"Deftly they opened the brain of a child and it was full of
flying dreams" Stanley Kunitz. (Kunitz was the U.S. poet Laureate 2000-2001)

I have always wanted to fly. I always had dreams of flying. Prior to
flying, I would take week long hikes in the mountains. I loved the
altitude, I loved looking out over the valley. Looking down from the
peak, I would see the birds soaring below me; I would wish that I could
be there in the air with the birds.

During my college days, a friend's family had a beach cabin at Kitty
Hawk, N.C. During summer breaks, we would travel to the beach cabin.
Francis Rogallo owned the cabin next door. The friendship that
developed with Rogallo during the 60's further increased my desire to
fly. At the time, his hang glider more closely resembled today's
parasail. The wing had no rigid pipes and was controlled by wing
warping with two control lines. He would tether the hang glider to the
beach and fly with the strength of the ocean winds. He would give
"rides" to non experienced pilots. With the "passenger" strapped in,
Rogallo would 'fly' the glider like a kite from the ground with two long
control lines. It was my desire and dream to fly his glider like a sea
gull over the beach. Unfortunatly, I never got to go for the ride. The
winds necessary were never strong enough during my visits.

Hang gliders start gaining in popularity, but since I lived in flat
Florida, they weren't an option. I took what I thought was the next
logical step; I learned to fly power planes. It was boring. It wasn't
real flying, it was operating a machine. The person who taught me to
fly was also a tow pilot at a commercial glider operation.

I went to the glider operation and took my first glider ride. I was
hooked. I continued with lessons and transitioned to the old 2-32.
Now, this was flying. Although I loved flying gliders, I still had the
nagging feeling in my brain that it wasn't quite close enough. The
glider was still a machine. There had to be something that was still
closer to 'real flying'. The old thoughts of Rogallo's hang glider
lingered in my brain.

In the mid 70's, I called Rogallo and asked him if he could teach me to
fly a hang glider. He turned down by request for two reasons. One was
that he wasn't a flying teacher and the second was that a hang gliding
school had been created on Jockey's Ridge. I went up to Kitty Hawk to
rekindle an old friendship and learn to fly hang gliders. The wind gods
were favorable and I finally learned to fly.

The next step was a flight off of Lookout Mountain, a height of 1200'.
I flew out over the valley and I finally saw a flock of birds flying
below me. The feeling that I felt at that moment is the answer to your
question of, "why do we soar"

There is more to my story and I am back flying sail planes, but the
question has been answered.


JuanM wrote:
I'm working on a video and a print project on soaring, and would appreciate
receiving your collective input. We all love this special sport, and are
always trying to convey its uniqueness to strangers.

I would appreciate if you can write a SHORT paragraph about why soaring (and
soaring competition if that is what you do) is so special to you. Why do you
do it? What does it mean to you? How important is it in your life? You can
post here or email me at . Let me know if I can quote your name
or if you would rather remain anonymous.

I will be posting news on the video project here soon.

Thank you very much!

Juan Mandelbaum
"Z8"