Bobthepilot

Flight 132 190323 Placida Flight time 01:00 PIC 116.52 GTOW wt. 285 lbs 130 kgs Wx: Clear Wind: 00000 Temp: 00F Pilots: Alvaro Cesar Overall I had a gud flight. I'm very disappointed that I didn't use knowledge previously gained. I had to play the what if game and prevent an incident that brought it to the forefront for me to consider a solution. That being, never fly on the deck in front of people down the beach for fear of catching a shore fisherman's line. Consequently I made my bed and it was only fair that I took some lumps. Critical thinking: I first pulled up too hard to attempt a miss and once up and slow, I realized I still had the line, which was thick. I wanted to stop moving away from the source thinking it could literally pull me back and pitch the wing forward, NOT GUD. I decide, in a split second, to get closer to the source. Being slow in a steep climb and turning downwind allowed me to barely clear the trees. I hadn't planned on going over the trees but that's the tightest turn I could make considering speed, downwind and remaining within glide distance to land. As I was over the trees, the thought came to me of tree entanglement. I decided to land right there and that is why I didn't add power in the turn which dropped me. Then it was all about landing and keeping the wing out of the water. I actually rolled out where I picked up the line and landed just past that. Along with needing to stay calm and access my predicament then execute the plan. How long has it been since my last reverse? Geez. I'm a firm believer in FIDO - meaning once an emergency is resolved I forget it and drive on. Alvaro was overhead and departed back to the LZ thinking I might need a ride. He had a six minute lead. I made up all but a minute and a half on my return. Just smokin along. I don't know what Alvaro's flying weight is on an APCO Lift EZ 26m though I know he isn't as heavy as I. Anyways thanks for watching Bob The Pilot @Bobthepilot (Twitter) bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com

Flight 107 180311 Placida LZ Flight time 01:15 PIC 97:32 Allup wt. 278 lbs. Wx: ovr cast Wind: T/O variable 190/8 Wind: Landing 170/4 Temp: 73F Pilots: Mike Lange, Mike Otten, Pavel Hadn't flown in a couple of weeks. Any flying was better than none. The Mike duo and Pavel came out as well. Was nice to see Mike O who's been absent from the flying scene. Instead enjoying the quarter mile arena. I allowed my discipline to wane which puts me in precarious in flight situations simply by not following my workable rontine. In aviation, there's a reason for everything. The checks you make as you follow your routine are to ensure that you're ready for the next stage without creating your own problems. On my reverse takeoff, I delayed in my turn allowing the shifty winds and vacillating wind speed to take the wing outside the control box. I ABORTED, dropping my brakes toggles and transitioning to kiting to fly the wing into position for another go. In my transition back to reverse takeoff, I did not follow my checks, clearing the brake lines. The right brake handle had interwoven itself in the other suspension lines. After takeoff the wing veered right and downwind headed towards the power lines. At first I thought it was an easy fix. Without glasses I couldn't see how interwoven it was. Being that it was the throttle side I kept letting off the throttle and descending. I changed from left brake to left TST for easier turning and less drag flying away from the powerlines. My ground proximity warning device "gut feeling" said take a look. I was heading for impact. That brought the complacency to an end and the pilot side took over demanding to cut the shit and fly to a safe place to fix the problem or formulate a plan. I climbed up a few hundred feet and set the cruise control. Using both hands, I was able to figure out the entanglement. All of that could have been avoided by maintaining the discipline to follow your routine. Once the brake was clear, FIDO. The air was choppy and switchy as I cruised at 400' enroute to Stump Pass without control input. Mike O's wing crawls along so I left the trims in neutral. Once arriving at the beach, I did a wingman check with no one insight. Continuing to the south end of Stump Pass, I descended to the play. Not enough wind or sand bars to duplicate flight 105. Though the air was smoother and chilly. I chose to keep it normal and check out the sites enroute for the south end of the Island. When flying below 100' I fly with both brake and TST agility and landings. With a stiff headwind, I was light on the controls. Arriving at the south end of Little Gasparilla, the air wasn't fun at all. I didn't see it, but twice I felt my controls pop. I think I was experiencing tip collapses from the switchy turbulent conditions. Cool. Considering the conditions and alone, I decided to bug out for the LZ. Arriving at the LZ I searched the skies for compadres and found them returning from the beach. Awaiting their arrival I practiced a few 270 deg turns to landing with a few brakedrop to landings. The last one, I was a hauling ass along. Every check has a reason, maintain your discipline Bob The Pilot @Bobthepilot (Twitter) bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com

