Just Another Day in Paradise

Summer Comes to a Close

2011-11-20T19:06:00.001-08:00

Well, it was nice while it lasted... but another summer has come to a close. As usual, I have mixed feelings about it. We sure had an action packed summer, with lots of flying, a honeymoon to Italy, and more flying ;-)

Catching an epic day at the Crawfords in Randolph, UT. Photo by Kristjan Morgan

On the topic of hang gliding... I've begun a new project and business venture! I have been pursuing becoming a harness maker- specifically Cocoon hang gliding harnesses. Things are still in the early stages, but I have a new heavy-duty machine and have been plugging away at some prototype harnesses. I do NOT have any for sale at this time, so don't ask... you can be sure I'll be vocal when we're ready for orders!

Testing a cocoon prototype on the beach in Kitty Hawk, NC. Photo by Paul Voight

In other flying news... I'm bi. Bi-wingual, that is. This summer I finally found (made) the time to take paragliding lessons, and SuperFly Paragliding has been outstanding in getting me going and keeping me alive. I was even able to meet my goal of doing a sweet hike-and-fly before the end of the season. On Halloween day a group headed up to hike-and-fly Mahogany Ridge (the ridge in front of Mt Timponogos). It was about an hour hike, launching a little above 9k ft if I remember correctly. Conditions were light and mellow, and it was an awesome experience. We all landed in the big park just a few blocks from my house, and I packed up and walked home, wing and all. That part of paragliding is way cool, I won't lie!

Jackson the Dog and Instructor Chris Granthom watch as I fly away from Mahogany Ridge. Photo by Wendy Stein

As much as I'd like to, I can't be in the air ALL the time... and for those situations, why not ride in style?! Starting mid-November I begin working at Deer Valley, which means commuting to and from Park City 5-days/week. I LOVE my truck, but at 16 mpg those miles really begin to add up. This year we thought a more fuel efficient commuter car might be a wise investment, even if I only drive it on non-snow days. If you've known me for a while, you might know I have an obsession with second-generation Toyota MR2's... I think they are some of the coolest, sexiest, most fun to drive cars ever made (for less than six-figures). Well, after much looking, we found one at a very reasonable price right here in SLC. We checked it out, and it was a gem! So, I present to you, my "commuter car"! Or, our "date car", depending on circumstance. I had one of these when Des and I met... and it's true, the guy with the fast car does get the girl... at least it worked for me :-)

Beautiful... and I'm quite fond of the car, too

Lastly, as winter is rolling in, we've stayed true to our season kick-off tradition of going to Alta and hiking up before they're open. This year there was enough snow on November 6! Des and I were accompanied by Karl Yates and Nile Williamson... and much fun was had by all! Here's a quick peek at our first day on skis for the 2011-2012 ski season...

2011-09-02T14:26:00.001-07:00

A sneak peek at team Wills Wing hard at work making the world's best hang gliders!

Testing the GH2

2011-08-03T08:13:00.000-07:00

If you haven't already noticed- I've had a new electronic appendage by my side the last week or so... a new digital camera. It's a Panasonic GH2, which is best described as a mirror-less DSLR. Picture a DSLR operating in 'live view' mode, all the time. By removing the mirror, the camera is considerably smaller and lighter than a traditional SLR or DSLR.

It's a small and light package, but it's feature-rich. It takes 16 MP photos (15MP when set to 3:2 aspect ratio, the standard for DSLRs)... but the big upgrade over my previous camera is the video capabilities! This little camera records beautiful full 1080 HD video at 24 frames/sec... or 720 HD at 60p- perfect for slow motion effects. The other really nice thing is that this camera allows full-manual control over video recording- something my last camera lacked.

The more I play with the video, the more I am impressed. I've begun to think of this little camera as a film-like VIDEO camera, that also takes photos. Here's a quick sample of how sharp the video looks:

Wing-mounted GH2 shooting 1080 HD @ 24 fps

But for me, the question has remained... how good of a PHOTO camera is it? I had some spare time yeserday, so I headed up American Fork Canyon to see what I could find to take some test photos of. I noticed the river that follows the road (or does the road follow the river?) was still quite high- and I had my sticks in the car, so I thought some slow shutter speed water shots might be a good test.

Because it was very bright (direct sunlight in some cases), I had to stop down to F/22... this meant everything was in focus... which isn't my favorite effect. In some of these shots, particularly ones where I was lazy and zoomed in, rather than get closer, the foreground has very little separation from the background. I figure with was about the lens and shooting parameters much more than the camera... but I'll have to do more testing...

Click an image to see it larger

All of these photos were taken with the 14-140mm Panasonic 'kit' lens. I believe they were all at f/22, with shutter speeds around 1/6 sec, all at ISO 160.

Obviously, this little camera is capable of taking some nice images! I'm not convinced that it takes better images than my Nikon D300s- which I have absolutely loved everything about, except for it's video capabilities. The GH2 photos require a quite a bit more 'developing' to get the colors how I like them (or even how I remember it looking in real life). GH2 photos also tend to favor a cooler tone, versus the Nikon favored warmer photos- I prefer warmer, looks less 'digital'...

The Nikon D300s is only 12.2 MP, but the color reproduction seems much better, and much more true-to-life. I'm not really surprised by any of this, the D300s is a fairly pro-level camera, and the GH2 is clearly consumer oriented. I had originally planned on selling the Nikon... but now I'm torn... When I ordered the GH2 I was ready to trade some photo quality for vastly better video capabilities... but now I'm having a hard time biting that bullet....

Here are some Nikon D300s images for comparison (different location, different day)...

Also worth mentioning- I'm editing the GH2 images using Photoshop RAW... and I edit the Nikon images using Nikon's Capture NX2 software. I absolutely love photoshop (for some things)- but I have been very, very impressed with Nikon's software, and feel it is a better tool for developing digital photos. Unfortunately, although not that surprising, the Nikon software does not support the GH2's raw file format...

Over the Top

2011-07-31T10:04:00.001-07:00

Too much? ;-)

Compilation of a few aerobatic flights. Pilot is Ryan Voight, flying a Wills Wing T2C 144 ("Sundancer")

Chelan, cont

2011-07-08T10:13:00.000-07:00

Des and I spent 4th of July weekend up in Chelan, Washington. Neither of us had been there before... what a cool place!

Launch is a 'butte' with a good road all the way up... it's paved about 1/3 of the way, then it's dirt. We took the Subaru Outback 'cause it gets twice the MPG of my truck, and it was able to go up and down no problem at all. There are several launches, and you can fly there in pretty much any wind direction!

Being on vacation, we were going up pretty early and doing late-morning flights, leaving the rest of the day for other activites. It's one of the only sites I've ever flown that can be thermal-soarable at launch, and still super-smooth and mellow out over the LZ.... which made it perfect for some aerobatic routines each day

On one side of launch is Lake Chelan, which is a beautiful blue lake... kind of reminded me of Tahoe... on the other side of launch there is a big river that runs through the valley. The 'soccer field' LZ we were using is in this valley, right next to the river. After flying you could take a dip in the river to cool off if you were so inclined (our dog, Jackson, a black lab-mix was very appreciative of that!).

After flying there's tons to do.... there are wineries all over the place, and my wife and I enjoy some vino from time-to-time... so we did some relaxing wine tasting while we were there. The town is small, but we found several funky little eaterys that we really enjoyed, and look forward to returning to...

Last but not least, all of the people there were super nice! A group of pilots there took us in and treated us like family! On top of having a great time, getting good flying, etc etc, we feel like now our extended flying family has grown a bit more, and that's always cool.

We're already hoping to do the same trip next year....

Here's a quick video from some of my flights there:

Did some most excellent relaxing and unwinding in Chelan this past weekend. What a cool place, and the people there are all awesome!

The flying was great, too! We did some mellow-morning flights, with some thermals, but still smooth conditions out over the river/LZ... perfect for some freestyle practice!

Chelan

2011-07-06T07:57:00.001-07:00

I'll post more about Chelan in a bit... but for now, a frame grab from my GoPro video :-)

Another taste

2011-06-27T14:39:00.000-07:00

A couple frame-grabs from a North Side video session:

Me and "3D" (Dangerous Dave) doing a little in-flight communication

A different view of the North Side Flight Park

North Side footie

2011-06-22T16:48:00.001-07:00

I haven't had time to do a real edit yet, but check out some of the cool shots from the North Side the other night...

Just a taste of the footage I got on 6/20/11

Boomin'

2011-06-18T16:32:00.000-07:00

Nose boom test-fly on the South Side. Dangerous Dave flew with it all last year, but then I had to go and "improve" it (read: change it)... so it needed RE-testing... I also hadn't flown with it yet, so this was a bit of a double test. I lived, so I guess it passed!

Here's the video from the REAL first nose-boom test shoot (re-post):

A quick edit of some test-footage of a new camera mount. Pilot is "Dangerous" Dave Gibson, at the South Side, Point of the Mountain UT.

Camera is an HD GoPro

Utah Mountain Playground

2011-06-13T15:50:00.000-07:00

Damn I love Utah!

This is a 6 minute summary of a 2.5 hr flight over the Wasatch mountains of Utah. I lauched from Inspiration, in Orem UT and flew North to Point of the Mountain in Draper, UT... flying over Mt Timponogos (summit ~12,000 ft), Box Elder Peak (summit ~10,000 ft), and Lone Peak (summit ~11,000 ft).

The "Inspo" to the Point XC is only about 12 miles, but it is one of the most scenic routes ever... I'd even say it rivals flying through Yosemite National Park!

