Hang Gliding Tournament - Brazil/March 2009

Have you ever wished to do something really crazy and fun? Well... I wish I had the courage to fly on a Hang Glider. All the pilots looks like they're having an amazing time, flying like a bird. However, before I show some pictures of the Hang Gliding that happened in Governador Valadares from March 14th through the 20th, I would like to share with you if I  may a bit of history that surrounds this amazing sport.

"During the last part of the 19th century a German engineer made over Two-thousand successful flight on weight shift hang gliders. His name was Otto Lilienthal. The notes he kept of those experimental flights were a major source of inspiration for early aviation pioneers.

Unfortunately, once the Wright brothers achieved powered flight, Otto and hang gliding were largely forgotten. Forgotten that is until the late 1940‘s, when Dr Francis Rogallo (a NASA scientist) and his wife became interested in the gliding. Initially they worked in their spare time developing a flexible wing kite, which they patented in 1948. 


In the late 1950‘s NASA joined the "space race", and conducted a number of tests to see if the Rogallo wing could be used as a steerable recovery parachute for their space capsules.

When pictures of these trials were released, aviation enthusiasts in Australia and America immediately saw the potential of the Rogallo Flexwing for recreational flight. The hang glider was re-born. By the late 1960‘s enthusiasts, armed only with pictures cut out from magazines, were building their own bamboo and polythene Rogallos, and leaping off the nearest sand dune. With little or no information to go on, initial progress was often slow and hazardous.

Then in May 1971 the Otto Lilienthal Anniversary Meet was held in California. This event attracted enthusiasts from all over the country, and really caught the public‘s imagination." Excerpt history taken from the following site http://www.athleticscholarships.net/history-of-hang-gliding.htm

This event continues to attract people from all over the world. During the tournament, Paul and I met pilots from Germany, Canada, United States, France and Hungary. We had a lot fun with them and we asked a ton of questions regarding this sport. Let's see some cool pictures of the tournament.

Pilots getting ready for a day of flying....

A beautiful scene....

Beautiful clear sky for flying.....

Pilot about to take off...

Same pilot took off and is flying...

Do you have the courage? Flying high in the clouds....

Flying... some pilots getting ready to fly...

Pilots and people watching the tournament...

Very cool....

Just had so much fun watching and taking pictures...

Flying...

Amazing...

Thank you for allowing us to share some beautiful sights watching the Hang Gliders. We learned a lot from them and we're still amazed and in awe of the beauty of this sport. Please drop a comment, we would love to hear from you.