Adventures in Hang Glider Spectating!

The absolute BEST part of racing is the people I meet.

A couple weeks ago, at the Wings for Life Run, I was lucky enough to meet Australian Hang Glider Jonny Durand and his girlfriend Alaina.

Jonny & I, after the Wings For Life World Run!

Jonny is one of the top hang gliders in the WORLD and has actually set several world records for both flying speed and distance. This week Jonny is flying in a competition just south of Atlanta, and he and Alaina were super nice and invited me to spectate! I am fascinated by other sports, so I showed up at the airport full of questions!

This “comp” featured more than sixty pilots flying different classes of gliders. Jonny flies in the “open class” which is for more skilled pilots flying flex-wing gliders. The gliders are surprisingly heavy (I tried to pick it up) probably weighing in excess of 100 lbs.

Gliders set-up and ready to fly!

I got to sit in on the pilot’s meeting, where the pilots learn what their flight pattern “task” will be. The tasks are set by an anonymous “Stig” similar to the British car show Top Gear. Jonny presented the day’s task, which was a triangle. Pilots would fly to two set points, then back to the original airport (called the “goal”).

Jonny presenting the day’s task at the pilot meeting

In total, the task covered more than 120km and the pilots were expected to be in the air for four hours or more, depending on the weather.  Hang gliding is an endurance sport!

I watched the pilots set up their gliders for the air-tow launch. The pilots lay in a harness below their glider, complete with a parachute, a flight navigation device, and all of the equipment needed to pack up their glider in case of an early landing. Several of the pilots also carry GPS Spot trackers so the land support crew can track their progress.

Glider pilots preparing for launch!

One by one, the pilots are towed into the air by ultralight Dragonfly tug aircraft.

Expert Dragonfly pilot, Bobby!

Glider pilots lined up, waiting for their launch!

 I got up close and personal with the Dragonfly thanks to the plane’s designer, Bobby, who took me for a quick ride! Eek! So fun!

One in the air, the glider pilots circle above the launch site in what’s called a “gaggle” formation. It really does look like a flock of birds overhead! Once the clock strikes exit time, the race is on!

The pilots rely on air thermals to gain lift and they are very aware of the different types of cloud formations. Alaina told me about some of the tactics the pilots will use to get an edge on their competition, including pretending to be in a thermal so other pilots will follow them, and then flying away! There’s a lot of strategy in competitive hang gliding!

I didn’t get to see how the day’s task finished, but from the GPS Spot tracker, it looked like Jonny and a few others were having great days! BIG Thank you to Jonny, Alaina, and the entire hang gliding community for letting me come watch such a fun event! Hang gliding and triathlon probably don’t seem to have much in common (though I met a surprising number of Ironman triathletes who were also pilots), but racing is racing! And where there’s a race, I know I’m bound to find an amazing group of passionate people who are crazy fun to be around!

A packed glider. Just like triathletes with bikes, hang gliders also despise excess airplane baggage fees!!