HHC has received a request from Jane Lenard concerning their pending loss of the Ellenville Flight Park Launch. Their club, HVFF is in the process of raising funds for the purchase of their launch, road to launch, and landing zone ($650,000) for 30 acres. If you are able and willing, you may learn more and donate here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/save-ellenville-flight-park Geronimo

HPA Quarterly Meeting and Party : Saturday October 7, 6pm

 

The Hawaii Paragliding Associations quarterly meeting and party will be

held on Saturday October 7, 2023 at 6 p.m. at Reaper's house. The address is

660 Palawiki St. in Kailua. Thanks to Pete for offering up his party pad.

The night is BYOB and pupus. Bring a drink and something to share.

See you there!

Chamonix 2023: Beer and Beignets

 

There are few places on the planet as amenable to paragliding as Chamonix France. Where else can stay in the midst of a vibrant classic true Alpine town, within a ten minute walk to various lifts ready to whisk you to launch and three minutes walk back to town from the LZ.

Emergency Lahaina Maui Fire Fund

 Jeff and Patricia Hedlund lost everything in the Lahaina, Maui fire last night. They have each other and the clothes on their backs. They're safe. They lost all their clothes, personal belongings, cash, surfboards, furniture, and paragliders.They are staying with friends at the moment.

Their condo burned to the ground and they cannot get in there to search the ruins.

They need everything from toothbrushes, clothes, furniture and a place to stay.

They like everyone else lost their homes and jobs. It's total devastation.

Let's all pitch in an get these two amazing people back on their feet.

We love you guys

This is Pete 'Reaper' Michelmore on another rescue mission, and ALL the funds raised will go straight to Jeff and Patricia directly... 

 

Donate Here - https://gofund.me/ec34453b 

https://gofund.me/ec34453b https://gofund.me/ec34453b

Goal Posts: 2023 Ozone Chelan Open

This is my soporific account of our annual paragliding competition in the dusty flatlands around Chelan Washington. The U.S. Paragliding Nationals just finished up this past week, with part time resident, Will in 7th place overall, down to JK who was grounded by the virus whose name shall not be spoken. Or maybe like Bettlejuice, you say it three times and you get it. But that is someone else's story.

HPA Cattle Drive: Saturday, October 22, 2022

Saturday, October 22, 2022 at 4:00 pm is the date for our long awaited membership meeting and party. 

I am excited about the venue at the covered rodeo grounds in Kahuku: the Pohaku Nui Ranch. Thanks to hard charging new pilot Keal for offering us this unique location for our club event. 56-970 Kamehameha Hwy, in Kahuku. 

Celebration Of Life For Yo Morita ~ October 8th, 2022 @11am ~ Makapu'u LZ

(Posting for Maui Doug, from Chie Morita...)

Hi everyone,

As you know, my Dad died last summer after a multi-year bout with cancer.

I was lucky to be in Cave Creek, Arizona for his last months and have spent the last year handling his affairs, trying to guess his passwords, and considering how to best honor his passing.

Thanks to an amazing offer from his paragliding community (and some hints from him, too) I will be hosting a Celebration of Life for him in his favorite place (Hawai'i) doing his favorite pastime (paragliding). I think he would be pleased.

There will be snacks, sun, and plenty of Aloha.

Beating A Dead Coyote (Chelan Ozone Open 2022)

What follows is a bit of my myopic view from our now annual paragliding competition in Chelan Washington. First, there are two different weeks of competitions, the first week is a ‘C’ glider comp, the second week is the US Nationals. Only JK and Reaper double dipped for the second week of fun!

Why Teach?

Why teach?

Many years ago, when I watched some gliders run down a hill and get flight, I was so excited to see this. I had been a paratrooper in the Army and always wanted to fly again. I reached out to the skydiving community, but they wanted to charge me extra for my bad static line Army habits and charge my little brother less. I thought screw you guys. WTF? I’m a paratrooper, wtf could you teach me about jumping out of an airplane? (hehe, I had no idea back then).

I bought a wing and a harness, and no reserve. I rode a jet ski to Catalina Island on the 4^th of July in 1989 with my wing on my back. I had no lessons except for watching my buddy Brian fly. I crashed that Sunday and was paralyzed for a couple of months. I told myself that if I recovered, I would do everything possible to make sure NO ONE EVER felt that pain I did and that I would devote my life to teach people to fly paragliders without the suffering I had endured.

Thirty-five years later and hundreds of students later I fulfilled my mission. I also spent many years since 1995 launching and rescuing paragliders when no-one else wanted to. As of 2021, I have successfully rescued over 175 pilots and two fatal recoveries. John Clifford died in a river in Pemberton that I found, and James Oroc (Aka Kiwi) we found in Eureka, NV last year. Closure is an amazing life spirituality. It’s good for the living.

Notes from the Convergence (a Link-Up Manifesto)

On most days, the central flatlands of O'ahu are not an inviting place to fly a paraglider. When the trades are blowing, ragged stacks of cumulus tumble over the Ko'olau range into the saddle that connects the Honolulu suburbs with the North Shore. Here they regain some form passing over subdivisions, solar farms and agriculture land before getting supercharged in the Waianae mountains. If the winds are strong, the hot turbulent soup is swept westward, out to sea in long cloud streets that mark our position long before the island itself can be sighted on the horizon. When the air is still, low pressure systems usually provide ample moisture that collects in the gulches and the vegetation, until the morning sun lights the fuse. By lunchtime the cumulonimbus are breathing deep and by afternoon the center of island is cast into shadow and rain.