Topic: "5 ft" or less. My take: Prefer to aim at 4-ft or less in pack length, pack aspect ratio of L/W of about 4, politely busable on city buses, perhaps in two sub-packs, and pleasantly low weight, framed HG. Pilot carrying pack is to appear relaxed, stable, safe, and acceptable to other passengers and bus driver.
The following video shows a packing to about 6 ft 3 in or so, which is beyond this topic's focus, but perhaps some lessons are present for the topic at hand. In bag, the net pack of the shown would be even a bit longer.
================================================= Lessons from just beyond topic focus:
=================================================
Avoid stepping on cables and battens.
======================= carabiner or karabiner https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carabiner ========================== Mull each step and part. Ask questions. What if _____? Develop ideas. Note: the shown is one type of hang glider; there are other types.
What is the final volume of the pack? Could the bag somehow be the pilot's harness? Could battens be packed inside other tubes? Could some tubes stow inside other tubes? How would "soft" rigging change matters? Consider SS sailing rather than DS sailing. Half of six is three; hmm? How would things turn out in carbon fiber? Sail simplifications? Sail material? Could sail form tote wrap and do away with a bag? Two toted parcels instead of one?
You know, when John is up here performing a IRAN on My Predator. I will be talking to Him about if I could short Pack My Predator. For the Day will come, heck it must come when I being Quite low. On that fateful Day when I will not be able to scratch My way back up. I will find Myself landing say a few Miles from the nearest road. Ok Bob I know the word I am about to type is a Filthy, Foul Four letter Cus Word. That Word is SINK. But Sink is part of Flying, we all encounter Sink. When Flying XC I have always been able to Climb back up after Sinking, But the day might come, when I do indeed do sink-out. Being able to short-pack My Predator would be so cool.
I look forward to what John has to say. Heck, I also know that I am n ot the only Pilot out hre Who has been in the same place. miles from a road on the ground now what?
Chris McKeon wrote:... I will find Myself landing say a few Miles from the nearest road.
I landed a mile or two out down in Mexico many years ago. I packed the glider up, but left it on the control frame with two nice big pneumatic wheels on the base tube. I put the folded wing tips on my shoulder and just walked it back to the hotel trailing behind me. That was much better than short packing. It was tricky making it through one barbed wire fence, but overall it's been a fond memory.
Join a National Hang Gliding Organization:US Hawks at ushawks.org View my rating at:US Hang Gliding Rating System Every human at every point in history has an opportunity to choose courage over cowardice. Look around and you will find that opportunity in your own time.
Short packing AND wheeling (or travois; or travois of two sub-packs) is an option space within the topic focus. Two sub-packs might allow tossing a sub-pack over a fence or barrier. Or pack or aggregate of sub-packs might be sealable for floating on water, making a water hull for sailing, rafting in a river, kiteboarding at sea, etc. HG pack as kiteboard? HG sail morphed into kited wings for propulsion? Travel the world and hang glide with low-mass two-sub-pack deal that allows hitchhiking, rafting, boating, sailing, kiteboarding, hiking, wheeling, travois travel, sleighing.
Come on, just think about How Cool it would be to Short Pack One's Glider. Then to Be able to strap Your Glider to Your ack and merly go for a it of a hike to a road where Your Driver Could pull over to the side of the road then You could feel good about not putting the Burden of retrieving your Glider upon Your Driver. I am going to run this idea by John. I want to hear what John thinks about Short-Packing a Predator and then Being able to Pack One's Predator as a Backpack. This indeed sounds like reasonable, Cool Deal.
Bob what a great Memory You described. Flying the adventure goes on and on. Isn't Fly Great! I remember when Larry said; "Always the Student" Isn't that the truth?
Telescopic carbon-fiber tube products as potential source of HG tubes for <5-ft HG packs? Or telescopic aluminum tube products for same? Compare and contrast matters against nestable forms: Z, L, M, U, C ... And that nestable forms also might be tapering or telescopic.
Teasing: Disclaimer: 1. I am not recommending any particular purchase by the teasing, just exploring. 2. I have a difficult time reading the specifics of the products presented in Alibaba.
It is not clear of the length of Eddie's pack; is it 5 ft or more? -------------------------------------------------------------------------- If I could title this thread over again, I would title it "The 4-ft-or-less-packed HG Movement" to reflect progressive findings that seem to serve a richer satisfaction for packing, toting, busing, hiking, transporting. I am experiencing a shunning of 5-ft solutions while preferring 4-ft-or-less solutions. Others may have their preferences.
And there is a growing (in me) preference for having solutions that involve two sub-packs rather than one integral single master pack. The two sub-packs might be leashed for logistical security. The two-sub-packs solutions might bring handy balance blessings, barrier-clearing blessings, less ostentatious pros, order, ...
I anticipate some solutions to be "no visible packs" solutions where the pilot "wears" all the parts of the HG wing. The pilot wears the parts of the airframed hang glider; at site the pilot undresses the HG parts and begins assembly of the hang glider. Hands-free wearable HG tote mode!
The movement may end up having gradation eras. Competition high performance soaring hang gliders are not the aim of the first early era for the movement, in my estimation. Rather, a tiny bunny slope with conservative sled glides in very moderate dependable wind may be the scene for first-era solutions; such solutions very well may not meet mechanical safety standards that would be wanted for more severe scenes of altitude and wind and task. Each era could have its adventure joys.
Wearable wings? The stage and costume world has offers that might tease designing a HG pack of the "wearable-pack" sort. In Google Images, search "wearable wings" for an adventure. But this topic thread probably shuns odd looks, open wings, but rather neatly packed HG parts. Nevertheless, in future super materials we might have some fast deployable wearable wings for hang gliding that are "at the ready" without piecemeal assembly ad yet with a pleasant safe appearance for riding in a city bus. Broad deployed worn wings adequate for hang gliding at reasonable airspeeds would not be welcomed on city buses. But very high airspeed hang gliders worn and at the immediate ready are already available, but one might not have noticed versions (self with just arms and hands provide a very high-speed hang gliding arrangement; look to the skydiving world for examples.) Then between bare arms and body as gliding wing set, advance to wingsuit gliding; wear the wingsuit on the bus; run super fast off the slope and glide; but ground smacking will probably hurt. From such minimal gliding wings from no wing to wingsuit, design larger wings that might be "worn" and immediately deployable. Then consider further designs of wings for hang gliding that are packable in the "wear-as-bulky-clothes" sort; then beyond have non-deployable smart packs for a wing that need assembly, but are so packed that one would still be in the "wearable"-no-further-pack tote realm. Then further, have exterior packs and some parts worn in clothing. Then further HG wings packed in two packs leased or one integral pack. Maybe aim to have in tote no parts that are non-wing parts.
Home
