december 2005

If you want to watch some video's from stays in Alicante,there are loads to be seen on the website of youtube. Check my section "movies" leftside homepage.

saturday 31 december

Got back from a ski-trip today and saw mu buddies Nacho and Mirko flying near Loma Larga on the way back. Don't know yet if they flew a lot last week. I think it was a bit windy, still have to check.

Weather is great, 18 degrees this afternoon, lovely. From monday onwards flying again, as much as we can.

thursday 22 december

No foreign pilots around. So I didn't fly today, but my local buddies went inland and flew. In the morning some of them at Col de Rates, later in the afternoon at Biscoy.
I will not be around till the 2nd of january, off breaking a leg skiing in the Pyrenees.

It has been a good year, met many new pilots, made many new friends, and we all had great times together in the air and on the ground.
No shit, no hassles , good friends, good fun.

Talk to you again, in 2006.

wednesday 21 december

Strong, up to 45 km east winds at the coast. So we needed to go somewhere else to spread our wings. Left for the valley of Villena. There were some small hills that always interested me to try flying on.

First went up Peña Rubia to check conditions. East pure, and gusty, but not as strong as on the coast. Clouds were moving not racing.
So we left for a 4x4 adventure trip throught the fields of Villena's farmers, hoping to find a new playground.

Ended up at the bottom of a nicely easterly facing, spanish grass style, hill. Walked up to check, but halfway already coming down to take our gliders. Cleaned up an area where at least our shoestrings weren't gonna get strangled in the spanish grass.
Quick quick quick, a lull so we could take off, in a second above take off, overviewing the little hill. Gusty and sometimes a punchy thermal, but nothing too nasty. I had to land because my hands were freezing. I had forgotten to my gloves.

Bo is leaving us tomorrow, and so ends my guiding season 2005 with this last flight.

Bo flew 6 out of 7 days and topped up his airtime with 12 hours. It is december and I love it.

.

. We found a new playground today

tuesday 20 december

Winds too strong today, east. A day with lots of clouds cold and rain inland. At the coast 15 degrees, chilly, no rain.

monday 19 december

I do not know how he did it, but Marc flew 5 hours, took a piss, and flew another 2 hours. Sean needed some assistance for launching. With his brandnew Airwave Sport3 I understood, he didn't want to risk any damage, it such a beauty, the glider is !

Bo, well Bo is Bo, he is a paragliding junkie. Always smiling, always happy if he gets his fix. He has been flying 5 days in a row now, only lands when he really really needs to. This is not a fix anymore, this is an overdose.

sunday 18 december

Already home at 4.30 pm. Were flying at Cabo, but now it picked up to bloody strong. And turbulent as well, not at all as usual at our loving cliffs.

Even Juan Pedro, very experienced pilot both paraglider and hanggliders, had to bring his hangglider down. Too strong and turbulent. But hey, w flew a couple of hours, Andy, Sean, Bo and Mark and Bernard.

Shot from the flying today, lean left. No, the other left Dave ...

saturday 17 december

A hell of a day. Carrascoy, westwind. At first it looked like it could be picking up by afternoon. Also weather forecast was stronger winds northwest especially on height. So we took off early and arrived at noon.
We flew most of the afternoon, had a coffee break, and flew again late at 4.30 till the winds picked too strong to fly safe. Excellent !
So weather forecast was ok, just the timing was a bit off.

Thermals were sometimes a bit punchy. And cloudbase was not so high, but hey it is december after all isn't it, and flying for hours the last three days on different hills, who can beat that.

friday 16 decemberIt was nice weather today, southwest wind. Lovely flying, not too cold. Bo stayed up for three hours, some of us couldn't take the strong wind at take off.

