ready for takeoff

Kara Shapiro learns to paraglide....and so much more.... with a perspective that's Klear Above, Visibility Unlimited!

Por KAVU

15 de May de 2018

hittin' the road

Winter felt like it had lasted a lifetime (as it often does in Montana).

My schedule had been cleared and arrangements had been made to head down to Eagle Paragliding with my friend Bria Morgan to learn how to paraglide together. There was a sense of ease to be sharing this process with a friend...to be able to compare notes and watch each other learn.

Spring break was the perfect time to go since my daughter was out of school so, Jeff, Nya and I all loaded up the Sprinter and headed on our way....

ready for some KAVU days ahead!

let's do this

I was definitely both excited and scared, wondering if paragliding would be right for me? Would I enjoy it or be constantly scared with every flight?

Well, I had to try.

Otherwise, how would I know?

“There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting.” —Buddha

I was thinking the first day would be pretty non-eventful. Learning about the paraglider, how to set it up, how to hook in, etc. but, I was wrong. The first day was VERY eventful.

Bria and I did some kiting (ground handling) and had 6 training hill flights! We felt like we hit the ground running and it was a blast!

day 1 = success

When it was time for my first flight from the training hill, on the outside I was hoping I looked relaxed and chill. On the inside, I was freaking out a bit;-)

Ok, not slightly. Full on.

I had thoughts about asking Bria if she wanted to go first but I took some deep breaths and went for it. It was amazing and I was deep in full sensory overload but, everything went smooth..... beside the fact that I looked like a starfish.... and I was able to land on my feet.

Right then, I had my first solo flight and knew I could do this thing!

first flight

After that first day, we spent some time with friends by the beach in Santa Barbara. I don’t think I could shake the smile from my face the rest of the night. It was an amazing first day with some of the important questions answered.

To be able to fly through the air, even if it was only from a 500 foot hill, felt pretty awesome!

caution: training can cause bruising

With 53 training hill flights…. comes some bruises. Fine, bring ‘em! No pain, no gain, right? Completely worth it!

You also read that right. Over the 6 days we were at the training hill, we had 53 flights! Eagle Paragliding uses a pretty amazing training hill. This makes getting in the flights we needed (during a somewhat limited time frame) doable. We were lucky with the weather which also made it possible. We had Mitch Riley as our instructor and his calm, chill demeanor helped the process make sense. Overall, it was a fabulous experience!

new gear!

After feeling confident on the school gear, I started flying my own kit and I couldn't have been more psyched!

ready for the mountains

So, toward the end of our trip, Mitch thought Bria and I were ready for our first mountain flights.

I may or, ...ahem... may not have thought the same.

On the drive up to launch, 45 minutes seemed like 15 minutes. Time is relative. I was hoping for some more “prep” time but it was like time had sped up. Finally, it was our time to jump out of the van and make a much longer flight off the mountain to the LZ (landing zone). No more training hill!

Bria and I setup up our gliders and were ready to make our first altitude flights which felt like a pretty special moment.....one to pay attention to, for sure. Yippee!

I was the first to go and just like my first training hill flight, took some deep breaths, went over my pre-flight check and when the conditions felt right, pulled my wing up and launched.

I could hear Mitch on the radio, “Nice launch Kara! I hope you’re up there with a big smile on your face. Enjoy your flight.” I had around 15-20 minutes in the air and did my first 360’s while being able to sit back and take in the massive view around me.

Stunning.

After our first flight, we went back up and did it again! My two flights in Santa Barbara, before making the journey back home, were memorable indeed.

flying back in Montana

I am so thankful I went above and beyond my fears and tried this amazing sport.

Now, I’m back in Montana and am feeling so incredibly lucky to have an awesome and supportive community to fly with. We have two flying sites which happen to be right in town and this new posse of badass women who learned to fly around the same time as Bria and I (and some who learned a season or so ago).

The stoke is in full force! To date, I’ve had 7 flights since returning home (total of 9 mountain flights). We are in the middle of springtime weather so we are charging whenever we can (kiting and flying as much as possible).

Getting to fly with Jeff has been one of the highlights. I’ve been around flying (many forms of free flight) for over 25 years and to be able to finally experience it with him.....

there are no words to express the happy factor.

kavu days ahead....

I look forward to all the new people I’ll have the honor to meet and share this experience with. It’s a life highlight that I plan on doing for the rest of my life (or as long as I can).