October 30 1997 Page B1 

 

Story by Barnett Parker Photographs by Pat J. Cunninghamfor the Journal
 
These magnificent people in their flying machines. They go up in a few strides. They come down in a few hours. On a mesa several miles southwest of Albuquerque, a dozen people look skyward. Alan Chuculate, a specialist for Paramotor, is doing some fancy flying. On his back is a 105- pound motor and fan that propel him forward beneath a paraglider chute.

He's moving a 25 mph - climbing, circling and descending almost as if he were a bird.

On the ground, Jerry Daniele talks excitedly about this type of flying. He says it's addictive. Daniele, his wife, Michelle, and Tony Olmi are partners in the Paramotor dealership for New Mexico and Arizona. Chuculate works for the company headquarters in Oyster Bay, NY.

 

Paramotor partners demonstrate machine's simplicity, safety, relative silence

OPEN SPACES: Alan Chuculate, a pilot for Paramotor, flies past the open spaces of the West Mesa during a recent demonstration near Albuquerque.

 
Like you're dreaming
Daniele became aware of Paramotors more than two years ago, and last November he ordered one. Now he is training others in how to soar.

"I've always wanted to fly like you're dreaming -- where there's no effort involved," Daniele says, watching Chuculate fly overhead. "And with this, that's what it feels like." Since July, the Daniele's and a few friends have been honing their flying skills at what they call a Paradome -- a 630-foot circular area that has a 60-foot mound in the center.

The Paradome is on 10 acres near the Southwest Landfill, west of the South Valley off Pajarito Road. "We've just wanted to make sure that we had our techniques down and that we could demonstrate what is going on," Daniele says.
 
 Page B2

 
 
"It's addictive -- it really is. The first thing you think about when you land is 'When am I going back up?'" Getting airborne with one of these flying machines can be accomplished with just a few
feet of takeoff space on a good day, he says. Or -- as on one July day with the temperature in the 90s when Daniele himself tried it -- it can take a run of about 550 feet to get off the ground. But once you're aloft, the Paramotors can take a person up to 10,000 feet and hold them aloft for up to two hours.

Weight loss

As Daniele talks, Chuculate shows off a couple of maneuvers that have those on the
ground laughing. He produces a ballcap, puts it on his toe, flies over a pickup and niftily drops the cap into the truck's bed. On another pass, he flies low toward a van and takes three walking steps on top of the van before heading aloft again.

 
FREE AS BIRDS: Effortless flight is one of the big attractions of the paramotor, a mode of transportation that appears well suited for the open spaces of the Southwest.

 
Despite the aerobatic maneuvers, Daniele says being a good athlete isn't a prerequisite to flying a Paramotor. The ages of those already flying across the United States range from 11 to 83.

Although a certain in amount of strength is required to carry 105 pounds on one's back, "as soon
as the canopy comes up as you're standing on the ground, the weight decreases by 75 percent,"
Daniele says.

Michelle Daniele, who has a bad knee, flies a three-wheeled version of the Paramotor that almost looks like a go-cart. In addition to the freedom of flying like an eagle, Daniele emphasizes the
sport's safety.

"There're rated as the safest of all flying machines out there, including the big planes," Daniele says. "Over the last 17 years since they were invented, it's a great safety record, and that's probably why the (Federal Aviation Administration) hasn't gotten involved with the licensing and regulations. We fall under what is called FAR103, and that's basically a broad stroke. If they don't like your looks, they can bring you out of the air, but otherwise they just leave you alone."

 

Coming down

There are many potential uses for Paramotors, Daniele says. One Corrales man is thinking of buying one to commute five or six miles to work in Albuquerque. They also could be used by law enforcement to patrol suitable areas, or for search-and-rescue work.

OLMI CAN YOU SEE: Tony Olmi, one of the partners in the paramotor dealership for New Mexico and Arizona, takes a good look at one of the company's flight machines.
 
But for some uses the machines' noise will need to be reduced. At present, the motors roar at about 50 decibels. Future models, however, will include a muffler that should cut the noise to 12 or 15 decibels.

"That's environmentally acceptable, and then they'll be able to fly over wilderness areas," Daniele says. He wants this sport to develop as much as ballooning has, and therefore takes his time training new pilots. A new person doesn't even go aloft with a motor until the third day.

"We don't want to rush somebody," he says. "We want you to go over emergency procedures." Proper etiquette for populated and wilderness areas also is included. "It's so perfect for the Southwest -- lots of open land," Daniele says. "The key is to be sensitive to the environment. It's not like you're four-wheel-driving all over the place. You can fly over the same territory and the only mark you're going to make is the footprints when you came down."