Hang Gliding and Paragliding Volume 44 / Issue 1: January 2014 | Page 47

caps your ability to control the glider. Pushing down also
rocks your body more upright, which is terribly inefficient, no
matter how racy your harness might be. I have observed many
H-3s and H-4s that are guilty of this bad habit, so don’t feel
too bad if you’re a base-tube-pusher-downer. Please break that
habit immediately, and thank Dave Gibson for his eloquent
terminology of PPF.
To avoid pushing down on the base tube, remember to stay
loose, and then take the term “pull IN” literally. Pull the base
tube back toward your feet and in toward your body. Think
about trying to pull the center of the base tube to your belt
buckle. Pushing down on the base tube requires contact with
the top of the base tube, so when you want to fly fast, treat the
top of the base tube like hot lava. Pulling IN only requires
contact with the front “leading edge” of the base tube and, in
smooth air, can be done with completely open hands.
If you can learn to relax and loosen your body, to fly with
a light touch, to smooth and conserve your body motion, and
keep your body aligned with the airflow, I promise you will see

huge performance gains—both in your flying and your physical performance. You will climb better, be more in-tune with
your wing, and more able to find the best lift. You will glide
better, eliminating unnecessary drag from your body or wing
(unnecessary glider inputs deform the wing, creating drag).
You will be a more accurate pilot, too, and will be able to feel
the need for minute corrections and apply them. You’ll also
be less fatigued, able to fly longer periods of time, and more
consecutive days, without accompanying soreness (or at least
with less soreness).
Looking at the best pilots in the sport, it’s easy to see a
common body type. And none of them look like body builders.
The truth is that hang gliding is a finesse sport, and PPF is a
crucial way for advancing pilots to take their flying to “the next
level.” Weight shift is just another way of saying “balance,” and
in every balance sport—running, skating, skiing, gymnastics—
the top athletes are those who have learned to maintain disciplined control of their bodies and to use economy of motion.
Enjoy!

ABOVE Here we can see the author flying fast using a loose grip, making contact with only the front of the
base tube, and pulling the base tube back toward his belt buckle. OPPOSITE Proper prone form gives Dave
Gibson improved pitch authority, as well as the precision control needed as he gets close to Desiree Voight
here. Photos by Ryan Voight.

HANG GLIDING & PARAGLIDING MAGAZINE

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