Before going:
Most tours are winter season. If you have not flown for some time, you should at least get out in some wind or light wind and make sure your kiting is still working. In addition, do some winter flying at your local training hill. Read articles about thermal flying, speed to fly, and critical situations.
Coaches can help you assess good flying scenarios, but only you can fly the craft and having a solid foundation makes this easier. Flying in the mountains requires that you can handle things should something come along.
Money Exchange:
Many venues do not accept CCs, so having some Pesos is necessary. Banks usually have exchange, and there are businesses called “Elektra” in some towns, and ATM’s also can exchange. If you go to a bank, you will be required to present your passport to exchange. The limit is usually 5000 pesos. Lately, 2024, the exchange rate is + – 20 pesos / dollar. So, 5000 pesos is about $250.
At the Airport, there are exchange booths before you get out to the terminals. Do not exchange there, it is the worst rates. Instead, for pocket money, do so after you clear into the terminal.
Phone Planning:
Mexico and Phones. I have Verizon, and my plan automatically engages service in Mexico. Regardless, it will be best to contact your carrier and confirm that you will have service in Mexico. For the target flying sites, we have had great service in all locations. Text limits vary by carrier. If you have problems with service, you can also buy a SIM card for your phone. It’s a bit of a hassle, but some pilots who need to work, while in Mexico, say this is better. If you do not have a GPS device for locations (Spot or Inreach), you can use your telegram to share your location on flights. I just ordered an inreach2 mini for myself. I do not require, but do recommend.
lf someone wanted a nice hotel within 40 minutes of the airport, my friend, Vic Cueto, owned, but recently sold, Casa Armonia in Tlaquepaque. He might join us for a day, I might take him tandem for the second time. Price is not the cheapest, but near the Centro and super nice. Tlaquepaque is IMHO the nicest district in Guadalajara. Lots of restaurants, small shops, nightlife. Near the airport, there are plenty of budget hotels / motels if you just stay the night. Most of us are going in the Van, but Mau and Shiqi look like they might head over for the night on Friday, as they would need to leave earlier than the rest of us.
Mexico – How to prevent getting ill:
My father was a doctor, but specifically the travel medicine specialist for Kaiser in N California. So, I learned everything from the best at this. He also loved Mexico, and we own a condo in Puerto Vallarta.
Avoid:
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- Uncooked food at small restaurants that might have rinsed vegetables in tap water. If you get ice in a drink at a restaurant, you can ask (¿El hielo está purificado? / Is the ice purified? ) If water is not served in a bottle, ask this. Any bigger or fancier restaurants, this is a given.
If a bottle of water is moist, some say to wipe the drinking part of the bottle. I would say, just at small remote venues, they might use unpurified ice.
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- Instead of rinsing your Toothbrush with tap water, have bottled water there to do this.
In the shower, do not let the water get in your mouth.
It is OK to eat:
Roadside food cooked is fine. Just do not get raw vegetables with such food. peppers, onions, hot sauce – no problem, just avoid anything uncooked and might have been rinsed.
Just in Case: In Mexico, you can buy Ciproflaxen at any Farmacy. Cipro can fix some forms of Turista aka “the trots”. You can also get Lomotil or Imodium, these are pills that stop diarrhea. I always bring both, but if you want your own, have at it.
I would say about 5 pilots have gotten sick in the last 10 years of tours. If you follow the above rules, it will be unlikely. I got sick only once, but was functional and got better in a day or two with the cipro. It is not contagious.
I have been to Mexico 50 times in my life, and only had the Turista a few times, but not for many years. I am not trying to scare anyone, it is just the precautions you take in any country that does not have tap water treated to US levels.
Temperature / Clothing:
Tapalpa and Ceboruco / Jala have launches close to 7,000 ft MSL. Generally, it is 65 – 70 degrees at this elevation. The potential to get high is good at both spots. Flying with gloves that keep your hands warm above 10,000 ft msl is to have gloves that would be good for 50 degrees or lower. With wind chill factored in, perhaps even warmer. If you happen to go higher, having warmer would be in the cards. For clothing, a warm jacket and breeze breaker for Colima, or layered clothing…
I have a system. I fly in gloves thick enough to keep me warm till about 10,000, but have mitten covers (bought as a two part system, inner glove, thin and warm, with cover mitten – ski accessory) attached to a lanyard on my chest strap. If I get high enough that the hands get cold, I slip on the mittens! For the most part, newer P2s need to get comfortable climbing that high, a bit rare, but if you get there, cold hands really suck! Another system might be to have a pair of ski gloves in an accessible pocket?
If you get cold more easily, you can wear thermal underwear, under jeans or a flight suit over your basic clothing.
For Colima, it is a different plan. It is much lower elevation. You can almost fly without a jacket, but I always keep a breeze breaker on, just in case I get higher, and it does get cooler.
Equipment:
Required – Flying gear including Hook Knife and Reserve on harness. Radio (I supply if you do not have). GPS – at Minimum Phone with Telegram and or WhatsApp. I prefer the telegram app, we can share location in this group. Better, but not required, would be a GPS location tool – Spot or Inreach (know configuration and set up to contact me and Gerardo so that we can locate you if an incident happens).
Phone Service:
Mexico and Phones. I have Verizon and my plan automatically engages service in Mexico. Regardless, it will be best to contact your carrier and confirm or set service, so you will have service in Mexico. For the target flying sites, we have had great service in all locations. Text limits vary by carrier. If you experience problems with service, you can also buy a sim card for your phone, a bit of a hassle, but some that need to work while in Mexico, say this is better.
At Tapalpa and Ceboruco – Altitude:
Tapalpa is, on a good day, you can go very high. Launch is at 7,150 MSL. The highest someone has gotten in a tour is 14,000. So, the below is a limit guide for pilots flying here. For your first couple of days, we will say 10,000 stop climbing. The reason for this is that acclimation happens after a couple days sleeping at a higher elevation. Just hanging around launch, Hydrate a lot. Altitude sickness can happen, especially as you are not yet acclimated. Ceboruco, the volcano launch is also about 5’500. But, if we sleep in Jala, it is about 3,500 ft. Guidelines follow:
First couple of days – Ceboruco or Tapalpa – 10,000 ft. Later in the week, 12,000, but if we have been sleeping in Tapalpa for at least two nights, perhaps 14,000. Most students just need to get up to 9 or 10,000 to be super thrilled. I have had a few students, later in the week, get up to almost 12K.
When in Tapalpa, hydrate more than usual. We had a pilot on the tour begin to get altitude sickness from both flying to 10,000 and launch. We fixed this by having him hydrate a lot. Two Docs were on that tour and enhanced my understanding that hydration or lack thereof can prevent or minimize chances of altitude sickness. Once everyone hydrated better, nobody showed any signs of altitude sickness.