My name is Peter Brinkman and I am 31 year old, measured by Central European time. I left for Canada in 1998. I began to fly in summer of 2000, when I also got married. The only one wedding present for me was a paragliding wing. I marvelled a lot! I supposed to buy some old used paragliding wing, it had to be enough for the beginning. And now completely new one! Nothing remained but to go for it and not to dig myself into a hole. Thus I left all my other activities aside. The married life too? It resisted happily. How is it possible? Buy a new paraglider to your wife and teach her flying ...



    I sent couple of photos to SkyFly and Standa asked me to write something about the paragliding sport in Canada. Personally I think, I'm not the proper man. I was always bad in a diction at school. Those photos were taken during a two days crossing flight in Pemberton near the largest Canadian ski resort Whistler. What was the main point?

    I heard about somebody, who had flown in Pemberton. He landed on the top of the mountains, spent the night there and flew back in the morning. I liked this idea so much, that I made a call to my friend and paragliding teacher Zdenek. We have to make this adventure too. Zdenda didn't hesitate and he arrived to Pemberton next weekend. We met each other in a house of a local paragliding pilot Jim. Jim is a very peculiar man.



    For example, if you will go for flying to Nepal and will pronounce the word Canada, everybody will ask, if you know Jim. He is the largest-hearted pilot I know. Every pilot is welcome in his house. It's not important at all if you come from Africa, Czech Republic, Venezuela or a planet Mars. Important is that you can fly. And he is definitely very good at flying. Of course, Jim was at home not alone. Weather looks like on the pages in a paragliding schoolbook and this must be the evident sign. Nothing remains but to throw protectors out of the harness and put sleeping bags, cookers, tents and something to eat and drink instead of them. In a moment we reach the taking off area, which is situated about 400m above a landing zone. The peaks of surrounding hills rise 2500m above the sea level roughly.



    The finishing touches come after. The agreement is lucid. We will fly to Copper Hill, where we will try to land and spend the night. The goal of our expedition is situated 30km away in a hight of 2500m above the sea level. It's not far but if you landed elsewhere, you'd sleep in a forest with bears and you'd walk home for three days. And I don't wish this anybody. We have walkie-talkies with us. I hope everything is alright. Jim takes off as the first. Who else? He is a local man after all. Zdenek takes off as the last. A nervousness is in the air. Everybody wants to achieve a longed-for goal. Everybody's flown along Copper Hill many times but I must reach it today. Else I'll sleep at home or God knows where! And boys will have a great celebration on the top of the hill without me. This day is really excellent. We've ascended three kilometers high. Jim waits for the others and so do I.

    'Come on boys, it works today!!!' I'm watching Zdenek and now I can see that things go wrong to him. I know he is an old nervous man. If we flew there to have a look only, he'd reach the goal as the first. But it's a different situation now. Everything is at stake. Either I'll be there with the others or I'll go home.

    Finally, everybody is in the air and goes for it. We are one team together but how to help in the air? Follow me or show me the way. And that's all. I can't carry you on my shoulders. And this is the way the paragliding is.

    I approach Copper Hill. I left two hours of wonderful flying behind me and I took loads of photos to my diary ...



    We are always ahead with Jim and we shout by walkie-talkies how it excellently works. But it drives other members of our small expedition nervous and especially Zdenda. I'm always watching him flying extremely low, tightly above tops of the trees. What's wrong with him today? He always used to be in front of me! Those nerves! But I can smile near a cloudbase, as cool as a cucumber.

    It's half past four and a wind roars as at noon. It's time to land. Where? I'm waiting for Jim. Jim doesn't like 'big ears', thus his landing is difficult. Meanwhile Ty (read Tai, it's a name) has landed successfully.




    He is a native. I go for it too. It's not easy at all. The wind blows like for a windsurfing. Eventually I'm on the ground, exactly said on the rock. Next and next. Zdenek also lands finally. Jim is always manoeuvring tightly above the landing area. He landed at last!!! And here we are but six of us only. Two of us finished their flights down in the valley. It wasn't an advantageous day for them. Good pilots but ...?

    Indesrcibeable moments come. HERE WE ARE!!! Here we are! We always repeat and dance around our paraglider wings. We are taking photos for dear life.