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On final approach, fly the glider down to within just a few feet of the ground, and bleed off
excess speed in ground effect while keeping the wings level and the nose into the wind. Your
body position should be inclined with your head and shoulders forward and your feet and
legs trailing behind, with your hands at shoulder width and shoulder height on the uprights.
As the glider begins to settle in a mush, and before you have extended your arms signifi-
cantly, give a sharp aggressive flare pushing your arms and shoulders forward and your
hips, legs and feet backwards. The braking effect of the flare will allow your feet to swing
under you as the glider’s forward motion is arrested.
Note: Landing in a significant wind does not require a substantial landing flare; the pilot
merely slows to near zero ground speed and touches down. The proper flare in light or no
wind conditions is a dynamic action which causes a sudden and severe pitch up rotation of
the glider. Pilots who have trouble with the flare, and with the glider nosing over during
landing, usually do so because of one of the following problems:
