Gradient Freestyle 2

We know a picture speaks a thousand words so this seems the best way to introduce you to Gradient's new Freesyle 2 glider. Enjoy!

For technical info click on Freestyle 2

X-Alps 2011

Five Pilots in this years Red Bull X-alps  have chosen  to fly  the special X-Alps - Avax XC3, which is equipped with trimmers, has a much lighter canopy and a thinner line set.
We wish them the best of luck  and also all the best to our two British Team pilots Jon Chambers and Steve Nash!

Gradient Pilots

- Thomas De Dorlodot BEL

- Jan Skrabalek CZE

- Jouni Makkonen FIN

- Michael Gebert GER

- Pierre Carter RSA

Photo : Red Bull 2011 - Jan Skrabalek (CZE) flying

Gradient makes claim to longest single flight in the Himalaya

Congratulations to Thomas De Dorlodot who onboard his X-Alps XC3 has just completed a fantastic flight which surpassses Brad Sanders epic flight. Thomas completes his flight by a different route.
He writes

"The flight starts well as Hernan Pitocco opens the game followed by Horacio Llorens and I. Somehow it feels funny to fly XC with those 2 great acro pilot. Usually they start tumbling around when they arrive at cloudbase. But today we play a different game and those guys also now how it works. We fly as a team but at some point we take different options. Pitocco is agressive and flys fast but looses some height in a difficult transition. He will make it back easy and raise the rythem. We all have different styles and I like it. We have 8 hours to get to know each other and make the best out of this day together… The spirit is good and I have to say that without them this flight may not have been possible.

I do not have much oxygen in my bottle so I go easy. Anyway, cloudbase is low today. We can  (only) climb to 5500m this morning. After, it is like usual; from one thermal to another, one cloud to another.. east face, south face, west face… I think I reached the state of hypoxia a few time as I usually do not sing in turbulent conditions…

Time is running fast and cloudbase getting higher. We climb together with Horacio in a very turbulent thermal at 6300m. The thermal is in the lee side and that’s when acro skills really help… Just high enough to freeze our hands. We can feel the tension, no one is talking on the radio for the 3 hotest hours of the day… Concentrated guys… The motivations is high. 189 km from Booni means Gilgit and a hot shower… The view is breathtaking. We can see Nanga Parbat, K2 and some huge thunderstorm. I have some Belgian chocolate with me as a secret weapon but no water. I am talking to my Gradient XC3 when it is rough, to the mountain and to the birds when the thermal comes nice and smooth… It will be funny on our film as we are actually filming a documentary with Belgian director Olivier Vanashen. I have a microphone on me and a camera…

We make some distance and we start to believe that Gilgit is a realistic goal. But, as we fly above Gilgit, I start to see the possibility to break this record flight. It is a one time opportunity. I eat some Belgian chocolate and engage the fight… I say  God if you exist let me know now… and the vario starts beeping… I reconsider my point of view about religions and start turning around…

It feels like my dear Belgium flatlands flying. 0.5m/s. I get the last 30 km like that and land with the wind in the back just to make the best out of my glide. I think I am alone in the midle of nowhere and I scream  (thank you to the sky). A minute later, as usual, an army of kids are runing around. I land near a town called Pari… I wish I could be in the french capital and enjoy ( la cuisine française) and a fresh beer. But it is most likely not going to happen.My legs cannot hold me and I am exhausted. I hitch hike and go back to town to meet my friends. I do not know yet if I flew more than Brad or not. It does not matter. What matters here is to have fun and to enjoy."

A great flight on a great glider well done Thomas 
 
http://www.xcontest.org/world/en/flights/detail:Tomdedor/6.6.2011/05:42

Gradient's new Freestyle2 - No limits!

The successor to the famous Aspen2-Freestyle is now here. After a year of prototyping and development in collaboration with top Austrian acro team(Freestyle) during international competitions and extensive tests, the new FREESTYLE2 is born .

Perfect in form the FREESTYLE2 maintains a very compact shape, it is easy in stall manoeuvres and is said to be much easier to 'backfly' and the entry-point to good smooth 'Heli's' is far easier to find than its predecessor. It is very effective in thermic flight, thus as a mini wing on strong wind days it is both fun and dynamic with its direct handling it will allow pilots to fully express themselves, while they explore the invisible!

