Flying with the Doodlebug at Culver's Corner Duval Wa.
Here is a picture of me in the Doodlebug powered harness. This harness, which I hook into my regular hang glider, allows me to take off from a flat field and fly up to where the lift is. I can then shut off the engine and soar as usual. Launching and landing is done on my feet.
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This picture shows me just leaving the ground. The Bug has a 14 horsepower, 120 CC 2-stroke engine that allows me to climb at about 350 to 400 feet per minute with this glider (146 RamAir) at full power. (All the main powered harness models use the same Radne Racket 120 engine) At half throttle I am still climbing slowly and the engine is quiet enough to easily hear my vario. The legs hanging down behind keep the prop off the ground while launching and landing. They fold up under me when I sit back in the seat and stretch my legs out in the foot stirrup.
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15 minutes from work, Culvers Corner is very convenient for me. Within 5 minutes of launching, on a good day, I can have the engine off and be soaring under a cloud street that tends to form over the high ground from Maltby to the north and Tiger Mt. to the south.
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Here is Tiger Mt in the distance after flying about halfway there.
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I didn't have any big reason for picking the Bug over one of the other prone models out there (the NRG looks very slick) but I'm very happy with my choice. Some of the things I like about the Bug are:
Extra storage space for gear. There's even enough to stick in a sleeping back for fly/camping trips.
Easy, comfy, one handed flying. With the limit lines there is no possibility of cross controlling and it is very stable under power, even when it's banked up.
The Bug has a bigger gas tank (8 liters) than the prone models and it doesn't have to hang on your downtubes. It straps on behind you in the storage area. With the tank behind you it's harder to see the fuel level though. For the Bug they added a window in the faring that is supposed to allow you to see the fuel level by bending around and looking through it. Either because I'm not flexible enough or my old eyes aren't as good anymore I have a hard time seeing it, especially when the fuel is lower and I have all my bags packed in there too. I'm wondering about a velcro flap I could open and look in. It hasn't been a problem. I'm pretty good at guaging my fuel consumption though and I don't typically use that much. It's actually pretty cool how little gas these things use.
I'll keep adding info to this page and try to get some more pictures of the harness in flight soon. In the meantime if you have questions feel free to ask.