Condat-sur-Vézère, the tour begins!

Tour ULM7 July 20182 min read

Sunday 23 July, morning

After two nights under canvas at Châtellerault aerodrome, and three for the organisers, the Tour finally got under way, a day behind the originally planned itinerary. Stratus, no rain, a reasonable wind: that is the weather, which leaves us in peace today.

The route took us south, following the Vienne upstream, leaving Poitiers on our right, then Angoulême much further west and Limoges on our left. The serene landscapes between Poitou and Touraine take on the gentle wildness of the Périgord Limousin Regional Natural Park. We find again the pattern of châteaux, rivers and splendid buildings nestled in valleys as we reach Condat-sur-Vézère and the Périgord Noir. The Vézère lies south of the airfield, and we will enjoy it this afternoon.

The private airfield is picturesque and slightly sloping, in a hideaway that was once the splendour of private parties among show-business and film stars. If the bar of the grand reception room could talk, we would certainly hear dialogue by Audiard. The airfield spreads over 17 hectares and most of it is made up of embankments. It is a rather sporting warm-up for the 130 machines, with the Tour's regulars working well, especially in the circuit joining phase. The marshallers did wonders from the first day, as the aerodrome is narrow.

The weather is fine but not too hot. We are enjoying it: the Tour, even a day late, is off to a good start.

We have almost 30 beacons for GPS tracking (mostly fitted to competitors); when the machines are in flight the trackers show an image of paramotors, and pedestrians on the ground… We can be followed trace by trace.

On our way to Saint-Affrique!

Sébastien Perrot