Red Tail Paragliding: Boulder's Paragliding School in 80304

calendar May 11, 2026 / · 3 min read · Red Tail Paragliding Paragliding Outdoor Adventure Recreation 80304 Boulder Colorado NoBo  ·
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Red Tail Paragliding: Taking Flight from North Boulder

Red Tail Paragliding is a paragliding school that runs a USHPA-certified pilot training program from its training address at 800 Cherry Ave, Boulder, CO 80304, offering everything from first-time tandem flights to P2 pilot certification. Misha Banks, a USHPA-certified Advanced Paragliding Instructor and Boulder native, founded Red Tail in 2019, introducing students and visitors to free-flight in one of the most scenic mountain-and-plains settings in the American West.

Where is it? 800 Cherry Ave, Boulder, CO 80304 — park in the lot on the north side of Foothills Community Park; training takes place at the Wonderland Lake flying site.



Courses and Tandem Flights

Red Tail Paragliding structures its offerings to meet students at whatever level they are starting from. First-timers can book a tandem paragliding flight — harnessed alongside an instructor — for a no-commitment introduction to free-flight with no prior experience required. For those who want to earn their wings independently, the school offers an intro course and a P2 certification program on the Wonderland Lake training hill, which Red Tail calls "the best training hill along the Front Range."

Red Tail says it holds students to a higher standard than the minimum USHPA requirements for the P2 rating, and students should expect to complete more than 35 flights. The school also runs tours abroad, including trips to Iquique, Chile and Piedechinche, Colombia.

Why Boulder for Paragliding

The Boulder foothills sit at the eastern edge of the Rockies where mountain terrain meets the Great Plains — a geography that generates reliable thermal lift and ridge-soaring conditions on calm days. Red Tail's P2 program trains at the Wonderland Lake flying site in North Boulder, and the school says it has hundreds of graduates who fly at sites across Colorado. The mix of technical mountain flying and mellower introductory slopes makes the region well-suited for both beginners learning the basics and experienced pilots logging cross-country hours.

For 80304 residents, having a USHPA-certified school based in the neighborhood means access to one of the more uncommon outdoor skills Colorado is genuinely suited for — paragliding is not just a spectator sport here, and Red Tail makes the path from curious observer to licensed pilot tangible.

Practical Information

If you have ever watched a paraglider drift above the Flatirons and wondered whether that could be you, Red Tail Paragliding offers a structured, safety-focused answer — starting with a tandem flight and, for those who catch the bug, a full pilot certification path right here in 80304.

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