Paragliders converge on Barberton
The South African Paragliding Nationals, held in Barberton, has been taking place over seven days from June 16 to 22.
No rest days were scheduled in between and over the years Barberton has been identified as the ideal site over which to fly during winter.
According to pilot James Braid, the sport, though technical in certain aspects, harnesses the energy of the sun which keeps pilots gliding in the air.
“In this year’s competition, various route markers have been placed along the competition route and we are mainly flying down the valley towards Agnes Mine in the search for ‘air bubbles’ (thermals),” Braid said.
To spectators watching the graceful flight of pilots descending from the mountain and landing at Barberton Golf Club, the sport may seem to hold an element of danger, but nevertheless the skies were filled with the colourful gliders on Monday afternoon.
Many locals with cameras at the ready captured the pilots making their way down, before packing up their gear to take off again.
Lowvelder asked Braid, a seasoned pilot, how paragliding worked in layman’s terms.
“The sun warms the ground, creating warm ‘air bubbles’ which rise and we fly around looking for these bubbles. You figure out where these are by looking at the ground. For example, the soil is hotter over a burned field which is where you would find good lift.”
He further explained that the fastest person around the route markers around the points laid out, would be declared the winner.
The sport has evolved over the years and pilots have a language of their own, coining terms like “pulling big ears” which describes a pilot braking when coming in to the landing spot. The recovery coordinator, Andre Els provided more jargon like “turkey”, which describes a pilot who does not gain enough height before taking off, and a “gaggle” is the term used when paragliders fly together, much as geese do, when trying to gain height.
According to the meet director, Willie de Klerk, the overall leader in this year’s competition is Adam van Renson, while Henry Schillinger led the gliders on Tuesday.
The gliders take off from the mountain at 12:00 each day and competition starts at 13:00 for the duration of the competition. The gliders land at Barberton Golf Club and each day’s final results are released at 19:00. Due to a number of delays during the week, the prizegiving ceremony day and winners, originally scheduled for Saturday, will be confirmed when details become available.