum wind speed direction. Remember that wind is reduced as it gets closer to the ground. Remember that there is more lift (better) and less horizontal wind speed if you can move forward from the launch.

L2 - 2000/9/7. Those gray clouds are darkening. Thermals and wide lift zones will become strong. Don't launch, and land if you are already flying. Looking around you may see rain showers (at a distance). See also : Flying in Rain, Landing near/in Rain.

L2 - 1990/5/1. Before pulling on your risers to inflate the wing, tell yourself : "This is a trial and will launch only if all goes well.". Don't think : "I have missed this launch twice, and people will not laugh of me any longer.". Fierce mosquitoes are also a bad reason to rush a launch.

L2 - 1990/8/1. After launch, your wing dives to gather speed (you haven't run fast enough) and starts to do a follow-up surge. If you increase the brakes while the surge starts, you will amplify the pendulum motion, which may then lead to a Stall (Full, Recovery) at the summit of the surge. This effect is compounded if entering a thermal (or lift) at the same time.

L2 - 1998/11/1. Top 10 bad reasons for launching : 10) I've waited long enough. 9) I can't get a ride down. 8) I'm hungry, cold. 7) It was a long walk up here. 6) It is getting dark. 5) Let's do it before the rain gets here. 4) The mosquitoes are eating me alive. 3) I will be late for diner. 2) I will look like a wimp if I don't ( Group Effect). 1) This is my last vacation day !

L2 - 2006/4/26. Pulled up during rotation from a reverse inflation. If there is a risk of being pulled off the ground as soon as the wing gets overhead from a reverse inflation, we may think it is a good idea to turn around quickly before that happens. See Image: Pulled up during rotation from a reverse inflation. But if your feet leave the ground during that fast rotation, then you can't cancel your rotational impulsion and you will twist the risers the other way, which is disorienting. It happened to me, and I kept pulling the wrong brake until my wing started facing the hill. To prevent this from happening in the first place, do not turn around quickly and/or request launch assistance (too proud ?). Most important, is to relax, and fly the wing away from the hill, untwist later. Grab risers as you rotate back, try to maintain their separation while facing the front (this may pass some rotation to the wing). Verify (before launching) that your Chest Strap Adjustment is not too narrow. For those with gymnastic talent, extend arms to side and extend your legs to the front (increases rotational inertia, reduces rotation speed) when your risers have maximum torquing force against the rotation, and twist your torso to prolong this ideal riser twist angle.

L2 - 2003/12/23. Wing Examination at Launch. Before commiting to launch, examine your wing overhead for Twisted Risers (Harness Flipped), a Line-Over (Recovery), a Cravate (Recovery), or a Knot (Unstable, Recovery) which is hard to see from underneath your wing. These situations could be irreversible once in flight. If there is enough wind, stay stationary and examine your wing overhead for a few seconds. See Video: Pilot launches with a knot, 2003/12/18, Salève.

L3 - 1989/9/1. The wing is over your head put slanted to one side towards the ground. Just "hitting" the brake on the side which is highest will send that side back down if you don't supply a strong forward motion. The most important action to fix this, is to move your body to the side that is closest to the ground. The idea is to re-center your body under your wing.

L3 - 1990/5/1. Let at least another pilot launch before you to have a better idea of the flying conditions.

L3 - 1990/5/1. If taking off in no-wind conditions, identify the lowest obstacle path in front of your launch area.

L3 - 2003/6/6. Launch - Mountain - Thermal Timing. Often, thermal currents form at regular intervals of time. By studying the wind speed 20 minutes, you will be able to predict the next cycle and launch just before the wind increases again. One should also note the duration of the peak wind speed within a cycle.

L3 - 1991/6/1. If you feel a light head wind at launch but look back and see trees being shaken by a stronger wind, look at the cloud movement above you to try to get a confirmation that you are not actually in a rotor from a strong back wind.

L3 - 1991/7/1. At launch you have a strong head wind (20+ km/h, 12+ mph) and people down at the landing zone are reporting light winds (less than 5 km/h, 3 mph). This indicates that the average lift component throughout your flight (ignoring thermals) will not be very good, because most of the wind speed is not coming from a lower altitude. Expect to face a head wind without much lift.

L3 - 1999/12/5. Cliff Launch. You are about to do a cliff launch and there is a strong wind in front of launch that makes a rotor behind you. If you start from far back, beware the band of lift just ahead, that will resist your entry, lift you up and push you back into its rotor. Try to launch as far ahead as possible and then be ready to fly at maximum speed. If you intend to stop at the edge of the cliff, be aware that the non-horizontal wind direction will cause your wing to stabilize ahead of you, pulling you forward unless you add more braking. See Image: Cliff launch.

L3 - 2001/3/20. Cross-Wind Launch. The wind comes at an angle (more than 30 degrees) from your left or right. If you must launch straight because of the terrain (corridor cut amongst the trees, like a ski slope in the woods), the side which is most exposed to the wind may Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) just after launch. Try to turn into the wind as soon as possible. See Video: Asymmetric collapse following a cross-wind launch, 2000, Aspen, CO.

L3 - 2004/1/29. You Forgot to Fasten your Leg Straps. Several people have died this way, hanging helplessly by their armpits for a couple of agonizing minutes, then letting go. If it happens to you, remember the following sequence. Grasp the risers. With your weight on your arms, swing your legs through and up, to hook them around the risers and lines. Pull the seat back underneath your bum. Swing back to normal position and fasten your straps. You can reproduce a similar situation in your garage to practice the maneuver. See Image: Recovering from untied leg straps, Video: Pilot recovering from untied leg straps, 2003/11, Canada.

L3 - 1991/4/1. You forgot to tie your chest strap. A similar situation happened to me because of a bad automotive-type buckle that let go in flight. After the initial surprise, you can just force it back together. The tension to close it is about 25% of your weight, depending on the angle of your suspension cone at that place.

L3 - 2006/4/20. Dust Devil (Waiting to fly and connected to your wing). If you are buckled into your harness, tied to your wing, and you see a dust devil close by, dive on top of your wing to prevent it from becoming airborne. See Image: Holding wing down during a dust devil, Video: Dust devil picks up a wing and harness, 2003, Piedrahita, Spain, Video: Dust devil picks up 2 pilots, 1996, Poland. Do not spend unnecessary time connected to your wing, waiting to launch. See also : Dust Devil (On approach).

L3 - 1999/12/5. I'm Launching - Make people aware. Make people in front of you aware that you are attempting to launch. They will enjoy watching you miss/succeed and you will avoid having someone inflate his wing in your flight path, or cause turbulence. See Image: Make people aware that you are trying to launch.

L3 - 2000/3/10. Pre-Launch Reserve Check. The velcro which holds the handle in place may set and become more fixed due to car transport vibrations, making it harder to separate the Velcro when trying to throw your reserve. Prior to getting in the harness :

1. Peel the handle loose and re-seat it.
2. Check that the pins of your reserve are fully inserted.

L3 - 2000/8/1. Urinate before Launch. An empty bladder is much less prone to rupture than a full bladder during a crash-landing.

L3 - 2004/5/5. Kiting Wing Unattached to Body. You may have seen someone kiting his wing by the risers, unattached to his body through the harness, just held by hands. There is no need for this. Many people have died after being pulled up and dropped. Fatality examples : Portugal in May 2004, Tirol in 1999, Slovenia in 1991.

L4 - 1999/4/19. To help untangle your lines, stretch them out, hold up the "A" lines and tug on the brake lines, one side at the time, they often untangle all the others. If your harness is unhooked and your risers are in a knot, start from the canopy and work back down the outside "A" lines.

L4 - 1989/10/28. If a gust, bad ground handling or bad landing gets your wing in a confused and tangled mess try doing this : Grab the leading edge from the center and work your way out to the tip hand over hand. Never grab the tip and start pulling it out of the mess because that will make the mess worse.

