Training, Upgrades and Maintenance...

Training:
Kevin spent a couple sessions working on launching the wing with the trike. A rather challenging task to master but Kevin is doing great. All we need is the weather to cooperate and he will be flying.
Andy and his brother Brad were out Christmas Eve and completed several in flight skills including the daunting midair restart. Besides the PPG2 written test, all that is left for these two is working on their landing accuracy so they can land exactly where they want. Ideally we want them consistently landing on their feet within 15’ of a target. No small challenge when dealing with a fluid environment like the sky.
Upgrades:
Thanks to my Dad, they classroom now has its own Hot Dawg furnace. That will certainly increase the comfort level. My father actually designed the Hot Dawg heater before he retired from Modine in Racine.
With help from Chad Bastian at Trikebuggy I’m developing and assembling a tandem trike. Just recently wheel launch tandem became legal in the US and as such there aren’t a lot of options for these crafts available yet. These machines will be a great way for potential pilots to get a real taste of paramotor flight.
Maintenance:
The winch started making an awful sound last towing session. One of the pulleys was rubbing on it’s housing. Turns out the pressed in bearing had shifted just enough to cause the drag. I pressed it back into position and gave it a good lube too. It’s ready to go again!
I also rebuilt the carb on the trike motor. There was a bit of very fine sand accumulated in the intake screen. That can’t be helpful.