Cross Country

Cross Country is the world’s leading voice for hang gliding, paragliding and paramotoring pilots. Ten times a year, our magazine content reflects our obsession with flying, and we express it by packing each issue with the most imaginative, inspirational photography and writing we can lay our hands on.

THE SOARING SPIRIT

CONTRIBUTORS

Cross Country

Opening Shot

IN THE CORE •  People, news and insight from around the free-flying world

WHAT’S ON

THE 300K CLUB

TIMO LEONETTI

SIMON’S X-PYR SPRINT FINISH • Simon Oberrauner had to run, run, run to win this year’s X-Pyr. Tarquin Cooper spoke to him after the race

ON LAUNCH WITH CHIGWON WON

ABEL VARGA • Abel Varga set a new Hungarian national record earlier this year, flying 330km from border to border

GENTLEMEN OF THE WIND

BACK IN THE DAY

OLYMPIC FLAME EN PARAPENTE

HEAD IN THE CLOUDS ALLEN WEYNBERG HOW TO: NOT BE EATEN

FLYING IQ •  Helping you fly better with expert advice and know-how

HOW TO: FLY LIKE A SHARK • What we can learn from sailplane pilots on gliding efficiently, by Hugh Miller

HURRICANE WATCH • Hurricanes are more intense and exploding more quickly. Brian Tang explains why

WEATHER HONZA REJMANEK GLIDING AMONG THE CLOUDS

SATELLITE EYE • Looking down on our ever-changing Earth

PARAMOTORING RICH DOLAN HOW TO CHOOSE YOUR NEXT WING

DESTINATION: JURASSIC COAST

EUROS 2024 • Goal! The FAI European Paragliding Championships in Pegalajar, Spain saw ten tasks and knocked more than 1,000km into the back of the net – this was truly the best paragliding competition can get. We headed to olive country.

La Fioritura • Every year in early summer the flowers in the fields around the Italian town of Castelluccio bloom in a remarkable display that attracts visitors from around the world. This year Adi Geisegger finally got to see it for himself – from the air

The Magic of Mungyeong •  Life on the competition circuit can be a confusing mix of travel, time zones, cultures and uncertainty. We headed to the FAI Asian-Oceanic Paragliding Championships in Mungyeong, South Korea to discover what racing in Asia is like – and why locals say it’s about to boom

THE 1970S REVOLUTION HIKE-AND-FLY • Before today’s boom in hike-and-fly paragliding there was a select group of pilots who pioneered high mountain hike-and-fly hang gliding. Thomas Finsterwalder, who learnt to fly 50 years ago, was there. He tells his story

Thinking Differently ‘Forget flow: stay focused and confident’ • The final part in our series exploring the coaching philosophy and approach of Julien Garcia, the French team paragliding coach.

KITLIST • All the latest reviews, gear and technology for free flying

KITLIST

THE HARNESS FILES: PART 2 • Bastienne Wentzel takes a deep dive into the latest developments in harness back protection

INNOVATIONS IN PROTECTION

G-VALUES

THE STRESS PEAK

SOFT IS NOT NECESSARILY SAFE

THE TEN STEPS OF PARAGLIDER DESIGN • Théo de Blic explains how a paraglider makes it from the designer’s laptop to your local launch

‘MY MOST MEMORABLE MOMENTS’

PETRA SLIVOVA • One of our most successful and modest pilots, on what really matters