L4 - 1991/5/1. If the wind increases as if a thermal passes by, but you don't see any tree branches moving in front and below the launch, the thermal can be forming behind the launch and pulling air through where you stand. You should feel slightly colder air. This is not a good time to launch.

L4 - 1990/5/1. When laying out your wing in strong wind, one can set small stones on the folded over trailing edge to prevent the wind from lifting it, or build up a 30 cm (1 ft) wall with the leading edge by keeping a light traction on the A risers. That wall will reduce the wind speed over the wing.

L4 - 1994/7/1. You will need to launch on a very slanted grassy slope. Bring a few clothes line pins to attach your leading edge to the grass so it doesn't slip.

L4 - 1991/6/1. You have a piloting seat (popular in the early 1990s) on your harness, and are launching with a heavy backpack. This will increase the wing's angle of attack. Apply more pressure with your legs to compensate the weight offset.

L4 - 1998/7/1. Your wing seems to always inflate from the wing tips before the center and you already tried the "horseshoe" or "V" shape layout. Instead of pulling on your "A" risers, pull on all lines (wear gloves) from the "A" riser except the ones going closest to the wing tip. This will put traction first on the center of your wing.

L4 - 2000/9/7. You are about to launch but rain is starting. Do you really need to do that flight ? Know that the bigger the raindrops are, the stronger the lift there is in/under the clouds. So if there is only a fine mist, the lift/sink might not be so bad. But if your hear heavy raindrops on your wing, beware. See also : Flying in Rain, Landing near/in Rain.

L3 - 2003/6/6. Tow Early and Often. Get towed early in the morning, and often, until you get a good flight.

L3 - 2003/6/6. Release on Lift During Tow. If you get decent lift on tow above 150m (500') AGL, then disengage. On the way up is your best chance of finding a thermal, too many people stay on to the end of the tow. It is difficult to find something you flew through early on the tow, and even if you do find it, the altitude gained on tow outside of it will be mostly lost and you now re-enter that thermal later in its cycle.

L3 - 2003/6/6. Tow Timing. This is different from a Launch - Mountain - Thermal Timing. If you launch in a thermal (gust), you will be in sink by the time you have height to release. On tow, you want to get a thermal towards the end of the tow. But it is hard to guess when this will happen, so Tow Early and Often. On strong wind days, launch in a lull.

L2 - 1990/8/1. You have the bad habit of flying a minimum sink rate prior to flaring for your landing. You should know that there could be a wind gradient (proportional to the wind speed) close to the ground that may make you Stall (Full, Recovery) a few meters above the ground. Fly at a higher speed when you are on your final approach.

L2 - 1990/5/1. Crabbing. You have decided to go land but the wind isn't aligned with your flight path. You will need to do like the way a crab walks, and fly "at an angle" from your intended flight path. Let's consider a wind component from the left. If you keep your wing pointed towards the LZ at all times, your trajectory will describe a curve towards the right as the wind has pushed you to that side, ending up to the right of the LZ, facing the wind almost head on to reach it. You will have to compensate sooner or later for that side wind component. Depending on the strength of the wind side component, you need to have your wing pointing at an angle from the LZ to compensate throughout the remainder of your flight. Note that while "crabbing" you are not constantly turning. The shortest path isn't always obtained by facing the destination.

L3 - 2000/9/7. Landing near/in Rain. Rain is falling heavily on the horizon (10+ km, 6+ miles). Expect the winds to dramatically increase as you come in to land, coming from this shower of colder air that spread when hitting the ground. See also : Flying in Rain, Wing Degradation due to Humidity.

L3 - 2002/5/28. Landing in Wind Shadow. The wind is strong and you must land in an area hidden from the wind, like a large hole in the forest. You will need to compromise between 2 evils : Dealing with Turbulence and a Stall (Full, Recovery) due to a reduced air speed as you enter the hole. The most likely event is a Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) due to turbulence, which may turn your wing around and result into a high speed impact. It is recommended to fly with 20% braking and practice Active Flying as you approach such a landing zone. You can expect a mild-to-moderate forward surge from the wing as it re-adjusts its airspeed.

L3 - 1990/7/1. You are going to land in a field where the wind is strong. Remember that a line of trees or a house can induce turbulence up to a distance of 10 times their height.

L3 - 1999/10/3. If you must land on a slanted slope and there isn't enough head wind to reduce your ground glide ratio enough to land facing the wind, increase your wing's angle of flight against the wind (don't head into the wind as much) until you start losing relative altitude against the slope under you. Flare (just before touching down) by turning into the wind.

L3 - 1999/7/25. You have landed. Nothing can happen right ? Someone has already died from being dragged after landing through a field, knocked unconscious by collisions along the way and swept into a neighboring river. See Dragged by your wing.

L3 - 1991/7/1. The stronger the wind, the less you need to flare.

L3 - 1999/7/25. Dust Devil (On approach). Stay as far as possible from dust devils. If one is on the landing zone, land elsewhere. See also : Dust Devil (Waiting to fly and connected to your wing).

L3 - 2004/9/20. Landing Backwards. If caught going backward at the time of landing :

• For a walking/jogging speed, see : Wing Kill.
• For a higher rate of speed... Unclip the chest strap(s) and then one leg strap in preparation. The remaining leg strap will prevent you from falling out by accident. Be sure there will be no safety strap (vario, radio...) linking you to your harness. On final approach, unclip the last leg strap. Jump out of your harness upon touch down, and roll. You may want to hold one brake toggle to put your wing in a flag mode.

L3 - 2004/9/20. Wing Kill. To quickly disable your wing :

L3 - 2007/4/20. Precision Landing. Use 1/4 to 1/2 brake on approach. Release some braking to improve glide, increase braking to no more than 3/4 to degrade. To degrade glide even more, do S-turns with gradual movements about 1/4 brake.

L4 - 1991/9/1. If you have been flying for over an hour, make sure you legs are not numb. Beware of those tight variometer straps.

L4 - 2007/4/20. Landing on Speedbar and Brakes. The following is a high-risk maneuver for landing in a small area (without final precision)... 1/4 to 1/2 brake, then simultaneously add braking and speed bar to degrade glide. Practice at high altitude to get the feeling. To flare, just release accelerator (this makes you loose the final precision). About the risk of using brakes while accelerated, see: Accelerator (Turbulence). For a safer and more precise technique: Precision Landing.

L2 - 1998/12/1. You have the habit of making Big Ears (Execution) to top land because it should be more stable through turbulence and it produces a higher sink rate. Do you think you have enough control to brake your wing if it wants to surge forward ? Are you ready to handle a Frontal Collapse (Recovery) ? Do you think using the Accelerator (Usage) at the same time makes you less or more susceptible to a Frontal Collapse (Recovery) ? See Video: Frontal Collapse while under Big Ears.

L3 - 1996/5/18. On your approach to a top landing, you realize you are too high. Don't over-brake and be close to Stall (Full, Recovery), as it may just happen. Just overshoot, get into the lift again, get altitude and retry. Beware of making your approach from the back as you may get into rotors. Try making your approach from the side instead and turn into the wind prior to flaring. Ask the locals about the best approach for the site.

L3 - 1999/1/15. To reduce your glide ratio and improve the landing. Approach from the side (let's say the wind comes from your right), weight shift as much as you can to the right and maintain your axis with the left brake. This degrades the glide (good). Just before touching down, let go of the left brake and the wing will face the wind.

L3 - 1999/3/21. What is harder than top landing ? Deciding not to do it. If there are strong thermals in the area, or turbulence, think about it twice. This is especially hard when you see others top land before you, beware of this Group Effect.

L3 - 1999/12/5. Top Landing - Make people aware. Make people aware that you are attempting to do a top landing. They will enjoy watching you miss/succeed and you will avoid having someone inflate his wing in your flight path, or cause turbulence. See Image: Make people aware that you are trying to top land.

L4 - 2004/6/2. Top Landing - Increase Body Drag. To reduce your glide ratio (good), adopt an upright (standing) position and spread arms and legs, which increases the drag from the pilot. See also Reduced Pilot Drag.

