No. 407 MARCH 2023 The magazine of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association2 SKYWINGS MARCH 2023 Many women entering the sport now will have been taught on their CP course by some brilliant female instructors. But those who were, and those who have also spent time climbing, long-distance swimming, fell running, mountain biking, surfing or skiing, find themselves shocked to find women so under-represented once they are standing on launch. There are lots of reasons why we should be working so much harder to change this. Not only because we should all aspire to be part of a society, including a paragliding society, that is inclusive and diverse – enriching all of our experiences in doing it – but because, in a world where performance in sport is so gendered, paragliding is unique. There is no gender divide in competition entries, and no physiological reason why men and women cannot perform at the same level. And that increases competition, improves standards, and makes for a better environment in which to fly. There are some signs of change. 2019 saw the first female pilot take part in the X-Alps, and the 2022 paragliding World Cup saw a record-breaking 35 female pilots in a field of 120. There are some fantastic women pilots coming into this sport, and some amazing women pilots taking podium spots in the big competitions. But women are still vastly outnumbered. So what are the reasons why more women aren’t taking to the skies? There is a standard list of assumptions. It’s not safe, sensible, warm, or comfortable. It eats time, it’s not seen as family-friendly – requiring your partner to spend the day looking after the kids – and it’s expensive. But women are perfectly capable of managing risk, adapting to hardship, and fitting their pastimes around their families. The assumptions are not just sexist but also wrong. The better question is why the women who you might think would be tempted (the climbers, fell runners, mountain bikers, motorcyclists, skiers, surfers, canoeists, sailors, skydivers, etc) don’t try it. These are women who are adventurous, outdoorsy, and well used to a physically and mentally demanding sporting environment. Paragliding can offer a lot to such people. It also does not necessarily require significant physical fitness. And with airtime comes experience; it is a sport that can be practiced long into later life. With so many positives, why does it not see as many women involved as some of the others mentioned? A crash video shared among the paragliding community last year provoked some intense discussion. The video showed a mid-air collision between two pilots, one male and one female, who fortunately then descended to safety under one reserve. What followed, in some club chat groups, was an analysis of what went wrong: diagrams of thermalling appropriately, a discussion about how things could have been handled better. But in others an almost exclusive focus on apportioning blame, directed principally at the female pilot – ‘Wtf was she doing?’ – her ‘terrible’ flying and her psychological state. The paragliding equivalent of a discussion about ‘women drivers’. The inclusion of gender on incident reports is information irrelevant to an understanding of what happened, and yet is still a routine feature. Some clubs have a ‘name and shame’ sort of culture where those who infringe rules are called out on public forums, or a blame culture when it comes to comments on incident footage. For smaller women, choosing and buying kit is harder due to weight ranges and the choice is more limited. None of these things on their own would deter many women, but together they can create an environment which, although not actively hostile, contributes to a feeling that free flight is not a place where women will feel comfortable and at home. Being in the minority, many women pilots who feel that way are not likely to speak up, particularly in a public forum. There needs to be a different approach. There may be those who read this and think this is woke nonsense or that it’s a non-issue. But it isn’t nonsense, and it is an issue, because there will be many who respond by saying that they would do anything to encourage an environment that better supported all entrants into the sport, whoever they are. And there will also be many (including the men and women pilots who contributed ideas to this article) who read this and agree … To get women involved, in numbers where their participation