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WORLDWIDE PARAGLIDING AND PARAMOTORING MAGAZINE. FOR FREE.
MENTAL
Photo: Markus ründhammer
MENTAL
A pilot’s mental training is a key element, both

for winning the World Cup and for clocking up
the kilometres in an XC, or for leisure flying.
There are lots of ways of making your mind work
before and during a flight, from now on, we’ll
frequently return to this subject.
In this edition, we’ll be putting the spotlight on

WHM, a method of ‘bio-hacking,’ working in
depth with how we function, which can be very
efficient.
One pilot who has a
very strong mental
attitude: Markus
Gründhammer,
owner of Skyman.
Translation by Ruth Jessop
CONTENTS
AD NIVIUK 3 AD XCONTEST 35
GIN BONANZA 2 4 AD PARAFEST 35
AD SWING 5 AD NAVITER 36
NEWS ADVANCE EASINESS 3: TRANSFORMER 5 HIGH-LIGHT: MAKE FLYING SITES, NOT WAR 37
CAPTURS PINPOINTS YOUR LOCATION 6 TEST 777- QUEEN 2 MS 39
AD BGD 6 AD FLYMASTER 43
NEW APP:RELIEF MAPS 7 STRENGTHEN YOUR MENTAL
AD ADVANCE 8 ATTITUDE BY USING THE COLD AND YOUR BREATHING? 45
NEWSOZONE SPARK ET MAGMAX 2 9 AD NEO 46
AD INDEPENDENCE 10 AD SKYWALK 51
SKYWALK X-ALPS4 11 AD NOVA 59
COUPE ICARE 12 AD GIN 61
SKYWALK MODULAR HARNESS 13 VIDEO: PROGRAMME WHM/SÉBASTIEN PAYET 62
AD PARATROC 13 AD PHI 63
AD APCO 15 VIDEO: BREATHING TRAINING 64
SYRIDE INSTRUMENTS100% FRENCH! 16 AD PEGUET 65
AD MAC PARA 16 AD NEO 67
PWCA SUPERFINAL 2018 MARCH 2019 17 FLYING XC AND SKIMMING
AD OZONE 18 THE GROUND IN STUNNING EUROPEAN COUNTRYSIDE 68
VIDEO PWCA SUPERFINAL 2018 20 AD CAMELEON 70
AD DUDEK 21 ADV BIDALOT 72
ADV ITV 22 AD ADVENTURE 74
AD WINDSRIDER 28 AD KANGOOK 75
VIDEO: NEVER COME DOWN II 28 CROSSING NEW ZEALAND 76
AD SYRIDE 29 ADV HIGHADVENTURE 78
PARAFEST 30 AD ICARO 79
ADV SKYTRAXX 31 AD EPC AERO 81
TEST NIVIUK HOOK 5 31
NEW
2 | 2019/Mental @freeaero instagram.com/free.aero acebook.com/freeaero www.free.aero
MENTAL
GIN BONANZA 2
T
he Bonanza 2 has already made
its mark during amazing long dis-
tance flights and flying away
with the trophies in national
competitions. This new high per-
formance EN C wing has recently gained
EN certification in sizes XXS, XS and XL,
thus covering all the sizes from 60 to 130
kg.
https://www.gingliders.com/en/paraglid-
ers/bonanza-2/
NEW
ADVANCE
EASINESS 3: TRANSFORMER
Thanks to a modular system, the Easiness
brand of reversible harnesses is suitable
for a wide variety of uses, well beyond
hike&fly.
Advance’s objective was to massively re-

duce the volume on your back, once the
wing is folded up inside. Altogether it is
very light and compact: starting at 1.75 kg,
including the karabiners and backpack, the
harness weighs 500g more with its airbag
and integrated reserve container. The
airbag is easy to attach and detach with
the help of ‘bullet toggles’ and zips. The
first models of the Easiness 3 in three
sizes, S, M and L, will be ready for delivery
from June onwards.
For more information:
https://www.advance.ch/de/lightness/
NEW
NEWS
CAPTURS PINPOINTS YOUR LOCATION

C
apturs, a Toulouse start-up de-
signs and manufactures GPS
tracking devices with very long
New: Capturs now have new applications to
battery life, based on technol- operate the beacon from your iOS or Android
ogy using the low bandwidth smartphone. The applications allow you to consult
network, Sigfox. These beacons let us fol- the position of other Captur beacons and also, on a
low athletes and have a battery life of up GSM network, do the job of the beacon by
to a month without needing to be transmitting a position every 10 seconds.
recharged. As with other beacons, it allows
you to follow an athlete’s route live, to be
alerted if there is a problem, to record their
performance and to share the routes they
have taken. Made in France, the technol-
ogy used by Capturs’ beacon allows it to be
both smaller and less onerous than satellite
systems and a lot more long lived than At Free.aero, our initial tests with a trial version
smartphones. Compact and light, it slides were fairly conclusive, and we are going to
easily into a pocket and works without a continue with a new version over the following
weeks. The SIGFOX network is constantly
SIM card. Unique feature: it transmits the expanding (see map opposite). High up on the
altitude specifically for aerial usage. mountains, we have already noticed that there is
coverage despite the ‘pessimism’ of the map, but in
https://www.capturs.com/en/produits_en/ the bottom of the valleys, it is obviously easier to
lose the connection.
NEW
The tracklog of a flight in different 3D cartographic layers.
NEW APP:RELIEF A particularly detailed 3D view of a couloir.
MAPS
A new app for iOS and Android which will, no
doubt, be very useful for hike&fly pilots.
B
atiste Vonderweidt, an indepen- sufficient. To use IGN maps, as well as
dent developer from Annecy in preloading maps for use outwith the GSM
France, and paraglider pilot, network, you have to pay between 8.50 €
skier and walker, has designed a and 29.99 € per year depending on your
cartographic app which gives a needs.
very fluid visualisation of OpenstreetMaps
and/or IGN topographic maps in 3D. It is Even in its free version, the app offers nav-
very quick and easy to turn/tilt/zoom the igation of walking itineraries which can
map on the screen, and to visualise your take into account footpaths, displaying the
position in this virtual countryside which is distance to travel as well as the total height
very close to reality. For the 3D maps, the difference. On the other hand, this function
app is based on a model with a 25m reso- uses internet servers and therefore only
lution in Europe and 30m elsewhere. The works if there is a GSM or Wifi network.
basic application and its use are free with
the basic OpenStreetMap cartography and The app also allows you to load and visu-
certain satellite imagery, which is already alise GPX and IGC tracks. The recording of
NEW
actual tracks is done in GPX and an IGC
version isn’t anticipated in the immediate
future. As with all apps which have been
put on line recently, you can still encounter
little bugs (we had a small problem with
the GPS authorisation which was quickly
fixed), but our first trials were, overall,
amazing in particular the fluidity of the 3D
visualisation, which is obtained by a spe-
cific treatment of the data on the devel-
oper’s server, as well as a 3D driver which
comes from video games. This rapid visu-
alisation, starting with all the useful angles,
allows you to perfectly identify your posi-
tion in the topography. With this function,
combined with route navigation, we got
the impression that a new era of walking
maps has arrived.
The developer will be adding other func-

tions soon, such as live tracking or sharing
of tracklogs and photos, as well as informa-
tion about the current conditions.
Website:
https://reliefmaps.io
The app lets you work out your itinerary in a straight line or by taking into account the walking
routes contained in the Open Street Map database. A working internet connection is necessary.
NEW
8 | 2019/Mental @freeaero
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MENTAL
Spark 2
NEWS OZONE
SPARKS 2 AND MAGMAX2

Spark 2 is a paramotor wing designed
specifically for schools and beginner pilots. SPARK2
TECHNICAL DATA
Ozone say: "It is incredibly forgiving yet
also enjoyable to fly, ideal for student MANUFACTURER: OZONE
training, from the first solo flights to short www.flyozone.com/paramotor/products/gliders/spark-2
cross country and beyond. DATE
SIZE 25 27 30
With an intelligent use of materials chosen
CELLS 34 34 34
for their specific function, the Spark 2 is
FLAT SURFACE AREA [m2] 24.3 26.3 29.9
designed with longevity and cost effective-
ness in mind. It offers all of the ingredients FLAT WINGSPAN [m2] 10.5 10.93 11.64
for students to learn safely and make quick FLAT ASPECT RATIO 4.54 4.54 4.54
progress, while providing schools with a ALL UP WEIGHT [kg] 65-90 75-105 95-125
dependable and long-lasting platform for WEIGHT OF THE WING [kg] 65-110 75-125 95-140
their fleet of gliders." FREE FLIGHT CERTIFICATION 4.51 4.79 5.29
FF CERTIFICATION LAB EN A EN A EN A
The Spark 2 is EN A and DGAC certified,
PPG CERTIFICATION DGAC DGAC DGAC
comes in three sizes with broad weight
PRICE [€]
ranges up to 140 kg and special paramotor
Testé en vol selon la norme EN 926-2 uniquement avec trims en
risers with trimmers covering all configu-
position lente
rations.
NEW
Gleitschirmausrüstung seit 1990
www.independence.aero
!"#$%&"''((
)*+,&-(.
GLEITSCHIRME GURTZEUGE RETTUNGSSYSTEME ZUBEHÖR
The MagMax 2 is derived from the

freeflight tandem Magnum 3 and has been
specifically adapted for foot launch
paramotor and lightweight trike use. It in-
cludes special paramotor risers with tip
steering and larger trimmer range.
Certified DGAC and EN B in both 38 and

41 sizes, the MagMax 2 is suitable for ex-
perienced qualified tandem pilots.
www.flyozone.com
The MagMax 2
NEW
NEWS
SKYWALK X-ALPS4
I
n 2017, Skywalk flew away with four
out of the top first five places with
their X-Alps 3. This year the X-Alps 4
is based on a totally new design. On X-ALPS4
the route which covers more than 1,000 MANUFACTURER DATA
km from Salzburg to Monaco, the athletes MANUFACTURER: SKYWALK
needed a paraglider which they can count Web: https://skywalk.info/
on 100%, even in the most difficult YEAR 2019 2019 2019
conditions. Apart from the improvement in
SIZE XS S M
performance, ease of use was an absolute
CELLS 82 82 82
priority in the specifications. This is why
FLATSURFACE [M²] 20.70 21.70 22.80
Skywalk is once again pushing a three-line
FLATWINGSPAN [M] 12.04 12.32 12.63
concept and using the lightest fabric. The
FLAT ASPECT RATIO 6.99 6.99 6.99
new risers and the new lines are even
better, and taking off will be even easier, ALL UP WEIGHT [KG] 70-85 70-95 85-105
even in the most difficult terrain. WEIGHT OF THE WING [KG] 3.5 3.7 3.9
CERTIFICATION EN D EN D EN D
With its aspect ratio of 6.99 and its 82
cells, this wing offers more comfortable
steering via the brakes, and is also more
comfortable and efficient via the Cs at high
speed and in turbulence. The wing is
already available from Skywalk
https://skywalk.info
NEW
www.coupe-icare.org
Illustration de Valérie DUMAS
NEWS
SKYWALK MODULAR HARNESS

