SIV means “simulation d’incidents en vol”, from the French concept of training yourself to fly your paraglider in an emergency situation. In a nutshell, paraglider pilots intentionally let their glider misbehave, and while under radio instruction from an experience SIV instructor, fixes the problem in-flight.
Pilot has deployed their reserve parachute.
All paraglider pilots will, at some point, experience deformations or other issues with their paraglider while in the air, and while this is a normal occurrence, safety training is necessary in order that recovering the paraglider and continuing with your flight become a routine matter. Just like learning to drive defensively, you learn the skills to handle your paraglider in an emergency and it soon becomes a regular part of your flying.
Most SIV courses take place over lakes, with the SIV instructor coaching you from a boat via radio, so that in the event you need to throw your reserve parachute, you will land in the water and not in trees or hard ground. SIV participants wear an inflatable lifejacket as an added safety measure while you are waiting from retrieve from the water. And, if at the end of your course, you want to throw your reserve parachute intentionally in order to get the full experience, XC Paragliding will accommodate you!
With XC Paragliding you have the unique opportunity to learn how to handle your paraglider in an emergency right at the Mt. St. Benedict flying site. Most paragliding takeoffs in BC are not close enough to lakes for realistic SIV, which means other paragliding schools need to travel in order to run an SIV course at a site they are less familiar with. With XC Paragliding and Mt. St. Benedict, you can take off and be over nearby Davis Lake in a matter of minutes, do your SIV, land at the Davis Lake Provincial Park, and shuttle back up to Mt. St. Benedict for another round, all without having to travel outside the Lower Mainland.
Pilot about to land in the water after deploying reserve parachute. Rescue boat is on the way!
XC Paragliding will tailor your SIV experience to your specifications. Whether you are a novice paraglider pilot, want to keep it low-key and only focus on the basic safety aspects, you want to brush up on your safety skills after a flying hiatus, or you want to learn to do acrobatic maneuvers, we will ensure you get the training you deserve.