The Ozone Roadster 4

Every Ozone glider sold through Backcountry PPG comes with a free Backcountry PPG stuff bag ($79 value) & game changer toggles ($59 value). In addition to that - For a limited time - with the purchase of any Ozone glider we are also offering a $300 credit towards any PPG Smoke equipment. The credit does not expire but is only valid on new wings. This is our way of saying - thank you.

We have 24m, 26m, & 28m in stock ready to ship.

 

Our Favorite Beginner Glider That We've Ever Tested.

The Ozone Roadster 4 is without a doubt, our favorite beginner paramotor glider we have ever tested over the last 15 years. We have spent hundreds of hours across our team testing, flying, and pushing the Roadster 4 to the limits, and it continues to impress us. The combination of safety and performance creates a glider that's fun for experienced pilots but forgiving for newer pilots. 

 

Who This Glider Is For:

The Ozone Roadster 4 is designed for entry level pilots from 0-70 hours of flight time. This glider is the one we continue to recommend for nearly every beginner paramotor pilot leaving our training. It's forgiving, like it needs to be for new pilots, but also capable. It has the playfulness that pilots will grow to desire, but the forgiveness that newer pilots need. It's the perfect blend of something you won't outgrow quickly, but will hold your hand and catch you from critical mistakes when you need it to.

 

Launching:

The Ozone Roadster 4 is a really easy and simple glider to launch. Starting from the initial inflation the Roadster is really good at inflating from the center with the wingtips following, which reduces the risk of the wingtips coming together behind you and blowing the launch. The inflation speed itself feels effortless, and there is no saggy middle zone where the glider doesn't want to come overhead. Once it has inflated the Roadster likes to float overhead, even if you're airspeed is low and you're deeper in brakes. This makes it really forgiving for newer pilots because you can make mistakes, hesitate on the launch, and still make it happen with ease. The brake range is quite deep before stall, which allows you to make heavy brake inputs to prevent collapses and brake inputs for direction changes or glider corrections. Brake inputs on slow launches usually leads to stalling or spinning the glider behind you, but the Roadster 4 has deep enough brake range that it can hover overhead for longer before heavy brakes become a problem. Overall, the Roadster 4 makes launching easier and more simple, because of how forgiving it is to mistakes and effortless it is to keep under control. There are no "tricks & tips" for launching it - because it's just too easy.

 

Safety:

A glider designed for newer pilots needs to be safe & extremely forgiving to mistakes. The word "safe" is too broad and doesn't mean a whole lot without explanation.

Starting with collapses, the Roadster has two really strong characteristics that help make it really safe in collapses. Firstly the Roadster is really resistant to collapses which means that in order to get it to collapse you have to encounter really strong turbulence. The level of resistance is hard to define, but from our vast testing, it takes way more than you'd expect to get it to collapse. There was a good few months our team set out to fly in strong turbulence just to see how hard it was to collapse, and we are happy to report we were only able to get it to collapse once in stronger rotor. We by no means claim it is collapse "proof" but the design of this glider is built in a way that it resists as much as possible. We've always found the best collapse is one you never take and the Roadster is good at that.

Resistance to collapses is only half the battle, because once it does collapse how does it handle itself? From every simulated collapse test to every real world collapse we have experienced, we are extremely happy to report that it handles itself beautifully. Which, again doesn't mean much without further explanation... So for us it was important that in a collapse a pilot could either do nothing and recover, or do the wrong inputs without creating serious problems. Both situations passed quite well on the Roadster. Meaning in a real world collapse a pilot can do nothing and the roadster will recover on it's own with minimal direction change and altitude loss. On the flip side, if the pilot does the wrong input it does help in recovering correctly with minimal risk of causing serious problems. Overall the collapses from the Roadster, despite trim setting, are really difficult to encounter, and really forgiving and easy to recover from. 

Lastly something often not considered when discussing safety is how hard a glider is to stall. A stall is very difficult to recover from and if you encounter one at lower altitudes it can lead to a quick reserve toss or worse. How hard or easy a glider is to stall does vary depending on the trim setting you're at in that exact moment in time, so this is hard to compare apples to apples but we will do our best. From our experience something we've always appreciated as a team about the Ozone lineup of gliders is that the brake range is deep without risk of a stall and the stalls do give you a warning before they start. Meaning, you can pull way more brake than you should, and hold that for longer than you should, and still it will give you warning before it actually stalls. This is a strong benefit from our experience because if you encounter stronger turbulence, like a gust front or rotor, you need to be able to active pilot the glider which will involve deep brake inputs without risking a stall. You also need to be able to apply deeper brake in a collapse without risking a stall. Meaning if you take a collapse, can you still pull the flying side brake without collapse risk, because that is not alway the case. The Roadster checks the stall box nicely, meaning it's difficult to stall and gives warning before it does stall. This is really important for flying in stronger turbulence and for newer pilots who are prone to making heavy brake inputs incorrectly.

Overall - we firmly believe the Roadster 4 is one of the safest and most forgiving gliders we have ever flown for the reasons listed above. It is the single most confidence inspiring glider we've ever flown in turbulence and our #1 choice for wings if we know it will be a rough flight.