Flight 109 180413 Placida LZ Flight time 01:10 PIC 99:42 Allup wt. 278 lbs. Wx: clr Wind: T/O 200/8 Wind: Landing 200/5 Temp: 80F Pilots: Ivan Romero, Alvaro Cesar Short notice though a nice surprise getting to take a visiting fellow pilot on a beach run. Ivan drove over across the swamp to fly the area and return for other obligations. I'm happy to say the weather cooperated and we had a very nice flight out to and along Gasparilla Island. Headed into the wind on the deck and pleasure cruised to the southern end. Climbing for the downwind return leg which provides a different perspective of the Island. Hope Ivan and others can return for a longer stay. With a little notice we can round up the troops to tear up the skies. Fly your best every flight Bob The Pilot @Bobthepilot (Twitter) bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com

Flight 113 180602 Placida LZ Flight time 01:22 PIC 103:04 Allup wt. 278 lbs. Wx: clr Wind: 00001 Temp: 77F Pilots: Alvaro Cesar Alvaro and I met up to give nil wind takeoffs another Go. My takeoff was maximum effort and liftoff was just under maximum running speed. Wasn't sure where I was headed. With trim set to slow and throttled back the old Vittorazi just climbed up to 700 feet. I decided to fly to the beach and Alvaro stayed in the area to practice. Cruising along the beach deck I decided to practice the pitch pendulum. On the way back, I checked out a paracamp site. Since I was now on the deck again, I flew the abandoned RR tracks back to the mainland, passing over the fish house I worked at in 1981-2 while studying to become a commercial pilot. Got a bit adventurous and flew a shortcut to open country over the marina. Once arriving at the LZ, I decided to perform a speed check on my APCO Lift 26m. As expected, the TAS was slightly faster than the 28m. I was running data through an E6B flight computer and determined you must perform the test in both directions and into the wind. Well we didn't have any wind to speak.. Results at an approx test weight of 258 lbs and 11.13 lbs per sq meter proj. Full reflex - 31 mph Adding ful spd bar 40 mph After the speed test, I climbed up to 250 feet for dead stick practice targeting my car. Missing by 100 feet I decided to give it another go. Mishap: I finally taught myself to turn toward the wing when it drops after landing. It fell to my left this time. I didn't catch that the right riser wasn't on top, (Normal for me) So when I disconnected the right riser and continued to turn to my left I caused a riser twist. On takeoff the twisted area was above the mallions and tightened its grip on my brake line. That's why the wing pulled right after releasing liftoff brakes; the right side didn't release fully being held by the twist. I got it sorted out in the air thus allowing me to shoot another dead stick to an acceptable spot landing. Early on, I envisioned having to land using the right brake line above the twist. Trim set A's on top Brake lines clear before hooking in Come on Bob, follow your own advice and quit creating your own excitement, geez. Fly with a plan Bob Harrison 941.661.2598 (Signal) (E2E secure Text) @BobthePilot (Twitter) Bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com (E2E Secure Email)

09-09-2018 Placida LZ Flight 119 Flight time 00:55 PIC 107:13 Allup wt. 273 lbs. Wx: clear Wind: 09003 Temp: 73F Pilots: Bill Houghton Bobthepilot Alvaro Cesar See the world from a different perspective. - Cruise at 23-35 mph - Fly in wind less than 12 mph - 0 - 60 feet for liftoff - Carry motor mounted removable hitch rack - Paraglider in the car Bob Harrison 941.661.2598 (Signal) (E2E secure Text) @BobthePilot (GAB) or Twitter) Bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com (E2E Secure Email)

9-22-2018 Placida LZ Flight 120 Flight time 01:10 PIC 108:23 Allup wt. 273 lbs. Wx: clear Wind: 0608 Temp: 75F Pilots: Bobthepilot Alvaro Cesar Paul Robinson Beach run was turbulent but Stump Pass turned out to be fun indeed. See the world from a different perspective. - Cruise at 23-35 mph - Fly in wind less than 12 mph - 0 - 60 feet for liftoff - Carry motor mounted removable hitch rack - Paraglider in the car Situational awareness Bob Harrison 941.661.2598 (Signal) (E2E secure Text) @BobthePilot (Twitter) Bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com (E2E Secure Email)