Something else. If you read this, go outside once. Tonight the moon is to be seen 13 hours in the sky (maximum for Mexico this is), this is the most in the last 18 years. Resulting in a beautiful night for a moondance.
.
In a survey conducted in 1988 in the USA, 13% of those surveyed believe that the moon is made of cheese. Bless 'em.
We will never fly on the moon with our paragliders, as there is no wind.

thursday 15 december

Magic today. Climb all over, easy thermals +2 meter per second, all pilots touching cloudbase, and literally touching it, because in the cloud now and then. Therefore if you come down to Alicante, buy a compass. Get a compass Sup'air, down here only 30 euros and really a safety device. Many times we have cloud coming in. Those who fly with compass, easily feel safer if they fly just under or just in the cloud.
It is a comfortable feeling just watching your compass, knowing which direction to fly to, when you end up in the cloud. Fly GPS ? Yes, just that day you will have forgotten your GPS, not charged it. So have a compass on your harnass and it will never leave you.

Flying in a cloud is a special feeling, and has to be done. Once in the cloud, very quickly you don't know where you are.
It can happen one day that you will end up in a cloud, without wanting it.

So if you have a day when you can climb in a friendly cloud, you should ...
Keep calm, enjoy it. Use big ears, spiral dive, B-line to get down and have a look at your compass. You'll love it.

wednesday 14 december

Some at Orito, some at Col de Rates, we choose for Peña Rubia. Jean flew his paraglider with the cage. Here some pictures, so you have an idea. They are rarely on our hills anymore, they look a bit prehistoric.
Jean Solon is a famous hanggliding pilot in Belgium and prefers flying with the cage. As a hangglider pilot anything more rigid than those slack lines feel better, I guess.

We had some fun, we could have had more fun if thermals were a bit stronger.
We had northwest wind, blue sky, temperatures on the rise again.

tuesday 13 december

If you do not know what to buy for Xmas, maybe get this instrument above. The aircotec XC trainer, GPS - vario. Just have a look at what it gives of information.

Left foto, after your flight. Date, time take off, time landing, durance flight, max height and temperature, max climb, max sink etc... .
Right foto, during your flight it gives you top left, the windspeed 19 km/h and wind direcion (arrow) north-east, groundspeed 27 km/h, height 1076 meter, 142 degrees where you are heading to, climb rate +2, etc... ,etc... etc... . If you find a thermal, interesting enough you just push the button and hopla registered. Go to the aircotec website and find out more. It is little and very light, and fits right under your Xmas tree.

And this only at doyouwanna for 675 euros, including charger, harnass pocket Let me know things, Xmas is not all about perfumes.

Oh, today the flight registered was at San Antonio.

monday 12 december

Hondon de las Nieves, again the pretty much abandoned site. We went up there in the hope, and you hear me comin already, that north east would blow strong enough to do some nice soaring. But nil wind, inversion. The weather too good, warmer on top of the hill than at landing field. So we relaxed in the sun, waiting for the thermals, which never showed up. Some pilots did a top to bottom, 600 meter height difference.

sunday 11 december

Just managed to do a bit of soaring at Cabo de Santa Pola. Toplanding, but just. Inland there was lots of wind, at the coast almost zero, very strange. Later in the afternoon I got some messages that locals pilots started flying on their hills like San Antonio.

Paul took off at 5 pm and flew till dark, till it got up to 30 km per hour, so a good day of flying ? I would say so, although the waiting was a bit long...

In the morning it is cold, 10 - 12 degrees, from 11 am it starts warming up and we can live with it again.

saturday 10 december

Jean Solon and girlfriend Nelly, Paul and me. The only ones at take off San Antonio. Earl morning for Spain, it was only 12 am. Flew a bit, but as soon as we got above take off, it started to be gusty.

If you are bored and want to watch some video's from stays in alicante, well there are loads to be seen on the website of youtube. Check section "movies" and have a great evening you girls and guys.

