Woolacombe

Woolacombe and Croyde Bay area has always been a favourite family holiday destination and since I discovered Woolacombe was also a hang gliding site, it was a site that I was keen to fly! Despite this, it took several years before I was able to complete that ambition.

It was a family break that brought me to Woolacombe and my glider was on the car roof. Earlier in the year I had joined the North Devon Hang Gliding Club [a requisite of flying Woolacombe]. Initially, the conditions looked unfavourable with a very strong westerly wind so I enjoyed Woolacombe beach with family. As the day progressed I was aware that the wind had started to drop and my eyes started to look skyward. By mid-afternoon I looked up and was surprised to see a hang glider launch!

I made my excuses to family, left the beach, collected my car and drove up to the Woolacombe launch. Only 5 cars are permitted to traverse the fields to the launch area. A tag system on the gate into the field is used to marshal this. I was car number 3!

Equipped with my new Sting 3 hang glider and having only winch launched it to date, I was breaking all the recommended rules about only changing one variable at a time; a new site and my first hill launch on the new glider! The strength of the wind was also top end, but I was determined to fly.

After I had rigged, Cara assisted me to the front of the hill where I readied to launch. This was it, an ambition to fly a site was about to be fulfilled. Cara released the nose and I stepped forward. Almost immediately, the glider began to fly and slowly climb but it didn’t penetrate forwards! I pulled the bar in and the glider responded by accelerating forwards. My Target wouldn't have responded quite so positively!

I began to climb, 200, 300 then 600 feet above the top of the hill! The views were stunning! Below I could see the breaking surf on Woolacombe beach, to the South, Croyde Bay and the Ruda holiday park that I used to stay with family when I was younger. Further South I could clearly see Saunton Beach and the RAF airbase at Chivenor. To the North was Woolacombe itself and across to the North East, I could even see Ilfracombe [easily spotted by the landmark of what I can best describe as Madonna's breasts; aptly called The Landmark Theatre!]. I could see all this from this one fantastic vantage point! I kicked myself for not attaching the video camera!

After an hour I decided it was time to land. I was supposed to be going for fish-n-chips with the family, so there was a particular urgency to getting down and packed up [they don't understand the draw to the sky that free flyers have!]. The challenge was performing a top landing at a site I was not familiar with. Fortunately, about 200ft beneath me, another hang glider pilot started a top landing approach. I decided to follow but being higher, opted to elongate my approach by going back further to bleed off the excess altitude I had. This was a great idea and I landed perfectly, if not a little far back - a good safety margin considering the stone wall at the end of the field making any overshoot options somewhat less desirable!