When I'm in the air I'm either exhilarated or scared; endorphins or adrenaline...in either case I'm too busy living to worry about being happy. When I'm Making Things Work on computers I'm happy. When I see students understand my ramblings I'm happy. When things I'm responsible for work neatly or elegantly, I'm happy.

Other than that, nope: happiness is a quest - at best. But the flying is good for my personal balance.

This is how things look like when they start: the fellow in the middle is Yours Truly, preparing for a launch during the Killarney Classic 2004. This season I plan on doing both the Canungra Cup as well as the Killarney Comp; not as if I had real competitive reasons but it's a good opportunity to fly XC (cross-country) with the best guys and with retrieves set up in advance.

Other fellows, a lot better than us: a wedge-tailed eagle flying close; I couldn't get a closer shot this time though. The Beechmont wedgies are a fairly unproblematic bunch, fortunately; others do attach gliders and damage them.

This is how successful flights looks like afterwards: the first is me landing near Beaudesert after a 24km flight. As Phil says: the adventure is not over when you land but when you're back home. Truer words are rarely spoken, especially for me: as I'm on my own without girlfriend or similar support "team" (freefliers have one important use for partners: driving a retrieve vehicle) - but then my flying friends help out quite often.

The other pics are of another good flight: packing up just outside Canungra.