Flight 130 190118 Flight time 01:00 PIC 115:52 GTOW wt. 273 lbs 124 kgs Wx: Clear Wind: 27007 Temp: 67F Pilots: Alvaro Cesar, Bill Houghton, Joe Taylor, Drew?, Joe Rinke, Mark Newvine Trying to fly after work leaves little time. It being Friday and a perfect day for a beach run and the last day for the Michigan gang to fly, I was able to make it. It was a butter smooth out to the beach as I was able to pull off a 90 deg wingover spiral to the deck. Foot waving to Don Pedro state Park followed by Pitch Pendulums. Arriving at Stump Pass I knocked out a few tight 360’s to landing before heading back catching a beautiful sunset. Little hot dogging and buzzing around watching the other pilots enjoy the area before bringing it in for a nice nil wind landing. Bob Harrison 941.661.2598 (Signal) (E2E secure Text) @BobthePilot (Twitter) Bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com (E2E Secure Email)

Flight 121 Flight time 01:09 PIC 109:32 Allup wt. 273 lbs. Wx: clear Wind: 04506 Temp: 75F Pilots: Bobthepilot Bill Houghton I arrived to enjoy a cup of Joe and a beautiful sunrise. Wind was from the NE at 6 mph and steady. Noone chimed in on Twitter to join me so I planned to run along Gasparilla island making extraction easy. With a easterly wind it makes for a moderate ride down the beach on the deck due to rotor, so I stayed around 400 feet AGL an watched a sky blender pass off my right from behind about a tenth of a mile away. Once arriving at the south end and noting the wind around 10 mph from the East, I decided to drop down and play on the deck without a plan. I did a few firsts. Landed on the pilon, balanced on a railing and soared like a Osprey. Along with putting my life at risk. What the hell, I'm 60 not 22. The waters around the docks are deep and swift. The Pass has many sharks though I might hv bn lucky in that Red Tide is prevalent. To monitor my fuel burn, I use ten minutes per ltr. I set my countdown timer based on that. I must hv started my stopwatch accidently and when I checked my remaining burn time it was 17 minutes. Shit I'm 11.5 mi from the LZ with a 10+ mph headwind. Wasn't looking gud. Once I saw my mistake I had 22 of fuel remaining and only 6 miles to go. After I returned I decided to kite. This is when I noticed my GoPro card was full. Needless to say I was overly enlightened to find that I did record the flight. Fly with a plan Bob Harrison 941.661.2598 (Signal) (E2E secure Text) @BobthePilot (Twitter) Bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com (E2E Secure Email)

Flight 123 Flight time 01:15 PIC 110:47 GTOW wt. 273 lbs 124 kgs Wx: clear Wind: 0001-7 Temp: 66-72F Equipment: GoPro Hero 3+ 2012 APCO Lift 26 sqm 2014 PAP - 1250 mm stainless steel frame - dry weight 26.4 kg - 2014 Vittorazi Moster 185 - w/120 hobb hrs - Note: the head hasn't bn off Fuel Burn this flight - 5.2 lph Other Pilot's: Bill Houghton Alvaro Cesar Gusty day practice Winds 5-7 mph Pwr and Dead stick approaches. Most of my videos are for me to analyze and those that enjoy what it takes to fly. FPV (first person views) Think Ahead Bob Harrison 941.661.2598 (Signal) (E2E secure Text) @BobthePilot (Twitter) Bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com (E2E Secure Email)

Joys of flight Theirs many places you can hangout, a comfortable chair, around a camp fire enjoying your favorite beverage with family and friends, watching a beach sunset. What keeps people from pursuing that which is exciting, precarious or intriguing, apprehension about the unknown, lack of drive to fully understand the dynamics before deciding if it's within their capabilities. Happy with their daily routine to their end. An exciting Life isn't over at fifty. I'm confident we all have ONE LIFE to live and when the end is near, I hope your reflections on life bring a big smile with many stories. If you want additional information, feel free to contact me for advice to get you going in a safe direction. This is an minimally regulated sport without any certifications needed. You'll need knowledgeable instruction with a desire to study, practice and more study. This will get you in the air safely and with the confidence to continue on your way in a truly fantastic sport. Bob Harrison 941.661.2598 (Signal) (E2E secure Text) @BobthePilot (Twitter) Bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com (E2E Secure Email)

