Four days in a row!

Thanks to a high pressure system and south-easterly winds we were at last to get some paragliding action.

Friday 24 March 2017

 Sunny day with light SE wind. Met Steve Bullers at Corr's and went paragliding training at Big Collin until 4:30pm. Phil Barron was also training and Dermot Lagan had a couple of flights. Alastair McMaster flew his paramotor before we left.

Saturday 25 March 2017

Warm sunny day with very light SE wind. I went paragliding training at Big Collin.  I took a flight and worked some buoyant bits of lift then landed by the windsock at the bottom. Phil Barron and Ken McConnell were out with students. Dermot Lagan was there but did not fly.Got Sam Cook (on a taster day) airborne. Also CPN students Richard Neill and Keith McGeown flew.  

Sunday 26 March 2017

Another sunny day. Very light winds in the morning. I went to Agnew's Hill but pilots already airborne were working hard to stay up. Spoke to Donal Hamilton who was about to climb the hill. I went to Big Collin and had a couple of flights while waiting for student Gerry Johnston to turn up. Gerry got one flight in increasing wind. It got too strong and gusty on top so we packed it in.

Monday 27 March 2017

No students and things to do at home today.Went flying at Big Collin with Dermot Lagan after 3pm. Managed three soaring flights in varying conditions. Wind at takeoff was varying between 12 and 19mph at times with small blobs of lift making staying up hard work. Managed one top landing, one slope landing and bottom landing by the windsock.

Thursday 9 March 2017

With light NW wind reports from White Mountain and forecast wind to swing South in the late afternoon, I headed to Big Collin at 4pm. On arrival the wind was less than 5mph and SSW in direction.

I made a leisurely trip to the top with my paraglider and laid it out for a flight. Taking my time I realised that the wind direction was slowly changing so that over the next half hour or so it gradually came round to the SE and increased slightly but still making no more than 10mph at times.

I eventually took off and got in a few soaring beats - never more than about five feet above takeoff and landed beside the car and got packed up before dark.

Some action at Shane's Hill

Rain in the morning didn't seem encouraging but as it cleared - although a few showers were still hanging about - I got a message from Phil Barron that it looked flyable at Shane's Hill.

When I arrived at the layby at the bottom, one of Phil's students, Sean was losing height and landed beside me. His other student John, made a slope landing a little bit down from takeoff. I lent Sean a stuffsack and took him up to the top access gate (which incidentally no longer has a padlock). Just then, Phil and John were spotted making their way back down to the car, having decided that the wind was now too light for any useful soaring.

Another of Phil's students, Colin, arrived and we spent a while in idle banter and swapping flying stories before heading to The Misty Burn restaurant for some soup, coffee etc and more chat.

Since John lives in Belfast and relies on public transport, I gave him a lift to Mossley West train station on my way home. By then the wind seemed to have veered more southerly but it was too late in the evening to consider flying at Big Collin.