Hanging High

Of the more interesting and certainly most high-octane activities available on Mount Tamborine is hang gliding. A chat with Ken Hill reveals the reasons why participants and spectators are so fascinated with the miracle of flight.

by Kyle Hitchmough

How did you get started in hang gliding?

I started in 1983 in a small town near Yeppoon. There were some early pioneers in those days. I used to watch them fly off the cliffs at the end of the main street. My dad said to me one day, “If I was you, I’d have a crack at that.” So I started learning with those guys. I was there for seven years and then I moved to the Gold Coast in ‘87 and started here, flying with other really good pilots. I did that for a few years, and then in about 1990 I started a school with another guy.

What was your inspiration to set up a school, and take it from hobby to business?

I got a lot of enjoyment out of doing this sport. It’s something that’s really different to most other flying sports. It’s going back to flying like a bird. The actual laid-down position you’re in, is more like a bird than any aircraft. In everything else you sit upright and look out of windows, this is the most open cockpit you can ever have. We went on and made a business out of it to try and bring more business into the sport.

You fly from two locations, according to your website: Beechmont in the summer and Mount Tamborine in the winter. Why?

The main reason is that the westerly winds are more predominant in the winter here. It’s the way the winds and the weather works. This time of the year it’s more Beechmont, it’s all easterlies and south-easterlies, and we are there during the summer. We always launch and land into the wind. We want to be launching into whatever the predominant wind is on the day.

What attracted you to Tamborine to set up the business?

This is one of the most amazing, beautiful areas in the country. If you travel around a lot and you fly from different areas, the attraction is the area itself. The beauty, the scenery, we’re close to major cities here with the Gold Coast and Brisbane, and if you’re setting up a business you want to be able to attract people who aren’t that far away. But really, it’s the scenery. It’s an amazing area to look down on once you’re up high.

You also offer a flight school: what goes into learning how to fly?

It’s not for everyone. Some people have a fascination with flight and there’s no pollution with this. There’s no vibrations or noise—you’re never going to catch alight. It’s very quiet up there, very peaceful. You leave all the stresses behind on the ground and you’re very relaxed in the air. For those people who really want to try it it’s an amazing experience. I will say that the early days of learning, where it’s all close to the ground and running to learn to launch, that’s the hardest bit.

What goes into the business aspect of running a hang gliding service?

There are certain times of year that are better to learn in than others—you don’t want to be out there in the middle of the heat of the day. You utilise the early mornings and later afternoons  to do the practical part. In the middle of the day, when things are bumpier and there’s more thermal currents, you do the theory.

What else do you believe your business provides to the area?

The good thing about this business, and anything to do with hang gliding or paragliding in the area, is that it’s an attraction. Mount Tamborine is the second most popular spot in Australia for the general public to watch hang gliding. It’s an attraction. People go up specifically to watch— some days you might find hundreds of people watching us fly. On the market days at the showgrounds visitors will leave the markets and come and watch. It’s another attraction that’s close to the markets, keeps people in the area. It’s a positive for businesses.

What do you like most about doing this?

I still get a lot of enjoyment from it, seeing people’s amazed faces when they’re in the air, you can see the enjoyment and that they’re experiencing something they’ve never done before, something so different. And it’s a lot more relaxed than they thought it was going be. They thought it was going to be more of an adrenaline rush, that they’d be more pumped up, but it’s not like that at all. Most people go away with a completely different experience than what they thought they were going get.

Do you have any standout stories from doing this?

I’ve had a lot of wonderful experiences. Taking my daughter up over Tamborine—we went to about 6500 ft, flying around with her for about 45 minutes. We flew out towards Beaudesert and landed out that way. That was a nice experience for a father to have with his daughter.

Anything else you’d like to go on the record?

For anyone that’s contemplating learning, it’s a fantastic sport. People sometimes think of things that happened through the 70s that gave it a bad name but we’ve come a long way, it’s like everything: equipment, gliders have improved so much. It’s a good safe sport when you do it in the right environment, use the right gear, and go about it the right way.

We are always looking for new topics for our blog. If there’s something you like to see more of, email your suggestions to: social@professionalsserendipity.com.au

Or email the writer at kyle.hitchmough@hotmail.com, and follow me on Twitter @realcasualrvws.