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Powered Parachute Pays Off For Farmer
"Once you try it you'll be hooked forever," says Mark Peterson about his powered parachute which he bought for both work and play.
He uses it to fly 300 to 600 ft. over his crops, scouting for problems in his 2,500 acres of corn, wheat, soybeans, sorghum, pasture and hay.
Between field scouting and "just ha
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Powered Parachute Pays Off For Farmer FARM HOME recreation 20-1-33 "Once you try it you'll be hooked forever," says Mark Peterson about his powered parachute which he bought for both work and play.
He uses it to fly 300 to 600 ft. over his crops, scouting for problems in his 2,500 acres of corn, wheat, soybeans, sorghum, pasture and hay.
Between field scouting and "just having fun," Peterson put 50 hours on the air-craft last year, the first year he had it.
He bought the machine from Total Freedom (1405 Pennington Ave., Edmond, Okla., 73003; ph 405 340-3379). It looks like a two-seater go-cart suspended under a 36 1/2-ft. wide parachute. A three-bladed propeller in back turns at up to 6,500 rpm's to keep the craft airborne.
It's powered by a 46 hp German-built Rotex gas engine. It uses 2 1/2 gal. of fuel per hour and gives the aircraft a top speed of 26 mph. It'll climb to several thousand feet and is steered with two foot-operated rudders, which change drag on back of the 500 sq. ft. parachute. A hand-controlled throttle speeds up and slows down engine rpm's.
The 245-lb. aircraft can take off and land almost anywhere in about 100 ft., Peterson says.
"In the 15 years they've been around, powered parachutes have established the best safety record of any ultra-light on the market, but they do take a little common sense to operate," says Peterson who'd never even been in an airplane before he bought the craft. For example, he notes it should never be flown in winds exceeding 15 mph.
"It's excellent for checking cattle in pastures, finding stray cattle, and for spotting emergence and disease problems in crops," he says. "Because of its openness and slow air speed, it's also great for aerial photography and video taping."
Piloting the craft doesn't require a license, just a desire to fly, he notes.
"I'm real happy with mine," he says. "I just wish I had more time to use it."
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Mark Peterson, 929 SW 80th Rd., Liberal, Mo. 64762 (ph 417 842-3221).
Rigs like Peterson's sell for $9,000 to $10,500. Here are a couple of other Mid-western dealers:
Heartland Parascender Inc., R.R. 1, Box 38B, Oakford, Ill. 62673 (ph 217 635-5729).
Hop's Powered Parachutes Inc., 20451 N. County Line Rd/Tyler, Walkerton, Ind. 46574 (ph 219 586-3580).
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