2011 Wrap Up
It's official: 2011 was my worst year of flying since my second year of paragliding. I logged under 10 hours of airtime this year and had around 10 flights total.
What happened?
A lot, fortunately and not. First, during the winter I didn't go on a flying trip, which is something I usually do and which gives me airtime for the season. Second, when I planned on attending the Rat Race in Oregon this year I got very sick and couldn't go. Then in July I went to the Canadian Nationals but the rain prevented any flying from happening. August I was busy with other things and now here we are in October where it seems the flying season is almost at an end.
I'll sum up my dismal flying season as a combination of bad weather, bad timing on my part and priorities elsewhere some of the time. It's actually a bit shocking to see less than one full page of entries in my logbook for this year though it all totally makes sense.
A few unfortunate events also kept me from flying less aggressively. Be it the high-profile deaths earlier on in the season or a fellow somewhat local pilot getting seriously injured and likely being wheelchair bound for the rest of his life. It sure makes you stop and think. It saddens me to think this way but I feel like I'm fooling myself if I don't. Paragliding is an amazing sport but god, anything it gives you can also be completely pushed out of whack if it rears its ugly head and takes from you...
On a lighter note, a friend of mine is doing exceptionally well flying tandems and I've been living a bit vicariously through her lately with her regular tandeming. I'm truly so happy for her - she's such an awesome person, friend, and a fantastic pilot. Her joy is contagious and it always makes me smile. :)
I think 2012 will be a better year overall. After volunteering on the local club's board of directors for a couple years, I feel it's more than the right time to get out and experience the non political side of flying! I've most definitely spent at least 10x more time talking about paragliding lately than I have spent actually flying. Next season will be different. I'm also hoping at some point to have a paragliding themed holiday and that the weather will be better!
Unless something unexpected happens, I can only assume that I won't be flying for a few months, so I'll sign off with an old flying pic from the Dominican Republic. This was from my first ever coastal soaring flight and was one of my longest flights up until that time, joined by more amazing friends. Love it!
What happened?
A lot, fortunately and not. First, during the winter I didn't go on a flying trip, which is something I usually do and which gives me airtime for the season. Second, when I planned on attending the Rat Race in Oregon this year I got very sick and couldn't go. Then in July I went to the Canadian Nationals but the rain prevented any flying from happening. August I was busy with other things and now here we are in October where it seems the flying season is almost at an end.
I'll sum up my dismal flying season as a combination of bad weather, bad timing on my part and priorities elsewhere some of the time. It's actually a bit shocking to see less than one full page of entries in my logbook for this year though it all totally makes sense.
A few unfortunate events also kept me from flying less aggressively. Be it the high-profile deaths earlier on in the season or a fellow somewhat local pilot getting seriously injured and likely being wheelchair bound for the rest of his life. It sure makes you stop and think. It saddens me to think this way but I feel like I'm fooling myself if I don't. Paragliding is an amazing sport but god, anything it gives you can also be completely pushed out of whack if it rears its ugly head and takes from you...
On a lighter note, a friend of mine is doing exceptionally well flying tandems and I've been living a bit vicariously through her lately with her regular tandeming. I'm truly so happy for her - she's such an awesome person, friend, and a fantastic pilot. Her joy is contagious and it always makes me smile. :)
I think 2012 will be a better year overall. After volunteering on the local club's board of directors for a couple years, I feel it's more than the right time to get out and experience the non political side of flying! I've most definitely spent at least 10x more time talking about paragliding lately than I have spent actually flying. Next season will be different. I'm also hoping at some point to have a paragliding themed holiday and that the weather will be better!
Unless something unexpected happens, I can only assume that I won't be flying for a few months, so I'll sign off with an old flying pic from the Dominican Republic. This was from my first ever coastal soaring flight and was one of my longest flights up until that time, joined by more amazing friends. Love it!
posted by Veronica at 6:54 PM
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