Santa Barbara Soaring Association
As the preeminent club for Hang Gliding and Paragliding since 1975, the SANTA BARBARA SOARING ASSOCIATION is dedicated to the promotion and preservation of foot launched flying in the Santa Barbara area.
The SBSA provides support for local and visiting pilots by:
The SBSA also organizes activities such as fly-ins, contests, parties, monthly meetings, seminars and certification clinics, and maintains the website SBSA.info, discussion forums and remote weather stations
The area’s unique topography makes Santa Barbara one of the best year-round free-flight locations in the US. World-class pilots and instructors, US national champions and current record holders regularly fly and teach at Santa Barbara area flying sites.
The 4000′ high south facing Santa Ynez Mountain range is home a number of convenient, scenic and sorable mountain launch sites that are within a glide to the beach. The close proximity of these thermal sites to the ocean provides for some of the smoothest thermal soaring you’ll find anywhere. The offshore winds that shut down most sites in Southern California often are blocked by our local mountains.
We also have costal ridge soaring sites, some suitable for novice pilots, inland sites for big-air desert flying and our training hill at Elings Park (also known as the mesa flight park) is considered to be “The best training hill in the United States”.
It has operated without interruption since the early 70′s. The flight schools teaching at the Mesa flight park employ national award wining instructors who provide year round, state of-the-art instruction and continuing education for beginner to advanced Paraglider and Hang Glider pilots.
If it has been a while since you have flown any of the Santa Barbara area sites, you must check in with a local site guide – as protocols and conditions are constantly changing
Come fly with us!