Icarus Cup: Got to be there to know what’s in store for you!
Each year in the month of September, a small farming village of St Hilaire du Touvet in the French Alps explodes with the wonderful sights and sounds of hang-gliding and paragliding festival called the Coupe Icare (the Icarus Cup). It’s a spectacular event and the world’s biggest free flight event that attracts over 8000 pilots and 75000 visitors each year. It’s a fun meeting that includes hang-gliding and paragliding competitions as well as numerous exhibitions and displays ranging from parachute jumps to stunt kite demonstrations. Not only this, the visitors also get a chance to see the amazing aerial acrobatic displays and hot air balloons. What more does the event has in store? �A spectacular aeronautical display by the French Air Force. � Indoors, there is a film festival with screenings of over 60 free flight films covering various sports made by filmmakers from around the world. � For children, there is a special area with plenty of rides and demonstrations and there are parties in the evenings with live music and entertainment plus an educational area explaining how all the machines are kept in the air. � In the exhibition area there are plenty of experts that offer advice on the sport and stands tempting you to buy new equipment. � If the days’ event doesn’t make you feel exhausted, you can enjoy parties in the evening with live music and entertainment. Competitors spend months to design their elaborate machines, attached to para-gliders and they are awarded points for the length of the flights, the ergonomics and the design of the machine. It’s a great fun event for all ages even if you go not as a participant but just a spectator. The 35th annual Icarus Cup is scheduled to take place next September. I’ve added the event in my list. Just can’t wait to see the ingenuity and inventiveness of the free-flight enthusiasts!! Check out some wonderful pictures of this years’ Icarus Cup in the image Gallery below.