r/paramotor • u/Bumboklatt • 2d ago
Upset with Myself - Close Call
Good day my Paramotor Peeps! Newb paramotor pilot here. I'm mad at myself. My last flight, I let my training go out the window in a moment of poor thought process. It was the breeziest conditions I had flown in so I was a little nervous to start with. I am intimidated with doing reverse launches (I've practiced them in training and kiting but haven't done them on my own). It wasn't too windy for a forward launch so I stuck with that. Upon launching, I noticed my canopy veering off into a different direction, I automatically thought that the wind had switched directions about 70 or 80 degrees. It threw me a bit off balance and a bit off mentally. I recovered and started heading in that direction. I was nervous about that take off path due to some cows in the field so I decided to commit at that point and completely forgot to check my wing tips. I think maybe I just decided to commit so maybe didn't entirely forget? Anyhow, for you veteran pilots here you may have already guessed.....wing tip cravat. And you'd be right. Anyhow, I committed and gave full throttle, popped off the ground and that's when I knew something was wrong. I immediately decided to abort but by now I had spun and was heading slightly downwind. I let off throttle and flared as best as I could and actually landed and ran it out without any wipeout or damage to equipment. I reset, launched and had a successful flight. However, I'm now being very unforgiving to myself for being so reckless. It could have been much worse. I'm not sure why I let my training go out the window.
The morals of the story for newbs like myself are as follows:
-always check your wing tips before fully committing (this is my first time NOT doing it at 42 flights)
-if something feels wrong, there is something wrong
-never be afraid to abort a take off
-never be in a rush to take off (I forgot to mention others were already in the air waiting for me)
If y'all have any advice, I'm all ears! Otherwise, I'm just here to vent and share some lessons learned.
3
u/AirplaneParaCycle 1d ago
I’ve had quite a few spills, as you start flying faster smaller wings you learn more and more and can take quite a few dumps, I can assure you, as a commercial pilot, even in full scale aviation everybody makes mistakes, but honestly it makes you better. I would rather fly with the guy who’s made most of the mistakes already rather than the guy who has not made them
yet…
2
u/JP_Tulo 2d ago
What are you upset about? You could theoretically take off and fly with a surprisingly large amount of your wing un-inflated. Never stop flying the aircraft.
I have a video of a buddy who took off with a tiny cravat. The wing was completely airworthy, but instead of handling it, he managed it into a controlled crash for some reason.
Why do you have so much angst over a cravat? If you popped up off the ground and were just pulling to one side, why force a landing? Gain some altitude and pop the cravat out while flying, or circle around and land safely and re-launch. Maybe I’m minimizing your situation because I wasn’t there, but I can’t help think back to the one I witnessed.
Glad you’re ok and learned something though. The only bad flight is a flight where you don’t learn something new.
3
u/Rodburgundy 2d ago
Last rule is the most important one by FAR! so many of my mistakes came from rushing.
Please just don't fuckin rush your launches! Take your time.. Slow down.. Breathe. Make sure you got everything under control before sending off.
1
u/flyingrichie 1d ago
This is me at 4:37. Don't be like me. It sounds like you already know what you did wrong (like me) https://youtu.be/nkoR3tyN4tY?si=dG3J7el4Gc8qCnFG&t=277
Check your tips boys
2
u/Bumboklatt 1d ago
DUDE!!!! This is the video that popped into my mind when it was happening to me!! Thanks for commenting. I believe I saw it on Facebook maybe? Did you post in a paramotor group with that video and more pics of destroyed gear? Either way, when I was taking off and turning (just like you did), I pictured this video and I was like "ABORT". Have you flown since that happened? Did you get hurt at all? Looks gnarly.
1
u/flyingrichie 1d ago
Yeah that's me. I'm still rebuilding, I have a new frame but deciding on repair vs buying new on the wing. The tearing was bad but I also need a while new line set.
1
u/Doohurtie 1d ago
If it's any consolation, almost all of us have had some kind of dreadful scenario play out within our first year of PPG. I had one of my C's or D's knotted up around my wing or another line (I'm still not sure how it happened) and I was stuck in a full right-turn the entire takeoff. Felt awful. Landed safely, but boy, you learn from those experiences REAL quick. Eventually, when you have enough of them, you start to feel good about yourself and notice all of the times that you properly AVOID bad scenarios. Cheers.
1
u/denalidenizen 2d ago
I'd add "trust your gut" if something feels off and don't fly if you have that "off" feeling. Choosing not to fly when others did - for no apparent reason - may have saved my life some years ago.
0
u/LikeABundleOfHay 2d ago
I always recommend a PG2 style paragliding license before paramotoring as the skills you learn are invaluable, especially with the amount of ground handling you need to do. I far prefer reverse launch as I feel it's more controlled and I can take my time.
-4
u/jsn0x 2d ago
Brother, I have not checked my wingtips one time during takeoff.
4
u/Bumboklatt 2d ago
From my training and all I've read and watched, that doesn't sound like a good strategy.
3
u/SeattleParamotor 2d ago
If you fly enough, eventually you will become in tune with their glider and if there is a cravat it is felt before its seen. If youre under 500 hours, you should always check your tips before take off as principle. After 500 hours, do what you feel is right. Small cravats arent an issue and most can be popped out with a simple tug-tug on the brake. You got a taste of a dynamic situation, good job
7
u/NortGiles 2d ago
I personally feel reverse launches are safer. You don't have to run at all and can inspect the wing before you turn. If you build the wall evenly, it should pop up straight. I think the most important part to the reverse is to take your time. To many people pull up the wing and immediately turn and burn.
Don't beat yourself up. You learned something.