T
his lightweight harness, with
protection and under-seat con-
tainer, drops from 2 to 1 kg
when you take away the remov-
able part. For safety, for the first
time Skywalk have integrated PermAir
technology, which was developed for the
Red Bull X-Alps. A permanent cushion of
air gives maximum shock absorption! The
little video above clearly shows the details
of this 2 in 1 harness.
https://skywalk.info/project/breeze/
NEW
MENTAL
NEWS
XCTRACER FLARM AHRS

FLARM AND AHRS IN THE COCKPIT
The hi-tech XCTracer vario now exists in a
FLARM version, so it can be detected by
aeroplanes thus equipped. This is the case
for almost all gliders, and there are numer-
ous other civil and institutional aircraft
which have it on board, notably rescue he-
licopters in Germany and Switzerland.
Moreover, the number of aircraft equipped

significantly increased because the EASA
(European air traffic control) has just au-
thorised the routine installation of FLARM
appliances aboard helicopters for example.
In the past they had to use a mobile ver-
sion or otherwise ask for individual autho-
risation.
The unique feature of the XC-Tracer

FLARM compared with other instruments
(Flytec, Skytraxx…): It is the only one which
displays the FLARM signals of other
paragliders/hanggliders (but not
planes/helicopters), if the XCSoar app is
connected to the vario. On other instru-
ments such as the Skytraxx, you have to go
via the internet or the FANET network.
MODEL FLARM XC Tracer
You can also download the FLARM ‘Obsta-
cles’ database by paying (35€ per year) on SIZE 57.5 x 57.5 x 18mm, 33 mm aerial.
the FLARM website. It is really only fairly WEIGHT 70 g
complete in the Alps.
FLARM TX/RX BEACON transmits FLARM’s universal signals and receives FLARM’s ‘paraglider and hangglider’ signal
Obviously, the instrument offers all the FLARM OBSTACLE ALERT DATABASE Optional (35€/year from FLARM)
other functions which are available in the
Instant audio feedback of the variations in altitude, based on algorithms
other XCTracers, notably AHRS technology AHRS AND SENSORS
Accelerometer/compass/gyroscope/GPS
which gives a very rapid response to
climbs. OTHER FUNCTIONS Estimation of wind (displayed on the App)
TRANSMISSION OF DATA Tablets/Bluetooth BLE 4.2 readers and/or USB

We are testing it at the moment and will
give our report in the near future. In the RECORDING OF TRACKLOGS IGC and KML in parallel
meantime, you can reread the articles on COMPATIBILITY Android/iOs (e.g. XCSoar) applications
FLARM and AHRS (links on the next page).
An initial observation: taking into account AUDIO SETTINGS Personalisable webapp on line
its functions and the cost of the FLARM li- BATTERY LIFE Infinite in the sun, otherwise a minimum of 25 hours of flying without requiring to be
cences, the tariff seems reasonable. recharged (without sun light).
UPDATE The firmware is easy to download via USB/drag-and-drop
https://www.xctracer.com/en/tech- PRICE 419 €
specs/83/?oid=1909&lang=en
The ‘Obstacles’ database has already been put through its paces according to
feedback on the Germanic forums. The 35€ a year goes directly to the FLARM
company
https://flarm.com/product-category/obstacle-databases/
NEW
FLARM and FANET: all you need to Varios with AHRS: our 2016 article The latest news on XCTracer:
know: explains everything in detail http://www.free.aero/contents/EN
http://www.free.aero/contents/EN/ http://en.free.aero/contentsHTM /instruments2018/index.html#issu
instruments2018/index.html#issue/ L/instruments-e/?page=1 e/40
35
On the FLARM website, you can consult

the models and existing FLARM
instruments, because the manufacturers
have to pay FLARM for the licences.
https://flarm.com/products/powerflarm
/product-selector/
NEW
NEWS
SYRIDE INSTRUMENTS100% FRENCH!

MADE IN CHINA? CERTAINLY NOT!
Syride needs no introduction, as they are
already very well known by all paraglider
pilots.
All their instruments are designed and

assembled in France. The raw materials
also come from France.
In return, the manufacturers can be more

reactive, improving reliability and giving
better quality instruments
Have a look at their site to find out more

about the latest upgrades for your
instruments.
https://www.syride.com/
NEW
MENTAL
PWCA SUPERFINAL 2018

MARCH 2019
The 10th Super Final was a truly amazing event By Ruth and Ulric Jessop
Photos: PWCA
set in the Sugar Loaf landscape of Baixo Guandu,
Brazil.
F
or the first time in many years
there was a real variety of gliders,
with pilots flying wings from five
top manufacturers, all CCC
certified: Flow, Gin, Niviuk,
Ozone and UP.
NEW
MENTAL
After two slow task days, a cancelled day

and a rest day, there were then seven
absolutely excellent days, making it one of
the best and most exciting competitions
ever.
This landscape of water streaked

monolithic black granite domes with cacti
and other lush vegetation growing out of
their harsh, sombre rock faces makes for
one of the best aerial race tracks in the
World. It’s a very reliable area for flying, in
last year’s world cup we had five out of
seven days flying here.
Task 2 saw the making of World Cup

history, with, for the first time ever, a
female pilot, none other than the
legendary Petra SLIVOVA, flying for Gin
Gliders, winning the 57km task, closely
followed by one of the competition’s other
leading ladies, Wooyoung JANG.
The highlight of the competition was task

6, an 85 km day out to Pancas, flying over
the most amazing granite domes. A
landscape which has to be seen to be
believed, it looks as if a giant has literally
thrown boulders into the terrain and taken
a sledge hammer to some of the rock
massifs. All bar three pilots made goal.
Task 10, a 99km final task, was nail biting.

Only seven points separated the
competition’s overall leaders, World
Champion Pierre Rémy and Julien Wirtz,
one of only six pilots who have competed
in all the Super Finals since Super Final
time began in 2009. Julien crossed end of
speed 34 seconds ahead of Pierre but it
wasn’t enough to change the podium
places.
Pierre Remy is the only person ever to have

been both Super Final and World
Champion at the same time. Charles
CAZAUX, who came 6th overall in this
event has been both Super Final and World Used to being on podiums: the two winners of
Champion but not at the same time. the World Cup Super Final: Pierre Rémy (Ozone
Enzo 3/Woody Valley X-Rated 7) and Méryl
Méryl Delferrière was once again Delfèrrière (Ozone Enzo 3/Ozone Exoceat). Méryl
unbeatable. She came 7th overall trained at the Pôle Espoir in the French
(compared to 10th last year) and flew away Pyrenees. For more information see our article
about
with the ladies’ title. She won the ladies’ the Pre PWC in 2018.
title three times in 2018: Bright, Australia;
Baixo Guandu, Brazil; Sopot, Bulgaria.
You can see all the results on the World

Cup website:
http://pwca.org/results/results/
NEW
Once again World Cup TV brought us some stunning aerial footage...

Taking off at the start of task 4
NEW
MENTAL
22 | 2019/Mental www.free.aero
Not only Niviuk is back: The biggest thing this year from a manufacturer point of view was to have CCC wings from five different
manufacturers. The line layouts are getting more and more sparse. The fabric is getting much lighter.
As far as harnesses were concerned, there were numerous Woody Valley X-Rated 7s

MENTAL
Always the champion: the Ozone Enzo 3 dominated

the first three places with Pierre Rémy, Julien Wirtz
and Russel Ogden in third place. He is part of the
Ozone R&D team…
... Next came the Boomerang 11 (in 4th

place Aaron Durogati). It has to be
said that there were still relatively
few pilots flying Boomerangs: 21
Boomerang 11s versus 76 Enzo 3s...
Russel Ogden
24 | 2019/Mental @freeaero acebook.com/freeaero www.free.aero

MENTAL
After having won the podiums around the World

for years, Niviuk have been almost totally
absent from competitions recently. The Icepeak
Evox, seems to have heralded their return: six of
their wings took part, Juan Carlos Morán Reinoso
(Ecuador) was highest placed, coming 16th
overall.
NIVIUK ICEPEAK EVOX

Tim Rochas, competition pilot/test
pilot/designer with Niviuk on the Icepeak
Evox:
‘It’s a wing which is incredibly solid and well

behaved! When on speed bar you feel safe
very quickly, the wing is stable and solid in
turbulence even at high speed!
Accelerated at high speed or even sometimes
pulley to pulley, I was surprised that I could
let go of the controls and play just with the
accelerator because I had so much confi-
dence due to the solid nature of the wing!
I have only had one collapse since I started

flying this wing (excluding certification test-
ing); it is incredibly sorted! With 50-75% of
the wing collapsed, it doesn’t stop flying, and
doesn’t really cravat and, above all, it stays
virtually on its axis all by itself!
As far as turning is concerned, the controls

are firm and precise which allows me to be ef-
ficient in the thermals, to clearly feel what is
happening and to be able to easily put the
wing where I want. It is easy, so you get very
good performance in thermals.
25 | 2019/Mental @freeaero www.free.aero

MENTAL
We’ve put a massive amount of work into the

wing and the finish of the surface which,
today, is virtually faultless. The nose and the
upper surface are just like a mirror, no
creases, or unnecessary stress.
As far as the cockpit ergonomics are con-
cerned: with the new risers and the new er-
gonomic B handles, you are always efficient.
The position of this handle is neither too high
nor too low, which allows it to be effective
without having your hands too high to min-
imise the drag from your arms.
ICEPEAK EVOX
TECHNICAL DATA
MANUFACTURER: NIVIUK
Web : http://niviuk.com/en/ccc/icepeakevox
DATE 2018 2018 2018 2018 2018 2018
SIZE 20 22 24 25 26 27
CELLS 99 99 99 99 99 99
FLAT SURFACE AREA [m2] 20 22 23.5 25 26.5 27.5
FLAT WINGSPAN [m2] 2.01 2.11 2.18 2.25 2.32 2.36
ALL UP WEIGHT [kg] 80-95 90-105 100-110 107-117 113-128 125-134
WEIGHT OF THE WING [kg] 88 97-100 106-108 114-116 123-125 132
FREE FLIGHT CERTIFICATION 5.4 5.8 6.1 6.4 6.7 6.9
FF CERTIFICATION LAB CCC CCC CCC CCC CCC CCC
Fabric:Porcher Skytex 9017 E25/70032 E3W, 70000 E3H
NEW
MENTAL
There was another new wing: the Flow Spectra. the pilot’s mind to concentrate on the actual translates as increased solidity at top speeds with a
Here is what the manufacturer told us about their conditions and less on flying the glider. A reflection better L/D. We observed that the Spectra is one of
wing: The Spectra offers easy and precise handling. of that is that that machine and pilot work in unison the fastest gliders around.
We noticed the Spectra is so well balanced and on the Spectra. The solidity is experienced in the
easy to fly that the connection glider/pilot frees entire flying envelope. The reinforced leading edge
The return of UP… Here’s what Michal Šneiberg from especially in strong conditions, and has excellent requires a bit more handling in weak conditions to
UP had to say about their new Guru. stability on full bar. I can say almost the best climb well, so we know what we should focus on to
We are happy with the Guru. The Superfinal showed compared to the others. Also, we have some ideas work on the CCC project. The development of a CCC
us again that the wing is really competitive, now of what to improve. For example, the Guru wing is a never-ending process…
NEW
Another very nice video: Never Come Down II 10th Paragliding World Cup Superfinal by Brett Hazlett

