FreeX MANX L, Owner'S Manual

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27
Flying in turbulence
Once you have found an appropriate body of thermals, centre
with toggles pulled about 20-25 cm in order to turn as shallow as
possible.
The region to fly is the range of minimum sink. The canopy
performs narrow turns and transforms thermals directly into
altitude. It is recommended to keep some brake applied on the
outside wing. By varying the amount of braking, you can prevent
tip deflations and also effectively control the angle of bank.
If thermals are very narrow and strong a higher speed and bank
angle will be helpful. The brake on the outside wing is now being
released.
Especially in wind-shifted thermals, sufficient speed must be
flown. Try to keep to the windward edge of the thermal by
expanding the headwind semi-circle and turning tightly with
tailwind. If you drop out of the thermal on the windward side, you
will tend to descend back into it because it is tilted downwind
whereas falling out on the lee side results in greatest loss of
altitude and makes it most complicated to return into the
upcurrent (probably only possible by lateral detour or extremely
accelerated flying).
When passing through strong turbulence it is recommended to
stabilize the canopy by simultaneous use of both brakes.
Up to a certain degree of turbulence the MANX is very resistant
to deflations even at full speed. An experienced pilot may well
extend this limit by "actively" stabilizing the canopy. As soon as
the canopy tries to overtake the pilot in turbulence, the canopy is
kept back by pulling the brakes more or less.
This "active" form of flying also works with incipient deflation on
one side of the canopy. In rough conditions, the necessary
amount of brake distance can absolutely surpass the stall point in
normal flight. Due to the altered relative wind you are far away
from the stall angle of attack.
When flying into strong vertical gusts from below, you act just the
opposite way: Now the brakes must be released in order to
balance out backward movements of the canopy.
However, before you fly in strong turbulence or go cross-country
with your MANX for the first time, you should have acquired a