Dominican - Feb. 7, '07

The next day, Jocky offered to take me tandem, which I enthusiastically agreed. Yes, I would miss a day of flying in the comp, but who cares? I had never gone tandem before, and I knew that going with Jocky would be a great experience, and would guarantee going cross country.

Sure enough, he did not disappoint; I’m unsure of the exact distance we flew, but it was a heck of a lot further than I had ever gone in a paraglider before! During the flight, he pointed out all the thermal triggers, and turned perfectly in the lift we had. It was funny how some of the other pilots knew Jocky was flying, and tried to follow the line he forged. Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t hold a candle to Jocky’s masterful flying, and after flying past some gliders who launched before us, we were alone.

It was interesting how certain things that make me nervous flying didn’t even faze Jocky. For example, at one point, I thought we were rather low above some trees, and I told him that had I been in the pilot’s seat, I would be looking for a place to land. But he knew there was lift around the corner, kept the faith, and we kept our height. I certainly learned a lot…even if I can’t exactly recall what he said about thermal triggers and such, I think being in the passenger’s seat gave me a new outlook on flying.

We were then ready to land, when we saw a beautiful house with a nice green grassy backyard, perfect for folding a glider in. Only problem? It was fenced in, and didn’t look like there was a way to get out. So instead, we landed in the field next door where a slightly spooked horse welcomed us. After looking at the fence enclosing the mansion, we were glad we didn’t land there. It had a concrete wall like 8 feet high with barbed or razor wire on the top…maybe the fence was electrified too – who knows?

After that we went for a beer, and called it a day. It was a good one to say the least.