I flew a Gradient Aspen 4 in 2013 and 2014. I loved its superb handling and responsiveness, in particular its ability to centre strong thermals. However, I found that after 3-4 hours in lively conditions, I was becoming frazzled by constant attention on keeping the wing well balanced, which was impairing my motivation and decision-making, so I decided to try changing from the C to high B category, which has been a huge success. My average XC distance immediately went up from 50 to 75 km!<\/p>\n
The Ozone Rush 4 which I used for the next three seasons (2015, 2016, and 2017) suited me much better \u2013 it enabled me to fly in active air indefinitely and still feel fresh and focussed. The biggest plus point of this wing for me was the overall balance of handling and performance.\u00a0 I found the feedback sufficient but not excessive, and I enjoyed its agility and efficiency in thermals.\u00a0 The only negative was a feeling that the top speed was on the low side for the high B class.\u00a0 In over 500 hours on this glider, I experienced just a single full-bar blowout, which was a non-event, as the wing was flying normally again so quickly.<\/p>\n
I changed to a Swing Nyos RS at the start of 2018.\u00a0 It edged the Rush 5 by being released earlier, otherwise I would have had a difficult choice to make between these two.\u00a0 I was attracted by Swing\u2019s claim that this is a comfortable glider to fly in turbulent air, which I found to be well justified, and I really liked using the C-bridge when accelerated – the predecessor of today’s B-C systems.\u00a0 It seemed to glide better than the Rush 4, especially on the bar and in rough conditions, but the natural turn radius was wider.\u00a0 After I had had 100 hours airtime on this wing, I wrote a detailed review<\/a>.<\/p>\n In August 2021 I got a BGD Base 2, on which I clocked up 820 hours.\u00a0 I really enjoyed its blend of “Bruce Goldsmith” handling, performance, and stability and it’s been one of my favourites.\u00a0 Unfortunately its successor, the Base 3, was clearly aimed at those progressing up the ladder from lower rated wings rather than experienced pilots, with the manufacturer’s notes playing up its forgiving and reassuring qualities, safety, and long brake travel, so it didn’t appeal to me.<\/span><\/p>\n I was tossing up between an Air Design Rise 5 or Phi Maestro 3 in September 2025, and chose the AD<\/a>.\u00a0 \u00a0 The deciding factor was that its weight range (60-78 kg) suits me better than that of the Phi (65-85 kg) – I’m currently 75-76 kg all-up, and find that in Fiesch it’s best to be well loaded<\/span>.\u00a0 My early impressions are very positive, in that it’s highly communicative and responds instantly to brake and weightshift input, enabling it to be placed exactly where I want it to be in thermals.\u00a0 It also feels stable and efficient on glide.<\/p>\n Harness<\/span><\/p>\n After 1,000 hours my Swing Connect Race was getting shabby, so I replaced it in 2021 with a Swing Connect Race Lite<\/a>, with which I have been equally pleased.\u00a0 I\u2019ve found it very comfortable on long flights, with a good balance between stability, sensitivity and weight-shift authority (with the chest strap on a wide setting), and it has all the features which you\u2019d expect from an XC-orientated harness. It was easy to set up initially, and I have no difficulty in getting into the pod immediately after taking off, and using the bar. The quality of materials and construction is faultless, and I\u2019m impressed with its durability so far \u2013 after over 800 hours use it\u2019s showing only minimal signs of wear, although the upper surface of the pod is now very faded.<\/p>\n Reserve<\/span><\/p>\n I carry a Beamer 3 Light (which I have never used).\u00a0 I chose a steerable parachute because there are plenty of hazards around in the Alps such as cables and rivers, and a reasonable chance that if a deployment was necessary I would have enough ground clearance to be able to benefit from the potential to avoid such dangers and or even make it to a decent a landing spot.<\/p>\n Flight deck<\/span><\/p>\n My main instrument is a Flymaster GPS SD+<\/a> which is now pretty ancient but I’ve got used to it.\u00a0 One feature that I find particularly useful is that a single button press brings up a list of nearby landing fields (if tagged as such in the waypoint list), from which an option can then be selected as the next waypoint, resulting in the glide angle to reach it being displayed.<\/p>\n I also use XCTrack Pro on a spare smartphone for live tracking and to display wind data from nearby weather stations (configured as per instructions here<\/a>), which I find very helpful both in terms of safety and in-flight decision-making.\u00a0 This image \u2013 taken after I had landed because of what it showed, i.e. evidence of f\u00f6hn<\/a> \u2013 demonstrates a good example of its value:<\/p>\n I have the Airspaces and obstacles database installed and configured to produce an audible alert if I am heading towards a hazard, which I recommend.\u00a0 Skilifts and power lines may be obvious, but some farmers have installed cables in unexpected places which may only become visible at close range, but are included in the database and therefore trigger the alarm function.<\/p>\n The only other device on my flight deck is a cheap ball compass, to facilitate maintaining a straight heading in the unlikely event of needing to escape from cloud at the same time as a GPS failure.<\/p>\n I use a solar powered XC Tracer Mini V (which has Flarm, Fanet aand ADs-L, could be used as a backup audio vario, and is bluetoothed to the phone) which I had installed on my flight deck until discovering that its all-around range is improved when carried on my shoulder.\u00a0 This can also be set up to warn of obstacles, but has only limited value for live tracking purposes, as that depends on reception by ground stations, which is inconsistent in the Swiss Alps.<\/p>\n I also have a hook knife and a tree landing rescue kit in harness pockets.\u00a0 I used to have the hook knife on my flight deck for easy access until I once cut myself on it when unpacking the harness!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" As I fly for fun and don’t enter competitions, my choice of equipment prioritises enjoyment over performance numbers. It\u2019s much more important to me that a wing is fun to thermal rather than efficient on glide. I have no relationship … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/flyfiesch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_4595a.jpg\")
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