"C'est domage . . . . "

So yesterday the organizers had the wanna-bes do their safety selection flight. Of the 9 who tried, only 2 were selected and allowed to compete. Unfortunately, I wasn't one of those selected and will be a "spectator pilot" this year. From what I saw, I'm in good company as some of the pilots who were DQ'ed, IMHO, should've been allowed to compete but I think the judges wanted to see virtually no collapses in our imposed routine: Full stall, tailslide, helico, wingovers, and SAT. To some, this may sound easy, but when you put on the pressure of performing for judges, keeping mindful of your position within the "evolution box" (performance area), being aware of how much height you have left, and being the only person representing your country (OK - that was self-imposed), it really isn't. "Chapeau" for the guys who did make it . . . . I'll see you next year at the Mundials!

Anyways . . . . no excuses - I didn't have my stuff 100% wired and it showed. Therefore, I shouldn't be allowed to compete at a prestigious event like this. Besides, even if I did nail everything, I think I would've been DQ'ed anyways because I got too close to the crowd area on my approach to the landing platform in the middle of the performance area. I figured I didn't do my helicos well but I was totally going to land on the platform and I did, which was really cool by the way! I was so focused on sticking it that I forgot to do a spin landing which would've been REALLY cool but wouldn't have gotten me to qualification.

It's 11 p.m. now and we need to get up early to go catch Mont Blanc in the morning, then I'm going to fly off of Planpranz about 5-6 times. That's the normal launch site here in July - August. It's 2000 meters (LZ's at 1050) - even without hitting any thermals, I'll get enough altitude to practice, practice, practice! Here on out, my focus is for 2008 (the key year) which will include the World Championships held at the Vertigo-Voss in Norway. In additon, I plan on somehow hitting all the acro comps that occur before it.

I'll be posting lots of pics when I get the chance.

My thanks to everyone who gave me encouragement for the Vertigo. I had high hopes to do well, but it wasn't to be. I look forward to flying with you guys soon on the coast and at the next NCXC comp.

Au revoir till the next post!

Vertigo Day 1: Safety Selection

It's Tuesday evening, 10:20 p.m. - Ayumi and I just got back from Villeneuve an hour ago from the safety meeting for all pilots.

We've been here in Chamonix since Sunday afternoon and I wish there were lots to share as far as sightseeing and flying are concerned, but the rain has all but eliminated that. We did have a good late Sunday afternoon sipping expressos in Chamonix central (imagine a bigger South Lake Tahoe with more shops), hanging out in our apartment, and enjoying some gambling Monday night. Hopefully, we'll get to see the famous sites like Le Mer de Glace, if there's time.

Anyways, Vertigo was supposed to kick off today with a training day, meaning that you can get some practice runs and get back up to launch since they provide rides to the top. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate so that didn't happen. From 4 - 7 was the registration period and equipment check. I'll post some pics soon but it was pretty strange being in that room with almost all the best acro pilots in the world (like RR who's surprisingly not coming). There were a few times when I looked at Ayumi and said jokingly, "What the f--k am I doing here?????"

While getting to compete was the reason I came, another huge reason was to spend some time with Felix, hang out, and pick his brain. After learning the killer "little things" about how to get from tumbling or rhythmic SAT to Infinity, SAT to helico, helico to helico, helico to SAT, and a smoother Misty Flip, it was worth the trip. Moreover, I showed him my video and he gave more pointers on my Rhythmic and Infinity attempts. Most importantly, he's really cool and humble guy who spoke some Japanese to Ayumi. Guy's a straight-up legend in acro paragliding.

Off to bed for me. We need to leave by 5 a.m. for the 1 1/2 drive so I can get to the pilot's briefing at 7 a.m.! Tomorrow's the safety selection flights - the day I've been working for. In one flight, they'll either let me compete . . . . or not!

Off to Europe

Believe it or not, I might actually get to bed by midnight. I shouldn't really be proud of this since I had the entire week to pack . . . . oh well.

I haven't experienced much excitement this week regarding the trip, but now that Ayumi and I are leaving tomorrow, it's starting to hit me. I've never been to the "main" Europe - as I like to call it - which to me means Spain, England, France, and Italy. (I played baseball for a few weeks in '91 Holland and Denmark.)

I'm still amazed I'm actually going, especially to compete in an acro comp. Speaking of which, the Vertigo organizers FINALLY put up the list of pilots. Surprisingly absent is my teammate, Felix Rodriguez, who I thought for sure was gonna be there. Also absent are the American "Acro Twins", Timothy and Anthony Green who typically fly the synchro portion of comps. My spider sense tells me that they've all been around enough so perhaps they can just compete as "walk-ons", which isn't exactly fair. Besides, many of the big names are registered so what's their deal? Are they really not competing?

With the twins' absence, I'll be the only American going and the only one flying an Ozone . . . . nice pressure, eh?

It's on!

It's been a while since my last blog, so I'll try and summarize some of things that have happened:

1) I'm confirmed as a competitor for Vertigo.

The wait is over - I got the pilots' email with the program for each day. The neat thing about it is that they're not having cuts until the 3rd of competition, so it increases my chances of doing better.

2) I'm the only from the U.S. who's going.

