My Aviator Paramotor Training

Caution: LONG post.

During the pandemic of 2020, with nothing else to do and nowhere else to go, I signed myself up for powered paragliding, or paramotor, training with Aviator Paramotor, based out of Lake Wales, FL. At the time I was able to attend, they only had classes available in Dunnellon, FL, so that's where I signed up to learn. To say the least, it was 2 of the most epic weeks of my life, and an unforgettable experience that has changed my life forever. The following is my daily journal of my 2-week long training with Aviator Paramotor in November of 2020, in what was to be known as the Hurricane [Eta] Class of 2020...

Graduation Day of Paramotor Training

Day 1 – Saturday, November 7, 2020

Day 1 started at 9am, and I was the 3rd of all 6 students to arrive before 9am.

Upon walking up to the building, I was first greeted by Amelia, the beautiful dog of Aviator X35 (Dunnellon), her owner Micah Stevens, and Judson Graham, and within about 15-20 minutes, the man himself, Eric Farewell, walked in to welcome us students and get to know a little bit about each of us. Micah’s wife, Ariana, was also there to welcome us to the class.

The day officially started out with the filling out of the waivers/paperwork. It was about 6 or 7 pages of signing “you can die and you can’t blame us” but that was completely expected, as with any extreme sport.

We were given name tag stickers, awesome red aluminum water bottles, kind of like a Yeti, with a couple Aviator logos on it, and student manuals filled with all kinds of good information regarding different things to learn as a new pilot. It includes terms to know, verbal commands to be familiar with, and checklists to keep you as safe as possible. Of course, as with most people, they accidentally spelled my name wrong (with a “v” instead of a “ph”) but unnecessarily apologized and Ari quickly remedied the mishap.

We all chose our comfy leather recliners in the “classroom”, Micah sat in front, and Eric and Judson sat on the adjacent loveseat. Ari sat on the couch in the back of the room. Micah started the introductions, then Ari, then Judson, then us students, and finally Eric. They had a template for the introduction on the screen to make it easier to think about what to say about yourself. We would tell each other about our hobbies, work history, and family life, then our aviation history, and described what our superpower would be. I said my superpower would be that I always look at things in a very logical way, mainly because of the Engineer in me, and that my friends say I’m very practical.

Once the ice was broken, we got right into learning the basics of the sport of paramotoring. Rule #1, DBAD (Don’t Be A Dick). Be courteous to others in public when you’re going out to kite your wing or fly your paramotor. Remember that not everyone is pleased to see you buzzing around their nice quiet park making all kinds of noise. We learned about how the sport is regulated very loosely, only by FAR 103, and will only get stricter as more and more people are interested and get into the sport. Paramotoring is pretty much the freest form of flight, and every one of us is responsible for doing our part to make sure it stays that way.

We learned the first 3 of 6 phases of paramotor flight: Inflate, Release, Control. They also taught us about the requirements we should look for when choosing a site for kiting and perhaps launching from. How you want an area with little or no obstacles.

Next came learning about the wing. They called the lesson “Meet the Wing”. We learned the different parts of the risers that are what attach you to the wing. From front to back you have the A’s, B’s, C’s, Brake Toggles, and Trims. On the very front is the Speed Bar connection, but as beginners, we don’t have to worry about that just yet. Going up toward the wing, you have the malions which connect the risers to the lines, which cascade up to different parts of the wings. A’s to the leading edge, then B’s, C’s, and Brakes leading up to the trailing edge. There are also Green lines that run to the tips of the wings, but are not for Tip Steering, as the Mojo Super 2 that Micah showed us on did not have Tip Steering. We discussed how the wing is made of Rip-Stop nylon so that if it happens to get a little hole, it won’t spread due to the webbing design built into the wing material. We learned about how the wing works, how its design allows for it to inflate and create lift based on the angle of attack, and how Trimming out or in will affect that angle of attack. We learned about the 3 different ways to kite the wing: hand-kiting, forward launch, and reverse launch. Hand-kiting is a very easy method of opening your wing up and relaying it back down nicely to prepare it for either a forward launch or a reverse launch. If there’s enough of a breeze to hand-kite the wing, you’ll probably want to be doing a reverse launch. Forward launches are typically done in zero to very little wind. Reverse launches are done in winds that are about 6 or more mph.

During this lesson on the wing, Eric ran out and bought supplies to make us a steak taco lunch. It was delicious! Thanks Eric! This was also another ice-breaking opportunity where we shared more stories of our past and what else brought us to Aviator training that we may have left out in the introductions. I have to admit, after watching so many Aviator videos on YouTube, I felt like I was sitting there with celebrities getting to know them and becoming their friends. They were so humble and easy to talk to, and really make you feel like one of the pack.

After lunch, we made our way outside to learn how to clip in. We were fitted for kiting helmets on our way outside. Having already purchased my wing several weeks earlier and trying my hand at kiting 3 different days before training, I felt like I had an advantage already knowing how to put the harness on and clip into the wing. They split us into 3 groups of 2 and Judson showed me and my wing buddy, Lance. [Oh yeah, the wing buddy. On a dry-erase board, they listed us all in order of our weight. Not sure it was originally intended to be in that order, but that’s exactly what it ended up being. The first 2 students, John and Dottie, were buddies, Lance and I were the next 2, and then there were 2 guys (Anthony and George) heavier than I was that got paired up together.] They taught us how to clip into the wing on the side of the hangar in ironically very windy conditions. The wings were balled up against the hangar so they didn’t inflate in the wind. They showed us how to clip in for a forward launch and a reverse launch and went over a few basics about how to kite the wing if it were to lean to a particular side (step toward the low side and pull brake on the high side) or if it surged forward (quickly pull both brakes and then ease back off slowly). When we got back inside, Judson showed us his method of packing up the wing to make it last longer and be ready for laying out properly when pulling it out the next good kiting or flying day.

Soon thereafter, because of the windy weather, they called it a day.

Day 2 – Sunday, November 8, 2020

Day 2 started at 9am again, and just like Day 1, we were all there earlier than that. Micah and Judson were the only instructors there this day.

We started out learning the basics of aviation. The 3 forces that act upon a paramotor: Thrust, Drag, and Lift. We also learned about the different directional changes that occur in aviation; Pitch (adjusted by acceleration of the motor), Roll (adjusted by weight-shifting and pulling on one of the brakes), and Yaw (adjusted by slowly pulling one of the brakes). Micah taught us about what oscillations are and how to get out of them. He also went over what to do if we lose communication with our on-ground instructor when we’re in flight. Don’t panic, just continue flying the predetermined path until you can lay eyes on your instructor on the ground, and follow his hand signals. We obviously also learned the different hand signals and what they mean.

The next lesson of the day was called “Meet the Motor”. We learned the different parts of the harness and the motor, how they’re connected together, and the differences between the 2 different types of drive mechanisms (gear box on the Atom 80 vs. belt-driven on the Moster 185). Micah showed us the different ways to pick up the paramotor, how to walk around with your hands out when it’s on your back so you don’t smack it into anything, and how to set it down properly so it doesn’t slam into the ground and cause any damage.

We learned about the propeller, what it’s made of, how the angle at which it cuts through the air on the ascending side vs. the descending side differs, and how that difference in angle can cause torque to not only the engine, but your flight path.

Depending on your weight, you are designated either the Atom 80 or the Moster 185. Your hang points are also determined by your weight and how it hangs from the mock risers in the middle of the hangar. We were all assigned our paramotors that we’ll be flying for the remainder of the class. Because I weighed 195 with all my clothes and boots on, I was assigned a Moster 185, and my hang point is 2 holes in front of my connection point. We took turns picking up our assigned paramotors and hanging from the mock risers to verify we’ll be hanging at the correct angle when we take flight.

Then it was back into the classroom where we learned about the different steps of the launch sequence and how you attack each piece of the puzzle affects the efficiency of your take off. We learned about how you have to lean back when running with the motor on your back so that the angle of thrust is driven straight backwards, helping to push you forward, rather than upward, pushing you into the ground. Micah went through our “First Flight”, going over the commands we’ll here from the instructors when towing and taking our first flights. We then spread out our chairs and went through the sequence, following his instruction, pretending we were running with the motors on our backs and going through the motions of our first flight. Pulling the wing up with the A’s in your thumbs, releasing them when the wing gets overhead, adding acceleration, pulling pressure on the breaks to lift you off the ground, raising your hands/brakes once you lift off the ground, stowing the right brake, getting yourself into your seat, making a few turns, letting off the accelerator, getting back out of your seat, prepping yourself for landing, wait, wait, wait, pressure, pressure, flare, run, run, run. He then showed us an aerial photo of the airport and what flight path we’ll be taking when we launch for the first several times. We then went out into the hangar to get fitted for flight helmets.

Then it was lunch time and everyone but John and I left to go get some food. John and I brought our lunches, so we just sat in the hangar and chatted about the thought of purchasing our very own paramotors, where we would likely fly back at our respective home locations, and how often we thought we’d be able to fly.

After the rest of the students showed back up, we stood around outside and talked about how, despite how hot and humid it is in Florida, we were glad we lived here instead of up north. We shared stories of bragging to family and friends that post on social media about the terrible winter weather up north, while we post about beach-worthy weather year-round. Eventually Judson arrived.

