"Paragliding Khao Pang, Chumphon"

We stayed on the beach not too far away from the flying site Khao Pang. Clear, blue water on the beach, very different from Haad Chao Samran in Petchaburi where you see the impact of the urban areas around the Bay of Thailand.

Ursi from Switzerland had been driving all the way from hom twice !! in this 6 WD former army vehicle.

The road up to the take off was pretty bad and bumpy but no problem with 4 WD and low gear. All four of us had nice flights. On Tim's land there was an excellent landing area which looked like a golf course. Thank you Tim! For more info about this flying site look up the International Flightlog on the Internet - http://no.flightlog.org/

”Paragliding (and hanggliding?) at Khao Den, Petchaburi)”

For some days we have been living on the beach, in Haad Chao Samran. In the daytime we go to Khao Den. The mountain is of volcanic origin. It seems that the lava has cooled down on the surface long time ago. The rock is almost black. In between there are large areas of quartz which have been quarried, probably for gemstones. In some places you find nice crystals of quartz.

There has been flying every day. The day before yesterday I did not fly because of forest fires around on the mountain. Yesterday I set up my hangglider, but the wind did not cooperate so I only got a short paraglider flight before the wind slowed down. Three other pilots got nice flights.

Tomorrow we go on to Chumphon and Khao Pang.

”Testing my new paramotor trike”

I pulled the trike to the sportsfield just across the road, arranged the Adventure wing properly. 75 kilo thrust is quite a lot!!! In nil wind I was airborne in a few seconds even if my intention was not to take off. The second time I pressed the accelerator more conservatively.

"Paragliding/hanggliding at Khao Den and Khao Pang"

Tomorrow we are leaving for Petchaburi to check out Khao Den flying site together with Bengt. If the weather cooperates, we will continue south to Chumphon and Khao Pang and visit Tim. I phoned Tim one hour ago. He was on the the take off, but the wind was quite strong. Lucky Tim - he lives almost at the landing.

”The strawberry season is on”

DELICIOUS! DELICIOUS!

What about a smoothie topped up with fresh strawberries grown by yourself at this time of the year! Mmmmm!

”Hanggliding (?) at Khao Sadao and new paramotor trike from Chantaburi”

It seems that the only thing my Wills Wing Falcon appreciates is free rides by car. The wind was very OK at 2 AM, but except for a full moon it was too dark for flying. Instead I cut lots of grass (3 hours work) at the takeoff.

On Monday we drove to Chantaburi to get my new paramotor trike. It is made by Nipon who also produces propellers from wood. Excellent quality and only about 1.800 baht a piece which is about 350 Norwegian Kroner. Quite different from what you have to pay in Norway, I guess.

The paramotor looked superb. Yamaha 150 cc, pushes 75 kilo, hydraulic shock absorbers on all wheels, electric starter, 14 liter gasoline tank. This will be great!

”Thermals in the air at Khao Sadao”

on Saturday and Sunday is what I hope for (see meteorogram). I will give the thermals a try.

On Monday I am going to Chantaburi to get my new paramotor trike.

Next week I will probably go to Phetchaburi and visit Khao Den, a flying site on easterly winds.

”Det robuste Norge”

Ord er ikke bare ord. Når honnørordet ”robust” nå trekkes frem fra møllposen, har vel de såkalt ansvarlige byråkrater og politikere passert grensen for meningssvada og politisk masturbering (Atle kan vel tillate seg å innføre egne tvilsomme begreper)?

Av ot til står det noe interessant i Dagbladet. Som denne artikkelen: ”Norge er robust. Ahus også” http://www.dagbladet.no/2013/01/18/kultur/debatt/lordagskommentaren/kjetil_rolness/robust/25302700/

Jeg legger ved et lite avsnitt fra artikkelen skrevet av Kjetil Rolnes

:

”Høgskolen i Oslo og Akershus vil bli universitet. Da er det ifølge rektor Kari Toverud Jensen «kritisk viktig å videreutvikle institusjonen på en slik måte at fagmiljøene er robuste». Skoleledelsen vedtok at robuste fagmiljøer skulle være «et av flere kriterier/premisser for kartleggings- og analysefasen» i «gjennomføringsprosessen for utvikling av ny strategisk plan», men ante ikke hva den selv snakket om, og måtte søke hjelp fra egen fagstab:

«- Hva er et fagmiljø og hvilke betingelser må være på plass for å ha et fagmiljø? - Hvor går yttergrensene for hvor smalt eller bredt et fagmiljø bør være? - Hvilke kvaliteter, omfang og støtteapparat har et bærekraftig og robust fagmiljø som er stabilt over tid? - Hvordan kan vi måle graden av robusthet? - Hvor skal grensene trekkes mellom individuell spesialisering og faglig overlapp både institusjonelt og i en nasjonal kontekst der vi har en unik og komplementerende institusjonell profil? - Hvordan kan vi definere robusthet i lys av institusjonens oppgaver?» Osv.

