Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Eyam: My first ton

I saw Roger Federer on the TV the other day, explaining what it felt like to win his first Grand Slam. "Overwhelming relief. It doesn't matter what else you do in your life, you've won a Slam". Those words echoed my sentiments after I achieved my first 100 Km flight on a paraglider in the UK. Granted that 100K on a paraglider is a piddling feat compared to a tennis Grand Slam, but it's all relative. Just as many tennis players never win a Slam, so many pilots never fly 100K.

After nearly 20 years of trying, I finally got to the right hill on the right day at the right time and in the right frame of mind. On Friday 4th July 2008, I took off from Eyam Edge in Derbyshire shortly after 1pm and flew a distance of 108.5 Km via a turnpoint to land 4 1/2 hours later near Ripon, North Yorkshire, 98.8 Km away from take-off (OK, 1.2K short of an "old-fashioned" ton, but I'm no pedant).

#####Crossing the M1
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