Rain days

Since I only usually post about stuff that happens on sunny days, I thought I'd switch it up and show you how I spend some rainy ones.

Today started rainy, then it was sunny for 2 hours, then it rained again. So I actually took 2 tandems in the break but my wing still got wet from folding it in the damp grass. Gliders are like tents, you can't pack them up wet. So I'm drying my paraglider at home right now and decided, well, what better way to dry it out than to build a fort?



There was rain forecast a couple of days ago but the morning started off dry, so I decided to go for a hike up a small, nearby mountain. This hike had the craziest switchbacks I'd ever seen, with steep inclines, steep declines, and lots of stairs.


Stairs


And more stairs


Who needs a bike? "Single track" for people


Rain started when I got back to the trailhead

The other thing I'm doing which I'm not going to show you because it's far too messy is unpacking. I recently moved into my own place as my boyfriend and I have split up. This happened a couple of months ago and things are still good between us which is great, because he's a paraglider pilot too and this is such a small community. So with the end of the relationship as well as the approaching end of tandem season there are a lot of changes going on in my little world. Thanks to all of you for sticking with me through this journey so far...who knows where I'll end up next!

Weekend Getaway

It's been like the movie "Groundhog Day" over here - wake up...go to the landing zone...fly tandems....eat dinner...go to sleep. I'm not complaining at all, getting paid to do something you love anyway is one of the best things you can hope for. Therefore, I'm living the Good Life.

But every once in a while you need a little change. So over the long weekend a group of us went on a little paragliding road trip to a beautiful spot that overlooks the water and has a launch 2000 meters over it. The plan, for those who don't know what SIV is, is to fly over the water and then try to collapse your wing in many different ways, and do tricks, and above all have fun! You wear a life vest in case one of those collapses doesn't fix properly and you have to throw your back-up parachute. We have an instructor in a boat guiding you through all sorts of scenarios and ready to rescue anyone who goes swimming.

I was really excited to go this year to help my friend perform a d-bag launch. The d-bag (deployment bag) hangs off my tandem with the passenger's paraglider all packed up inside it, then with a tug on the quick release buckles...well...why don't you watch my video instead.

Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDpM9bzuuqw


Hope you all have a great weekend!
xx Martina