More photos cont...

Ramesh landing at the bottom of chotta hill

More photos from the first batch of Basic course

Climbing up to the chotta hill

Resting under the Big Banyan

Big Banyan chill out at we wait for the winds to die down

Ground handling session at the Big Banyan

Nandhi Hills Flying Permission

Dear All,

on 24th Jan, 2009 me and Arvind visited Horticulture dept at Lalbagh and DC office at Chikaballapur. Both the officers were not available to put our case and subsequently we have got the contact nos of these officers.

Horticulture dept head : Mr Vasnath Kumar - Director Ph: 26571925 (Direct) & 26579231 extn 202

Mr Anvar Pasha - DC

PA to DC Mr Salim 9880926617 & 08156 262001

Today me & Narendra met Mr Vasanth Kumar and he speaks typical government language and he says we need to take permission from all concerned depatments for flying!!! We asked him to give permission from his side then he says let him speak to Special Officer who stays at Nandhi hills to know the complete case & whether it comes under his jurisdiction to give any permissions. As of him they have control over 90 acres of land which is within boundery of Nandhi hills. Other part comes under forest and as per him, we may have to take permission from DC. We have to contact Mr Vasanth Kumar next week to know the developments.

In the mean time we have to visit DC's office this Friday to know whether there is any official order restricting paragliding at Nandhi hills. If DC clears from his side, there should not be much problems in speaking to horticulture department.

Let's hope for the best.

Regards

Venu

Crosswinds Massala

Nandi Take Off in Cross Winds from Dipankar Roy on Vimeo.


There is nothing more amusing as an after-thought than the memory of a near perfect crosswind take off. At the same place and the same time a week earlier I was all over the place trying to orient a glider that was determined to come up sideways. Of course it helps to learn from mistakes. Vrata pointed out on the previous occasion that I was tugging the brakes even before the glider came over head. So, this time I was determined to make it right. On the hill and in strong winds the wing will react fast to brakes so braking has to be at a minimum and subtle. I pulled the risers and let the wing come up on its own - its better to wait till the glider is overhead because at that point its not as wild as while its in the arc while coming up (Note to myself: the way I pulled the risers was not correct, I was tugging it towards myself when I should have stepped back a bit and pulled it upwards, will fix it next time). You will notice in the video that just after I turned around, for a brief moment, I was trying to bend forward and keep my arms behind. However, I was airborne in a split second so I had to correct my position accordingly.

The view from the ridge above has a calming effect. The rush you feel at the take off slowly dilutes and the mind now concentrates on two things - Left Brake and Right Brake. It takes a while to get into a rhythm with the beats and the turns and keeping track of other pilots. Then, you look around and start to enjoy the view. Once in a while you watch a bird fly by under you and you realize what a wonderful sport this is. Just so that I am in their good books, I thanked the hill and a bird that was soaring with me before I left the ridge and headed for the landing field.

I left the ridge a few minutes too late not realizing that it may take a while to lose height over the landing zone. It took me a good 8-10 minutes of figure of 8's and a few 360's to get down. The lights were just about switched off for the day when I touched down. I packed my glider in complete darkness, well, maybe my teeth were shining because I was grinning from ear to ear after the wonderful flight.

New year flying at nandi

caught my first thermals of 2006 in the col between the two hills at nandi. Light thermals that kicked in only around 3 in the afternoon. My first morning flight was top to bottom. Took off from the north east take off which had cross winds. They were easterly winds that were wrapping around and providing a lot of downdrafts.
My second flight inthe afternoon i took off from the south east launch and although my takeoff left little to desire I manage to recover a slip and take off clean. Went towards my right and started searching for thermals on the bowl between the two hills. That is where in the morning I had found something. There was a light thermal that just about kept me even. My old wing, weighed down by my reserve and instruments, didn't give me much to hope for. So after a few circles I headed further south towards the second hill... but I lost too much and eventually I had to turn towards the landing and end there for the day. Still it was a good start. i am looking forward to February when the temperatures will be a little higher. I still aim for a decent x-country flights westwards before summer hits us.

First flight in india

Hello I am starting this blog in order to let loose my findings and experience flying in India. I am going to be in Bangalore for work and got in touch with the local paragliding club. They are flying on a regular basis in Nandi Hill, 60km north of the city. Here are a few pics of my first flight towards the end of the monsoon. This was back in october.


this is Naren, one of the fouding members of the club taking off



a final word of thanks to co-founder pilot Vinay who gracefully lent me his carabiners as i had left mine home. As i had not flown for a while and had removed all extra weight from my paraglider when i flew into bangalore from paris, in haste i had forgottten to put them back on. So many thanks Vinay!