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Or another really expensive pursuit for when motorcycles aren't enough... | ||
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I'm Paul Villinski - Commander in Chief of the Team Incomplete Air Corps Division. At the moment I am an army of one. I have an advanced paragliding rating from the USGHA (US Hang Gliding Association) and am working toward my Tandem Instructor Rating. The Team Incomplete Air Corps flies an Independence Dragon 2 paraglider, with a Sup Air harness. Last year I added a backpack engine to the equation, allowing me to take off from level ground and motor around, on days when conditions for soaring aren’t good. The paramotor is a state-of-the-art unit produced by the Adventure Company of france; it’s a 120cc 2 stroke karting motor made by the Swedish company Radne which spins a 46” wood prop through a 2.5:1 reduction pulley system, with a centrifugal clutch so the prop doesn’t turn at idle and uses a ni-cad battery to spin the starter. It weighs 35 lb.s dry and holds enough fuel for 3 hours. Last summer I used it to launch from a level field and motor up to 1500’ AGL (above ground level), where I found a fat thermal, switched off the engine, and continued to climb to 3500’ and enjoy a nice soaring flight. It’s a cool motor-head thing. What follows is a story I wrote about my adventure of learning to soar. Please feel free to email me as the TI Air Corps is accepting applications... | |||
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