L4 - 2000/12/14. Flapping. Some pilots flap their wing to degrade its Lift/Drag performance in order to facilitate top landing (common in Taiwan). The technique consists of pulling your brakes in small consecutive bursts (1+ per second). If we are attempting to duplicate a bird's wing flap during landing, lets remember that unlike them, we can not move our leading edge up and down, backward and forward, increasing its relative path through the air. What really matters is not to Stall (Theory). The question boils down to the following : If by flapping, the flow which was starting to reverse is re-established more quickly when we let off the brakes, than the time that it takes to reverse it while pulling the brake, then flapping could be better than a steady state equivalent braking. But this remains unanswered. Remember that flapping will not prevent your wing from a Stall (Theory). Alternative methods : Perform S-turns or Big Ears (Execution). See also : Butterfly.

L4 - 2000/12/14. Butterfly. This technique consists of repeatedly deep braking for about 2 seconds and releasing. The wing ends up doing ample pitch motions. I don't recommend it. See also : Flapping.

L2 - 1991/6/1. Look, lean, turn. Turn your head to see if the space is clear before making the turn. Furthermore, turning the head naturally tends to perform a proper weight shift in the harness.

L2 - 1989/12/1. Recall of basic flight rules. Avoid by the right. The pilot with the mountainside to his right has priority. The pilot just under you has priority. If you enter a thermal with other pilots already in, turn the same way they do.

L2 - 2001/2/24. Abrupt Steering. Sharp changes in steering input will increase your sink rate, as will tight turns. Perform smooth maneuvers to get the best performance. Sharp changes will also make your banking angle oscillate. The following describes a common accident. Facing away from the ridge, the pilot thinks that if he starts his turn sharp enough, he has time to complete a full turn. Supplying a sharp steering input, he quickly obtains a high banking angle. But just as he is now starting to face the hill, the bank angle now oscillates back to almost zero, sending him straight for the ridge at that time. Thinking that he is not supplying enough turning input, he "stuffs" the inner brake inducing a Spin (Recovery) and falling into to hillside.

L2 - 2000/4/3. Brake Toggle on Wrist. Flying with your brake toggles around your wrists (you threaded your hand) is dangerous because if you need to grab/throw your Reserve (When) or reach for something far from your last brake line pulley, you will be inducing an unexpected reaction in the wing from the excessive brake pull. The brake toggle may not slip out of your hand when you need it to, especially if you are wearing gloves. I also believe it provides less feedback than holding the brake with the fingers.

L3 - 2001/10/4. Harness Recline Angle. Adjust your harness so you can recline. Reclining in our harness doesn't feel natural at first (as other things in aviation), but when you do it will enhance your flights. To demonstrate the difference between flying upright and flying reclined, try this exercise. Sit in your harness whether in flight or in a simulator and note the things that are within your line of sight. While sitting upright, with your eyes on the horizon, you can see :

• your feet
• the ground

• your hands (i.e. the brake input you are effecting on the glider)
• your Riser to Harness Connection (i.e. the weight shift input that you are effecting on the glider)
• your Accelerator (Usage) (i.e. to what extent it is engaged on each side)
• your glider (out of your periphery)
• the ground (with reference to the way your glider is pointing and hence, your track across the ground)

L3 - 1990/5/1. During turns, lean your weight into the turn to load the harness on the side you are turning, otherwise you will be counteracting some of your steering input.

L3 - 2001/10/4. Wind speed and direction at cloudbase, can be observed by looking at the movement of the Cloud Shadow on the ground.

L4 - 1997/6/1. When flying a ridge, low and close to the hill, always be weight-shifting away from the hill, that way if you have a hill-side Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) you will be less likely to turn into the hill as you are ready to correct before a problem develops. Note that too much weight-shifting away from the hill will require extra hill-side braking that is detrimental to the wing's performance. Determine your own safety/performance compromise.

L4 - 1991/7/1. The clouds indicate the wind gradient (speed and direction change with altitude). The head of the cloud gives an indication of the wind at its level while its base is more influenced by the winds closer to the ground.

L4 - 1991/8/1. To better understand another pilot while flying, turn your head such that you have one ear heading in the direction of the wind, thus reducing the whistling noise in you ears.

L4 - 1990/6/1. For those with a piloting seat (common in the early 1990s) on the harness, adjust your speed with the harness to reduce the braking effort and improve performance.

L4 - 2004/5/5. In-Flight Drinking. Sipping is actually a metabolic drinking method, where if you take in small amounts of water at a time, your body is able to metabolize it without causing much of it to end up in your bladder as if you guzzle it down. See also : In-Flight Urination.

L4 - 2007/4/20. Airspeed Reporting. Reporting an airspeed, like "my wing goes 40 km/h at trim" is meaningless without the corresponding altitude and your position in the wing's weight range. There are other factors (MSL air pressure and flight-level temperature) but you need to correct your measurement for at least these main factor:

• Correct for a weight at the middle of the recommended range. For the formula, see: Ballast.
• Correct to a sea-level altitude, using these relations (slower at lower altitude):
  

  2.2 km/h	1000 m
  1.0 km/h	450 m
  0.43 mph	1000'
  1.0 mph	2350'

L1 - 2005/2/23. Entering a Strong Thermal. You feel yourself swinging forward under your wing and being pulled up. You must reduce you braking and give your wing speed during this phase. Some competitors even use their Accelerator (Usage). But do not increase the braking as you would risk a Stall (Full, Recovery). See Video: Adding brake during thermal entry, 2005, Valle de Bravo, Mexico. If you initiate a hard turn at this time, you risk a Spin (Recovery). Once installed in the thermal, and the wing stabilized overhead, reduce your speed but not more than minimum sink rate speed. More important than using your wing's best sink rate, you must concentrate on Centering the Thermal (using a Vario). When exiting a thermal, perform Active Flying, giving the wing less braking (or more accelerator) as you swing back under the wing after the forward surge, minimizing the time spent accelerating and in sink.

L2 - 2002/2/3. Centering the Thermal (using a Vario). If one follows the indications of his variometer : If it indicates an increase in the climb rate, open up your turn (you may even go straight). If the rate of climb diminishes, tighten your turn as we would otherwise be moving away from the center of the thermal. There is no need to delay your response to your variometer, since it typically indicates the average over the last second of readings.
This technique is good for wide thermal lift without a sharp increase in climb rate near its center. It can also serve to find better thermal cores when multiple thermals merge with altitude. See also Tighten on the Surge, Feeling the Thermal.

L2 - 2002/12/2. Tighten on the Surge. When you feel the thermal pushing up solidly, (or the vario indicates the strongest lift) you should tighten the turn and dig the wing into the thermal. Most pilots do not turn tightly enough. When the vario indicates weaker lift or sink, having kept a mental picture of the best lift location, you should widen the turn and anticipate repeating the procedure at the next surge. Do not exaggerate and induce a Spin (Recovery) when Entering a Strong Thermal.
This technique is good for narrow thermals or ones with a sharp increase in climb rate near its center. See also Centering the Thermal (using a Vario), Feeling the Thermal.

L2 - 2002/2/3. Brake Control on Weak Lift Side. If a strong thermal lifts a side of your wing (your harness is lifted by one side), the other side will support less weight and may Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery). You will feel the outside brake line going soft. At that point, pull on the soft brake line to increase that side's angle of attack and prevent the Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery). Once normal brake line tension is restored, choose to fully re-enter or leave the strong thermal but don't remain in the vertical shear zone.

L2 - 2001/1/1. Don't Follow a Thermal Too Far Back. Because of the Thermal Path, when following a thermal over a mountain edge, it's normal to see ourselves go back into the mountain (while rising). But keep in mind that you will need to get back in front (usually) of the mountain after loosing the thermal. You will then mainly be fighting against a head wind. For this purpose, don't exceed a 45 degree (ground glide ratio of 1.0) angle when going up and back.

