US Hawks Hang Gliding Association

Frank's first high flight in nearly 4 decades:

Good to see you get up there where it's safe, Frank.
I was getting worried about you, flying so low all the time.        

Is he still up?

What wing?

Date and time of launch?

JoeF wrote:Is he still up?

Not physically, but his spirits will be soaring for some time!!   

What wing?

Wills Wing Condor 225 fitted with a Colver Swing Seat.

Date and time of launch?

August 23rd, 2018 at 7:53am MDT.

This is so dog danged cool it gives me goose bumps! congrats on the flight Frank! Thanks for posting, Bob. And whats the availability of the swing seat? Price? Modifications still to be made? I want one.....

Here's the link to the video of my flight:

https://vimeo.com/286709941?

Thunderchicken: The seat harnesses will be made by High Energy Sports. They are not in production yet but soon will be. I also need to find a fabricator for the adapter bars (they only fit 1-1/8" round tubing at this point in time). Contact Mike Berge at H.E.S.,714 632-3323 to get on his list to keep up with progress toward production and when he gets pricing worked out.

Frank Colver

Good going Frank! I saw this thread a few days ago but couldn't respond then. I've had at least 10 flights at Point of the Mountain and it's a perfect place to fly after many years of being grounded. It's also a great place to transition from low and slow Dockweiler flying. The pile of sand is just a little higher! And with the ability to get longer flights you can check out the longer term comfort of your seated harness.

One word of caution though, keep a look out for those collapsible canopy occupants. They can take up a good portion of the lift band and easily(?) get in the way of a hang glider. When I flew there in the late 1980s and early 1990s, PGs were unheard of at the Point. Now, as I've heard, there are many times when they actually infest the place. Try to ridge soar in an HG when there are 20 PGs floating slowly over the hill at 100 feet!

wingspan33 wrote:Try to ridge soar in an HG when there are 20 PGs floating slowly over the hill at 100 feet!

Frank had a good crew with him, and a few of us asked the other PG pilots (very politely) if they might give Frank some space ... or maybe even land for the event. Every one was very cooperative, and they enjoyed seeing Frank's historic flight. The traffic went from about a dozen PGs before Frank's flight to just a few during his flight. There are some benefits to being celebrity.#7.

Just watched the Vimeo video! And after Frank got in the air I kept saying "Okay, now turn, . . .(and after a couple more seconds) . . . you can still turn (to stay in the lift band) . . . come on and turn, . . . " But while he didn't work to stay in the lift band he still made lots of turns and the nearly exact bulls eye landing was great!

So Frank did you get a soaring flight?