The Art of Properly Taxiing a Paramotor Trike or Powered Paraglider Quad

The sport of Powered Paragliding or Paramotoring as some call it is rapidly growing. The major reason for this growth in Paramotoring is simply the advent of the quad. Quads (buggies with 4 wheels) have made it possible for those young and old to participate in the sport of Powered Paragliding. Particularly men from the age of 45 to their early 70s!

This article is written with the intent of conveying to those who have chosen to enjoy this sport the importance of learning to TAXI their quad or trike. The Taxi procedure outlined in this article is vital for trike pilots as well as quad pilots. In fact the trike pilots may find this article more beneficial due the inherent instability of the trike vs. that of the quad.

Taxiing is an important skill that when mastered will allow you to accomplish all of the below!

1) Exhibit control over your glider when it's overhead and your still on the ground.

2) Allows you to check the condition (shape) of your glider and your lines prior to lift off.

3) By exhibiting control off you glider while you taxi your actual lift off will be uneventful and free of oscillations and surges.

4) Lift off will be accomplished in a safe manner.

5) You will look good!! My motto is; if it looks good, it is good. If it looks bad, it is bad!

To accomplish great taxis we will start from the beginning. Into the wind, into the wind, into the wind!! Proper glider layout and placement into the wind are vital to good taxiing in the beginning. Cross wind launches etc. are for later. Don't set yourself up to fail. After properly laying out your glider, roll your Powered Paramotor into position. When ready, begin your launch by looking out toward your glider tip on your throttle side. Then start rolling on the throttle. You will need to go to full throttle as you don't want the glider making its own decisions! When it reaches the 11:00 position release the A's and pull the brakes down slightly to put some "shape" into the glider as well as some stability. At the same time you will need to ease off the throttle to AVOID launching. Yes, I said EASE OFF the throttle. You only need to go as fast as to NOT takeoff! There will be plenty of time later for more precise, slower throttle control and slower speeds. Now your goal is to SEE your glider. Not to look at it but to SEE it! At this point you are the pilot; you must control your glider and hold it directly overhead. Make all inputs slow, well timed and precise. In other words if the glider is at your 10:00 not front to rear but side to side, bring it back to the 11:00 and "hold" it there. It will finish at the 12:00. If you are too late and try to hold it at the 12:00 it will finish at the 1:00! You'd like to see your glider always at the 12 but the 11 to 1 is not bad. Now, the secret here is patience. Do not takeoff until you are at the end of the strip. When instructing we don't allow students to actually takeoff until they exhibit 6 in a row, straight, full length taxis showing complete control of the glider. Here’s a quick easy practice tip for pilots who are flying but would like better taxi skills. Launch and taxi as described above, Come back around to the strip and land at the beginning of the strip, ease off the throttle and "see" your wing! Proceed down the strip practicing keeping your glider firmly at the 12:00. Her you will want to learn to go as slow as you can yet still exhibiting a good solid glider overhead. When you get to the end of the strip Roll the throttle back on and perform a nice smooth takeoff! After a number of these, now you can play with your taxi and put some S turns into your taxiing!

All the above will not only make you a better as well as safer pilot but will set a good example for all that watch you!

If it looks good, it is good!