Adventures above the Earth – Powered Paragliding
Posted in Scenery, Southwest, Travel | By Shelley Gillespie | Tags: Adventure, Air Travel, Powered Paragliding, Southwest
Mo Sheldon has a vision – and it’s high above the earth. Although he declares himself afraid of heights, Mo is one of two certified flight instructors in Arizona who teaches powered paragliding. He has always wanted to fly like a bird and, since 1998, he’s had his wish. Like the ancient-fabled Greek, Icarus, who flew too near to the sun and whose wings melted, since early man, many people have wished to fly. Mo makes people’s wishes come true with his company, Airparamo.
Powered Paragliding - Exhilarating!
Intrepid or, perhaps, as some people said, “nuts,” I agreed to see what the excitement was all about. I planned to see the area from a tandem apparatus that flew from heights of one to 18,000 feet off the ground. We’d be flying at about 25 miles per hour. I’m not afraid of heights. I’ve flown in airplanes and small crafts. But, I’ve never been so close to the birds.
We started out early, around 5 AM, to avoid the day’s heat. By the time we reached the Phoenix Regional Airport, about eight miles from Maricopa, and had the apparatus ready, it was close to 6 AM. To reach the sky, our powered paraglider (PPG) was our vehicle. A metal frame with mesh seat (a very cushy-looking three-wheeled cart), plus a 2-stroke engine powered by aviation gas (purer than regular car fuel), a ripstop nylon wing held to the frame with Kevlar lines, and a 4.5 gallon plastic gas tank would be taking us up. Each Kevlar line, Mo reassured me, would hold 500 pounds by itself.
Mo climbed in the back seat. I climbed in up front, with three mesh straps to hold me in – one for each leg and one around my chest. So far, so good. I had a helmet on with an intercom device so we could communicate.
And, all of a sudden, after Mo alerted me that we would go forward and then be pulled back a bit, we were up!
Powered Paragliding
We were flying! We were headed west toward Maricopa with Bill Rowe, another paragliding aficionado, ahead of us. His colorful canopy was a focal point against the sky which was already quite light.
As we flew, I saw the many thousands of cows in the feed lots that appeared as just a speckled-brown field from up high. The wind blew gently across our faces at, Mo later told me, about 10-12 miles per hour. We flew as high as 500 feet from the ground. The Estrella Mountains were off in the distance and so was Flat Top. The far-off mountains appeared a little hazy, but seeing the mountains from the air was spectacular. Everything was very quiet except for the motor of the paraglider, which you just didn’t really hear after a bit.
We could see the Tortosa housing development with sidewalks meandering about like white ribbons on the ground.
Inspired, I could see what all the excitement was about. Soaring and swooping around, floating at high altitudes and so close to the ground I could almost touch it, I was really getting excited about the views, the experience and the sense of freedom.
Mo decided to give me a taste of going off the edge of the “abyss” – a high berm – only a foot or two off the ground and into the air. For a moment or two, my stomach lurched as he swooped several times to get just the right angle to head off. And, we were off, seemingly free of the earth and away from the ground again.
Just when I was really getting to enjoy the flight, Mo declared it time to head back, since we would be going against the winds and it was going to take some time. He was also getting a bit low on gas and teased me about walking back to the hangar.
We passed canals that looked like blue lines drawn by a child in a coloring book, bordered by telephone poles with tiny wires holding them together like a long, brown necklace. The fields were open with long, green rows of cotton plants and fluffy, green clumps of pecan trees.
Finally near the landing site and over the last canal and set of power lines, Mo announced that he was cutting the engine and we’d glide in, which we did. It was effortless – or so he made it seem. We floated down and landed very easily. Sadly, my flying adventure was over for the day.
Then, Mo and Bill put on a colorful show for me with both heading back up and often almost appearing to be one sail in the distance in two separate rigs. Mo had traded his tandem rig for a one-seater without wheels, which he claimed gives more control.
Once they were down, they shook out the canopies, folded them up, and tucked them into bags as you would a tent. All of this was accomplished rapidly, almost effortlessly.
Mo has taught people to fly ranging from ages 13-76 years old; he’s flown with people ages 2-84 years old. The most moving experience he’s had was when he took a Viet Nam-era pilot up with terminal cancer, who died three days later. It really made him feel how precious every moment is. And, he intends to keep flying which “keeps you young in mind and body.” Even his father, formerly skeptical, has flown with him. Mo, one of the top-ranked competitive PPG pilots in the world, enjoys “fly-ins.” One has been held in Casa Grande, AZ with PPG pilots attending from all over the country.
Most of Mo’s students have always wanted to fly; some come because of a gift certificate for a birthday. Almost everyone he’s flown – 99%- loves it! Count me in the 99%.
Icarus, eat your heart out!
Above it all
All of Mo’s information is on his Web site at www.airparamo.com
Tags: Adventure, Air Travel, Powered Paragliding, Southwest