tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62189027804195440582010-05-11T20:34:38.595-07:00This is the blog site for the Northwest Paragliding Club www.nwparagliding.comNorthwest Paragliding Clubhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14853830616042863062noreply@blogger.comBlogger69125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-21699830523368078452009-12-02T08:52:00.000-08:002009-12-03T10:37:14.673-08:00

ByJohn KraskeSunday, September 27, 2009 was magic at Saddle Mountain. The winds were strong from the north with gusts up to 19 mph. As the morning advanced into early afternoon the wind shifted a little more northeast and dialed down to a reasonable level and more and more of the Baldi Mountain Fly-In pilots started to arrive.I hadn’t planned on attending the Baldi Fly-In this year but after

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-12594330122144396002009-05-20T09:07:00.000-07:002009-05-20T09:58:56.707-07:00

By John Kraske With Contributions from Deanna Hutchison, Casey Veranth, Kevin Lee, Jim CecilThe lower number on this wind gage is 82.1 mph – Photo by James Lee on May 2, 2009 Scheduled for Saturday, May 2nd, this year’s coastal flying event just wasn’t destined to be. Almost all the computer based weather forecasts predicted gloom and doom, and for once it seemed they were right. We got lots of

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-86664747230610944452009-04-21T09:30:00.000-07:002009-04-22T15:09:12.967-07:00

Sunday, 12 Apr 2009, Marina, California Ross J., Cort M., Mike F., myself and, of course Rick H. arrived in Marina Thursday afternoon. You'd have thought we were still in Seattle with the drizzle coming down. We were all jacked up to fly the dunes that stretch from Seaside (just north of Monterey), past the former Army post of Fort Ord, to Marina. We checked in the Holiday Express Motel in

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-3523733807457748802009-04-01T00:01:00.000-07:002009-04-01T00:01:00.245-07:00

by David Byrne and Kingsley WoodThe week after the Chelan XC competition in Washington last August, a group of paraglider designers from South Korea met with a team of Boeing’s aeronautical engineers and some software specialists from Microsoft to create the next generation of high performance paraglider designs. This meeting was a landmark event which brought together the top talent from each

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-3135081941081307142009-03-31T16:24:00.000-07:002009-04-01T00:00:55.556-07:00

Saturday March 28, 2009 the NWPC performed the road clean-up Locator #767 the Tiger Mountain Road.The Team headed up by Jared Lyman, with team members Chris Roberts, Matt Amend, Nate Rowe, John Mann, Rob Eilers, Arun Moortly , Chris Amonson, and Tom Allen.We met at the LZ in a mix of rain and snow showers, Heather St Clair drank coffee and encouraged us, while we developed our plan.The Road

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-10535632149121643622009-03-08T15:11:00.000-07:002009-03-08T15:49:47.191-07:00

Friday, March 6th. Its cold at five grand and I’m so bundled up I can hardly move. My fingers are like ice cycles and ache all the way to my elbows. It’s just barely March; not even spring. Mount Rainer looms large on the southern horizon. The expansive evergreen forests below are dusted in white. Spread around the icy blue sky are more than a dozen other paragliders in all directions,

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-26368281227734250752009-03-08T14:02:00.000-07:002009-03-08T15:49:03.405-07:00

February 27, 2009With my business completed in Seattle and a nice high cloud base out over the Olympic Mountains I thought I might get a sledder in at Tiger on my way to my 5:45 client in Snoqualmie. I could make the two o’clock shuttle. Who knows it might just be one of those lucky days you might just pull out a nice soaring flight. It was warming up and the winds were predicted to pick up

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-53208918764492272972009-03-04T11:00:00.000-08:002009-03-04T11:15:43.109-08:00

Check out Tim's photographic video journey from a group of friends recent flying trip to Valle. Who's up for next year?!http://www.vimeo.com/3196255Sorry, link not active. Copy and paste into your browser until active. CJ Brockway doing her thing above Valle

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-70500331209427962152009-02-12T11:26:00.000-08:002009-02-13T18:16:58.030-08:00

