This morning had that crisp feel that makes you throw open the windows and doors and invite the fresh air inside. I could see the bass striking the surface of the glassy lake behind our house – and they’re hungry enough even a hacker like me can catch them – but we decided to go hang gliding instead of fishing.

After a quick dip in the pool, my husband Paul and I drove to Quest, the small airport south of Groveland that we fly out of, only ten minutes away. Neil and his friend Jiame buzzed around in his Renegade Spirit Airplane. We call it the Mickey Mouse plane because it looks like a cartoon plane – check out the pictures!

I asked Bobby Bailey if I could snap a few pictures of him in his Pepto-Bismol pink Bailey-Moyes Dragonfly. The Dragonfly is an overpowered, slow, ultra-light plane designed (by Bobby) specifically to tow hang gliders and is used all over the world. Asking Bobby if he’s willing to fly is like asking a ten year old if he’s willing to eat a candy bar. A few minutes later he was looping (a loop is like a back flip), spinning and rolling. We all clapped and hooted while he got crazy.

I helped a few other pilots launch before Bobby towed me up to about half a mile high, the altitude where we usually release from tow. Flying a hang glider is birdlike, very quiet and peaceful.  In fact, we use thermal lift – the columns of hot air that rise and form clouds – to stay aloft, just like the birds do. You can fly a glider hundreds of miles and for hours on end, all without a motor. Pretty cool. Vultures and hawks and eagles routinely circle with us over the swamps, pastures and orange groves.

I fly all the time but almost anybody can go for a ride in a tandem glider. It has landing gear, like a plane, so there’s no running involved; you just roll in on the smooth grass. The experienced pilot takes off and lands, but you can fly it at altitude. You really should try it at least once. Here are some links where you can learn more: http://questairforce.com/ , http://www.wallaby.com/, http://www.thefloridaridge.com.

Everybody had fun. Paul felt pleased with his new competition glider, an Aeros Combat, and I felt just as pleased with my flight in my recreational glider, the Pulse. I have a comp glider, too, but the Pulse is simple to fly and stress free. We opted to go home and relax with martinis on the lanai instead of dining out; we’re going to check out a polo match tomorrow!