With the first snow arriving in the Stubai valley it was an ideal time to do some photo shooting with Manuel Fasser from the Thermik Magazin. Even though it was our first cooperation of such kind, we managed to get on really well and efficiently. It has to be said that Manuel had to push me a bit, because I was enjoying my “home sweet home” and the idea of -10°C and deep powder snow on takeoff was killing my motivation a bit. In the end the conditions were not so radical and it was an epic experience.

The AirG Sophie 23 used for the shooting is an interesting freestyler. For me, regularly flying a 19sqm Emilie, it was obviously not as dynamic as I would like it to be. That is of course due the flat wing area of 23sqm and my take-off weight being around 90Kg. It took me time to get used to it – building energy more patiently and waiting longer for everything to happen. Otherwise for a beginner freestyle pilot it will be a pleasure to fly and of course a very safe option.