[gisellemartins]

Hi guys

I love paragliding, easy and quick way to fly, thats the reason why it overtook the HG's but to be honest, in my dreams i always imagine myself flying face down like a bird with my arms open and this pleasure only wingsuits and HG's pilots are having... i always wanted to fly HG, but i never found one light and packable as paraglider till this days i saw a guy walking up the hill with a strange paraglider bag on his back!! and it was a packable HG!! thats all i wanted haha i had a look on internet and i found, because im new here i cant post the link, but its called finsterwalder-charly - Lightfex

Ive been flying Paragliders for 3 years. i have a video on youtube where i usually fly Sussex - UK didnt see any HG there so far. Just type Ozone Swift Mount Caburn etc.

I have few Doubts about HG, if someone could please help.

After finish my PG course and started my first PG flights, i start with a begginer wing ( class A/DHV1) and friend of mine gave me a competition harness (covered leg) as i didnt have much money at that time i start flying with it, and many other pilots critize, saying the harness wasnt apropriate, tho i didnt have any problem at all with the harness, it is much more confortable, better looking and not more dificult to fly than a school one. The school one was heavy, unconfortable, ugly with my legs out in the wind, i tryed it and it was just horrible! Today i still flying competition PG harness with my ( B/C - DHV2 wing) and its just perfect, the wing is easy/calm and the harness is confortable/aerodimic and recently more and more novice PG pilot are flying (cover leg)harness with their low class wing!

So my doubt is, of course i will start with a DHV1 HG, with a lightfex most probably, but after finish the course and start flying i dont want to use that strange HG harness i see sometimes on the hill, would be possible to use a more confortable and better looking HG harness, (wood walley Tenax) for example? now i know some gonna NO! u have to use a school one etc...

I want a real honesty opnion about it, coz i dont have money enough to buy a simple harness to fly for 1 month and after buy a nice one to fly for good.

Would be a problem fly with a lightfex or icaro RX2 with a Tenax harness?

I do not intend to change my simple layer begginer wing, as it easy to fly, easy to land, light and packable and it still fly better than an Advance paraglider.
My weight is 54kg, probably i need a very small wing.

The lightfex seems very light and most important for me, packable, but it seems to be an old project.

The Icaro RX2 seems to be really nice, with features from comp wing etc, but it is not packable =(

Whats the problem with HG manufactures that they dont realize that most pg pilots wants to fly HG, but we want something packable and light?

Btween the 2 wings what u guys would suggest?

Many thanks

Giselle

(sorry for the bad english)

[dievhart]

http://www.finsterwalder-charly.de/html_eng/drachen/lightfex.php


there ya go......
and welcome to the forum Giselle.....
Your harness issue, see if you can try one on, hang it it, or even test fly it (borrow your instructors (ask if it's a good idea?)), just don't put your feet in or zip up. You won't really know until you try them on....going upright is the issue (usually) with the Tenax type (single point)...(and cross controlling (as a new student))
(sorry not much help (other than the link))
Diev

[FormerFF]

Hi Giselle, and welcome to the .org.

Most pilots,and probably all instructors would recommend you start off with a harness that is easier to land with than a competition harness. A comp harness (like a Tenax) will have a solid backplane, and is usually harder to get upright in than are some of the other types. Good harnesses for beginner pilots include cocoons and soft pods. Would a harness like a Woody Valley Flex be acceptable? That would be a good harness for a new pilot.

As far as gliders are concerned, both those that you suggested would be excellent. It's more a matter of whether or not you want the short Pack ability.

[Jason]

you can fly any glider with any harness


that being said...if you want packable and light.....I'd go for a coccon. a harness like a tenax will be heavy and bulky comparitivly....which I could see being a pain if you wanted to hike in somewhere

I have an older WW coccon that only weighs about 5 lbs without a parachute, a tenax I would expect to be triple that (and signifigantly more expensive)

[Windlord]

Remember your equipment will come later. Use the
heck out of your instructors equipment. There should be several harnesses
that your instructor may have for you to try. "Try before you buy"!
Good luck and keep us posted.