Shot 5 pm, lots of wind up there
Right foto Jean with "the cage", haven't seen that in a long time !

friday 9 december

Waiting for Paul, arriving late afternoon. Immediately off to Cabo. Some Madrileños were flying tandem. Little soaring, it picked up by late hour in the afternoon. Probably very flyable at Hondon, at Murcia as well, but too late arrival of our guest Paul.

sunday 5 december - till - thursday 8 december

Didn't fly this week, no guests around. Local buddies did the following. Monday flying at Alhama de Murcia, wednesday perfect at Palomaret with the usual XC flights, today some flying was done at Calpe Toix. From tomorrow onwards back under my wings till the end of the year.
Again at night pretty cold, but from eleven am onwards nice and sunny.

saturday 4 december

No more guests. Sky pretty nasty looking in the morning. At 11 am, clearing up blue sky and nice temperatures. I got a message some buddies were flying near Murcia. I didn't get out today, have to disconnect to be all ready for next guests. But I don't think somebody got airborne near Alicante.
Maybe I won't be able to fill in this dairy till friday. Maybe we go inland for a trip with the camper, depending on the weather. Keep you informed about the flyable days my friends had when I get back.

If you need us, you can call us on 0034 606 781 180, hasta luego.

friday 3 december

Not a flying day, too strong gusts of up to 60 km/h. Bits of rain in the morning.

thursday 2 december

Not a flying day. Warm winds coming from southwest, peaking up to 40 km/h. No good.

Again we had complaints by British schools, selling gliders to their pilots. To keep the peace, we decided to erase our prices for some glider brands. It is pretty sad they cannot take the competition.
Beer, shoes, food, tobacco yes also gliders are cheaper than in Britain. I am sorry, that's the way it is. And if British pilots want to buy their beer, shoes, tobacco, gliders abroad they have the right.
Its a free european market and that is the only way for all our economies to benefit.
I remember when I was young I went to London to Tower Records to get the latest music lots cheaper than in Belgium, later my parents took the ferry to Dover because wallpaper was cheaper than at ours.

If you think I shouldn't sell gliders to my foreign visiting pilots any more, please don't hesitate to let us know. I will be happy to hear your arguments. Meanwhile still having all paragliding equipment at Spanish euro prices. Hasta luego.

wednesday 1 december

Flew at Toix, near Calpe. 'No Fear' Paul went all the way to Sierra Bernia, while westwind was making it nasty. Us, local pilots stayed near Altea Hills, each time and again and again trying to catch a thermal, to at least make the transition to Sierra Bernia with enough, safe height.
Only Suby went with Paul on his Arcan. Afterwards Suby told me, he was sweating and didn't know if he really wanted to follow him... . So it was not only me Dudo, Imre and Antolino who thought it was too tricky.
I asked the other pilots to be careful, they could meet huge sink, end up in the lee of this gusty westwind and having to land in nasty areas. So most of us stayed put, enjoying the flying over the luxury houses at Altea Hilss and the rock Morro de Toix. Safety.

Today I promised a DOYOUWANNA T-shirt for all who made it to Sierra Bernia (the furthest part of it !) and landing on the beach near Calpe. Paul, Dave, and Suby, well done.

Pictures of me heading for Peñon d'Ifach of Calpe and the other picture of approaching landing with strong tailwinds, while below us the kite surfers were having fun.

Tonight we all have tapa's together with the not to be missed vino tinto ! Half of the group leaves us tomorrow, I hope to see you guys back.

I started this diary just a year ago. So this means twelve months of daily uploading, what we did during the day. I count 270 days of flying last year. This should be a guideline for all who want to come over and fly with us. I think this proves that DOYOUWANNA is run efficient and professional. We are always out there when there is a window to fly.

It is a guideline to choose your time to come down and fly with us. Down in Alicante with DOYOUWANNA you don't have to be lucky to fly, no you will just be unlucky if you can't fly.
We are just a spot on earth, so of course also dependent on the weather. But the climate we live in is amazing. Why do you think grandma still dances and has fun down here in nearby Benidorm. She was never stupid, that's why she choose the best climate in Europe.

I hope to see you. And also, I hope more guides put in a dairy on their website. Because the feedback I get from pilots, repeated or new visitors is good. And it can only benefit their bussiness. What do you think ?