Thursday, June 14, 2012

Welcome to the international site of "Pilgerflug"! - a unique and fascinating project, now taking place during the entire month of july, 2012.
I write this english knowing that you may wish your language but you still can translate it by tools of the www!

Well, however, I will tell you the story now.....I had a dream when biking alone along the famous "Pilgrim path of Santiago de Compostela" in northern Spain in june 2011.
What would it be like if I try to fly it by paraglider and do a filming about the people, the landscapes, the energies and emotions connected to all this?

Flying and hiking the Pilgrim path from the french Pyrenees down across Northern Spain to Santiago and the Atlantic Ocean at Cabo Finisterre over 1000 Kilometers!

In september 2011 I realized that considering the climatic conditions a flight attempt on a non-motorized glider would turn into a total failure and end up in hiking all the way, or, nearly most of it.

I met Ales Hubacek from www.skyjam-paragliders.com during a small free flying fair and talked about my dream. I could convince Ales to join in and, moreover, offer his capacities as a constructor of motorized paragliders and motors for that kind of flying.
Actually in the months following he started investing much of his efforts, money and energy into the development of a totally new equipment, lets say, two prototypes, adapted to the situation we have to face during that project. Small wings and lightweight engines, which can be pulled along a path when its not flyable.

During that time I was working as independant Adventureguide, doing my trips around the world with clients from Germany and Switzerland. I came back to Germany to meet up with Ales in april in southern Switzerland for my first launch attempt on that kind of glider.

I must confess, until then I never ever had launched on a motor glider! For me it became necessary to do so and do it quickly and train the hell out with it and obtain a license to be on the legal side once we're over Spain.

Our project had grown into something and money was invested but no sponsor/donator found so far.

May arrived and we met again for the serious training in Solany, Northern Tchech Republic, amidst a beautiful and peaceful volcanic landscape.
On my first attempt I messed up, damaging one prop, but once it became clear for me that I really had to stay focused and follow Ales instructions and I made some changes with the adjustments of my harness and it finally worked out.
I launched into a bright and calm evening on may, 19 and had an hour long trip 1000 meters from the ground.

Our third pilot is Hanka Harencarova, Ales girlfriend. She will fly a trike for two pulling up a bigger glider. And follow our journey in the air. The passenger with her will be our supposed cameraman, Dominik Mueller from Zurich.
It was my job to convert that contact into a convinced crew member and Dominik came to my home and we talked, talked and it became clear that he would come aboard! Wow!

We started planning features for the film and also how to get him to Spain without carrying all his equipment on a plane.

The last member of our newborn crew is Werner Harbich whom I met during a lecture on mental training that I gave for paraglider pilots in Tannheim, Austria on june,2.
Werner is great and spontaneous guy who loves new ideas. He is retired and runs a mobilhome which provides the space for up to 4 people plus trolling behind more flight equipment in a separate container.

So thats the team and we will launch over the first weekend of july from Germany across switzerland across France down to St.Jean Pied de Port, our first take off on the french side.Day july,4.
Countdown running.........

Remember:
We are not doing a record for our egos, we are just carrying out a dream we had....a vision to come to life....whatever the obstacles maybe, whatever money or not we have, we have invested our faith, our hearts and thats what counts.

The goal of or journey is to demonstrate that the quest for a bigger horizon and task in life neither ends on the ground nor starts in the air but works out for us in the synthesis of both elements bringing back into our awareness that universal spirit which has gone lost for many of us in this modern world but is still there around us. So we take a walk and take a look "upon-and in-between" of a path that neither the modern world nor religious ideology have influenced so much but first and foremost the spirit of man - full of hope, full of faith, ready to find answers, ready for the smallest miracle in life. And this road is full of it!


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