"Those who have known flight are destined to walk with eyes cast skyward longing to return from whence they came." This is one of many quotes that Huntsville's Robert Patterson as he speaks of his hobby and passion of free flight, also known as paragliding and hanggliding or in simple terms, flying without a motor. There is a gleam in his eye as he tells tales of cross country flying, catching thermals, and traversing two hemispheres. In fact, the way Robert talks about paragliding is infectious. And if the proof is in the pudding, the crowd of a dozen or more that gather on Keel Mountain when the winds are just right proves how infectious this hobby is.
Over the phone Robert tells me, "You have to be an F-O-R to fly here, Friend of Robert to visit Keel Mountain." There used to be 6 flying sites for paragliders and hang gliders in Alabama, now there is one and it is on the 42 acres owned by Patterson.
After a series of right turns inclining up Keel Mountain, a gathering of parked cars tells me I have found the launch site, directed not by GPS but by good ole hand written directions 'take a right through a wooden gate down a dirt road...'
As you walk to the launch site, the trees clear and there before your eyes is a site to behold, the Tennessee Valley. Fields of gold and trees in varying shades of green line the landscape, a Blue Jay darts amongst the grass and wildflowers along the ridge, and sky is vibrant blue. You are at 1600 feet above sea level.
On this day a crowd has gathered, some have been there since morning riding the wind. One paraglider rose 5,000 feet above sea level earlier in the day. Another named Brad is about to have his first official flight as a certified paraglider. Robert is a personal injury lawyer by trade, and is doing his pre-flight checklist as he gets geared up for his flight.
"Now you see that hawk over there?" asks Robert, "That hawk is doing just what we are doing, soaring and gliding. He is using the wind not flapping his wings. Just like he feels the wind to move up and down, that's what we do in free flight."
On a good day this crew's flights can rise over 5,000 feet above sea level last over an hour if they 'hook' a few thermals. Robert's highest flight was at 17,999ft. Some days they may even go cross country which relatively means anything over 10 miles.
Patterson says, "The hardest part of learning to paraglide or hang glide is take off and landing. As I tell everyone who is curious, every take off guarantees a landing."
One of Robert's most memorable landings happened on a trip to Ecuador, an experience he calls "The Flight of Two Hemispheres." Taking off along the coastal mountains it was a beautiful day. As Robert and his two fellow paragliders glided along the 5 mile ridge to the landing site, clouds began setting in. The most dangerous threat to any free flight trip is clouds because they carry with them turbulence. To avoid the clouds Robert kept going, rising and falling until in the distance he saw a spot clear enough to land. Passing over the Ecuadorian historical marker designating the Equator, Robert landed in the Northern hemisphere. Their flight had begun in the Southern hemisphere. That was his most thrilling and memorable flight.
For 15 years Robert ran a hang gliding school. When people began asking him to teach them, he did. Not for profit, merely for love of this sport.
He also held the record for cross country flight in Alabama at 55 miles, until one of his students broke that record and the two began going back and forth as Alabama record holders of free flight distance.
What Robert loves most about his passion, "I love hearing people's stories." From Germany to Australia to a recent man from Russia, the people that gather on Keel Mountain are from allover the world. Alongside NASA scientists, lawyers, doctors, business owners, and younger enthusiasts, there is always a group of avid lovers of hang gliding and paragliding ready for flight when the north winds are just right.
After spending the afternoon watching launch after launch, I am hooked and make plans myself to return on the next sunny, north wind day.
If you are interested in learning more about hang gliding or paragliding, Robert recommends first spending the day watching launches and experiencing a tandem flight. He also recommends a nearby school Flying Camp right across the Tennessee state line in the Sequatchie Valley near Chattanooga. He says, "Tell them Robert sent you."
Some lawyers play golf, some jog or hunt, Patterson runs off a bluff to fly like a bird. When asked why he loves this sport so much, he replies, "It's like so much of my life, with every take off, every start, I don't know where I'm going, but I know I'm on my way."