MENTAL
Photos: 777
NEWS 777 GAMBIT

T
riple Seven have brought out a
competition wing, the Gambit.
The Gambit has successfully
passed the load and flight tests
for CCC certification. With its
visibly complex design, the Gambit will ob-
viously be produced in a limited number,
ready to be delivered in mid-July, and pi-
lots going to the World Championship in
Kruschevo will have priority.
The Gambit will be produced in sizes: XS,

S, M and L.
https://777gliders.com/
NEW
Photos : Kenneth Smart
PARAFEST
P
arafest is the only event for all foot launched and single-seat trike aviation in
the UK. It’s set to take place July 11-14 and returns to the stunning location
of Caerwys, North Wales.
Close to the coast for the sea breeze and close to the mountains for the free flyers.
The many flying sites of North Wales are just a short drive away. One is visible from the
festival and if conditions allow pilots will be able to land back at the festival airfield.
Powered pilots have a dedicated field to use within the festival Thursday-Sunday and are
free to explore North Wales from the air.
Parafest hosts the only trade show in the country and traders will have displays and
demo’s.
‘The Fly Inn’ is a fully stocked bar run by the pilots with everyone’s favourite drinks plus
Welsh real ales, gins, rums, Pimms, Prosecco and cocktails.!
Arts and crafts markets, a children’s area, live music 1pm to 1am Friday and Saturday...
Tickets are on sale now and cost £65 for pilots (Thursday to Sunday) or £55 for non-flyers.
Under-16s come free. Dogs are welcome.
www.parafest.co.uk
www.facebook.com/parafestuk
NEW
30 | 2019/Mental @freeaero instagram.com/free.aero
photo: Luc Hentsch
TEST
NIVIUK HOOK 5
The Catalan manufacturer has just brought out
the latest version of the Hook. There are new
features and significant improvements in this
fifth-generation wing.
T
he Hook is placed in the middle
fi
of the EN B classification. It has, SKYTRAXX
without fail, always attracted
several generations of pilots,
thanks to being fun and
versatile, combined with a high level of
safety, making it appeal to the basic
instinct of cross-country pilots as well as
those who just fly purely and simply for
pleasure. For the fifth version, Niviuk have
worked particularly on making the upper
surface smooth whilst, at the same time,
rethinking the internal architecture.
NEW
MENTAL
photo: Luc Hentsch

The lines are a clever mix of very fine Liros in the top part, and of sheathed
Edelrid Aramid for the lower lines.
They have been able to do this thanks to
the digital modelling available on their
software, which is becoming increasingly
effective for simulating and visualising the
structural constraints as a function of
speed. The Hook 5 has a very
The result: a wing which is simpler still but pronounced SharkNose with two
at the same time, more tensioned and crossed leading-edge rods in
Nitinol alloy. This magic rod has
smoother. shape memory and is
indestructible.
NEW
MENTAL
photo: Luc Hentsch

There is a Velcro opening at the wing tip, which allows it to be emptied via
the trailing edge. This is done as before; your hand passes very easily,
without any obstacles, across the profile to the wing tip.
The Hook 5 uses all the 2019 technology.
SharkNose, 3D shaping, mini ribs with
pronounced stitching, thin unsheathed
lines in the upper part in a hybrid thinned- The thin risers are both fantastic and meticulously made: shaped handles
down layout. with a magnet and swivel, low friction ring and ball bearing accelerator
pulleys. Green and red at the bottom for those who, like me, mix up left and
right. Note the A’, a riser to the ears which is even thinner, and connects to
It now comes in six sizes (previously there
the A by means of a magnet. Quality wise, it is at the top of its category!
were five), for an all up weight of 55 to 135
kg. It has a bit more surface area than the
four, losing five cells, and 0.1 of aspect
ratio. 36 gr/m2 Dominico N20 is used for
the upper and lower surfaces, whilst the
ribs are in Porcher.
A good hour playing in the wind revealed

a lot about its behaviour. During inflation,
the Hook 5 breathes, with a taut leading
edge. Facing the wing, with a pull, in a
perfectly linear fashion and with no
difficult step, the wing came up, easily, soft
and without violence. The wing damped
itself spontaneously in the pitch. Here, the
Hook 5 showed both a docile and fun
temperament. It was light to bring up, the
controls were precise, it was easy to
control and quickly correct on the roll
access! Let’s get flying!
NEW
MENTAL
After a few steps in the snow, the Hook is

fully inflated. From the first turn, the wing
inclines very willingly, docilely and without
much effort, right from the beginning of
the brake travel and with great precision.
The controls are light but firm and
communicative. The Hook 5 flies with
hands up at about 38 km/h with a slight
feeling of roll. The designer, Olivier Nef,
confirmed that this is deliberate, allowing
HOOK 5/HOOK 5P
MANUFACTURER DATA
a quicker turn. This is certainly an MANUFACTURER: NIVIUK
advantage in thermals, but a bit Web:http://niviuk.com/en/
inconvenient in a transition because the
2019
wing, with hands up, can roll a bit. The
solution? A bit of accelerator and the wing SIZE 20/20 22/22 24/24 26/26 28/28 31
flies as if on rails! CELLS 47 47 47 47 47 47
FLAT SURFACE AREA [M²] 20 22 24 26 28 31
I feel very at ease flying the Hook 5, well FLAT WINGSPAN [M] 2.42 2.54 2.66 2.76 2.87 3.02
damped in pitch, and frankly convivial and FLAT ASPECT RATIO 5.3 5.3 5.3 5.3 5.3 5.3
precise to turn. No difficulty in getting into ALL UP WEIGHT [KG] 55-70 60-80 70-92 82-105 95-120 110-135
the lift thanks to having a good bite! I also Extended all up weight [kg] 70-85 60-95 70-105 82-120
note its capacity to slow down and to turn WEIGHT OF THE WING [KG] 3.9 / 3.15 4.3 / 3.4 4.6 / 3.65 4.9 / 3.9 5.2/ 4.15 5.5
on the wing tip which makes it a very HOOK 5 CERTIFICATION (B) under way B B B (B) under way (B) Under way
efficient weapon for exploiting thermals HOOK 5P CERTIFICATION (A+) under way
calmly, even in a fight! First transition, full
accelerator for interest. I push through a
very turbulent zone. The Hook 5 goes Fabric:
through turbulence no problem at all and I Hook 5: Dominico N20 36g/m²/
had a great time! Hook 5P: Upper surface Skytex 32 g/m² - lower surface Skytex 27 g/m²
NEW
As far as comfort is concerned, it’s the
best! The modest aspect ratio and general
smoothness of the wing makes it feel
Performances measured by Free Aero
comfortable and efficient. Pure pleasure, Niviuk Hook 5
easy and docile! What else could you
want? Size 26 ( 82 kg -105 kg) wingload 92 kg (3,53 kg/m2)
In these fairly easy conditions, the Hook 5 Trim speed 38 km/h
goes everywhere, like a luxury 4x4.
Communication is through the finger tips, Full speed 47 km/h
and by little feather light movements in
every thermal. It warns you of turbulence, Sinkrate min. 1,09 m/s @ 37 km/h, 1 kg force
and only requires a little bit of piloting in Glide ratio max 9,6 @ 38,3 km/h, slightly on speed bar
pitch to control a dive forward. A quick test
of the low speeds. The brake travel before Stall 24 km/h, 5 kg force
stalling: 70 cm, very physical at the end!
For the ears, with the dedicated riser, they
come in easily and are really stable under
the wing. Re-opens automatically when
released. In a tight spiral, the Hook 5 dives
in when asked, and pulls out in the same
way, with a nice exit full of energy and easy
management of the conversion/dive.
End of the flight. I land with a big smile,

without a step and with a gentle pitch
backwards. Flying machines like this is so
NEW
simple and also so pleasant, it’s total magic! high level of finish. In addition, despite the
Enabling pilot excellence In short, I loved this wing! It’s the ideal performance it offers, it is close to being
compromise between simplicity and certified EN A. The lightweight version, the
reactivity, combined with a happy fun side, Hook 5P was certified EN A!
which is itself, the essence of flying. Its
performance is, in addition, more than Here, Niviuk have succeeded in making it
enough to do everything! better, simpler, even sharper and with
This Hook 5 has turned out to be an improved performance. A wing which
amazing success, and attractive enough to comes highly recommended for any young
easily seduce a whole generation of new pilot who has just finished their training,
pilots. It will also give back the taste of pure and also for experienced pilots who simply
pleasure to those who have become stale want to enjoy themselves uninhibited and
or frightened by the aspect ratio. In this safely. Careful, we have warned you: you’ll
family of gentle Bs, the competition is love it; an EN B wing that you absolutely
intense, but the Hook 5 gives this big dose must try!
of fun and freshness, associated with a very
Hyper
Everyday companion
Simple
Pocket size
Hike & Fly mode
Exceptional customer
support
www.naviter.com NEW
instagram.com/free.aero acebook.com/freeaero www.free.aero
MENTAL
Photo: Matevz Gradisek

HIGH-LIGHT:
MAKE SITES, NOT WAR Photo: Joe Rosenthal
CONSTRUCTIVE Iwo Jima in the Pacific. After hoisting the

A beautiful picture and a nice allusion:
Matevz Gradisek from the flag for the first time under sporadic fire
sitewww.bigopensky.comhas set up a new from the last defenders, the soldiers posed
paragliding club where he lives in Slovenia. a second time for this scene a bit later.
Their first symbolic act was to hoist a wind
Photo: Phan Lee Mccaskill, USN; Date
sock on their site, before taking off for an Moreover, if it wasn’t for the distance and
inaugural flight celebrating their new sta- also the ethical considerations (a 36 day
tus. battle took place for this little bit of rock:
more than 20,000 Japanese soldiers and
This is clearly an allusion to the famous 7,000 American soldiers died), Mont Surib-
Shot: 28 Sep 2001
photo of Joe Rosenthal, who won the Pul- achi, a 169m high volcanic hill on an island
litzer prize. On the 23rd of February 1945, in the Pacific, would be a very good soaring
the American army retook the Island of site on at least two sides.
NEW
MENTAL
TEST
777- QUEEN 2 MS
WHO IS IT DESIGNED FOR?
Photo: 777gliders

