Product Lines – March 2005

OSHKOSH, WISC. — While the deep snow swirls in strong winter winds up here in the
southern tundra, it’s enjoyable to think about the 15th World Meet taking
place in sunny, hot Australia where this time of year is “summer.” The event concluded
just as this column was sent to the editor, and I’m pleased to report a few highlights.
Some contest enthusiasts followed this on Davis Straub’s
Oz Report (ozreport.com) from which I’ve distilled a few points of interest.
The new
reigning champion of flex wings is Oleg Bondarchuk of the Ukraine. Working
for Aeros, he was, of course, flying an Aeros Combat L and finished with a
clear lead over second place finisher Rob Reisinger of Austria flying an Icaro Zero
7, followed by fellow Austrian, Gerolf Heinrichs, flying a Moyes Lightspeed S4. Congratulations
to these top three finalists in hang gliding’s top worldwide competition. You may
also note with interest that the top three pilots flew different brands so no company
“swept” the top positions. Before I go further, let me
repeat my often-stated comment when reviewing brands at contests: the results do
not necessarily reflect brand purchase decisions by recreational hang glider pilots.
Some pilots are sponsored and all comp pilots are motivated by different flying goals
than the vast majority of fly-for-fun pilots.
It should surprise no one that Moyes dominated the contest with 48%
of the field. The contest was held in remote Australia where Moyes has long been
the overwhelming favorite and Moyes has long been involved with competition flying.
However, also-local AirBorne didn’t fare as well with only 6% of the contestants
flying their wings. (As a side note, AirBorne does quite well in America with their
powered trike division being one of the top brands.) In second position was Aeros
with a very respectable 26% of the field. I find it intriguing that a Ukrainian
company can do this well on the world stage only a decade and a half after the country
emerged from behind the old Iron Curtain. In America we know Aeros quite well, thanks
to the efforts by GW Meadows and his US Aeros operation – now in search
of a new owner – but this contest brought contestants from all over the globe and
a quarter of them chose Aeros. In third place was Icaro at 15%, a drop
from some earlier participation rates the Italian company enjoyed. Australia’s AirBorne
came in fourth with their 6% followed by Wills Wing at 3%, France’s
La Mouette at 2% and England’s Avian with a single pilot of
the 101 who finished in the points of the big world event.
The top U.S. pilots included Curt Warren in 13th place flying a Moyes Lightspeed
S4, Kevin Carter in 17th on a Aeros Combat L, and Dustin Martin in
19th flying a Moyes Lightspeed S4. These pilots were trailed by Tom Lanning (68th
on a Lightspeed S4), Davis Straub (78th on a Lightspeed S4, not his usual rigid wing),
and Dean Funk (83rd on a Lightspeed S4.5).
In contest results by country, Australia came in first, though barely ahead
of the Austrian team. France was third, followed by Italy (4th), the
USA (5th), Germany (6th), Japan (7th), Czech Republic (8th), Spain (9th),
and The Netherlands (10th).
Unfortunately, the 15th World Meet, a tow-launched event, was marred by the death
of Robin Strid, a Norwegian pilot, who “chose to foot launch in light cross
wind conditions in spite of the pleadings from the ground crew|to use a cart,” writes
Straub in his Oz Report. “As he took off his left wing was dragging. Bobby
Bailey, the best tow pilot in the business, moved to the right into get further
into the wind, and Rob got his left wing up and flying as he lined up behind Bobby.
Then Robin shifted off to the left again getting his right, upwind wing, high again.
He was seen reaching for his release. I understand that Bobby also released him.
He kept doing a wing over to the left and dove straight into the ground from about
50 feet. He was killed immediately.” Condolences to Robin’s family.
Last month you got to read about Angelo d’Arrigo’s flight over Mount Everest.
Now you can see some exceptional video clips at the following website: http://www.mounteverest.net/story/BestofExplorersWeb2004AwardsFlightoftheEagles-AngelosstoryJan62005.shtml
Even after I studied all the facts of this exceptional
flight, I didn’t get the flavor as well as I did when I saw the video which
runs for several minutes (a high-speed connection may be required; I didn’t test
this at dial-up speeds). Presented are some points of view that I never expected,
including on-board camera views when the towline snapped and left Angelo stranded
over the most forbidding terrain imaginable. I don’t know how long these stories
stay posted so I’d advise you point your browser to the above address soon and have
a gander.
While you’re browsing|You can view some spectacular Eagle flight footage with
a tiny, one-ounce camera (and transmitter) mounted on the neck of the Eagle. See
a series of video clips at http://media.animal.discovery.com/convergence/spyonthewild/birdtech/birdtech.html.
These are really quite amazing views and a great way to kill time at work or when
you can’t go flying in person.
Finally, the 2005 contest season in the U.S. is fast approaching. Regarding the U.S.
Nationals, those events that seem annually to happen in Florida are often oversubscribed.
Of the upcoming Nats at Quest Flight Park, organizer Steve Kroop writes, “We
received over 90 applications on the first day of registration and, to date we have
received over 120 applications, which means we have a waiting list. Of course, we
will be working on securing more tugs so we can let everyone in.” This event also
serves as the pre-Worlds meet from which it gains additional importance. Contact
Steve at Quest: 352-429-0213 or questair@mpinet.com.
So, got news or opinions? Send ’em to: 8 Dorset, St. Paul MN 55118. Messages or fax
to 651-450-0930. E-mail to Dan@ByDanJohnson.com. THANKS!