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PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE EDITION 30APRIL - MAY 2012

Footdrag • Glenn Tupper USA 2 • Wadi Rum

• Borneo • Andy Campbell • Sm

oke • Packing Up • Advance Alpha 5

FOOTDRAG

INTERNATIONAL PARAMOTORING, PARATRIKE AND MOTORISED HANG GLIDING MAGAZINE

+ WADI RUM, ANDY CAMPBELL PROFILED, PACKING YOUR MOTOR, LAS CANDELAS, FLY GAMES SPAIN SALTON SEA, VICTORIA FALLS AND ALL THE PPG NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

APRIL - MAY 2012EDITION 30

£6.50/€6.95/$8.95

PAvEL BREZINA IN BORNEO + SMOkE AND hOW TO USE IT AMERICAN DREAM + REvIEWED: ADvANCE ALPhA 5

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Innovation through adventurewww.parajet.com

Parajet, Your Way....

Parajet’s highly responsive chassis and cage system coupled with any paramotor engine, to give you your ultimateflying experience.

CONTENTS - ISSUE 30

56 REVIEWSAdvance’s Alpha 5 is now rated for paramotoring and is very impressive, says Sascha Burkhardt

50 THE TOOLBOXSascha Burkhardt explains how to make smoke and impress people, while Dean Eldridge writes about preparing your motor for its overseas holiday

46 NO LIMIT‘The Gobi is going to be a nightmare.’ Andy Campbell is planning a round the world adventure

40 WILD AT HEARTPavel Brezina drops everything to fly the wild landscapes of Borneo

36 DESERT KINGDOMDaniel Moench heads to Jordan to fly Wadi Rum

30 AMERICAN DREAM‘That’s Charlie Sheen’s place!’ Glenn Tupper looks down on Hollywood

CONTENTS EDiTiON 30 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZiNE 3

Editor & Designer: Marcus KingAssistant Editor: Ed EwingSub and Online Editor: Charlie KingUSA Correspondent: Jeff GoinRegular Contributors: Dean Eldridge, Edward Lichtner & Tracey TarrAdvertising & Accounts: Verity SowdenCustomer Service: Celine RodriguezAccounts: Carol HarrisonTea-making: Hugh Miller

SUBSCRIBE AT WWW.XCSHOp.COM/SUBSParamotor magazine is available exclusively by subscription. Guarantee your copy by subscribing UK, USA and Europe: £34.95/US$53.95/€41.95 Rest of World: £36.95/US$56.95/€44.45Issue-by-issue and iPad subscriptions also available

ADVERTISINGContact Verity Sowden at advertising@paramotormag.com

CONTRIBUTINGSend your articles and photos to editor@paramotormag.com and your news to news@paramotormag.com.

CONTACTING USParamotor MagazineCross Country international5 St Georges Place, BrightonEast Sussex, BN1 4GAUnited KingdomTel: +44 (0) 1273 256 090

Paramotor Magazine (USPS No: 024-657) is published six times a year by XCMedia distributed in the USA by DSW, 75 Aberdeen Road, Emigsville PA17318-0437. Periodicals postage paid at Emigsville PA. POSTMASTER:send address changes to Paramotor Magazine c/o PO Box 437, EmigsvillePA. Global copyright laws apply. The opinions in this magazine do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Paramotor Magazine

WWW.pARAMOTORMAG.COM

FEATURES06 GALLERY: FOOTDRAGGING

COVEROnboard with a footdragger. Photo: Franck Simonnet

ABOVE Enjoying the spring sunshine. Photo: Mac Para

UNIT CONVERSIONSParamotor Magazine uses international standard measurement units, but recognises that other systems are in use around the world. So here’s a quick conversion table to other commonly used measurement systems.1 km - 0.625 miles 0°C - 32°F1 m - 3.28 feet 20°C - 68°F1 kg - 2.2 pounds 40°C - 104°F1 ltr - 0.264 gallons

REGULARS 04 EDITORIAL 12 IGNITION: Global News – Africa, Las Candelas, Salton Sea 24 NEW pRODUCTS 28 READERS' GALLERY 60 SUBSCRIBE AND XCSHOp 62 TRACEY TARR

EDITORIAL

It’s spring in the northern hemisphere, which means more light, longer evenings and more chances to get out and play. The chance of

grabbing a quick flight or a longer sunset session after a day at work is now back on.

