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PM
APRIL - MAY 2011
PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE EDITION 24
EDITION 24£6.50/€6.95/$8.95
EIGHT
SAMPLE
PAGES
INTERNATIONAL PARAMOTORING, PARATRIKE AND MOTORISED HANG GLIDING MAGAZINE
South of France • Tikal • Portugal • Edina Szabo • PPG Rescue • Moab Man • De-Coking • Flying low • KobraPPG Venom
THE
APRIL - MAY 2011
FLYING Tikal RUINS
+
FLYING THE SOUTH OF FRANCE, EDINA SZABO, PPG RESCUE, INTERNATIONAL ICE MEET,
SALTON SEA, WORLD RECORDS DOWN UNDER AND ALL THE PPG NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
CONTENTS - ISSUE 24
FEATURES
06SOUTH OF FRANCE
From marinas to mountain tops, Matthieu Colin reveals his favourite
places to fly in the south of France
Editor & Designer: Marcus King
Features Editor: Bob Drury
Assistant Editor: Ed Ewing
Sub and Online Editor: Charlie King
USA Correspondent: Jeff Goin
Regular Contributors: Dean Eldridge,
Edward Lichtner & Tracey Tarr
Advertising: Bob Drury
Subscriptions and Shop: Verity Sowden
Accounts: Paul Mungavin & Carol Harrison
32TICKET TO TIKAL
Horacio Llorens and Thomas de Dorlodot fly the ancient Mayan ruins of
Tikal in Guatemala
38EDINA SZABO
‘I love it all!’ Hungary’s world record-holding, skydiving, paramotoring
sky goddess reveals why she just loves to fly
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42RACING THE TIDE
Paul Kilburn helped save seven people’s lives last summer with extremely
brave piloting – and then kept it quiet. He told his story to Ed Ewing
ADVERTISING
Contact Bob Drury at [email protected]
46TOOLBOX
How to get the best buzz out of low flying safely, and how to de-coke your
motor
CONTRIBUTING
Send your articles and photos to
[email protected] and your news to
[email protected].
52PARAMOTOR TEST BED: KobrAPPG VENOM
CONTACTING US
Edward Lichtner tests KobraPPG's latest motor unit based on the Polini
Thor engine. Does the Venom have some bite?
Paramotor Magazine
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REGULARS
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COVER
Above the Tikal ruins, Guatamala.
Photo: Red Bull Photo Files
PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | Edition 24
04
12 16 20 24 28
30
54 55
56 58 Unit Conversions
ABOVE
Low flying in the Glamis Dunes, US.
Photo: David Rouault / RS Ultra
2
EDITORIAL
IGNITION: Global News
STARS AND STRIPES: US Focus
BEST OF BRITISH
NEW PRODUCTS: BMW engined trike
READERS' GALLERY
COCKPIT TALES
MINI REVIEWS: Parabatix the DVD
Paramotor Magazine Directory
SUBSCRIBE AND SHOP
LOGBOOK: Tracey Tarr
Paramotor Magazine uses international standard measurement units, but recognises that other systems are in use
around the world. So here’s a quick conversion table to other commonly used measurement systems.
1 km -
0.625 miles
0°C
-
32°F
1 m
-
3.28 feet
20°C
-
68°F
1 kg -
2.2 pounds
40°C -
104°F
1 ltr
-
0.264 gallons
CONTENTS
NEW PRODUCTS
ADVENTURE
Adventure have released a new lithium-ion battery
that will power their electric starter systems
for 200 starts from one charge, offering 2,300
milliamps for 14.8 volts. It can be used with their
current X-race, XT and X-100 models, as well as
the older Raket, M and F motors and is half the
weight of an equivalent nickel metal hydride (NiMH)
battery. The battery costs €80, and the charger €59.
All Adventure’s paramotors have electric starters,
which they also sell as a kit to use on other
paramotors without them.
www.adventure.fr
KSOft
work and mechanical knowledge.” However, “the
advantages are much better fuel consumption,
less noise, more power, greater reliability and
ease of use.”
The engine kicks out 114bhp (84kW) at a total
weight of 160kg.
But what’s it like to fly? In Clemente’s own
words, “the feeling is indescribable, a mix
between riding a Harley Davidson and flying a S2A
Pitts Special. It is something ‘spiritual’”
The BMW Secure Land is available from
Clemente and their dealers for around €19,950.