Hell Hath Frozen Over

2011-06-08T16:05:00.000-07:00

'Nuff said...

South Side Speckin'

2011-05-25T17:32:00.000-07:00

Had an excellent South Side session today, and it was was just what was needed after weeks of rain. It started out light, but quickly picked up and continued to build throughout the day. In the lighter stuff I took the opportunity to test-fly my new Falcon 3 Tandem (which flew sweet). Then I set up the Sundancer for some free-play :-)

I invited Dangerous Dave out, and offered him the use of my wing. Dave is one of the few I trust completely with my hang gliding equipment- and for good reason. He's pretty talented, pretty experienced... pretty amazing I must say.

As much good ribbing as we give eachother, I step up and admit when I'm beat... and today Dave took me to school... on my own glider. Click on the shot below to see it bigger...

3D specking out in the Sundancer

It would seem we have discovered the first (and possibly only) flaw with my new glider... the custom inlay artwork is absolutely useless because the glider climbs too well. I haven't had a bad flight on it since I got it... unless you count tagging the summit of Lone Peak, from the North Side, and freezing my tuckus off...

All kidding aside, Wills Wing did a FANTASTIC job on the new wing, and I am deeply grateful (as was Dave after flying it too)

Wes flying Inspo

2011-05-17T09:15:00.000-07:00

Here's my friend Wes flying "Inspo", or Inspiration, UT.

Fly Utah!

2011-05-09T11:11:00.000-07:00

Last summer I decided to put together a short promotional film about hang gliding. I wanted something that could be outward-facing, and attract new pilots to the sport. But I also wanted something that could be shown to existing hang glider pilots, to share how amazing the flying in Utah is. While it's not always a good idea to try to appeal to multiple demographics with the same piece... I think this manages it well.

I also wanted something short- something that grabs people, pulls them in for a few minutes... and leave them wanting more...

Without further ado, I present: FLY UTAH!

Click HERE to watch in HIGH DEFINITION on Vimeo.com

Special thanks to all those who helped me with this project- there's a lot that goes into making something like this, and a lot of people really came together (and put up with a lot from me) to make this happen. Most notably my wife

Hope you like it!

Spring has Sprung

2011-05-03T10:49:00.000-07:00

Good 'couple-o-days on the Wasatch!

May 1 we had a great day on the North Side, getting 9k+ over the bench with relative ease! Sean AKA IrishGuy flew for something like 4+ hours, and I tagged Lone Peak (my max alt was just under 11,500 ft msl).

May 2 we flew Inspo, and I was able to get up over Cascade, which is about 11k high... then I jumped over to Mt Timponogos, but wasn't quite able to reach the summit (12k). Flew for 2.5 hrs and thoroughly enjoyed the views over the Wasatch.

Google Earth view of my flight yesterday over Cascade/Timponogos

These were my first two flights in Utah on my new wing- a Wills Wing T2C 144. I'm really digging it! It handles great, and it has enough eye-candy (in the form of carbon fiber everything) to last me a lifetime! I also went for a custom inlay design, so it's very unique. There will be no question which one is me from now on!

My new T2C bling wing... "Sundancer"

HUGE thanks to all of the guys (and gals) at Wills Wing! Just when you think you can't possibly enjoy flying any more, you get a surprise like this and it's like being a little kid all over again! Loving every minute...

Mecca to the Candy Factory

2011-04-27T08:42:00.000-07:00

We're just getting home from our annual spring trip down to SoCal. I try to plan it so I have a few gliders on order that will be ready about the same time, and then picking up said gliders saves me on shipping and usually about covers my share of the cost of the trip. Wouldn't say it SAVES me any money- but I spend about the same, and I get a trip out of it... so I can't complain...

Arriving at Andy Jackson Flight Park

This year a lot more people went than previous trips, which was awesome! In my car it was Tim Rhinesmith, Dangerous Dave Gibson, and myself. Cal also drove down, with Shadd and Wes in his car. Karl and Emily Yates went down, too. And Robert Bagley drove down with his Airstream trailer.... for a grand total of 9 Utah pilots. Turned out we hooked up with another UT pilot down there, Neil, putting us at an even 10 Utahns.

This year the weather wasn't the best, but we still managed multiple flying days, with one of them being quite good considering the low cloud base. Of course none of us went in the clouds, for that would be illegal.

In-flight view of my new T2C, photo courtesy Robert Bagley

This trip was extra special to me, because I was picking up my new T2C. I've been calling it the 'bling wing' so far, but I think the "Sundancer" will be it's final name. It's such a fun, nimble glider! I felt right at home on it, thanks to Dave lending me his T2C last week for some re-currency training.

"The Sundancer", my new T2C with all the trimmin's

And the top- tight and clean

Compared to my last T2(Aluminum), and Dave's T2C... this glider is the best of everything. It handles as good or better than my aluminum T2, no easy feat... and it's FAST. Faster than Dave's C, even with his sprogs lowered a touch. Although Dave's getting a new sail, so I don't foresee any advantage over him this season...

FAST! Getting a thorough test flight on the new bird. Photo courtesy Crestline Soaring Society

All-in-all it was a great trip, and we had lots of fun. The CSS group and site(s) are top-notch, and I have to recommend a visit there if you've never been... or if you haven't been lately. Good flying with great people, what more can I say?

Carbon Obsessed. Base tube, down tubes, keel, cell phone case, WEDDING RING...

Climbing

2011-04-08T07:36:00.000-07:00

Last winter, my friend Ben came out to visit and together we ski-mountaineered Lone Peak. This year when he was out the snow pack wasn't as reliable, with recent rain and very warm temps, so we decided against another mountaineering project.

Here's last year's Lone Peak video, for those that may have missed it

One of the days was so nice and warm, Ben decided to take me climbing in American Fork Canyon. I'm going on 4-years living in Utah, and haven't climbed since I moved here! I've heard how much climbing there is, and how great it all is... but with my unreliable shoulder I couldn't reach up over my head, making climbing pretty difficult. But that's all behind me now, and the shoulder's repaired nicely.

Ben did some research online, and found a nice area in AF canyon with bolted sport routes and some easier climbs for me to get the rust off on. And boy was there rust! I should mention that I wasn't very good to begin with... but oddly enough taking 4 years off didn't make me any better!

Tying in, photo by Ben Carlson

I did ok on my first day back... made up one climb pretty well, made it to the (mini) roof on another, but couldn't quite figure how to get my legs up over so I stopped there, and made it to the top of another but only with some pretty heavy coaching and encouragement from Ben. After just those three routes I was feeling pretty tired, so I called it a day and continued to belay for Ben while he topped 5.10 after 5.10, making it look so easy even I was thinking I could do it (I can't).

AF Canyon is so freaking scenic, and the perspective while climbing just adds to that

All in all, it was a great day! It was fun to get the dust off my gear, and to learn about some challenging (for me, anyway) sport routes just a few minutes from our house! I hope to take Des back there this summer. Climbing is such a fun sport- the challenge is so welcome, and I love the mental games involved. Problem solving the next move, figuring out how to balance yourself so you can move a foot or hand to the next hold. Trying to control breathing and every body movement. Did I mention that I suck? But we had fun, and I'm pretty sure that's the whole point!

Chalking up while Ben gives me some pointers, photo by Ben Carlson

South Side Session

2011-03-07T18:12:00.000-08:00

Winter Playground

2011-02-26T19:39:00.000-08:00

If you've read this blog before, you likely already know that Utah is quite the playground. But usually, I'm posting about summer activities... this post (and the last), are about the joys of WINTER in Utah.

It's been a crazy winter, lots of sun, and more recently, lots of snow. Until recently, mother winter had been holding out on delivering as much white champagne fluff as we are usually so blessed to receive... Jan and parts of Feb brought us wild temperature swings, from 60's and raining-in the mountains- to 20 below zero at the base of the mountain. Wind chill not yet added!

But lately, temps have been moderate, and snow's been a-fallin'. And so we play!

Following Des and Dave through an area Dave calls "Sticks and Stumps"

Today was a big day- today Des and I went to Snowbird with our dear Uncle Davie. The snow was deep, and the company was outstanding. And then it happened.... Des got her very first (and then her second, and her third...) FACE SHOT.

For non-skier readers, a FACE SHOT is when you're skiing powder, and it's so deep it comes up over your head, and hits you in the face. Doesn't sound fun... but it is! It's a pretty special experience when the snow is light and deep enough for repetitive face shots!

Des gets initiated to the church of the Face Shot

And just in case you don't think there's good flying to be had in Utah in the winter months... here's Cal Hadley flying a site called Stockton Bar, in the small town of Stockton, UT

Cal flying his U2 at Stockton Bar, UT

'Bird Dog Day

2011-02-08T17:32:00.000-08:00

Pretty epic day at "the Bird" today. Skied with Snowbird regular (and extraordinary pilot) "Dangerous" Dave Gibson... who knew all the right spots to go. Although, honestly, the snow was so good I don't think you could go wrong!

Anyways, definitely my best powder day of the year to-date. Good turns, good talks, good terrain...

Powder Day at the 'Bird from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

A GoPro HD helmet cam of a face shot :-)

Frigid Febuary

2011-02-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

We've officially started the shortest and coldest month of the year... and so far it's living up to it's reputation. Driving in to work in the morning, I've seen as low as -17 on the car's thermometer. For those of you that are mathmatically challenged, that's a full 49 degrees BELOW freezing. YOUCH!

That's one cold Scooby Doo!