Flight 135 190417 Placida Flight time 00:58 PIC 119:50 GTOW wt. 285 lbs 130 kgs Wx: Clear Wind: 26011/13 mph (at the beach) Temp: 82F Pilots: Roger, Daniel Well well well, sometimes I purposely don't check all the boxes. This adds uncertainties to the flight which can bring forth problems to solve that can be exciting. Roger texted the Twitter group mentioning they were flying Wed afternoon for a beach run. It was an early day for me so I joined in. Alvaro arrived later and headed out but the wind was turbulent and decided on a short flight. Roger and I headed to the beach in reflex. Our wings are similar in speed arriving at the beach together. We dropped down onto the deck and flew to stump pass waving too many watchers as we crawled our way north at less than 10 mph GS. Upon arriving at the South end of stump pass the hot-dogging begins. I truly enjoy managing the aerodynamic changes while performing on the deck 360’s to touch-n-goes. On one of my touch-n-goes Roger decided to land next to me which looked cool but in doing so he lost control of his wing. I've never deflated my wing in the wind high enough to not remain in place. The wind was 11 to 13 mph. I flew around for another 8 min and finally decided to stop. I deflated properly and dragged the wing inline with the wind flow and went to help Roger. It took us twenty minutes untangle his wing and for him to launch. Another twenty minutes I spent doing the same. If done properly it's not a big deal. However if you don't have a plan, it can create anxiety that can lead to other mistakes. I was on an island with only boat access Sunset was in an hour I work the next day I've never launched in wind high enough to need to anchor the wing Didn't have a plan. Shouldn't have used the reverse kiting hand holds to launch. Should have followed Roger's lead and performed a Cobra launch. I made one helluva mess of my wing which took twenty minutes to fix.  Later that weekend the wife, daughter and I went to the beach. The wind was too high to practice so on the way home we stopped by the LZ to practice high wind deflation and the Cobra launch using my daughter's knee in replace of sand on the wing tip, I practiced a few different deflations of the wing, none of which I particularly liked. During laying the wing out in preparation of the Cobra launch I learned a few things that helped form a plan. I'll give the following steps a go next time you have high wind and a fellow pilot to practice with. Looking fwd to my next high wind beach deflation. I'm confident it will work out. Anchor wingtip with sand on the upwind side. Layout wing inline with the wind flow Straighten lines making sure A's are clear Set trims out though within brake range Bring the risers to the center of the wing about three feet from the trailing edge Mount your paramotor Connect to the wing Start your engine Execute the Cobra using the downwind A and brake line only walking towards the upwind end and away from the wing at the same time. Transition from Cobra to overhead In high wind I kite using my deflation risers Wing and line check Transition to brake controls As you reverse add power Launch when stable Sometimes I purposely don't follow my own experience or advice. Bob The Pilot @Bobthepilot (Twitter) bobthepilot@ProtonMail.com

02-09-2018 Placida LZ Flight 102 Flight time 01:02 PIC 92:28 Allup wt. 270 lbs. Wx: clear Wind: T/O 22506 Wind: Landing 22503 Temp: 75F Pilots: Jeremy Tyler Paul Robinson The weather has been flyable the last several days. I flew with Paul yesterday. Jeremy received his exhaust from having it ceramic coated and was in need of PPG airtime with Stella his best buddy? If the motor isn't broke, Fly it. After work, I hustled on down to Placida and prepared to fly. Paul decided to stay local. I didn't know where Jeremy went for sure. So I departed for the south end of Little Gasparilla island. With a tailwind and trims closed I was moving along sippin fuel. Arriving at the south end I moved the trims to neutral and began foot waving at 200 feet. The water was clearer unlike last weekend. Turbulence was light chop, so hands off flying while enjoying the view. About a mile from Stump Pass I swooped down to play and became head on with Jeremy and Stella. We buzzed, swooped formation flew, foot dragged and generally had a good time before returning via the same route, due to approaching sunset. I even flew my wing under a tree limb, practice for flying under a powerline, bridge or one day the Corona Arch. Once back at the LZ Jeremy was establishing an approach, so I swooped down between trees and tracked the road. Noting the air was smooth as butter like on the return beach leg when I was formation flying with Jeremy over the water. It was so easy to make corrections. After a quarter mile or so I 180'd, stayed on the deck powered around into a landing. As you will see the mosquitos are horrendous. Never fly Placida, without bug spray and a post flight debriefing beer. Bob-the-Pilot

