Rob McFarland – Travel Writer

Skydiving over Wollongong - photo by Rob McFarland

NZ Herald on Sunday, New Zealand

It’s not every morning I find myself sitting on another man’s lap. But Pricey asked so nicely it seemed rude to say no. While I try not to fidget, he tightens a series of straps and buckles that will hopefully ensure that for the next 10 minutes we are inseparable. We hit 14,000ft, the door opens and we’re out.

After 60 seconds of mind-rushing, scream-inducing freefall, he opens the chute and we glide down in a series of graceful arcs.

Compared with the mental assault of the freefall, it’s surprisingly serene. Pricey lets me take the controls and I steer down through a valley between two clouds. Wollongong and its beaches far below look breathtakingly beautiful.

When we finally hit the ground, I want to get straight back up there and do it again. Which is precisely what Pricey does. He jumps five days a week and then goes skydiving on his weekends off. And now I understand why.

Read the rest of this story here.

Paddling the backwaters of Lake Mulwalla - photo by Rob McFarland

It was supposed to be a hypothetical question. When I ask Jack: “What would happen if the engine failed now?” I didn’t expect him to reply: “Let’s find out.”

I wouldn’t be so worried if we were in a car or a boat. But we’re in a two-seater plane – and we’re at 760m (2500ft). Jack powers back the engine of the Piper Tomahawk and then, with a grin, tells me we’re about to attempt a dead-stick landing.

I try to hide the look of sheer terror on my face. I don’t like the sound of the word “attempt” and I’m even less enthusiastic about a landing with the word “dead” in it. But I’m in safe hands. As an instructor, Jack has flown for 34 years and has racked up more than 12,000 hours in the air. After a couple of sharp, banking turns to lose height, he glides in and touches down smoothly.

Read the rest of this story here.