HGFA Skysailor Magazine

SKY SAILOR 5 May | June 2019 little extra time on Google and Ebay and you can likely slash some of those zeroes off the price tag. Also think about the level of comfort you want to live at. Some may feel that their minimum is an enclosed tent with puffy mattress and all the cooking gear. Others are happy to lay on the ground wrapped in their glider with just a camp fire and a stick. Myself, I have opted for a lightweight tarp tent (hootchie) with a mozzie net, plastic ground sheet and ultralight inflatable mattress under a quality sleeping bag, with a small cookpot set and combination fuel burner. It lies between the two extremes mentioned above, has been sourced quite cheaply, and I know I can happily live in this arrangement for weeks in harsh environments. Additionally, many of my camp items can be used for lots of other purposes as well, and this is a good consideration when selecting equipment. Why carry two things if you can get away with one? Thrown in the deep end I’ve now spoken to quite a few pilots who are super keen to get into the Vol Biv scene, but have no idea where to start and are somewhat blinded by the bright lights, so to speak. I’ve also spoken to a few who are planning big trips without even trying something small first to see if they are suitably prepared! So, in figuring out ways of breaking things down as an easy way to start out, I’ll elaborate a little further now. Learning from others We started a group of pilots from our club that were in a similar position in wanting to get started, and we asked a couple of members who had some good Vol Biv experiences to do a presentation evening for our club. It was a great night, and everyone walked away with plenty of new information, and many of their questions answered. We also had a chance to look at some of the presenters’ gear and listen to the lessons they learned during their experiences, as well as address key considerations such as safety, ability and planning. Before your feet leave the ground Test out your set-up and equipment – it may sound boring, but simple test runs can make the difference between epic success and miserable failure. For starters, get all your gear together and make sure it actually fits in your pack and that you can carry it around without throwing your back out. Consider doing a camp out in your backyard with your equipment. Each time you have to wander into the house to get something else is a potential failing in your plan. By morning you should have collected all the gear you really require. In line with this, if there is something you didn’t use – think about why you have it, why you didn’t need it, and whether or not it’s worth keeping. Now that you have the gear you really need, make sure you think about your food and water requirements and grab something suitable to cover that weight, and then weigh yourself to make sure you are within a safe weight range of your glider. It’s the little things that count It’s very easy to overlook the finer details, and these can be the ones that can really spoil a trip – nothing worse than having to drop out of an adventure because of some little niggling problem! The list is non exhaustive, and will be different for each person and each environment, but just to give a few examples, think to yourself how your trip would be with and without these items: ➲ Power: What can you do if your phone, vario, radio, tracker, etc. go flat? Small battery packs can keep you powered up, but think whether you have the right cables and connections, etc. Solar panels can also be very useful to keep your electronics going, but of course we need to keep their weight in mind. ➲ Rubbish: Obviously, being the outdoors lovers we are, we will take all rubbish with us. Make sure you have suitable provisions for this. In most cases a decent sized re-sealable bag will do the job better than having wrappers and containers randomly floating around your harness. ➲ Toileting: Some people can make it for days, others barely an hour. Have a plan, and don’t forget the stash of paper! ➲ Fire: A $2 cigarette lighter can make the difference between an unenjoyable trip and ultimate comfort. ➲ First Aid: I’ll assume that most pilots fly with some basic first aid items already, and given the range of options available, we won’t go into this further. Suffice to say that if you don’t already carry something, you probably should, and will want to implement a plan before heading off into the wilderness. ➲ Safety and Survival: Here is an area one can go crazy with! Survival kits, tree rescue kits, safety equipment and more. Needless to say, each pilot will decide what is most important to them, and what they can and can’t carry to assist in adverse situations. It is worth putting together some basic equipment that can be of use in any situation you think is a concern – even if Drew Salem’s Vol Biv kit Sleeping