Australia - Hang Gliding the Dunes

Thursday on the train back from Perth I spotted a couple hang gliders ridge soaring the dunes in North Fremantle. They were pretty high even though the dunes didn't look very tall so the sea breeze must have been super strong. I managed to fire off a picture as the train sped by. When I revied my shot I noticed that the glider was a Moyes Lightspeed S which is a pretty high performance glider to soar on such small dunes.

I had wanted to hang glide in Oz before we left, but I never got around to emailing any of the Aussie pilots contingent to see if they knew anyone in Western Australia. When we got there internet was sparse so I looked the only other place I could think of - the phone book. Sure enough there were a couple paragliding schools and one hang gliding school. Shaun Wallace who runs Light Flight Hang Gliding answered the phone with a rich Aussie accent and was super friendly from the start. I told him I was an advanced pilot (I would live to eat those words) from the states looking to get some airtime and meet the local community. His reply was "Well get the bloody hell down here!" (Okay that's a little to canned, but it was something like that) I couldn't because of our dinner plans, but we made plans to meet up Friday in the morning at the same spot.

Shaun was a super friendly guy who couldn't have been more hospitable. From our conversations on the phone and the short time I met him in person I could tell if I had more time there we would have some great times. He was a perfect example of how tight-nit the hang gliding community is, you can go half way around the world and make a new friend in minutes. I was telling him how I felt like we stuck out in our green and orange jackets and his reply was "You stick out because your a dam bloody yank!" (those were his exact words - Ha).

Friday morning I woke up ready for action. Mom and Peggy had an ambitious day planned so the only time I would have to fly would be in the morning. When I opened the window of our flat the wind was blowing nearly straight in from the West and steady. It was on. We stopped for a much needed flat white as I rushed Jo to the train station.

When we got off the train in North Fremantle I could see a glider in the air, but it was about a mile away. Even though it was cloudy, it was a picturesque scene with white sands, the blue Indian Ocean, and quaint beach houses lining the shore. It reminded me of the dunes in Monterrey California. We made good time to the dunes and were greeted with a "Look at those bloody yanks!" from the pilot hovering overhead. It was Shaun who hovered down to a perfect spot landing on a bush. After laughs and introductions we quickly got acquainted. He and I knew a lot of the same people and he had seen some of the cliff launch videos I posted on YouTube.

The Dunes

Shaun Spot Landing

The glider he had been flying was an Airborne Fun which he offered me a go on. After hooking in and doing a hang check I kited for a moment to feel the glider in the wind. It was blowing a little lighter than earlier, but still soarable. I launched and turned left, where the dunes got smaller and quickly landed on the beach. I wanted to get a feel for the glider where there was more beach to land on, but there wasn't any soarable terrain over there in the current winds.

Hang Check
(That's Shaun in the Red)

Kiting

Turning Left and Landing

I walked up the dune for another go. This time I launched in a lull and promptly "belly landed" on the dune 10 feet below the launch. I was fine and the glider was unscathed, in fact it was pretty funny. I could only imagine Shaun's thoughts as he watched a supposed advanced pilot plop on the dune just below! My glider is trimmed close to minimum sink requiring a little bar-in pressure on launch. I think my weight on the 160 trimmed it a little fast which combined with my muscle memory caused me to hesitant to push out so low to the ground. The last single surface glider I flew was Jeff's tandem 220 which was huge compared to the 160.

"Push Out Man"

After some more laughs and encouragement from Shaun to push out, the third time was a charm. After launch I turned right, into taller, steeper dunes and enjoyed a wide lift band in a slightly North wind. The Airborne Fun had light control pressures, was predictable and docile, and was simply just a pleasure to fly. I explored the dunes to the North getting high then burning off my altitude in shallow dives to see how low I could get over the ocean below and still work my way back up.

Launching

Pushing Out

Getting High

Getting Low

After about 20 minutes I landed to give someone else a chance, but Shaun insisted have another go and head farther North to check out their top landing spot. I worked my way past a picnic area around a small point to find a groomed grassy field followed by a coastal road and path. Over the path I slowed to a hover and drifted at the same speed as a cyclist about 10 feet below. I thought about swooping down and giving him five, but decided not to take a chance with Shaun's glider. He looked up surprised and we chatted about the morning until the path turned inland. I continued north into Cottesloe Beach but eventually turned around because it would be a long walk back if the wind lightened up.

Buzzing Jo

Shaun's Student

(Doesn't this look like it could be Bob Wills back in the 70's)

Kite Boarder

The sea breeze's slight North component gave me a smoking tail wind back to launch. I buzzed Jo a couple times over the picnic area and tried to match speeds with a kite boarder out in the surf. Eventually I landed on the beach where Shaun was eating a pizza and teaching a lesson. We talked about getting Jo up in a tandem, but unfortunately it was a little too light. It was a great flight, reminiscent of a light South Side day at the Point of the Mountain. Thanks to Shaun, I'm super grateful for his hospitality and can't wait to meet up again.