There is no better way to relax after a day staring at the screen than by getting outside and into the air. The only problem is that itch – the one that makes you spend more time thinking about what your plans for flying are than your paid job. The one that makes you rush through emails and file things in the ‘Tomorrow’ tray so you can head out the door and up into the sky. Take that, nine to five!

I guess that is addiction for you, the addiction that fuels us as we dash around madly trying to fit a quick air fix into our daily lives. It’s this addiction that makes us unable to commit to family events, DIY, shopping trips or just about anything else if there is the remotest possibility of flyable weather, especially when it coincides with our precious weekends.

It is also this addiction that drives many of us to go to the not insignificant effort of packing up our paramotors so we can put them on a flight to somewhere exotic on the other side of the world. No matter how much hassle it is, it’s always worth

it. At Paramotor Mag we’re excited because we’re off travelling soon too. We’re finally going to make it to the States as we are heading to Beach Blast in Florida in early May. We’re looking forward to getting a taste of the US scene for ourselves and meeting some of our readers. If you are going look out for our stand and come and see us, that is if we’re not up in the air enjoying the views of Panama Beach.

For some their addiction becomes their way of living. Pavel Brezina’s love of flying and paramotoring saw him create his own brand, Nirvana. On page 40 he tells us the story of his trip to the Philippines to help train two photographers and make a film about it. When the phone rang and a television company offered him the chance of a lifetime to fly in Borneo he dropped everything, even his precious competition schedule, packed everything up and headed off in search of adventure.

Another pilot whose addiction to paramotoring is burning strongly is Glenn Tupper. Last issue we joined him as he set out on a road trip through the States. This issue we follow him on the second part of that road trip, made in the weeks before he

headed off on a tour of duty. We follow him from the dramatic landscapes around the Hoover Dam, to the opulence of Hollywood and Malibu to the solitude of the dunes. Stay safe out there, Glenn.

Elsewhere we have Dean Eldridge on hand with some great advice on how to pack your paramotor for international jet travel. As Deano says, “I have had plenty of experience recently and have learnt some new things.” Can your paramotor really pack down into a sports holdall? Yes, it can.

Also in our Toolbox section Sascha Burkhardt takes a look at smoke generators. Suddenly everyone is at it. With the popularity of pylon racing competitions we are seeing more and more pilots flying with smoke. It adds greatly to the spectacle of the events and now with an off the shelf smoke generator available we will undoubtedly see many more pilots playing with smoke.

Right I’m out of here, time to feed that addiction.

Safe flights to all.

Marcus Kingeditor@paramotormag.com

4 PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | EdITION 30 EdITORIAL

Feeding the AddictionFeeding the AddictionFeeding the Addiction

Mainlining PPG. Photo: Jason Wright

Bailey AviationBellevue Farm • Old North Road • Bassingbourn • Royston • Herts • SG8 5JR • England

Tel: +44 (0) 1763 246660 • Fax: +44 (0) 1763 242777 • Web: www.baileyaviation.com • Email: sales@baileyaviation.comPARAMOTOR & ENGINE DESIGN, MANUFACTURE & ACCESSORIES

POWERFULLIGHTWEIGHT4-STROKE

Have you tried one yet?

FOOTDRAGPARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | EdITION 306 GALLERY

It’s fun, fast and furious but it can trip you up if you’re not careful. We asked Mathieu Rouanet for his advice on foot-dragging

FOOTDRAGGALLERY EdITION 30 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE 7

Cool, Wet GrassBefore going near water practice on wet, flat grass with no wind (wet sand is ok too, but worse for your prop). And before dragging your feet, perfect it at one metre, then 50cm, then 20cm.

