20 Apr 10 - Quick evening flight - This evening the winds
were from the North and usually this means, "Stay on the Ground". However, the
winds were pretty light so I decided to take a chance. The air was pretty good and I
stayed around the field dragging my feet then later I went for a small XC to Apohaqui.
Nice Flight!!
  
13 Apr 10
- Spring refresher training - For those pilot's that haven't flown all
winter or has not flown often refresher training is a good idea. Unfortunately for
those that don't fly often they usually either had forgotten the basics or have developed
bad habit's. In a short amount of time after reviewing the basics of launching and
watching your launches I can get you back to a more confident level of flying quickly.
Normally this can be completed in one training session. If interested, give me a
call or forward an email.
11 Apr 10 -
Out of the Office - Johanne and I will be out of the office from the 13
Apr - 18 Apr 10. If you require to contact us you can call our cell (506)
434-5601 or forward an email to : frank@poweredparaglidingnewbrunswick.com.
8 Apr 10 -
Another short Xcitor flight this morning - I set up early this morning for a
nice XC flight but the NW winds had other ideas. When the winds come from the NW
around here it makes for rough air. It was unusually rough even at altitude so I made it a
short flight. However the Xcitor is ready for Tandem's!
   
6 Apr 10 -
Tail Feathers on the Cadillac (Xcitor) - I've been extremely busy
lately landscaping my back yard. I didn't expect good flying weather until Thursday. I
noticed the winds were calming down starting late in the afternoon so I quickly raked in
some grass seed and then I Installed the Glider on the Xcitor. The Xcitor has not been
flown since last Fall and it is stored without the glider attached. Once the glider
was attached I did a pre-flight and everything looked good. The conditions were perfect
for a test flight. I flew only long enough to ensure everything was working properly to
save on gas for tomorrow. Tomorrow morning's looking good for a decent XC flight !!
5 Apr
10 - Weyman Flyers - Bob, Dave, Paul and Real were out early this
morning enjoying a beautiful day outside Fredericton, NB.
5 Apr
10 - First Flights back in NB!! - This morning was outstanding
conditions for flying. I started out flying the Miniplane with my 21m Axis Glider
then I flew my Xenit trike for a nice XC flight flying my 24m Rev Glider finishing off
again flying my Miniplane this time with Rev Glider. My XC flight was up to the
Bluff and Poley Mountain area. The air was excellent!! I would like to comment on my
first experience flying the Miniplane.
I have to say that this
is the first time I flew a really light paramotor and all I can say is"
WOW". Flying the Miniplane is like launching your glider with a training
harness. The Miniplane is extremely easy to launch due to the obvious,"Light
Weight", No torque, excellent mid hang points for a paraglider style launch.
The Top 80 can be easily started on your back with one hand!! The unit has an
extremely comfortable harness that is set up to allow the thrust line to remain vertical
during launch and flight with the pilot in or out of his/her seat. This allows more
pilot control for easier foot drags and low flying maneuvers. To get into the seat there
is no requirement to leave go of the brakes, all you require to do is to lift your knees
and you're in your seat easily. The other significant advantage is the weight shift
abilities. With the ABM System I could make a decent turn in either direction
without having to use my brakes therefore getting better performance from my glider.
And last the Thrust, I can easily say that it has the same thrust level
as the ROS100. The Top 80 engine puts out plenty of thrust and has been around since
the beginning of paramotoring, there are currently hundreds of these engines flying
all over all the world making it an extremely dependable powerplant.
Overall, I can say
that this is by far the easiest and best performing paramotor I've flown to date. With the
above mentioned characteristics, I can now understand why some of the World's Top
Competition Pilot's fly a Miniplane. I can't wait to fly it again!! Few Pics (Click
pic to enlarge)
31 Mar 10 -
PPGNB's first Miniplane - We ordered
our first Miniplane from Paramoteur Air Pro (David Sigier). David is a very
experienced and professional PPG Instructor from Quebec. When I ordered my unit he
delivered it personally to me to ensure that I knew how to assemble and set it up
correctly. He also was interested in checking out our facilities at PPGNB and stated
he was very impressed with our set-up.
After assembly and
setting up the unit we ran in the engine. I ordered our unit with the ABM system in
which allows for significant weightshift abilities. Our New Zuba-Fly in-flight trainer was
used to verify the set-up.
The Miniplane is used by
some of the world's best competition pilot's and after having the unit on my back at full
thrust it's truly impressive the thrust that the top 80 engine puts out. This unit
is finely detailed to reduce weight while maintaining a strong and rigid frame
assembly. I was looking forward to test flying the unit but unfortunately the
weather was raining so it look's like I'll have to wait.
  