The load test at 12G gives the opportunity to participate in the FAI aerobatic competitions. It is produced in sizes 20 and 22, while there is a 24 planned, this will be a more all-round spirit and will arrive soon ...

Montana 2011

The Montana for 2011 is now available. It is Gradient's new light-weight allrounder. Ondrej Dupal has designed the wing to be universally suitable for the target group of Walk & Fly mountain pilots. With the XC-qualities of the Montana 2011 large distances are also possible (Martin Mueller, 180km FAI). Its agility shows, in addition, its qualities in the Freestyle range. Flight figures such as SATs, Helicopters and Loops can be conducted without deformation of the profile. The lightweight construction developed by Gradient provides a good balance between weight and stability, as well as aerodynamic behaviour in extreme situations (e.g. tendency to shoot forwards). For travelling, the Montana 2011 easily fits into hand luggage. The new Montana 2011 has a new color Design and is available in sizes 22, 24, 26, 28, 30. The glider has received the certification EN/CLTA 1-2. Series production began in April. Contact us for a test flight and special offers on this model.

Comparitive musing

I have watched the ever growing M4 Thread on PG forum ( like many others probably) with avid interest. And have flown along side the first few M4's in the Uk. My immediate impression was ozone have created a nice wing which is certainly an improvement upon its predecessor (which of course is how it should be).
It is my observation the obvious benefit to the M4 pilot is its into wind performance - As said somewhere amongst the many reams within that thread, it is like climbing stairs- forward and up. However this benefit in my view, is only realised when wing loading is fully optimised. This is certainly becoming more critical across this particular class as designers are developing their designs and apply more refinement to their models so is the need to find that precise sweet-spot in the weight range to fully maximise the benefit, and is now something I am taking a more critical eye, so that I match my weight to my intended flight plan for the day and anticipated conditions.
I have been flying the XC3 since it first came out and I certainly felt I had the edge on the M3 though not always in weak thermic conditions (I don't think size was the advantage as this pilot was on a 28 but he was also very current have just completed a PWC season).

Since then the M4 has been released where I am flying at 115kg on my size 30 ( very lightly weighted) I have lost out a bit on the into wind performance to a mid weight loaded M4, but am still better than a comparatively similarly loaded M4.
The trim speed of the XC3 is slightly faster and it seems to turn tighter but that maybe because the M4 pilot I generally do a lot of my flying with is very proficient at thermaling flat and wide.
Is the M4 a class beater? In my view it is not on the same parallel as the R10 was in the open class. But volume of sales will muddy this picture a bit.

Interestingly in 'lumpy' pre-frontal air where the air can feel a bit like a holey Swiss cheese ( generally solid but with occasional bits missing). I felt at home, reassured by the solidity and feedback, without the need to overly control or contain the wing. This has been the immediate impression I got from the very first flight, where I was keen to see what the wing was like in what others felt were not ideal conditions to fly let alone go xc on. The wing behaved impeccably and I realised after years of flying open and prototype gliders how now unnecessarily busy my flying style had become. Now I could fully enjoy hands free flying (not that I do much with my free hands) but I am able to free up my concentration efforts which were given over to wing control to more strategic decisions of say route choice. I cannot say this is the same for the the M4 as I have not flown one, but I have had other well respected pilots comment to me saying that they seem to be going OK when conditions become more demanding. Back to the lumpy pre-frontal day neither wing collapsed but only one of us decided to stay in the air. This is not to say I am a pilot with more balls or that I was being more reckless (in fact I believe we have a very similarly matched outlook to our flying, albeit he is often more strategic to my intuitive nature ).

So what am I getting at - well there are a number of good wings on the market just be sure you are choosing the right wing for your needs and style of flying - it is all too easy to simply follow the herd, and if there is one piece of ozone advice I would take, it is... sometimes being the Black sheep can reap its rewards. Follow the herd and you will remain just another number.

Gradient's Golden3 has now passed the paramotor homologation in size 24 and 26. The wing passed all certification testflights without problems. The paramotor version of the Golden3 is equipped with special multi purpose risers. These risers offer trimmers as well as different points of attachements for the karabiners, with this multi purpose system the Golden3 can be used for both free flying and paramotoring. So, the Golden3 is an ideal choice for free flight and paramotor pilots who'd like to keep their minds open for new horizons.