When it's this cold, it's sure hard to think about flying. I now have my new T2C (currently lacking knickname) on order, as well as a new tandem glider. I'm also planning a trip to SoCal in late April to pick up said gliders... more on that as the date approaches. Thinking either Easter weekend (second to last weekend in April), or the last weekend in April. Dates will depend on Uncle Davie and Sky Shaddo's work schedules...

Winter

2011-01-08T09:15:00.000-08:00

So, it's winter... haven't been flying much... but skiing lots- mostly at work (Deer Valley), but I've gotten out on a few days off, too. Fun is definitely being had...

But I'd be lying if I didn't say I'm counting the days until spring rolls around. My typical strategy is to fly enough in the summer that I'm ready for a break, enter ski season. Then I ski enough in the winter to be ready for a break, enter flying season. But this past summer, with the shoulder surgery and all, I didn't get burned out on flying.... so... it's ski season, and I want to ski AND fly...

Catch 22 I guess...

I did get a nice day a week or two ago... tried out a new camera mount. The new mount was developed by 'NMERider', and attaches by magnets on the mount, and in the sail. It is super quick and easy to install, and requires no additional pockets or zippers or anything, and gets a pretty snazzy angle...

Here's Wes taking it out for a spin on his new T2:

Wes T2 from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Ketchup

2010-10-27T18:47:00.000-07:00

Alright- so a LOT has happened since my last blog entry...

- I've started hang gliding again (YAY!)
- I got married (YAY!)
- We went on a mini-moon to Telluride, CO (YAY!)

and today, I scored my first powder day for the season (YAY!)

First Powerder Day of the '10-'11 Season from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Well, that should about catch you up! Sorry for the quick-and-dirty... I'll hopefully be posting more, with photos and such, in the near future :-)

Cam BOOMin'

2010-09-14T17:14:00.000-07:00

With the help of WW, Jeff OB, Dangerous Dave, etc... I have (finally) built a nose-boom camera mount. Once I had the design and materials squared away, it was actually surprisingly straightforward!

For a better look at how it's done, check Jeff OB's blog post where he tells all:
http://www.willswing.com/blogs/PilotBlogs/tabid/38/EntryId/202/CAMERA-MOUNTS.aspx

Building the mount is only half the battle... then we have to counter-balance the mount. Having a camera, even a little GoPro HD, that far out in front of the glider will change the trim speed dramatically. After some weight and balance calculations, I sewed up a bag of leadshot for the cause...

Math and theory are tricky business, because sometimes... just sometimes... your math can all add up, and your theory looks great on paper, but the omission of even a small detail can make all of your planning faulty. There was no way to know for sure if we had done our math right, and that the mount and counter weight would work as planned...

On a strong but smooth South Side day, Dangerous Dave and I set out to test the mount. Conditions were IDEAL for this type of testing. We were both a bit nervous, but proceeded with caution. Once we had everything set up it was go time. It was kind of anti-climactic because everything just WORKED :-) The mount worked, the camera (GoPro HD) worked, the counter-balance weight worked... it all worked...

Here's the quick and dirty edit of the camera boom's first flight:

Nose Boom (teaser) from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

But we weren't done... now we had tested and flown the GoPro HD... which is cool for video... but if you want photos, 5 Mp's doesn't satiate me. No, for magazine and calendar quality shots, we had to fly something better. Better means more money, and more weight. LOTS more weight. I have a Nikon D300s... and to the best of my knowledge, it's as good or better than ANYTHING people have flown with on a mount like this. Trouble is, it's HEAVY. And my Sigma 10-20 mm lens ain't light neither. Gotta love a good challenge.

More math, more calculations... but we worked it out... just the same way as we did for the mount + GoPro HD, which worked perfectly... so, in theory, this should work perfectly too! While the South Side is the appropriate place to test a mount like this... the forecast was showing an epic day at the Crawfords in Randolph, UT... it was ON!

As we're pulling up to launch, Dave quietly says "we'd might as well just get it over with, and put the big camera on there today"... So we mounted it up. Aimed it. Checked the remote. Triple checked the counter-balance weight placement...

Dave launches. With my thousands of dollars of photo gear hung on a limb off the nose of the glider. MY heart is in my throat... Dave is cool calm and collected. Dave runs easily TWICE as far as usual... I think I've just succeeded in killing Dangerous Dave. But then he flies away. Ok, it flies! I see Dave feeling it out, doing some mild turns, flying faster, flying slower... then he goes into wingovers. WHOA!!!

Well, when all was said and done, it worked out pretty dang well. Dave said we were probably about an inch off on the counter-balance weight... but considering the size of the boom and camera, and the six pound weight on the end of the keel... we didn't do too bad at all!

And the photos? You be the judge...

Down Boy

2010-08-18T21:54:00.000-07:00

Down Boy from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Pioneer Day

2010-07-27T11:02:00.000-07:00

Pioneer Day is to Utah what Fourth of July is to the United States.

We celebrate the 'founding' of Utah with fireworks, BBQ's, and the like. Well... in the spirit of Pioneer Day, Shadd Heaston and I decided to head over to a 'new' site we've been scouting. The forecast was for big lift, but a Northerly winds aloft forecast didn't bode well for our West/South West facing prospective site. But it's Pioneer day, so we went...

We found this site because Shadd had been looking for a site on Google Earth, and found a dirt road that would lead to what looked like on Google Earth to be the perfect morning mountain site. Long story short, it was too shallow of a launch, and would require a quarter mile glide in ground effect before getting away from the terrain... just a bit too risky to be a regular site.

While exploring, I spotted another dirt road that looked to have good site potential. We found the road and explored... and we found a site!!! The launch is fantastic. Absolutely no trimming or maintenance needed. Room for 50+ gliders, easily! Steep smooth grassy slope with some rocks, but nothing that would trip you up while launching.

We also found an LZ... it's about a 4:1 glide out, and big. It's got some sage brush, it's not a heavenly grassy field (this is a desert, after all), but it's a good, safe LZ with a road right to it. If you're feeling cocky, there's a 6:1 grassy field next to a hotel, gas station, Burger King, Subway, etc... plush.

Well- on Pioneer Day, we headed down to the site to give it a go. Since I'm still nursing a post-shoulder-surgery arm sling, I was the designated driver. Conditions looked great, so Shadd set up. I brought my Zagi to 'wind dummy' this unknown site... finding a couple 'house thermal' locations. Shadd launched, and was 200' over before making his first turn. He spent some time playing/exploring out front, before hooking into a MONSTER thermal and getting up over 13k. He called on the radio that he was headed over the back... it was on!

He was awesome at giving me the play by play of where and how high he was, when he was going on a glide, etc. I followed as best as the roads would allow, most of the time keeping visuals on him (no easy task when he's at 15,ooo ft)!!!

Due to some radio difficulties I lost track of him North East of the town of Fairview, as he was headed toward Route 6. His cloud street had dried up and he was forced to land. It took me a while, but I finally tracked him down and picked him up.

Rumors are coming out that this was a site long ago, and was abandoned (no one knows why)... I sure can't imagine why, unless it's because the road WAS bad (it 'aint now, thanks National Forest Service!). It's, in my opinion, one of the best mountain sites in the Wasatch.

Shadd's pioneering flight, and subsequent 32 mile XC on his Sport 2, is a testament to the potential of this site.

Shadd also flew with my video camera, so look for some footage to come :-)

20 Days Post-Op

2010-07-13T09:39:00.000-07:00

So it's been 20 days since my shoulder surgery. Things seem to be going well, medically speaking... In my follow up visit we asked lots of questions about what they found in there, and how they fixed it. The doctor called my shoulder the 'grand canyon'.

The symptom was a glenoid labrum tear. If I understand correctly, the glenoid is cartilage around the shoulder socket, and the labrum is muscle. The glenoid and labrum sort of cover the opening around the ball-and-socket of the shoulder. Mine was torn and peeled (way) back, creating the 'grand canyon' as my doc called it. Google found me this diagram, which sort of depicts my symptom, only not nearly as extreme:
In this diagram the stick is pulling a healthy glenoid labrum back, and the arrow depicts the gap created. My gap was enormous. Chicks dig enormous?

Anyway- the fix involves using sutures and anchors to pull the labrum back into place and hold it there until it can heal properly. It sounds painful, but hasn't been bad at all. I was off pain meds by the end of the second day, and have only taken Advil once or twice since.

I'm still in an arm sling for another three weeks, then I start physical therapy. That about wraps up the (medical) update of how I'm doing...

Psychologically, I'm going insane. You don't realize how many simple tasks you do on a daily basis that require two hands. Buttoning your pants, tying your shoes... I've become a burden on Des, and I hate it. I also haven't driven since the surgery, so I'm more or less on house arrest. Lots of TV and video games have kept my mind and fingers active, but it's getting old...

I'm also not making any income, which obviously is a problem. I won't be flying again this summer, and I rarely fly in the winter, so I'm selling my T2: http://wingsoverwasatch.com/Misc/Ryan_T2.html

I also have a brand new Sport 2 155, Falcon 3 Tandem, Falcon 3 170, and Falcon 3 195 that really need to find good homes... then I have some (cheap) used gliders as well...

Ryan's T2 144: FOR SALE!

2010-06-30T13:55:00.000-07:00

Well, life goes on after shoulder surgery! I'm making due with one arm, and I'm 100% pain free (and off the pain meds)...

BUT- I'm looking at easily 6 months of no flying, and a stack of medical bills (no insurance)...
So, I'm selling my T2 144. Most of you have probably at least seen it in pictures... It's blue and yellow with a custom sail (two slightly-toed-in stripes midway on each side). The leading edge is white UVM, and the top surface is titanium dioxide (rare/exotic). It has the 12mm batten upgrade, and carbon leading edge inserts as well.It does have a patch on the left LE, it was professionally repaired by Wills Wing (and looks every bit as professional as you'd expect- it's hard to see even when you're looking for it!)
Glider is exactly 1 year old, with probably 50 hrs on it....

