A gyroplane and a motorcycle!

[SPECTACUALR SPIDERMAN]

Are they cheaper then a spyder?

[Bob Denman]

The insurance guy in me was cringing...
There almost seemed to be too many things to be watching for!

[Chupaca]

That has to be a lot of fun. Just have that fear I'll get the orange screen with limp home...

[MisterP]

An interesting video, but if the motorcycle had gone much slower to keep up with the gyro, he would have had to put his feet down. I exaggerate, obviously, but IMO there were a lot better choices for aircraft that could give the bike a run for his money. I used to own a Quicksilver GT500 that could do 100 mph, as an example.

Gyros have always been a small fraction of the ultralight / light sport segment. They got bad press a number of years ago when a few broke up in flight. The term in my head is "mast bumping", others more knowledgeable can correct me. The market segment took a beating, as did ultralights in general from other unfortunate accidents with video available for the media frenzy.

The rather bland statement at the end about discussing the flight with the FAA after the flight was a bit misleading. That discussion should have happened before the flight, because they broke the law. Aircraft must remain more than 500 from any person, vehicle or structure in the USA. Since they mention the FAA I assume it was filmed here somewhere.

[Rando]

That has to be a lot of fun. Just have that fear I'll get the orange screen with limp home...

It just happened to a friend of mine, engine failure. In a gyroplane, the rotor keeps turning regardless of the engine, hence autogyro or autogiro as another name for them. In this case my friend suffered a complete engine failure but no damage to him or the gyro. It happened to me once. Totally my fault.

http://www.macombdaily.com/general-n...res-schoolyard

[Rando]

Are they cheaper then a spyder?

My first one cost $4,000.

[Bob Denman]

At THAT price; Let's play two***!




*** With apologies to Ernie Banks!

[Rando]

At THAT price; Let's play two!

The one in the video is for sale. Not sure how much he is asking though. Only 39 hours on it. FMI. www.rotaryforum.com or www.pra.org

[Bob Denman]

I'll bite...
What sort of license is required, in order to launch yourself in one of them?

[Rando]

I'll bite...
What sort of license is required, in order to launch yourself in one of them?

As an ultralight, no license but training is mandatory unless you prefer the alternative to living. Empty weight of 254 pounds or less to quality as an ultralight. Hard to achieve safely but doable if the pilot is not too heavy since to keep the machine light, you must use a small HP motor. You are also restricted on only 5 gallons of fuel.

The one in the video is an ultralight gyroplane.

http://www.rotaryforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=43566

[Bob Denman]

If that 254 pound weight limit includes all of my bacon double-cheeseburgers; I guess that I'll just have to watch...