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By Pete Morris 

Possibly the best all round glider I have ever flown!?

Having been flying for thirteen years I have some experience in trying out different gliders and have seen over the years some wings that I would describe as setting the 'benchmark' in their class and for different reasons, for example: the Octane for its handling, the Aspen for its min sink, The Magic FR for its glide etc etc. However, in order for these wings to be exceptional in one aspect, each one has a built in compromise eg. the Octane for its poor glide, the Aspen for its handling, the FR for its safety.

Although I can try out virtually any wing on the market whilst Instructing at Sunsoar, I have been looking for a while now for my own wing. My demands are high, I want a wing that has precision handling, high energy retention, the best glide in its class, a natural thermaller, with great speed, great build quality, DHV2 safety - and no compromise in any area. I was really looking forward to trying the Cayenne2 - in an independent test for a German publication the glide was rated the same as the Aspen2 and the Addict R, two great wings, in addition, the manufacturer quotes that the wing follows the pilots input with razor- sharp accuracy, and extremely high performance especially when flying accelerated.

With this in mind I flew right at the top of the weight range, just to see if the glide deteriorated at all. I was astounded with its performance, with a glide of about 9:1, the wing just did not want to land, on the bar the performance was excellent and the feedback was perfect, in turbulent conditions it gave plenty of warning when to ease off. Flying at 800ft above Parlick at the top of the stack in strong cloud suck, the 4 other gliders below me had no option but to go over the back, with a hang glider going backwards over the saddle, I pressed on full bar, giving super solid penetration.

But what amazed me the most was the handling, I remember one reviewer of the Octane in the mid nineties saying that 'it is as if the wing is connected directly to your fingertips', well this is the same..and more. With Skywalk's Jetflaps it seems to make use of every scrap of rising air and finds the thermal cores with ease. I would describe the handling as 'natural,' with pretty light brake pressure and short travel. In weak conditions I found that I could slow the wing down to an incredibly slow speed and then just make a flat turn, almost like doing a 3 point turn in a car. As the wing was performing so well in straight flight and thermalling like a demon, I thought that maybe it would not be so agile, well, not so, the energy retention in this wing is amazing, it will enter a spiral in a quarter of a turn, and whip over into asymmetric 360s from one wing over - it was simply breathtaking.

Not only does this glider have the performance of a 2-3, it also offers amazing feedback and safety. So, to me this is it - here is a wing that is the full package - for fun, performance and safety, at the cutting edge of paraglider design - see you at cloud base!

Although you may think that this is a biased  review as I am helping Northern to promote Skywalk in the UK, I had never flown a Skywalk before and approached the test with skepticism. If you do not believe the results - try one for yourself, you will be amazed. Call Northern - there are some demos in stock!