Asking $5500. Email me if interested: Ryan@wingsoverwasatch.com

If you could pass this along to anyone that might be interested, I'd really appreciate it!
For more photos, check out: http://wingsoverwasatch.com/Misc/Ryan_T2.html

Cheers,

RV

PS glider is currently located in UT (Point of the Mountain), but shipping or transport could be easily arranged...

2010 KHK Spectacular

2010-06-15T20:30:00.000-07:00

Edited some footage from the 2010 KHK Spectacular,
shot with my HD GoPro

KHK Spectacular 2010 from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Click the link to watch it in HD on Vimeo

Sky Shadd

2010-06-07T17:38:00.000-07:00

I put my HD GoPro on my buddy Shadd's glider the other day... here's da footie:

Shadd Cam from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Click the link above to watch the video in HD ;-)

Crash and Burn

2010-05-28T12:49:00.000-07:00

For those that haven't already heard, I had a little 'incident' on Wednesday, May 25. I crashed my hang glider while flying the South Side of Point of the Mountain. I am fine, not a scratch on me... Below are the details surrounding the incident...

For the past two years or so, I have had some shoulder trouble with my left shoulder dislocating. I can go months with it being fine, but then I move the wrong way and out it goes. It always goes right back in, but once I've done it recently, it can be pretty sensitive... and usually pops out many more times. Over the years of dealing with this, I would say it has deteriorated a bit, becoming easier to trigger, even after several months without incident. Certain activities seem to be worse than others, skiing for example tends to be bad. Flying, though, has never been an issue. It has only popped out when I have my arm lifted up over my head, or extended way out to the side almost to the point of being behind me. Not movements used often in hang gliding, so like I said it's been fine...

There were a lot of shenanigans going on at the South Side on Wednesday. Paragliders kiting in the hang glider launch/landing area. Hang gliders crashing into these kiting paragliders. Shouting matches between hangs and paras. A little worse than 'the usual'... There has been some speculation that my accident was, in part or in full, due to flying angry. To be completely clear, yes I was fucking pissed... but being pissed does not make a shoulder dislocate, which is what caused the crash... so my mental state is pretty much irrelevant.

After all the shenanigans mentioned above, I launched and did a couple passes on the ridge. I found a nice thermal and began doing 360's and climbing up. I'm always amazed by the low sink rate and high climb rate of my T2... it does a good job of making me appear to know what I'm doing...

As I'm doing 360's in front of the hang glider launch, I see a paraglider kiting there. I can see that this is a local, a regular at the Point, and someone that should know better. There are now several hangs in the air at various heights, any of whom could be landing within seconds. I decide I'm going to do a fast fly-through of the hang glider area, and pass to the right of the kiting pilot. I check the pattern, and when it's clear I do a slipping turn over the parking lot and cruise through the hang glider area in ground effect. As I near the edge of the ridge I look left and right, and decide to go left when I hit the end of the ridge (there were gliders to my right). I roll left and begin to let my speed turn into altitude. As I am nearing parallel with the ridge, I shift my weight to the right to level out... and I feel a very familiar stabbing pain in my shoulder. I know exactly what it is, and what is going to happen next. I'm banked left, and basically trying to fly with one arm... and it's not working. The glider is rolling steeper into the turn... into the hill. I distinctly remember looking left as the glider is beginning to slip the left turn towards the hill, and seeing that if I do nothing, I'm going to impact the side of the hill, down wind, hitting the ground at about a perfect 90 degree angle. Well, needless to say, that would hurt! As I'm thinking this I see that, if I push out a little, I could get myself onto the top of the launch, and come in at an angle similar to ground. That seems like a much better option, so I push out with my right arm.

As fast as everything happened, I felt like I had plenty of time to think, evaluate, and react. Unfortunately NOT enough time to unroll and avoid the hill altogether... but enough time to make the best of a bad situation. Pushing out with one arm, I remember seeing the ground rushing by as I made it up over the lip and onto the flat top of the South Side. I let go of the glider, and pretty much went limp. I don't remember feeling when I was on the ground, it was so gentle... but I remember sliding across the gravel, as if I were sliding into home plate. I even remember thinking to keep my head up, as I just had my helmet painted, and I didn't want to scratch it!

I slid to a stop and the glider was laying on top of me. Both downtubes had blown out right in the middle, allowing the glider to lay flat and pin me down. The glider began to lift, and I almost thought it was blowing over, but then I saw very concerned faces and realized it was just people who came over to help. Everyone was amazed that I was ok... probably none more so than me.

People have been asking what was my initial feeling after the crash... and honestly... I felt like yelling 'Whooo! Did you see THAT!?'... but that wouldn't have been appropriate, so I didn't. I briefly examined the damage to my glider, packed up, and went home with my tail between my legs.

The aftermath of the incident has been amusing at times, and heartbreaking at times. Hearing the way the story gets twisted and contorted as the word spreads is pretty funny. Not as funny, is the repair bill for the glider. But it is a material possession, completely repairable... or replaceable if it weren't repairable (but it is easily repairable). The toughest part of the aftermath is facing the now obvious fact that my shoulder has deteriorated to the point that now it CAN pop out while flying... which obviously is a huge problem. Even if I only fly Falcons and take it easy, if it were to pop on launch or landing, I might not be so lucky next time.

I'm coming to terms with how different my summer is going to be than I had envisioned. I was picturing a hang gliding summer with cross country and frivolous looping and spinning until I didn't know which way was up. I was also planning on entering in my first aerobatic competition this year, something I've been waiting my whole life to be ready for. Now I'm looking at only flying falcons and floating around... if I decide to risk flying at all. Or maybe I'm looking at getting the surgery done ASAP (rather than wait until fall)... which means I'll be moping around with my arm in a sling for months. Very different than I had envisioned...

But I'm alive, just as healthy as I was before I decided to joust with the ground. My parents and wife-to-be have been very supportive, as have many of the local pilots (not many of the paraglider pilots, ha!)... things could be a whoooole lot worse.

VEE & E

2010-05-20T20:41:00.000-07:00

Not that I would ever endorse this... but I set a new high score at the North Side tonight...

Read the last line of the Flytec's flight report and you'll understand :-)

This is on an aluminum Wills Wing T2 (IE not the 'C' model), which is 100% stock. The sprogs are not lowered whatsoever, it is straight-out-of-the-factory sweet. What an amazing flying machine Wills has created for us to enjoy this wonderful sport... thanks guys!!!

"Dangerous" Dave Gibson

2010-05-18T20:31:00.000-07:00

"Dangerous" Dave Gibson at Randolph, UT from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Last summer "Dangerous Dave" and I went to Randolph. It was looking like a strong but exceptionally smooth day, so I put my GoPro on Dave's glider and sent him off to do his thang...

I finally got a chance to edit the footage together... so... Here's Dave, goin' at it!

Season Opener at Inspo

2010-05-10T16:49:00.000-07:00

Inspiration Point is OPEN!

First real mountain flight of the 2010 season...

Inspo Season Opener from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

East Coast Visit

2010-04-23T08:00:00.000-07:00

A friend's wedding brought me back to the East Coast, so I came out a few days early to spend some time with my family, and maybe fly Ellenville if the opportunity presented itself.

My first day here the forecast was good, so we headed up with hopes of flying. It was light, but the clouds looked outstanding, and Ricky Fitz was up cloud hopping, so we knew it could be done. It turned out being an absolutely outstanding day, with altitude gains of around 7500 ft over launch. It was great to fly my 'home' site, with friends and family, on such an epic day.

Loaded up, let's go fly!

Yesterday had the potential to be flyable, but it wound up being blown out. Not sure if it mellowed enough for a few antsy souls to hop off launch and live to tell the tale... instead of flying we had a nice family dinner at home, and watched a movie. Definitely good to be home... it's been a while...

We don't get this in Utah

Feeling Good on the South Side

2010-03-03T06:18:00.001-08:00

Feeling Good on the South Side from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

The return of SKY Shadd!!!

2010-02-17T19:20:00.000-08:00

I call this last one 'ENVY'

Two Months, in a Nutshell

2010-02-17T18:22:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I'm not doing so well with one of my New Year's resolutions... keeping my blog up-to-date. DOH! I really am going to try and be better about this, and post at least once a week! We'll see...

Let's see, the last two months, in no particular order. UHGPGA club Christmas party... with a surprise. We walk in, and who else do we see but Shadd and Tina Heaston. Participants of the first Mitch/WOW aerobatics clinic will remember Shadd, and the outstanding hospitality he provided. At the beginning of last season, the Shadd fam moved to FL to live on a boat... Well, almost a full year later, they've returned home to Utah!

After Christmas usually comes some photos of skiing epicly deep Wasatch powder... this year, not so much. We only got one real storm cycle to speak of, which happened to coincide with the PSIA "Big Mountain Skiing" clinic that I participate in every year at Alta/Snowbird. It was phenominal, yet again. Learned some good stuff, made some new friends, and had more fun that should be allowed wearing hard plastic boots. As my second year participating in this clinic, I was also quite pleased with my improvement- last year I had some grandiose headers, which resulted in breaking the visor off my helmet not once but twice. This year I went without falling for the full two day event... and performed better than last year, too. That's improvement if you ask me.

