Book excerpt: Described as the new "bible" for pilots Classic Routes is the ultimate guidebook to the world's ultimate free flight destinations. Whether you fly a lightweight paraglider or a topless hang glider, there is something in this book for you. Published by the makers of Cross Country Magazine, the international paragliding and hang gliding magazine, and edited by Bob Drury, Classic Routes is a unique tour through 20 of the world's premier free flight destinations. From the classic 90km Bingara Run in Manilla, Australia, to flying the convergence line in Piedrahita, Spain, to the Grand Tour of Annecy to chasing miles in Governador Valadares, Brazil, many of the world's best-known sites are all in here. Each chapter is written by a pilot who has flown the route and is familiar with the territory. They explain how you can fly it too, and what to look for along the way. House thermals are pointed out, secret glide lines explained, intricate meteorology unravelled and local rules unveiled. However, you don't have to be embarking on a world tour to get full advantage of Classic Routes. The book stands alone as a unique teaching and learning aid, explaining better than any textbook how to fly cross country. It lets you see inside the heads of pilots like Will Gadd or Jocky Sanderson as they reveal the tricks of their trade and share their secrets. The print version of Classic Routes is a classic coffee table book, with beautiful photography laid out over 200 pages. This digital version has been reformatted specifically for the Kindle, and features all the articles and chapters just as they are in the book, but without all the gorgeous photos available in the print version. You don't have to be an adventure sports enthusiast or an extreme sports addict to enjoy this book, or even a paraglider pilot or hang glider pilot – armchair travellers and sofa adventurers will enjoy the well written tales, which are written by some of the best writers in the sport. The list of places featured and who wrote them includes: Americas Will Gadd steps into the Rocky Mountain Trench for a 100km classic in Golden, Canada Nate Scales tip-toes 75km through Idaho’s Sun Valley, USA Mitch McAleer rides the ridges of California’s Lake Elsinore Jocky Sanderson goes 100km dot-to-dot from Governador Valadares, Brazil Europe Simon Coe and Arne Kristian Boiesen go troll hunting in Norway’s mountains Bob Drury shrugs off the rain for a classic tour of Snowdonia, Wales Hugh Miller dodges airspace and chases cloudbase as he boots it downwind across the flats from Combe Gibbet in England Matthew Whittall swaps his office BlackBerry for a vario on a 100km tour of King Ludwig’s castles in Bavaria Kelly Farina flies an FAI triangle in Austria’s ‘racing valley’, the Zillertal Felix Wolk top-lands Marmolada on his hang glider Roland Mader dares to ride the giant for a 200km FAI triangle starting from Fiesch, Switzerland J C Skiera surfs the limestone cliffs around Annecy’s Grand Tour du Lac Marcus King goes into the freezer on a 100km blast through the Ecrins in France Bob Drury rides wild horses on the 100km Dormillouse Run in southern France Bob Drury flies a blinder using the classic convergence in Piedrahita, Spain Rest of the world Greg Hamerton goes for 133km in Porterville, South Africa’s most popular site Adam Hill takes us by the hand around the Korchon Circuit in Pokhara, Nepal Jim Mallinson flies along the mountains from Bir to Dharamsala on an Indian Himalayan classic Download your copy now – reading means learning, and learning helps you fly better. Blue Skies! The Classic Routes Team