Flight Stories

Stuart Hall needed a harness. The Flybubble shop was in East Sussex, a round trip of more than 500 miles. No problem, Stu has a creative solution!

You don't have to fly a hotship to achieve great flights! Although having more performance helps, you don't have to fly a Performance Class or Competition wing to achieve your Big XC dreams. The gliding and climbing ability of the modern Sports Class (mid EN C) is now remarkable! Nothing demonstrates this more clearly than Flybubble Carlo Borsattino's recent performance on his Artik 4. 

Flybubble's Carlo Borsattino has been flying cross country (XC) by paraglider since the early nineties, and has a reputation for his ability to stay aloft for hours even in the weakest conditions. But it takes more than patience to fly over 200 km in the UK. He analyses the technical challenges, tactical moves and saved mistakes that helped him to achieve his personal best distance to date.

What's it like taking on the mountains with nothing but an aircraft that runs on air? Greg Hamerton attempts a solo traverse of the Pyrenees via paraglider and discovers the magnitude and magic of a road less travelled.

In the UK we often fly near clouds, because the airmass is usually moist and the cloudbase is low. Small cumulus clouds can be fun, but large ones can become a problem. How can you tell the difference? We analyse an XC flight that became a little too lifty.

It was Day 2 of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association (BHPA) British Club Challenge (BCC), and looking through the caravan skylight the sky was blue with conditions similar to the day before. Hundred House was the new venue called for the BCC, given the more Easterly breeze. This was over an hour away from the Slackers camp site in Llangatock so I enjoyed being chauffeured there by more experienced XC hound Andrew Craig; it felt good to share encouragement and be confident enough to leave my car far behind with a clear intention of leaving the hill, knowing that every kilometre flown would take me towards my (mobile) home. 

Never having been a part of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association (BHPA) British Club Challenge (BCC) I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. In 7 years I’d not quite got beyond being a lone ranger of the skies (well, ridges, more accurately). Whenever I’d previously thought about attending, the dates had never coincided with my being free of other responsibilities.

Flybubble's Greg Hamerton attempts an early season 50 km triangle from a small hill in the UK and gives insights into his thinking and tactics and inspires us with trying new things.