Sticking with the skiing topic, my new position at Deer Valley is going well. Christmas was VERY busy... then it slowed way down. Now it's President's Week, and it's nearly as busy as Christmas! In addition to being the closest I've ever come to a work-aholic, I've been studying and working towards my PSIA level II certification. So far I have passed the written test, and then somehow managed to fool some VERY experienced clinicians into passing me for the skiing test. I have the final test on the 27th, the teaching exam... which should be the hardest. Everyone wish me luck, I'll certainly need it!

Other than that, it's as much 'life as usual' as it ever is... we're keeping busy and having fun whenever possible...

The End of an Era...

2009-12-31T18:12:00.000-08:00

As 2009 winds down I can't help but think of all that has happened over this past year. Personal achievements and life goals accomplished, I finally surpassed the H5 rating requirements enough to feel good about applying for it (it was approved). I finally grew a pair and started looping. That was a huge one for me, possibly the hardest thing I've ever accomplished. I feel as though I've spent my entire life training towards that goal, and it feels SO good to finally have the skills to compensate for it scaring the shit out of me...

Also this year, Des and I got engaged! And bought a house! Technically, we bought a house, then got engaged, but this is my blog and I'll write it how I want to. I also got a promotion at Deer Valley, moving into a supervisory role within the Ski School. And Wings Over Wasatch continues to grow, I have recruited someone to take the reins of the 'school' aspects so I can focus more efforts and clinics and such. More on that at a later date, it's all still pretty hush hush...

All in all, a good freaking year.

It seems like only yesterday we were all taking cover and preparing for the end of civilization as 1999 rolled to and end, and 'Y2K' loomed over. 10 Years later, it seems the only thing we had to fear was Windows Vista :-)

In a few hours it will be 1/1/10. What will the next year bring? Ten years?

I don't know what the future holds for me, but if the past is any indicator... I'd better sit back and get ready for a wild ride... this is gonna be good...

Winter, Wonderfull Winter!

2009-12-22T14:01:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I haven't updated my blog since Halloween. I know, I suck at this.

Since then we've been very busy, but here's a quick rundown:

Randy, Allie, Des and I (and Jackson, Jada, and Tucker) had a pray for snow campfire in American Fork Canyon... It was great fun, and we had many laughs! It took a while to work, but the snow's here now...

Pray for Snow BBQ. And if it don't snow, Allie's gonna bust a cap in someone...

Here are a few shots of how things are looking now...

Mount Timp at Sunrise, as seen from Heber

Des, Jackson, and I in Sundance Canyon

Jackson is a real powder hound!

It's Scary...

2009-10-31T11:27:00.000-07:00

That even when presented with the blank canvas of a Halloween pumpkin, I see hang gliders... Obsess MUCH?!

Entry: ob·sess
Function: verb

transitive verb : to haunt or excessively preoccupy the mind of

Happy Halloween from Ryan, Des, and Wings Over Wasatch!

Is a picture worth 1,000 words?

2009-10-29T09:12:00.001-07:00

well, at least 110...

Read the last line of the flight summary...

3 Month Update/Back to Blogging!

2009-10-29T08:18:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've posted any updates to this blog. Ok, more than a while... it's been pretty much all summer. But summer's craziness is on it's way out, and winter is rolling in with it's own crazy panache...

There's so much to blog about, I don't even know where to begin... for now, I'll just throw some videos up to show you what summer's been like around here...

Des buys a new car! from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Ryan Spin and Loop from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Ryan Spins from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

I'll update again, SOON!... but for now, here's a more recent video to tide you over... South Side flying a couple of days ago:

Hang Gliding at Point of the Mountain (South Side) from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Da two Utes

2009-08-01T21:30:00.000-07:00

Our friends Randy and Ali are staying with us until they can find a place here in UT. Yep, they're becoming Utahn's!

The newest additions to the great state of Utah

Saturday I got out of work early so we made a plan to go on an afternoon hike. I thought it would be cool to take them up American Fork Canyon, and do some hiking on Mt. Timp. I know a dirt road that wraps around Timp, and there's a big rock slide area that looked clear and easy enough to hike. Above the slide it looked like they're were some gully's that would lead up to the top ridge of Timp.

It's too bad there's no good views in Utah...

As we started hiking we were in good spirits, heavily debating the differences between a 'chute' and a 'couloir'... we decided the difference was minimal and Canada sucks.

SNOW!!! we went up to the chute to the right of the snow

As we made our way up the rocks got looser and looser, and the terrain got steeper and steeper. Before long we were fighting for traction, afraid we'd slide all the way down to the car. About this time we spotted some Mountian Goats, so we pressed on. They had no trouble getting traction... must be why they're called MOUNTAIN Goats and we're just 'bipeds'.

Big Goat, Little Goat... couloir?

We got as high as we dared, to the bottom of the gulley, and headed back down. The treck back down was nerve racking, doing more 'controlled sliding' than hiking... but we made it down safely. We ate our sandwiches as the sun set, and we headed home.

D-Rocket is all smiles at sunset

Beats sitting in the house, that's for sure! Welcome to Utah Randy and Ali :-)

Night falls on the Wasatch

2009-07-28T08:34:00.000-07:00

Ryan South Side GoPro footage from Ryan Voight on Vimeo.

Aerobatics Clinic 2009

2009-05-27T07:05:00.000-07:00

Wings Over Wasatch is proud to announce the Mitch McAleer Aerobatics Clinic will return to Utah, August 21-23! Back by popular demand, the 3-day clinic will build upon last year’s success. The goal is to educate each attendee on performing safe and progressive aerobatic maneuvers. This clinic is aimed at ALL aerobatic enthusiasts- from those looking to learn safely, to veteran upside-downers. Attendees can expect comprehensive instruction complete with video examples, equipment evaluation, video analysis and more.

The clinic will be held in the greater Salt Lake/Point of the Mountain area, August 21-23. Cost is $300 per attendee, with limited slots available. For more information, including a complete event schedule, or to reserve your slot, go to www.wingsoverwasatch.com.

No Rain in Hurricane (UT)

2009-05-02T14:15:00.000-07:00

I've been working with a video producer who creates content for the Larry Miller Megaplex Theaters here in Salt Lake... he's creating a segment on hang gliding in Utah! Pretty soon you'll be able to go to the movies and, if you get there early, you'll see hang gliding on the big screen!!!

Road Trip!!!

Last week I gave a lesson to the segment host, and on Thursday Dan McMannus gave her a tandem flight (and flew with a video cam on board). In addition to those shoots, the video producer wanted to get some air-to-air footage, and wanted it to be over some of the breathe taking iconic red rock cliffs of Southern Utah.

Southern Utah... not scenic at all...

Friday a small group of pilots, along with a video crew, headed down to Hurricane, UT. The plan was for Dan to take the producer tandem, and throughout the flight the videographer could shoot aerial footage flying with the other pilots.

Heather posing with her Sport 2

The group consisted of Dan and Hildegard, Heather, Wes, Dave Gibson, and myself. After the 4 hr drive down, we scoped the LZ, then headed up top. The hang pilots set up their gliders, while the video crew set up their gear. Once everyone was ready- pilots launched 1 by 1, and easily climbed. As soon as Dangerous Dave launched the air show began. He was in his element, and having an inspired day... the film crew were loving it!

3D high-speed pass at the camera (on a crane, on left)

Later in the day Dan top landed so he could take the video producer up tandem for the air-to-air stuff. At this point conditions were strong... 10-15, probably gusting to 20. And this 'aint the South Side- it was rocky. With brush and cacti. Dan did a few fly-throughs and then lined it up and went for it. Dan executed the most extreme and technical slider I have ever seen. I was in awe of what I had just seen; I am still utterly impressed.

Dan's extreme slider, amazing!

Anyway, Dan and Eric (video producer) went up and shot some aerial footage. I haven't seen the footage yet, but between the red rocks, the clouds and sunset, and triple-D's flying circus air show, the footage should be astounding... I can't wait!

Dave getting upside down over the cliffs

Dave inverted in front of some red rocks

Dave buzzing Dan and Eric... should make for great footage!

When you plan a video shoot around something like hang gliding, you never know if it will work out... especially when that plan involves traveling 300 miles to an unfamiliar site. But the weather gods rewarded our faith with epic flights, footage, and photos. I wouldn't change a thing about the whole experience (except maybe next time I'll get to fly too)...

Perfect end to a perfect day

Done at the Deer

2009-04-19T15:36:00.000-07:00

Deer Valley officially closed 1 week ago today... making it officially flying season in my book! On Monday I got a text from Dangerous Dave Gibson, saying the South Side was looking good. I was surprised to hear this from Dave- as he quits hang gliding every November and then typically doesn't get into it again until Snowbird closes.

Unable to pass up a good time, I told Dave I'd meet him there. He was nearly done setting up already, so I got started on my glider. I watched him walk up to launch, put the glider down, and start yelling about Jackson the dog sitting in front of him. He eventually made me come hold Jackson so he could launch... the guy nicknamed DANGEROUS Dave couldn't launch with a puppy at his feet. Yup.

After he launched I let doggie go and he began chasing Dave across the ridge, barking. Dave immediately went into 110 degree wingovers, exiting towards Jackson (and the hill!). Ballsy, considering this was his 'first flight' since the start of ski season. His nickname was re-validated in my mind.

3D getting radical on a South Side expression session

I fly, I fly!

2009-02-21T23:04:00.000-08:00

Saturday I had the day off, and the forecast for the South Side looked decent. Having not flown since November, I decided it was a good day to get some rust off.

