TEAM OZONE
YOUR EXOCEAT
EN
04
03
EveryoneatOzonecontinuestobedrivenbyourpassionforying,ourloveofadventureandourquesttoseeOzone’sparagliderdevel-
opmentcreatebetter,saferandhigherperformingparagliders.
TheparagliderdesignteamisledbyDavidDagault;Davhasawealthofexperiencebothincompetition,adventureyingandparaglider
design.AlsoonthedesignteamareLucArmant,FredPieriandRussellOgden.LucisatopcompetitionpilotandXCaddictwitha
backgroundinnavalarchitecture,hebringsawealthofknowledgeandideastothedesignteam.Fredisamathematician,mechanical
engineerandvolBivspecialist.TogetherwithLucheworkscloselywithDavinthedesignprocess.Russisatopcompetitorandtest
pilot,hecanusuallybefoundputtingthelatestcreationsthroughaseriesoftestmanoeuvres.HarnessdevelopmentisleadbyErich
Lotscher.ErichhasagreatdealofexperiencedesigninganddevelopingharnessesandisresponsibleformanyofthelatestOzonehar-
nessesincludingtheOziumandForza.
MikeCavanaghisthebossandmultiplewinneroftheUKXCleague.Whenhe’snotoutyinghegenerallykeepscontrolofthemayhem.
PromotionandteampilotsareorganisedbyBASEjumpinglegendandminiwingspecialistMattGerdes.Heworkscloselywithgraphic
designerLorenCox.LorenisakeenpilotfromSaltLakeCity,USA.
BackintheofceKarineMarconi,ChloeVilaandIsabelleMartinezruntheshow.Thesewonderfulladieslookaftertheorderingsystem,
thedealers,thedesignteamandthegeneraldaytodayrunningofthecompany-withoutthemitwouldbechaos.
OurmanufacturingfacilityinVietnamisheadedupbyDrDavePilkingtonwhoworksrelentlesslymanufacturingglidersandproducing
prototypesaswellasresearchingmaterialsandmanufacturingprocessesforourfutureproducts.Heisbackedupbyasuperbteam
managedbyKhanhandPhongwithover700productionstaff.
TheExoceatisalow-drag,high-performanceharnessforseriousXCandcompetitionying.Itistheresultofamulti-yeardevelopment
processwhichincludedextensivetesting,wind-tunnelresearch,andaprolongedbetaphaseinvolvingtheworld’stopcompetitionpilots.
Withatechnicallyadvancedfoot-supportsystem,bombbay-reservedeploymentsystem,andsuper-low-dragfairingdevelopedfromreal
aerodynamicresearch,theExoceatisanocompromisenext-generationcompetitionharness.
Creatingaharnessdesigncenteredaroundthereductionofdragwastheprimaryconcern,testingvariousfaringdesignsattheISAE
schoolinToulouse,France.TheOzoneR&DTeamstructuredtherestofthedesignaroundanoptimisedightposition,faring,andhar-
nessframe.
TheExoceatfeaturesaspecialairinletwhichisresultoftwoimportantrequirements:rst,itmustbesmoothandlowdrag,andsecond,
itmustprovidemaximumpressuretothefaringregardlessofitspositionintheairduringharnessmovement(yaw,pitch,orthermalling
positions).
Aswithparagliderdesign,wefocusedonthereductionofwrinkles,creases,anddeformationthroughouttheharness.TheExoceat’s
inatablenosecone,rearfaring,andmainsurfacesareallverysmooth.Closedcellfoamprovidesalightbutrigidshellencompassing
thepilotandencasingthedoublereservecontainer.Fromleadingedgetotrailingedge,theExoceatisremarkablysmoothandlow-drag,
makingitthemostefcientharnesswehaveeverbuilt.
Inadditiontodragefciency,thedesignoftheExoceatfocusesonpilotcomfortandstability.Thebucketseatdesigncreatesahighly
consistentloadingoftheframe,withnopressurepointsorcompressionzonesonthepilot,eveninhighly-loadedsituationssuchasspiral
dives.Theseatdesignisfullysupportedfromyourupperupperbacktothebottomofyourfeet,withaspeciallydesignedstirrupsystem
thatcreatesthesensationofrestingyourlegs“on”something,insteadof“pushing”againstabar.This“footrest”sensation,coupledwith
therigidityandsupportofthebucketseat,meansthatthereisnocompressionagainstyourshoulderstrapsandyoucaneasilyrelax
againstthebackoftheharness–savingenergyandincreasingpilotefciency.
TheExoceatfeaturesmanyadjustments,allowingthepilottotailorthe“handling”oftheharnesstotaste.Fullyadjustablerollstability
settingsallowthepilottonetunethecharacteristicoftheharnessandtheadditional(optional)ballastpocketisideallylocatedtonot
disturbthecenterofgravity.