L2 - 1998/6/1. You are far from any ridge, and you have passed through some lift, which is gone now. You are wondering if you should be making a U-turn to your left or right to get back in it again. Go to the side that lifted your wing the most when you were in the lift. This will make you pass closer to the thermal's center.

L2 - 2002/2/3. Map the Thermal Using Others. You are turning the same thermal as someone else at the same altitude and your are both describing a large circle. You notice the other person suddenly sinking a lot. Reduce your turn radius or turn the other way to avoid the sinking area. By the time the other pilot returns to the thermal he will be below you. Similarly, if someone out-climbs you off to one side, move your circle towards them. There is no heroism in climbing slowly by yourself. See also Rake the Sky.

L2 - 2005/1/11. Finding a thermal from air disturbance.

• Go against the roll:
  • Roll and shift in opposite direction. If you are rolled left, yawed left, and drifted right, you are below the thermal top in the in-flow region. The thermal is to your right. This is common in unstable conditions, for example when there are cumulus about.
    Blanket model. One can visualize himself on a side of a huge blanket laid flat, then pulled up from its center. You would feel a roll away from the pull-up and shifted towards it.
  • Roll and shift in same direction. If you are rolled left and drifted left you are in the out-flow region above the thermal top, and the thermal is to your right. You may have to wait for the thermal to climb up to you. Expect increasing climb rates as the core get closer to you. This is common when you are ridge-soaring above a Thermal Launch Point in relatively stable conditions, when thermals form from low down and are often of short duration.
• Ground speed increase when upwind. If when flying upwind you observe an increase in ground speed (reduction in wind speed), you may be headed for a thermal blocking the wind.
• Turbulence ripple running along the wing span. The turbulence pattern near a thermal can be used. If you notice a turbulence ripple across the span of your wing, the side that gets hit first is usually towards the thermal.
• Horizontal push at low altitude. When trying to find convergence low down, in that case the air will accelerate towards the convergence and it is necessary to fight against your instinct. Follow the air's acceleration to where the convergence lift is.

L2 - 2005/9/26. Thermal Model. In a Thermal Collector, the ground heated by the sun, generates a blob of heated air, in which micro-thermals serve to give the blob some thickness above the ground. Consider the envelope of the blob as a fuzzy one, not well defined (see Thermal Trigger Myth). Due to unstability, or the wind pushing/traversing the blob against a rising ground feature, a Thermal Launch Point is established, from which the heated air will "spill" upwards along a Thermal Path, gradually emptying the heated air blob from the Thermal Collector faster than it was created, creating a thermal life cycle. See also : Low Save.

L2 - 2004/1/5. Thermal Collector. Surfaces that absorb the most sunlight energy will heat up most the air that is in contact with it. Note that moisture content (wet is bad) is more important than color (dark is good). The more the surface that generates the thermals is protected from the wind (vertical structure before or after), the stronger the thermals and longer cycles. These areas will accumulate more heat before releasing a thermal. A surface exposed to the wind (like a rock shoulder) will not be able to gather as much heated air before releasing it. Instead it will render a more constant, but lighter lift. When looking for a thermal source on flatland, consider the downwind side of a village, hedge, forest, hill, small valley (I'm not saying to go low and place yourself in a rotor). A parking filled with cars is better than an empty one. Depending on the time of day (sun position), the best collector is the one with a surface facing the sun, as it ratio of EnergyReceived/Surface is highest. In the morning look for East facing mountain sides, West later in the afternoon. During mid-day flat ground gains in influence. Don't expect to get good thermals over a town before 2:30 pm. Look for the base of a hill, representing a dish facing the sun. The next thing to identify is the Thermal Launch Point.

L2 - 2003/9/30. Thermal Launch Point. It is where the heated air from a Thermal Collector rises. Examples :

• It is most often at the highest point of the Thermal Collector.
• You may find this at the limit of 2 different terrain type (a field and a forest for example). The terrain that heats up more will draw its replacement air from the other (in light wind conditions).
• Instead of having a stationary thermal launch point (exposed hillside) it can be moving (flatland) and following wind at ground level, providing a moving vertical thermal column, even on a windy day (15+ km/h), which can be followed for 10-20 km.

L2 - 2002/2/3. Thermal Path. On days with very light wind, thermals will rise vertically from their Thermal Launch Point. On a windy day, a thermal column does not have the same incline throughout its altitude. It is more vertical close to its stationary Thermal Launch Point, more inclined at higher altitude where it is more adapted to the wind speed. The trajectory is a function of the thermal's temperature difference (rate of climb), the width of the thermal (more inertia to respond to wind) and the wind strength, all of which can change with altitude. We can visualise it as the shape of a blade of grass in the wind. Also, thermals gather on their way up, think of it as thermal "roots". On strong wind days, the thermal column with a stationary Thermal Launch Point can incline past its stability point and separate into segments. Upwind of a weak core, there can be a stronger core wich originates from the same Thermal Launch Point but has not drifted in the wind as much, because it rises quicker. See also : Thermal Path Indicator, Cloud Shape, Thermal Guide Myth.

L2 - 2001/2/24. Coordinated Turn. A common problem is maintaining a consistent circle while thermalling. An excessive roll motion may send you straight out of the thermal. See Abrupt Steering. Try to maintain a coordinated, banked turn. Start with a smooth controlled lean and a simultaneous and progressive inside-brake application. The wing will bank, your body will follow and the centrifugal force will keep your body outside the wing's circle to smoothly ride the thermal up. Applying Active Flying to will help you keep the wing over your head, which is a measure of a true coordinated turn.
Suggestion : Use twice the amount of inside-brake tension than for the outside brake, and adjust the turn with lean and outside brake.

L3 - 1991/7/1. Thermalling close to a ridge. Making figure-8 turns can be better than full turns if there is a risk of colliding with the ridge.

L3 - 2002/2/3. Feeling the Thermal. From Robbie Whittall : When you feel a thermal lifting a side of your wing, brake that side, keep flying straight but if the sensation diminishes, turn more into the side that lifted to keep the same sensation. If this maneuver is executed correctly, you will end up describing a circle around the thermal. At that time you will know the thermal's diameter and center. Then tighten your circles. See also : Centering the Thermal (using a Vario), Tighten on the Surge.

L3 - 2005/3/3. Lost Thermal (Staying Local). If you have lost the thermal you were in. Make larger circles to find it again while looking at the other pilots flying below you, as you may still have time to use those thermals once you get in their axis. Active thermals for the pilots above you may be unusable at your altitude from now on. You can also try a "clover leaf" search pattern, allways re-centering on the best previous lift location. See also : Never Leave Lift, Finding a Lost Thermal with a GPS, Lost Thermal (During XC).

L3 - 2002/2/3. Weak Lift Optimization. So the thermal you were in has provided you with an altitude gain but has now mellowed, providing insufficient lift to maintain your altitude. You also know that thermal normally form there. Many pilots do not optimize the rate at which they go down, thinking that anything that doesn't make the variometer beep is equally bad. Concentrate in staying in the area that make you come down as slow as possible. Thermal activity follows a cycle that lasts about 15 minutes (or anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes) in between the time at which they provide maximum lift. By optimizing your rate of descent, you are improving your chances of waiting out for the next time the lift gets sufficiently strong again to go up. This is when you will see many pilots get "flushed" down to the landing zone as you start going up again.

L3 - 2002/2/3. Thermal Path Indicator. If you see tree branches moving somewhere down below, a thermal must be passing close by. Get over that area and find it (unless you are already if good lift). Another visual indicator of thermals is a group of rising bugs (butterflies...). In summer, you may see flower petals going up. If you suddenly smell something bad, it is usually coming from the ground, therefore in lift. See also : Thermal Path.

L3 - 2001/7/11. Calm Air and Now Sink. You were flying in calm air for a while and are now entering some sink. There may be some lift a little further, so don't turn around too quickly. There is usually lift somewhere close to that sink, try to find it. See also : Using Sink to Find a Thermal.