As I drove down the frontage road to the South Side, I noticed right in front of me was a familiar white van with a hang glider on the roof... John L and I drove up top and immediately started setting up. Winds were a bit light, but we were hopeful things would pick up.

Just as it started to get really good John Glime pulled in, and frantically started setting up too. John L and I supervised from above :-) Later into the morning, a bunch more hang pilots showed up. Most set up, but it died off before they got to fly. Some chose to fly down, some to break down.

Here is a video from today (thanks Liz for filming!):
Hang Gliding at South Side, Point of the Mountain
(click on the link to watch the video in HD at vimeo.com)

After flying a bunch of us went out for pizza and beverages, putting a nice finishing touch on the day. Then John Glime and I bumped into Heather and Adrian, and they invited us over for dinner... Adrian made a delectable dinner, and we just hung out and talked flying, life, and everything in between. Adrian also showed John and I his workshop, where he makes custom 'zagi' wings. He actually has a computer driven, automated hotwire machine- he just plugs in the dimensions and airfoil, and the machine automatically cuts the wing cores. VERY cool!

Fun Day on Sunday

2009-02-08T15:07:00.000-08:00

I woke up with two texts from Des in my phone, one said "Did you want to go do a run?", and the other (referring to the avalanche forecast) "It's green... green means go!".

I was tempted to stay home and rest my feet, but unable to resist a good time in the great outdoors I sprung to life and got ready. She had to be back by early afternoon, so we were just going to do one quick run and head home.

Since it's so easily accessible, we decided to ski the southerly face of Cardiff Ridge, which is basically right next to Alta, overlooking the parking lot. The tour up was pretty painless, and there were lots of other 'backcountry enthusiasts' out today despite being overcast, flat light, and a bit snowy.

The run down was surprisingly stellar! We weaved back and forth a little until we found a good looking line down, then we laid our tracks on the hill. The snow was a little wetter than the infamous Utah pow, but still very nice. There was also a bit of sun crust maybe a foot or two below the surface snow, but that's to be expected on a south facing slope.

A little lower down I saw a nice line through some trees and asked Des to take my picture as I came down. I openly admit I'm vain like that, and love seeing myself do cool things like aerobatics or powder skiing... lucky for me Des was happy to oblige and set up below. I linked a few turns, which resulted in the below sequence :-)

There's something cool about ripping down a mountain
and leaving a cloud in your wake...

It was a great day to be on skis, and I'm really glad I went. As much as I enjoy resort skiing, there's something about the backcountry that hits deep in my soul. Probably has something to do with the feeling of exploration and the unknown... and the untracked pow :-)

Tuesday Touring

2009-02-03T21:17:00.000-08:00

I had the day off, and originally planned a backcountry day with some of my Deer Valley buddies... but last night things kind of fell apart :-/ One didn't have a ride from Park City, and another got called in to work. I decided I'd just have to sleep in instead...

I got up around 9 and checked the Utah Avalanche Center website (part of my daily morning routine at this point). The forecast was green/low danger, and in the current conditions it said "riding conditions are still excellent", even though it hasn't snowed in over a week. The last line of the forecast really got me, "Get out and bag that long-sought-after super-tour, summit, or line."

I gathered up my stuff, and my avy-rescue dog (in training) and headed up to American Fork Canyon. From Salt Lake, or the Point, or Orem, or anywhere you can see the Wasatch Front really, you can see this one, pointy peak sitting next to the long ridge of Mt. Timpanogos. That pointy peak just North of Timp is Box Elder Peak, and I'm absolutely fascinated by it. I want to summit it, and stand on the pointy peak. Then I want to take my skis and rip that mountain to pieces.

Going at it alone (well, with Jackson, but no other humans that could use a beacon/probe/shovel to dig me out), I knew I wouldn't be skiing any steep and deep today. But that doesn't mean I can't loooooook! So Jackson and I drove as far as we could into American Fork Canyon, and then started to trek.

Avy Jackson, to the rescue! Oh, wait, he's just chasing snowballs again...

I fear the 'green means go' avalanche forecast won't last until my next day off- we have snow in the upcoming forecast, and this nasty surface hoar (AKA frost) was EVERYWHERE today. This stuff is known to be a persistent weak layer responsible for avalanches... the only hope is the new snow starts out wet enough to wipe out the hoar, or it snows a ton and the weight of all the new snow immediately collapses the weak layer. If not, better tread lightly for a while...

Surface hoar, AKA frost. Persistant weak layer. But it makes the snow nice and sparkly :-)

Having not done this journey before, I wasn't sure how far it was, or which way to go. I've studied quite a few topo maps, and Google Earthed it dozens of times, but sure enough there were a few tricky spots where I got lost. Below is a guesstimate of how far I went, and the route I took (minus all the detours).

This is ROUGHLY where I went and how I got there

The trip in looks long, but it was pretty easy. Probably 80-90% of my time west spent on hardpack snow roads, through the many campgrounds up there. Now that I know where to go and how to get there, I think I could get a group to the base of Box Elder in under 2 hours... maybe 3 depending how big the group is and how fast we move.

That's Box Elder Peak on the right, above treeline. The 'hill' to the left is barely visible on topo maps, eclipsed by Box Elder's additional 1,000 ft (Box Elder Peak is over 11,000 ft msl).

Getting to the top looks like... work... to say the least. On the other hand, the skiing looks phenomenal. I saw some fairly easy looking descents, but also some great looking 'big mountain' lines. There are also some steep and narrow chutes that beg exploration. It's one mountain that has it all... and that's just on the North-Easterly aspect that I could see...

I think I've found my new favorite backcountry stomping ground. When the snow is right, and some other people are up for it, I'm heading back... I need to ski that mountain.

Capturing the beauty of Utah

2009-01-20T18:04:00.000-08:00

Those that know me, know that I'm never far from my camera. And for good reason... you never know when you're going to see something photo-worthy, so if you want epic shots you need to always be prepared!

I try to find something photo-worthy at least once a week... sometimes the shots come out, some times not so much. Here are a few I've had sitting around, 3 of the 4 are recent...

Late-day Sun-Ray

This one is from the summer, taken from the top of the North Side bench. As the sun set, a low level fog set in, and the 'layers' of mountains made for some neat 'sun-rays' through the fog.

Red sky in morning, sailor take warning.
But to a skier in Utah, this can mean... POWDER DAY!

This one was taken coming up Rt. 80 through Parley's Canyon, coming from Salt Lake to Park City. It took a few tries before I captured someone's tail lights streaking by, and by that time the vivid colors had already started to dissipate. Live and learn I guess...

Mount Olympus in the starlight

This one was taken on a sub-zero roadside on my way home from Deer Valley. I had to put stand the tripod on the roof of the car in order to get a good angle over those trees. Since it was dark the auto focus wouldn't work, so I had to manually ballpark it. My lens has distances written on it, but those are more-or-less guidelines, because in hot or cold temperatures things expand/contract and the distances can be off. It looked in focus on the little LCD, so I didn't take another... but when I got home it was clearly out of focus. DOH. Still, I think it captured the beauty of the mountains with Orion's Belt overhead...

Lonely sunrise

The crown jewell of my scenic collection, I took this one from the hang glider launch on the North Side one moring leaving for work. This photo is pretty stunning, but to see it in real life what breath-taking. I couldn't tell you why, but as the sun came up over Lone Peak, there was just so much color, it was incredible! This was another tripod and slow-shutter-speed shots, I wanted a low ISO and a 'smooth' look. Since the mountains and houses didn't move, they're nice and sharp, but because the clouds were moving I got that smoothed look I was going for...

Adventure Thursday is BACK

2009-01-08T20:53:00.000-08:00

Had a GREAT day skiing at Brighton today!!! I, and a few of my Deer Valley buddies, had the day off today, so we made a plan to ski Brighton together. Besides myself, Brooks and Chris came out, and we got an early start (we were in the lift line before the lifts were open). Sandy met us there only a run or two later. After a few more runs we bumped into Ben and one of his buddies that's here visiting, so we were a group of 6 most of the day.

I wanted to go to Brighton because I recently signed up for a 'big mountain skiing' clinic at Alta/Snowbird... and skiing in a wedge on the flats of Deer Valley doesn't really prepare me for that type of skiing. Those that know me know I have a bit of pride, so I wanted to get some 'big mountain' practice in before the clinic.

Brighton is great for that type of skiing- they get tons of snow, it's steep, all the lifts are high speed quads... and my absolute favorite thing about Brighton is the anything goes attitude there. You want to duck a rope and ski out of bounds? Ok, but you're on your own. You want to ski in the double-diamond, experts only areas? Go for it... but know that a wrong turn might lead you off a 40 ft cliff. Seriously.

I don't recall mentioning that I wanted to practice big mountain skiing, but since I've been to Brighton more than the other guys I became the unofficial leader... which meant those suckers had to follow me down whatever gnar I could find. And we found some gnar! Cliffs, rocks, steeps, pow, tracked out crud snow, sun crusted snow, thaw-freeze snow... there was a caucophany of textures underneat our feet.

While not skiing scary lines, Chris and I peer-pressured Brooks into jumping off what I would call a medium to large sized cliff (considering how hard the snow for landing). He stuck it beautifully.

We're taught as instructors to be careful what we allow our kids to do, because "monkey see, monkey do" can be a real problem. Apparently Chris wasn't listening, because a run or two later Chris wanted to try his first cliff jump ever. The snow wasn't real deep or soft today, but we were able to find him a nice little drop to try out. He said he was nervous, but didn't seem to hesitate much before commiting and popping right off it. The landing was a non-event, and with a big smile he said he wanted to do more!