Per Judson’s instruction we each grabbed a radio and gathered around the table in the hangar. Judson showed us how to set the radio up for communication during our flights, and how to connect them to our flight helmets.

We then went outside to the A-frame for some Motor Simulator fun. We took turns hanging from a paramotor (Atom 80) while Judson started the engine. We learned the different levels of acceleration: a little bit of power, 30% power, 60% power, and smooth to full power. We then went through the launch, flight, and landing sequences with the motor off, following Judson’s instruction through the radio. Judson then started the motor and we did the 3 sequences again with the motor running. We then did it one more time with the motor running, but after the first in-flight turn, we pretended that the communication went out and followed his hand signals until we pretended to land safely back on the ground. It actually started sprinkling a little while the 2nd student (Dottie) was on the motor simulation, but it quickly cleared up and became beautiful again. I was the last student to do the simulator, and based on the ear-to-ear smile on my face in the picture taken of me, it was so much fun.

A-Frame Motor Simulator

We then came back inside, put our radios back on the charger, and bagged up our flight helmets. It started raining again, and since we were at a good stopping point, Judson called it a day at that point.

Day 3 – Monday, November 9, 2020

Day 3 started with rain, at least a light constant drizzle. The plan was to start at 9am, and once again, we were all there slightly earlier than that, except my wing buddy, Lance. Micah said Lance wasn’t feeling very well that morning and decided to sit the day out. He promised it wasn’t COVID, just not feeling very well. My guess is that he woke up incredibly sore. My inner thighs were quite sore in the morning and he’s got almost 30 years on me. It was because of the way I was hanging in the harness during the motor simulator, and Lance is shorter than me, so he was hanging much more uncomfortably-looking. Micah and Judson were the instructors for the day again.

We all then gathered in the classroom to start the day. Micah went over the plans for the day: to learn about Airports, then Weather, and then go outside and do some “Lean Backs”. Lean Backs are when you strap the motor to your back, the instructor helps you start it, and then you lean against the flag pole and rev up the motor to really get a sense of how strong the thrust is, without being tethered in the A-frame simulator. Then you try this without the help of the flag pole, by leaning back.

Judson taught us about the layout of an airport by looking at aerial views of the Marion County Airport, where we were. We learned about Left- and Right-Hand Flight Patterns, what the different legs of the flight path are called (Departure, Crosswind, Downwind, Base, and Final), and where we’re allowed to cross runways (in the middle, not near the ends where air traffic may be landing or taking off). We also learned the proper way to communicate on the CTAF (Common Traffic Advisory Frequency). “Marion County Traffic; Ultralight/Powered Paraglider; Departing Northwest from the Northwest of Runway 05-23; Marion County”. Judson told us that it’s not necessarily required that we say anything at G-Airspace Airports, but it’s always a good idea to alert other aircraft of our presence. Don’t want anyone to be surprised by a paramotor, because most GA (General Aviation) pilots are not looking for paramotors or ultralights when they’re approaching or departing from airports. He also said that for smaller, not-so-busy airports, it’s better to say something in a slightly wrong format than to not say anything at all. On the contrary, when flying into bigger airports’ airspace, you want to have your terminology and format of your communications down very well, however, as paramotor pilots, we won’t be flying into these airspaces.

Micah then went over Weather. We talked about what makes a “Perfect Day”. High Pressure air is better to fly in than Low Pressure air. More on Perfect Day. We also talked about different types of clouds. Stratus = Pancakes, Cumulus = Popcorn. We went over the Daily Thermal Cycle, which happens during the time period of roughly 2 hours after sunrise and roughly 2 hours before sunset. It’s when the sun comes out and heats up the ground. The warm air eventually breaks free from the surface and floats upward causing upward drafts that can be very dangerous to fly a paramotor into or even near. They can rise as fast as 3000 vertical feet per minute in the middle and have downward drafts around the edges. There is a documentary called Paragliding Miracle Documentary about a woman that gets sucked up in a very strong thermal that lifts her up so high, she passed out, which is likely what saved her from freezing to death because of the extreme low temperatures as high as she went. She regained consciousness when she dropped back down to a more oxygen-rich elevation and eventually made a safe landing.

We learned about Gust Fronts, also known as Micro Bursts, that extend out from around thermals that have the downward drafts around the edges. The air comes down from higher elevations, hits the ground and turns outward from the middle of the thermal causing strong, turbulent waves of wind. These can extend up to 20 miles from thermals, and 80 miles from frontal lines.

We discussed Turbulence in depth; what causes it and what signs to look for that indicate turbulence. We don’t want to fly near or around crisp, fully defined clouds. These are formed by thermals bringing warm air up to a cold shelf where the air condenses to form nice crisp clouds. We don’t want to fly wen winds aloft are blowing more than 30 degrees off of the winds at the surface. Birds circling is a sign of a thermal, which is a tell-tale sign of turbulence. Dust Devils are known as Bullet Thermals because they’re small and quite powerful. When gusts are more than 5 mph over the steady state air, this is a sign of unstable air, or turbulence. 5 mph gusts over steady state air are OK, but nothing more. When looking at a forecast to see if a day is worth flying, make sure you look at the forecast for your entire flight window (when you plan on flying) and include up to an hour before your flight window. We learned about Cold Fronts, and that behind them is high pressure air, which is great for flying. We also learned about Mechanical Turbulence, also known as Rotor. The example that Micah gave was it like a big rock in the middle of a stream. The flow of water is not only turbulent behind the big rock, but along either side of the rock as well. Mountains and hills, buildings like hangars, and even trees can cause rotor. Stronger winds exponentially cause more rotor, and the bigger the obstacle causing the rotor the stronger and larger the rotor.

Lastly we went over some good Aviation Apps to download on your phone. MyRadar is a great weather radar app, showing a nice, clear, up-to-date radar image. Windy is a great wind app that has many layers, including air pressure, that you can toggle on and off. You can see the wind at different elevations, and save favorite locations to come back to quickly. Winds Aloft is a website that Micah mentioned was a good resource. The best App that we were shown is FlySkyHy, which is a pay App for iOS. It is a Vario, Speedometer, and GPS tracker all in one. You can even save your flights and open them up in Google Earth in 3D. Micah showed us one of his previous flights from the Marion County Airport back to his house. He opened it up in Google Earth and we were able to see a 3D rendering of it. It was color-coded based on his elevation. This is a pay App, and like I said before, it is only for iOS. The best comparable App I can find for Android is XCTrack.

Unfortunately, it continued to rain all morning, and when we finished our discussion on Weather, the grass was too wet for us to go outside and do Lean Backs. Safety is paramount at Aviator and Micah didn’t want to chance anyone potentially slipping on the wet grass.

So, we called it a day early.

Day 4 – Tuesday, November 10, 2020

Today, we had the day off, so I spend my time relaxing, watching TV, and reading my PPG Bible.

Day 5 – Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Today started at 7am out in the field. The grass was dry and the wind was nice, slow, and stable. We split up into 2 groups of 3 and took turns forward kiting through the giant sand spur patch. Judson was instructing Anthony, Lance, and I, while Micah instructed the other 3. After kiting for a couple hours, we headed inside to review our kiting. We were each tasked with recording our fellow students with our phones to supply review materials to go over in the classroom. I think I ended up filming the most. Anthony kited the most in our group, so he was the star of most of the videos we reviewed. Micah went through all the videos with us, slowing them down to point out mistakes and explain how he would like to see them remedied. Unfortunately, no one filmed me, so I didn’t get to see my own form or any mistakes I may have been making. But, there should be plenty of more kiting time to get videos of me to review.

After the kiting review, we moved on to Wing Design. We talked about wing philosophy, how the wings are made, and how they’re tested. The wing philosophy covered how wings fly. They create lift using Bernoulli’s Principle and Newton’s 3rd Law (for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction). Because of the airfoil profile, the air flowing over the top moves faster and creates a lower pressure than the slower air flowing under the wing, thus creating lift. The motor and pilot make up the weight pulling straight down toward the earth, the power of the motor creates thrust going forward, and everything going through the air creates drag pulling backwards. We went over the difference between a paraglider wing and a parachute. Paragliders have a “glide ratio” of 6 to 9:1. The “descent ratio” of a paraglider is 3 ft/sec while a parachute descent ratio is 9 to 18 ft/sec. We learned about the different terminology of the wing make up: Chord = front to back length in the middle, Span = width from wing tip to wing tip, Aspect Ratio = Span/Chord, Projected Wingspan = span of the wing’s shadow when inflated, Flat Wing Area = area of the wing when laid out on the ground flat, and the Projected Area = area of the wing’s shadow when inflated (which is about 15% less than the Flat Wing Area). We learned about the different axes that the wing follows: Roll, Yaw, and Pitch. We learned about Wing Loading, which can be measured in lbs/m2, but more commonly measured in Kg/m2. We were told you want to be within the top 1/3, or at 85%, of the weight range of your wing. We learned about heavier-loaded wings vs. lighter-loaded wings; heavier-loaded are more dynamic, faster, easier to inflate, and more resistant to collapse. We learned about the different ratings for wings, determined using the EN 926 Standard Rating which has 23 different categories. This is actually a Paragliding standard. You can go on Para-test.com to see the different categories and how the different rated wings measure up to the different categories/tests. We also learned about Trimmers, Speed Bar, Reflex vs. non-Reflex wings, and 2D Steering (Tip Steering tied to the Brake Toggles).

