Team soars to new heights
A Vernon man has finally taken to the sky, soaring towards entry in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Glenn Derouin and his partner, Mark Jennings-Bates of Peachland, left Queensland, Australia at 5:30 a.m. local time Wednesday aboard their paramotor rigs for the start of their epic trans-Australian flight aimed at setting a new world record for the longest expedition by paramotor.
Everything went well for the Flight4Life team as it left a small airfield in Woodstock near Townsville and landed just short of Charters Towers. As the pilots rest after a sleepless night due to a large thunderstorm dousing their tents and equipment on the eve of their first leg, their team has no respite.
“There is no rest for the ground crew,” said Craig Greenwell, the only Australian on the trip. “Once the pilots have landed, we need to refuel the pilots and the machines, charge various equipment, download video and photos and prepare everything for a launch later in the day. I am sure the next 60 days are going to go by pretty quickly.”
The pilots are battling headwinds, which historically would be blowing form the north giving them assistance. But for the next few days, at least, they will be flying into them toward Cloncurry before they turn south east for the second leg.
The team expects to arrive in Cloncurry by the end of the week before heading southeast toward Rockhampton, where they hope to arrive early next week.
The take-off was delayed a week because of wet weather.
“For sure we are going to experience a few setbacks like this along the way,” said Jennings-Bates, an adventurer-philanthropist also known for his triathlons and rally car driving. “You come into this kind of a project with eyes wide open. But all the gear is here, the weather looks as though it is going to be favourable for a start in the next few days and so we are very positive about getting on with the task at hand.”
For the two Canadian pilots, the world record attempt is the culmination of a few years of preparation.
They met in 1990 after Jennings-Bates had taken a hiatus from rock climbing and decided he wanted to try his hand at paragliding. For several years, they flew together in the Canadian Rockies before Jennings-Bates’ started to raise a family with his wife, Jackie.
But a few years ago, Jennings-Bates approached Derouin about tackling a world record project for charity and as a result, the Flight4Life was born.
Although the pilots have in their minds an ambition to set a new world record, there is an alternative motivation to complete the project.
Each day, nearly 6,000 children die from lack of access to safe water or adequate sanitation.
“That is a child about every 20 seconds and, yet, we do not need to invent a cure, we know the answer,” Jennings-Bates said.
His personal goal is to raise $4 million for the Rally4Life Foundation, a charitable organization based in Canada that provides safe water solutions for remote communities as well as funding for schools and orphanages. The flying duo will also be raising awareness and funds for a well known Australian charity, the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
“Everyone tells us what a great organization they are,” said Derouin. “We have already met many people impacted by the positive service they provide in rural Australia and around the country in general.”
Supporters will also be able to follow their progress live on the internet at www.TheFlight4Life.com.
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