L3 - 2001/7/11. A Thermal is a Wind Obstacle. A strong thermal column constitutes an obstacle for the wind. If you are downwind from such a thermal, expect turbulence in addition to the sinking air. If you need to exit the thermal, choose an upwind direction. Note that the upwind exit rule does not apply when doing a Cross-Country flight. See also : Using Sink to Find a Thermal, Thermal Core Offset.

L3 - 2001/7/11. Thermal Core Offset. Wind will cause a thermal's maximum lift location to be shifted upwind. Think of a thermal's cross-section as being shaped like a water drop "falling" horizontally upwind. If entering the thermal from "behind" (downwind), keep heading upwind to find its true core (smoother, larger), don't stay in the disorganized lift in the wake of the thermal column. See also : A Thermal is a Wind Obstacle, Using Sink to Find a Thermal.

L3 - 2001/7/11. Using Sink to Find a Thermal. What follows applies to days where there is wind. If you encounter sink and turbulence, fly in an upwind direction to find the thermal. See why in : A Thermal is a Wind Obstacle. If you encounter smooth sink, the thermal should be downwind of you.

L3 - 2000/6/21. Lift Rate Estimation. How to estimate the thermal lift you will encounter based on the wind speed variation at launch. Assuming :

Thermal vertical flow speed = 0.9 x (Variation in wind speed at launch)
Your average sink rate is 1.2 m/s (236 fpm)

L3 - 2000/3/10. Staying in an Inclined Thermal. If your wing had a null sink rate, you could maintain a constant bank angle to follow the inclined thermal column on your way up. But with our wings that have a sink rate, you would fall under the lee side of the inclined column, so while turning you need to extend the period of time you head upwind in comparison to your downwind phase.

L3 - 2000/10/24. Finding a Lost Thermal with a GPS. If you are high and have lost your thermal you can find it again using the track log of your GPS. Zoom the map to about 200 m screen size, and you can see the wind-swept trace of your thermal circles. Fly over to about where you expect the next circle to be. See also : Lost Thermal (Staying Local).

L3 - 2000/8/9. Thermals under an inversion. You can expect more turbulence as the thermal reaches an inversion. See Image: Why an inversion create more thermal turbulence.

L3 - 2001/2/24. Do Not Change Turn Direction. This is especially true when low. There are 3 reasons :

1. Changing direction disturbes your Coordinated Turn and the time you spend flying straight usually takes you away from the lift.
2. You loose your "mental map" of where your best circle was.
3. The direction change causes your vario to beep in many interesting but non-helpful ways.

L3 - 2001/2/24. Safe Inside the Thermal. The smoothest air is usually at the core of a strong thermal, and your wing will be more pressurized and stable when flying at a high bank angle. With a fast climb rate, you should expect turbulence at the edge of the thermal. Don't fly away from a very strong thermal as you are sure to hit turbulence. It is best to lock into the core and take it to cloudbase (or top of lift).

L3 - 2002/2/3. Best Approach to an Obvious Thermal. Approach from either directly upwind or downwind, as you may stumble onto a stronger climb rate than the established gaggle of circling pilots.

L3 - 2003/8/5. Punching Through the Inversion. Thermals who pass through an inversion layer have their diameter eroded away as they go through, with only the strongest core being able to traverse. You need to turn tighter during this period.

L3 - 2005/9/26. Low Save. When low, follow the horizontal tugs from the air (see Finding a thermal from air disturbance) unless it is unsafe to follow it. Stay in the lift you have found, making use of the abundance of low thermals, as all the time you spend flying improves your chances of finding the thermal that will take you high.
Josh Cohn, on the abundance of low lift, 2005/9/16:

• Let's assume a normal distribution (bell curve) of thermal sizes and temperature differentials as they leave the ground.
  • The largest, hottest thermals will rise the fastest and go the highest. The smallest, coolest thermals will not go very high.
  • The lower you get, the more thermals you will run into. The higher you are, you will only run into the occasional big strong thermal.
  Of course this assumes a lapse rate that is not superadiabatic enough to compensate for mixing. But this is true of most conditions we fly in, especially at dryer and more stable sites.
• Another explanation is that small thermal bubbles mill about down low until enough of them join up to form a real thermal that then lifts off. Turkey vultures work this sort of very low bubbling lift. This is why you can often maintain low at a Thermal Launch Point until it releases.

L4 - 1991/7/1. When at cloud base, avoid the downward currents when they are materialized as filaments going down.

L4 - 2002/2/3. Cheap Thermal Simulator. Go to an empty parking lot and bring a buddy (let's call him Joe), a chalk, a blindfold, and a whistle. Go to the center of the parking and blindfold yourself. Joe will draw up the contour of a "thermal" with the chalk, about 40 ft (12 m) in diameter, and an X in the center. Ask Joe to bring you outside the "thermal" and point you somewhat towards it. Joe will blow the whistle when you are in the "thermal", with increasing volume as you are closer to the X (like a vario). Simulate brake positions with your hands. Start walking at a slow and constant pace. Try to circle around the X. Retry, but change your walking speed.

L4 - 2005/1/12. Thermal Rotation. The convergence pattern at the Thermal Launch Point will often induce a rotation, which has a 70% chance of following the Coriolis effect on a low pressure system (Counter-clockwise in Northern hemisphere). One can think of a Dust Devil (On approach). The rotation energy typically reduces with altitude, but can be sustained by unstable air (accelerating vertical flow). As you fly though it, you can feel a jolt of yaw, marking the center of lift for you. If the whole thermal section were to rotate about its vertical axis, it would make sense to turn against the rotation to reduce our angular velocity, reducing our bank angle and increasing our efficiency. But there is insufficient evidence based upon pilot experience to confirm that we can take advantage of this.

L4 - 2001/2/24. Thermal Quality. When catching a thermal close to the ground, it will be narrower and more violent. They tend to smooth out and expand as they rise. High-pressure days produce narrow and sharp-edged thermals. Days with a high lapse rate will produce thermals with a stronger ascent rate.

L4 - 2002/2/3. Thermal Sink Myth. The myth : A thermal is a column of rising warm air surrounded by descending cold air. Most pilots learned this during their schooling. This error in representation does not allow you to understand thermal breezes, and penalizes you while learning to perform thermal flights. Why people may believe in the myth :

1. They confirm it as they experience a drop at the entry and exit of many thermals.
2. It is easier to imagine that at the border of a thermal, your increased sink rate is due to a descending air mass, instead of a turbulent vertical shear.
3. They have felt weightless or got a Frontal Collapse (Recovery) when exiting a thermal, and think there had to be descending air to explain this.
4. They justify it by an equilibrium of air displacement, not realizing that it can be achieved on a larger scale.
5. They justify sinking air at the Thermal Launch Point as a means for replacement of the warm air going up. But replacement air can be provided horizontally from a base wind. There is a well know model for valley winds that are increased due to the thermal activity on the valley hillsides, with the replacement air coming from the opening of the valley.

1. On windy days, the thermal column (stationary trigger) will be inclined as it is pushed by the wind as it rises. Why would descending air follow the thermal column on the way down, going against the wind ?
2. There is not always descending air before entering a thermal of after exiting it.

1. This does not mean that you can not find descending air next to a thermal.
2. Lift is a blend of pure thermal, ridge lift and convergence.
3. Reality is complex, it is better to keep open questions than a bad simple model.

L4 - 2002/2/3. Thermal Trigger Myth. There is no surface tension (not applicable between 2 gases) for a volume of heated air, holding it down to the ground. The analogy to bubbles forming at the bottom of a heated pan, or beer/champagne glass, is invalid. So forget ideas of spherical bubbles clinging to the ground by a trigger, waiting for a moving animal or vehicule (or any assorted object) to cut it loose. Human soarable thermals range from several thousands to several million tons. Selective memory of pilots, based on coincidences, are keeping this myth alive. See also : Thermal Model, Thermal Guide Myth.