25 Mar 10 -
Road trip back home - Johanne and I
are travelling back home to Sussex, New Brunswick today and looking forward to another
training season. We will not be back on line until next week but you can reach us on our
cell 506-434-5601. See you soon!!
21 Mar 10 -
St John River flight - The St John
River was mostly flooded due to the overwhelming amount of rain we've received in the last
week. We had to boat to Poppa Mound to find the high ground to get in a flight. It took
time but in the end it was worth it. We had a local bystander watching the fun!! Had a
great flight!!
   
20 Mar 10 -
New Mini Max Trike - The new
Mini Max Trike is now available. The Trike weighs in at 123 lbs with 160 lbs of
torque. With the optional piloting bar you fly the trike similar like your car
including gas foot peddle. The basic model is propelled with the a180CC engine with
a 51" prop and with two fuel tank's you can fly up to 4 hours of flight!! .
This unit can be flown in single configuration or tandem (Two pilot's). The Mini Max
trike can be partially dismantled so that it can be easily placed inside a mini small van!
As you can see this unit can be used during the winter month's fitted with a optional ski
kit.
19 Mar 10 -
New Green Eagle Commercial - During
my visit to California, Ashton Brunner owner of Greeneagle created a small intro
commercial about the innovation and introduction to the Green Eagle. The Green Eagle
is a low cost reliable 4 stroke engine aircraft with many options like fuel injection, tri
fuel, to include propane and natural gas. Go to Paramotors & trikes on my Homepage and
click Greeneagle Four Stroke Trike for more info.
Check the video out on
youtube - Extreme Flying Machine, Green Eagle Video
17
Mar 10 - Happy St Patrick's Day - Due to all the rain lately, the St John River is very
high. We had to go to Poppa Mound to fly this morning and this is a good place to
wear an agama. Eric was teaching two student's in which they had several successful
flight's.
12 Mar
10 - Altitude breaking record in NB - Tim is a free flight
and powered paraglider pilot who loves both sports. Tim likes to fly at times at altitude,
this is where he get's his name "Rocketman". Tim flew to a approx top altirude
of 11019' above sea level as noted by his GPS. He flew his Flyproducts Flash Trike
powered by the Simonini powergold 130. The Flash trike fits pretty well any
paramotor as seen by Jim's Flash trike powered by the Parajet Cyclone. These trikes
are very popular in the USA and due to the wide stance, low weight, and great portability
they're considered one of the best trikes on the planet.
Below is a writeup of
Tim's reference to his High altitude experience.
Friday was going to be a
=6 to a +7 or 11 degree day with light winds. I drove from Hampton to Grand Bay with
expectations of flying from Grand Bay to the Irving Nature Park with a small side trip
planned on the way back in the pump house road, then a quick fly by to wave a wing at the
boys at the land fill who have in the past seemed happy to see me, something to break up
the menonie of the day I guess, but as it turned out when I got to Grand Bay the wind was
blowing a strong 15 to 20km from the North West. The place I had in mind to use as an LZ
wasn't wind friendly. It would be ok in 5 km but nothing more so long story short I drove
back to Hampton to check a spot Jim showed me. It's a big field over looking Hamond River
pointing NW with no obsticals in the way to cause rotors. The wind there was about 10km
straight in, perfect for an easy launch. I set up & did just that, pulled the glider
up, took my time taxing to make sure everything was good before taking off. It was just
past 11:am & things were a little bouncy. I flew into the wind toward Hampton thinking
what can I do or where can I go that I haven't been before. Well in the Hampton area that
is getting to be a tought question to answer. Especially when it is just coming up
on the bewitching hour for us paramotor pilots. I don't feel comfortable flying too low in
thermals so I came up with the Idea I was going to Fly over Darlings Lake & the
Hampton Marsh to do a good deed for the skidoo guys in the area & take some aerial
photos of the Ice with all the channels where the thin Ice has melted. I planned on
blowing the photos up & hanging them in the local watering hole where the skidoo clan
congrate. Anyway in order to get a good Photo I decided I need to get a little higher then
a little higher & before I knew it I was taking more pictures of my gps than the lake
& marsh. It is a lot harder to get a picture of the gps than I realized. Part of the
problem is I don't really know the camera & with the heavy winter gloves I kept
pushing the wrong buttons & couldn't seem to get anything up close & in focus.
Another part of my problem was that I only had a 2 to 5km forward speed & being on
full throttle most of the time every time I would let go of the break to take a picture of
the gps the trike would carve around with the tork from the motor. This was something I
never anticipated but wasn't long finding out that the wing steers sooooo much easier at high altitude & flies faster as well. With my 2 to 5km
forward speed when I would turn even 90 degrees off course I would see my speed in the
50s. I was quite nervous about getting blown out over the bay as it looked like it was
right behind me & I could easily have it within glide with the motor off. The one time
I did turn & head in that direction my gps went to 113km during the turn & settled
out at 104km per hour. I only maintained that direction long enough to make sure I was
getting an accurate reading. Anyway boys, I did manage to get a few photos of the gps, the
best two are 11,000 on the nose, not sure how I managed that? And the one that shows the
Record I am claiming as Mine at 11,019. So if there is any one out there in New Brunswick
that has flown higher in a paramotor let me know & I will reluctantly had over the
title for highest flight of a Paramotor in New Brunswick. I am thinking I will soon have
to worry about Spudnic launching his cyclone satellite towards the sun & smashing my
record or the Monkey Man with the Parajet, both those machines are capable but ARE the
Pilots ;0). Time will tell, the space race is on boys Who will break the 12grand mark.....
My flight down was enjoyable & took longer than I thought it would at Idle, I didn't
throw in any spirals until I was down below 6000ft & the wing was feeling more like
it's self. My landing was quite thermic, actually once I got below 2000ft things were
rocken & rolling pretty good, God I love that reflex wing... anyway I came in hot so I
could trade my speed for lift in the event a thermal kicked off in front of me wile I was
on final... I landed just after 1:00pm. Sorry for the long post boys but I figured a New
Brunswick RECORD was worth it.
Fly Further / Land
Softer with reflex technology
  
