<< Continued From Part 1

3. Kiss Helpful DHV Ratings Goodbye

DHV ratings serve as an international index for glider safety and are set out by test pilots from the German Hanggliding Association. These ratings give pilots an idea of how the rated wing behaves in certain well-described configurations, at certain wing loadings and in certain conditions. For instance: wings used by paragliding schools are generally of the DHV-1 and DHV-2 classes.


These wings are, of course, at the docile end of the spectrum, and can be expected to recover from situations such as a spin without significant pilot input. The lower the number of the DHV rating, the more tolerant and forgiving the wing.

Wanna-be acro pilots, however, don't always have the benefit of a DHV rating to make an equipment assessment. The acro audience is small and DHV ratings incur a significant cost; for this reason, many manufacturers choose not to send their acro wings in for testing, relying instead on the community of experienced acro pilots to self-educate and self-regulate. For this reason, it's vital for new pilots to enter the community with a "learners' mind," take the equipment advice of experienced pilots to heart and fly each new wing conservatively at the start (more on this later).

4. Think Beyond the Wing

If you're planning to throw yourself into the world of acro, it's not just your wing you'll need to think about. It's your harness, too.

You need to get into specific body positions in order to give the inputs the sport requires. Acro-specific harnesses don't "fight" your ability to get into these body positions, making the process much easier.

You'll notice a staggering difference in maneuverability compared to a standard paraglider harness.

Dedicated acro harnesses have another vital difference: tworeserves. They double up on reserves for important reasons, each of which can make the difference between a wild ride and a serious injury: for instance, a second reserve will save you if you're affected by sufficient g-forces that it it's impossible to access one side of the harness, or if you deploy a reserve into your wing. One manufacturer even integrates a BASE rig for efficient escape.

5. Take It Away

If your local site isn't acro-friendly, you'll likely need to take your new paraglider out of town. The best sites (like lovely Oludeniz, Turkey) have high-altitude launches and large, calm bodies of water below. It's not the best idea to start training your acro maneuvers from your little local ridge, over the trees and the cold, hard ground.

Another bonus? If you travel, you won't feel the same pressure to show off your new moves for people who you think expect you to be awesome. (You know I'm right to mention it.)

Expensive? Maybe, depending on where you choose to go. But at the end of the day, the money you spend on travel may save you a much spendier hospital bill (and you'll have much more fun, besides).

6. Fly Conservatively

What does that mean, exactly? Well, to be specific:

• Fly in a very deliberate manner, taking care to notice each of your actions and the wing's feedback for each. Be gentle with both brake and harness inputs until you can accurately predict the wing's behavior. Gather data. Write it down.
• Ensure that your landing options are larger than you believe they need to be.
• Stay the hell away from the ridge until you're more familiar with the new wing's responses. Sure, you're a good pilot -- but you don't know your steed yet, superstar.
• Remember to keep it fun. If you scare yourself, back off. Proving your badassery is not worth burning your relationship with the sport to the ground.