An ACTIVE pilot serves
- to make better use of thermals, to fly more efficiently and more comfortably.
- to avoid collpases, but not all!
Active piloting is PITCH CONTROL !
The goal is to keep the canopy above his head as much as possible.
The canopy DIVES
> Held it by a QUICK action on the brakes.
A dive causes airflow to tap on the top of the leading edge and this can cause a collapse as if pulling on the A lines.
Once the canopy came back over his head,
> The brakes are SLOWLY released.
The canopy goes BEHIND
> The brakes are SLOWLY released.
This “recoil” indicates that the paraglider is approaching a stall and it needs to be speeded up again. If you release too quickly, you risk a surge (see above!) and thus a cascade of incidents.
This “recoil” can be caused by an entry into a thermal. If this is the case (your vario beeps!), it is important to let the paraglider penetrate the lift before pulling the brakes.
You can even allow 2 to 4 seconds to get closer to the thermal core before deciding which side to turn. It will be on the side that lifts the most! See below.
If you pull the brakes when the paraglider is “nose up” by entering a thermal, you risk stalling!
Great asymmetry of actions
The brakes are pulled quickly to avoid a potentially imminent closure.
We always release the brakes slowly!
Active piloting also means CONTROLLING ROLL ! !
Useful to better exploit thermals !
A wing tip LIFTS
> You load the harness on the lifting side and you turn on that side to take advantage of the lift.
If necessary, with weak ascents, we zigzag to walk where “it goes up the most” hoping to find a “real” thermal that we can then wind.
Each meter of altitude gained brings us most often in better ascendances, so be patient and persevere!
Since we can’t avoid all collpases, learn!
