Sport Paragliding San Francisco / Sacramento CA
Para Cruzer
Paratoys Valley Springs, CA (PPG)

And for those simply looking for an amazing once in a life time weekend adventure there is the option of scheduling a tandem flight.

If you are already a pilot and simply looking to connect with other pilots in the area or need a site intro below is a list of resources.

NC Paragliding Forum  Yahoo group for pilots in Northern CA.
Blue Rock Twitter List
Paragliding Bay Area Map (coming soon)

The 1950s is when paragliding as people know it today really began to take shape. It began with the invention of the Paracommender that had an oblong canopy with vents in the back. The vents allowed some rudimentary steering capability.

Domina Jalbert is one of the paragliding pioneers who revolutionized the sport in the 50s and 60s. A native Canadian, he settled in Florida and established a business in researching and understanding aerology. He introduced gliding parachutes that can be easily controlled in 1952. They were much more technically advanced than parachutes of the previous years.

After Jalbert’s work in the early 50′s, people began to see the potential of his discoveries. They began talking about the day when people would be able to fly by running over a cliff or down a steep slope. Francis and Gertrude Rogallo finished off the exciting decade in the world of paragliding by inventing the Rogallo wing, which was originally designed for NASA. The technology came to be used in paragliders and hand gliders.

Domina Jalbert’s most exciting contributions were made in the 1960s. He filed the “Multi-cell Wing Type Aerial Device” patent in 1963. The technology became imperative in a number of air sports including paragliding, sky diving, and kite surfing. In 1964, he created the Ram Air canopy that achieved a wing shape when filled by air.

In 1965, David Barish was working on the Sail Wing that was meant for helping with the recovery of NASA capsules. After first testing it out in Hunter Mountain, New York, he called it “slope soaring” and began promoting it as a summer activity for resorts. David Barish is arguably the most important figure in paragliding history as it is thought that he was the first creator of paragliding as people know it today.

NASA coined the term “paraglider” in the 1960s, and the word “paragliding” was first widely used in the 1970s. The British Air Association of Parascending was the first established organization to put the spotlight on paragliding as a sport. In 1978, three French parachutists by the name of Jean-Claude Betemps, Andre Bohn, and Gerard Bosson perfecting the running and launching technique in Meussy, France. In 1979, paragliding was finally recognized as a world-class sport by Gerard Bosson at the hand gliding world championship. A decade later, the first Paragliding World Championship was held in Kossen, Austria.

Today, paragliding is a recognized sport thousands of people participate in all across the globe. While the Alps are the most famed paragliding spot in the world, paragliders can be found anywhere in the world. The majority of paragliders reside in Europe, but there are many places to get the most out of the sport in North America. Paragliding in the Bay Area offers some of the most spectacular views and an exhilarating experience. No matter where they live in the world, paragliders continue to carry the sport forward into the future.

Parasailing:

Paragliders fly free and don’t require a boat or anything else to tow them up they are similar to Hang gliders in this sense. All you need in order to Paraglide is the proper equipment and a suitable ridge or mountain to launch from.

Paragliding:

There’s currently no place that offers Parasailing in San Francisco or the bay area. But there are quite a few schools that teach paragliding and offer paragliding tandem flights in the bay area. Because it is so easy to learn and so safe Paragliding has rapidly become far more popular than both Para sailing and Hanggliding.

Paragliding Tandem flights have also be a lot more popular than para-sailing flights for a number of reasons. When fly tandem with a qualified paragliding instructor you the views are better because your instructor has a more control over where you fly vs parasailing  where your simply dragged behind a boat and pretty much all you get to look at is the watter below you.

Another thing a lot of people dislike about para sailing is the tow rope which is constantly toughing and jerking on you while your in the air. With paragliding there is no tow rope so your flight is smooth and comfortable allowing you to relax enjoy the view.

If you would like to schedule a tandem Paragliding flight in San Francisco please visit our home page or calling 530 263 7558.

Hundreds of thousands of people enjoy paragliding all over the world.  Its origins date all the way back to World War I when a parachute was used for reasons other than landing for the first time in history.  Volunteer parachutists went up for the navy to observe lands in the distance.

The decade when paragliding as people know it today really began to take shape was the 1950s.  It began with the invention of the Paracommender which had an oblong canopy and vents in the back of the chute.  The vents made it easier to switch directions and glide smoothly.  Domina Jalbert is one of the paragliding pioneers who revolutionized the sport in the 50s and 60s.  A native Canadian, he settled in Florida and established a business in researching and understanding aerology.  He introduced gliding parachutes that could be easily controlled in 1952.  They were much more technically advanced than parachutes of the previous years.

After Jalbert’s work in the early 50′s, people began to see the potential of his discoveries.  They began talking about the day when people would be able to fly by running over a cliff or down a steep slope.  Francis and Gertrude Rogallo finished off the exciting decade in the world of paragliding by inventing the Rogallo wing, which was originally designed for NASA.  The technology came to be used in paragliders and hand gliders.

Domina Jalbert’s most exciting contributions were made in the 1960s.  He filed the “Multi-cell Wing Type Aerial Device” patent in 1963.   The technology became imperative in a number of air sports including paragliding, sky diving, and kite surfing.  In 1964, he created the Ram Air canopy that achieved a wing shape when filled by air.

In 1965, David Barish was working on the Sail Wing that was meant for helping with the recovery of NASA capsules.  After first testing it out in Hunter Mountain, New York, he called it “slope soaring” and began promoting it as a summer recreational activity for resorts.  David Barish is arguably the most important figure in paragliding history as it is thought that he was the first creator of paragliding as people know it today.

NASA coined the term “paraglider” in the 1960s, and the word “paragliding” was first widely used in the 1970s.  The British Air Association of Parascending was the first established organization to put the spotlight on paragliding as a sport.  In 1978, three French parachutists by the name of Jean-Claude Betemps, Andre Bohn, and Gerard Bosson perfecting the running and launching technique in Meussy, France.  In 1979, paragliding was finally recognized as a world-class sport by Gerard Bosson at the hand gliding world championship.  A decade later, the first Paragliding World Championship was held in Kossen, Austria.

Today, paragliding is a recognized sport that thousands of people participate in all across the globe.  While the Alps are the most famed paragliding spot in the world, paragliders can be found anywhere in the world.  The majority of paragliders reside in Europe, but there are many places to get the most out of the sport in North America.  Paragliding in the San Francisco Bay Area offers some of the most spectacular views and an exhilarating experience in the US.  No matter where they live in the world, paragliders continue to carry the sport forward into the future.