| Gliders for beginners to experienced pilots, tandem, mountain, paramotor and acro wings |
| Harnesses from ones with airbags to aerodynamic pods, tandem pilot and passenger, mountain and acro harnesses |
| Accessories including reserve parachutes, instrument cockpits and backpacks |
| Harnesses | |
 |
AVA Sport started as a small family business in 1990 by Angel Stamenov. In 1997, in colaboration with Urs Haari from High Adventure, AVA Sport grew rapidly and emerged onto the international market. Manufacturing for big names including Airwave, Edel, Firebird, Independence, High Adventure, Skyline and Skywalk, they have manufactured to date more than 40,000 harnesses and 7,000 reserve parachutes! Despite their size, their design and production still takes place at home in Bulgaria. In 2003, AVA Sport started developement of their extensive new Tangra series of harnesses. Today, these are the underlying harnesses onto which the respective manufacturers add their finer details and branding. Constructed from the newest most durable materials, and with almost all their harnesses now DHV certified, AVA Sport earned themselves an international reputation for quality and durable products. AVA Sport offers an extensive range of harnesses for all classes and styles of paragliding. In terms of quality and value for money, they are definitely the market leaders! All their products are manufactured from tough Cordura fabric, ensuring their durability. The harnesses presented below are the more popular ones amoung SA pilots. For more information on their entire range of products (sizes,colours, etc) visit their comprehensive website. www.avasportcentral.com * The prices listed below are for indication only (subject to ROE) and are the same for all sizes. All harnesses are supplied with karabiners. For harnesses unavailable ex-stock, delivery time is about eight weeks. A quick word on harnesses: IMHO, the most important consideration when choosing a harness, is comfort. Not being comfortable can make one's flight very unpleasant. In terms of reserve positions, my personal favourites are under the seat, or on the side. Harnesses with the reserve under the seat often don't pass ceritifcation due to the lack of protection once the reserve has been deployed. However, the close location of the handle and the fact that it's reachable with both hands is a big plus. Contrary to popular belief, a side mount reserve does not cause any significant unbalance and hence I like it for the reasons listed above. I personally don't like things on my lap, in the event that one must jump from one's harness, a front mount would get in the way. My mad friend Wally, prefers a back mount because, in a high G spiral, one's hands would automatically be forced there - a good point! |
| Top | |
 |
Tangra Cygnus (Beginner pilots) The Tangra Cygnus is a new generation harness comprising an integrated Cygnus airbag in addition to its 17 cm of foam. It is designed for maximum protection and is certified with the lowest deceleration constant (11.3 g) ever recorded by DHV! It is available in two options for the position of the reserve container: in front or on the side. It has individual leg straps and a safe-T buckle system making it impossible to fall out of the harness. At 5 kg including the back and side protection, it is extremely light for the protection that it offers. Demo L available. Price: R 5,000 |
| Top | |
 |
Tangra Biplace (Tandem pilots) This harness is a dedicated driving harness for tandem pilots. Its main feature is its split legs that offer the pilot far more comfort and weight shift ability than that of a typical solo harness. The split leg straps are each connected via a small pulley system to their respective sides of the seat board, amplifying the pilot's weight shift command - convenient when flying with passengers who refuse to weight shift! The reserve container is located underneath the seat and its bridal is routed over the pilot's shoulders and down to the glider's spreader bars. This harness is DHV certified. After years of uncomfortable tandem flying with a solo harness, my one is worth every cent spent! Price: R 4,800 |
| Top | |
 |
Tangra Passenger
This is a dedicated harness for tandem flying passengers. It is similar in contruction to a typical solo harness, sharing the same individual leg and chest straps as the other harnesses. However, with its lack of a reserve container and slightly thinner back protection, it provides more space between the pilot and passenger whilst flying - making it more comfortable for both. Being smaller also allows it to be packed into the same glider bag as the rest of the tandem gear. Price: R 3,300 |
| Top | |
 |
Acro (Experienced pilots) For the adrenalin junkies, the Acro is a specially designed harness for just that, acro. All the webbing and stitching is reinforced to withstand the higher forces exherted. The very wide chest strap results in maximum weight shift input being transferred to the glider. An additional torso strap secures the pilot's upper body against the back of the harness. The reserve container is located underneath the seat and has deployment handles mounted on both sides of the harness. Price: R 5,500 |
| Top | |
| Harnesses | |
 |
Kortel Design was founded in 1999 by two-times French champion, Denis Cortella. Together with renown PWC competition pilot Max Jean-Pierre, Kortel Design develop and produce paragliding harnesses, not just for competition flying. Development started with the K1 harness, followed by their very successful K2. With nearly the entire French team flying their Kanibal racing harness, Kortel Design are becoming renown for their innovative designs. Today, Kortel Design have expanded their range of harnesses to include products for beginner pilots too. Their manufacturing takes place at home in France, at the foot of Mont Blanc and not so far from Charmonix. All their products are hand made and use the latest materials available to the paragliding market. They currently offer three harnesses (desribed below), all made from proven Cordura. Being handmade in France means that they do come at a price unfortunately. However, their innovative designs result in the most comfortable harnesses available! For more information on their range of products, visit their website: www.korteldesign.com * The prices listed below are for indication only and are the same for all sizes. All harnesses are supplied with steel mailon rapides as karabiners. |
| Top | |
 |
Karma (Beginner pilots) The Karma is the latest product from Kortel Design. It features 15 cm of foam back protection and, like its sibilings, Kortel's famous KARVE system (read below) to allow the pilot to change his position in flight without changing any strap settings. It features independent leg straps, an ABS system built into the chest strap, and a speed system connected to the stirrup. Price: R 6,000 |
| Top | |
 |
Karmasutra 2 (Intermediate pilots) Incorporating their KARVE system, the pilot can change his position in-flight without manual adjustment. This is achieved by a unqiue load distribution system comprising sliding straps and pulleys. As a result, the pilot can adjust his position for maximum comfort throughout those long flights. For pilots wanting a seated position, limiting straps are provided to lock the harness at any time to a standard setting. The harness features a two buckle V clip-in system eliminating the possibility of forgetting one's leg straps. The accelerator is connected to the foot stirrup via a short piece of elastic chord, making it easily accesible when required. The roll damping is independent of the chest strap setting and can be adjusted in flight. Two large pockets are located on either side of the harness. The back protection is 14 cm thick and the reserve container is located underneath the seat. Price: R 7,000 |
| Top | |
 |
Kanibal 2 (Experienced pilots) The Kanibal2 is Kortel's purpose-built competition harness. Incorporating their KARVE system (as described above), the pilot can shift his position in flight for maximum comfort without having to adjust any settings. Like the Kamasutra, the accelerator is also connected to the stirrup for easy access, and the ABS roll damping is independent of the chest strap setting. The Kanibal2 has independent leg straps and the chest strap is integrated into the instrument panel. The harness comes 14 cm of foam back protection. The harness can also be converted to a pod simply by adding on Kortel's cocoon. Of all my personal harnesses, this is the most comfortable! Price: R 8,000 |
| Top | |