Paragliding Tips and Tricks #10

In a effort to pump up the hashtag #paragliding, and to give inspiration to new pilots, I will start posting little things that I am learning along the way.

Thanks to @paleotreats for loaning me a new book. I am now reading a book called "Fifty ways to fly better" by Bruce Goldsmith. This book has a bunch of really good tips even in the first chapter. So lets dig in.

One of the first things that stands out in this book is the stack of contributors. Many big names in #paragliding gave the best they had to offer as far as tips to fly better.

• The first thing that Bruce addresses is actually not paragliding related, but makes a huge difference. Taking responsibility. In the introduction Bruce says this:
  Free flying requires a dedication to the cause that is increasingly rare in our modern world. Unlike many other sports flying requires a large investment of time and money - but it doesn't stop there. To fly well, you need tone learning constantly and put in a level of commitment that may all put strains on other areas of your life.

But perhaps what makes free flying really stand out is the way it forces each pilot to take responsibility for his or her own actions. This bucks the modern trend of looking to blame others and hold them liable when things go wrong. We are increasingly taught that if you follow the rules, everything will be ok. That idea just does not work in paragliding or hang gliding. You will never be completely safe and fly far if you follow the rules.

Instead, you need to take responsibility for your flying and educate yourself as much as you can, to make sure you keep improving. The best pilots soak up tips from others and really absorb every experience they have in flying, so they just get better and better. Their is an ever-changing environment, and even flying the same site is different every day. Rigid rules just don't work.
In the end, you're up there on your own and it's you that takes the final decisions. Perhaps it is this that makes free flight the perfect antidote to modern life. It takes us back into the wild, where we have to live on your wits.

"The buck stops here was a sign President Truman (term 1945-1953) kept on his desk to show he was ready and willing to take responsibility for his country. Taking responsibility for your own flying is the first step to becoming the pilot you want to be."

In the next chapters we are going to find out what we need to look for when looking for new wings, harnesses and reserve parachutes.

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-9

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-8

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-7

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-6

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-5

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-4

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-3

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-2

https://steemit.com/paragliding/@captainobviou3/paragliding-tips-and-tricks-1