Gerolf Heinrichs <<gerolfontour>>
writes:

With the European flying season on its way, our “Adventure Flying Project” is
about to go into its third year. Originally starting out with only a small
number of master classes in the very heart of Austria, Zhenya and I soon
realized we would (a) have to expand our cross country flying play ground, and (b) extend
our course variety to cope with the unexpectedly strong response.

In a nut shell: Our Adventure Flying courses aim at making non-alpine pilots
familiar with the particularities of high Alpine cross country flying, and will introduce
them to a remote and fascinating world of flying. A world, one would have a hard
time, but to enter and enjoy without proper guidance or years of local
experience.

“No alpine experience” now sure covers a lot of ground, and consequently
requested us to offer and conduct courses for different skill levels. To this
date we distinguish between “introductory” and “advanced” pilot levels. Yet, so
far, we successfully managed to place everyone into their respective course –
always trying to make sure pilots would neither get bored nor scared with the
tasks I would have in mind on the given day.

If you feel you could be interested in one of these Adventure Flying courses,
but worry this could be just another cross country clinic, you can already relax. My
courses resemble very little similarity to the so-called cross country clinic concept.

Mostly, because I perceive my Adventure flying groups as gaggles of pilots which
I just happen to lead and guide - and not as a number of patients who get
charged to be diagnosed by Dr. HangGliding for their possibly “neurotic“ flying
behavior :-)

Also, my own experience with cross country clinics is that they tend to be loaded with 
“concern-talk”. While providing plenty of sitting together they often contain
very little flying together.  But sitting out days on the hill and blaming
imperfect conditions for it, is just not my idea of a great time.

As for the general course schedule now: Every Adventure Flying class runs over a
period of a week, and – for the flying part of it – is conducted very similar to
a typical National league competition training.

Starting with a morning briefing where the weather and the overall plan for the
day was explained, we would eventually decide for a take-off location and meet
there early enough to allow for an extensive weather analysis and task briefing.
Setting tasks, working on alternatives and considering various safety outs in
case wind and weather was not cooperating to plan would soon be a familiar
procedure to the participants.

The flights themselves are conducted like air started races, with a pre-declared
start time, a number of optional guiding points and some compulsory turn points
as well as a final goal, of course. I fly every task with the group, giving
hints and comments via radio. My aim is to explain WHY we go here and not there,
and this way hopefully bring as many participants as possible around the course
– but since the tasks can be challenging this is far from being a sure thing.

All participants are provided with 66-channel data loggers as to facilitate
extensive flight analysis during evenly de-briefings. We also have heart rate
monitors in use, which allow to link typical stress patterns to specific flying
behavior and situations.

On the side we take photos and video footage from participants’ launches and
landings (if possible), as well as lending out GoPro equipment and mounts, in
order to acquire technical as well as scenic video material for later use.

Lectures and discussion on a vast variety of hang gliding related subjects -
preferably held during evening sessions  - are rounding off the course
activities.

If all this got you interested enough, please check out:
http://adventure-flying.hginsider.com 
for more detailed course information, or scroll through our Facebook site:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Adventure-Flying/357094734407623.