Go to www.clementeparamotor.com for more
information. The site is in Spanish but has a
Google Translate facility built in. PM
POLINI
Polini have released a new manual throttle controller
that suits all paramotor engines. Its small and
ergonomic design fits easily in the hand, and a
Velcro band keeps it there. Made from thermoplastic
reinforced materials Polini say it is tough and durable,
withstanding crashes, scratches, corrosion and sudden
temperature changes. A steel sprung throttle trigger
instantly recoils if you let go, and the red power cut
button is positioned on the top of the handle where it
is accessible but cannot be pushed accidentally. The
electric start option requires two buttons to be pressed
at the same time, to avoid unintentional start-ups.
www.polini.com
IGNITION
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hat do you look for in any aviation
engine? Power and reliability must surely
rank high on any prospective purchaser's
tick list. Enter Clemente with the BMW powered
Secure Land trike.
The Secure Land trike is already available with the
Rotax 503 and several other ULM engines, but now
Clemente have upped the trike-game by integrating
the engine of a BMW R1200GS. The engine is a classic
BMW looking model with opposing twin cylinders and
a Bosch Motronic fuel injection system.
“I chose it for its reliability, low noise, good
fuel consumption, power and its lovely sound,”
designer Clemente told Paramotor Magazine,
adding, "the installation on a trike takes much
Edition 24 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE
M
Spanish manufacturer Clemente bring BMW power to the sport
The iVariometer is a vario / GPS app for iPhones and
iPads. Airspace information can be downloaded to it,
so you can see where you are in 3D and in real time
and avoid airspace infringements. It has an inbuilt
logbook and Flight Player, so you can replay your
flights from the comfort of the pub later on. Several
brands of conductive gloves are now on the market
to enable you to use touch screens with gloved
hands. In a video review published on YouTube, the
vario was deemed “sensitive” and the app given the
thumbs-up, despite a few “little bugs”.
www.apple.com/itunes
3
Horacio and Tom above Tikal. The city reached its peak during the 4th century AD,
around the same time as the Roman Empire in Europe was in decline.
6
PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | Edition 24
ADVENTURE
We had no water, no food, no insect repellent and
no protective clothing
TickettoTikal
“
The ancient Maya pyramids of Tikal in Guatemala get two
unusual visitors when Thomas de Dorlodot and
Horacio Llorens drop in from the sky
Words: Thomas de Dorlodot and Edward Lichtner
Photos: Red Bull
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If my engine dies out on me now, I'm in the worst trouble ever!” I can't
help repeating to myself, like a mantra, as I cruise over the Guatemalan
jungle. I’m on my way to the Tikal pyramids, rubbing wingtips with my fellow adventurer Horacio
Llorens. Sure, the flight is breathtakingly beautiful, but the stakes are high. Horacio and I are flying over a 30km
stretch of one of the thickest jungles on the planet, with no GPS signal likely to cut through the dense canopy of
trees to guide a rescue team in case one of us is forced to go down. To make matters worse, the area is home
to ‘narc-dealers’, involved in transforming the crude cocaine arriving from Colombia by plane before being sent
back towards the USA, from unofficial landing fields carved in the jungle. These guys have more weapons than a
Russian dealer at an arms trade show, and they don't take lightly to tourists turning up on their doorstep.
Edition 24 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE
IN
ADVENTURE
7
TOOLBOX//
LOW FLY ZONE
The rush of the ground beneath our feet is addictive, but as Sascha Burkhardt explains, things are more
complicated low down than high in the sky
S
kimming the ground, eyes watering with
the wind blasting your face, the feeling of
flying is so much more intense than up high.
Just a squeeze of power or a stab of the brakes
and you’re up and over obstacles before dropping
back down to drag your feet through the summer
grass again. With the ground rushing by just below
your feet, you feel like a fighter pilot as you swerve
around hay bales and circle trees. This is flying as
you dreamt of it. This is the childhood dream. But
with the rush of Peter Pan flying comes another
whole set of skills to contend with. Down low the
rules change: neither aerology, aerodynamics nor
even the flight rules are the same. Fascinated by
the game of low-level flying? Then read on to learn
all you need to know about this intoxicating style
of flying.
6
PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | Edition 24
AEROLOGY
The air low down often behaves differently to high
up. Even in the plains, the wind direction at the
ground is not the same as a few hundred metres
higher where the Coriolis effect turns it between
10 and 30 degrees to the right in the northern
hemisphere and to the left in the southern. The
cause of this is the decrease in friction with the
ground as you get higher, and is the same reason
that wind speed generally increases with height.
More importantly though, when flying close
to the ground there is always the danger of
turbulence behind obstacles. The lower we
are flying the more likely we are to encounter
turbulence flying in the wind shadow of an
obstacle. How dangerous that is depends on wind
speed, altitude and our distance from the obstacle.
WORKSHOP
A very gentle hill in a 5km/h wind often presents no
danger at all. On the other hand, just a large tree in
a 25km/h wind can collapse your wing. Experience,
combined with accurate and constant observation,
is required for any low-level flight, particularly if
you are going to cross into areas where the wind
is completely different. Keep wind indicators in
sight: crops, tree leaves, waves on water surfaces
and smoke plumes are all excellent and reliable
sources of information. Also watch your drift and
ground speed carefully to pick up on any change in
direction or speed.
AERODYNAMICS AND PILOTING
TECHNIQUES
The difference between flying with the wind or
against it at low levels can be enormous. Flying
to get yourself around quicker and back into wind.
The result though is that with the glider banked up
and such a heavy sink rate you pull a bit too hard
and spin the wing. Low down you need to accept
the extra distance you’ll fly during a downwind
turn and build this into your flight plan.
WIND GRADIENTS AND GROUND EFFECT
Close to the ground, wind gradients have to
be considered. We all know that in theory the
aerodynamics of our wing should be the same
whether we are flying into or with the wind.
When you are skimming the ground however, the
aerodynamics do change, especially with a wind
gradient. If there is a wind gradient then your wing
will almost certainly be passing through layers of
air that are moving at different speeds. This can
have a big effect on it.
To understand this better, visualise an extreme
wind gradient where 30m above the ground there
is 30km/h of wind, and just below it there is none.
You are flying your wing with a bit of brake on at
30km/h, so that your ground speed is zero.
At you descend and enter the nil-wind air below,
your wing will suddenly have no airspeed at all and
will be flying well below the stall point. It should
pitch forward and dive to regain the airflow it
needs around its profile to fly. What you will feel is
a sagging sensation as the wing’s airspeed drops
below the stall point, which should ring alarm
bells in your head and make you release any brake
you have left on, to help pitch the wing forward
into normal flight again.
We often feel this sagging sensation on windy
days and just presume it’s turbulence. In reality,
it’s our wing fighting with the wind gradient, going
from one air layer into the other. This is also the
reason why you should never make a landing
This is flying as you dreamt of it. This is
the childhood dream. But with the rush
of Peter Pan flying comes another whole
set of skills to contend with
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with 35 km/h airspeed into a 15km/h wind gives
you a ground speed of 20 km/h – a speed one
could probably touch down safely in if needed to.
Turn the other way though and you’ll be hurtling
along at 50km/h. Involuntary contact with the
ground at that speed will be disastrous. For novice
pilots the message is simple: if you are going to fly
low, fly into wind. It’s not just impact speeds that
are an issue when you are low in experience; there
is another very important phenomenon that needs
taking into account.
Flying downwind it’s easy to get overwhelmed
by your ground speed. If you do, it’s tempting
to brake and slow down. But you may still be
travelling uncomfortably fast, so the temptation
is to use the brakes to slow the wing even further.
Suddenly you’ll be flirting with the stall point of
the wing, where a sudden gust or a brake input
too far will actually stall the glider and send you
crashing to the ground.
The same danger exists when executing turns
close to the ground. When you are turning away
from the wind your ground speed will dramatically
increase as you enter the downwind section of
the turn and you will travel much further over the
ground. Then the temptation is to pull even harder
RE
Field hopping in northern France. Photo: Francis Cormon
WORKSHOP
Edition 24 | PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE
IN
Just remember to stop for red lights. On the road in France.
Photo: Francis Cormon
“
approach at your minimum speed. You must keep
some speed in reserve to tackle any wind gradient
you may encounter. Landing approaches should
be flown at trim speed, with no brake at all, or at
most just a little to deal with turbulence.
You may have noticed that you need more
thrust to remain at a level altitude when you are
going downwind than when you are flying into
wind. I carried out tests on a flat beach with 10 –
15km/h of wind and found that I needed 4,800 rpm
when I flew into wind and 5,000 rpm when I flew
downwind.