Since hucking cliffs is sometimes involved in big mountain skiing, and since it's quite possibly what I need to work on the MOST, we took some time jumping off things. We were like little kids... find a rock, jump in the snow. Find a bigger rock, jump in the snow. Chris' first one was pretty mellow, but his second was of decent size...

Chris' second-ever cliff jump. Brooks acts as air-traffic-control from below.

The biggest air of the day award goes to Brooks, who launched himself long distance off a boulder a little later in the day. The landing was soft and he nailed it. He came to a stop, then fell over :-) DOH! It was pretty sick though...

Brooks LAUNCHES off this rock, sails throught he air, and sticks it!

I think I need to award myself the wipeout of the day award, even though only Sandy and Brooks saw it. I got myself in a position where I needed to turn around in order to jump a small cliff and land in soft snow. By the time I managed turning around, I was pretty close to the drop. I think I commited fully, but I was so close that I didn't get any real speed and instead of launching out and away I just droped and sunk to my nipples. I followed this with an epic faceplant/cartwheel in the snow, and wound up on my feet 20 ft below the cliff (and my perfectly parallel-parked skis). It was painless, and hillarious, bruising only my ego. I seem to have this chronic problem where I do these drops going too slow and faceplant. Guess I need more practice... we'll have to hit Brighton again, ASAP!

All in all we had a blast. Found some new favorite spots on the mountain (and some spots I will never return to)... got some great skiing (with some great skiers).... and I nearly made it the whole day without falling, not bad considering the terrain we were on most of the day. Possibly one of my favorite ski days ever...

A hike is a hike

2009-01-04T23:08:00.000-08:00

As it seems to be the case for most of the adventures I set out on, I never made it to my intended destination (the Lone Peak cirque). I did, however, very much enjoy getting out. I got some exercise, saw some neat things along the way, and got to spend some time in the mountains. I like the mountains because they always serve a healthy portion of reality... this time I was reminded how little I am, in a very big world.

I thought this picture summed up how little I feel in the mountains...

Having never hiked up Lone Peak before, I wasn't sure which trail was the best/fastest way to the top. I wound up following a trail that cut across the hill for a ways before going straight up. The trail had snow on it, but it was hard wind-scoured snow, which was then packed down by other people... pretty easy going.

Following in others footsteps

Most of Lone Peak still bares the scars from the big fire here this past summer... a lot of the mountain is defoliated, with nothing but the stalks of torched brush sticking up from the snow.

It's sad to see all the burned trees and brush

Overlooking the burned brush, the view out into the valley was great. Having not flown the North Side in a while, it was nice to see the "bench" from above again... it's pretty with snow on it. It was a clear blue-bird day, and I could see all the way to the Opher mountains on the other side of the valley (where the flying site 'Commodore' is).

Looking into the valley you can see Draper, the North Side, and the Ophirs in the distance

Being alone and all, I lacked the motivation to move quickly up the mountain. As it got later in the day, I had to face the realization that I could EITHER make it to the summit before dark, OR make it back to my car before dark... but NOT both. Even though I have Monday off too, I decided sleeping unsheltered on a mountain top was more fun than I signed on for this time, so I started my walk of shame back down, having never made the cirque. After studying some maps later, I wasn't even half-way there. There's GOT to be an easier/faster route to the top?

Look at these deer tracks... was this deer sliding and even doing slalom turns?!

All in all it was a fun time, and I'm definitely glad I did it... next time I'm starting earlier and not stopping until I reach the top, even if that means camping overnight!!!

I'll end this entry with one artsy photo, of a leaf that survived the fires, survived fall, and now is just sitting there surviving the snow. Pretty inspiring if you take the time to think about it.

Lofty Aspirations

2009-01-04T10:08:00.000-08:00

Finally another day off, and again I'm just not masochistic enough to force my feet into ski boots today. My feet appreciate the favor. I'm off tomorrow, so depending on how they feel, I might ski a bit tomorrow...

Today, though, I feel the need for adventure. I want to get out, enjoy the outdoors and sunshine... even if it is only 12 degrees today. I'm heading for a little hike/mountaineering excursion up Lone Peak. I've always wanted to go up to the cirque, and the closest I came this summer is flying over it... I never made the time to actually get up there. That's the plan today, we'll see how it goes...

Anyone staying indoors where it's warm and reading this can track my progress at www.instamapper.com, username 'flyhigh013' and password 'whereisryan'. You should check it out, it's pretty cool. Be sure to look at the map in satelite view (there's a drop down menu in the top right corner of the map).

More to come if I make it back alive :-)

Appreciative Feet

2008-12-26T18:16:00.000-08:00

Today was my first day off since our Snowbird day on the 18th, and I decided to make it my first day out of ski boots since I don't even know when, Dec. 8th (Des's birthday was my first day of work).

For Christmas Santa brought the Wasatch Range 4+ ft of the greatest snow on earth, so I have to assume I missed a pretty epic powder day... But my feet sure are happy. Besides, today was a blackout day at Deer Valley, and I really can't afford to be buying lift tickets... so that leaves the backcountry. The avalanche forecast for today (view it here) was very high, and the forecasters stated that natural and human triggered avalanches were a certainty today. They said "backcountry travelers should stay off of and out from underneath any slope steeper than about 30 degrees"... I don't know if you've tried to ski a less-than-30 degree slope with 4+ ft of powder, but it's not much fun... it becomes a very straight run (not worth hiking and risking my life for).

Natural avalanche in our backyard

I used the morning to relax and clean the house a bit, and then ran some errands in the afternoon. When I got home to took Jackson out to the flight park for a run in the snow, and we had so much fun we played until dark. Then we came home, and I decided to take some pictures of Jackson and Bonnie playing in the backyard.

Jackson walked up the hill, and then jumped into the deep pow...
it was hilarious!

Bonnie plowing through the fluff (chasing a snowball)

Bird Doggin'

2008-12-18T20:25:00.000-08:00

A group of Deer Valley instructors had the day off, so we decided to head up to "The Bird". The weather forecast read "possible AM snow flurries", but in Little Cottonwood Canyon that can equate to a powder day...

Billy gets a face shot

We boarded the tram for the first ride up (my first time at Snowbird, and my first time on the tram), and I here this familiar voice: "RYAN!" I look around, and see a pair of eyes looking at me over the sea of hats and helmets... it's "Dude" (Kevin Koonce, Kitty Hawk Kites instructor turned Point Rat).

"Dude" floatin' the gnar

When we got to the top I introduced the group to Dude, who proceeded to take us around to all his favorite powder stashes. Needless to say, we were much appreciative!!! Later in the day Dude had to split and go to work, so then Erin became our tour guide.

Erinski ripping. 'Nuff said.

Later in the afternoon, the snow stopped, the clouds broke, and it turned into a bluebird day. A stellar afternoon was capped with Melanie accidentally shooting off a cliff, cheating death, but losing a ski in the snow... After an exhausting search, it was not recovered... Snowbird Patrol said they will continue to look, but it might not turn up until spring!

Good snow. Good friends. Good day! What more could one ask for?!

Deer Valley 2009

2008-12-08T23:04:00.000-08:00

All this week I'll be doing instructor training up at Deer Valley. I have to admit it's nice to get some skiing in WITHOUT having to hike up the mountain for it... although everything is groomed instead of freshies.

Winter is taking it's sweet time, and we're all anxiously awaiting the 'lake effect' storms Salt Lake is known for. Deer Valley tends to get less snow than the other (Cottonwood) resorts, with only 300 annual inches of snow. The upside is that, as long as it's cold enough to make snow, Deer Valley's snow making ability is absurd. I'm told they are fully equipped to blow enough snow to cover every major run, all winter long. They haven't had the opportunity to cover everything yet, though... so those thinking of visiting, wait 'till Jan.

Today we did get a bit of snow, with a short whiteout period where we were happy to be bombarded by tons of big fat flakes. It was nice to get back to my car at the end of the day and see that the parking lot, which was bare pavement when I got there, was blanketed by a bit of white.

A bit of white in the parking lot, but a decent amount on the mountain

Photography Fun

2008-11-23T19:46:00.000-08:00

As most of you know, Des and I are really into photography. Today we decided to have a little just-for-fun photo contest between us. Des and I have very different shooting styles, so there's a lot we can learn from each other.

"Berries of Death"

We decided on an unbiased way to score our photos, giving points for creativity, composition, and use of color/contrast. We decided to select our three best photos for evaluation, and at the end we would crown an overall winner.

"Bug Butt"

We wanted to pick a location that would be fair to both of us, and also force us to be creative and find interesting things in an environment we would ordinarily take for granted. After some debate we agreed to take a ride over to Draper Park and see what we could find.

"Grass Explosion"

We both found some interesting things, and got some pretty good photos. As always, our different shooting styles were evident... Today I focused on a cacophony of vibrant colors, where Des's best shot was a black and white photo.

It's amazing the way two people (especially two people so like-minded) can see the same exact things in very different ways...

Existentialism, Powder, and Profanity

2008-11-15T23:15:00.000-08:00

The weather's looking warm (50's) all week, so I figured I'd better get up to the Alta backcountry before the existing snow melts away. I checked the avy forecast, and things were looking really stable, so I planned to head up over the ridge adjacent to Alta and drop in on the back, North facing, side, where the snow should be best.

I was hiking/skiing alone again, and I have to admit I was digging the tranquility of being in the great outdoors alone. As I got towards the top of the ridge the view was incredible... equally incredible was how out-of-shape I am. As I was gasping for oxygen, my mind was free to wonder. I was really savoring how lucky I am. I'm lucky to live in Utah and have this playground in my backyard. I'm lucky to live a life less ordinary, to not work a 9-5 desk job in a cubicle.