We then learned about how the wings are made. The same company that makes/puts the wings together makes the fabric itself as well. The fabric, made of Rip-Stop nylon is cut by a machine, however every single wing is sewn together by hand.

Not only is the material and lines tested for tension strength and rip strength, the fully-developed wings are tested to failure as well. That must be hard for the people that sew the wings together to know that some of the wings they painstakingly sew are only being made to be destroyed through testing. A good website to learn about the wing testing is www.ms-prod.ch, and a good website to learn more about how the wing is in-flight tested is www.acpoaviation.com.

We were warned about “Good Deals”. Beware of deals that sound too good to be true. Oftentimes, wings that you find for sale for quite cheap are either damaged wings or really old wings (with older technology) that are no longer trustworthy for flying. The urge to get one of these wings “just for kiting” should be resisted. You don’t want to learn bad habits on wings that you’ll never be flying with. That’s why the Ozone Roadrunner is a great kiting wing. It has been designed as a kiting-only wing that is very close to the other Ozone flying wings with respect to the way it inflates, handles, and attaches to the harness.

Judson discussed what Shark Nose Technology is and showed us on his Ozone Freeride by hanging it up on the wing lift so we could look up along the Shark Nose opening along the underside of the leading edge of his wing.

He then went over Glider Care. UV rays degrade the coating on the wing and wear it out faster. You want to keep it dry, and don’t put it away wet. Just like a tent, it will be stinky the next time you pull it out, and may grow mildew/mold that can eat away at the wing fabric over time. Try your best not to drag the wing across any rough surfaces like sand or asphalt. Always check the lines for breaks, especially before flying as part of your pre-check. And lastly, make sure you put the wing away properly, ensuring the Battons are protected within the rest of the material of the wing, and the risers are in a position to not get tangled.

Judson explained why it’s important to get your wing inspected annually. It costs about $150, and is worth every penny. It’s especially important to get done if you plan on trying to sell it. It will help encourage any potential buyers that the wing is flight-worthy and worth buying.

We went over the wing selection that beginners should buy as their first wing: Mojo Pwr 2, Spyder 3, or Roadster 3.

We then went over Airspace. Class A is “above” all the others, from 18,000’ to 60,000’. Class B is for “Busy” airports like Tampa International Airport. The Mode C veil around Class B airports is the range at which the Class B ATC picks up aircraft on their radar. This is not something that Paramotorists need to worry about. Class C is for “Commercial” airports, like Sarasota Airport. Class D airports are smaller airports surrounded by “Dashed” lines on the aviation maps, like on Skyvector.com. The smallest airports are oftentimes untowered. Class G is for “Ground” which, depending on location, either extends up to 700’ or 1,200’. Within Class G airspace, Paramotors are to stay clear of clouds. Class E is for “Everywhere” or “Everyone”. This is all the rest of the space that is not A, B, C, D, and G. Within Class E airspace, Paramotors are to stay 500’ below, 1,000’ above, or 2,000’ laterally away from clouds. That means that if you make it up above the clouds, while maintaining visual of the ground, you would require a hole at least 4,000’ wide to drop down through to stay the proper clearance from clouds. We learned about Prohibited Areas, which we are never allowed to fly in, Restricted Areas, which, when active, are to be treated like Prohibited Areas, TFRs (Temporary Flight Restrictions), MOAs (Military Operating Areas), MTRs (Military Training Routes), and Alert Areas, which should always assumed to be active. We were told that in Wildlife Areas, Paramotors are requested to fly no lower than 2,000’ AGL. There are Special Flight Rules in place in certain areas like around Manhattan, NY. High Interest Targets are things like the Hoover Dam, Mount Rushmore, and big bridges, and are pointed out on the Skyvector.com maps. We can fly around these things, but we should not loiter around them.

Lastly, we discussed the App called Fore Flight. It’s a pay App that’s great for XC flying.

Day 6 – Thursday, November 12, 2020

Because Hurricane Eta passed through last night, we started at 9am again this morning, hoping the winds would have died down to allow for more kiting time. Unfortunately, it was still kind of rainy in the morning, so we started with more classroom time. We went down the line, 1 by 1, and looked at Google Earth and Skyvector.com trying to find local flying spots around each of us students’ homes. For me, living in Pinellas County, the closest places we found were airports in Zephyrhills (Zephyrhills ZPH) and Bradenton (Manatee 48X). The contact information for the airport managers can be found on Skyvector.com. If you find private land you want to pursue launching from and landing on, there is a Release of Liability for the property owners to sign that can be found on usppa.org.

We then went over FAR 103, which is the only list of regulations that, as Paramotor pilots, we must follow. It was created to protect people on the ground, and lays out a general set of loosely written rules that govern ultralight aircraft, including Paramotors. Increased regulations are inevitable, but the more we can all stay true to FAR 103, the slower they will come. We learned about what we can and can’t do when flying, exemptions and waivers, and equipment regulations. We can’t pose any hazard to any person or property. We can only fly during daylight hours, between Sunset and Sunrise. We can fly within 30 minutes before sunrise or after sunset, in G airspace, only with an anti-collision light (strobe). We learned about Right-of-Way rules; we basically must yield to EVERYONE. We are the bottom of the totem pole. We are not allowed to fly over Congested Areas, which are loosely defined by the FAA, or open air assemblies of people. A rule of thumb to follow is if the area appears to be congested, like a neighborhood, and people are not visible on the ground, is to fly at about 1,000’ AGL. We must always maintain visual reference to the ground. We learned about some “Get Out of Jail Cards” or really just what to say or do if you find yourself breaking FAR 103 rules unintentionally. For example, you can’t get in legal trouble if you land in someone’s private property if you have an emergency and need to land immediately. So, if that happens, make sure you explain that you had an emergency and had no other choice. If you find yourself breaking a rule of FAR 103, and realize that you’ve done wrong, immediately file a NASA Report when you land. It is kind of like an admission of guilt, but will ease the FAA disciplinary actions if/when the person you affected by breaking the rule files a report. This is to be used for Aviation to Aviation mistakes, not for if you accidentally fly over people. Just Google the form and fill it out immediately after the incident.

The last thing we were told in the classroom this day was to make sure we go on usppa.org and pay the $34 annual fee to become a member. This is a requirement we’ll have to do in order to take/pass the PPG 1 & 2 tests.

Then it was lunch time and then out to the field to do Lean Backs and more kiting. The group got split up into 2 groups again. Micah advised on the Lean Backs and revving the motors up to full power, while Judson did more kiting training. I started with Micah and the motors. Slapping that Moster 185 on my back and bringing it up to speed was very intimidating the first time. I didn’t know what to expect. I think I was flexing my legs when I bent over to bring it up to full power, because afterwards it felt like I did 100 squats with heavy weights on my back; my legs were all shaky. Giving the motor power and taking steps forward felt quite awkward, but I imagine that after some more practice, it’ll feel more natural. When I first picked up the motor, it didn’t feel that heavy, but after bent over full throttle and stepping forward giving it power, the motor felt like it gained 20 or 30 lbs. Then it was time for more kiting, however, the wind was kind of blustery and Judson was really the only one that had been kiting at that point. He was then scooting by on the One Wheel while kiting, looking like a kiteboarder. Shortly thereafter, the wind died down to a nice more constant breeze. Judson strapped up on a student Atom 80 and went on a short flight to check it out. It was awesome to watch him just zip around us so elegantly, like it was nothing. After he landed we started kiting more. I was able to hand kite way better than I was by myself at home. I think that has to do with how turbulent the winds were when I tried at home. I’m pretty confident in my forward kiting, and after a few runs, I took a short breather. At this point it was just me and my wing buddy, Lance, with Judson, while Micah was helping the other 4 students after the motor stuff was over. I then tried my hand at some reverse kiting and actually did better than I expected. Having Judson run alongside me and give encouraging words while I was going really boosted my confidence in my kiting and I felt like that helped me to “save” the wing when it was about to hit the ground. He said he really liked the way I was able to save the wing. After a few runs of reverse kiting, it started to get darker, so Lance and I started wrapping up, putting the motors back on the trailer. The other students and Micah came back from kiting and Micah went for a quick flight before helping put away all the Roadrunners. Then as we were just about done packing up, Judson went for a last minute flight with about 11 or 12 minutes left of the 30 mins after sunset. I checked on my phone to make sure he had time and it was really cool to watch him zip around with the strobe on. He landed, loaded his Scout on the trailer, and we all walked back to the hangar, Judson scooted on the One-Wheel of course.

We called it a night when we got back to the hangar and planned to meet up at 6:30am tomorrow to do some tandem flights!!! I’m soo excited.

