Dust Of The Universe

NOVA Phantom I have waited more than 6 months to receive the S size. The 99 cell low aspect ratio glider from NOVA has indeed a very complicated internal structure. This process of construction is delicate and takes lots of time to be completed. The price of the Phantom is high…Twice to three times more expensive than a conventional low B glider. The fabric used is light for most of the delicate parts.  Lets find out if the high price and the complicated construction will give its user the required benefits … Launching the Phantom is similar to any B glider with a fast rise above the pilots head.  I flew the glider from 95 to 98 all up.  The Phantom has a different feel than any low or high B glider. The construction gave me the impression of flying under a higher rated glider in the feel of the airmass but with a huge passive safety like any low B glider. Weird feeling, but on the positive side of things. The brake pressure is moderate, probably lighter than the Mentor 4...

UP Summit XC 4 SM  After my beloved Trango X-Race :-), here’s UP new B glider the Summit XC 4 in SM size. I took a bit of time to write this test, but finally here it is. The XC4 has a aspect ratio of 6.3 with an EN-B rating ! Honestly i wasn’t a fan of the XC3 SM when i test flew it…The overall performance and usability didn’t convince me at the time. Today with the Summit XC 4 i took my time to explore it a little bit and finally managed to get a Carrera plus SM to complete my comparison. Launching the Summit XC 4 is like any mild 6.3 aspect ratio glider. It’s easy to launch…Not like the 5.4 aspect ratio gliders…But it has a homogenous and straight launch. Once airborne, the Summit XC 4 gave me the same brake feel as its bigger sister the X-race ! with a slight more forgiving and filtered feel. But the Summit XC4 strangely has the ‘same’ DNA !  With a medium brake pressure, the XC 4 has a moderate to good agility, A very nice coordinated feel, performance oriented turning ra...