Flying Articles & Related Resources - Safety

No site is \"safe\"

All flying sites have a quirk that has the potential to jump up and bite you. I will cover all the sites that I know well in the next few days. This will be my opinion only - if you disagree or can improve or expand upon this information, that would be a \'good thing\' and most welcome.

Leckhampton Hill

Well, yes, it is a technical take off. In this case I think some pilots may well disagree with the following. Many pilots are taking off from the flat field a few hundred metres left of the normal take off. In my opinion a \"committed\" launch is *not* the answer. A few days ago I did 8 take-offs at this site. I recommend that you rig 30m from the edge of the ridge, then *forward* launch, walk towards the edge but stop 2m from it. If you are hoovered off, all well and good. If you are not, stand still until you are, or dump it. Running off the edge resulted in at least two pilots hitting the bushes just after the lip. Very dangerous. A front collapse caused by your sudden stop could cause a very big fall on this steep slope. This flies in the face of normal thinking. This is the Quirk of the site.

Comments or debate most welcome on the SmartGroup.

Selsley Common, Frocester, Malverns and Haresfield Beacon quirks will be revealed in next weeks exciting episode.

(And, if you know of a site that bites, do an article on it.)

Contributor's Notes:

Rich comments: I agree with Howard. it is for similar reasons to those expressed above that the BHPA are fools to support the ban on side launching from Hay Bluff. On both sites, you are effectively launching over a cliff.