12 Mar 10 -
Snow is disappearing - Bob, Dave and Glen were out yesterday
flying around the Fredericton area. The snow is disappearing fast and it's soon time for
Jo and I to head back North. We should be home around the first week of April to get
ready for our 2010 training season.
9
Mar 10 - FAQ - Recently I have received many emails asking good
questions regarding PPG. I have updated my FAQ link covering these questions. Go to
Homepage and click on the FAQ link.
4 Mar 10 -
MiniPlane Top 80 - This year PPGNB has added the MiniPlane Top 80
paramotor to our school line. This light weight paramotor only weighs 43 pounds and
has won many world paramotor competitions. The New ABM system allows for outstanding
torque control and weight shift capability. This unit is suitable for pilot's weighing up
to 200 lbs. For more details go to homepage and click Paramotors & Trikes -
MiniPlane Top 80.
17 Feb 10 -
Last flight at Salton City - This morning was our last flight so Jo and I
flew Tandem to enjoy the view. Today we're packing up and we be on the road tomorrow
to Casa Grande, Arizona. Today the campground had their golf tournament in the
desert sand. The sand traps are everywhere!!
15 Feb 10 -
Olympic Spirit - After my run and workout this morning, I had to take
advantage of another great day to carve up the air. I've been flying my WJ Airwolf
and SD. These two paramotors are completely different in relation to the type of
launch due to the attachment point. This morning I flew the SD and completed about
30 take off and landing's consisting of light reverse and forward launches. The
weather here in California is outstanding, what a place to fly!! Now time to watch
the Olympics, Go Canada Go!!!
   
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