Day 7 – Friday, November 13, 2020

Today started out at 6:30am. Sunrise was at 6:51am, and we wanted to take advantage of the whole day, and boy did we. We met out in the field and split into 2 groups. Dottie, John, and I were with Judson, kiting, while Micah took the other 3 up in the tandem trike. We kited around until they were done flying, and then it was our turn. I ended up going last after Dottie and John went, so I knew what was coming up when I sat down and strapped into the front of the trike. Judson started the motor and off we went, rolling faster and faster. Very shortly thereafter we started coming up on a gopher tortoise hole. I tried to shout “turtle hole” but Judson didn’t hear me over the roar of the motor. He did finally see it last minute and was able to somewhat dodge it. The right-rear wheel jumped the hole, and within a few seconds (and probably another 30’ or so) after we were airborne. Judson controlled the entire flight, so I was just along for the ride. We circled the section of the airport we were using twice and came in for a landing. It was awesome!! I never felt the drop-in-your-stomach feeling that you get dropping straight down on a roller coaster, which I was afraid of the most, at all. In fact, it was quite the opposite. You felt like you were literally sitting in a reclined lawn chair, floating through the air at a few 100 feet up. It definitely gave me confidence that I’m going to like flying solo. Judson said that the foot-launch Paramotors are even more leaned back feeling. Talking with him and Micah, you should never get that drop-in-your-stomach feeling. If you do, you’re doing something wrong.

Then we broke for breakfast/lunch around 9:45am-ish. 5 of us went to Breakfast Station for some grub. I had the Engineer breakfast with Pumpkin Cinnamon Swirl Pancakes. It was delicious.

Judson sent the group chat a picture of his Paramotor out front of a pizza place. He flew to lunch. Soo cool.

Best way to go get a slice.

When we got back, we had some time to kill, so a few of us just sat around and chatted. When the rest of the gang got back, it was a little bit of classroom time to go over what is all involved in towing. We asked a bunch of questions and Micah eased our concerns. We then went back out to the field to do some kiting while we waited for Eric Farewell to come back to assist with the towing. I was pretty comfortable with the kiting, so I was told to go off on my own and work on it while Micah and Judson went back and forth to the rest of the students to help them out. John was eventually kiting on his own as well. Judson was working with Lance, trying to perfect his kiting, when a gust of wind swept Lance off his feet and he went for a good (well actually bad) tumble. He got up limping claiming he pulled a groin muscle. After a little rest, he tried to forward kite the wing again, and as soon as the wing got up, he said, “Nope, nope, nope” and stopped in his tracks. He could barely walk. After sitting off to the side for little a while, he decided to head home early.

When Eric arrived, we got everything setup for towing, and John and George suited up. Micah said they want us to each do 3 tows, alternating between 2 at a time. John went first. I was the cameraman for John and George. As soon as George “landed” on his 3rd tow, I was called over. John and I swapped places. I suited up and got hooked up. My first tow was a little wonky, because I was pulling little bits of brake alternating between my hands and was in a pretty good oscillation while floating along. The ascension happened so fast, and I was so nervous, that I didn’t really realize that I was about 50-75 feet high. My landing was great. I waited the right amount of time, and stuck the landing on my feet. Then I turned around and kited the wing down nicely. Then George went a 4th time because his 2nd and 3rd tows didn’t go as nicely as the instructors liked so they gave him another chance. Somehow he lost communications during this 4th flight, and had a somewhat botched landing. I then got hooked up and did a 2nd tow. This time, I followed Eric’s instruction and did very minimal adjustments. I flew perfectly straight. I think Micah gave me more pull than the others, because I got pretty damn high on this 2nd tow. Eric handed the instruction off to Judson after about halfway and Judson guided me down to a perfect landing. I turned around and kited the wing down great. George hooked up to do one more tow. He went up great, but again somehow lost communication during his flight. As he was descending, Judson accidentally stepped into the quickly moving tow rope and got gnarly rope burns on the backsides of his knees. He eventually got up and was OK, but we decided to be done with the tows for the rest of the day.

So, John walked back over from where Judson was and told me that we were going to work on taxiing. I figured that meant forward kiting with the motor on our backs. When Micah got back over to us, he said to go through my pre-flight check on my motor. John was a little quicker than I was getting his motor ready and met up with Eric over where we were launching from on the tow rig. There was one strap that I had to adjust, but everything looked good to go. As I was putting it on my back, Judson started John’s motor, and next thing you know John is kiting with his motor running. Within a few more seconds, he revved the motor up to full power, and his feet were leaving the ground. He was on his first flight! I said to Micah, “Uhh, am I flying now?” He said, “No, we’re just going to kite and control the wing. If everything all looks good, then maybe well increase to full power and you’ll fly.” My thoughts were “Oh Shit”. He helped calm me down and kept reminding me to take deep breathes. I got clipped into a 26m wing, which is the same size I had bought, and got into position to do forward kiting. Meanwhile, George was filming John, and the rest of the students were kiting with Judson’s help. Micah started my motor and I tried to get my wing up. It immediately tipped to my left, but I couldn’t quite get it to recover, so Kill, Kill, Kill. We set back up a little further away from the others, and got into position again. Micah started my motor and again reassured me that I’m going to be fine. I started pulling the wing up, and this time it floated right up overhead. I continued to keep on the throttle, just with “a touch of power” and kept running, checking my wing tips to make sure the wing was in the right position. For some reason, Micah started saying “more power, more power, now smooth to full power”, lol. I did exactly what he said while continuing to run and leaning further back into the power of the motor. After 20 or 30 more feet. My frickin feet left the ground!!!! I kept running into the air and eventually stopped when I was probably 10 to 15 feet high. I could not believe what was happening, my mind did not compute. But, I kept doing exactly what Micah was saying. I kept climbing on full throttle. I stowed my right break and got into my seat. Then came time for my first turn. I very slightly started getting an uneasy feeling in my upper chest/throat. Micah reminded me to take a deep breath and it immediately went away and a sense of utter freedom washed over me, and I became so calm. I did a little hop and got into my seat even better. Judson was right, the seated position on a foot-launch Paramotor is so comfy. I made another turn and headed downwind over the hangars. I then made a 3rd turn and Micah told me to stow both brakes and let my arms hang, while finding my cruising speed. It was a really awkward feeling to do that, but I got through it exactly how Micah told me to. I flew over where I started from and made another little loop before coming in for a landing. Again, I listened and did exactly what Micah told me to do. I had no other choice, my mind was completely blank. I killed the engine about probably 50 to 75 feet and kept my hands up high. At about 20 to 30 feet, I found myself looking at the ground at the same exact time Micah said “eyes on the horizon”. I looked out and waited for him to tell me to add pressure. At the expected 6 feet or so, I added pressure to my shoulders, I floated up a little, then started coming back down again, added more pressure to my nipples, then all the way down and plopped very nicely down onto my feet. I just did my FIRST FUCKING FLIGHT!!!!!!!!! Holy shit!!!!

I immediately dropped my arms and the tears started coming. Micah and Eric both sprinted over to me to give me the mandatory congratulatory hug. We shared a moment that I wish everyone could experience. Remember, Eric was still instructing John, who was back in the air after coming in for a quick landing a few moments before. He went right back to instructing John after a minute or two of celebrating with me. I just couldn’t believe what I had done. I literally just ran into the sky, on my own. There was no one with me. No one within several hundred feet in all directions. No one, but Micah in my ear. I could not have done that without Micah telling me what to do every step of the way. Eventually, Judson made his way over and gave me a big hug too. I could not be more thankful for these guys for one of the greatest experiences of my life. That was something I will remember for the rest of my life. And it’s only going to get better from here. After coming only very slightly down from cloud 9, I proclaimed, “Yep, I will definitely be purchasing a motor now.” And I will. Judson said every flight is that amazing, but you’ll always remember your first. But he said that every flight is just as awesome! I want that feeling again and again and again, and am soooo happy that I enjoyed it as much as I did. I think I found my calling. This has to be it. The feeling I had is indescribable. You really can’t put it into words. You just have to experience it to know. I can’t wait to watch the rest of our class get to run into the sky like John and I did tonight.

Shortly after all this, we started packing everything up and made our way back to the hangar. We had a short debrief, discussing how amazing the day had been, and then we called it a night.

I can’t believe I had my first solo flight on Friday the 13th in 2020. What an epic day!

Day 8 – Saturday, November 14, 2020

Today started at 6:30am again. It was super foggy on the drive in and a heavy fog lingered over the field for quite some time. Lance was the first to arrive, and as everyone else showed up, he climbed out of his truck with obvious struggle and made his way into the hangar where we were all sitting. He told us that it wasn’t just his groin that he pulled, but his back got jolted pretty hard and he was really afraid of rupturing a disc. So, he graciously bowed out of the training. Eric and Micah really encouraged him to go home and rest and to let them know when he’s feeling up to finishing his training. He said his goodbyes and headed back home. So, I was left without a wing buddy. L

Shortly after that, we headed out to the field to get things started. It was still foggy as hell. Once we were in the middle of the field by the windsock, we couldn’t see any trees in any direction. But there was some patches of blue overhead that eventually started to grow, allowing the light from the sunrise to break through and start warming up the ground to dry the dew. Eric, Micah, and Judson setup the tow rig, while John and I started pre-flight checking our Paramotors. Eric assisted John while Micah helped me out. John was the first to take off and fly around. He made a lap around in the square/rounded-rectangular pattern and came back in for a touch-and-go. He did that a few more times racking up his number of flights. While he was up and out of the way, I got suited up and got into position. Micah led me through the launch process and up and away I went! Got my 2nd flight in! This time in the morning. The air was very slightly turbulent (in my novice opinion) and the ride was a little wobbly, but again, not scary at all. It was a lot easier to catch my breath and enjoy the views on the 2nd flight than the first. A little less nerve-racking. The only thing that kind of stressed me out about this 2nd flight was that as I was launching and rising up in altitude, my left ear muff got caught in my left riser and popped off my ear. So in my left ear, all I heard was the roar of the motor, and I could only slightly hear Micah in my right ear. At one point, he had me do a left turn, so when I looked, leaned, and pulled left pressure, it was even harder to hear him because my left (exposed) ear was facing the motor. But, I could hear him enough to keep my mind somewhat at ease and work through the rest of my flight. When I came around for the landing, the wind was causing a slight oscillation. As my approach was descending, Micah told me to add a little bit of right pressure. I did exactly that, BUT, I released the pressure back up and started to oscillate again right before touching down. I did land on my feet though and ran it out. YES!! 2 flights in the books! After our flights, it was time for more towing for Dottie and Anthony. I believe George has 1 more tow as well, but I can’t quite remember, I was still on cloud 9 from my 2nd flight.

