josef bostik <> writes:

You are absolutely right about the Wyoming weather. I have flown hangliders, paragliders and Beech 1900 for Mesa Airlines over Wyoming, and nowhere else did I get more surprises than in Wyoming.

70kts winds from nowhere, temperature swings of 70°F, ice, clear lightning, severe turbulence from nowhere and invisible gust fronts (because all the dust already blew away).

It is Cowboy Up al’right.

You say Owens is bad, hang around Wyoming, and you will get your ass kicked silly!

One day I took off in little to no wind conditions from a small hill southwest of Laramie, WY at 3:00pm with Brad Koji and friends.

A massive front came and blew me to Fort Collins at ground speeds of over 100mph. No kidding. I was at 18000ft, trying to stay in the air, so I would not have to land among the Semi trucks that I was visibly passing on the interstate. 45 minutes later I landed east of Fort Collins and it was a horseshoe flight as I got blown around the North corner of the Denver range.

Banning Pass is nothing compared to what I experienced that day, except there was plenty of lift. The rest of the gang chose to land in the approaching front. I do not know what was safer, but I know what was more fun, though.

I love that kind of big air, experiencing the force of mother nature at its best.

Safety? Save that for the real life!

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