Instagram story viewer> @bigsky.flyguy> Posts

Rob

@bigsky.flyguy

1.6K

followers

741

following

🪂 Pilot Log 📖📝
🦉 Identifies As Bird 🦅🐣
📍 Missoula, Montana, USA 🇺🇸🤠
🫡 #hanggliding #paragliding #hikeandfly 💯🔥

POSTS STORIES REELS

by @bigsky.flyguy

by @bigsky.flyguy

by @bigsky.flyguy

Well, progress is progress. 🪂🫡 by @bigsky.flyguy

Last Thermals of the Season 🌪️🪂
.

.

.

.

.
Catching some of the seasons last thermals in this area, at least. The evening called for light winds aloft and sunny skies, so it felt like a good opportunity to catch a free ride up into the atmosphere.

The first half of the flight felt felt like hard work. It wasn’t necessarily easy to stay up, but then the wind picked up and ridge soaring suddenly became easy. I’ve learned in this sport that when the flying becomes too easy, you should ask yourself why.

I could feel the wind building, so I started pushing further away from the mountain when I got hit with some stronger wind cycles gusting around 25mph. For the first time on my paraglider, I experienced what it felt like to get parked and actually fly backwards because of the strong headwind.

No panic, though. I knew what needed to be done: get about 45 degrees off the wind and use a little speed bar when conditions allowed for it. It was quite thermic still so I didn’t want to be on speed bar much. I never really lost the ability to penetrate, but my ground speed was pretty low at times, hovering around 4mph.

The second half of the flight, I had to fight pretty hard to get out of the sky. Coring sink over the LZ helped me get down, but I could see the trees moving pretty hard, and the windsock was bouncing all over the place, so I knew I was in for a little bit of a bumpy ride down low.

I tried to stay on the brakes as much as I could, but still encountered a small tip collapse close to the ground. In hindsight, I probably should have pushed out to a safer LZ farther away and more towards the middle of town. Our main LZ can get pretty hazardous when it’s windy because the surrounding trees and structures can create rotor.

I feel like I learned a lot on this flight and maybe matured a little as a pilot. Mostly, I learned to trust my instincts a bit more and pay attention to what the air was actually telling me.

You can never really trust a forecast.

Mother Nature doesn’t care. 🪂
.

.

.

.

.
#paragliding #flying #parapente #pilot by @bigsky.flyguy

🕊️ This Is Life ⏳🌄
.

.

.

.

.
Life is fleeting, and time flies. Every moment counts, so cherish the present, chase the things that make you feel alive, and live a life worth living.

For me, this means finding a mountain to run off, and letting the sky remind me how lucky I am to be here, in this moment.
.

.

.

.

.
#paragliding #hanggliding #flying #adventure #fyp by @bigsky.flyguy

The Flowers 🦅🚀🌻
.

.

.

.

.
Had my first hang glider flight on the North Side Point of the Mountain a few weeks back. Ended up with a nice 10 minute thermic flight trying to bench up but stoked with a nice short flight and bottom landing on the wedge. I packed up quickly and launched my paraglider later that evening for a nice soaring flight. It’s pretty awesome being able to fly both aircraft in the same day.
.

.

.

.

.

.
#paragliding #hanggliding #flying #pilot #freefall by @bigsky.flyguy

🦅 Just Go Fly 🎶🛬
.

.

.

.

.
Spent this flight working thermals on the south side point of the mountain trying to get high enough to safely set up a top landing. Unfortunately I was only getting about 100 feet over and never found myself in comfortable position to commit to it, so I did what I’ve always done and took it to the bottom. The landing approach was solid, but I misjudged my glide a bit and and ended up touching down on a sloped section, so I had to run it out more than planned. Still, always stoked to walk away with a safe landing on my feet.
.

.

.

.

.
#hanggliding #paragliding #flying #pilot #fyp by @bigsky.flyguy

🚀 Go Mode: Engaged ⚡️🦅
.

.

.

.

.
A few running steps and suddenly the world slows down — ground disappears, and all that’s left is the sound of the wind. Go mode: engaged.
.

.

.

.

.
#hanggliding #paragliding #flying #pilot #pilotlife by @bigsky.flyguy

😴 The Dream of Flight 🪂🦅
.

.

.

.

.
The dream of flight isn’t just a dream if you have the courage to leap. For as long as I can remember, I’ve dreamed of flying. That dream lead me into the world of aviation, and I’m incredibly thankful for where it’s taken me. It started with flying single engine Cessnas and progressed into what I consider the purest form of flight — flying gliders. I’m excited to see where this dream takes me next. Thanks for the recent footage — it’s always great looking back on these flights.
.

.

.

.

.
#paragliding #flying #parapente #pilot #glider by @bigsky.flyguy

🔒 Second Top Landing—Locked In 🦅🛬
.

.

.

.

.
Second top landing on the south side of the Point, and this one felt right. Gave myself more height before turning back to the ridge, got the nose clean into wind, and let the glider do its thing. 18 mph wind on launch made for an elevator style landing—no steps or flare needed, just parked it. Always learning, always refining and always grateful for time spent in the sky.
.

.

.

.

.
#hanggliding #paragliding #flying #pilot #soaring by @bigsky.flyguy

🪝 Hooked on Hang Gliding 🦅🎣
.

.

.

.

.
Flying’s in my blood. Hang gliding feels like the purest form of flight—completely connected to the wing, like it’s part of you. Every shift, every movement… it responds. Total freedom.

A little less air traffic for the hang gliding purists on this one. Any time spent in the sky is a good time.
.

.

.

.

.
#flying #hanggliding #paragliding #pilot #soaring by @bigsky.flyguy