Ever since I was a little kid, I always thought it would be fun to go hang gliding.  I could soar above the trees and it would be just like I was flying!  I dreamed about hang gliding often, but figured it was something obscure that I probably wouldn’t have the opportunity to try.

In September 2012, I heard that my friend Clay was putting together a hang gliding trip to Lookout Mountain, near Chattanooga.  Yes!! Here is my chance!

I RSVP’d for the trip and was very excited about going.  Unfortunately, my brother died before the trip and I had to cancel.

Clay and his friends enjoyed the trip so much that they decided to go again.  This time I was able to go.

My friend Heather had recently moved from Atlanta to Cleveland, Tennessee.  She recently started skydiving and loved it so much, she wanted to become a skydive instructor.  She loved the idea of hang gliding but was unable to fly, so she came to watch.

Heather and I met up at a Mexican restaurant near Chattanooga for lunch, then drove over to Lookout Mountain.

When we arrived, we found the Lookout Mountain launch ramp.  We watched several people do a “running launch,” which basically means they strap a glider to their back and run off the side of a cliff.  I had seen videos on YouTube such as this one.  I’m not going to lie, the only Lookout Mountain videos on YouTube at the time were of running launches.  I thought that’s what I would be doing and hesitated.  Is that safe?  I’m really bad at running.  What if I don’t run fast enough?  What if I trip over my feet?  What if I don’t know how to land?  But Clay assured me that running launches were only for people who were experienced.  We would be towed up to altitude by a plane.

We signed waivers, attended safety training, and got fitted with harnesses.  We paired up with an instructor, and one by one we took off!

First, we each got in the glider with an instructor and were strapped in.  Then the glider was attached to an ultralight airplane.  The plane took off and towed us up to height. Once the glider was at the desired height, the glider was released from the plane.  We were flying!

Soon after we were disconnected, my instructor asked me if I wanted to fly it.  I said, “Hell no! I don’t know how to fly a glider!”

He let go of the bar that steers the glider. That is how he tricked me into steering it.  At high altitudes, it’s pretty foolproof.

The view was breathtaking.  From Lookout Mountain, I could see Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama!

After I got comfortable hang gliding, he showed me some tricks.  He stalled the glider by putting the steering bar over our heads.  That caused us to slowly stop moving.  But once we he pulled the steering bar back to chest level, the glider dropped like a roller coaster going downhill.  He did another trick where he made the glider spin in a downward spiral.  He said he knew more tricks that could make me feel like I’m on a roller coaster.  I told him that roller coasters are not fun for me because they make me feel sick.

That was one thing that surprised me about hang gliding.  It was not as smooth of a ride as I imagined.  I did feel a little motion sick, but it was worth it!

Hang gliding was a blast, and I’m glad I did it.  Like many of the best extreme sports, it is pretty expensive.  I would go again in the right situation, but it would have to be a special occasion.

Here’s the video of my hang gliding experience: