Handling Paraglider on the Ground

Video Transcript

"Welcome to Expert Village. My name is Hugh Murphy with Surf the Sky Paragliding. In this clip, we'll talk about ground handling and controlling your paraglider prior to putting the motor on. I always like to instruct first how to keep the paraglider balanced overhead as if you're ready to launch and to bring that to the point of muscle memory and reflex. So, when we add the weight of a motor on your back and a spinning propeller, it's totally instinct to control the paraglider over your head. There are different ways to control the paraglider in a ground handling situation. Different instructors have a couple of different techniques depending on the wind speed or anywhere from zero for a forward launch to up to five to ten miles an hour for the reverse launches. But the point is, be able to control your paraglider and balance it over your head so that you can launch safely at any point you want and feel confident. One common way is to grap the 'A' risers in your right hand and have the brakes in your left hand, so that when you pull the paraglider up with the leading edge 'A' risers, you can balance it with the brakes and keep it from over shooting with the brakes in your left hand. So, once you have the paraglider balanced over your head and you're hooked, the harness is attached to the risers, and there's a perfect balance, you want to turn around on that reverse, have the break handles properly in each hand, and to have that system down from your ground handling practice to where it's very smooth and natural to have the proper brake handle in each hand for your launch."