L4 - 2002/2/3. Thermal Guide Myth. Also know as the Gutter Effect. Some believe that after warm air starts to rise from a Thermal Launch Point, it can be guided along a path such as a mountain's spine. In a similar way to water following an incline instead of detaching from an object. This is nonsense because surface tension does does apply gases (like our thermals). See also : Thermal Path, Thermal Trigger Myth, Thermal Model.

L2 - 2004/12/5. Accelerator (Usage). You are using your accelerator (speed bar). Do you really need to ? Your wing is less stable under these conditions. Use of the accelerator near the ground, should be for emergencies only. Do not use the brakes at the same time for these reasons:

• It increases your risk of collapses. See Accelerator (Turbulence).
• Small amounts of brake pull will significantly reduce your speed and L/D.
• Resuming max speed after a temporary brake use, takes a long time.

L2 - 1990/5/1. Try to fly in front of the side of the mountain which face is most perpendicular to the wind direction, such that there will be the least amount of sideways deviation of the wind (useless wind direction component).

L2 - 1990/4/15. Venturi Effect. A typical Venturi effect : On the mountainside that faces the wind, a dip in the profile will accelerate the wind over it. This typically happens in between to peaks. The horizontal component will increase, the lift will diminish. To cross this area, one should move forward (away) from it, and then get back closer to the mountain after having crossed. Think of it as an aspiration zone.

L2 - 2005/10/21. Blown Back. The wind has risen and you are now going backwards towards a ridge line. Face the wind. If there is no turbulence, use your Accelerator (Usage). Hope that the wind will reduce again, but look for potential landing zones behind you (beware of areas hidden from the wind). If you have managed to get back in front of the mountain, don't give the wind a second chance, go land. If the problem remains, you have options:

• Find lower wind at lower altitude. If you are far in front of the ridge, do Big Ears (Execution) plus Accelerator (Usage) to get lower without going back too much.
• Gain enough airspeed to move forward. By the way, improving pilot aerodynamics has little influence on airspeed. Options for gaining a few km/h over max speedbar (watch your GPS ground speed):
  • Pull down the A risers a few cm. Grabbing the A risers with a thumb-down fist and start twisting by bringing your elbows down (7-8 cm contraction potential). You will become more vulnerable to a Frontal Collapse (Recovery). Don't shorten so much as to significantly loose tension in the A risers. Compared to a straight pull on the risers, this method is both less tiring and provides better shortening control.
  • Adrian Thomas, 2005/10/20: Reach up to the outer A lines, and pull gently down on them (a few cm). It only works on wings which are designed with wash-in (angle of attack higher at the tips) at speed, and because the purpose of such a design is to give you greater leading edge tension (and therefore tuck-resistance) your chance of a Frontal Collapse (Recovery) is higher.
  • Adrian Thomas, 2005/10/20: Grab the stabilo lines and pull these in. You can pull more than a few cm. This will reduce span, increasing loading, and increasing leading edge tension. Your glide will go down a tiny bit. It is hard to hold the stabilo lines for long. The effect per cm of line pull is smaller than the effect of the "outer A lines" option.
• Go around the shoulder of the ridge. If you are close to the shoulder of the mountain and you can avoid it altogether by letting yourself slip to the side to a safer area, do it.
• Accept that you will go over the top. Remember that "air is harmless, rocks hurt". The idea is to maximize height before the summit, then fly far downwind. Try to get into a more aerodynamic position (may not improve airspeed, but will improve L/D). Get as much height as you can by positioning yourself for max ridge lift from the ridge. As you are getting close to ridge line, perform Crabbing to aim for a "dent" in the ridge where the Venturi Effect will exit (windier but more laminar). When at the ridge line, turn and "run" with the wind. After the ridge, maximize ground height to try to remain on top of the rotor. In the case you can't avoid the rotor, see Dealing with Turbulence.

L2 - 1991/6/1. To reduce your altitude without sacrificing too much of your horizontal speed, use the Big Ears (Execution) technique or do some Wing-Over (Execution). Note that Big Ears (Execution) offers more stability.

L2 - 1991/6/1. If you fly very close to the mountainside (15 m / 50 ft or less) beware of turbulence induced by a lower irregular slope. Always have a light tension in the brake that would make you turn away from the mountain and keep some speed (above minimum sink) to be able to maneuver away.

L3 - 2001/1/26. How to Gauge Wind Speed from Visual Clues. See also : Water Surface - Gusts.

L3 - 1990/8/1. The depth of the usable lift band increases with the wind speed. In a light wind, you must remain close to the mountain to get sufficient lift. When the wind is stronger, you can move away from the mountain and still get enough lift.

L3 - 1991/5/15. At the end (shoulder) of the mountainside that faces the wind, the wind will slip sideways instead of going over and producing lift. Avoid these low lift areas.

L3 - 1990/6/1. You have been flying in lift caused by dynamic conditions, but your ground speed is not the same when flying along the mountain in one direction, compared to the other. This indicates that the wind has a sideways component. To now get over the landing zone with as much altitude as possible : Leave the lift when you have completed the leg that offered the least ground speed. That last effort of going back against the sideways component of the wind will now allow you to leave the mountain and have less to fight against the sideways component.

L3 - 1991/6/1. You have been soaring for a while but you now realize that you are making less and less turns and facing the wind in a more constant fashion. This indicates that the wind speed has increased while you were flying. Don't look at the others to see if they are still flying, decide on your own to go land.

L4 - 1991/7/1. The wind has been blowing 20+ km/h (12+ mph) all day, and the sun was out all afternoon. The wind will typically reduce its speed about 2 hours before sunset, and it is possible that the accumulated heat in the ground keeps giving off sufficient lift well in front of the mountainside. Welcome to "magic" conditions.

L3 - 1991/7/15. Unless the winds are strong all day, the following conditions will be typical during the day. In the morning you will have an offshore flow (from the land into the sea/ocean), about 3 hours after sunrise the wind will shift to on-shore (because the warmed-up land calls for the cool sea air), and return to offshore before sunset.

L3 - 1998/6/1. When the forecasted wind for the area is contrary to the on-shore or offshore flow, beware of wind shear a low altitude (When you are going to land). This typically happen if you go land in a valley at sea level.

L3 - 1991/7/15. You are going to land on the beach in a valley next to the mountain you launched from. It is early morning or close to sunset. Beware of an offshore flow as you loose altitude to go land. You may end up in the water. See also : Water Landing, Salt Water (Damage).

L3 - 2001/1/26. Water Surface - Gusts. While flying, look at the water surface to identify gusts of wind over its surface that may come in our direction. It will either look like a darker zone on the water or "white caps" if the wind gust is over 29 km/h (18 mph). You can see these zones coming in from quite a distance, allowing you fly more forward from the cliff and/or fly away from the path of the gust. But don't think that all gusts will be visible on the water, as some gusts can come from above. Visualize signs of increased wind on the water, as just the bottom of a three dimensional gust. See also : How to Gauge Wind Speed from Visual Clues.

L3 - 1998/6/1. At high tide, ocean water may cover most of the landing area on the beach. To avoid getting your glider wet or worst, getting dragged into the ocean, land facing the wind and as far away from the water as possible. While the glider drops, pull on one riser to let the glider stacks up on itself in a neat pile. You should have a hook knife to cut lines in case you get dragged into the ocean and tangled up. See also : Water Landing.

L2 - 1991/6/15. When flying over a large forest, identify emergency landing zones within your glide ratio.

L2 - 2002/2/3. Never Leave Lift. When you leave thermal lift before it has expired, you will encounter more sinking air around it. Just staying in mild lift may still lead you in the desired direction. There are exceptions. Leave lift if it brings you somewhere you don't want to go, like too far back into the mountains or into a cloud. Leave lift if you are certain of accomplishing you goal and you are racing. The lower you are (and risking to land) the less you should search for better lift. See also : Lost Thermal (Staying Local), Flying Height Band.