KeeP tHe sPeeD UPMaintain high speed with trimmers a bit more open than neutral and fully open if your glider allows you to have good control in this position. Have a few centimetres on the brakes. Speed will allow

you to be responsive in lift if needed. With a bit of brake applied you can ‘absorb’ small mistakes and stay level.

MaNaGe YoUr rPMMaintain your rpm to maintain your level. Adjust rpm by quick, slight responses of +/- 200rpm to be accurate. If you make a mistake, apply full power. Many people are not quick enough in the rpm response: remember, quick and slight, and full throttle. The most accurate foot-drag is a combination of both.

Emilia Plak heads for open water. Photo: Mathieu Rouanet

PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | EdITION 3030 USA

USA EdITION 30 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE 31

American DreamGlenn Tupper flies the Hoover Dam, parties like it’s 1999 in Las Vegas, drops in on

Charlie Sheen and soars the Pacific coastline. It’s wild, out west…

Dodging helicopters above the Hoover Dam. All photos: Glenn Tupper

PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | EdITION 3036 JORdAN

Once again, the scenery was breathtaking

The moon-like landscape of Wadi Rum. All photos: Daniel Moench

Dan and Jean-Michel taking off Heavy traffic

JORdAN EdITION 30 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE 37

DesertKingdom

On the hunt for a location for an international flying festival Daniel Moench goes exploring in Jordan, and finds clear skies, a warm welcome – and great food

Heavy traffic Old-school inspiration

PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | EdITION 3040 MAlAysIA

“”

We discovered villages on water in the middle of coral reefs

The Tun Sakaran Marine Park, Malaysia. Photo: Cede Prudente

MAlAysIA EdITION 30 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE 41

In September last year Nirvana’s Pavel Brezina was asked to act as an advisor on a TV documentary in Malaysia. How could he say no?

NO LIMIT

PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | EdITION 3046 PROFILE

The paramoTorwill play a‘huge, hugeparT’

Andy Campbell at home in Scotland. All photos: Andy Campbell collection

NO LIMIT“So I started looking and thinking, ‘Bloody hell,

to get across the Gobi is going to be an absolute nightmare’.”

The Gobi desert is the stuff of nightmares if you’re planning a round the world trip like Andy Campbell is. It stretches 1,500km through Mongolia and into China at an altitude of up to 1,500m, in winter temperatures plummet to –40C while in summer they peak at 50C. Unlike deserts of the imagination it’s not sandy like the Sahara, it’s rocky, like the surface of Mars. It is a key part of the trip that Andy is planning. “At the moment Mongolia weighs heavily on my mind,” he says. “I’m looking forward to getting past Mongolia.”

Andy Campbell broke his back in an abseiling accident in 2004. “I’m quite thankful that I’ve got no one to blame but myself,” he says now. “It was poor placement of an anchor … I’d set up a belay around a boulder on top of a crag … the rope came up over the boulder and I just piled in.” He was paralysed from the waist down “in a second” and then spent seven months in hospital “staring at the ceiling”.

A soldier and outdoor sportsman before the accident, one of his first thoughts after paralysis was, “How am I going to get to the hills now?”

Somehow he worked it out. His short expedition promo clip online shows him paragliding, doing amazing things on a sit-ski and racing downhill on an off-road handcycle.

Now Andy is going around the world. His original idea was to cycle around the world in a handcycle but that then morphed into a bigger project. “I started thinking, What if I could use the wind to get across the Gobi? A blokart or kite buggy, or fly?”

His idea took shape and he now plans to travel through Europe, Russia and China before crossing the sea to Alaska and travelling south to the tip of South America. He will use alternative methods of transport and stay off road as much as he can. Kayaking, handcycling, kite buggying and paramotoring will all feature. “Basically I’m taking all these pieces of equipment along with me to replace the use of my legs in different situations.