Congratulations to the 2008 NWPC Media Award winners for their spectacular shots! The recipients were honored at the NWPC Gala on January 23, 2009 at the Issaquah Holiday Inn.And the winners are... Best In-Air Photo by Ernie Friesen, “Heavenly Shades of Night are Falling.”Blanchard, looking toward Port TownsendBest Manipulated Photo by Suhas Kelkar Kamshet, India at the flying site known as

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-76527319928877526562009-01-27T19:05:00.000-08:002009-02-13T11:53:55.348-08:00

It’s January. We’re over the hump. Days are getting longer and it’s time to start thinking about the Annual Oceanside Open Fly-In. This is what I mark as the true beginning of the Northwest flying season. This year’s event is scheduled for the weekend of May 2, 2009, a little later in the spring than previous years.Last year a lot of my flying compatriots checked the weather forecasts and opted

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-41054791579355983482009-01-21T16:43:00.000-08:002009-01-23T09:59:14.596-08:00

Other than ending 2008 with a speeding ticket from a Montesano City Cop on my standard route to the North Oregon Coast, last year ended up not too bad. My 2009 started out with some great flying fun on the Oregon Coast on January 2nd, having just sort of vegged away on the 1st, recovering from the mad I had going over being bagged by what I thought was a pretty deceptive way to raise funds for

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-9675085315820983002009-01-21T12:08:00.001-08:002009-01-21T16:42:37.457-08:00

PREZ SEZ Year End – 2008By President Tom Allen It’s been a year of great flights, the loss of two friends and fellow pilots, and many challenges that were met by the help of our members. We have several members that have put in a tremendous amount of time for the NWPC and/or improving our sites this year.Ashley Guberman is one that put in countless hours on the key initiative, upgrading our

Stephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09909440006380880581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-90900993953914517912008-11-01T09:21:00.001-07:002008-11-01T09:21:48.824-07:00

The prez-sez I need to say something for the ‘prez-sez’, quickly before October slips away. I have a few hours to go. And since I don’t have anything profound to say, the prez-sez just tell ‘your story’. Well alrighty then! There I was just standing there…….. at the top of the Butte for the 14th (or there abouts) annual Women’s fly-in at Chelan, WA., when Jaro tells me I’ve set up my wing at a

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-15224299133480806522008-09-22T13:15:00.001-07:002008-09-22T13:15:53.739-07:00

Come one, come all, to the 3rd Annual BiWing Fling at the Baldy Butte Oktoberfest fly-in! Site details and directions can be found at www.nwparagliding.com under site guides. This is a playful competition that pairs up a hang glider pilot with a paraglider pilot in scoring points. That’s okay if you don’t know a pilot of the other breed, we will match you up at the event. Remember you need to

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-89743787244420295902008-08-12T12:37:00.001-07:002008-08-12T12:37:36.735-07:00

THE 2008 CANADIAN – AMERICAN BLACK MOUNTAIN FLY-IN August 15, 16 & 17 The CAN-AM, or Canadian American, is a fly-in for Hang gliders and Paragliders originated by U.S. and Canadian hang glider pilots in the 1970's. Delvin Crabtree and his wife Pam were among the first paragliders to participate in the fly-in in the 1980's, making it one of the first bi-wingual events in the U.S. Black Mountain

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-51023665309057973362008-08-12T10:59:00.000-07:002008-08-12T13:33:12.405-07:00

Apparently I was staring out the window at Cu's and not paying attention when they told me July was my turn to contribute to the blog and author a "Prez-sez" -- so you get this in August instead.Chelan XC Classic (CXCC)It's summer in the NorthWest and you know what that means - yes, competition season. First, our intrepid paraglider pilots flocked to beautiful Lake Chelan for the Chelan XC

Arun Moorthynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-16026266331539057392008-07-20T17:31:00.001-07:002008-07-25T21:50:03.498-07:00

The 31st annual Grouse Mountain Fly-In is scheduled to take place August 9-10th 2008UPDATE: Pilots needing a hotel room can get the Grouse Mountain rate for the weekend of the event. The hotel is located just down the hill from Grouse Mountain at 1800 Capilano Road (604-987-4461).The rate is $119/nt and includes 2 queen beds, microwave/fridge, free Internet, continental breakfast, local calls and

