The first thing we do is we make sure that we have full movement in the bar and in the
Mission on clear for off
I
Feel like I really got to know what it feels like what it's supposed to do Wow, that was great
Wife had got up my glider and wanted to know if I was gonna go and I said no
I think I'll go up in an ultralight that that interests me a great deal more and it was that
It was a quick quick sober and then I got a ride in a trike one over a quartzite with fella
And that was it that did it
As far as I'm concerned, there's nothing compares with trike flying
I I like the feel or the way of the trike because you you've got so much more feeling of the air
You've got a direct connection to the wing and after all in any airplane we fly we're flying the wing
Regardless of what it is and I just enjoy it and then for me
I like we do a lot of traveling and the trike is very easy to travel with I can fold it up put it on top
My car put the whole thing behind the motor home the way I go. I
was down in Australia
flying these and I just
Fell in love with them. I went back home to Hawaii where I had my company taking people tandem and hang gliders
And I realized that I could take a wider range of people
longer
Flights without having to worry about the wind in age groups people a lot of people
Go through life and everyone's going. Oh, I always wanted to try hang gliding, but they don't really want to jump off a cliff
Well with this which we call powered hang glider
Opens things up for way more people to come up and give it a try without any experience
Freedom
You know
challenge reward
Excitement adrenaline
It's got it all
Sharing that experience and then teaching my wife about it. She really enjoys the flying part of it, too
And she's become a pretty good trike pilot, too
My dad always flew Cessna's and to me it always felt like a car in the air
And it wasn't until I flew on Kawhi took my very first lesson in the trike that I realized that a man really could be
a bird and fly like a bird and feel like a bird and every time I'm in this trike I
Feel like I'm totally free
So you're interested in trikes are you
Tracking adds a terrific dimension to your life to experience the world from a whole new perspective of endless fun and
infinite adventures
Learning to fly trikes is easier and more comfortable now than ever before
As a new trike student you can begin your in-flight training today with a qualified
instructor
Modern trikes have evolved into forgiving and efficient aircraft that compare very favorably with other types of
ultralight aircraft
Many of today's trikes are certified aircraft, which are tested well beyond normal flying parameters for strength and
safe flying characteristics
Trike pilots often fly great distances to visit places others may never experience
Recently one intrepid triker flew completely around the world
The first time ever that such a light aircraft had succeeded in such a journey as
A triker you can take wing with friends and family or choose the solitude of solo flight
either way
Triking gives you the freedom to fly
So how do you get started?
As
With any type of aviation the easiest and safest means to learn is with a qualified instructor
your instructor can provide proof that he is rated with one of the national organizations as an instructor a
Trike instructor should have his trike set up for dual instruction so that the machine can be flown just as well from either seat
Get a trike instructor who has an honest-to-god trainer
This trike here is set up so it can be flown just as readily from the back seat as the front
I insist that a new student spend a half hour in the back seat
All he does then is just fly the roll of the machine just learn to fly headings and make some
gentle bank turns
But then after a half hour or an hour or whenever the student is comfortable
I'm ready to put him in the front seat
That's when the fun really starts now from the back seat as an instructor. I can steer the fork on the ground
This is very important
I can also obviously fly the wing
I have the throttle availability here on the seat rail and I have the magnetos over here
These are the four functions that are the sign of a good two-seat trainer
Let's take our first discovery flight with a professional trike instructor with a simple out and return flight
First your instructor will sign you up as a student pilot
And explain the basics of the federal air regulations that govern ultralight flight in the us
This is our ticket to freedom
We have a startup sequence it's kind of designed to guarantee that we never start the trike and it's at full throttle
The way you do that is simply make sure both throttles are closed before you spin the prop
So i'm going to go throttle closed. I actually touch it. Although I can see it throttle closed
And then mags on
And then key on and then you look around behind you and nice strong voice. You say clear prop
contact
With this particular plane the propeller doesn't spin until I give it throttle
So we're ready to roll
We will clear the runway for other traffic
Apply full throttle and use the control bar to push the nose all the way around
Use the control bar to push the nose all the way up
Now we accelerate down the runway until the wing has enough air speed to lift off
This happens between 20 and 30 miles per hour depending on the type of trike and the all-up total weight
Once airborne
You will always pull the bar in to guard your airspeed and improve your handling while flying close to the ground
As you climb away from the ground you may ease off on bar pressure and allow the wing to fly at trim speed
Trim speed is the speed the wing flies if you let go of the bar and have no forward and aft pressures on the control bar
