“Nobody likes to walk with a heavy rucksack” Martin said “Absolutely nobody”. We were preparing our next expedition and I couldn’t agree more while packing my wonderful Soar. So excited about this new biv-flying adventure. It’s all about your own rules, making your own decisions. Where. When. How. Would you go for a full autonomy? Would you use only your feet and wing? Oh and obviously you can change your mind. That’s what I thought when I got on a train, to cross a tricky valley that barred our way.
The train was crowded with people and poultry and we had to split our stuff. I kept my wing with me and while the chickens were staring at this funny hand luggage, I thought about the choice of the Soar. Martin was a mentor for me. He said you need a wing you feel comfortable with. It has to be light and compact. It must be informative for the early morning thermals and performant to push to get through a mountain pass. Well he had just painted the portrait of the Soar.
When you find yourself doing a bivouac adventure with such a toy, you get the privilege of starting the day early, in the first rays of sun while the valley floor is still in the shade; the satisfaction of finding a nice place to sleep after an epic flight. “That should be illegal” my friend exclaimed “…That’s what I call a hold-up” I replied.
We used our experience in building light gliders -such as the HERO- to create the Soar, the light version of the Rise4. Cloth on top and bottom and ribs are all made in double coated skytex27 (classic II).
The lines are unsheathed (Aramid, Edelrid 8000U), risers are made with a 3,7mm dyneema rope from Edelrid named Taurus.