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-52280231038126123132008-07-20T17:24:00.001-07:002008-07-20T17:25:29.260-07:00

Something spectacular for everyone. That’s how I’d sum up our recent two-week trip to Slovenia. Bit of background. I’m a Seattle-based P2 pilot with 100 post-training flights at 18 different sites over the last two years since my instruction from Aerial Paragliding. This was my first non-guided/instructor supported flying trip. My partner Matt and I chose Slovenia based on the initial advise of

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-91539751245163450062008-06-21T12:09:00.001-07:002008-06-21T13:41:56.871-07:00

Ah the time has come for my turn to write up the goings on for the club this month and what goings on there has been! The absence of a Prez-Sez last month was down to the fact that our chirpy little Texas whirlwind Gordon has been too darn busy flying all over the place to be able to pen to paper or so it seems!. Hopefully I can make up here by jotting down some memorable moments of the last

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-48780284697526373252008-04-01T23:11:00.001-07:002008-04-01T23:11:11.325-07:00

Best day of the year so far...Cloudbase-2000mLift-6.4 m/sWind-SW@5ktsFlight-Open dist.Fun-Max.As the stats show it was a plum kinda day (Monday, March 24th 2008), this time maybe more of a cherry even. We just had to be a little patient on launch since it was shady most of the time. When that sun did eventually shine it was going off and up! I climbed out to over 5000ft just off launch and

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-33686855553420047952008-04-01T10:33:00.000-07:002008-04-06T00:05:25.032-07:00

As Tom said in last month’s Prez-Sez, this year we are having all the member of the board take a turn with the monthly newsletter. This month, that responsibility falls to me. During our last board meeting, there were a significant number of issues discussed that will be of importance to almost all of the pilots in the local community, regardless of whether you are a club member or not. In

Ashley Gubermanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11135276974642366716noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-14623636726740302892008-03-23T11:49:00.000-07:002008-03-23T11:52:05.184-07:00

For those of us who go to Whidbey Island to fly at the Fort, and there are a lot of us out there, you may be interested in this event. It's only next weekend so I wanted to give you a heads up. It was suggested to me that maybe we give something back to the Island and start to get more support from the locals for  our paragliding activities. Even maybe even get Ebey Landing opened to us again! I

I Frewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09146820638297991505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-33189796955407285122008-03-14T17:15:00.000-07:002008-03-16T17:17:08.916-07:00

By Joanne Blanchard:A February flying trip to the “Pura Vida” of Costa Rica – was what our group of 11 found to be the Great Winter Escape. Besides warm, beautiful landscape, we discovered a warm, relaxed and welcoming culture. We soared daily in humid, sweet sunshine and summed up the experience with sunset ocean swims, scuba diving, fishing, and botanical gardens. The group: Rick and

Northwest Paragliding Clubhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14853830616042863062noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-88008970732609724692008-03-10T17:12:00.000-07:002008-03-16T17:13:53.418-07:00

By John Kraske: From a high point of the sand ridge that runs from Cape Kiwanda south to the mouth of Nestucca Bay my wind meter was gauging a slightly cross wind from the north average of 12.2 mph, but predominantly from the west. Gusts were sporadic maxing at 16.7 mph. Just barely enough to fly this shallow of a ridge. Haystack Rock, bathed in dismal gray, loomed a half mile off shore. Cape

Northwest Paragliding Clubhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14853830616042863062noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6218902780419544058.post-58665897155327571082008-03-08T17:14:00.000-08:002008-03-16T17:14:59.242-07:00

Hello, Thank goodness the flying season has finally arrived. I have three subjects to cover and will try to be concise. First: The NWPC has a working copy of the Land Use License that DNR wants any commercial operators using their land to sign. DNR is the owner of the property at North and South launch, as well as the Road to Launch. Heather Cole, the DNR area manager, has really worked at

Northwest Paragliding Clubhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14853830616042863062noreply@blogger.com