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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby Rick Masters » Mon Mar 30, 2015 4:17 pm

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The Morning News, Danville, Pennsylvania
Mon, May 11, 1936 – Page 4
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby wingspan33 » Tue Mar 31, 2015 6:54 pm

I wonder, was that the first time the term was used?
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby Rick Masters » Tue Mar 31, 2015 7:25 pm

I think it was the common American English term for wings that you would hang from dating back to at least 1910.
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby SamKellner » Tue Mar 31, 2015 7:28 pm

Great find :clap: :clap: :clap:

Thanks Rick! :clap:

Early Hang Gliding, yeah.
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby Rick Masters » Wed Apr 01, 2015 10:08 am

Kelly Harrison, "How does Hang Gliding compare to Paragliding?"
        http://lasvegashanggliding.org/hgvspg.htm

I have a lot of HG buddies that have gone Bi-Wingual over the years. For the most part they are talented pilots with tons of hours of flying time. And almost every one of them now lives with compressed vertebra from low altitude collapses (usually on final approach in thermal conditions) where there is no time for the wing to re-inflate before it impacts the ground.

In a HG the pilot on final approach has a wide speed range available. In bad conditions an advanced pilot can choose the speed required to negotiate the turbulence (or high wind) and may fly his approach speed at 30mph, 40mph or even higher which can cut right through turbulence that could collapse the slower flying PG wing.

Paragliders also collapse at higher altitudes but the higher it happens the less chance of an injury (or worse) because then the PG pilot has time to attempt to re-inflate his wing and if that isn't successful he can still deploy his emergency parachute which we all carry whether HG or PG.

Paraglider pilots need to understand that if they fly in thermal conditions they will have a much higher likelyhood of a collapse than a HG would. If they fly for years (or decades) they will be much more likely to be deploying their emergency parachutes and hoping they have enough altitude for the chute to get fully open

I have witnessed many paragliding collapses first hand. In one Paragliding competition at Lake Chelan Wa.... Shortly after launching there were four collapses in an hour. Parachutes were being deployed at an alarming rate and one pilot didn't have the required altitude (for reserve deployment) and broke both legs when he hit the ground before his emergency reserve could fully inflate. The competition was cancelled that day due to the dangerous (PG) conditions.

At another Lake Chelan (the Chelan Classic HG) comp. One of the paraglider pilots was found deceased after his crash site was spotted by another airborne pilot. It was unknown what altitude he had his collapse, whether he didn't have enough altitude for his reserve to open or whether it happened at altitude and his reserve failed for some reason.

Again at Chelan I was standing on launch and watched a friend of mine (HG and PG Canadian National Champion) on his PG have a 60% collapse and go into a steep spiral right in front of launch. He was only at about 150' so he might or might not have had the altitude for his reserve to get deployed, but we could see that he was attempting to get his wing re-inflated. He worked the problem all the way to the ground. His vertical decent rate was not likely to be deadly but he definitely would have broken his legs (at least) had he landed on the dirt slope in front of launch, but unfortunately his spiral path took him directly into a vertical rock face. It was the horizontal speed from his spiral combined with his vertical decent rate that had him receiving internal injuries that proved to be fatal.

So comparing HG's in the possibility of an inflight structural failure.... It is extremely rare for a HG to collapse. It can happen when aerobatics pilots push their gliders far beyond the manufacturers VNE (Never Exceed Speed), And it's not the speed itself that is the problem but doing aerobatics in turbulence or a pilot making a violent maneuver carrying an excessive speed could possibly cause a failure in the wing.

But far more often than high speed maneuvering, the most likely HG pilot to collapse is the aerobatics pilot that loses his airspeed in the inverted position (upside down). From that position (stalled upside down) the glider is likely to tumble and has a fairly good chance of snapping a leading edge (one of the aluminum tubes) and going into a spin. As far as Hang Glider Pilots go, it's going to be the Aerobatics pilots that need to throw their reserve chutes with a way higher likelyhood compared to the rest of the HG community which choose not to spend time in the inverted position.

Most HG pilots will fly their entire career and only see their reserve chute during repacking which is how I expect it should be if one wants to fly on the safe side of the equation. Those that have no fear of having their wing fold up and would willingly go to their last backup to save their life would be the HG Aerobatics pilots (most either have had or will have to deploy their reserves) and the PG pilots that get into their chosen sport with knowledge of the risk of collapse. Then I'm sure there are others paraglider pilots that just don't realize how high the chance of collapse goes up when they start flying at mid day or at more turbulent flying sites.

My own example. I've got 35 years in HGs. I made the concious choice to keep myself from getting attached to a PG. And I felt very good about that choice as I saw most all my Bi-wingual friends receiving their spinal (longer term) injuries.