is seen as par for the course rather than exceptional, we need to spend some time focusing on what is going to make the most positive and successful change. If we want to encourage more women, we need to create spaces where women will assume they will fit in. Creating women-only spaces, either virtually (there is a terrific women’s Telegram group that does that) or physically, with taster days or flying days aimed at women, showing off the magic of free flight to a broader community, and making the club environment a place where women will feel equally at home as men, is one way forward. Promoting women pilots on social media and featuring female pilot profiles in magazines, including photographs of the some of the talented female pilots that are out there, rather than the occasional coincidental photograph of a woman standing beside a man, will help too. But we also need to understand the issue in more detail. There needs to be research into the pilot retention and progression statistics, focus on shifting the dial in terms of the external profile of women in the sport, and research to understand exactly what would attract new entrants. This isn’t an issue just for the governing bodies. It is a call to action for all of the clubs in the flying community to consider what more they could be doing. Promoting a supportive, inclusive and encouraging atmosphere for all is perhaps the best objective. The likely result is not just greater numbers of women joining the sport, but a more supportive environment to all new pilots, which is ultimately going to be better for everyone. Photo: Chris Begle y attitude Women in paragliding KATE SCOTT, CLUB PILOT There’s no denying it, female pilots are in a significant minority in paragliding. If you search the last 12 issues of Skywings, over half have fewer than two women who appear in any shape or form in the magazine. And three issues in the last year had absolutely no photographs of women at all. On launch, the story isn’t too different. Often there will be just one or two women out of 40+ pilots on the hill. It is changing slowly, but the time has come for the paragliding community to ask itself why it isn’t changing more quickly, and whether we should be doing something to promote this fantastic sport to a much more diverse group of people.4 SKYWINGS MARCH 2023 regulars regulars reviews features MARCH 2023 SKYWINGS 5 THE BHPA LTD 8 Merus Court, Meridian Business Park, Leicester LE19 1RJ. Tel: 0116 289 4316. SKYWINGS MAGAZINE is published monthly by the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association Ltd to inform, educate and entertain those in the sports of Paragliding and Hang Gliding. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the British Hang Gliding and Paragliding Association, their Council, Officers or Editor. The Editor and publisher accept no responsibility for any supposed defects in the goods, services and practices represented or advertised in this magazine. The Editor reserves the right to edit contributions. ISSN 0951-5712 SUBSCRIPTIONS AND DELIVERY ENQUIRIES Tel: 0116 289 4316, THE EDITOR Joe Schofield, 39 London Road, Harleston, Norfolk IP20 9BH. Tel: 01379 855021. COVER PHOTO Steve Varden and Flylight Dragonfly/Discus 15T SSDR over a disused quarry at Nether Kellet, Lancaster. Photo: Steve Varden THIS PAGE Josh Coombs approaches Mynydd Troed in during a BCC task last July Photo: Josh Coombs DESIGN & PRODUCTION Fargher Design Ltd. Killane House, Ballaugh, Isle of Man, IM7 5BD. PRINT & DISTRIBUTION Newman Thomson Ltd, One Jubilee Rd, Victoria Ind. Est, Burgess Hill, RH15 9TL. ADVERTISING Tel: 07624 413737 SKYWINGS ONLINE All issues of Skywings magazine are now freely available DEADLINES News items and event/competition reports for the May issue must be submitted to the Skywings office by Monday April 3rd. Letters for the April Airmail pages should arrive no later than Friday March 17th. Advertisement bookings for the April edition must arrive by Friday March 10th. Copy and classified bookings no later than the following Friday March 17th.6 SKYWINGS MARCH 2023 news Ozone’s new winglets First introduced on their Triox 2 tandem trike wing, winglets are now appearing on at least two of Ozone’s newest gliders. They say they have proved to be an effective way of improving roll stability, without compromising handling or side collapse behaviour. Roll can be a particular issue with heavily-loaded paramotor wings, especially with some combinations of high thrust and high hang-points. Further testing at Ozone has revealed that winglets also have a positive influence on spiral stability on free-flight wings, with obvious safety implications. This is especially true for lower aspect ratio wings; spiral neutrality has been the cause of many accidents and fatalities over the years. ‘Winglets can significantly reduce the chances of remaining neutral in deeply-engaged spirals,’ says Ozone designer Russ Ogden, ‘and can encourage a wing to exit on its own accord. For these reasons we decided to implement them on the Moxie, our new school/first wing.’ [Photo] The winglet idea has now made its way to the EN C class, appearing on Ozone’s latest two-liner, the Photon. ‘It benefits in terms of higher levels of roll stability at full speed, for more efficient gliding,’ says Russ, ‘and also with improved spiral characteristics. However in terms of glide and sink rate performance we have been unable to measure a difference. If there is one, it is very small.’ The Photon was scheduled to be unveiled at the Stubaï Cup on March 4th. Winglets have been a feature of Advance paragliders since the early 1990s. Although widely regarded as simply a unique distinguishing feature, Advance are on record as saying that they do marginally reduce drag and improve glide. Bordairrace! This year’s Bordairrace Hike & Fly series takes place at Aflenz in central Austria (May 5th-7th), Kössen in the Tyrol (June 2nd-4th) and Pfunds near the Swiss border (June 30th-July 2nd). New this season is the Masters category for athletes who are 50 or older. First run in 2008, the race gives entrants 33 hours to fly or walk/run the greatest possible distance between the start point, their personal self-declared turnpoint and the finish line. Distances of over 200km have been covered in the past, sometimes with 100km – and 3000m of altitude gain – on foot. Classes are Overall, Ladies, Rookies, Tandem, Unsupported and Fun (up to EN B). Often seen as an apprenticeship to the X-Alps, the Nova- sponsored Bordairrace series taxes fitness, high-order piloting, tactical nous and weather knowledge – and the need to know where your own personal limits lie. The first challenge is to secure an entry; it normally sells out within hours of opening. Registration each event. Don’t hesitate! Ollie is third at Forbes Brit Ollie Chitty finished third at Australia’s Forbes Flatands comp in January. Against a background of heavy local flooding, a slightly later date than usual allowed the comp to go ahead as the waters receded. With only 20 pilots in the Open Class, three tugs provided a good launch rate. Eventual winner Attila Bertok (Hungary), Olav Opsanger (Norway) and Guy Hubbard (Australia) each won two tasks apiece, out of six ranging from 130 to 160km. Ollie’s second place in the final task was enough to secure third overall. Australian Stuart McElroy (Gecko) won three tasks out of six, averaging 50km, to take the Sports Class title. [Photo: Vicki Cain] BHPA engages with skydivers On January 28th BHPA tech officers Mark Shaw and Dave Thompson manned a stand at the Skydive Expo in Nottingham, displaying equipment lent by Ozone and by Alistair Andrews at Crickhowell Paragliding. They reported non-stop engagement with the many skydivers interested in speedflying. A paramotor on display also received a lot of interest. They had hoped to display a hang glider too but there wasn’t enough room. Next time! MARCH 2023 SKYWINGS 7 The 50th Coupe Icare! The St Hilaire festival will celebrate its 50th edition this September. From small beginnings in 1974, the event now attracts around 50,000 spectators, and 200 exhibitors at its trade fair. A team of 1,300 volunteers organises the flying, the displays, the sideshows, the trade fair, the masquerade fly-down – the Coupe Icare itself – and the fabled film festival. It’s not to be missed; everyone in this sport should soak up the intoxicating St Hilaire atmosphere at least once in their life. It’s the flyingest thing ever – and it’s very French! Dates are September 19th-24th; details are at In brief Woolacombe closure. The North Devon Club’s Woolacombe site will be closed in late May and early June to accommodate the Wavelength Woolacombe Spring Classic festival – live music, surf, skate, ride culture and van life! – behind the main take-off. The hill will be closed for flying from June 1st-4th and a couple of days either side. Potential visitors please take note. Paragliding