L2 - 2001/1/1. Don't Fly into Clouds. If the lift is very strong, take a bearing on your compass as an potention exit direction in case you loose visibility. When you loose visibility you may be flying back into a mountain, or another pilot. Without a compass it is impossible to know where you are heading as turning is hard to judge. Always maintain visual contact with the ground. If you are still in lift, take an evasive direction before you actually get to the base of the cloud, ending up ideally at the edge of the base with a safety margin. Before I knew better, I went into a white cloud for fun, but it then took me 20 minutes to find the exit and I had gained 2000 m (6500 ft) after many Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) to then find myself in between huge cloud columns. Another time, the sky "closed up" over me and I lifted in a dark cloud through rain, then snow, did a "B" Line Stall (Execution) and went back down to exit next to a mountain. Now, when I get close to cloudbase I watch out for an increasing climb rate, and consider a transition. See also : Escaping Cloud Suck.

L2 - 2004/5/11. Cloud Shape.

• Pointy top. A cloud having a flat base and a pointed upper shape means that it is still in formation and that you will find lift under it. A decaying cloud will usually have sinking air under it.
• Whispies. If you see "whispies" start to appear within gliding distance, you have a good chance of finding usefull lift under them.
• Height. Clouds that are taller than wide, indicate strong thermals, and may lead to overdevelopment later in the day. If they are much taller than wide, go land or use a better portion of the sky. See also : Signs of Growing Overhead Cloud.
• Width. With large-based clouds, the best lift is found under the highest part of the base. Cloud base width is the dominant factor in Cloud Suck (Theory).
• Bend. Air circulation within clouds are influenced by wind shear, thus increasing winds with altitude will make you find best lift on the upwind side of the cloud, and reversely.
• Merge. There is lift under a closing cloud gap.

L3 - 2001/1/17. Cloud Snapshots while Climbing. With every circle as you climb in a thermal, look downwind to take a mental picture of all Cloud Shape in your predicted flight path. This will help you to determine which ones will still be forming as you reach them.

L3 - 1992/6/1. Consider going back and over the mountain you launched from only if you have at least twice its elevation (from the base). Ensure that you can clear it by as much distance as it takes you to do it (double your needed ground glide ratio) on the backside and avoid potential turbulence areas. Typical values : 1800 m (5900 ft) ASL at Marshall (California) to glide to Crestline, 600m (2000 ft) above launch at St-Hilaire du Touvet (France) to glide to "Dent de Crolles", 1000 m (3280 ft) ASL at Mount Yamaska (near Montreal/Canada) to fully clear the mountain.

L3 - 1999/4/12. If our flight axis follows that of the wind direction, ground speed is added and greatly increases the distance traveled. In this case, exit thermals on the downwind side and fly fast across the sink.

L3 - 2000/6/21. Speed to Fly. To get the best glide (most ground distance traveled) in no-wind condition, use your wing's best L/D (Lift/Drag) speed. If you must face the wind (or in sinking air), best glide ratio is achieved by flying faster than best L/D speed. If a tail wind pushes us into our flight direction (or in lifting air), slow down your wing, but not more than "best sink". With no wind, you need to be sinking at more than 3 m/s (600 fpm) before using your Accelerator (Usage) will give you a ground glide ratio advantage, but otherwise it just makes you feel good about doing something. Depending on how easy it is to find the next thermal and its expected strength, one could fly faster than the speed for maximum ground glide ratio, to minimize the time to reach a goal.

L3 - 1994/5/1. If you are following a ridge that gives of sufficient lift all along your way, there is no point in following up a thermal, because there is no transition to accomplish.

L3 - 2001/1/1. Patience for Clouds. With cumulus clouds spread out throughout the sky, avoid flying in an area without any clouds because there is most likely fewer thermals there. This will typically happen over a lake (which does not produce thermals). If there are no clouds along the next 15 km (9+ miles) of your intended flight plan, get under a cloud and wait for the sky to improve.

L3 - 2005/10/25. Transition.

1. Commitment. When you make a decision to go to the next mountain, you don't want to start to go, then lose confidence and turn back half way (or go land). You need to commit to your belief that there should be lift at the other place. You will most likely encounter sink before you get to the other place, but this should be accounted for, when planning the transition.
2. Deviation. As you follow someone into a transition, you notice the other pilot ahead of you going into huge sink. Try to go around that area where the sink is occurring. I was amazed once to see another pilot loose rapidly about 500 m (1600 ft) while I maintained a normal glide by deviating my course to a parallel path 100 m (330 ft) next to his. He landed in that valley while I pursued my course.
3. Straight line. Make a straight line when searching for lift. In the absence of obvious Thermal Launch Point, just fly straight along your intended path, don't bother flying a fancy pattern to look for thermals. You're just as likely to run into another thermal by flying straight, but if you don't meet one, you'll be further downrange.
4. Optimizing a long transition. As soon as the terrain turbulence dissapears :
   • Best body position. The idea is to reduce the cross section exposed to the airflow. Lean your chest back, let go of the brakes, cross your arms in front of your chest. Fold your legs such that your feet are level with your butt, or align them in the relative airflow, but don't leave them dangling.
   • In non-smooth air, avoid using the brakes to dampen pitch, as it degrades the glide too much (better to pull outer rear riser lines), either:
     • Let the wing "float". Leave it free to follow the air mass. It will find the ideal path on its own. Control your bearing with hip movements.
     • Accelerator to Dampen Pitch.

L3 - 2005/10/25. Accelerator to Dampen Pitch. Adrian Thomas, 2005/10/25: I've done comparative glide tests where one glider flew hands off with trimmers (available on some wings) released, and the other maintained the same speed using bar. It is very easy for the guy on bar to gain compared to other by actively damping pitch with bar movements. The gain is large. The movement sequence is: As the wing surges forward come off the bar, as your body begins to swing through go on the bar dynamically to dampen the motion and finish vertically below the wing. There are 2 advantages: significant performance and stability (collapse resistance) gain. You can stay on a higher average level of bar, in rougher air, getting better glide and fewer collapses. In even moderate turbulence I find I am going from 0 to 3/4 bar. If my legs were longer I'd be going to full bar. See also: Transition, Accelerator (Turbulence).

L3 - 2003/9/30. Testing the Air. Before starting you X-C journey, test a few thermals near launch for about an hour. This will avoid the frustration of a short flight if you sink out quickly. It will also help you determine the time between the cycles, the duration of the usable lift, max altitude, wind speed at higher altitude, Thermal Path, and the strength of the sink. See also : Flying Height Band.

L3 - 2002/2/3. Rake the Sky. When flying in groups, to get a better sampling of the lift as you are searching for it, fly along parallel paths, separated sideways by about 330 ft (100 m). Keep in contact visually or by radio.

L3 - 2005/3/3. Lost Thermal (During XC). Once you've lost the thermal that you've been climbing in, make only one more circle to try to find it, then start the next transition. Any more effort spent looking for the thermal is only altitude lost without going further. See also : Lost Thermal (Staying Local).

L3 - 2002/2/3. High or Low. Considering an altitude halfway between the ground and cloudbase (or the top of usable lift), anything above this altitude is "high", and under it is "low". If you are "low" you need to head for a Thermal Path. Stop for any solid lift when "low". See also : Flying Height Band.

L3 - 2005/9/26. Fly the Sky or the Ground. An often heard saying : When you are high, fly the sky, when you are low, fly the ground. See also : High or Low. "Fly the sky" means flying from one cloud (or Cloud Street) to another, based on Cloud Shape. If you are "low" focus on Thermal Launch Point and Thermal Path. See also : Low Save.

L3 - 2001/1/1. Recovery. Tell someone where you intend to go, in case you don't show up later. In many states (USA), a fishing licence will cover rescue costs. Because your radio signal goes further while still at altitude, report your potential landing zone before being too low. If both you and your recovey team have a GPS, you can report your position by coordinates.

L3 - 2003/9/30. Thermal Spacing. Generally, the more distance between thermals (or clouds), the longer they will last, because they are fed by a larger volume of air. Also, the higher top-of-lift (or cloudbase) will be. Typically, over flat terrain, the horizontal distance between thermals is 2.5 to 4 times their height above ground. The highest hill/mountain in an area, acting as Thermal Collector and Thermal Launch Point, will set a convection pattern over a zone with a radius of 10 times its height, shutting down thermals in its surroundings, with the exception of its flanks.

