Wing-Over

Description:

The Wing-Over is a series of dynamic turns, whilst the pilot swings „over the wing”. It’s the base of the whole acro paragliding, but also a pretty difficult manouvres to learn (especially because you just start acro when you try the first Wing-Overs). The key of this trick is the perfect timing of weight shifting and braking.

Preparation:

Open the chest strap of your harness as much as possible to make it more sensible for weight shifting. Take one wrap on both side if the brakelines are long.

Enter:

Start a fast turn to the left by weight shifting and braking. Just after you starts to dive, release the brake, shift your weight to the right, and pull the right brake when you are at the lowest point. Now as the glider roll to the other side, you swing up and the canopy will be in front of you. Brake the glider by both brakes at the highest point to prevent collapse on the upper side of the wing. Once you start to dive again, release the brakes, shift your weight to the left and pull the left brake on the lowest point. Don’t forget the braking on the upper death point! As you continue this movement you will swing up higher and higher.

Advanved technique:

Complete your turns (do more than 180 degrees turns) to get a closed „8” figure movement instead of a series of „S” turns. If your technique is right and you have enough energy, you don’t have to brake the glider at the highest point anymore, just like in a well done Looping. Note that to be able to leave the braking at all you need a pretty dynamic glider and good technique.

If I want to built up the Wing Over faster, I always start with a short Spin. Pull down the brake pretty hard immediately, until the glider starts to spin. After it turned about 45-90 degrees, release the brake and control the following surge. As you swing back under the glider, you pick up speed, and by using this energy you’ll be able to reach the level of the glider (or so) just in the next turn. Please don’t try this way before you are not confident with the normal technique and Spins.

Exit:

You have to bleed out the energy gradually. The simplest and safest way is to lead out by 1-2 complete turns. If you are not confident with Deep Spirals, choose the next option:
Decrease the amplitude of the Wing-Over by less weight shift and brake input, until you are not swinging anymore.

Dangers!

If you don’t brake (or not enough) the glider at the highest point, you can get huge and dynamic collapses on the upper side (big danger of large cravattes, riser twists etc.).
At the beginning start the weight shifting just after you pass the highest point, and pull the brake before the lowest. By this your Wing-Over won’t be so high, but it will be more dynamic and safer. When you feel confident, you can pull it later and later, to increase the amplitude of the turns. Be careful, if you start to brake after the lowest point, the following turn could be very high, but you loose too much energy and there’s high risk to get a big collapse on the top of the roll (and than you fall down next to the canopy!). However if you feel it’s gonna happens (you slow down too much, and the lines starts to loose the tension) pull down the brakes deeply until you start to swing back under the glider (the brake pressure will be very slight) to prevent the collapse or leastwise to moderate the consequenses.