MENTAL
Photo: 777gliders
By being assertive with the controls, we managed to do some nice wingovers, despite it being more stable than other wings in its category.
We made the most of the lovely autumnal days to try out this
wing at St André les Alpes, Annecy and in the Vosges, in
different conditions, from excellent to frankly horrendous.
By Pascal Kreyder
W
e tried this wing along- We really appreciated the manoeuvrability,
side others in both the the turn and the damping in pitch and roll
same and different clas- of the Queen 2, even in really turbulent
sifications. They in- conditions.
cluded, amongst others, The brake controls were very gentle, linear,
a Nova Mentor 5 (EN B+), an Ozone Delta precise and allowed the turn to be con-
3 (EN C like the Queen 2), an Ozone Zeno trolled to the millimetre.
(EN D) and an Ozone Enzo 3 (CCC).
Compared to a Mentor 5, as you would ex-
This little informal “mini-testival”, without pect, we felt that the Queen 2 had better
having any real scientific value, allowed us performance, more speed and more bite.
to properly place this modern EN wing in From the second bar onwards, it felt as if
the current market and to answer the you had changed universe compared to
question: ‘Who is this 777 Queen 2 de- one of the best EN B wings.
signed for?’
NEW
MENTAL
Pushing the bar on the Queen 2 during a The Delta 3 floats better, moves about
transition is a delight. The wing dives very more and seems to glide just as well
little and the pitch is extremely easy to trimmed as on the first bar. The Queen 2
manage. The Cs don’t have handles, but takes the upper hand only after the second
using them is obvious and the system, bar, as far as both speed and glide are con-
which pulls 50% on the Bs, is relatively cerned. The performance of these two
easy and intuitive. wings is therefore very similar. One might
have expected that the Queen 2 would
At Annecy the conditions were gentle, with have a bigger advantage, given that it is
a 2200 m ceiling. The competition was newer and has a better aspect ratio (6.3 for
stiff; my companions were flying a Zeno, the Queen 2, compared to 6.0 for the
an Icepeak 6 and an Enzo 3. During a tran- Delta 3). Thomas and I found the Queen 2
sition from the Roc des Bœuf to the Marg- better damped than the Delta 3 both in
eriaz, I had the same sink rate in the glide pitch and in roll. In calm air it felt as if there
as the Zeno, but 3 km/h less speed. was less need to correct the attitude of the
In the end, passing through thermals, I ar- wing. Accelerated, the Queen 2 gives a
rived 10 m lower than the Zeno and 15 m greater feeling of robustness. It’s precisely
lower than the Enzo 3. this robustness which makes it a little bit
less fun.
BREITENBACH
Back in my native Vosges, I re-joined THE TURN.
Thomas on his Delta 3 MS loaded to max- On the Queen 2, the turn isn’t perfect;
imum at 90 kg. however it remains excellent because it
lets you tighten the turn as much as you
We did three flights together and swapped want without any parasitic effects. The roll
wings to remove bias. All the transitions is minor and the release with the outer A nice modern EN C, with a fairly high aspect ratio
were wing tip to wing tip. The conditions hand is a pure delight. (6.3). There was a small negative point as far as
were weak and gentle. the lines were concerned: the outer C line was not
The quality of the turn allows it to stay in sheathed lower down and risked abrasion by the
brake line.

the core with an optimised climb rate.
When the wind moves the core, the feed-
back communicated by the wing lets you
find it again.
In the end the mix of roll and yaw is perfect

because it is very intuitive and doesn’t re-
quire time to adapt. The climb rate in weak
thermals puts this wing above the average,
a reflection of its efficiency in the turn.
Let’s summarise the positive points about

the turn.
• Precise execution
• Authority over the execution (tightens
and releases as required)
• force through the controls
• performance (flat)
On the other hand, the Queen 2 is slightly

less fun than other wings due to its stabil-
ity.
NEW
@freeaero instagram.com/free.aero acebook.com/freeaero www.free.aero
$
$
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THE ACCELERATOR D

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ing on the Queen 2.

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• easy application E
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• precision

D E
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• good control of pitch with the feet. F
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• stability when accelerated

E F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F F

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• absence of roll EU
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• doesn’t porpoise EU EU
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• easy to take off. E
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• performance, even on the second bar. EU

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NEW
MENTAL
From now on, the Queen 2 is also available in a lightweight version. The Q-
Light weighs almost 1 kg less in size MS (4.3 instead of 5.1) amongst other
things, thanks to the use of Skytex 27, except on the leading edge (Dominico
D30).
Pilot Marko Hrgetic has chosen it for the Red Bull X-Alps 2019!
https://777gliders.com/gliders/q-light/
CONCLUSION
The Queen 2 is a very good to excellent QUEEN 2 MS
TECHNICAL DATA
wing, as far as both manoeuvrability and
MANUFACTURER: TRIPLE SEVEN
performance are concerned. It has the
Web : https://777gliders.com/gliders/queen2/#
same level of performance as a two-year-
DATE
old EN D three- liner, especially acceler-
ated. SIZE S MS ML L
CELLS 73 73 73 73
The Queen 2 will be a good racing machine FLAT SURFACE AREA [m2] 23.6 25.3 26 27
for a pilot beginning competitions. The FLAT WINGSPAN [m] 12.1 12.6 12.8 13
gain in performance compared to a new B+ FLAT ASPECT RATIO 6.3 6.3 6.3 6.3
or an older C is really significant, without ALL UP WEIGHT [kg] 70-85 79-99 95-108 100-120
any of the associated problems. Provided WEIGHT OF THE WING [kg] 4.9 5.1 5.4 5.9
of course, that you know how to manage FREE FLIGHT CERTIFICATION LTF/EN C LTF/EN C LTF/EN C LTF/EN C
the energy in the wing, for example in a FF CERTIFICATION LAB AIR TURQ AIR TURQ AIR TURQ AIR TURQ
spiral, in a wingover or after an accelerated PPG CERTIFICATION - - - -
collapse.
Materials:
Leading edge: Dominico 30D MF
Upper surface, Bottom : Dominico 20D MF
Cells, Diagonals, Mini-Ribs : Porcher Skytex 40 Hard
NEW
MENTAL
Your mental attitude counts throughout the whole flight, and not just in ‘tense’ situations. Photo: Markus Gründhammer/Skyman
STRENGTHEN YOUR MENTAL ATTITUDE

BY USING THE COLD AND YOUR BREATHING?
By Sascha Burkhardt
Mental preparation can improve your

physiological and psychological
performance in any sport. Dutch man
Wim Hof has become known as the
‘Iceman,’ beating astonishing records. To
prepare his body and spirit, he has
developed a method which should be
accessible to everyone, and also usable
in everyday life. We tried it… Wim Hof: exceptional
performances, amongst
others, in the mountains,
thanks to breathing and
exposure to the cold.
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made in France
www.flyneo.com
MENTAL
W
ork with your mind: an es-
Photos: Wim Hof Method

sential element which is just
as good for the pilot’s safety
as for his performance. But
often, this remains a rather vague idea, or
is reduced, before the flight, to visualising
situations that you could encounter. That
is excellent practice and good advice, but
you can go a lot further…
The Dutchman Wim Hof has become well

known for his achievements and fairly sur-
prising records, such as immersion in a tub
of ice cubes for nearly two hours, or climb- This is generally how Wim Hof has been portrayed by TV reports: a bare chested warrior able to resist the
ing bare chested and in flip-flops, Kiliman- worst climatic conditions. His assertion: ‘you can all do this too’“.
jaro, as well as up to 7,400m on Everest.
He has also run a marathon in the Namib-
ian desert without drinking. And he can in-
ject himself with endotoxins without
showing any of the normal symptoms.
Above all, he claims that this mastery

which he has over his mind and body is at-
tainable for everyone who follows his
method which is supposed to strengthen
equally the mind and the body, with sur-
prising results, in a very short space of
time.
The publicity for the method could, how-

ever, put people off, as it uses terminology
close to that used by all the other umpteen
vendors of miracles (such as certain ob-
scure methods without any scientific foun-
dation, which promise to reprogram your
body to a quantum level, no less…).
Exposure to the cold, breathing according to specific protocols, as well as mental reinforcement by postures similar
But at the opposite end of the spectrum to to Yoga, form the three main pillars of this methodology. The reassuring part of this approach: the results of this
this type of charlatanism, the case of Wim methodology can be observed in serious studies, carried out on Wim, as well as on ‘ordinary’ people trained by him.
Hof has been the object of serious studies,
and the scientific evidence concerning the
methodology is coherent with other well-
founded studies.
WHAT IS THE WIM HOF METHOD?

The benefits of the method come from a
programme based on three core pillars:
• Several breathing routines partially

based on Yoga practises such as
Pranayama and Toumo.
• Regular exposure to cold, either by im-
mersion in icy water or, otherwise, by tak-
ing cold showers regularly.
• Mental preparation and meditation, car-
ried out during every breathing session and
each exposure to the cold.
NEW
Photo: Wim Hof Method
MENTAL
The famous study published in 2014 (free link be-

low), showed that the people who were trained
by Wim Hof for ten days were able to, just like
the grand master, voluntarily influence their sym-
pathetic nervous system and their immune system,
to the point of resisting an injection of dead bac-
teria, which would cause serious flu type symptoms
in untrained people. The researchers noted,
amongst other things, during the breathing ex-
cercises (voluntary hyperventilation and retention),
increased production of anti-inflammatory me-
diators and the attenuation of the activities of
proinflammatory agents, alerted by the intravenous
administration of endotoxin bacteria. One of the
conclusions:"this study could have important im- Wim Hof already practiced yoga before developing his own method. One of the motivating factors for this
plications for the treatment of a variety of ailments research of his was his wife’s suicide.
associated with excessive or persistent inflam-
mation".
SO-CALLED
O. Muzik et al. NeuroImage 172 (2018) 632–641
But the possible benefits apparently go far beyond

the treatment of illnesses…
“BRAIN OVER
BODY”
In a second, more recent study (the original had

to be paid for): we were able to observe that ef-
fectively, with his ‘home made’ breathing technique,
Wim Hof was able to keep a constant body tem-
perature (below right: filled in red dots), inde-
pendent of the cooling (relatively light) that he
was subjected to during this study. The curve of
red circles corresponds to Wim Hof’s temperature
without scientific breathing, a control subject is
shown in blue. continued on next page
In addition, on the brain imaging, the high amount

of activity observed in the central part, which
plays an important role in pain and behaviour
defences, ‘couldsuggest the release of endogenous
opiates/cannabinoids which act like mediators
to reduce the sensibility to exposure to cold and
favour a feeling of euphoria and well-being.’This
technique could therefore allow a trained person
to obtain a high level of control of the key com-
ponents of their brain’s autonomous system.
NEW
BEWARE
The serious risk of an accident is real if you
play with these breathing techniques in situ-
ations where you can’t afford to lose con-
sciousness.
So, above all, don’t try it whilst driving a car,

sitting on a chairlift, standing on a mountain
ridge, at the controls of a paraglider, sitting or
lying in water…
As opposed to more gentle breathing tech-

niques, such as cardiac coherence, WHM’s
breathing techniques contain phases of hy-
perventilation and hypoxia with a real risk of
loss of consciousness, and are therefore
practiced lying down, on a sofa or in bed, or
sitting down on the grass on takeoff…
Neither should you practice these techniques

without medical advice in case of respiratory
or cardiac conditions for example. A video filmed whilst volunteers were being trained during the first study.
Below: this study also analyses in detail one of Wim Hof’s breathing cycles (three ‘rounds’:
hyperventilation/retention, for a little over ten minutes). It also studied the changes in the levels of
adrenaline, noradrenalin, dopamine and cortisol. This breathing technic visibly increased the level of
adrenalin (A) to a significant level.
With this training, you therefore learn to

hyper-
venti-
lation
retention
hyper-
venti-
lation
retention
hyper-
venti-
lation
retention
activity. At baseline (T = −1 h), there was a trend toward lower
levels of leptin in the trained group compared with the control
POSITIVE STRESS
A group (mean ± SEM: 3.36 ± 0.55 vs. 4.99 ± 0.74 ng/mL, P = 0.09,
It is correct that the Wim Hof
Respiratory ratte (bpm)
20
control your mind and body better, resist unpaired Student t test), which remained apparent at all sub-
sequent time points (Fig. S2B). Leptin kinetics showed a biphasic
10 pattern with an initial modest decrease followed by a gradual method provokes temporary
stress better (notably chronic stress), live 0
increase in both groups. However, there were no differences be-
tween groups over time. stress in the body, both by
more peacefully and to be more resistant B 100 Correlation Analyses. As depicted in Fig. 5A, there was a strong
positive correlation (rs = 0.82, P = 0.001) between epinephrine breathing and by immersion in
O2 Saturation (%))
levels in the trained group at T = 0 h (30 min after commencing

to pain and inflammation. You also learn- 80
the breathing techniques) and the early increase in IL-10 levels
at T = 1 h, which was not present in the control group (rs = 0.18,
cold water. During
how to combat tiredness and perform bet-
60
P = 0.571). Furthermore, there were significant inverse correla-
tions between levels of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 at
hyperventilation/retention, you
can release the same amount of
40
T = 1 h and peak levels of the proinflammatory mediators TNF-α
ter physically. A great programme! C 120
(at T = 1.5 h), IL-6 (at T = 2 h), and IL-8 (at T = 2 h) in the
Heart rate (bpm)
trained group (Fig. 5 B–D). In the control group, no such inverse

