“Having my coach at home helps a lot.” Alex Mateos, who won the FAI Paramotor World Championships in August, and his new wife, Marie, who won the Women’s title, reveal what it takes to be the Mr and Mrs of powered paragliding. See what’s in the rest of Issue 175 …read more
Category: para news
Icaristics: Bruce Goldsmith’s paragliding proverbs
From “Don’t change two things at once” to “If it’s flyable – then fly”, Bruce Goldsmith puts some of those wise old paragliding proverbs to the test – and sorts the essentials from the clichés. See what’s in the rest of Issue 175 …read more
Acro Worlds: New World Champion Francois Ragolski
“Fly a big glider first. Everyone is flying too small. “That is the big sickness of the acro scene just now. Everyone looks at us and they want the same. This is a big, big mistake.” New Acro World Champion François Ragolski tells us what it takes to be top of the class, how to […] …read more
Coupe Icare 2016: All the new gear for 2017
From Niviuk’s new Bi Skin 2 P tandem, which weighs just 3.3kg, to Skyman’s single skin Sir Edmund glider, which may soon be certified ENB, don’t miss our essential, bumper guide to all the new gear from this year’s Coupe Icare festival. See what’s in the rest of Issue 175 …read more
Profile: Paragliding Champion Honorin Hamard
At just 25, Honorin Hamard is the one pilot to rule them all. The current World and European Paragliding Champion capped an amazing season by winning the XContest online XC league by a margin of over 300 points. We got an audience with the champion’s champion himself. See what’s in the rest of Issue 175 …read more
Cross Country 175: November 2016
Flying scatters pilots to the ends of the Earth in search of that perfect flight, but the annual Coupe Icare festival in Saint Hilaire brings them back together again in a blaze of crazy costumes, high jinks – and green beer. It is a time to share stories (and the odd hangover), toast the flying […] …read more
Temporary closure of Monaco’s Lai Barai launch
The take-off of Laï Baraï in Monaco is closed to paraglider pilots between 10 October 2016 and 31 December 2016. The restriction has been put in place as a safety measure, as there will be a lot of helicopter activity associated with the Arme tunnel repairs on the A8 motorway below. It is a legal offence to fly from this […] …read more
Sky announce new EN-C Exos
Sky have announced a new EN-C paraglider, the Exos. They say it’s “true to its class” and not overly demanding to handle. Designed for experienced cross-country pilots, Sky say the Exos offers good performance and precise handling. A three-liner, the Exos has a flat aspect ratio of 6.4 and 65 cells. It features Sky’s Leading Edge Optimisation (LEO) […] …read more
Michael Küffer wins PWC La Réunion
Switzerland’s Michael Küffer won the la Réunion round of the 2016 Paragliding World Cup tour, flying a GIN Boomerang 10. Michael finished just 14 points ahead of 18-year-old Simon Pellissier (FR, Enzo 2). The young Frenchman won the last task of the competition, his first ever World Cup event. In third place was South Africa’s André Rainsford on a […] …read more
‘Thank you’ from Steve Nash’s family
Steve Nash’s wife Shirley has sent her thanks to the many people who attended Steve’s funeral at the end of September. In an email, which she asked us to share here, she said: “Thank you to everyone for attending the funeral and for coming to the celebration of Steve’s life afterwards. “I was so overwhelmed […] …read more