Originally Posted by
gregf83
Is this for a college project? If you want to determine if your power/weight ratio will be adequate call up one of the physiology departments at one of the universities in Phoenix and tell them about your project. Ask them if you can do a short ride on one of their ergo cycles. They shouldn't have a problem and you'll end up with an accurate number.
This is a personal project. I'm not a student. I do like the idea though of asking the physiology department if I may use their erg meter, though.
Flying it myself is more fun and means I don't need as much insurance or have to go through a search process and parade prospective pilots through the physiology department or pay gyms for guest passes. I probably have to test fly it first before anyone else would get in it, which means I have to be in good shape myself. No one will trust a backyard inventor with no degree.
I don't want to build it until I know for sure whether I will have the power to fly it, and how big the span needs to be to accommodate my power at a given speed. I only have $2000, so I can't mess up.