“Rather than avoiding obstacles and terrain I can look at the route and take advantage of geography.”

PROFILE EdITION 30 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE 47

Andy Campbell is planning to travel around the world using his wheelchair, kayak and the wind. Ed Ewing spoke to him

No limiT

Fixed wing aircraft have always used smoke at airshows. It’s great for spectators because it adds to the spectacle and helps

people understand what’s going on.

They can follow the smoke and be impressed without having to know anything about what’s going on in the cockpit, or how

impressive the pilot’s micro control of the ailerons is. It’s just a big jaws-on-the-floor Wow! moment.

Spotting a great thing paramotorists have adopted trails too, in particular during slalom competitions. We all know just how much those Parabatix boys love their smoke, but is it something for recreational pilots, and if so, how do we get to paint trails, chase our tails and generally muck around with the stuff?

HOW IT WORKSEarly smokers used smoke flares meant for signalling. These are the same ones often used by paraglider acro pilots, but unfortunately they last for a very short time.

As pilots of powered craft however, we have an easier option. Our motors have an exhaust, which is an ideal ‘smoke pump’. Simply by pumping paraffin oil through a small nozzle into the exhaust manifold we can generate as much smoke as we want.

That’s the basic theory, but of course it gets better than that. It’s possible to use other liquids and mixtures to change the quality of the smoke and prolong how long it lingers. Some master smoke mixers such as Jens ‘Higgy’ Hicken of Para Zoom have even concocted their own mix recipes

over the years. These recipes are kept under lock and key and are as closely guarded as the Queen of England’s crown jewels, but Higgy claims to have once drawn a smoke circle at low altitude that was still visible ten minutes later. We can only imagine what could have gone into that mix.

Meanwhile, Eckhart Milsch of Fresh Breeze has found a mix that produces smoke that is a little less durable but has the added advantage of being very inexpensive. His secret is that he uses coolant that he gets for free from junkyards. Anyone who has ever driven behind a car with a cracked cylinder head will be familiar with the smoke generated.

Obviously this experimentation has to be done very carefully. Some pilots have experimented with diesel, and on at least one known occasion

PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | EdITION 3050 TOOLBOX

TOOLBOX//Smoke and mirrorS Blow it out! Sascha Burkhardt looks at how to leave a trail

Smoke in the paramotor field at St Hilaire. Photo: Marcus King

have found not only smoke but also flames coming out of the exhaust. Please be careful out there. Strangely enough this doesn’t seem to happen when using paraffin oil, even though it is also a flammable oil.

COLOUR IT INOne thing that you will notice is that, so far, all the Smokin’ Joe paramotor pilots only produce white smoke. We haven’t seen pilots use different colours to create the Italian Tricolori (green, white and red) or the French Patrouille (blue, white and red). Theoretically this is possible: google for it and you will find recipes that use indigo pigments or methylene blue. If you go this route, just be aware that traces of paraffin oil can often be found on the paramotor after flight and any pigments may permanently mark your kit. That’s ‘permanently’.

FLYSTYLE'S SMOKE MACHINEMost paramotor pilots who have started smoking are using a new smoke generator made by Flystyle, an offshoot of Czech paramotor manufacturer Nirvana. It was initially developed for the company’s display team, well known for their shows at flight festivals worldwide.

The Flystyle smoke generator consists of a plastic bottle that fits inside a neoprene holder and a small pump that is powered by four AA batteries. A simple on-off push switch is mounted on the throttle, so the pilot can easily add smoke by squeezing the switch.

The smoke generator comes complete with a special oil mixture for white smoke. According to Nirvana it is made using a special process that means not only is it visible but that it has a distinctive vanilla smell too. We’re not sure whether this is a good thing, but it is original.

“ ”Flames coming out of the exhaust

Blow your own. FlyStyle's smoke machine. Photo: Sascha Burkhardt

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