British Open Competitions

The 2014 series of Open competitions that form the British Paragliding Championships are presently restricted to Serial Class (EN-D) gliders and below. This means any glider previously certified, as per the rules, is acceptable, but gliders that are not certified will be disallowed. This includes gliders that are scaled from certified versions. However, we have provision in the rules to expand this to allow uncertified wings providing the following conditions are met before the first Open competition, in June 2014:

• The BHPA extends its current limitation to more then certified wings
• The host countries for the British Open competitions 2014, namely Italy & Spain, do the same

The venue for the 1st round of the British Championships has had to be changed from Meduno, Italy to Gemona, Italy. The start date has also changed from Saturday 31st May to Sunday 1st June, with first task on Monday 2nd June. The end date of the competition remains the same, which means it will be a maximum 6 task event, with last task day on Saturday 7th June.

The reason for the change of venue is because no Italian aeroclub is willing to approve CAT 2 status for the event at Meduno. The reason for the change of start date of the event, is because the town of Gemona is hosting a large cycling race the weekend of 31st May/1st June and so there will be a lack of accommodation in the town on Saturday 31st May.

Gemona is approximately 40km to the NE of Meduno. It is the same distance as Meduno from the main airport for the region, Venice. Gemona is a proven competition venue, having previously hosted several CAT 2 competitions, and is a town and so a much bigger place than Meduno. Competition tasks can be set in the area of Gemona that, whilst remaining safe, are much more interesting than is the case at Meduno.

The HQ for the event will be Hotel Willy, which has 45 bedrooms, several large meeting rooms and an events/party room. The Organisation has an agreement with the hotel that all the bedrooms will be held for reservation by competitors for one month, from 2nd February, and that the hotel will offer a substantial discount on the cost of the bedrooms. Competitors should contact the hotel directly to make a reservation and explicitly state they will be competing in the British Paragliding Open. For those that prefer to camp there is also a campsite outside the hotel. It caters for tents and campers and has all amenities such as showers, etc.

The main landing field is 2km from the hotel. Transport will be provided for those that need it. There is a bar at the landing field. It is a 45 minute drive to launch (it is a BIG mountain), which is a large grass area and has recently been improved.

Some additional venue information here and here.

More details to follow…..

The recent CIVL Competition Class (CCC) proposal is explained in a new document here