Feb 08, 2018 Placida LZ Flight 101 Flight time 00:25 PIC 91:26 Allup wt. 281 lbs. Wx: clear Wind: 32006 LZ Wind above the trees 32010g15 shifty w/sink Temp: 75F Pilots: Paul Robinson Paul and I talked shop for a bit. Then headed out for some fun and practice. I scoped out an area with shallow water for pushing my limits on swooping (wannabe wingovers). During the maneuver, I was so consumed with timing of the repetitive swooping the exit timing wasn't coming to me. I had to pause in my thinking to think, oh yea, power bank at 6 o'clock if low. I need to sell my wing for a Hadron 20/22. After getting my 60 year old heart pumping, (I'm gonna die one day either having sex or during maneuvers ;-) , ya got a better way to go out? I returned to the LZ to track Paul a bit. Haven't spent much time using slow flight, tracking and altitude hold abilities other than landing or foot dragging. If you add/reduce power you rise/descend if you apply one or both control inputs, you slow and descend unless you add power. So trying to hold position above Paul, requires matching speed/altitude/direction. Any of the three inputs affect the others. Formation and inflight photo shoots are examples when an intercom system, like the Sena SMH10 is best, leaving your hands free to fly. I plan on installing a Sena SMH10-10 on a 3/4 motorcycle helmet, giving me three options to fly with. One headset with either two way comms using Baofeng or Aircraft radio and the other Phone/intercom Sena. Jeremy and I are going to test the distance on our aircraft and Baofeng next flight. I still think they are best for large groups, air to ground coms and distance. Not closeup work. After tracking Paul I decided to perform the swoop landing. My spontaneity sometimes surprises me. I performed a brake drop swoop approach. Nice long flare but dumped the brakes at the end, normal for my drop-in touchdowns, this is where my spontaneity surprised me. My touchdown was not acceptable for the intended landing so subconsciously I applied throttle. Not having control of the wing as yet. Because when you land hard the wing unloads and falls back maybe off to one side along with everything on my shoulders becoming heavy. Now I'm thinking can I recover the wing? It's ABORT/GO time. The rest is in the video. All this happens so fast. ABORT/GO. KISS principle (keep it simple stupid). I came around for another go. Being a little close to Paul and waiting for him to clear, I braked heavy and dropped in for a long swoop. This time, I held the flare level and stepped out into a running stride. Keeping the brakes buried to get ahead of the wing. SWEET If it ain't broke, FLY it. Bob-the-Pilot 941.661.2598 paramotoringflorida@gmail.com @bobthepilot (twitter)

Feb 03, 2018 Placida LZ Flight 100 Flight time 00:31 PIC 91:01 Allup wt. 281 lbs. Wx: clear Wind: 32006 LZ Wind above the trees 32010g15 shifty w/sink Temp: 68F Pilots: Paul Robinson It doesn't matter whether I kite or fly my paraglider it's all fun. Paul, a low time pilot, and I talked shop for an hour or so then moved over to checkout another location. The wind was coming over the trees causing rotor and a cold front was approaching. The winds were 6-9 or so. The air was chunky with sink, making deck flying interesting. After departure I climbed to 300 ft, where the air was smooth. While awaiting Paul's departure I tried controless weight shifting of the wing building towards an inversion, which wasn't going to happen. I watched a video by Max Martini, linked below. This was my first time pushing off the risers to increase weight shift. In free flight, this could get interesting. Paul and I had talked earlier about when something is amiss STOP (if your not moving) ABORT (if moving on the ground) or FOLLOW EMERGENCY PROCEDURES (if airborne). On takeoff you check your wing and decide ABORT or GO. If you GO and become airborne, you best go WFO (dirt bike slang for Wide F-ng Open) Paul's departure was filled with oscillations. I would hv reduced power to taxi until getting the wing under control or ABORT (stop engine) But the wing banked hard right then hard left and lifted the quad on two wheels. As it came back right he became airborne applying WFO and climbing he then controlled the oscillations banking left to avoid the approaching powerlines. Staying with it. :-) After climbing to smooth air and to my surprise, Paul decided to head for the deck and I decided to stalk him for video purposes. After which I headed for the deck to practice in the off road section with shallow water. The air sucked. I gave up and returned to land. Considering flight conditions a power landing with a Go around option was safest. Onward Bob-the-Pilot

Jan 21, 2018 Placida LZ Flight 99 Flight time 00:35 PIC 90:30 Allup wt. 281 lbs. Wx: clear Wind: 0905 Shifty Temp: 72 F Pilots: Alvaro Short practice flight in bumpy conditions. Alvaro was getting a good workout with his under powered paramotor in light shifty winds. I tried to lure him up to smoother altitude, no bite. I flew around keeping him company and practiced. For those not familiar with the dynamics of flight I threw in some of what I attempt to follow during the flight. Workup the steps to accomplish your goal, example takeoff, practice the steps over and over, review and modify as necessary to stay current and become a proficient pilot.