Mountain Athlete
The Eiger, with its enormous north face and fierce reputation, is perhaps the most storied mountain in the world. The colourful history of early attempts to climb it, which often ended in tragedy, have featured in everything from books and magazines to Hollywood films. To simply call it iconic or a classic would be a …
This year in addition to my usual mountain adventures and flying I have been organising a hike & fly paragliding race here in Scotland. It’s been a big logistical challenge to get everything arranged, but hopefully the event will be worth it if the weather is on our side. After several months of planning, the …
Continue reading "X-Scotia Hike & Fly – a paragliding adventure race in the Scottish mountains"
It's perhaps not a very original statement to say that Patagonia is a place of extremes, but it's true. The place is famous for its incredible granite towers, brutally long approaches and wild weather, all of which could be quite fairly described as extreme. But spend some time in this beautiful place, get to know …
If the old cliché is true that things often work out when you least expect them too, can we actively cultivate this 'low expectations' mindset and use it to our advantage?
Over the last few years, since I started flying speedwings, I've made many trips to Pentland hills. Despite being just outside of Edinburgh, for a long time these grassy rolling slopes held little appeal for me. The lack of any technical climbing meant I largely focused my attention elsewhere. When I started to fly though, …
With the national lockdown continuing to restrict travel, I am again reminded how lucky I am to have access to local flying. Although it's definitely not the most spectacular mountain paragliding Scotland has to offer, just being allowed take to the sky and enjoy the views on a clear winter day is a treat. Last …
This Christmas was a difficult one for a lot of people. Isolation, lockdowns and travel restrictions kept families apart and impeded the conventional holiday traditions so many of us enjoy. For me this was further compounded by illness. Stabbing stomach pain, a trip to the hospital and being contact traced which resulted in being stuck inside …
Over the last few weeks, tightening of travel restrictions and deteriorating weather have made me really appreciate the freedom I enjoyed this summer. Not working, just climbing and flying whenever possible was the silver lining of an otherwise extremely tough year. It seems ironic that the greatest loss of freedom I have ever endured, actually …
For a long time now i've been fascinated by paragliding. The idea of gliding effortlessly above the mountains has always been appealing. For me, flying with equipment so minimalist that it more closely resembles a tent than an aircraft, somehow makes it even more alluring. For the last six years I have been skydiving and …
Even for an experienced equipment tester helmets are an inherently difficult thing to review. Despite their many and varied design features helmets are really there for one obvious reason, to protect your head from the type of serious impact you ideally want to avoid. So their is always a certain guilt associated with commenting on …
Scott Becker 