When the tows were done, we packed it up and headed back in the hangar for lunch. John, George, and I sat with Eric to discuss purchasing our own Paramotors and equipment, and looked at the different financing options for each of us. This month, Parajet is doing a promotion for free color customization, which saves you $250. My favorite color is green, so of course I wanted to get a green one instead of the stock blue. Since I’m probably going to be flying near water, a Powerfloat was definitely on the list of accessories, along with a couple strobes. Because of my credit score, I was offered a great rate by the different lenders, but was a little confused about the interest schedule using the Klarna financing option. Eric and I were under the impression that it was offering zero interest for the first 6 months, but it stated in the Terms and Conditions that this was only for Promotional Purchases. BUT, it did not specify if the purchase I was planning on making was a “Promotional Purchase” or would just get the Standard rate. Eric reached out to Klarna using the automated chat feature and requested to speak to a real person, but did not get a response by the time he wanted to leave and head back home. He said he will let me know as soon as he hears back from them. By this time George and John had already left to go rest somewhere else and were not there to see Eric off, it was just me. I sincerely thanked him for allowing me the opportunity to join the Aviator family, and he could not be happier that I was doing so. He said, “So I’ll see you in Lake Wales this weekend?” To which I replied, “Maybe….well actually, now that I think about it. I have plans with my girlfriend, since I haven’t seen her in 2 weeks.” To which he jokingly replied, “Aw come on man.” He then got in his car and drove off.

After lunch was over, and everyone was back at the hangar, we headed out to the field for more kiting, towing, and flying. We got everything set up and worked on more kiting while we waited for Chris Garrison to show up. He pulled out into the field with his mobile apartment (a sprinter van all decked out for the van-life) and Micah introduced him to the class. The plan was to allow Dottie and Anthony to get a few more tows in, and for the rest of us to just observe. George and I were told to pre-flight check our motors so we did them together to help each other out. Dottie’s tows were great. Anthony’s first tow did not go as smoothly, and Micah reduced the power pretty early allowing him to come down about halfway to the pulley where Judson was located. Anthony’s 2nd tow, however, looked great. Unfortunately, on the way back over to the launch location, the tow rig wheel started jolting back and forth and within a few seconds the rope had wrapped itself around the axle right next to the wheel and then snapped. So, towing was done for the time being. Micah then got George out in the field with his wing setup (the 30m flying banana), started his motor up, and started taxiing for a launch. Eventually his wing went down and he had to abort. Then it was my turn. Chris had me grab the 28m wing, and we set it up for taxiing. Chris explained that as I’m taxiing and adding more and more power, to visualize and then physically try to make my strides longer and longer until the motor and wing lift me off the ground, while continuing to run until I’m well off the ground. He had me kite the wing to him. Everything looked good, so he said, “Alright now add more power. Add more power. Now smooth to full.” And up I went! It was very interesting to notice how the wind direction affects you differently depending on which leg of the pattern you’re on. Sometimes you drift sideways, even though you’re thrusting forward. This is called Crabbing. The ride was quite bumpy, but again, it was not scary. It felt like I was on a swing, in a much more comfortable chair than a normal swing, and someone was gently lifting me and lowering me back down by the chains. It almost felt normal and expected. The sun was setting and the sky was filled with beautiful colors. Chris told me to look over my right shoulder to view the sunset, but it was actually behind me, so he quickly said, “Actually nevermind. I’ll have you look after your next turn.” Holy shit was it gorgeous. I had never seen such an amazing looking sky from that perspective. To see the land beneath me stretched out as far as I could see, met by a huge orange sun with a vivid orange, pink, and purple sky around it, was utterly breathtaking. I would definitely recommend it. When I was finally coming in for my approach, he told me to pull just a little right pressure. I made the mistake of releasing that pressure as I was coming down. What I should have done was just maintain that pressure and had my left hand catch up to my right as I was applying the “landing pressure”. So as a result, I started oscillating again. In the last 20 to 30 feet above the ground, I started dropping very rapidly. I was able to flare at the right moment, but because of my downward momentum, and my backward lean, the bottom of my Paramotor frame bumped the ground. Because of the good speed I had, I bubbled back up and somehow landed on my feet. My first question to Chris as he rushed over to help me unclip was, “Did I break the prop?” He took a look and calmly said, “Nope, everything’s fine.” Another one in the books!! Woohoo!! As Chris was unclipping my wing, I noticed George was actually coming down to land from his first flight. He ended up landing on his butt, and had the same thoughts of thinking he may have damaged his prop. Nope, it was perfectly fine. I ran over with my motor still on my back to congratulate him. You could tell by the look in his eyes that he was still in disbelief about what he had just done. It was awesome to see another fellow student get that indescribable feeling of not only accomplishment, but amazement. We then started packing everything up for the night and headed back into the hangar for debrief.

At some point after debrief, Chris and Micah had the heartbreaking talk with Anthony that because of his latency to react to their commands, they felt that the safest thing to do was for him to only work on kiting from here on out. This sport is not for everyone, and sometimes things just don’t click. Aviator tries really hard to explain that this is a mentally and physically difficult endeavor and you have to be at the top of your game to succeed. They try to weed out those that may not be fully up to the task, but sometimes some people don’t think they’ll have any problems until they’re here. It’s very sad and upsetting to have to have that conversation, but safety is paramount at Aviator and sometimes that call has to be made.

Day 9 – Sunday, November 15, 2020

Today started at 6:30am once again. On my way in, I drove through some sprinkles and had a disappointing feeling that the morning was not going to be good to head out to the field. When I pulled up to the hangar, it was not raining here, so that gave me more hope. Micah gave us the low down about Anthony and told us that he may show up to work on his kiting, but that he just wanted us to be informed of what was going on. We eventually loaded everything up and headed out to the field. Micah paired up with Dottie and George and Chris paired up with John and me. It was all just going to be taxiing practice, or so they told us. I love how they say that to keep everyone’s nerves at bay. They have yet to say, “Alright, we’re gonna go fly now.” They’d probably have to deal with much more anxious students if they said that.

We all did our pre-flight checks on our motors and got our respective wings out and ready. George was the first to go, and had a great successful launch. Then it was John’s turn. When he kited his wing up, he had a Cravat on his left wingtip. He most likely could have launched with that, but Chris eventually had him abort. He told John to jerk on the left brake toggle to try and release the Cravat, but it didn’t work. Again, safety is paramount. While John was doing this, I was setting up my wing behind where he was set up. After his abort, Chris grabbed his wing and John carried his motor back toward me. Then it was my turn. I got suited up and clipped in, and again Chris said, “We’re just going to taxi and if everything looks good and we’re both bored, then we’ll give it smooth to full power and go for a flight.” The demeanor in his voice, and the rest of the instructors too, is so calming and calms the nerves so well. I took my deep breathes and started my taxiing. Within about 20 feet or so, my wing never made it past the power band and tipped over to one side. “Kill, Kill, Kill.” Chris asked if I was good to immediately try again, I said yes, and he helped spread my wing back out to a launch-ready formation. Again, deep breathes. I started to taxi toward Chris, and the wing lifted perfectly this time. I ran faster and faster while adding more and more power, and eventually my feet left the ground. Yahoo!! I held that full power and climbed very fast to a few hundred feet. I did the predetermined route and got a better feel of how the wind carries you on the different legs of the pattern. I circled (or squared) around a few times and each time came in for a low approach to practice coming down in for a landing. I really liked this practice as it helped me learn what to do with my hands to maintain a steady descent without oscillation. On the 3rd time around, I actually came in for my landing. Chris had me hold slight right pressure as I made my last turn to final, and I held it there. I stuck my right thumb out to touch the riser. I didn’t grab the riser, but just touched it enough to know that I wasn’t releasing that pressure any. I came down smoothly and as I was approaching the ground, Chris reminded me to look at the horizon. It was then time to trust my instructor. I waited for his command of pressure, did exactly what he told me, and landed nicely on my feet. I had a little bubble right at the end, but I was low enough, it felt like I was stepping off a 2 foot ledge. Not back at all. 4th flight in the books!!