Comps dates. The British Open is underway at Castelo, Brazil, as you read this. The British Sports Class Trophy runs at St Jean Montclar, France, on June 10th-16th; the British Paragliding Championships will run at Ager in Spain on September 2nd-9th. For BHPA subs rise. Members may recall that last year some of the surplus the Association had made was used to cushion the impact of rapidly increasing costs. Looking forward to 2023/ 2024, the BHPA Exec has faced difficult decisions over subs levels, not least due to an anticipated £40k increase in our insurance premium. As a result subs have been raised by around 10%. Inflation (CPI) is currently at 10.1%. Individual annual membership will go up to £164. Also Family, £148; Concessionary (under 21/over 67), £144; and Non Flying, £60. 1-day Introductory membership will be £25 (under 21: £5); 3-months introductory Trial Membership, £95; Joining/Rejoining fee £30. The DD discount for annual subs remains at £7. The Dual Pilot (Paraglider) and Instructor Supplements are £99; the TI Supplement is unchanged at £30. The new rates will be effective from April 1st 2023. BHPA 500 Club WIN CASH PRIZES AND HELP THE ASSOCIATION! January winners Michael Paice £130.80 Rodney Latham £65.40 Robert Bradley £32.70 Mike Cowley £19.62 David Hayes £16.35 Wayne Gregory £16.35 Mike Hibbit £13.08 Gareth Pope £13.08 John Blofield £9.81 Richard Davis £9.81 BHPA £327.00 If by the time you read this you have not received your cheque, please contact me on 07802 525099. Marc Asquith8 SKYWINGS MARCH 2023 product news Moxie EN A Ozone’s Moxie is a new design, aimed at ab-initios and newly- qualified pilots seeking to progress with ease and safety. They claim extremely easy launching (‘simply walk forward’), intuitive handling, a deep and forgiving flare and a significant performance gap over the Element3. Features include a new thinner profile, double-transverse leading edge shaping, minimal line drag, vibration-free cell openings … and winglets to improve roll and spiral stability (see page 6). Five sizes cover all-up weights from 50- 135kg; the M siz (75-105kg) weighs in at 5.05kg. The Moxie is available from all Ozone dealers; details are at Versatile Anda BGD describe their new EN A Anda as ‘a companion spirit for hike- and-flyers, travellers and escapees of the nine-to-five.’ It’s pretty light – 3.22kg for the M size (75-95kg). Unusual here is that each size remains certificated at EN A at higher weights. Within the standard weight range, each of its five sizes offers good sink rate and thermalling ability, with the ability to float and turn flat in weak conditions. In the extended weight range the glider is faster and more dynamic, more suited to mountain descents or soaring in higher winds, but still an EN A with easy launching and safe manners. Aspect ratio of the 37-cell wing is 4.8; risers are 12mm Kevlar and softlinks are standard. Anda’s five sizes accommodate all-up weights from 50kg to 130kg. Details from BGD dealers everywhere and at SuSi 4 In its latest incarnation, AirDesign’s bespoke hike-and-fly wing is close to being all things to all people. They claim easier launching, greater durability, more stability at speed and really small packing size. This is achieved by a new shark-nose profile and Nitinol rods, a new riser system with B-C control, and more robust construction. Aspect ratio is 4.86, cell count is 34, weight (21m size) is 2.86kg (even less with optional softlink risers). The certification is comprehensive … but complex. Four sizes from 18 to 26m are certificated EN A at modest weights, and EN B at around 10kg higher load. The two smallest sizes start at B, but with substantially increased loadings end up at EN C (16) or D (14). Thus lots of room to balance weight, intended use and pilot ability. Available now from AirDesign dealers in all six sizes, retailing at around 3,600 euros. Info is at New Ozone EN C two-liner Ozone revealed their new wingletted EN C wing at the Stubaï Cup in early March. Nearly two years in development, they say that the Photon offers speed and glide comparable to many EN D wings and close to that of the Zeno2. However its usability, comfort, stability and collapse-recovery behaviour place it in the EN C category. The 71-cell 2-liner has an aspect ratio of 6.5 (4.7 projected). Six sizes cover all-up weights from 60-130kg; weight of the ML (90-105kg) size is 4.98kg. Available very soon from all Ozone dealers; details are at Nikita XTC