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A number of years ago I listened to hang glider pilot Carl Driesen describe how by ‘joining the dots’ it may be possible to fly 100km in Auckland. Several years later a lot of us listened in awe of how he completed his flight from Muriwai to Mercer, just short of 100km. My thought at the time was there was no way an Auckland paraglider could do anything similar without committing time to a trip to Hawkes Bay or further afield.

Took a few pix whilst I was Para-waiting yesterday.

Dills Pix - 22/3

Crusty HG pilots struggling with technologyAfter missing out the previous weekend as HG league was postponed, don't ask me why, and making some bad calls weather-wise prior to that, I was desperately keen to get in some thermal flying. League was called for Kaimais and weather forecast looked good.

Paeroa briefing

Raglan Harbour At the AGM on Friday night, several of us thought that the forecast looked promising for the following day and decided Pukemore was a good option.

The morning's forecast seemed to differ a little from the previous evening, with more of an easterly wind swinging to the northeast as the day went on. Pukemore was still our target. A quick check of the site record showed Russell Read had flown 61Km on 06.02.99 - about time we updated that one, I thought.

It took a while for the conditions to be right, us to be home, Paddy to be available, and me to not flying myself. Her birthday was October last year and we flew on 4th May. Conditions were ideal and there were a quite a few pilots and other tandems happening at the same time. I was forunate as I got to go flying at the same time. Unfortunately I had my camera on too short a string and couldn't get my eye close to it to frame a shot. Still she had a great fly and really enjoyed getting `hands on' the control bar. It was fun and really easy I was informed.

cheers

Les

Jafaland Aviation

This is a story published several years ago but may be of historical interest.

"If I die I may not go to heaven,
Cause I don't know if they let cowboys in,
If they don't then let me go to Texas,
Cause Texas is the closest place I've been."

While my sentiments may not concur with this Texas crooner, that special aviation feeling is activated when surveying Auckland from cloudbase. Some may dismiss this as the incurable blood condition known as Bombay Blindness. But getting that thermal on the other side of Dome Valley and heading north never fails to please. By way of a trip down memory lane (older pilots must be regularly indulged in this respect) here is my list of memorable hang gliding cross country flights starting somewhere between the Brendrwyns and the Bombays.