It’s amazing how when you move your eyes from the ground below you to the horizon how much slower the ground seems to be coming at you. I called it Black Magic as I was walking back toward the starting point. Then it was Dottie’s turn again. She had tried launching a couple times with Micah already, but it ended up just being taxiing because she just wasn’t comfortable with the way the throttle was feeling. Micah remembered that she had mentioned before that she really liked the way Judson had instructed her, so he graciously passed her off to Judson for her next attempt. He had her setup over near the mound. She brought the wing up, everything looked good, but she started drifting over toward the pile. Judson reassured her that she was not going to hit it, and told her to give it more power. She did just that, while running faster and faster, and as we’re all watching, her feet left the ground and she took off on her first flight! John was able to taxi great the 2nd time around and ended up taking off for another flight as well. They both flew around for a few minutes and came in for a landing. Dottie was first and landed on her feet, but then feel to a knee because of the weight of the Paramotor coming back down on her. As soon as John landed, it started sprinkling, so we hurried to get all the wings bundled up and covered. The instructors sensed that the rain was not going to let up any time soon, so we packed up everything and headed back in. When we got back into the hangar, we updated the flight board. It was soo awesome that all the students there that morning each got a flight in. George to 2, but no one’s counting, lol. It was great to watch Dottie write in that “1” by her name.

We then stepped back into the classroom for a little debrief before lunch. Chris reiterated what Micah had told us earlier about Anthony and shared about how difficult, but necessary, it is to have those heartbreaking talks. As I mentioned to the rest of the class, it’s better to make that call now, than to have to make a call to his wife because he got hurt later. We then went around the room sharing our thoughts and feelings on the morning’s events. Then Micah did what he said was his proudest moment of being an instructor was and distributed the Aviator coins that we students so well deserved. By doing so, he was inducting us into the Aviator family of Paramotor pilots. He gave a little background on what the coins mean and how to socially use them to play a game with your fellow pilots when out at a bar. (If someone pulls out their coin, everyone else has to pull theirs out as well. If everyone has their coin, the first person, the challenger, has to buy a round of drinks. If someone doesn’t have their coin to present, then they buy a round of drinks.) It was a very proud moment for us students as well.

So, then there were 4. George, John, myself and Dottie.

We then broke for a long lunch.

It was quite hot and pretty windy when we were all starting to get back to the hangar after lunch, so we sat around and watched a video on Advanced Kiting. Ari came back with Micah to help out with the rest of the day’s training. Judson made me a cup of his iced coffee, it was delicious! We didn’t get to finish the video before the last of us showed up, and we started getting things ready to head back out to the field for more action.

The plan was to just kite around because it was still pretty windy, and when we all got out to the field, we started laying out the wings. We were all told to start pre-flight checking our motors as well, so they’d be ready when the conditions were right to fly again. Micah threw his motor on and went for a test flight to check out the winds at higher elevations. Judson also got suited up and went for a quick test flight. Micah landed before Judson, and when Judson finally came in to land, he accidentally blew Micah’s wing into a jumbled mess. Ari found this as a great teaching opportunity for us to learn the property technique to untangle wing lines. She’s really good at finding the positives in situations that either turn ugly, or when the conditions just aren’t ideal for flying. After she showed us the property technique, we kind of turned it into a little competition amongst us students. Ari and Micah would purposely tangle both risers and lines and then 2 students, 1 on each riser, would try to untangle their riser and lines, and the first one done “won”. It wasn’t really a race, but the first one done would declare victory over the other. Dottie kept beating George, and I beat John.

By the time we were done with our little “competition”, there was another mishap. Apparently, the lines of the 28m wing that I had laid out to fly got tangled up in Judson’s One Wheel and 2 of the lines in one of the middle cascades broke. So, we all got bumped down a wing size, which was actually good for 2 reasons. We were now going to be flying the wings that were the best suited for us based on our weights, and being that there was still some slight turbulence, it’s a little safer to be heavy-loaded on your wing. So, I moved to the 26m wing, which was actually even better yet for me because that’s the size of wing that I had already purchased and would be flying back at home. We got suited up and paired up with an instructor. John and I were going to be instructed by Micah, George got matched up with Chris, and Dottie got matched up with Judson. Dottie’s fiancé PJ was there as well and was able to get a flight in as well. He was an AviatorPPG student back in the September class, and it had been almost 2 months since he had flown. It was great to have a past student around us to give his perspective on what it was like to have gone almost 2 months without flying, as a new pilot, and getting to fly again. He was confident with his skills, but there were some things (even as simple as how to hold the risers before takeoff) that he needed a couple reminders about. Ari also slapped on Micah’s Paramotor and went for a flight too. One by one, us 4 students, PJ, and Ari all had successful launches and were at one point all up in the sky together. It was really cool to be flying around and looking around me to see other Paramotors up in the sky with me. It was a new experience we hadn’t had yet, and it was awesome to say the least. After a few laps of the rounded-rectangular pattern, I came in for my first touch-and-go. I landed nice and easy, with the motor still running, continued to kite the wing forward, and with Micah’s help/instruction eased back on the power and took off again. I flew around another few laps, getting the hang of being a few 100 feet off the ground and eventually came in for a power off landing so that Micah could turn my strobe on for another couple flights. When I landed, for whatever reason, I was really winded. I think I was holding my breath as I was coming in for the landing. Not sure, but I needed a minute to catch my breath. After a few minutes, Micah turned my strobe on and I was off, flying around the airport, again. I did another lap, came in for another touch-and-go, and flew around again before coming in for my final landing. On my approach for my last landing of the night, Micah asked me if I wanted to try and do it all by myself. I kicked my legs forward and backward to signal yes, and he agreed to let me try it on my own. He reassured me that he would say something it I didn’t look right, and added something along the lines of “I’m not going to let you just drop out of the sky if I see something wrong.” So I came in for my landing. I was actually getting the hang of when to cut the motor and at what height I should be at to not overshoot my landing spot. As I got closer, I got out of my seat, put one foot in front of the other and got ready for my flare. I looked at the ground out in front of me to get a gauge of how fast I was coming down and then moved my vision out toward the horizon. I started to add my initial flare pressure at about 10 feet or so, instead of 6, and Micah said, “a little early”, so I just held it there for the rest of the landing. My vertical slope flattened out, but I don’t think I bubbled upward at all, just coasted straight. Then I’m not sure if Micah said anything after that, but I was trying to do the rest all on my own. As my vertical slope started up again from being flat, instead of pulling more pressure to my nipples and then all the way down, I just did a smooth flare from where my hands had been holding all the way down and landing nice and softly on my feet. Another 4 flights (counting touch-and-goes as 2 flights) added to the books!! John and I decided that the touch-and-goes counted as 2 flights because our feet were on the ground and we could have stopped there and counted one, but then took off again and made what we considered to be a 2nd flight. After everyone else landed safely, we packed everything up and headed back to the hangar for debrief.

We all went into the classroom to recount the day’s events and review some of the videos that we had uploaded to the shared Google Drive folder. After a great, congratulatory discussion, John told the rest of us that in consideration of our accomplishments of everyone getting their first flights today, he had brought a cookies and cream ice cream cake for us to share. We all thought that was great and thanked him several times. We all went back out to the hangar and shared our well-deserved treat. While enjoying our dessert before dinner, we talked about the SpaceX rocket launch that was going to happen tonight. Several of us hung around and went to the FBO to pull it up on YouTube and watch it live. Chris, who had left to go get dinner, ended up coming back to provide commentary on what we were watching on the TV. He used to work at SpaceX and knew all the different stages of what was happening. Right after liftoff we all ran outside to see if we could see it. There was a big cloud in the direction of the launch, so we weren’t sure we’d be able to see it. All of a sudden the bottom of the cloud became bright and orange, and we saw a glimpse of the rocket fly between 2 parts of the cloud. After several more seconds, the rocket popped out of the top of the cloud and we watched it fly the rest of the way until it was too small to see anymore. It. Was. Awesome!! What an amazing ending to another epic day.

After I got home, Micah sent out a message in the group WhatsApp that, because of the wind forecast in the morning, we’ll get together at 2pm tomorrow for some motor maintenance training.

Day 10 – Monday, November 16, 2020

Like I said yesterday, today started at 2pm. We started in the classroom going over the criteria for the PPG 2 certification.

Then it was out to the field for more kiting and flying.