100
correlations between IL-10 and proinflammatory cytokines were adrenaline as a base jumper
observed. In fact, we found significant positive correlations be-
80
tween preceding TNF-α and IL-6 levels on the one hand and IL-10 before the jump.
HOW DOES IT WORK? levels at later time points (TNF-αT = 1 vs. IL-10T = 2: rs = 0.59,
H
D
60
150
P = 0.045 and IL-6T = 1.5 vs. IL-10T = 2: rs = 0.60, P = 0.039). But in fact, it is this temporary
MAP (mmHg)
The breathing part is easy to learn, but you 100

Discussion
Herein, we show that a short-term training program and prac- stress, followed by a deep soo-
ticing breathing techniques learned during this training program
have to be careful: no ‘WH’ breathing thing feeling which resets the
M
50
0 200 400 600
Time (s) results in release of epinephrine, induction of early anti-
100 300 500 700
inflammatory IL-10 production, and consequently attenuation
whilst driving or immersed in water, be-

of the proinflammatory innate immune response during experi-
mental human endotoxemia. Also, trained individuals experi-
clock for a good part of the day.
We all know the feeling of well-
hyperventilation
hyperventilation
hyperventilation
enced fewer endotoxemia-associated flu-like symptoms, and a

ntion
ntion
ntion
cause there is a real risk of fainting. It isn’t more swift normalization of fever and cortisol levels, which are
End reten
End reten
End reten
likely the result of the attenuated proinflammatory response.

being, the soothing feeling after
Start
This study demonstrates that the in vivo innate immune re-

End
End
End
serious if you are lying down on the pH 7.40 7.66 7.44 7.67 7.46 7.75 7.50
sponse can be voluntarily influenced in a nonpharmacological
an adrenaline rush. In all sports,
pC02 (kPa) 4.49 2.11 4.01 2.03 3.76 1.69 3.48
ground, but it is dangerous at the wheel of pO2 (kPa)

HCO3-
16 5
16.5 22 0
22.0 56
5.6 22 9
22.9 48
4.8 22 6
22.6 34
3.4
control trained these moments of temporary
20.9 18.0 20.3 17.6 20.2 17.4 20.4
A B
a car, at the controls of a paraglider or in a
(mmol/l)
Lactate
(mmol/l)
0.69 0.86 0.69 1.03 0.77 1.16 0.91
nmol/L
3
epinephrine
p p
p<0.0001
nmol/L
3
p p
norepinephrine
p=0.01
stress have been fairly well
bath or a lake (risk of drowning!) Fig. 2. Cardiorespiratory and biochemical changes during cyclic hyperven- 2 2 researched. The method
tilation and breath retention in a representative subject of the trained
group. (A) The respiratory rate alternately increased to around 20 breaths
per minute (bpm) for several minutes, and then dropped to zero during
1 1 described allows this cascade of
voluntary breath retention. These cyclic changes in respiration resulted in
profound changes in (B) oxygen saturation, (C) heart rate, and (D) mean
0
-1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
0
-1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
effects linked, amongst others, to
There are several protocols, the most fre- arterial pressure. The data depicted were sampled from the monitor every
10 s. At the end of each hyperventilation phase and breath retention phase,
an arterial blood sample was drawn for arterial blood gas analysis, of which
C nmol/L
0.3
dopamine D μmol/L
1.5
cortisol
adrenalin to be provoked, whilst
quently used involves three breathing cy-
p=0.001
p p<0.0001
p
the results are listed in the table below D. The cycles of hyper/hypo-
ventilation in this particular subject can be viewed in Movie S2. 0.2 1 you are safely on the ground.
cles. ((Also see the Icemind tutorial): (at T = 1 h) and peaked 1 h before the peak observed in the
01
0.1 0.5 Therefore, this is one to practice
control group. In line with previous reports (11), plasma levels
of the proinflammatory cytokine IL-1β were barely detectable
0
-1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
0
-1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
whilst sitting on take off for
time (hours post-LPS) time (hours post-LPS)
during human endotoxemia. Concentrations were below the
detection limit (3.9 pg/mL) in all but four subjects (two in each example, before flying…!
• A hyperventilation phase: thirty very group, showing very low concentrations (4–6 pg/mL) at one to
three time points with no apparent kinetics over time). Con-
Fig. 3. Plasma cathecholamine concentrations and serum cortisol concen-
trations during experimental endotoxemia in control and trained subjects.
(A) Plasma epinephrine. (B) Plasma norepinephrine. (C) Plasma dopamine. As anecdotal evidence, we can
deep breaths, in waves, from the stomach centrations of the anti-inflammatory cytokine TGF-β showed no
kinetics after administration of LPS and were not different be-
(D) Serum cortisol. Data are expressed as mean ± SEM of 12 subjects per
group. Gray box indicates period in which the trained subjects practiced
their learned breathing techniques. P values between groups were calcu-
testify to having flown in a fairly
tween groups (Fig. S2A). We also measured plasma concen-
to the top of your chest, each followed by trations of leptin, an adipokine that exerts proinflammatory
lated using repeated measures two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA, in-
teraction term). serene and precise fashion after
a relaxed breathe out, without force, like a Kox et al. PNAS | May 20, 2014 | vol. 111 | no. 20 | 7381 our tests.
breath of relief, without completely emp-
It’s chronic stress in everyday life, for which there is no outlet, that provokes certain illnesses in our
tying your lungs.
civilisation. Wim Hof’s method claims to reduce chronic stress by hormesis (it should be stressed that it
• Then after the thirtieth exhalation, block takes a lot to ‘return to zero.’) Both the studies available and the anecdotal reports suggest that it is
your breathing, empty your lungs (but not effective to a certain extent.
completely, about 10-30% remains). It’s
Photo: Kat Jayne Pexels
easy to hold your breath like this thanks to

the previous hyperventilation which delays
the feeling that you need to breath (low
level of CO2 in the blood), for 1 to 3 min-
utes.
• Followed by a deep inhalation, a wonder-
ful retention for about 15 seconds, then
you start another two cycles.
Photos: Sascha Burkhardt
During a course with Wim Hof, as shown here for example with Frenchman Jean-François Tual, we no- Jean François Tual has added, amongst other things,
ticed and learnt the importance of good diaphragmatic breathing for everyday life, which goes far be- exercises from the Systema method (a Russian Martial art),
yond the protocols in the “Wim Hof Method”! Shown here: ventral/diaphragm breathing against the to Wim Hof’s method, as shown here, to cope with pain in
force of the trainer’s hands. the thighs: another useful method which requires you to
let go.
INITIAL OBSERVATIONS
During thirty cycles of hyperventilation, we
already felt certain more or less noticeable
effects on our mind and body. Often, your
mind starts to wander, and your arms and
legs tingle to various degrees, due to the ‘Breathe in, breathe out,’ Jean François Tual with some students. Yoga movements are also part of
lowering of CO2 in the blood, which pro- the official WHM program (in the background: ‘the boat’), but they are used a bit less in Jean François
vokes a vasoconstriction and a temporary Tual’s classes.
hypocalcaemia. There can be little spasms
too. The full respiratory cycle also pro-
vokes an increase in adrenaline in the body
and it even provokes production of en-
dogenous drugs (opiates, cannabinoids,
even DMT, a very powerful psychotropic
substance).
Next comes holding your breath. Obvi-
ously this is the most important part of the
protocol. You remain for a lot longer than
normal without breathing; it’s a really odd
feeling. Towards the end, saturation of O2
in the blood lowers in a dramatic fashion,
and can reach levels below 50%. In the ca-
sualty department of a hospital, this would
make the medical staff panic, because this
is the sign of a serious problem. But here it
is deliberately provoked, for a very short
length of time.
Then you breathe in deeply, and a feeling
of well being and a noticeable feeling of re-
lief are felt.
WHAT USE IS THIS?

Part of our nervous system works on auto-
matic pilot: our heart beats and the move-
ments of our stomach and intestines, for
example. This autonomous nervous system
has two main ‘wiring’ systems, the sympa-
thetic and the parasympathetic.
NEW
The sympathetic system is activated par- Methods such as certain yoga movements for the rest of the time. Except that it is
ticularly when there is stress to prepare are supposed to reset the pendulum.For safer and easier to do this by organising a
the body for an emergency, the famous example, forms of meditation, which aim to breathing session.
‘fight-or-flight’ response, a necessary decision activate the parasympathetic, such as the
which our ancestors had to face during a vibrations transmitted to the vagus nerve
sudden encounter with a sabre-toothed by humming ‘om.’
tiger.
It can also be useful to do sport: pushing
It’s this system which is also activated when yourself to your limit, pushing your body to
your leading edge hits your head. The heart produce adrenaline, then enjoying the rest.
beats faster, pupils and bronchial tubes Stress to make you feel calmer…
dilate, and adrenaline is released. This all
❝
serves to prepare the body to be as powerful The Wim Hof method uses just this tech-
as possible, to react and to fight, or to flee nique: by breathing according to the protocol,
efficiently. At the same time, functions like we push our mind and body with controlled
digestion are put to one side, and not really
used in these situations.
hyperventilation, followed by hypoxia, and
we are then able to rest better afterward. What doesn’t
Conversely, use of the parasympathetic sys- This is the principal of hormesis: treating an
tem, with the famous vagus nerve at its
core, has a relaxing effect: the cave man
illness with a big dose of the same illness,
which provokes, in our physiology, a pendular kill us, makes
❞
who fled the tiger successfully, then relaxed movement in the correct sense. (Not to be
for hours, even days. The temporary acti-
vation of the sympathetic system, followed
by a long period of ‘parasympathy’, is nature’s
confused with homeopathy, where the doses
are so small that in the end, they are inexis-
tent). Another way of explaining hormesis:
us stronger.
way of our body functioning. what doesn’t kill us, will make us stronger.
However, with the stress of daily modern You could also fly every day, no matter
life, it often doesn’t get properly regulated. what the weather forecast, including when
We often remain in a state of chronic stress, there are storms, and if you survive being
which can end up with chronic inflamma- massacred by the aerology and the stressful
tion. situation it causes, you will then feel great
NEW
Photo: Ana Maria Motoroz Pexels
MENTAL
BREATHE! IT’S GOOD TO KNOW…