Icaro have released a 6th-generation ‘defused’ version of their Nikita acro wing. The XTC can be flown by a wide range of pilots and can execute all acro manoeuvres. Icaro say it has an ‘original technical innovation’ built in, although it’s not clear what this actually is. The XCT is also available in special trim for competition flying. It will eventually be available in four sizes, led by the 18 and 20m models with 17 and 22.5m sizes to follow. There will probably be no certification, and size suitability will be very weight dependent. More information is at New paraglider tow release Nova have developed the Tow & Go, a lightweight DHV-certificated fabric release system weighing just 62g. Despite its simplicity it allows for the use of speed bar during the tow, if needed, and a hard-anodised aluminium ring fitted in the release line prevents asymmetrical pull. Info is at Quick facts ab bout the NG series: (²) Surface )(k Max load )iht (k)iht (k NG NG light The world´s leading rescue systems Use of high-q• even at low sp g, g • Available in 3 certified acco • New, innovativ • Excellent sink to a jump from • Very reliable o • Intelligent, ligh uality lightweight materials peeds gp sizes as NG and in the light ver rding to EN12491 ve X-Flare concept for high effic k rates, each just over 5 m/s, equ m a height of about 1.3 m opening and extremely good pe htweight construction for fast op pg , NG 14 NG 12 flfhX NG 10 rsion NG light, ciency uivalent endulum stability penings, 33 14040 Serie 2912020 Serie 2510000 Serie (m²)g)(k 1,49 1,85 1,3 18 1,6 ,1 g) 1,45 g)weight (k concept -FlareX- s to the , thankface -Nearly flat top sur innovative X weight (k 1, for oL r fast opening w canopy height projected surface area bution across the large -geneous load distri --flares for homoX stability pendulum outlets for air defined Precisely concept. I’m no exception to this procedure, but I do have to pay more attention to each magazine, and month by month look for the best articles, features and stories between the pages. One copy stood head and shoulders above the other eleven. It was the November issue, which I’d highlighted across the front cover: Five Star Issue! The Attitude article, inside the front cover, enthralled me. Richard Barber wrote about his experiences of Hike & Fly, both abroad and on my home patch. I know all the sites he mentioned. Catching a train from his home to Pewsey one summer evening, walking 5km to a flying site and then sleeping in his bivvy bag on top of the hill till morning broke, was the kind of adventure I relish. Incidently, he flew over 100km the next day! I then read, in Hang Points, Christo Tracey’s account of six days at the very wet and windy BOS 2 hang gliding event. The wind didn’t deter those pilots who, rather than mope about, managed to borrow old wings and go dune-gooning at Aberavon. As Christo wrote: ‘For years now the BOS has advertised itself as an XC flying competition, and we are habitually dragged out to fly on days we otherwise might look twice at.’ Then followed accounts of the European Paragliding Championships, the British Paragliding Cup, the European Paragliding Accuracy Championships and, further into the magazine, Flight testing Lilienthal’s Experimental Glider spread over three pages. All a very good read. But, for me, the icing on the cake, and winner of the Wings over a Cloud Award for 2022, was Robin Wallace’s 50k or Splash, the story of a three-hour-long, midsummer flight along the Jurassic coast. Robin, and Richie Taylor, joined up two classic coastal runs – Beer Head to Sidmouth, and Eype to Seaton – for the first time. The two beautiful cliff runs are separated by a flat coastal curve – Seaton Bay. At 3.5km wide it is a major challenge! But the two intrepid pilots crossed it successfully and linked up the two runs. A great account of an epic jaunt along this magnificent southern England coastline. To quote Robin: ‘[If you] make the crossing but too low to connect to the lift on the cliffs, then you land on a nudist beach! Get your kit off and go native.’ Mike Hibbit The BHPA ‘Wings Over a Cloud’ Award We all receive twelve copies of this prestigious magazine throughout the year, and we all look forward to it ‘flying’ through the letterbox and landing safely on our inside door mat. We all eagerly open the A4 white envelope and devour the contents of Skywings: our very own full-colour periodical, that informs and entertains us in equal measure. newsNext >