I'm trying not to think about this as I can only do my best. Realistically, I'll probably end up in the bottom half of the field, but I'm not too bad having only flown acro for a year in 3 seasons of flying. I have TONS to work on as the bigger picture for me is the Worlds in 2008. So, this year's Vertigo is setting the stage. My main goal is to earn points to get a WAPR which will make next year much easier. But don't get me wrong, I've worked hard at getting where I am today, and if Antoine or Raul get in my way, I'm cutting their lines 'cause I ain't too proud to cheat! : )

3) I'm getting closer to doing the "Infinitron".

That's Sik Nik Peterson's word for the Infinity. (Nik recently had a terrible accident while doing a ground spiral up in Chelan - get well, bro!) Even though I have a lot of other tricks to master, I'm always pushing myself and going for it. I've become "flying bros" with Brad Gunnuscio and both of us are trying to get to the Infinity via the Rhythmic SAT. A lot of the top acro guys recommend learning it this way as it teaches you to sit flat and build momentum. Well, this past weekend Rob Sporrier of Eagle Paragliding had Brad out for an SIV clinic at Lake Isabella near Kernville - I made the 5-hour drive to get more practice. (Btw - I finally got to met Rob - SUPER cool dude.) On one of my flights, I started doing the Rhythmic - I guess my timing has improved for within 2-3 rotations, I got my wing to start chopping pretty hard into some tumbling. The wing was almost vertical and retaining energy as I kept on pumping the brake and screaming in my head, "Here we go! I'm gonna do it! I'm gonna do it!" Unfortunately, as soon as I started thinking that, my timing got off and the wing started coming out of the tumble. After all that work, my arm was just too tired to keep trying, not to mention I was getting a little dizzy after all those rotations. Even though I didn't get it, it's exciting to see that it's right there and all it'll take is more practice. It also gives me more confidence that the 6907 looks like it CAN go from Rhythmic to the Infinity, unlike other acro wings that say they can, but really can't.

From those who know what's up with acro paragliding in the US, I've been told I may be the only one who's really trying to do the Infinitron - no doubt I'd love to be the first American to consciously do it! *

* I say "consciously" because Enleau's gone over six times which may make him the first to actually do it. But, even he'll tell you that he didn't mean to!

Practice, practice, practice

So far, so good.

While I haven't gotten the final confirmation email or seen the competitor's list on their website, there's a good chance I'm in:

Vertigo

Geez . . . . ALL of the best acro pilots in the world will be there. Pretty intimidating when I think about it. Luckily, I'll have someone to look out for me as one of my Ozone teammates is Felix Rodriguez, who, with his brother Raul, pretty much created acro paragliding and are still the Godfathers of this sport. If all I get from this experience is the opportunity to fly and compete with other acro pilots around the world, while at the same time, learn a few things from Felix, it'll be well worth the hundreds of thousands I spent with the O'Connors since '06 . . . . kidding.

So, it's just practice, practice, practice any chance I get. Earlier in the week, the wind was perfect for me to fly my 6907 and get refills off the Green Monster (south-facing green cliff above Walkers) for over 2 hours. I must've attempted 30 - 35 helicos in that time to help get me more dialed on that wing. Of the 30 some-odd attempts, I think I did 3-4 perfect helicos, which isn't a great percentage but that's what practice is for. (Just because the wing is spinning overhead doesn't mean it's a helicopter - it must be completely open with no oscillations to be one.)

I love doing helicopters because it's one of the most difficult tricks to master due to the different elements involved (like perfecting the parachutal stall if you helico from trim). While tumbling is more dynamic and scary because of the chance of falling into the glider, it's much "easier" IMO than doing helicopters. While the former tests your timing and outright guts, the latter tests your feel, finesse, and technique.

In paraglding and in life, who wouldn't want to improve on those?

Preparing for Vertigo

Even if you're not into acro, most paragliding pilots have heard of the Red Bull Vertigo as the premiere acro comp. But this year, since Red Bull didn't renew their sponsorship, it's called the Vertigo Swiss Riviera and will have the same hype and excitement. Of course, all the best acro pilots in the world (who can afford the time and money to go) are competing.

July 15th was the deadline to register and pay fees. I’m just doing the solo comp which has 37 competitors, which I think I’m one of. I say “I think” because I haven’t received the final-final email that confirms it, if there is such a thing. The max they can take is 40 pilots which is a little nerve-racking because if 50 pilots paid and signed up, and 40 of them are WAPR (World Aerobatic Pilot Ranking) pilots, they’ll take them first. The rest are put on a waiting list. Ain't like an XC Comp, eh?

Since I don’t have a world ranking and I’ve planned a vacation around the Vertigo, I’ve been going nuts for the last week trying to find out how many are confirmed. Now, unless they let some squeak in, it looks like 37’s the number.

But it still doesn’t mean I’ll get to compete. (It’s that not-having-a-world-ranking-thing again.) Since they don’t know who I am, I’ll have to do a qualification/safety flight on the first day so they can be sure I won’t kill myself or look like a complete idiot. So, I’ll need to demonstrate that I can do a full stall, tail slide, SAT, wingovers, and helico while exiting safely which I’m sure I’ll have to do in one run. Last time I checked, I can do all these but who knows what will happen when the pressure’s on and the judges are watching.

If I get in, I may be the only one coming from the States.

Weird.