HYPERVENTILATION
Wim Hof’s method endeavours to take you
Through the mouth or nose? Whether
to a state of hyperventilation for a short
in the air or walking, breathing
period, but it is to be avoided in all other through the nose is clearly the best
situations, whether walking or flying, be- way.
cause it prevents a good level of oxygena-
tion in your body. The nose warms the air, filters it, and
enriches it with nitric oxide.
This highly reactive free radical, first
Explanation: during hyperventilation, the considered only a noxious air
amount of CO2 in the blood drops, whilst pollutant, is produced in mammalian
the blood and the tissue is enriched a little cells by specific enzymes and is
bit more with O2. Paradoxically, this O2 believed to play a vital role in many
biological events including regulation
isn’t delivered very well to the cells: de-
of blood flow, platelet function,
spite being engorged with O2, the immunity, and neurotransmission. it
haemoglobin needs a high level of CO2 in is a powerful vasodilator which
the blood as a trigger (Bohr effect), to re- improves the oxygenation to the
lease the oxygen in the cells! However, by lungs.
hyperventilating, you drastically lower the
In addition, breathing through the
CO2… nose alerts you to unwanted
hyperventilation, by reducing the
BREATHING: IT’S IN THE BAG. flow.
It’s for this reason that when people panic
Therefore, it is best to use your nose
and start to breathe very fast, they can be-
as long as the flow is sufficient.
come hypoxic, to the point of fainting.
Paradoxically, by making them breathe into
a paper bag, you can bring them back to
normal quicker, because they breathe back
in their own CO2 and get back to more
normal levels, making the oxygen, which
has been inhaled, reusable.
IN ‘HIKE&FLY’: BREATHE BETTER!

A test which you can do whilst doing
hike&fly: if you arrive at the top out of
breath, you can drastically reduce the time
to recover, by forcing yourself to breathe
in and out through your nose (look at the
key above, to see what the ideal norm
should be). As this will let you retain a bit
more CO2,which will improve the O2 intake
into the cells. It’s difficult at the beginning,
because you feel as if you don’t have
enough oxygen but, with a bit of training,
you will get amazing results…
IN THE AIR
Totally independent of any method, re-
member the simple rule: breathe more
slowly, take longer to breathe out, without
forcing things, in fact, simply breathing out,
has a soothing effect which combats being
afraid. Concentrating on actively breathing
in, on the contrary, has the effect of wak-
Photo: Sascha Burkhardt
ing you up and is stressful. Therefore, to

put your emotions in order and in the
event of feeling frightened in the air, relax
your muscles, reduce the frequency with
which you breathe and release the air in
long soothing exhalations. Their length
must, therefore, be longer than those of
the inhalations.
MENTAL
The other part of the Wim Hof method: exposure

to cold, shown here in the springtime in water at
0°C during a course with ‘Icemind’: Jean François
Tual.
53 | 2019/Mental @freeaero instagram.com/free.aero

MENTAL
THE COLD
Wim Hof’s method includes another form
of stress: the cold. Confronting cold, by al-
ways finishing off with a cold shower, or in
fact, immersing yourself in a deep freezer
or in rivers in winter, is stressful for the
mind and body. But it works, and it has a
secondary effect: the body becomes per-
fectly used to it. After several training ses-
sions, you can slide, no problem at all into
water at 0°C and stay there for 3-5 min-
utes, or even longer. Each time, the body
switches on its internal heating system,
which conquers your shivering which can
even be stopped with a bit of mind over
matter. An experience which the editorial
team survived! To keep your internal tem-
perature at an acceptable level, the body
uses intercostal muscles, increases the
metabolism by up to 300% and can also
use brown fat which burns white fat trans-
forming it into heat. For a long time, we
thought this brown adipose tissue was just The brown adipose tissue is especially found around
found in new-borns and marmots but, fi- the collarbone and along the spinal column. It comes
nally, we discovered that we all have it, and into use during exposure to intense cold. Less present
in obese people, it is better developed in healthy men.
it just needs to be activated. On the right a diagram (in black) of the work done by
the brown fat when it is exposed, and not, to cold,
Numerous fans of the Wim Hof method taken from the study
have cobbled together a 0°C bath by filling (Cold-Activated Brown Adipose Tissue in Healthy Men).
a deep freezer with ice and water and im- You can get warm in the air too!
mersing themselves regularly in this ‘in-
Below: exercises to heat yourself up after immersion
verse sauna.’ This practice can become during a course with the French instructor ‘Icemind.’
addictive and, in addition, lets you lose
some extra kilos. Added advantage: you
recover more quickly after physical exer-
cise. Second effect: once you are used to
it, you can cope better with being cold in
the air, for example!
But it’s also the psychological side of this

immersion which helps you to progress:
you learn to overcome and to even con-
front the cold, which in the past made us
flee and made us breathe in an erratic
fashion… With this method, you slide into
water at 1°C as if it was a heated swim-
ming pool, by following the breathing
technique and, in particular, by emphasis-
ing prolonged exhalations, which allow you
to relax your mind and body.
FROM ICY COLD WATER TO IN THE

AIR.
Thus, a pilot can learn efficient ways for
use in real life stressful situations: OK, the
wing almost hits my head, I feel as if I am
in a washing machine, but it doesn’t do any
good to hyperventilate. Concentrate on
breathing out, thus reactivating your
parasympathetic system… Fortunately, we

don’t lose all sense of being frightened
(those who stay sane!), but you relax and
are better able to cope with the situation.
NEW
MENTAL
‘Breathe (out!) with big breaths.’ That also

works without having to train. You can
learn it and force yourself to do it without
any specific training method, of course.
But training such as ‘immersing yourself in
cold water’ puts in place an effective rou-
tine for when you are faced with stress. It
also works in other life situations, when we
find ourselves in unexpected situations.
Before an important meeting, lots of fol-
lowers of this type of technique breathe
deeply following a full cycle, to lower their
level of stress before confronting potential
problems.
A cycle of breathing at take-off can, in fact,

calm things in advance so that you can CHRIGEL MAURER
manage your flight better, including unex-
pected situations, and therefore perform He was trained in the Wim Hof technique by the French instructor Sébastien Payet, on a one-day
better when flying. Some pilots use part of training course in Interlaken. He is said to have used this technique sometimes in the air (but without
this technique when flying too. Chrigel holding his breath) to heat himself up and to combat tiredness. ‘It’s like having a coffee,’ he said.
Maurer for example, has said that he
sometimes uses this method to warm him- Yet, even without the phase of holding your breath, it isn’t recommended to use this type of
breathing technique whilst flying a paraglider.
self up. But this isn’t advisable, given the
risk of fainting.
Another possible use: with an injury and

inflammation, you can use the painkilling
and anti-inflammatory effects of the Wim
Hof method to reduce pain and recover
faster. On the other hand, for those who
do bodybuilding to increase volume: im-
mediate immersion after training also re-
duces the muscle gain, so you would be
better to wait for an hour.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

The advantage of the Wim Hof method:
you can learn it for free by following the
advice on the guru of cold’s site, which ob-
viously includes people who want to go One of the exercises in the Wim Hof technique: push ups during the phase of holding your breath after a
further, by buying a ten weeklong video cycle of hyperventilation. An astonishing observation: most of the participants were able to immediately
course for 250 euros. But this isn’t really do 25% to 50% more push ups compared to their usual performance!
necessary, you can refer to free advice
pretty much everywhere. On the other
hand, you need to be careful: numerous Should you worry about
videos on Youtube don’t explain the prac- negative effects on your health?
tice very well. According to a full meta-
analysis, For low level or
It’s best to use Wim Hof’s free ‘teasers’ temporary hypoxias, the body
makes the most of the positive
(www.wimhofmethod.com), and the tuto-
effects.
rials put online by one of the French in-
structors using the method, Jean François Serious hypoxias on the other
Tual. On his site, he is particularly gener- hand, we suspect, have negative
ous with his free, detailed advice. Obvi- effects.
ously, he also relies on those who will then But by practicing the Wim Hof
take things further and sign up for a full method, you can stay easily in
course, which isn’t ‘free’ but where you the blue zone…
learn an enormous amount of detailed in-
formation and other techniques that Jean
François Tual has added to the basic Wim
Hof method.
NEW
Photo: Jérôme Maupoint/GIN
You can prepare yourself in advance to manage apprehension and stress. Once in the air, particularly by
doing deep, long exhalations, you can keep a cool head in any situation and therefore fly more efficiently
and precisely.
Being watched by skiers: looking for freezing cold water for a winter bath…
CONCLUSION
Stress the mind and body to calm them
makes them perform better; this seems to
work particularly well with the Wim Hof
method, a simple protocol which is avail-
able for free. In addition, this activity al-
lows you to be more aware of the way we
function, and encourages you to train your
breathing, an essential activity, but one
which we often neglect.
Breathing is one of the rare activities which

can be done equally well by the autonomic
nervous system or by our own voluntary
actions. It may seem intuitive to manage
your own breathing; this means opening
doors towards a certain management of
your subconscious. Yogi masters have
known this for thousands of years.
NEW
MENTAL
Looking for a refreshing beach to go for a swim during an Icemind course in the mountains.
Immersion in 0°C water naturally brings on a contemplative state.
The Wim Hof method is one of many, but

it seems more justified than a lot of the
others. It’s true that the scientific endorse-
ment given by researchers who testify that
Wim Hof and his followers (trained in just
ten days), have the capacity to voluntarily
influence the sympathetic nervous system
and the immune system to the point of
being able to cope with, almost without
symptoms, an injection of endotoxins, is
something dreams are made of. Yes, you
can use this in daily life, and yes, the re-
sponse to stressful situations is then visibly
better. And yes, you can imagine that the
numerous anecdotal reports of an im-
provement in general health and an atten-
uation of inflammatory illnesses isn’t just
due to the placebo effect, because they
correspond to the mechanisms observed
during the studies.
Taï-Chi makes use of mental preparation which Immersion with Icemind’s Jean-François Tual, then warming up. The horseman posture (below) is associated
has been known of for thousands of years. In here with another breathing technique by Wim Hof (power breathe, hyperventilation 5-10 breaths, then hold
Wim Hof’s technique you sometimes come your breath with your lungs full, then progressive contraction of the muscles from your feet to your neck). This
across the same elements. allows you to warm up very fast, but carries a big risk of loss of consciousness, as well as a serious risk for
those vulnerable to having a stroke.
PRUDENCE AND HOPE