Jeg skal spare leseren for alle prosessens konklusjoner. Men man fant ut at stabilitet, kompetanse, kvalitet, aktivitet og ressurser var fine greier. Skolens mest robuste fagperson, Rune Slagstad, har forøvrig sluttet.”

Artikkelen avslutter slik: ”Kanskje vi skal huske det neste gang, i en annen sammenheng, slik at vi lettere kjenner lusa på gangen og lukter ugler i mosen. Når noen bruker ordet «robust» på en motiverende, oppbyggelig eller ha-stemt måte, kan du bare være sikker på én ting: Noen er i trøbbel.”

”Phu Thap Boek and Khao Sadao”

Sleeping in a tent at 1.750 meters asl is quite cold even in Thailand. Still there were lots of Thais up there.

Last Friday to Saturday there was a paraglider meeting at Phu Thap Boek. About 70 pilots were present including 3 hangglider pilots (including me). The wind was from the back, from the side and I did not unpack my hangglider. Seeing the two other hangglider pilots take off I think that was a very wise decision…

Starting with a paraglider in conditions like these is much easier because the wing is many meters above your head. Two flights for me and lits of flights for the other pilot.

The Hmong people on the mountain grow cabbage, sunflowers, and strawberries.

A special longicorn beetle stayed on top of our tent for several days.

On Sunday we went to Khao Sadao together with Yann from France. As the thermals were not very strong I chose to fly my paraglider. Just outside Wat Khao Sadao a smooth thermal lifted me up to 1.618 meters asl. As the wind up there would carry me towards Dan Khun Thot and Chayaphum I chose to go down for a top landing.

”Vil gjøre det vanskeligere å bli erklært utilregnelig”

er overskriften i en notis i Aftenpostens nettutgave nå rett før nyttår.

Valget av akkurat dette bildet og denne overskriften kan neppe ha vært helt tilfeldig? Overskriften dekker dessuten ikke innholdet i artikkelen på en god måte. I så måte er linken nedenfor bedre: Vil ikke at psykotiske lovbrytere automatisk slipper straff.

http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/Vil-ikke-at-psykotiske-lovbrytere-automatisk-slipper-straff-7080142.html

Humor av denne sorten er vel over streken, Aftenposten? Vi får regne med at Aftenposten regner Faremo som tilregnelig selv om bildet taler for det motsatte… (Atle regner med at de fleste vil regne bruken av ordet regn som dårlig humor spesielt når det er vinter og de fleste ønsker seg snø fremfor regn)

”Samuel Steinmann, den siste gjenlevende norske jøden som ble sendt til tyske konsentrasjonsleirer med «Donau»”

Siste dag før julaften leser jeg denne artikkelen i Dagbladet: Se http://www.dagbladet.no/2012/12/21/magasinet/samuel_steinmann/auschwitz/konsentrasjonsleir/andre_verdenskrig/24933888/

Artikkelen avsluttes slik:

”Snøen på den jødiske gravlunden på Helsfyr i Oslo gjør gravstøttene svartere. Samuel har denne gammelmannens vugging der han med vante steg beveger seg langs stien til minnesmerket. Alle navnene. Han tar av seg hanskene, stryker over bokstavene i steinen: «Harry Steinmann».

Så går han derfra, over den jorda der han en dag selv skal graves ned. Den siste av dem alle.

Kanskje glemmer vi også ham?

Alt forsvinner. Vi er bare spor i snøen.

Som de siste linjene i Hans Børlis dikt om jødeutryddelsen:

Tiden -

Glemselen -

den mest uovervinnelige

makt på Jorden.”

”Paraglider and groundhandling”

I am still waiting for my paramotor. At Khao Phrik it is possible to fly now, but you (I?) have to cut away grass and bushes for safe takeoffs.

When the wind picked up a bit in the middle of the day I decided to release my paraglider from indoor custody.

The glider seemed happy to feel fresh air and wind because it played me some pranks today. Although there was not very much wind it managed to lift me up a meter or so in pure happiness after being bagged for a long time.

”Merry Christmas”

Write Merry Christmas on both cakes was the message to the bakery. And that was what the bakery did: God jul på begge kakene or Merry Christmas on both cakes.

Atle showed the photo to a man from Sweden (everybody in Norway at least knows there is something special about the Swedes).

- Was that supposed to be funny? he asked…!!!

”Princes of China or the biggest robbery in history”

This article is in Norwegian http://www.dn.no/forsiden/borsMarked/article2521531.ece

You will find lots of info in English if you google ”gang of princelings”.

Worthwhile reading for high level robbers in Russia, North Korea and other countries?

”Global warning from Doha to citizens of the Earth?”

