Dan Zink: Hi my name is Dan Zink. I am an Advanced Instructor with Lookout Mountain Hand Gliding. We are learning the basics of hand gliding and our next step is to go to the hill, and actually practice launching. Now, we have learned previously how to launch the slider on flat ground, we have practiced how to run, we know our safety checks. Now, we are ready to fly-off the hill. So, what we have to do is basically practice our ground running technique, we have got to focus on our target. We have got to run and keep running, don't quit running too soon. You may think you are going in the air before you are. Just keep running three steps in the air, and of course, the big secret here is light hands, let the glider fly because it knows how to fly so well. You want to just let it fly.

Remember, my thought in my brain is I am going for a ground run, okay. Remember in our ground run technique, we are actually thinking, eyes on target and relax your hands, that's what you have to be thinking about. You can't really be thinking about, I am going to run down that hill, or you can't be thinking, I am going to go fly. Think about your technique, I am going to run right to that target. And for my case, it's that tree with a nice big tree trunk. Can you guy's see it? I am just going to look, I am going to be dead set locked on that tree trunk, okay? Alright, so same technique, it's on my shoulders right, got my target, that would set my pitch, and my wings are in level. So, I am going to go, okay. So, just clear, walk, don't change anything, and then jog and then run like you are on baywatch, keep running. He knows he is pretty good, your wings filled up. Male speaker: Yeah.

Dan Zink: Your back is relaxed.

Male speaker: Yeah! Dan Zink: Cool! When you are ready say clear, we are going to walk, walk to your target, jog to your target, run, let go, let go and run, let go, let go, let go, let go, let go, alright. He was doing everything perfect except he was just pulling in just a little bit, so he was having his nose fly just a little lower. He was flying at the same trajectory as the hill. So he didn't get above the hill, otherwise he would flying there. Now, this is the hardest launch you guy's will ever have to launch off. The mountain, looks so scary and steep, he would have been in the air after two steps, because it's so much easier. With the fly to the slope, the harder it is. Who is ready. Looks great dude, whenever you are ready. Male speaker: Clear. Dan Zink: Hey! Walk, jog, run, let it float, let it float, let it float, let it float, let go. Yeah, pull in, yeah. Man that was a good one. Okay, now that we have learned a launch from the hill, we are going to go fly tandem where the student is trapped in next to the instructor. And we will fly up to 2000 feet and practice the whole way.