Why exactly this happens is the subject of
some debate. Hubert Aupetit is a pilot of both
paragliders and fixed wing aircraft. A scientific
journalist, he wrote the 1990 book ‘Traité
de pilotage et de mécanique de vol’ on the
aerodynamics of paragliders. In it Hubert says that
wind gradient affects the Bernoulli principle that
makes a wing fly. The Bernoulli principle says that
air flows over the upper surface of our wing faster
than it flows across the underside. This creates a
pressure difference, with lower pressure forming
on the top and higher pressure below, which
produces lift. When flying into wind close to the
ground in a strong wind gradient the extra wind
speed that the upper surface is exposed to creates
a positive increase in the pressure difference;
When flying downwind, however, the situation is
reversed and the effect of the wind has a negative
effect on the pressure, resulting in less lift being
created. Aeroplanes are also subjected to this
effect.
Another argument is that the higher strength
of wind on the wing compared to the pilot sat 10m
below causes the ratio of parasitic drag between
the two to change compared to when flying in
uniform air. The result is that the wing is pitched
7
Kobra PPG Venom
TEST BED
Have Kobra PPG done a good job at designing an all-purpose paramotor in the 100cm³ category using Polini's popular
Thor engine? Our reviewer Edward Lichtner found out if the Venom has bite
Photos: Joël Sense and Edward Lichtner
We liked:
 The strong and resilient construction
 The quality of the assembly
 The in-flight handling
 The accessible pull starter
 The Thor's easy start up
 A great looking machine
We disliked:
 Not the easiest harness to get seated in
 A noticeable forward-pitching torque
 The weight of the unit
First look
heavy punishment. The welding work also gives a
feeling of quality and resilience. Overall, the Venom
comes out as a strong and well-designed unit, fit
for use in a training environment where machines
are often given a rough treatment.
The engine is Polini's Thor 100, which
has become a standard for many paramotor
manufacturers. The engine's 110cm³ will provide
enough power to address the needs of pilots up
to 90kg, flying modern day gliders that typically
require some consistent thrust. The Venom comes
with a 125cm two-blade Helix carbon propeller
as standard, with a 140cm cage frame. A larger
version, the Venom XL, is supplied with a 130cm
two-blade Helix carbon prop in a 145cm frame
(the three-blade carbon prop on our pictures is no
longer supplied as serial production).
In both cases, the engine is fitted with a Walbro
WG8 membrane carburettor. It can be supplied on
request with Polini's float bowl carburettor, for
improved fuel efficiency.
Kobra PPG's added value comes across in a
series of interesting design details, starting with
the swinging arms holding the karabiners on each
8
PARAMOTOR MAGAZINE | Edition 24
MOTOR REVIEW
IN
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My first encounter with the Venom took place
during the Basse-Ham air show in France in June
2010. A flight during the event's 'maximum number
of pilots in the air' record attempt provided an
opportunity for me to break the ice with the newly
released motor. Sadly, the record wasn't beaten
this time, but at least I got my bearings with the
Venom. Several months later, early March of this
year, I visited Kobra PPG's French distributor
Chocs Aventures, for some more flying.
The Venom is an attractive variant of the
Spanish-style paramotor concept, famous for its
stainless steel frame design and articulated low
hang points. The Venom uses the same frame
as its elder brother the Snake, with just a minor
modification of the pull starter system. The frame
is easily dismantlable into four parts, including the
body of the paramotor and three separate cage
sections. The four parts are held together using
velcro straps. Assembly is pretty straightforward.
The cage itself has a double ring that offers good
protection to the propeller and the steel body looks
strong enough to withstand some moderate to
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"
You don't turn away from a great idea, you
evolve" was the strapline of an old 1990s
advert showing a vintage pair of roller skates
next to some modern day roller blades. With
a similar idea in mind, a number of Spanish
paramotor manufacturers such as PXP, H&E,
Clemente and Airfer, to name a few, have
attempted to take the highly successful PAP design
as a starting point and improve on the concept.
Among those who came up with some
interesting ideas is Kobra PPG. Based in
Navalcarnero, 30km south west of Madrid in Spain,
Kobra PPG was created in 2008 by Aeroshop
founder Leandro Corradini, paramotor video
professional Mathieu Dottori and mechanic guru
José Luis Domingues. The trio's original flagship
product was the Snake, a stainless steel frame
footlaunch paramotor with a Sky 100 engine.
However, the engine's liquid cooling system turned
out to be a bit of a turn off for a number of pilots
wary of the concept. Kobra PPG started looking for
an alternative to add to the product range and in April
2010 released a new motor called the Venom, fitted
with Polini's air-cooled Thor 100 engine.
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