[andyh]

hi Giselle,

welcome, sounds like you are fellow Southern club member

I would strongly recommend not buying any equipment until you have completed EP - use the school's kit until then, that's partially what you're paying for! I doubt a 'proper' harness would be suitable for EP anyway, schools will have special training harnesses that make it easy to get between upright & prone & back again

have a chat with John Barratt of South Downs Hang Gliding & he will be able to advise you on training, equipment & whatever else you may have questions about:

http://www.southdownshanggliding.co.uk/

hope to see you on a Southern hill flying a proper glider soon

Andy

[SeeMarkFly]

[gisellemartins]

Guys thanks for the lovely support...

Yes im a member of the southern club =)

I will buy my equipament after learn in the school or i will destory my little lightfex =)

I think i would prefer a god pod harness after finish the course, tho i will make sure im able to handle it, after learn with the simple one from the school.

About the wing i will go for the lightfex, its only 19.5kg and also is packable to 1.85cm, also i heard the lightfex doesnt need tools to unpack it. its a shame the update RX2 from Icaro wings is not packable. =(

Just another Question, when they say minimum 50kg maximum 80kg for the wing it is included the pilot +wing + harness + parachute?

the lightfex pilot recomend weight is 45 to 75kg

just an exemple

Me 54kg + wing lightfex 19.5kg + tenax 6.2kg is that its weight? + 1kg other equipaments + parachute 1.4kg? ( light small parachutes for paragliders is around 1kg) what light parachute u guys recommend?

so all it would bepilot 54+19.5+6.2+1.4+1kg = 82.1kg total weight in flight so i will be in the top limit for the wing? whats the best weight to fly a wing, bottom or the weight range, middle or top? also do i count the wing? on paragliders we count pilot+wing+harness+parachute etc

Many thanks

Giselle

[CAL]

do all your sites require A hike to get to ?

even the short packs with all your gear would still be quite heavy , i know very few pilots that would hike there gliders to launch .

this may not be an option for you , if you have sites that you can drive to and launch use your hg . the ones that require a hike use your pg

as far as a harness and gear, as others have stated your instructor will provide all that , until you are on your own , by then you will know whats available

i am currently flying with a pilot that flies both hg and pg , he is finding that he chooses his hg more than pgs , but he loves the fact he can choose ,

good luck, you will love hg , i have heard a pg pilot that learns to hg is much easier than a hg pilot learning to pg.

you are going to love the fact when you pull in on the base bar you will pick up good speed . this is what gives hg pilots fear when they fly pg is the fact they can't simply pull the bar in bucking a head wind

good luck hope you have a great experience

[peanuts]

[dievhart]

yeah like he said.....Count everything BUT the wing.....
and I'm on the top end (weight range) of my gliders, they fly/land a bit faster but are more controllable...as you advance you might go smaller...
Sounds like your ready, have fun and be safe, take it as slow as you can and use videos to learn from...
Diev
(EDIT:---the videos you take of yourself on the training hill with and instructor of course)

[adi]

i didnt know that charly existed.. but i'm not sure about this bit..

"due to it's high quality construction and materials can bear the brunt of the hardest of days on the practise hill. "
suggesting its not a good everyday wing? or simply stating it will take some knocks? hard to tell from that..

Giselle, you'll be fine at 54Kg on a 45-75.. i've got a pulse 2 (45-72 clip in) and weigh 57kg, its pretty much perfect for me... so you should be fine in a similar wing.

[MorphFX]

Hi gisellemartins,

Welcome the forum. There are a few Southern Pilots lurking on this forum. I think the best advice anyone should really be giving you at the moment would be to talk to an instructor/coach. They will know the sites that you are most likely to fly and be able to talk about equipment and options. I once carried an Aeros Target up Mount Caburn! Never again - I consider myself fit and strong but not after that!

Why not pop along to one of the local schools and simply ask to ground handle a wing and see how you get on.

My wife tried hang gliding a few years back and struggled with the glider's weight. There are much better wings around now and some designed for the smaller/lighter pilot. Perhaps its best to try before you buy and see how things work for you.

Please keep us posted of your progress

[boarini2003]

Don't expect it to be easy to carry around a lot, just because it is "portable." No amount of hang glider portability will overcome the advantages in that area when it comes to paragliders. Once you're in the air though, that's a different story. There's nothing like flying a hang glider.

[gisellemartins]

Thanks for all the suggestions.... will look for an instructor soon...

Look foward to it.

Giselle

[noman3]

dont do it,hanggliding is for faggs.I QUIT!