This year we're organising the Bulgarian Championship at a new location - the village of Bistritsa, just a couple of km above the south-west city of Dupnitsa.

There were three main reasons to choose it over other possible locations:
1) The two main takeoffs above the village are newly established and thus offering new direct access to some of the best XC terrain in the country.
2) That terrain itself around the main takeoffs is tried and tested for cross country flying of the highest order in a stimulating mix of mountains, hills, and flatlands.
3) The local developer of the takeoffs is very keen to help us with the comp as meet director and organiser.

The two main takeoffs (Ostrogan and Robovitsa) and the HQ are at the northwestern edge of Rila mountain, which is the tallest in Bulgaria.

The combination of big mountains and low flatlands in the peak of summer means on a sunny day you can expect cloud base between 2000 and 3000 meters above the valley floors.

Compared to Sopot (which is the paragliding spot in Bulgaria most foreign pilots are familiar with), the terrain is more technical and variable, with slightly taller mountains and cloud base.

It's a 1h 15min drive from Sofia airport.

p.s. The dusty-looking takeoff with a carpet from the photos is Ostrogan. By the time of the competition it will be covered with green grass

p.p.s. You can see how some of the terrain looks on a good day in the attached Vimeo link. There are even subtitles, so you'll know where everything is:). Before 0:50 you can see the terrain between Sofia and the main takeoff of the comp; then at 0:50 we connect to Rila right above the main takeoff; then heading east along the northern Rila peaks and back north to Sofia.

p.p.p.s. Most photos attached, by Yassen Savov.