Muddy shoes at the Bornes to Fly. Photo: Michel Farrugia
How hard can hike-and-fly really be? Andy Pag found out when he signed up to the three-day Bornes to Fly in Annecy, France earlier this year.
May is meant to bring spring thermals and sunshine, but it was more like snow, wind and mud.
On a good day it would be perfect; a sun-facing ridge rides over to an east peak, and even if we didn’t make it over the top, we could top-land, walk around and sled ride down the other side to the base of the next turnpoint. Who knows how many pilots we’d overtake.
But just as we arrive the gentle take-off breeze stops, then come a few drops of rain, then more, then hail with an icy back-wind gusting 30km/h. We sit there getting soaked shouting “I think it’s clearing” over the wind noise as the hail whips around us and bounces off our packs. It’s a sign of how sick of walking we are that we’re even considering it.
But fly they do. If you’re thinking about signing up to a hike-and-fly event this season or next, read this. It’s a brilliantly written insight into exactly what it takes for any ‘average’ pilot. Martin Muller, move over.
Read the full article in issue 148
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