We all pre-flight checked our motors, and got our wings out. George put his motor on to practice reverse kiting with the motor on his back but off, with Micah’s help. Judson was helping Dottie do some reverse kiting as well, but without the motor. John and I were off on our own practicing kiting, both reverse and forward. After a little bit, we started getting our motors on and warmed up. Then 1 by 1, we took off and were all flying around. George struggled to get his wing under control enough to take off a few times, but he eventually got up and joined the rest of us in the sky. I blame the wind, because it kept slightly changing in direction and strength. I believe he had Chris on the radio. I flew a lap around the pattern, with Micah in my ear, and came in for a touch-and-go. Landed perfectly, kept running, kept the wing inflated and under control, and ran right back into the sky. When flying yesterday, I was hovering around what I would say was 200 to 300 feet high. I could be way off, but that’s what I would say. I wasn’t scared to go any higher, per se, but I was completely pleased with how high I was. Today, I wanted to go higher. I kept on the throttle and ended up, again what I would say was, 500 to 600 feet high. On my way up I thought that there was a possibility that it might be a little scarier, but that never occurred. The only difference of being up that high was that the things on the ground were a lot smaller. I ended up doing a 2nd touch-and-go and, on my way down, Micah said he was going to let me do this landing on my own if I was cool with that. He asked me to kick yes if I was good with that, and kicked my legs forward and back to say yes. As I came down, instead of pulling my first pressure at 6 feet, I started to pull it at about 10 feet or so, and my descent flattened out a little too high. I then pulled the rest of my flare smoothly and plopped right down, kited it very nicely, Micah minimally told me my wing looked great and that I was good to take off again. I increasingly gave it more power, and went around for a 3rd flight. As I was coming down this time, Micah said he was going to allow me to do this landing on my own again, and again I pulled my first pressure a little too high. Not only that, but I had an oscillation right as I was landing and kind of dropped down leaning way to the left. I stumbled a little to the left, but stayed on my feet. The wing immediately fell to the left very quickly, so I had to kill the motor, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because I needed a drink. After a short break, I got suited up for a 4th flight of the night. Chris took over control of me and John. He told me he was going to allow me to do the takeoff on my own. I took a deep breath and took off running. I had to dodge a gopher tortoise hole on my take off. After lifting off the ground, Chris complimented me on my diversion of the hole and on my nice launch. I flew around for another lap or so, admiring another amazing orange sunset from that crazy perspective I’m still so new to, and then came in for my last landing. Again, Chris said he was only there if I needed him, otherwise he was going to let me do it on my own. Once again, I pulled my initial pressure slightly too high, but performed the rest of the flare at the perfect time, and landed nice and gently on my feet. I took a few steps forward, turned around, and kited the wing down nice and gently as well. Woohoo!!! 4 more flights in the books!!

After everyone else landed, we packed up our wings and motors, while Micah and Judson suited up and joined Beau in the sky for some sweet acrobatics and formations. I mentioned to John that it was “like watching the finale of a fireworks show.” It was like we were the fireworks, flying around beautifully, but not the most exciting to watch from the ground, but then they were going crazy with an awesome pink, purple, and orange background. We then headed back to the hangar for debrief.

We again went around the room discussing our thoughts of how the night went. Dottie said she was “not comfortable, but much more comfortable than [she] was” when it came to having that crazy spinning blade of death on her back. Judson had worked with her the whole night and said that she had shown a great deal of progress. George admitted he was really struggling at first, and felt like giving up at one point. But, he took a break and cleared his mind and was able to get off the ground. John and I had all around great nights of flying. It was such an amazing day/night.

Day 11 – Tuesday November 17, 2020

Today, we started at 8am, because we didn’t think the wind conditions were going to be good enough for flying first thing in the morning. But, within a few minutes of all of us arriving at the hangar, the weather seemed to lighten up and it turned out to be perfect flyable conditions. We all did our motor pre-flight checks and got ready for takeoffs. We took turns launching into the air. As the training has progressed, the instructors started becoming less and less active with their instruction, giving us the opportunity to try the entire process on our own. Micah was in my ears when I took off, and made a few comments/compliments throughout my takeoff, but it was really all me at this point. I flew the pattern around the airport, and came in for a touch-and-go. Landed perfectly, and kited the wing past everyone that was still on the ground and took off again, pretty much all by myself. Again, Micah pretty much did nothing but give me the green light to take off again and compliment me on my successful launch. I flew the patter around the airport again, and came back in for another touch-and-go. Another great landing and launch done almost entirely by myself. When I came back in for my next landing, I was being slightly tossed around by some oscillations on my approach. I was leaning to my left quite a bit when I touched down and immediately slammed down onto my knees. The jeans I was wearing got a ¾” rip on the right knee, and I had a matching cut on my knee that slightly bled through my jeans. But, I was all good and alive. And that was 3 more flights in the books!!

I took a small break, got a drink, and went out for another successful flight, launching and landing by myself, with Micah in my ears just in case I needed some help. My landing was great. Another flight in the books!

Then we broke for lunch. I tried to touch base with Eric to order my Paramotor, but he was busy and we were not able to hookup.

After lunch was Motor Maintenance Class. We learned about the different parts of the motor that will wear out, and how often we would actually need to check for wear. It is a good Idea to check the spark plug about every 10 hours of flight. We also learned about the gas selection. It’s best to use Ethanol-FREE gas, which has a better shelf life. A good reference is www.pure-gas.org. If Ethanol-FREE gas is not available, you can use regular unleaded gas, but make sure it’s at least 89-93 octane (the European equivalent rating would be around 104 octane). You can also use Aviation Grade 100LL (Low Lead) gas, which does not have Ethanol, but is not as ideal as unleaded Ethanol-FREE gas, and can cause build up in the engine. We learned about an important process dubbed “Winterizing” you motor. This is the process of preparing your motor for either storage during the winter, or for long term storage. It is best to take all the fuel out of the gas tank. You can do this by literally picking up the motor and pour the gas out, or just run it until it stalls from running out of gas. You should also take the tension off the net, and remove the propeller. We don’t really need to do this in Florida, because it never gets cold enough to cause freezing within the engine, unless we plan on storing the motor for a long time without starting it. It’s also a good idea to remove the harness from the frame and keep the harness inside your house. We also learned about oil selection. They recommend using Motul 800 oil. Make sure to get the red one, made for dirt bikes, not the yellow one. For the first 15 liters of fuel (or 5 gallons), use a ratio of 50:1 (gas/oil). This is known as the break-in stage. After this, use a ratio of 66:1 (gas/oil). The motor break-in is different for the different types/sizes of motors. For the Moster 185, which is the one I’ve been using I throughout my training and the one I plan on ordering, the 1st phase/stage of the initial break-in process is as follows: Using a tachometer and a watch, run at 4000 RPM for 4 mins, then idle for 1 min, then run it at 5000 RPM for 3 mins, then idle for 1 min, then run it at 6000 RPM for 2 mins, then idle for 1 min, then run it at 7000 RPM for 1 min, then idle for 1 min, then run it at 8000 RPM for 30 secs, then stop the motor and leave it to cool for 15 mins, then repeat this whole process 4 more times. After the last series, stop the motor and check the spark plug. When the engine is completely cold, tighten the head nut at 16-17 Nm. The 2nd phase/stage of the initial break-in process is to go on a series of short, 30 min flights for the first 5 hours, or 15 liters. Remember to gradually increase and decrease the acceleration; don’t slam on the gas to go up faster, and don’t just release the throttle completely to come back down. Take 15 min breaks between these 30 min flights. We also reviewed what a Maintenance Schedule looks like, which tells you how often the different parts of the motor need to be serviced. This is also found in the Paramotor’s owner’s manual. Lastly, we learned about the Muffler Bushing. This is the brass ring that Tucker got changed after his Icarus race that was all gunked up with residue from the engine. Micah said that when you purchase a Paramotor, it should come with a little thumb drive filled with a bunch of motor maintenance How-To videos.

Next up was the all-important Safety Class. We learned about the Anatomy of a Mistake. Mistakes often have multiple contributing factors. There are Active Errors, which would be something like the pilot pulls too much brake or flares too early, and there are Latent Errors, which would be something like Ground Starting. Whatever you do, DO NOT Ground Start your Paramotor! Micah likes to use the “3 mistakes and you’re out!” mentality. If you make 3 mistakes before you ever get off the ground, don’t fly that day. Either your head is not in the right frame of mind to fly safely, or some uncontrollable factor, like weather, is telling you not to fly. We learned about The Traps: Group Think, Peer Pressure, Normalization of Deviance, and Shortcuts. We also learned about the OODA Loop, which stands for Observe, Orient, Decide, Act. It is a quick reaction technique to help you react immediately to things that go wrong, in an instantaneously thought out way. It was created by a former Air Force Colonel John Boyd to help fighter pilots make quick decisive actions during combat operations. We then learned about the Dunning Kruger Effect. As Micah says, “It’s rea!” This is when your confidence builds almost too quickly before your skill and abilities catches up. Something happens that (for lack of better terms) scares the crapola out of you, and makes your confidence drop way back down. Then you gradually increase your confidence and skill at the same time until you are proficient in your flying. We learned about Physical and Mental Margins, and how they both play a role in your overall safety. Micah taught us about the acronym of IMSAFE, which stands for: Illness, Medication, Stress, Alcohol, Fatigue, and Eating. This is kind of like a checklist you should go through before you even head out to the field to go fly. Are all of these items in good standing for you to be going for a flight? Finally, Judson took over and we went over the What If’s. This was a series of videos that show different mishaps of different degrees and Judson discussed how to avoid these things from occurring to you. We went over Wing Collapses, Parachutals, Twisted Risers, Engine Out (Dead Stick), Item in Prop, Gift Wrapping, Water Landings, Reserve Ride, and Power Lines. The most important one was the Water Landings. The biggest killer of Paramotor pilots, which seems very unlikely but true, is water (drowning). That’s why any good Paramotor instructor, or even just any good pilot, will advise you to always wear a Powerfloat if you fly near water.