Beware! Beware! Two weeks in Doha spent by representatives from about 200 countries did not result in tangible outcomes.

IF global warning is a fact of the near future, IF global warning is as threat to the existence of much of life on Earth, how can we respect and look up to politicians who openly close their eyes to what they know is going to happen?

No answer to that question here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/dec/08/doha-climate-change-deal-nations or http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/uriks/Kyoto-2-er-vedtatt-7065246.html

”Flowers of Thailand”

To get a better view of small flowers like this one you have to get down on your knees.

”No paramotortrike so far,”

but it is assembled in Chantaburi and will probably be ready in the latter half of this month. The rainy season is definitely finished, and the wind has turned to N, NE.

When the new road up to Khao Phrik is ready for driving that will be a superb takeoff. Steady wind almost all the time. You just go there in the morning waiting for the thermals to pick you up in the blue sky. Easy!

”Stoltenberg avviser at 22.juli-kommisjonen avdekket en «ukultur». Det bør bekymre oss,”

skriver politisk kommentator Berit Aalborg. Mer på http://www.nrk.no/ytring/stoltenbergs-_u_kultur-1.8834565

 

Den første setningen i kronikken lyder slik: ” «Jeg vil ikke bruke ordet ukultur. Det handler om en kultur som ikke har god nok beredskapsforståelse», sa statsminister Jens Stoltenberg (Ap) under 22.juli-høringen på Stortinget i går.”

Tja…! Hva skal man si til slikt? Atle har ikke ord, men er storlig imponert over alle toppfolkene som stadig messer om å ”ta ansvar” uten at det synes at de gjør nettopp det. Atles inntrykk er dette er en snedig form for ansvarsfraskrivelse. Lite eller ingenting skjer. Trolig er det best slik! For Stoltenberg og hans kumpaner i det politiske og offentlige liv.

Ett av vannskillene mellom demokrati og diktatur går på den måten lederne tar ansvar.

”Flowers of Thailand”

This is the start of a cucumber like edible vegetable (boap in the local language). You have to boil it before eating. Not very tasty but possible to eat.

Free Counters

”Only cutting grass…”

The wind and weather did not cooperate. Saturday there were heavy showers, and Sunday there was tailwind as you can see on the photo. However the grass is cut in the take off area.

”Ready for Khao Sadao on Saturday”

But will the wind cooperate? That remains to be seen. The meteorogram promises wind from southerly directions, and the sun has moved a bit to the south so there is a possibility of thermals generated in the hillside tomorrow or on Sunday. I bring my hangglider in case it is windy (which I do not believe) and my paraglider just in case…

Then there is some grass to cut. You cannot believe how fast the grass grows in the tropics after a few heavy showers.

”Flowers of Thailand”

This exquisite blue flower is in fact a widespread weed around here. I didn’t recognize the beauty of this flower until I magnified this photo.

”Flowers of Thailand”

Is this a flower? Definitely yes. You will find it everywhere around where people live.

”Flowers of Thailand”

Not very nice but gives yous omething to eat  some months from now:

B

A

N

A

N

A

”Flowers of Thailand”

Looks like an orchid, but is not. This is a flower of a tree. It produces edible bean looking seeds. The wonders of the world are very close to you…

”Flowers of Thailand”

Believe it or not – chili pepper has flowers – and they look like this. Nice, isn’t it?

”Wills Wing Falcon 3 at Khao Sadao, but not at Khao Phrik…”

I hope my hangglider enjoyed the trip to Khao Sadao. No flying due to tailwind. I walked up to Khao Phrik – 10 minutes of sweating, sun, and 34 degrees in the shadow.

The wind was from the left, that is NNE, so I didn’t carry any glider (para- and especially hangglider). Someone had cut bushes and trees in front of the start, but still there were some obstacles. I would not start there with a paraglider if I was not more than 100 % sure to be lifted up right after take off.

Today machines start making a road up to a new take off at Khao Phrik. Ten days from now the road will be finished (so they say), and we will have a supreme take off on wind from northerly directions. Then Khao Sadao and nearby Khao Phrik will be the Mecca of paragliding and hanggliding in Thailand.

”News from China – Some animals are more equal than other animals”

Sorry! This article is in Norwegian, a language spoken by a privileged few…:

”«Alle dyr er like. Men noen dyr er likere enn andre», skrev George Orwell i sin satiriske roman «Animal Farm». Snart er Xi Jinping det aller likeste av alle dyrene i Kina.”

For more see http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/verden/1.8378061

”Underwater bicycling!”

I know Paul has been a diving instructor. Still I was surprised at Had Chom Tawan today when Paul did not stop at the water’s edge as John and I did.

He got rid of his backpack and went riding straight into the lake. Deeper and deeper and deeper. At last he disappeared underwater.

People around were quite astonished.

Half a minute later he surfaced, still bicycling…

Some fun, sure!