As you know, there are many Paramotor Schools in Florida which is also known for a lot of flyable weather. I had the good fortune to visit several training centers and meet many people who are well known in the sport. This is the summary of my time there.
I arrived in Pensacola late afternoon on Sunday, January 19th to comfortable weather from Huntsville Alabama. The weather quickly changed and turned fridged for the next few days with temperatures dropping to 20° causing even the local iguanas to fall from the trees.
Monday morning I met up with Robbie with Fly High Paramotors and later that day with Danny Dewitt with iFlyPPG to get a lay of the land.
Given the cold and windy conditions, I elected to do the tourist thing over the next couple of days. I was disappointed I couldn’t get to see the home of the Blue Angels at the Nation Naval Aviation Museum because the base remained off-limits to civilians due to an incident. Fortunately, I did get to head to Mobile AL, and check out the USS Alabama.
On Wednesday the weather settled down, and while it was cold, I got some beach flying in and got to fly several wings thanks to Robbie.
Next, I traveled on to Happy Thoughts PPG located in Live Oak, FL and met up with Carson and his lovely wife. I spend 3 days at this location. Carson’s awesome acrobatic kiting skills provided for some great pictures. The program here is exceptionally flexible to enable students to train on a schedule that meets their busy lives. Happy Thoughts PPG isn’t tied to a specific brand and helps students select brands and products most suited to their capabilities and budgets. I was totally impressed by Carson and the resources he had invested in to make this an extremely professional school with a hanger and all the tools it needs.
Happy Thoughts PPG 
I then continued on to Dunnellon to visit Aviator Paramotor’s second location and meet with Andrew and his team. Eric also flew up the next morning and I finally got to meet him.
I was privileged to quietly sit in on classes to look, listen and learn. Given this was only the second class at this new location, I was blown away at how incredibly smooth things ran.
As you would expect from Aviator which I believe is perhaps the largest paramotor school in the country they are extremely well equipped with both people and tools to provide very effective training. Most certainly the classroom and audiovisual materials were by far the most comprehensive I’ve seen. I was definitely impressed with how tows were conducted. The instructor team which had a ratio of 2 students to 1 instructor worked together – Tow machine operator, instructor in front the student for launch and a handoff to another instructor at the landing zone to talk the student into where they were standing – totally impressive with precision coordination.
I also got to meet a young man who achieved a pretty extraordinary trip. How many of you know this guy!! Bo Fieldman flew a Paramotor Cross Country from Florida to Oshkosh Wisconsin for EAA last year. Great Wing Bumping with you mate!
Next, I went on and spent an afternoon with London Ivey from CloudBase PPG located in Zephyrhills Florida. We traded some stories and then flew out from his backyard to Burger King and landed for a late lunch with me flying his ITV Piper 22, which was very nippy.
Continuing my journey south I arrived in Lake Wales and met with Travis and Kyle from OneUp Adventures. These two guys need no introduction and while I didn’t get a lot of time to see their operations you know you are in good hands with pilots who are as skilled as they are.
I also stopped in to meet Shannon & Lorran Michaels at Four Winds PPG in Avon Park. I didn’t get an opportunity to fly with them but love their location and impressive set of PAP machines all ready for students and customers. They had also been teaching a Veteran and working with Resurgence PPG.
Back in Lake Wales, I went on to spend 5 days at Aviator Paramotors where a new class started and I got to see how their program starts and was indulged to participate in the introduction activities and training over several days.
As you would expect, the materials, organization, equipment, and structure of the program is exceptional and on a par with any formal general aviation program. I have been impressed by how much more time is spent on training here on the east coast, by comparison to what I’ve seen in my limited observation of locations on the west coast which have faster programs. I also really liked seeing some of the tools and use of paramotor models like those you see in Chris Santacroce’s videos explaining manuvres.
The class had some exceptional students and awesome conditions that enabled everyone to progress at an incredible pace that many instructors would beg for. By the end of the second day, all the students were kiting astonishingly well. On day 3 of the course, all the students completed tows and tandem flights to fly first hand. By late afternoon taxi practice quickly turned into first solos. It was an exceptionally exciting day for students and instructors alike and lead to the appropriate ceremonies.
I also had my own exceptional day with some of the best conditions to fly both morning and night that I’ve had in a while. This video speaks for itself.
Tuesday evening I was honored to be invited and join Eric on his Ask Aviator Episode 35 live YouTube channel show. I absolutely had a great time, and while we both got distracted a few times to stay on one topic the banter and fellowship of the sport was fantastic.
In closing my share about my stay at Aviator Paramotor motors, it was indeed a challenge to leave. Eric really has built a family that continues to grow for both instructors and students. It was an exceptional privilege to be invited to visit both locations and become a member of the awesome Paramotor family. Thank You, Eric and everyone who made me feel so incredibly welcome and at home.
My next stop took me on to Miami Homestead, the home of Aerolight, founded in 1988 by Javier and Jose Casaudoumecq. It is one of the oldest, if not The oldest Paramotor school in the USA. I only got to fly here one afternoon, but it was totally a blast with these members of our great Paramotor Community.
I spent several more days in southern Florida and connected with some friends and pilots near Hollywood and West Palm. Sadly I dropped the ball and didn’t stop at Palm Bay at Paratour to see Eric Dufour (sorry).
Right before I left Aviator I did an interview with Andrea a fellow paramotor pilot and a sponsored Fly Products Pilot. I turned the tables on Ali briefly to ask who some questions, so please encourage her to share her paramotor progression story.
I really had an incredible time in Florida meeting awesome people like so many places that I have been to. It really was a great place to fly and quite difficult to leave. I’m so very grateful to everyone that I met and the incredible hospitality that was extended to me. I really did appreciate it.
Check out the YouTube Playlist of several videos that I put out from flights in Florida.