Initially the instructor controls the trike soon
Often in the first few minutes of your flight the instructor will allow you to control the wing under his supervision
All airfields have patterns that are imaginary flight paths around the airfield
These patterns allow all aircraft to be predictable during arrival and departure
and while training students within the pattern
A typical ultralight pattern is lower and shorter than the surrounding general aviation pattern
Usually you take off and turn 90 degrees on to the departure leg
Once away from the airfield pattern you notice that the wing flies itself with very little pilot input
You can even temporarily let go of the bar if you like
The wing is designed to fly at a trim speed
Depending on the type of trike this designed trim speed can range from 30 to 60 miles per hour
Trim is the natural speed a wing will fly when the pilot is not pushing or pulling on the control bar
Let's use for an example a trike that has a trim speed of about 45 miles per hour
Such as the one we're flying now
If we push the bar out to slow down to say 35 miles per hour
We feel pressure on the bar as the wing wants to naturally go back to the trim speed of about 45 miles per hour
on its own
If we pull in on the bar to go faster say 60 miles per hour
Again, we feel pressure on the bar as the wing wants to naturally slow down to the trim speed of 45 miles per hour
The resistance we are feeling is called pitch pressure
When you feel this pitch pressure on the bar
This is the first step to getting the feel of the wing
Pitch pressure is important because it gives the pilot constant feedback about airspeed
Without need to look at an airspeed indicator
Get them up in the air and let them become comfortable
Just being in the air
If they've never had any aviation experience, once they're comfortable just being up in the air and they're relaxed
That's when they can learn they can comprehend
Then i'll let them go ahead and start steering the wing and getting comfortable with that
On a two-place trainer you can quickly get the feel of what it's like to climb up to the wildest
trainer you can quickly get the feel of what it's like to climb up to the wild blue yonder
safely under your instructor's supervision
Here you enter a totally different world the world of freedom
So
Coming in for a landing trike pilots use the standard aircraft approach
Approach ideally we will land facing into the wind but this is not critical because we have wheels and
Trikes handle crosswinds and even tailwinds with ease
The proper approach is a steep and fast finals will round out that skims the runway as we slow down
The main gear will touch the runway as we slow to landing speed
We then use the last of our airspeed to gently land the nose wheel
After your first discovery flight you are ready to start your training program in earnest
With about 10 to 15 hours of dual instruction you can solo in a familiar pattern
with a familiar trike in calm conditions
Your instructor will provide a ground school where you learn of and discuss such important aspects of flight instruction as
Meteorology, Theory, Airspace and Safety Concepts for Flying Trikes
Many trikes can handle a wide range of cargo weight
Since you attach all the trike weight at the design hangpoint
Staying within the weight limitations is the only weight and balance concern for the triker
Trikes can handle a wide range of wind conditions too
However, most training operations are scheduled during the calm morning and evening hours
During these calm conditions, the wing reacts only to the student's control inputs and not to the more dynamic midday air when solar heating creates thermal currents, wind and turbulence
The best training takes place when the wind is at 0 to 10 miles per hour with no gusts
And last but not least is a complete pre-flight inspection of the wing, the trike and the power system
I'm going to point out some of the features that I've learned to add on my machines because I fly them so much
This is a real key one having the mufflers sterling silver and ceramic coated
And what that does is it stops any corrosion and it looks good to last a long time
This aircraft is equipped with a clear polyethylene tank so you have a visual plus I have a gas gauge on my instrument panel
This is your 582 water-cooled engine, an integral electric start system
And one of my favorite items, we call it the chicken chopper, but it's a 6 blade prop
And what that does is it gives us some real quiet, slow tip speed because quiet is in, we like quiet
And the wing is 90% double surface, real tight and has top speed of about 80 knots
With our helmet systems, these are designed for quiet, comfort and warmth, wind protection slides down
We have communication here, our box system runs here, we have a CD player and push to talk with our radios
So we have communication with other aircraft
This instrument panel features knots in digital, gas fuel consumption, lift and sink indicator
All engine management systems we can run up and it just has got everything on it you could possibly need for an ultralight
Ignition on, clear props
When all feels right, you give it full throttle
In a trike, your power setting relates directly to your climb and descent rate
The more power you add, the faster you climb
You will climb best however at near trim speed
You descend best by reducing power to idle and pulling the nose down to gain airspeed
The angle of attack in a trike relates directly to airspeed and should not be confused with up and down
True, we do climb more efficiently if we push the nose up and we descend more rapidly if we pull the nose down
But what we are really doing is flying slower and faster