Performance:

When newer pilots are choosing a glider, performance is usually not the most important characteristic, but it is something you should consider. The Roadster 4 is a surprisingly playful and fun glider that pilots can grow into over time. The Roadster comes with tip steering, but not tied in. As a pilot progresses they're able to tie that into their primary brakes which will help unlock more roll rate performance which is something every pilot grows to desire. Not every pilot needs to barrel roll, but everyone will want to turn a little sharper and carve a little harder and the Roadster is able to grow with you in that process. The Roadster is playful enough to do big wingovers and barrel rolls in the hands of a more experienced pilot. 

The word performance, like safety, is too broad and means everything and nothing at the same time. So let's break it down. The first measurable characteristic of a "performance" in a glider is airspeed at all trim settings. A glider with higher performance will have a higher overall airspeed regardless of acceleration. This does vary greatly depending on the loading of the glider but we will try to keep it simple. The Roadster 4 cruises around 23 trims in, 26 trims neutral, and 29 trims out. This is very comparable with other gliders in the same level of "performance."

The next measurable characteristic of performance is roll rate. Aka, how fast/slow does it roll and how hard do you have to try to get it to roll. The Roadster is more of a beginner glider, which means the roll rate is designed to be slower and more forgiving knowing that newer pilots are not going to know how to handle themselves correctly. This is true the Roadster does not roll like crazy, but with tip steering tied in and shortened, it does begin to roll in a very playful and fun way. Again, hard to measure and everyone's "in the seat" feel is likely different, but we find the roll rate when stock is the perfect level for newer pilots who make mistakes and when tip is tied in it's more than fun enough for every day flying.

Overall Feedback From Backcounry PPG:

After writing this all out our hope is that you have a better feel for what to really expect vs the traditional explanations you read online. This was written from our team from our own firsthand experience with the glider and other comparable gliders. We realized while writing this that it began to sound like it's almost "too good to be true" and in all honesty, the Roadster is just that good. It has exceeded expectations in every way, and as a result you see more of them out there than any other glider. Across the board it's unanimously agreed to be a phenomenal glider and we couldn't agree more. It's such a fantastic wing that we always have some on hand for ourselves. We highly recommend them for newer to intermediate pilots and work hard to always have them in stock in the common sizes.

 

Product Information From Ozone:

The Roadster 4 is a fully reflexed paramotor wing that is fun and fast with high passive safety for its class. It excels in all types of powered flight from low-level precision flying to XC adventures, and is suitable for beginner-intermediate to experienced pilots.

NEW FEATURES

• New winglets improve roll stability and spiral control which translates to higher passive safety and fun.
• 3D panel shaping and mini-ribs increase performance and max speed (+3km/h).
• A new optimized reflex profile and leading edge openings mean faster inflation, shorter take off distance, and higher fuel efficiency.
• Higher arc provides better roll response and more precision in turns.
• Rollercam trimmers with sublimation printed trim setting marks operate more smoothly and with less effort.

THE PILOT

The Roadster 4's ease of use and high passive safety make it suitable for a wide range of pilots from the newly qualified to the more experienced. Newly qualified pilots will appreciate the impeccable launching characteristics and rock solid stability whilst experienced XC pilots will love the overall efficiency, performance, and agile handling with the added security of EN-B certification*.

THE TECH

The Roadster 4's new winglets make the wing easier to fly at full speed; it feels like it is "on rails" and the tip steering system gives precise control whilst accelerated. Improved spiral control reduces the likelihood of neutrality even at high wingloading in a high hang pointed harnesses. The new arc offers better roll response in the turn for more direct and precise handling whilst also calming the behaviour during side collapses. 3D panel shaping, mini ribs, contributes to the top speed and overall performance increase.

The Roadster 4 risers are designed to be beginner-friendly, simple, and uncluttered. They feature color-coded webbing for easy identification, a foot-operated speed system, a tip steering system, and fully adjustable brake attachment points to suit various power units and pilot preferences.

The improved trimmer system features sublimation-printed webbing with line markers and a roller cam mechanism, ensuring smooth and precise operation while preventing jamming or unintended slippage.

CERTIFICATION

The Roadster 4 has been load tested to 8G in compliance with the EN 926-1 standard and is recognized by the DGAC. Following extensive in-house testing, the Roadster 4 was independently flight-tested in sizes 24, 26, and 28 to the EN 926-2 standard, achieving an EN-B rating. These tests were conducted without the accelerator and with the trimmers set to the slow (neutral) position. Other sizes have been precisely scaled and trimmed to match the certified versions, ensuring consistent and reliable behavior across the range.

IN FLIGHT

Recent advances in performance and ease of use make for a truly versatile wing that excels in powered flight whilst offering enough sink rate performance and handling for unpowered free flying. It all starts from the ground thanks to an easier take-off in even shorter distances than before. The brake response and overall levels of agility make the Roadster 4 fun - a real pleasure to fly - suited for carving low level lines and thermalling high up to the clouds, wherever the adventure takes you.

Specifications

Wing weight may vary up to 50g per size due to slight variations in the manufacturing of the fabric used.

*This wing has been independently flight tested to the EN 926-2 standard without the use of the accelerator system and with the trimmers set to the slow position. Releasing the trimmers, operating the accelerator system or flying outside of the EN certified weight range invalidates any EN flight certification. As delivered, the wing does not conform to the EN 926-2 standard due to the inclusion of the accelerator and trimmer systems on the risers.