Tuesday, August 13, 2013

FLYING....with the birds

I don't know about you, but a friend sent this video and it transported me.  I think we've ALL wanted to soar like a bird, but WITH the birds?   take a look...it made my day;

So tell me how that thing works....it's hang gliding, I know, but how do they do it now that they don't just glide down the side of a mountain?  How can you count on winds to help you stay up or go down when you want, and up again, etc.?    It looks so marvelous...

How's it work that you can stay up there... no motor, right?  And isn't the bird part GORGEOUS...freeing?
I hope it lifts YOU up, too...it did me. (no pun intended, believe me)

* Mustang has the watch for two days...

Z

18 comments:

sue hanes said...


Z - That's a pretty amazing video.
I mean that the birds would land on their arm. Maybe they were trained birds.

Have a good time off.

Impertinent said...

Thermals Ms. Z...Thermal updrafts from heat.

Mustang said...

These birds of prey have been bonded with and are trained by human beings. The relationship between these birds and human trainers is fascinating, but so too is the fact that the interact in the air. Just too cool, IMO.

In a book I read recently, it was stated that training birds of prey begins while the birds are still chicks. If this is true, then it is a very long process, and likely a life-time relationship as well.

cube said...

I'm still waiting for my jet pack. I feel so cheated.

WomanHonorThyself said...

wow and I thought skiing was flying..lol..wooooooooo!

Kid said...

Cube, You could try this in the meantime?

Full Screen But Of Course

Mustang said...

Whoa! Thanks, Kid ... so now I think I understand how Depends were invented. Someone had to do that for the first time ... and someone had to clean up afterwards. Those people must have ice water flowing in their veins.

GREAT FIND.

Kid said...

Mustang, that's his best production so far, but there are some really great Jokke Sommer wingsuit vids on youtube. Easy to find with search term Jokke Sommer. I think he's got the best ones out there. This is my 2nd favorite I'd say. The narration bits are Bruce Lee.

Ice? Yea, and lots of talent. One little mistake eh? :) I wish I was young enough to go learn and do it.

Kid said...

Mustang, I think maybe the military did this first, sort of a HALO variation to insert form a distance?

Mustang said...

I was not aware of a special suit for HALO operations when I was on active duty, but it is certainly possible that something similar to the jet suit could have been developed since then. I remember seeing a James Bond movie where stunt actors were wearing a jet suit.

I have to say, however, that leaving an aircraft at 30K, while exciting, cannot possibly compare to what appears to be a free-fall through mountainous terrain. There is no room for an “Oops.” I should think the parachutist would be talking to himself and it would go something like this: “Oops.” SPLAT.

Kid said...

;-) I don't know there would be time for the whole Ooops to come out.

Kid said...

So anyway, I'll add:

Wingsuit FAQ

If it's not in there, forward speed is 120 mph, and the down angle, which the pilot can adjust, is nominally 15 degrees, which is the average angle of a roof on a ranch house.

Mustang said...

From Wiki article on the Wingsuit:

On 31 October 1997, French skydiver Patrick de Gayardon showed reporters a wingsuit with allegedly unparalleled safety and performance. De Gayardon died on 13 April 1998 while testing a new modification to his parachute container in Hawaii; his death is attributed to a rigging error that was part of the new modification rather than a flaw in the suit's design.

Yeesh. The things that people do.

Ed Bonderenka said...

Flying cars:
http://ipsite.org/1las

Kid said...

Mustang, I saw a much larger FAQ on wingsuit from JS once and he did spend a bit of time on parachute storage and deployment.

Marine4ever said...

I've seen pictures of Putin hang gliding.

FreeThinke said...

Water skiing does it for me.

Instead of "Let's Go Fly a Kite," a la Mary Poppins, it's now Go Fly IN a Kite.

"If I had the wings of an angel over these prison walls I would fly ..."

Mustang said...

Honestly, Ed ... it ticks me off that I’m going to end up missing this.