Panorama PG Fly-in 1999 by Steward Midwinter
Two hour-and-a-half thermalling flight were the highlight of this year's 2nd Annual
Panorama Ski Area paragliding fly-in,
organized by Max Fanderl & Margot Holschuh.
Close to 25 pilots signed up for this 3-day event which took
place 15 km west of Invermere, BC. Those that arrived Good
Friday enjoyed the best flying of the weekend - Clear skies and
light winds (though with the usual venturi in front of the lodge).
Those that launched from the steep summit slope had the best
flights, as the flatfish midway launch slope was generating
thermals. Max, and Ron Ford, climbed to 3500 m ASL, and
said they only came down due to the cold. The day was capped
by an excellent dinner at the Black Forest Inn.
Saturday, morning overcast encouraged pilots and friends to get
in some skiing or boarding before some sunny patches opened in
the afternoon. The meet was back on.
Pilots attached "Easter eggs" (snow-filled plastic bags) to their harnesses and
launched from the Cappuccino Hut in light
winds. Local pilot Joe gained extra style points for a close inspection of some trees
followed by a quick detour down
another ski run, while Ron Ford spotted a lynx sunning itself under a ski lift.
To score points, pilots had to estimate their flight duration, drop their Easter eggs in
the center of a "nest", then try to
land on a target. Two of the closest were Mike Waddington, and Chris Muller, who launched
with a snowboard
instead of skis.
The last few to launch had extended sleigh rides as snow dumping in the
higher mountains to the west pushed cold air out the narrow valley and up
against the hill beside the LZ. Meanwhile, 1000m-high flat-bottomed cu's
beckoned out in the Columbia R. valley.To round out the day the pilots
enjoyed a lavish Italian feast at the resort.
Overnight, 15 cm of snow fell on the mountaintop (less at the base). No one
seemed too upset that the clouds were too low for consistent launching, as
the skiing and boarding was superb. By 14:00, when the day was called,
most participants were too tired to continue anyway.
The first prize went to Mike Waddington. He had a tie with Chris Muller.
Mike won it because he had for this task the longest time. The task was supposed to be at
a minimum of 10 min. Chris
set his time to 5 min and made it in 6. And if we consider the flights of Friday, Mike had
real good flights and landings
as well. Chris got a Panorama Fleece West and a $50 Certificate for the Black Forest.
We had 25 participants. Everybody was a winner in our event and received an Easter Egg and
assorted prizes.
Hats off to Margot and Max for a great season opener!
EASTER MEET AT PANORAMA written by Lucille
If you're looking for a fun meet, this is it. A meet where you get lots of points, for
all sorts of things, but the points don't mean anything! At the end, there were great
prizes for everyone who participated.
Those of us who were lucky enough to arrive on Friday morning were treated to a
beautiful sunny day, with just enough wind blowing up the mountain. After we had signed
up, and received our half price lift tickets, we were on our way. First, up a chair lift,
a little tricky with a large pack on our backs, but we all got the hang of it quickly.
Then we skied down to the landing zone to check it out. Up one more chair lift, and there
was the launch site.
The ski guides had fenced off an area for our use, and were there to help us. We
quickly set up our gliders. Once the glider is laid out, you put your skies on and point
them down hill. Well it's not quite that easy. Once the glider is laid out we all got help
to put on our skies. Janice cleaned off all the caked snow from our boots, then helped to
balance us while we put on our skies. Then Max would hold the lines out of the way, give
us some last minute encouragement and then we were ready to go.
It takes a little longer to get off the ground, but no running required! Once you're
airborne you start looking for the target. A large nest was built out of pine boughs, and
this is where we were to throw our Easter Eggs (grocery bags filled with snow). Extra
points were given to those who hit the target. Once the Easter Egg was dropped, you set up
your landing approach, and tried to get as close to the target as you could, once again
for extra points. The other way to get points was to estimate your flight duration prior
to launch. The closer you got to the estimated time, the more points you got. But
remember, the points don't matter, what was most important was to have fun.
Friday was an unofficial day and most of us who were there had two flights and some up
to 3. Ron Ford and Max Fanderl launched from the top and reached a top altitude of 3500m
ASL. Ron flew for 2hr 20min and Max for 1hr and 15 min. Of course this was way longer than
they had estimated, so all we could do is gaze up with envy as their scores got lower and
lower. They’ll have to try harder next year.
That night everyone went to the Black Forest Restaurant for supper. Talk about a feast.
Great company, excellent food, and a few flights earlier in the day… life just
doesn't get any better. No one could stop talking, and visiting with friends they hadn't
seen for a while.
Saturday was the first official day of the meet, but the weather wasn't great for
flying it was good for skiing and snowboarding. Rumor has it that one snowboarder was up
at 6am, walking up the hill in order to try out his new snowboard. At 2pm the weather
cleared up, we could see the launch site. Everyone went racing for their glider, and we
all assembled at launch. One by one everyone took off. There were some very interesting
launches as most were taking off on skies for the first time. Chris had a great launch on
his snowboard, then proceeded to do wing-overs in order to get close to his estimated time
of 5 min. Several people managed to get their eggs into the 'basket', and then get close
to the target. It was quite a day. When it was all over, we all got together for a great
Italian buffet. More laughing, talking, visiting.
On Sunday morning we woke up to snow. Snow, snow and more snow, 4-5 inches of fresh
powder. It never got clear enough to fly, and a few pilots were overheard to say,
"I'm glad it's not flyable, the skiing is fantastic".
The awards were held outside, in the sunshine, and the points only mattered for first
place. Mike Waddington and Chris Muller tied for 1st place, but because Mike's
actual flying time was longer he won the meet. First prize was a pair of snow blades
donated by Lusti (Panorama Ski Rental). Other prizes included vests, tree saws 1st
aid kits, and golf kits complete with brass corkscrew.
We'd like to thank Panorama, the other sponsors and all the volunteers. Barb who took
care of registration and launch on Friday; Janice who scraped the snow off of everyone's
boots, and helped us launch; Donna who helped organize the prizes; Natalie who was writing
down everyone's estimated and launch times; and Gill who kept track of everything in the
LZ including picking up all the 'eggs'.
Most of all we'd like to thank Max and Margot for their time, effort and enthusiasm in
organizing the meet. Without their attitude that this is a FUN meet, it just wouldn't have
been the same. So what are you doing next year for Easter?