But we must remain very prudent: when
When Wim Hof talks enthusiastically ‘of a
better life full of happiness, far from pharma-
cies,’ he’s definitely getting carried away a
little. However, this is not necessarily
purely for financial reasons. Those who are
close to him believe, despite everything,
that there is a certain amount of altruism
on his part, which encourages him to pro-
mote his method, which basically doesn’t
cost the participant anything if they follow
the free advice.
PROFOUND CHANGES
Amongst the editorial team, we felt that
the research into the method, the knowl-
edge and the physiological training which
went with it, opened doors which were
amazing and efficient, both in everyday life
as well as in mountaineering and paraglid-
ing. Obviously, Wim Hof’s ‘mission’ has a business side to it. Shown here, a training course with the Dutch master
himself.
Of course, there is no such thing as a mir-
acle and it also won’t be thanks to the
WHM method that tomorrow you’ll be
able to enter the next World Champi-
onships, nor will you be able to go and fly
in a cu-nim with your hands in your pock-
ets. But fortunately, this isn’t the goal…
We would like to take a closer look at the

research and the experiments, together
with our readers, to see how useful it is for
pilots. At the latest, at the Coupe Icare, we
intend to organise a group training course
at cost price for a few hours with a French
instructor in the method. If, in principal,
you’re interested, please let us know and
we’ll keep you informed…
(contact@voler.info).
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ROLF DUDA’S OPINION

INSTRUCTOR WIM HOF METHOD LEVEL 1
STUDENT PARAGLIDER PILOT
https://www.wimhofmethod.com/instructors/rolfduda
I spend a lot of time on mountain roads, es- stress or fear, can give way to active reflection
pecially in winter, often at -20 degrees and I and more constructive behaviour to find a so-
am outside for several hours at a time. The lution.
WHM method helped me to regulate my body
temperature in an independent fashion. The method therefore helps me to take off
When I am cold, I can start my heating system with the right attitude, and with a good frame
(the brown fat) myself. of mind. I still haven’t tested it actively in the
air but, in any case, I would advise against
As a management consultant responsible for using the method whilst flying. The risks are
two businesses, I am also exposed to a lot of too high. The key is to use the technique on
stress. Since I started the WHM method, my the ground to prepare yourself for flying.
whole life has changed dramatically. As soon
as I come across a situation where I would
have got stressed in the past, I do several
breathing exercises. I have become a lot more
aware of my own emotions and every day I
learn how to actively control them more.
For paragliding (although I am still a beginner),

continuous training in the method improves
your conscient control of your own body in an
extraordinary way. You learn to challenge
your internal ‘automatic pilot,’ which some-
times acts in a harmful way, and therefore you
can intervene earlier. Thus, emotions, like
NEW
MENTAL
CLAIRE MERCURIOT
FRENCH ACRO CHAMPION AND WINNER
OF THE WORLD ACRO CHAMPIONSHIPS IN
2018.
OCCASIONAL USER OF THE WHM
METHOD
“I did a WHM course with Sébastien Payet. I didn’t really anticipate using the techniques when
flying, but once, when I found myself doing a long-distance flight with an acro harness, I got
very cold. I remembered how the ‘power breathing’ really heated me up during a course with
Seb, so I tried it. It involves hyperventilation then retention with your lungs full for a short
length of time, whilst contracting the abdos to push from your chest towards your head (it’s a
bit difficult to explain…)
“Don’t try it if you are near the terrain nor without having tried it on the ground first, as it can
make you dizzy! Since then, I’ve used it several times when flying XC to heat myself up during a
transition, but in a ‘light’ version because you mustn’t lose consciousness in the air!
“Outwith transitions, the breathing protocols seem difficult to apply when flying. During a
series of acro manœuvres it’s impossible use it from time to time whilst mentally preparing for
future flights. And from time to time, not thinking about paragliding, but just because it makes
me feel good.
And then the cold bath: This also teaches your body to manage stress, which is bound to help
you stay calm and concentrate in a stressful situation in the air.“
LYDIE-ANNE LAVILLE Lydie-Anne Laville has recently been promoted to a level 1 WHM instructor. She
INSTRUCTOR WITH WHM works in the Drome with her Swedish partner, who is also a WHM instructor. She
LEVEL 1 organises courses in France including individual training, at very reasonable prices.
Free.aero is organising a ‘pilot’ specific course with Lydie for our readers. At the
latest, it will be at Coupe Icare. Please let us know if you are
interested:contact@voler.info
www.wimhofmethod.com/instructors/lydie-annelaville#
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The design resembles the single edged curved blade,

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SÉBASTIEN PAYET
INSTRUCTOR WHM LEVEL 2
Sébastien Payet is a paraglider pilot and He was the first WHM instructor in France and the Sébastien trained Chrigel Maurer (photo) and
speedflyer. He does small XC flights of less than first level 2, therefore the only one able to teach Claire Mercuriot, along with numerous top-level
100km and he flies acro at an intermediate level all the training levels, from beginner to advanced. sportsmen and women, including base jumpers.
including Helis, Mctwists and rhythmic SATs, he He works in Paris, Annecy, Bordeaux and the
told us. Himalayas.
www.wimhofmethod.com/instructors/sebastienpayet#
A twenty-minute
programme (in French)
about the Wim Hof
method, with
information about the
Dutchman, as well as
Sébastien Payet as
instructor, teaching top
level sportsmen and
women.
NEW
MATHIEU SCHLACHET
INSTRUCTOR WHM LEVEL 1
Mathieu Schlachet combines the Wim Hof method

with the Systema method from the Russian Army.
An interesting mix which has inspired others…
www.wimhofmethod.com/instructors/mathi
euschlachet#
PLAYING AT BEING SCIENTISTS

When working with our breathing following the Wim Hof method, we are
encouraged to learn in more detail about our own physiology. Follow the
saturation curve to 02 when the protocol, above all, gives the answers to
our curiosity which has inevitably been aroused.
Here with oximeters attached to our fingers (less than 20 € from Amazon).
1)*"*3$0.
."&4530
)JHI#
UIFDPNFCBDL
NEW
JEAN-FRANÇOIS TUAL
INSTRUCTOR VHM LEVEL 1
We did a traing course with Icemind. He added several

other elements to the Wim Hof method, such as the
Systema method.
www.icemind.fr
On the right a Wim Hof training session on breathing

which is easy to follow, even if it is in French.
His page on the Wim Hof website:

https://www.wimhofmethod.com/instructors/jean-
francoistual
NEW
THE ORIGINAL
peguet.fr
Made in France
COPING WITH COLD

For those who are used to mountains, which will be the majority of
us, the ‘coping with cold’ side, which is an inherent part in the WHM
method, will be very practical. You will cope a lot more easily with
low temperatures, and it is possible, by working with your breathing,
to ski bare chested and without gloves, even when the north wind
blows making a chairlift ride in the shade a little bit harder, but
surmountable all the same.
We can bear witness to cases where people who were suffering

from the Reynaud syndrome, the famous white fingers as soon as it
gets cold, managed to ski without gloves, by getting the blood back
into their fingers thanks to breathing techniques like Power-Breathe
by Wim Hof.
Photo: Arthur Burkhardt
THE SPECIALISTS
During our research for this article, we got in contact with numerous
people who were interested in the WHM technique. Some got
carried away too quickly and got the discussion onto more of a
pseudoscientific level. Including, sometimes, Wim Hof himself…
Conversely, Hannes Zedel, a young researcher, who is also an

administrator on a Facebook group looking into the science around
the Wim Hof method, has been studying the WHM method for
three years. He really helped us to keep a cool head so that we could
differentiate between scientific facts and fiction.
dashannes@gmail.com
NEW
MENTAL
Jean-François Tual organises workshops of a few hours or several days. Sometimes, the day starts off in freezing cold water and finishes in a jacuzzi at 38 degrees…
TWO SIGNIFICANT BOOKS ON THE SUBJECT.
Wim Hof, Koen de Jong

The Way of The Iceman: How The Wim Hof Method Creates Radiant Longterm Health--Using The
Science and Secrets of Breath Control, Cold-Training and Commitment
A book co-written by Wim Hof himself. Numerous physiological explanations, some of which are
controversial. On the other hand, we were hoping for a practical part with more written by Wim Hof: he
explained a lot, but he could have given more details over and above that contained in his courses.
Scott Carney
What Doesn't Kill Us: How Freezing Water, Extreme Altitude, and Environmental Conditioning Will
Renew Our Lost Evolutionary Strength
An American investigative journalist recounted how he tried to expose Wim Hof as a charlatan and instead,
became a follower of his method. A surprising story, with very interesting details and explanations about the
techniques.
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MENTAL
PIZZA, PASTA, PARAMOTOR…
FLYING XC AND SKIMMING THE

GROUND
IN STUNNING EUROPEAN
COUNTRYSIDE
Text: Stephan Wolkiak
Photos: Dan Burton
acebook.com/freeaero www.free.aero
Skimming flights and easy distances above dreamy countryside… Three paramotor
pilots explored northern Italy and flew over stunning countryside…
By Stephan Walkowiak, photos Dan Burton
I
n March 2019, with two other pilots, we
crossed northern Italy with our paramo-
tors and a campervan as an ‘aircraft car-
rier.’ I already knew the Meduno region
from my days as a free flyer. I still had
good memories of the area. The big fluvial
areas of the Meduna and the Tagliamento
were the first stop on our trip.
After a short night in our campervan, we took

off to explore the Southern Alpine chain.
A feature of the local air space is the military

restricted zone, which covers almost all of this
area. In the northern part, pilots are restricted,
up until 12:00 on Friday, to flying above the
mountains around Meduno. From noon on
Friday the restriction is lifted and you can fly
no problem all weekend.
After taking off, we flew over the Meduna

riverbed, which covers numerous rivers in the
Southern Alps and ends up in a wide gravel
riverbed in the unique countryside of the
Venetian plain. We decided to fly sufficiently
high on the hilly ridges in an easterly direction
until we reached the river Tagliamento.
This is one of the biggest unspoilt rivers in Eu-
rope, 170km long in total, which hasn’t been
touched by human activities. The view over
the vast riverbed was breath taking. In Italy,
flying at low altitude on a paramotor is autho-
rised, maximising the beauty and pleasure.
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Flying skimming the ground is authorised in Italy…
Footdrags in the crystal-clear blue water, then

a game of chase between pilots along the
winding river above the gravel. Always watch-
ing out for power lines and informing each
other over the radio, we followed our route
along ‘Flightlevel Zero,’ until the thermals be-
came stronger.
Evening flying turned out to be just as pleas-

ant, and to crown it all, we floated in the sun-
set and finally glided with our motors
switched off to join the free flyers at Monte
Valinis.
Time for a well-deserved beer at the campsite.