L3 - 2001/10/4. Cloud Shadow. The following applies to flat terrain. The advancing (outward-moving) edge of a cloud shadow often acts as a Thermal Launch Point. In dry climates, one can observe Dust Devil (On approach) at this advancing shadow edge. The theory is that it acts as a mini cold front lifting the warmer air. Be well ahead of the advancing shadow edge to maximize your chances of finding a Thermal Path. Avoid being over a recently shaded area, as it will require a full thermal cycle period to become a fully "charged" Thermal Collector.

L3 - 2002/2/3. Flying Height Band. Is is defined as the altitude range that you should fly in, starting at a safe low level, up to cloudbase or top of lift. At the beginning of the day, we should be patient and leave the thermal at the top. In the middle of the day when lift is strongest, we make our decision to leave the thermal when the rate of climb drops to 80% of the maximum, for a turn or two. This percentage would be modified up if :

1. Cloud pattern ahead does not look good.
2. Overcast ahead.
3. Thunderstorm or Cu-Nim shadow ahead.
4. Rough or higher terrain ahead.
5. Wet terrain ahead.
6. Turnpoint ahead.
7. Time to start final glide.

L3 - 2003/9/30. Cloud Street Shadow. In the morning, when the Cloud Street to the East shadows the ground under you, try to avoid going down. Same thing at noon (shadow from your Cloud Street) and mid-afternoon (shadow from the cloud street to the West). In between, race between clouds with a good Cloud Shape. See also : Flying height band.

L3 - 2003/9/30. Thermal Street. Also known as "Cloud Street" if clouds form, or "Blue Street". Streets form when surface winds are over 13 km/h (8 mph) in greener areas. Deserts are not conductive to street formation due to high thermals and absence of a lift lid.

L4 - 2001/1/1. Fight Until the End. It is still possible to return back up to high altitude from 100 m ( 300 ft) from the ground. Never give up, but accept your faith early enough so you can still make a safe landing. There is only one thing better than getting high, and that is being low first.

L4 - 1992/6/1. You are ending you flight in a field with power lines ahead of you. You are wondering if you will pass those lines to make a little more distance. Just land before the lines, it won't really change your accomplishment.

L4 - 2002/2/3. Follow a Better Pilot. If you fly with someone who is typically slower than you, you will end up waiting for him. See also : Map the Thermal Using Others.

L4 - 2006/4/26. Microlift Lines. There can also be thermic convergence lines over flatlands, but the position can not be predicted. You have to find them by feel. When setting off on glide towards a distant target, keep the Chest Strap Adjustment wide to maximize sensitivity through the harness, focussing on the lift difference between the risers. For added sensitivity, you can hold the stabilizer lines or outside C or D lines. Avoid using brake for feel as it can degrade the glide. The aim is to weight-shift to turn towards the strongest lift and away from the sink. The path can become erratic, with significant deviations from the desired track. Flying along a good line is like balancing on a knife-edge. See also : Finding a thermal from air disturbance.

L1 - 1998/11/1. Do you really need to let go of your brakes ? If you let go, and have a Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery), the time it takes you to find them again is too long, and your wing may already have done half a turn, potentially leading into a Spiral Dive (Recovery). I know, it's happened to me. Never let go if there is a risk of turbulence and you are less than 200 m (650 ft) of the ground below you.

L1 - 2003/5/20. Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery). Steer, then clear. Your wing has collapsed on the right side. See Image: Asymmetric Collapse - 60%, Image: Asymmetric Collapse - 75%, Video: Asymmetric collapse with counter, SIV clinic 1999, Salève, Video: Asymmetric collapse with no input, SIV clinic 1999, Salève, Video: Asymmetric collapse after launch followed by impact. Brake the left side enough to keep your direction if possible (unless you are flying into an obstacle) but not too much to Stall (Full, Recovery) the remaining open side, which would make things much worse, possibly putting you into a Spin (Recovery). Over-countersteering has been called the paraglider pilots's plague, keep the open side flying at the cost of letting the wing turn for a while. The fact that the inflated side is more highly loaded (and flying faster), contributes to a higher air pressure than normal inside the wing on that side that will the communicate internally to the closed side and help re-inflate it. Try to keep your weight in the harness on the wing's open side. If 50% or more of your wing is collapsed, weight-shifting (to keep the risers more level) will not increase the load on the open side, but will still promote re-inflation (by reducing the shear deformation at the center or your wing) as well as reduce the amount of braking required to maintain a straight flight path (because of a reduced amount of leading edge being tucked). On the collapsed right side, give very ample braking movements (small pumping is useless) until the wing fully re-inflates. Note that on high-performance wings, if more than half your wing is collapsed, you may not be able to maintain your direction, but still brake the open side without making it Stall (Full, Recovery), this will prevent you from entering a Spiral Dive (Recovery). On intermediate (or safer) wings, the collapse recovers quicker without opposite braking (let it turn), but you need to judge if maintaining trajectory is more important. See also : Collapse (Asymmetric, Execution).

L2 - 1994/7/1. So you had an accident or a close call. Ask yourself if you could have done something to anticipate or resolve the situation. If there is nothing you could have done, you better stop paragliding. Was your ego the main factor for pushing yourself into bad flying conditions ?

L2 - 1996/6/1. The more turbulent the conditions are, the further away from the hillside you should be flying, to increase you altitude above the ground, in case a Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) occurs.

L2 - 2005/10/25. Accelerator (Turbulence). See also : Dealing with Turbulence, Accelerator (Usage). You have entered a zone of turbulence (the flight is bumpy). Get off the Accelerator (Usage) (unless speed is critical). Don't use the brakes (but keep hold of them)...

• Robbie Whittall,1999/11 : With most wings, it is better not to apply brakes while using the Accelerator (Usage) through turbulence, as it shifts the center of pressure and increases the risks of Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) / Frontal Collapse (Recovery). It also reduces the efficiency of the wing due to profile deformation, just use less Accelerator (Usage) instead, but not both at the same time.

• To prevent an imminent collapse, release an amount of accelerator extension.
• Adrian Thomas, 2004/12/1: You can still put in pitch control movements by pulling on the rear riser, which is effective but more subtle than brakes, and less damaging to performance. Better still, is to just use the outer lines on the rear riser, which provide effective inputs with very little performance degradation.

L2 - 2003/3/18. Dealing with Turbulence. See also : Accelerator (Turbulence). You have entered a zone of turbulence (the flight is bumpy). Brake use :

• Ideal airspeed. Avoid flying at maximum speed, dialing in some brake to reduce the air speed. You should be flying a little faster than minimum sink. Flying a little faster than minimum sink will give a sufficient margin from the Stall (Full, Recovery) speed. Flying slower will give the wing more time to adapt to each shift in the air mass. From this brake position, perform Active Flying.
• Wing pressurisation myth. Pressure inside the wing is only dependent on airspeed, so braking and slowing down the wing, will decrease the wing's internal pressure.
• Spanwise tension. When applying brakes it displaces the trailing edge of the wing somewhat evenly between the center of the wing and the tips. But the chord at the tips is much shorter, making the local lift coefficient much higher at the wing tips. By re-distributing the lift towards the drooped wingtips, spanwise tension is increased.
• Angle of attack. When applying brakes, the pressure difference across the leading edge increases as well as the angle of attack, increasing collapse resistence.

L2 - 2006/8/18. Active Flying. Collapse prevention :

• Always keeping some tension in the brake lines in rough air will give you feedback from the wing. Don't keep your brakes/hands locked at a given position (like thumbs in the riser quick-links) as you want to maintain constant tension in the brake lines, not constant position. This will prevent many Collapse (Asymmetric, Recovery) from happening.
• For a rapid and temporary pull on the brakes, there is no change in the angle of attack at the leading edge, because the angle between the relative wind and the forward part of the chord