At times I've flown in some seriously wicked turbulence and never had to deploy my reserve. I've been flying mountain ranges in winds of 50mph+ when the winds escalated (not launching in those conditions) to alarming strength. I've been in mountain rotor conditions where I've been tossed partially upside down. I've been in a downdraft where the glider was in a good (nose down) position for recovery but felt like I was skydiving (but with zero airspeed) while I freefell through the descending air, waiting longer than I would ever want anyone to have to wait, until I fell into a more normal airmass where my airspeed went from zero to what felt like hurricane. Then one time I was on Aero Tow and got too low into the towing vehicle's prop wash and was rolled into a lockout turn. I released from tow partially upside down. Diving the glider and rolling it back upright again kept me from needing to deploy the reserve.

Over all those years (and decades) I've always had the comfort of knowing that my emergency reserve is within easy reach if I ever do need it. But the thing that really proves that HG is the better choice (for me personally) is that I know how bad the air can be and still the HG can handle the wide variety of conditions without having a likelyhood of structural failure. And it's certainly a personal choice for each pilot to decide what weather conditions he (or she) is going to be comfortable flying in. Most pilots that refrain from flying in high mountain winds (or mid day desert thermals) won't experience conditions similar to those that I've related but it doesn't take all that much to partially fold up one side of a paraglider so everyone is responsible for choosing their own level of risk.

On a final note: When I go to compete XC (for distance) at King Mt Idaho which I'd say has some of the most intense conditions in the US.... There are no paragliders flying in those mid afternoon mountain/thermal conditions. With the air moving vertically, often averaging, over 2000' per minute up or down, it's apparent why HG wings stay intact where the PGs would likely be looking up at laundry following them down.

I don't mean to bash Paragliders. Everyone needs to make their own decisions and I have lots of good friends that accept the PG risk of collapse.

But if you're looking at the options.... Often you might only hear the paraglider or hang glider fatality rates which might not seem so different. But if one takes into account the likelyhood of collapse and more importantly the injury rate (often with long term consequenses)...

Maybe it's just because I've progressed a long ways from the days when I thought my earthly time was very limited. Whatever choice you make, be sure you know how the risks change when you fly at different sites or in different weather conditions.

For me anyway, I'm happy with my HG choice....
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby wingspan33 » Wed Apr 01, 2015 5:02 pm

John Kelly Harrison wrote:Maybe it's just because I've progressed a long ways from the days when I thought my earthly time was very limited.


Considering it's almost the last line in the quote in the above post, . . . in a way it's kind of prophetic. :|
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby Rick Masters » Fri Apr 03, 2015 6:43 pm

Bob Morse
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The Morning News, Danville, Pennsylvania Mon, May 11, 1936 – Page 4

Bob Morse's "Condor" was a hang glider - see his legs!
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"The picture of this American ground-louse."

"Believe it or not, I ran into a man down here in Los Angeles who still prefers hang-gliders to the more advanced type. This strong-legged individual, who never grew too old for a scooter, is 'Bob' Morse, well-known West Coast glider pilot and member of the Southern California Soaring Club. During our conversation, he produced a photograph of his last hang-glider which was named the 'Condor,' and was constructed in 1934. -- Speed Westphal
Popular Aviation April 1936 page 254
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby Bob Kuczewski » Fri Apr 03, 2015 11:04 pm

RickMasters wrote:Bob Morse's "Condor" was a hang glider - see his legs!

Better than the legs ... look at those wheels!!    :thumbup:
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby Rick Masters » Thu Apr 09, 2015 2:18 pm

Those Italians - what a "scents" of humor :srofl:
Paragliders enrage Italian farmer, land in deep sh*t!

It's hard to tell what the huge paragliding competition, with hundreds of Italians and 40 foreign teams, did to make the farmer mad enough to spread sh*t slurry over their landing field, but he was obviously ticked off because he waited until they were all in the air and racing to the goal on his field before he moved in with the tractor and slurry spreader. And oh what satisfaction he must have felt when the competitors began "splashing down" in the very same field they had been trampling for the previous races. Then, as they stood in disbelief, mired in steaming crap, the farmer continued to crisscross the field, spraying a stinking, soaking slurry that "ruined" the sails of their pretty paragliders.

The farmer had erected a barricade across the road to the field.

Unfortunately, the press seems to have only talked to the paraglider pilots, who asserted their right to land in the field:

"This character was not limited to sprinkle manure in his land but did so again in the near field that we had regularly rented for the event," explained the paragliding instructor and promoter of the race. Some sails, because of landing on the manure, were also damaged so that paragliders have requested and obtained the intervention of police.

