Arrived at Aberavon beach around 11am. Wind was a 5mph wsw falling off to nothing. Tried to do some groundhandling on the old bolero but as soon as it arrived above my head, I had to run like hell to keep it aloft. Gave up after about forty minutes through sheer exhaustion and went to talk to the kite buggy riders. One of them said he had got to 72mph on one occasion on his small wing and trike! Apparently they are holding their annual easter club outing on Rhossili or broughton sands next weekend depending on weather conditions.
Wind picked up around 1.30 so got the motor out, rigged up and to my amazement, the XL bolero reverse launched without a problem in a 4-7 mph breeze.
Flew in lovely, smooth air from the start of the dunes at Aberavon to Swansea docks, turning just after Celtic mowers for the trip back. Since changing the carb on the Clemente, it flies beautifully on quite low revs, hardly using any petrol at all. Not sure about the distance covered but the flight took around 40 minutes so probably around 11 miles. One hairy moment occured just before I crossed the river Neath. For some reason the seat plate suddenly dropped about two inches,(it felt like a hell of a lot more!), pushing me forward and downward. Apart from the discomfort, it made you feel you were going to fall out of the harness. However, checked leg and chest straps thoroughly to make sure everything was okay and decided it was safe to carry on. Compared to paraglider harnesses, paramotor designs are dreadful so I guess things can only get better.
A lovely day out on my third solo flight.
Total time flown: forty minutes
Maximum altitude: 800'
Fuel used: just over one litre, (approx)
