I always say that good times are made by the people that you’re with…the place and the weather is just a bonus. Well if that’s true, last week was definitely an amazing week…with lots of bonuses! It was a week of great company, huge achievements for first time flyers, impressive thermalling for the low air time guys and some wonderful xc tasks achieved by the experienced pilots including flying from here across the border into Italy and to Zermatt…and to top it all off, the best ridge soaring conditions I’ve ever known! Not surprising really that I feel like I’ve been laughing all week.

Even the boss gets to play hard this week. Mike enjoys some wind on the ridge.

The Italian Job!

It wasn’t the best XC conditions I’ve ever known in Verbier but Bruce, one of our very regular guests and good friend, made an impressive flight all the way into Italy despite the fairly low cloudbase. The Northerly winds made this a great XC option and Bruce was able to feast his eyes during this impressive flight South over the Mt Blanc Massif and the spectacular Trient glacier.

Bruce approaches the Italian Border.

What a week to learn!

As well as being a fantastic week of XC flights with Bruce flying into Italy and to Zermatt, it was also a perfect week for our beginners. The EP students were experiencing long stunning flights all week long and the CP students were flying long thermal flights and some exciting ridge soaring. I’ve rarely seen so much progress from a group of low airtime pilots.

Thank you to everyone who was here last week….it really was one the best weeks we’ve ever known at Verbier Summits. You guys were so much fun!

Special thanks to Bart for the great photos this week: http://bartosik.org

Watch a video of our students learning to fly in Verbier: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/938565/Verbier_Summits_Paragliding_640px.mov

Verbier is quite literally the most ideal flying site that I have ever seen to learn to fly. We have two perfect training hills, a ridge that reliably works for ridge soaring and two top landing locations. Beginners can start with small hops and rapidly progress to longer flights. Our top to bottom elevation is 4,500ft, so airtime quickly adds up to hours in no time at all and due to our superb micro climate we are able to guarantee that a student can complete an EP COURSE or CP COURSE in just a week.

And now as a BHPA school, why would you learn anywhere else?

PARAGLIDING COURSES

Verbier-Summits run all BHPA courses including:

• EP Elementary pilot course
• CP Club Pilot course
• Advanced Pilot training
• TI training
• Instructor training
• Tandem training

Pilots who are looking to start experiencing XC flights can experience breath-taking Xc flights without ever leaving the safety and comfort of our valley. A typical flight like this will take a fairly low airtime pilot from green pastures to snow fields and over Alpine lakes and quite often up onto the stunning glacier….and always in sight of our familiar landing flight.

Verbier-summits run XC clinics as well as offer first class fly-guiding for pilots of all levels.

Verbier was put on the World Flying Map in the early nineties when it was recognised by the PWC as an incredible Alpine XC site. But as well as being a good starting point for flying XC, Verbier is also a place that suitable for every kind of pilot.

As well as great XC flights within our valley, more experienced Cross Country pilots can fly far up the Rhone valley. Once leaving the verbier valley pilots can venture far up towards Zermatt and even further towards Fiesch and the Furka pass on the Italian border.