Charles Cazaux began flying when he was 15 years old. Shortly after that he became the first person to enter the French juniors program that was created to build exceptional pilots who would represent the country on the world stage. Needless to say the program worked very well indeed for Charles! He’s been on the French team every year since 1998, he won the Superfinal in 2009, won the world championships in 2011, holds multiple world records and instructs SIV and cross country with Seiko Fukuoka for the Airlinks Academy. In this episode we learn about the French juniors team and how they approach training and a safe progression; how the team identifies pilots with potential; how to train for competitions and the importance of focusing on progression rather than results; tricks to stay in the game (focus); what he’s learned working from Thomas Theurillat; how to become a complete pilot and a lot more. Enjoy!
I spoke with Charles on March 22, just after the lockdown was instigated in France and other countries in Europe banned flying.
Watch the AirLinks Academy SIV videos with Charles and Seiko on YouTube
Follow Charles on Instagram @kzoairlines
Show Notes:
* The French Juniors team
* How to stay focused and efficiency
* Training with Thomas Theurillat and dealing with pressure
* Love of the air
* SIV training and becoming a complete pilot
* SIV on comp wings? Absolutely- but start slow
* How much SIV and how often?
* Pursuing mastery
* How to be consistent
* Advice to newer comp pilots- focus on the process
* How to mentally prepare before a comp and visualization
* Fitness and flying
* Finding the routine
* CALM- be calm
* Pitfalls to avoid
Mentioned in this episode:
Honorin Hamard, Seiko Fukuoka, Maxime Pinot, Ozone Paragliders, Russ Ogden, Juri Vidic, Maxime Bellemin
