Pilot Stories & Interviews

Follow up:

Thermal Flyer: Give us a little background on yourself and your flying.

Joe Pettit: I began in 1974 in Wisconsin on the Mississippi River Bluffs which were a 43 mile drive from my home in Eau Claire, Wis. I was a mailman/college student at the time. I moved to AZ in September 1976 to attend ASU and fly the Arizona air. Flew in some competitions in 77 & 78. I am a young 55 years old.

Thermal Flyer: You changed your equipment. What led your decision to head down this path?

Joe Pettit: I am always looking for better handling and landing gliders. I have been flying WW gliders because of their reputation and gliders. After traveling to Wallaby and Quest in Florida for the last few years, I got to rent/fly rigid wings. I knew after 5 hours on rigids that I would not buy another flex wing hang glider. On my birthday in March of this year I bought a used ESC rigid wing from Jim Zieset. He had been through Phoenix 2 weeks before and Len and I both test flew the ESC and thought it was the nicest rigid we had flown. Spoilers to turn and flaps to land give me the handling and landing I have been looking for. This is by far the easiest glider I have ever flown. Very little effort to fly. I like that a lot.

Thermal Flyer: Do you have a favorite site?

Joe Pettit: Mingus is my favorite site. When I gazed off Mingus in early 1976, I knew I had to live near this world class site.

Thermal Flyer: What is you most memorable flight?

Joe Pettit: My most memorable flight was in 1982 when I flew off Yarnell and landed at 67th Ave and Cactus. I was trying to get to the Shaw Butte LZ but came up short that day. I flew with Rob Murray. He had a Voyager rigid wing and he flew to Priest and Guadalupe that day. He landed near his home. Everybody else was at Shaw Butte and saw Rob fly by in the North West winds.