In the middle of San Daniel Ham and truffle
country, Dan, who comes from Exeter in Eng-
land, ate the biggest and best pizza of his life.
A good red wine speaks of the day’s experi-
ences… dolce vita!
During the following days, we did some cruis-

ing flights around Meduno and in the Al
Casale triangle. In the morning, we flew
through the mountains to a lake above the
town of Meduno. The blue water sparkled,
and rugged mountains lay at our feet, it was
amazing. Other flights along the Meduna led
to some magnificent displays of lighting above
the motorway and railway bridges.
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Then we headed for the sea, towards Bibione. was an amazing colourful sight dominated by
The project: fly between Grado and Bibione the luxurious green vegetation and the blue of
along the islands at the coastline. A little air- the Adriatic sea. During the flight, we all felt as
port behind Bibione was our departure point if we were in the Caribbean; we almost forgot
for the 80 km flight. that we were only a couple of hours drive from
our homes, in Italy. Incredible, this fantastic lit-
A LONG ROAD. tle world in the middle of such peaceful coun-
Following the edge of the tourist town of Lig- tryside, where canals and rivers meet.
nano Sabbiadora and the adjoining port, we
explored the islands and the lagoon areas of One of the most popular pilgrim routes in Italy
the Adriatic Sea. leads to the Virgin Marie church here on the
The area we flew over was demanding be- island of Barbana. It is situated at the eastern
cause it was mostly flying over water. Wearing extremity of the Grado lagoon. Since 1237
Agama water life savers, and with a healthy re- every year, on the first Sunday of July, the cit-
spect for the deep water and keeping a con- izens of Grado take part in a procession on the
stant eye on the nearest landing area, we flew island of Barbana aboard festively decorated
over amazing countryside, with very beautiful boats to renew the ancient vow to the Virgin,
navigable routes and lagoons. In places the who saved the village from the terrible plague
water was not very deep and tempted us to epidemic.
do a bit of foot dragging… The Grado lagoon The out and return flight over the islands into
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the sunset, takes an hour and will remain one
of our most impressive momories of the
whole trip. What a privilege to be a paramotor
pilot: such a simple aircraft with which you can
comfortably explore the countryside for hun-
dreds of kilometres.
In the last rays of sunshine, we reached the

aerodrome where our campervan was waiting
for us…
Our next aerial trip is already organised: we
are going to the Outer Hebrides on the ex-
treme west coast of Scotland, where a sailing
boat will be our aircraft carrier.
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PARAMOTOR ADVENTURES
The author works in collaboration with a motorbike

tour operator who regularly offers interesting cir-
cuits.
For more information

www.paramotoradventures.com
https://www.instagram.com/paramotorad-
ventures/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/param
otoradventures/
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CROSSING
NEW ZEALAND
Reader's Story
Text and photos by Kilian Hallweger,
Michael Malchereck, Nicolas Manthos et
Markus Anders
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P
aragliding offers many joys, one of A big part of the island is dominated by the
them is how easy it is to get out southern alps – a mountain range going
and experience your adventures by through the whole island, which offers re-
yourself. It can be just a single mote areas, untouched nature, stunning
flight exploring unknown territories or mountains with shining glaciers, deep val-
using your glider as a way of transportation leys and clear rivers ending up into
to get into remote areas on a multiple day turquoise lakes.
trip, where flying is the one and only op-
tion. And that was totally what we – a It came to our mind to go for a vol-biv ad-
group of 4 paragliding pilots named Kilian venture all along the Southern Alps. Start-
Hallweger, Michael Malchereck, Nicolas ing near Queenstown and heading north
Manthos and Markus Anders - were look- towards Nelson or Blenheim. As there are
ing for. Going somewhere out into the na- not many cities around that area, we
ture, far away from known tracks, planned our food-supplies for 10 days with
exploring new mountain ranges and val- a total of 2200 calories a day, which had to
leys, just heading out for our very own, be enough to get at least to a road or a
personal adventure. small town just by using your feet. Alto-
gether including food, water, paragliders
There is one country, which is known for and all the other stuff we had to carry
doing so – New Zealand. around 28kg.
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START OF THE ADVENTURE IN THE
SOUTH
It is the 14th of December, our team is fi-

nally complete. The day looks pretty
promising for flying so we tried to hurry in
getting our stuff ready to go to the Coro-
net Peak, the next possible launch site near
Queenstown. At 4 pm we are finally air-
born. The conditions are perfect, strong
thermals and calm southerly winds pushing
us to our first goal – Wanaka. The whole
flight is covered with beautiful mountain
scenery – spiky and grass covered hills on
the east side - rocky and steep mountains
covered with snow to the west. Suddenly,
just 10km before Lake Wanaka, the wind
direction changes and we find ourselfes
caught in strong headwind forcing us to
land.
Fully motivated and as the day is still young

we straightly continue by foot to reach our
first night camp next to Lake Wanaka in
the evening. Unfortunately, the forecast
isn’t on our side, and the following day
starts like the last one has ended. However
for the following days there is a little
chance of flying more in the eastern part
of the island. After a whole day of walking
and visiting some friends around Wanaka,
we are getting ourselfes into position for a
possible flight the next day from Breast
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Hill. After an exhausting 1000 hm hike to time to refill our food supplies. The rest of checking out a good takeoff site to con-
our nightcamp, we are rewarded with a the day we decide to hike towards Mt. tinue from the Crawler Hut, a small hunt-
beautiful view over Lake Hawea. Dobson, but the heavy bags, strong wind ing hut we found.
and still dry land makes every meter an ex-
Above Lake Ohau we see ourselfes geeting hausting one. At the end we are lucky and The last task is ahead of us and it´s a hard
into the valley wind - the glide gets worse get into a confident position for flying for one, most of the mountains around are
and we are already starting to look for the next day. way too steep to climb and there’s no
landing options. But luckily all four of us chance to takeoff except a small hill, right
manage to enter a really bumpy thermal, The following day looks just fine, at least in the back of the hut. So all we have to do
pretty low above ground. So we are back we thought so. Around midday there are now is waiting for the rain to stop. Unfor-
in the game, but not for long. Due to the still no clouds and thermal activity is pretty tunately, it rains all night, till the next
airspace around Mt. Cook we have to fly low. Is it to stable now? Well, we have to morning and there’s total cloud cover till
into the flats to Lake Pukaki hoping to get try and hiking is still an option. Right after 10am. But we decide to climb to our take-
some progress in the desert using the flat- takeoff we struggle to get higher, but close off. At midday the cloud base is still below
lands towards Tekapo – the goal for today. to the ridge it is possible to stay on the most of the higher peaks. So it's a hard de-
The beginning looks promising. We man- same level. So we decide to fly farther to cision whether to wait and fly the more
age to find thermal conditions, but while the north. It doesn’t take long until weak westerly route which leads straight into
climbing to cloudbase we get pushed back thermals get us separated - half in valley the higher mountains - or go a little bit
pretty strong. 30 kph headwinds make and half on top of the mountain. It takes us more to the east but with a lot of valley
even the flight to Lake Pukaki impossible more than 4 hours to get together and air- crossings where one is bigger than the
and we bomb out 2km before reaching it. borne again. The west-facing mountain other.
Nevertheless, we had covered awesome ridge produces rocket like thermals beam-
70km in distance in the air. ing us up through the stable air. At the end Right after takeoff we realize it’s too weak
of the day, after 50 km of flying, we land in and therefore too risky to fly into the
Dry, flat and dusty land is in front of us and a huge glacial valley near the main ridge. glaciers, bombing out in this area would
50km to walk through the desert with not You feel small sitting out there near those mean days of hiking. Making it to cloud
even thinking about flying. High tempera- huge glaciers with nobody around you. base consumes alot of time and we chose
tures and 100kph+ wind for the next day the more easterly route starting with our
makes the decision easy to hitchhike to As there is another frontal system passing first big valley crossing right after takeoff.
Tekapo to get around the airspace, which by the next day, we spend the whole day And behold, it really pays off. We find the
is a no fly zone. In Tekapo we use our free with repairing our gear, regenerating and perfect XC-conditions in a ~50km wide
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corridor in the middle of the island. Where 100km of flying we find a perfect spot to
on the east and west side the sea breeze is topland on a mountain range near a beau-
coming in like a wave of low clouds with tiful lake right above Arthur’s Pass. And
humid air. later on a couple of Kea’s join us to enjoy
the late evening sun.
Following the corridor up north we get to
see an amazing view on the glaciers around
Mt. Arrowsmith. It’s even possible to soar
up its west face above the cloud base and
even fly over the clouds. The conditions are
fine so we push further. After more than
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GETTING SEPARATED
Day 10 starts relaxed. It takes us around

20 minutes to climb up the ridge to get to
a good takeoff on the east face. But
reaching the top lowers the expectations
of the day. There’s a strong northwesterly
headwind blowing over the higher moun-
tains, making our way northwest compli-
cated. Starting in the leeside of Mt.
Aicken was… interesting. We struggled
centring the narrow and bumpy lee ther-
mals but we manage to cross the valley to
the west and continue on the next ridge.
Unfortunately, Markus gets caught in the
valley breeze. He climbs the next moun-
tain ridge in the luv side while the others
decide to topland behind some rocks.
Both of us do not notice each other... At
the end of the day, lack of communica-
tion, strong winds and incoming bad
weather leads to our separation... It takes
7 days when we finally reunite in Hanmer
Springs just in time to celebrate New
Year’s Eve.
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XC SOARING AND A LOT OF WALKING
On the 1st of January weather gets a little

bit better but the overall weather condi-
tions are highly unstable with a high risk
of thunderstorms all over the day. As
there are some huts for protection on the
way we decide to continue by foot on the
Rainbow Road track. It’s a 112km track
going all the way up to Saint Arnaud
starting with dry and wide tussocklands
and screes along the hills, but getting
more rough and alpine while moving far-
ther north. On the first day on the track,
we make slow progression by just walk-
ing. The sea breeze flushes over the
smaller hills, which allows only small
glides where unpacking the glider is too
much effort. But the next day we find a
soaring hill standing perfectly in the val-
ley breeze. Luckily the clouds tend to
spread out. Big shadows hinder the
clouds to get dangerously big. So we de-
cide to give it a try and climb halfway to
the top. Soaring works perfect on the
scree covered hills. By jumping from hill
to hill we are able to progress nearly
10km until we reach the first sun covered
mountain. And what to say, the first ther-
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mal catapults us to nearly 2900m.a.sl. But

on the same time clouds start to build up
pretty fast. To avoid the upcoming thun-
derstorm, we land next to a sleepout
after 30km of flying.
The next morning starts calm again.

There´s clear blue sky with almost no
clouds. It doesn’t look too bad even after
breakfast. But as the first cumulus build
up pretty early we recognize that there’s
beside the unstable air way to much wind
blowing form northwest. We end up in
hiking 40 km and 2000 vertical meter to
get into a good position for one last flight
as the weather is predicted to be not fly-
able anymore. The last flight brings us to
the final destination of our journey – St.
Arnaud, 30 km before the airspace of
Nelson.
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After 20 days in the southern alps of New

Zealand, our expectations have been
completely fulfilled. We were amazed by
the diverse mountain scenery, rivers
winding through deep and wild valleys
ending in natural blue lakes. It was the
most exciting adventure for us so far and
we totally enjoyed every second of it. Fly-
ing in new zealand is tough and very
windy most of the time, but once you are
into it, it's just awesome and definitely
worth it. In total we covered 15km and
1000 meters of vertical by walking each
day and had an average flying distance of
36km per day.
Total distance covered: 260 km walking,

600 km flying, 17000 vertical metres hik-
ing...
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