As I summited the ridge, the 360 degree view was amazing. Photos, or words, simply can't do it justice. I can't describe how small and insignificant being in a place like that makes you feel. Concerns about trivial things like money and bills seem to float away, and it's just you- a tiny person- surrounded by very NOT-tiny mountains, deep blue sky, and snow.

Getting ready to drop over the back

The thought of snow brought be back to the here-and-now, and I remembered the real reason I just worked so hard to get up there... to go back down. I found a steep chute that looked like it had great, untouched snow, and got ready to drop...

A side view of my chute

The run down was epic. The snow was great, and surprisingly deep for this early in the season. This was my first run of the season on what I would consider 'no-fall' terrain, and the exposure was exhilarating. I doubt I would have died had I fallen, but it was steep enough I probably would have had a long ride down, with some unwelcome tree-trunk visits along the way. My dad taught me to always acknowledge and respect the consequences of what could happen if things go wrong... and that was definitely in the back of my head the whole way down. I lived. Thanks Dad :-)

Do I really want to do this? Hell yea I do.

The hike back out is where the profanity starts in. When I got to the bottom I saw a nice skin track back up and out, through relatively safe avy terrain, so I decided to follow the track. Well whatever jackbag made that track must have had ridiculously fat skis, with the best skins known to man, because I simply could NOT follow the pitch of the skin track. So I made my own skin track, cutting back and forth across the slope... until I got about 200 ft from the top, at which point it got narrow and steep, and I would have had to cut back and forth a million times before I was even half way up. At this point my options are to ski back down, and tour up somewhere more appropriate, or pop my skis and boot the last 200 ft (in waste-deep, light and fluffy powder). I opted to boot. Booting in deep snow is a miserable combination between learning to crawl, learning to swim, learning to rock climb, and realizing that in 10 steps you've moved 3 feet. I expored my healthy repertoire of 'frech' as I clawed my way to the top.

You think that's the end of the story? naaaah. It was warm and sunny enough that a lot of the snow on the Southerly facing ridge had now melted, and I'm about 1,200 ft above my car, with said Southerly facing ridge standing between us. I figured I'd follow Mr. Expert Touring Dude's tracks for a safe way down. Or into a thin-cover boulder field... that was my next guess. I found the least rocky spot I could, and tried to keep my speed up and float on the thin cover. Every now and then I would feel a ski stop suddenly on a rock, and I'd have to shift me weight to the other, or risk taking a header down the (rocky) slope. I was literally between a rock and hard place, and had no choice but to make the best of it and get my ass to the car. As I boulder hopped I created some good profanity out of my subconscious. We're talking multi-syllable, compound words... the ones that usually live within us, in a locked box buried in our psyche. The monster was loose...

The immortal words of Randall Jones bounced around in my head:
"My ski had fun too... on a ROCK!"

In the end I made it to the car without falling and smashing my skull on the rocks, and I have to admit the exercise, the experience, and most of all the steep chute I skied down the back side made the whole trip worth it...

Bad Snow No Go

2008-11-12T15:49:00.000-08:00

Checked the Alta webcam this AM and saw a light dusting in the parking lot, so I decided another ski day was in order. The forecast for the valley was rain showers all day, so I figured rain here = snow there...

Mountains in the clouds

By the time I motivated and got up there it was a little after 11. It was 33 degrees in the upper lot, and the snow was very wet and heavy. On the drive up the canyon I noticed lots of little wet slides, and bells went off in my head that today wasn't a good day to ski anything remotely steep enough to slide.

It was warm and humid up there (in a cloud), and visibility basically SUCKED, so I couldn't even salvage the trip by taking scenic shots... I left camera in the car.

Has anyone seen my mountain, I can't find it anywhere!

I took a short tour up to Albion Basin, hoping it would get me high enough the snow wouldn't be so wet and prone to sliding, but it was the same as below. I skied back down to the car, taking a few shortcuts through some untracked snow in the trees. I'm glad I didn't keep hiking, because the snow was heavy and not that much fun... the run I had a few days ago already got me spoiled for the famous Utah powder.

Lower LCC is in desperate need of some white...

Oh well, I got out and got some exersise, and made a few nice turns on the way down. Hard to complain about that. Now where's our lake-effect snow damnit?!

No Place Like Alta

2008-11-10T16:10:00.000-08:00

Woke up to a gloomy, rainy day, and elected to do productive things around the house. At some point this AM I checked the webcams up at Alta, and noticed that the RAIN here was falling as SNOW up there. I suddenly found my incentive to finish the chores :-)

I followed the same route we did yesterday, but pressed on to the top of Collins Lift this time. I was beat by the time I got to the top, and I could feel some blisters starting to develop from the new boots. I guess I haven't exactly eased into ski season...

As I got closer to the top, the snow really started to fall. For a while, I was completely whited out, and could barely see 10 ft in front of me.

Whited out and loving it in front of Ballroom (not that you can see it)

The run down was epic. I didn't do anything too extreme, since Alta's not open yet, and they're not doing avalanche control work yet... and I was skiing alone (no one to dig me out if I got burried, even though I did have my avy gear). I came down through some open trees, and was rewarded for my 'safe' choice with two feet of fresh all the way down. The snow was buttery-smooth, and I felt completely in-tune with my gear... with the mountain. I think that run made me fall in love with skiing all over again.

FYI: Alta is closed tomorrow (even to hiking in) due to avy control work...

Long Time No Ski

2008-11-09T16:49:00.000-08:00

Desiree, Heather (new addition to the local HG community) and I went up to Alta today for some pre-season skiing. Snowbird is open, but Alta doesn't open until next week.

Des and Heather posing in front of Mount Superior

We didn't want to be too over-zealous and not be able to walk tomorrow, so we eased into the season by going up under the Collins lift, and stopping at the mid-station. (View Alta trailmap here).

We only scratched the surface of what Alta has to offer, but we were careful NOT to scratch the surface of our skis :-) We all made it up and down without hitting any rocks, which was my main goal this early in the season.

I was LOVING the new boots (Black Diamond Factor), even if they did win me the ugliest boot on the hill award. While touring up they were so much better than my old (race) boots... but they felt just as stiff and supportive on the way down. If anything, I felt like I had a better connection with the skis... which was needed for navigating some of the thaw-freeze popcorn.

It was a pretty short run, but it was a lot of fun to get out, get some exercise, and get some turns as early as Nov. 9th.

This is an early start to the season for ex-East coasters like Des and I

South Side Stellar-ness

2008-11-08T23:52:00.000-08:00

Saturday was another above-average South Side day, with many hang pilots coming out to play. There must have been 10 hangs out there, and it was nice to have all the company and camaraderie.

Since there were lots of people to fly with I decided to mount the camera up again... I got in close with a few people that trust me enough to know I won't hit them...

Getting up close and personal with John Glime

At one point most of the pilots had landed to take a break, so I did some low fly throughs. It was hard to build any speed up on that big Falcon, and the pitch pressure really made me miss my U2 (which is sold and gone).

On one of the fly-throughs I noticed Jackson the dog was chasing me, and I thought it might make for a good photo-op. I landed and turned the camera long ways so I'd have a better chance of seeing the dog below me...

I think I'm going to have to make him a doggie-harness, he always wants to come with...

After flying Des and I took a drive up to Alta to see how much snow there was, and if skiing on Sunday was a viable option. It looked good up there! Most of the visible runs and bowls at Alta were already tracked out, and it looked like pretty good cover on all North facing aspects.

Alta. 'Nuff said.

Happy to see plenty of snow, we headed home. Sunday (tomorrow) we're going back up there to hike for some turns. I'm thinking a mellow warm-up somewhere around the lower left of this shot, and if the snow seems good and we haven't completely forgotton how to ski, maybe head up higher into the bowl in the top-center of the shot, or possibly the chute just to the left... depends what the crowd wants to do. I'll just be happy to get to use my new boots :-)

Happy Utahans

The Camera Curse

2008-11-06T17:22:00.000-08:00

So I have this superstition, based on past experiences... any day I decide to fly with a camera, it will be great right up until the point that I am DONE mounting the camera on the glider. It never fails!

Even on short flights, there's something very special about stepping away from the Earth.

Ignoring the 'camera curse', I decided to take an extra 10 mins to mount my D80 out at the tip of my tandem falcon. This would be the first time I fly with the camera other than a short t-hill test flight.

Smile for the birdie...

The good news is that my new wired remote worked beautifully... the bad news is the 'camera curse' is still alive and well. Luckily flying solo on that tandem glider gives me a killer sink rate, so I was still able to do a few passes before coming and landing on the lip of one of the fingers, rather than going to the bottom (another advantage of that glider, lands easy, anywhere!).

Cold feet, the price of having to land.

I'll be flying with the camera more often now that I'm a super-cool blogger like Jeff ;-)

Snow Day

2008-11-05T18:02:00.000-08:00

Woke up to at least half a foot of snow this morning! I guess winter's here.

View out the back door

I helped Des brush off the car so she could go to work, and we played with Jackson the dog for a bit. This was his first REAL snow storm... turns out he's a real powder hound

Greatest dog on Earth, meet greatest snow on Earth

I really wanted to head up to the ski resorts and hike for some turns, but A) I couldn't get anyone to come with me, and B) I don't think there's quite enough snow for that yet...

As the sun is setting I went out and took a walk through the neighborhood. I still can't believe I'm lucky enough to live in such a beautiful place.

North Side at sunset