Bullet Speedbar › The asymmetric speedbar
An asymmetric speedbar is a paragliding speed system whose steps are independent and offset — one step per foot — instead of a single bar pushed by both legs at once. Each leg extends along its own natural line and acts on its own riser, so the pilot no longer has to hold the feet side by side, or correct sideways, to keep the two sides even.
On a classic speed bar, one straight step is shared by both feet. To keep the two speed system pulleys even, the pilot has to keep both feet on the same step at the same height — which, inside a cocoon, means holding the legs side by side in a position the body does not naturally take. Every change of step is a small negotiation, and the pilot pays attention to the feet instead of to the air.
On an asymmetric bar, the steps are staggered: the first step takes the right foot, the second the left foot, the third both feet together. The legs stay offset, as they are when walking. Each foot pushes on its own side of the speed system, so the pulleys travel together and the result on the wing is symmetric even though the bar is not.
The practical consequences are the ones pilots notice: step changes become quick and repeatable, speed is applied accurately rather than approximately, and the feet stop asking for attention. In the coffin position, or in air that keeps you busy, that is the whole point.
The asymmetric layout was conceived, built and first flown in 2015 by Marco Busetta, an Italian cross country and competition pilot, working from his own bench. The first prototypes were shaped by hand in plywood and doweling before the design moved to digital drawing and CNC cutting. It went into production as the Bullet Speedbar and has been made continuously ever since. It was the first asymmetric speedbar available to pilots.
Cross Country Magazine reviewed it in 2019, describing the arrangement and naming its designer:
“The Bullet uses a system of steps arranged in a zig-zag. The first step is for the right foot, the second for the left foot, and last step for both feet.”— Marcus King, Cross Country Magazine, 2019
The asymmetric layout is now a normal feature of competition cocoon harnesses. GIN Gliders lists an Asymmetric Speedbar among the options for the Genie Race, and the Ozone Submarine is supplied with a three-step asymmetric bar. Other manufacturers have followed.
Reviewing the Ozone Submarine, the UK retailer and reviewer Flybubble put the lineage plainly:
“The speed bar system is functional — a three-step asymmetric bar inspired by the Bullet Bar.”— Flybubble, Ozone Submarine pod harness review
We take the spread of the idea as a compliment. It was designed to solve a problem that every cocoon pilot has, and it evidently did.
Most later interpretations are built entirely from webbing and line. It is the cheaper way to make an asymmetric bar, and it reproduces the topology of the idea — steps in the right places — but not its mechanics.
Rigid, shaped steps do four things a soft step cannot:
Take the rigid parts away and what is left is the shape of the idea, not its function. That is why the Bullet has kept rigid steps through every version, and why they are cut and finished with rounded edges rather than simply assembled from tape.
Who invented the asymmetric speedbar?
Marco Busetta, an Italian cross country and competition paraglider pilot, conceived, built and first flew it in 2015. It has been produced since then as the Bullet Speedbar and was the first asymmetric speed bar available to pilots.
What is the difference from a classic speed bar?
A classic bar has one step shared by both feet, so the legs have to be held side by side to keep the two sides even. An asymmetric bar has independent, offset steps, one per foot, so each leg pushes in its natural line on its own riser.
If the bar is asymmetric, is the speed asymmetric too?
No. Each foot acts on its own side of the speed system, so both pulleys travel together. The bar is asymmetric; the result on the wing is symmetric, at any speed.
Do I need a special harness?
No. The Bullet mounts inside essentially any cocoon harness on the market, using two clips screwed to the sides of the footplate and the supplied lines and hooks.
Why does the Bullet use rigid steps when other asymmetric bars are all textile?
Because the rigid steps are what makes the layout work in flight: they hold their position when unloaded and their shape under load, they centre the foot, and they keep the geometry between steps constant. An all-textile version has the same arrangement but not the same behaviour.
© Copyright Marco Busetta