Yap. I am not kidding. Two training sessions ago Herman had his PPG epiphany and from then on he is unstoppable. Last night he simply flew his ass offf. I have never ever seen someone do more then 15 flights in one session. Herman did 20 – then I stopped counting.

Herman flying with the helmet mounted Go Pro camera

Graham came to get new prop for his machine. This one produces way more thrust. At one pint, his dog started to pee on Herman’s glider… it was very funny to watch Herman with the helmet still on trying to chase away this peeing dog… ha ha ha

When I was ready to leave, I got in the car and tried to turn key in the ignition but nothing happened I couldn’t turn the key at all. I have tried to wiggle the shifter, the parking brake, put my foot on the brake pedal, hit the key, I squirted WD-40 into the keyhole but nothing helped. I was stuck. Luckily Herman was still around so I thought maybe he can give me a ride home. I looked in the rearview mirror and I noticed him walking towards my car – great I thought, he noticed I have a car trouble. He stuck his head into the window and said Andre my battery is dead, do you have starting cables? Crap, so we have one car that can’t move at all and another one that has a dead battery – unbelievable!

Well, we got lucky, we were able to push Herman’s car close to mine. Then we used my battery to start his car and then he drove me home. I was up early in the morning to move my trailer using my friend’s car and then I had my car towed into a dealership.

By 3 o’clock car was fixed and I was back up and running. Crazy last 12 hrs!

It has been a year since Lawrence came down to PPG. I was curious to see if he remembered much but after short refresher on hook up, Lawrence was able forward inflate and show great kiting control.

Graham went on his first XC flight and we have also tested full range of radios. It looks like I can stay in touch with students up 10 km.

The sunset was spectacular…

I have recently received a telephone call from a former student who has purchased a paramotor from me year ago. He said that he was noticing some clear oil on the re-drive. I told him to check everything, tighten up all the bolts, test the propeller for any kind of a play etc. He called next day to tell me that his redrive is totalled. As it turns out he checked everything except the bolts that hold re-drive together they’re kind of hidden behind the propeller and he did not tighten those.

The red rive came apart partially in-flight and all gears inside got wrecked.

Please do real preflight check on your units – make sure that all the bolts are tight! Check before and after each flight.

Ticks and Lyme Disease

We fly from various fields in Niagara. All ticks so far I have seen in our flying locations are dog ticks which do not carry lyme disease. But one can not just assume. Be prepared. Read below.

Ticks are tiny bugs the size of a sesame seed. They do not fly.

They are found on the ground, on tall grass and bushes and they attach themselves to animals and humans passing by.

Blacklegged ticks can carry bacteria that causes Lyme disease. Lyme disease is not spread from person to person.

Protect Yourself from Tick Bites

• Dress in light coloured clothing to easily spot ticks
• Wear clothing that covers arms and legs when walking in grass areas. Tuck in loose clothing and wear shoes that cover the entire foot.
• Spray insect repellent that contains DEET on exposed skin and clothing. Always follow manufacturer’s instructions
• Check yourself and your child’s skin for ticks after outdoor activity. Pay special attention to areas such as the groin, scalp and armpits. Tick bites are usually painless, so you will will likely not feel the tick.
• Cut your grass and dispose of leaf litter where ticks can live

I got together with Herman tonight – there was hardly any wind at the field but Herman finally have his “break through” and proceeded to do five flights – all forward inflations – all done really well.

I also brought to the field a new paramotor that Graham has purchased. I fuelled it up tried to get it started but no luck. It was backfiring and not running well. It felt like the ignition timing was off so we removed the engine and started to take it apart trying to get to the pick up which really wasn’t smart.

Engines from Vittorazi are tested and run in factory so there was no reason why this engine wouldn’t work – it must’ve been something related to the installation of the engine. Finally we thought, what if the wires for the ignition module were crossed?  So we put the engine back together – this is now in almost complete dark and the mosquitoes are attacking big time – we reversed the wires in the ignition module and couple pulls later she starts. I can’t believe I made such simple and stupid mistake. GRRR.