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Guerra ai parapendisti a colpi di letame
Un residente cosparge di liquami il campo di atteraggio per boicottare la gara
ALESSANDRO PREVIATI
Assurdo finale, ieri pomeriggio, per la gara nazionale di parapendio che si è svolta in Canavese, con lancio dei partecipanti dal santuario di Santa Elisabetta (Comune di Colleretto Castelnuovo) e atterraggio in frazione Salto di Cuorgnè. Un residente della zona, con il chiaro intento di boicottare la manifestazione, che ha visto la partenza di oltre 100 parapendisti provenienti da tutta Italia, all’arrivo delle prime vele, ha cosparso il campo d’atterraggio di letame e liquami, rendendolo impraticabile.

Carabinieri in ...campo
«Questo personaggio non si è limitato a cospargere letame nel suo terreno ma lo ha fatto anche nel campo vicino che avevamo regolarmente affittato per la manifestazione» spiega Flavio Bertarini, maestro di parapendio e promotore della gara. Alcune vele, a causa dell’atterraggio sul letame, si sono anche danneggiate tanto che i parapendisti hanno chiesto e ottenuto l’intervento di carabinieri e vigili urbani. La gara è poi proseguita poco distante, in frazione Priacco, dove l’organizzazione della gara aveva affittato un campo d’atterraggio «di riserva».

Organizzatori delusi
«Sono vent’anni che organizziamo competizioni di questo tipo in Canavese – aggiunge Bertarini e il nostro punto di lancio di Santa Elisabetta è conosciuto a livello mondiale. Episodi di questo tipo, purtroppo, rischiano di pregiudicare il lavoro di questi anni fatto anche per promuovere un po’ di turismo in questa zona».
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Le vele del parapendio e dei deltaplani finiscono nel lletame sparso nei campi in cui atterranno a lato dell’ex statale 460 nei pressi della frazione Salto di Cuorgnè. Risultato: materiale danneggiato e scattano le denunce nei confronti del responsabile del gesto, un agricoltore proprietario di una porzione di terreno che mal digerirebbe la presenza degli appassionati del volo. Parapendio e deltaplano sono discipline in costante crescita e per il Canavese rappresentano una straordinaria potenzialità di promozione del territorio. Evidentemente, dunque, la ripercussione in termini di immagine è tutt’altro che positiva.

Il tutto è accaduto sabato pomeriggio, quando nell’area di lancio adiacente al santuario di Santa Elisabetta, nel territorio del Comune di Colleretto Castelnuovo, considerato uno dei luoghi più adatti a livello europeo per la pratica del parapendio e del deltaplano, era in agenda una manifestazione a livello internazionale alla quale hanno preso parte un centinaio di piloti italiani ed una quarantina di equipaggi stranieri tra francesi, svizzeri, tedeschi.

«Uno dei proprietari di una porzione di terreno ha sparso nel campo di atterraggio letame e liquami e mentre gli equipaggi stavano atterrando ha continuato a transitare nell’area con il trattore per infastidire le manovre - spiega Flavio Bertarini, istruttore nazionale e vicepresidente del Volo libero Santa Elisabetta -. Escrementi sono finiti sulle vele che sono state danneggiate. Abbiamo chiamato i carabinieri e sul posto è intervenuta una pattuglia della polizia municipale per verificare l’accaduto. Il materiale è stato rovinato ed ora le denunce andranno avanti. Non volevamo arrivare a tanto, ma a questo punto è inevitabile».

«Sono vent’anni che operiamo nel rispetto dell’ambiente e quello che facciamo, al di là della passione e del divertimento, è contribuire a valorizzare in chiave turistica il nostro territorio - aggiunge Bertarini - . E per vent’anni, peraltro, che l’agricoltore che ha sparso letame e liquami sul campo nel quale avvengono gli atterraggi di parapendii e deltaplani ha percepito l’affitto dalla nostra associazione pur essendone soltanto proprietario in parte. Solo recentemente ci siamo accordati con i veri proprietari dei terreni e più volte abbiamo denunciato al Comune di Cuorgnè il fatto che il medesimo agricoltore avesse anche posizionato una sbarra su di una strada di proprietà comunale». L’amministrazione cuorgnatese, sulla vicenda, preferisce non esprimersi liquidandola come una «diatriba tra privati».
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Re: Rick Masters: Superiority of Hang Gliders

Postby Rick Masters » Thu Apr 09, 2015 5:38 pm

What the public sees when paragliding is mentioned.

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http://www.deseretnews.com/article/8656 ... tml?pg=all

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What the public doesn't see when paragliding is mentioned.

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The graves of 1,304 paraglider pilots.
Last edited by Rick Masters on Thu Apr 09, 2015 6:06 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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