After Safety Class it was back out to the field. Micah sent both John and I up into the sky and made the call over the AvBand radio so that we could cross the airport. When I got all the way over to the other side of the airport, by the tree line that borders the big field, I made a right-hand turn to head north (into the wind) and stopped mid-air. The wind was blowing just as fast as I could go (I believe around 14 mph) and I was just sitting there at a standstill. Micah radio’d me to let my trims out to make myself a little more aerodynamic. I did just that and was able to cut through the wind a little more. He then told me to turn my stobe on, but I could not find the button on it because of the gloves I was wearing. So Micah told me to come in for a landing and he’d turn it on for me. I headed back to the launch site, crossing back over the runway again. When I came in for a landing, my trims were still out, so I ended up coming in a lot faster than I was used to. I added pressure at the right height off the ground and smoothly flared the rest of the way, pretty much dragging my foot for about 2 to 3 feet. I did my first foot drag! Ha! Micah turned my strobe on and I went for another flight around the normal pattern we had been following all training. I came in for my last approach of the night and landed nice and smooth. I’m really starting to get a hang of it. I told Micah that I felt like I could probably do it all completely on my own, but would really feel more comfortable having an instructor in my ears to be able to help me if I’m doing something not the best. I then started packing up my motor and wing.

At the same time, George was still flying around having a ball and Micah asked him if he wanted to do a power off landing. He agreed and Micah told him to start heading up high. He got up to around 1,500 feet or so and shut his motor off. Micah suited up and took off to go meet up with him. When he caught up to George, he radio’d to him to take his hands off the brake toggles and just sit still. As he obliged, Micah moved in closer and they did a wing tip touch. That was a magical moment for George. Being up that high and having Micah tap wing tips really got to him.

After everyone that was still in the air landed safely, and on their feet, we headed back to the hangar for debrief. Micah, reflecting on his flight with George, said he had never seen a grown man cry that high up in the air. George had the biggest, ear to ear, grin on his face the walk back to the hangar, and throughout the entire debrief. You could see it in his eyes that he was still on cloud 9. He looked like I felt on my first flight. It was such a magical feat, and I’m so happy for George. After going around the room and discussing our thoughts on the day, we headed home for the night.

Day 12 – Wednesday November 18, 2020

Today, we met up at 8am, knowing that it was going to be pretty windy, but hoping that there may be a chance to get a couple flights in. I had mentioned to Micah that I had thought about what I had said yesterday overnight, about feeling confident to be able to do it on my own but that I would want an instructor in my ears, and said that after thinking about it all night, I think I am confident in my abilities to be able to do it without an instructor in my ear.

Dottie brought donuts, but we decided to wait on a donut until after we were done flying/kiting. We headed out to the field as we arrived, and when everyone got out to the windsock, we grabbed wings to do some kiting practice as the winds were still pretty strong. Everyone was all spread out, Micah was helping George with some reverse kiting, and Dottie, John, and I were out on our own. I was using a Mojo Pwr 2, 26m, and it was trying to lift me off the ground quite a bit. I was switching back and forth between reverse and forward kiting, and trying to time my jumps so that I could be lifted off the ground for a few seconds. When jumping in a reverse stance, my crossed risers wanted to uncross and spin me. When jumping in a forward stance, you really have to make sure you’re leaning really far forward, because the wing wants to pitch you back off your feet. It was really fun trying to tame the wing in the stronger winds.

After kiting for a little while, the winds were still too strong for any of us students to fly, and getting stronger by the minute, as the sun was coming up overhead. So, we headed back to the hangar. Once back at the hangar, we had a quick drink break and all headed to the FBO to use the WIFI to take the PPG 2 test. We all took it and passed! I ended up getting 4 questions wrong, but still passed. Some of the questions were really tricky in the way they asked them, and some even had tricky answers that seemed to contradict themselves. Oh well, I passed!

When we got back to the hangar, I called Eric to finish the purchasing process. He logged into the website for the different lenders, but it was saying that the connection was not secured. So, because we had to enter some personal information of mine, he wanted to make sure it was secured before we went any further. He sent the company an email and told me he’d call me back when he heard back from them.

After a few minutes of everyone sitting around, Micah made the call to cancel the rest of the day because the weather just looked like it was going to get worse. I sat around in the hangar for a little while longer and chatted with Judson and John before heading back to my Airbnb.

In mid-afternoon, Micah sent out a message to the group Whatsapp saying that we weon’t be meeting tonight or tomorrow morning because the wind was way too strong for us to even kite, let alone fly, but that tomorrow evening might let up.

Day 13 – Thursday, November 19, 2020

Today, we had the day off, so I spend my time relaxing, resting, and watching TV.

In the early afternoon, Micah sent out another message saying that it’s looking like tonight is still blown out, but tomorrow morning looks promising.

A little while later, I get a text from Eric to continue the loan process. I said I was ready and he gave me a call. He set it up and I finished filling out the rest of the information while we chatted about the upcoming Sun ‘n’ Fun expo that’s coming up. When I was done, it said my application had been submitted for approval. So, now it’s only a matter of a few days before I order my very own custom green Paramotor!!

Day 14 – Friday, November 20, 2020

Today, we met up at 6:45am with the hope that the weather would be nice enough to allow us all to go on our first XC flight together. When everyone showed up, we headed back out to the field. By the time we got out there and situated, it was pretty foggy and kind of breezy. Judson and Beau went for a quick flight to see how the wings aloft were. While they were up, flying around, Micah was helping George with some reverse kiting. Dottie was over by herself working on reverse kiting as well. John and I were just standing around chatting with Reese, the Aviator cinematographer. When Judson and Beau eventually came back down, Judson said that he thought it was flyable for us students. So, we all started our motor pre-flight checks and got our wings laid out. John was the first to take off and start to fly our regular pattern. I was next. I started my motor and let it warm up, revved it up to full power, and got clipped in to fly. Micah had me setup in a reverse launch position. Then, all he said was, “Stephen, you’ve got the green light” and I was off. I launched completely on my own, and proceeded to fly around the normal right-turn patter, and came back in for a touch-and-go. I was coming in at a little angle, so Micah directed me to add a little right pressure, and advised to slowly release it back up to straighten up at the right time. Then the flare was all me. Landed smoothly, and ran it out to get a little distance from everyone standing around before adding back power and taking off again smoothly. Micah was not instructing anymore at this point, he was really just there to compliment me on my successes and to comment on the things I could have done a little better, but after the fact. I was really doing all the steps on my own. I flew around again, and Micah told me to stow my breaks and fly around with my hands free. I flew almost completely around the normal pattern with no hands on brakes, until the last 2 turns. Reese was flying the drone around me at some point, and I made some faces at it, which is of course required. When I turned base (crosswind) and the wind was strong enough to start pushing me toward the active runway. Had I put my trims out, I could have probably cut through the air better, but I was getting really close to the runway, so I just reached up and grabbed my brakes to steer back on course. Micah asked me if I wanted to come back in for another touch-and-go, I swung my legs side to side to say no. Then he asked me if I wanted to come in for a landing, and I kicked forward to backward for yes, and he confirmed. He told me where to land, and to add a little bit of right pressure to straighten out my path and very slight oscillation. As I came down, it looked like I was going to land directly on one of the wings that was laid out in front of me, but right before it was time to flare, it dawned on me that I was going to coast a little across the ground when I flared, so I would simply glide right over the laid out wing. Instead of flaring in the “pressure-pressure-all the way down” style, I just started adding pressure at the right height and slowly, in one continuous motion, pulled all the way down and landed the smoothest I have so far. Had I stuck my leg down, I could have foot dragged for probably 10 to 15 feet. It felt so good!!

I was so very pleased with that small series of flights, so I started taking all my gear off. John was still up in the air. He had come down for a few touch-and-go’s be just kept flying. Judson borrowed my helmet to go back up for another flight and zip around John. They tried a wing tip touch, but John was oscillating pretty bad, so Judson had to bail out and abruptly fly away. PJ, Dottie’s fiancé, borrowed my motor and went for a quick flight with Micah on the radio with him. It was a little too rough for Dottie and George to want to try and fly, and it kept getting more and more windy. When PJ landed, Micah suited up and went for a really high flight. Reese, at one point, went for a flight too, while Beau filmed him with the drone. Then, after Reese landed, Beau went up to so a SAT while Reese filmed him with the drone. Eventually, Judson and John came in for landings, then Beau came back from doing his acrobatics, and finally Micah got down from doing his wing-overs really high. We packed everything up and headed back to the hangar. On the walk back, the 4 of us students reflected on what was one of the most epic adventures we’ve ever been on. It was amazing to think that we just learned how to fly in 2 weeks. I told them I got everything out of this training that I hoped for and more. I’m definitely hooked for life. Dottie said she’d like to get a little more training before she’ll feel comfortable to fly on her own. George said he’s definitely going to talk with his bank when he gets back home and work out the financing needed to get equipment, but he’s for sure going to get a wing soon so he doesn’t lose any of his training. He said he’s going to be back down sometime in January for a little more training, so hopefully we can have a little class reunion and all get together for our XC flight.

The last thing we did as a class was to take our class picture in front of the hangar with the big AviatorPPG logo in the background. Then we said our “goodbyes for now”, gave each other big hugs, and went our separate ways.

What a glorious ending to such and unbelievable time. I can’t wait for my very own Paramotor to arrive and start enhancing my skills as an Aviator.

Thank you to Micah, Judson, Ariana, Chris, Reese, and everyone else that helps make AviatorPPG possible. You have really changed my life for the better. Words don’t do it justice, but thank you from the bottom of my heart. Keep up the great work, and I’ll see you in the sky!!