Tom Payne

Judith Mole and I have just done the follow-up podcast on the race and it's aftermath. Have a listen to it on Judith Mole's paraglid...

The glider has been relined (and the risers modified to prevent more tree landings!), the rucksack is packed (about 10kg with minimum gear),...

Of course there were going to be a few problems immediately before the race. Several competitors have only just received their equipment. Ha...

After three days driving through the incredibly varied scenery of the Alps, we arrived at the Race Headquarters in Fuschl am See near Salzbu...

My supporter Alex and I left Geneva on Saturday morning and are driving the first half of the route backwards to the start. We checked out t...

Sup'air are kindly sponsoring me with an excellent harness. It's a lightweight version of the Altirando XP with a few minor modifi...

Right now there's a thunderstorm in Geneva. The lightning is spectacular and the rain torrential. There's just a thin sliver of cl...

During the 2007 race I was glued to the internet, following the teams' progress through the Alps. Suddenly my phone rang: it was Aidan T...

Eating right is going to be critical if we want to survive the race. 2007 competitor Ulric Jessop perhaps put it best, he said: I think my g...

Alex and I leave for Austria next weekend. In the meantime we're frantically getting together the remaining equipment. Last night we pu...

All major paraglider manufacturers will be represented in this year's competition. There's a good mix of competition, serial and eve...

My supporter Alex Raymont is an excellent pilot himself, having been Canadian National Champion in 2003. We also weigh about the same so we...

Right now flying conditions are not good in the Alps. We're in the dreaded "goutte froide" situation. This occurs when cold ...

Alex flew in from Canada on Wednesday morning and it's great to see him again. We last saw each other in the summer of 2007, so we'r...

Judith Mole interviewed me for a podcast about the X-Alps. She asked a lot of difficult questions! You can listen to the podcast online or d...

It's been a pretty windy Spring in the French Alps, but a ridge of high pressure built over the France and the Western Alps over the wee...

Aidan very kindly shared much of his experience of his two previous races and good humouredly answered my incessant questions. I asked him w...

On Thursday I met up with two-times X-Alps veteran and 2009 competitor Aidan Toase to check out route around the area of the Simplon Pass an...

My X-Alps wing arrived on Friday! Thank you Axis UK ! She's a beauty: 6.3:1 flat aspect ratio and racing trim giving her accessible comp...

I've finally found a camper van for the race. Provisionally named the "X-Bus", she's a 1992 Ford Transit Nugget Westfalia...