Flying wisdom states that a good approach makes for a good landing
We line up our approach to fly directly down the center line of our runway
We want to fly our final approach with lots of airspeed to be certain not to stall the wing on final and maintain optimum control
As we bring the trike down onto the runway for a flare
The wing will slow to trim speed as it glides along the ground
We gently push the nose up to stay off the runway until the rear main gear begins to touch
While the main gear is dragging, we slow even more to float the nose wheel to a soft landing
The perfect landing takes place when
At the same moment that the nose wheel touches the ground, the control bar touches the front strut of the trike
You cannot land a trike any slower than this
Landing is an art you will practice your whole flying career
For an instructor, landing must be a joy
Because your instructor career will consist of thousands of landings each year
Safety, always safety
The main thing is safety, safety, safety
I think safety comes with kind of a common sense issue
Safety is your number one thing that we deal with in this sport
Back of your mind going, if it goes quiet I'm going to go there, I'm going to go there
Or I'm going to turn around and go back the other way
That's the way you keep it safe
If you've got a lot of air speed, keep it up until you get right on the ground and then bleed it out
If you go too slow you'll fall out of the air and it can happen
You just have to keep that air speed up until you get right on the ground and then bleed it
Since the FAA laid out the regulations that govern ultralight flight in the US
Ultralight pilots have proven that self-regulation works
FAA part 103 defines the freedoms and restrictions under which trikes operate
Defined in a few simple paragraphs
There is no license required to fly a single seat legal ultralight
No student triker should be without a good understanding of the ultralight rules and regulations that allow us to fly free
Soon we begin to seek new horizons far from the training areas and patterns
This stage of learning requires a better knowledge of weather
Weather is the spice of flight
If every day were blue skies and light winds, flying could lose its mystery
When you achieve flying proficiency in smooth conditions
You begin to fly later in the day and into stronger weather
Evaluating the weather helps you make decisions that are appropriate for the aircraft you fly and your skill level
You will study weather from a global, a regional and a local viewpoint to forecast what factors will affect your flight
Learning how to evaluate weather to fly is a significant goal for any pilot
Trikers have a wide variety of craft to choose from
There are slow wings and fast wings, single seat or two seat
There are trainers, aero tugs, float planes, a wide variety for different types of flying
Look at a lot of trikes, there's a lot of good trikes out there
Talk to people that fly them, there's good used gear out there, people get it all the time
But keep your eyes open and get somebody that you consider to be knowledgeable if you're not yourself knowledgeable
New trikers practice flight technique for skill and accuracy and the most intensive practice is the low pass
While low on the runway, the new triker develops a soft touch for pitch and power settings and centerline control as well
Trikers practice maneuvers and procedures that may be encountered in emergency situations
Trikes are gliders after all, they perform well with the engine switched off and they are capable of landing in short and rough fields
A typical practice exercise is to shut the engine off at altitude, glide into a pattern, then fly the pattern to a spot landing
Any pilot should keep this practice in mind while flying away from his airport and always keep a friendly field within an easy glide
There is never any reason not to have somewhere to land in your trike
If you find yourself in this position, you either fly high over the terrain, you fly around the terrain or you go back
Your instructor should be willing to offer you training in stalls, steep bank turns and unusual attitudes
Many trike wings are certified for mellow, forgiving stall characteristics and they are all nearly impossible to spin
The more air time you accumulate and the more landings, touch and goes, low passes and emergency procedures you practice
The better you will handle weather and occurrences
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With the experience you build from rigorous flight training, you are ready for complete freedom to fly
Up in Golden, BC, my wife and I, we did across the Canadian Rockies from Golden, up over Lake Louise and into the Banff area
And then the conditions were quite rough above the Canadian Rockies, so I got above the clouds on the way back and flew it back to Golden
And incredible views, breathtaking stuff, stuff you will never forget the rest of your life and will be with you forever
My most memorable flight? That's a tough one
I've flown the 3,000 foot sea cliffs of Molokai where there had been a landslide where the rubble fell half a mile and created 15 new acres of land at the shoreline
I've circled down into the center of West Maui Mountains as the waterfalls just kept twirling around me as I descended 2,500 feet
Maybe flying over the big island's active volcano and seeing lava flowing into the ocean
These are the things that you can only see from a trike and these etched memories in my mind that will never go away
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So if you want your freedom to fly, triking can help you realize your dreams
The time is right, the time is now, start triking today
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