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on the risers until the wing is overhead.
Do not pull down or push the risers forward excessively, or the
leading edge will deform and possibly collapse making taking-off
more difficult and potentially dangerous.
Move smoothly throughout the entire launch, there is no need to
rush or snatch at it. You should have plenty of time to look up and
check your canopy before committing yourself. Once you are happy
that the Slalom is inflated correctly, progressively apply full power
and accelerate smoothly for the launch.
NOTE: The trimmers should be set to the lower white line
position for better inflation behaviour during take-off. This
is especially important in light winds and/or at high alti-
tudes.
Reverse Launch -Light to Strong Winds
Lay out your Slalom as you would for the forward launch. However,
this time face the wing, and attach the risers in the correct manor
(half a turn in each riser, and crossed in the direction you want to
turn). Now you can pull up the Slalom by its A-risers. Once the
wing is overhead, brake it gently, turn and launch.
In stronger winds, be prepared to take a few steps towards the
glider as it inflates. This will take some of the energy out of the
glider and it will be less likely to over-fly you. Once stable and
above your head apply progressive power and accelerate smoothly
for a controlled take off.
IMPORTANT: Never attempt to take off with a glider that is
not fully inflated, directly overhead or if you are not fully in
control of the pitch/roll of the wing.
Practice ground handling and launching as much as possible! It is
great fun, and will give you a much better feel for your Slaloms
flight characteristics. It will also improve your overall enjoyment of
flying by making your launches easier and safer.
The Climb Out
Once in the air you should continue flying into wind whilst gain-
ing height. By setting the trimmers to the first white line position
you will achieve the best climb rate. Do not attempt to climb too
steeply or too quickly by using the brakes or slow trim. The wing
already has a high angle of attitude, coupled with a higher AoA (if
you use the brakes) plus the engine's full thrust acting on the pilot,
this could contribute to make the glider more prone to stall. Fur-
thermore, in the event of an engine failure the resulting backward
pendulum motion of the pilot and the forward dive of the wing may
bring you back to the ground very hard. Do not initiate turns until
you have sufficient height and airspeed. Avoid low turns downwind
with insufficient airspeed.
The Slalom is well damped in roll but under certain circumstances
it is possible for the pilot to induce oscillations. This is caused by
a combination of the engine/propeller torque and pilot weight
shift and/or brake inputs. To stop oscillations it is best to reduce
the power slightly and ensure that you remain static with weight
shift and brake inputs. Once settled you can once again apply full
power.
Under full power the torque effect will attempt to gently turn the
wing, using weight shift or adjusting the trims asymmetrically is
the best method to correct this.
The handling characteristic of the Slalom is truly amazing. We have
worked hard on tuning the wing so that it turns tightly but also
efficiently, as the ability to climb in a turn is very important for
powered and free flight, making the climb out fun and thermalling
easy.
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