useful quotes for potential PPG pilots from americanparagliding.com/ozone/index.htm

The following are selected quotes from:http://www.americanparagliding.com/ozone/index.htm

You obviously have better chances of flying often with a motor as you don’t depend on the weather as much. Because the pilot doesn’t need to wait for thermals or wind to soar, which in fact are sources of turbulences, you will generally fly in calmer / smoother conditions.

So you don’t have to run around to find the right site where the wind is blowing the right direction, you don’t have to wait the perfect conditions to stay in the air, and because you can avoid the sources of turbulence, paramotoring can be attractive.

Ease of launch has always been an important point for both. But it has to be said that with 30kg of gear on your back in no wind and on a flat field, you want to make sure your wing will launch easily the first time.

Note: (30 kg is 66 pounds approximately which is what you will be carrying in weight when you launch as a PPG pilot which is mostly the motor and the fan blade (usually a three bladed fan))

This is not a quote: Obviously if you are carrying 66 pounds you have to be in pretty good shape to do this sort of like training as a backpacker climbing up the John Muir Trail in the Sierras. I have often carried a 50 pound pack or more up trails like to San Gorgonio (tallest peak in Southern California (near Palm Springs). However, I also started throwing up at age 17 at 10,000 feet and had to run down to 8000 feet to get over altitude problems at age 17 too. I found I couldn't sleep without throwing up at that altitude even at age 17.

Also, Elings park in Santa Barbara, in California could be used by all you SO Cal People or people who want to train with the best instructors it looks like on the west coast there. The mild weather of Santa Barbara allows 350 days a year of training possibilities there at that site at Eling's Park. So, the first day is $300 for a 5 to 6 hour introduction to flying a paraglider there.