Hang Glider Business Brings Bliss to Owner and Customers

DAVENPORT | When Malcolm Jones wakes up in the morning, it's safe to say he knows he'll be flying soon.

High above the Green Swamp, to the left he can see Disney World's famous Epcot ball, part of the Spaceship Earth ride. A glimpse to the right offers a view of downtown Orlando.

The ex-real estate agent made a career switch to follow his passion in 1991.

After years with the Polk County waterskiing community, the Tampa native purchased an old cow pasture in Davenport. He has been running the Wallaby Ranch hang gliding operation at the 500-acre property ever since.

The sport changes people, said Jones, the founder and owner. The company offers lessons to enthusiasts and tandem flights (with an instructor) to those just

looking to give hang gliding a try.

While most people think aerial sports like hang gliding and skydiving are for the extreme thrill-seekers, Jones, 56, said hang gliding gives him a different type of rush than skydiving. It's peaceful and calm, he said, and definitely not like skydiving.

"If you're looking for a scary adrenaline rush, then hang gliding isn't for you," Jones said.

The gliders are pulled by an airplane to an altitude of about 2,500 feet before they are released to fly free in the sky.

Cruising along at a mere 35 miles per hour, beginning students and tandem flights tend to last 15 to 20 minutes. Advanced gliders, however, can stay up in the sky for hours.

"What we're doing is unusual for hang gliding, but it's typical for every other form of aviation," Jones said.

Hang gliding started in the mountains with base jumping.

Jones lives in Orlando with his wife and children but spends the night at the ranch two to three days a week. About 10 employees live and work on the property, making it seem more like a family outing than a business.

A community of hang gliding enthusiasts spends the bulk of their time at the ranch. Jones has more than 30,000 incident-free tandem flights to his name.

Carolina Castro works at the ranch when she is visiting from her native Brazil. She said the group is like a family.

But however friendly everyone is with each other, the Wallaby staff members show a more serious side when their eyes turn toward the skies.

There is some risk in gliding through the air with just the wind and your wings to guide you.

Jones said too many people get bogged down by accident headlines that do not reflect a true reality.

Since January, there have been 29 hang glider accidents nationwide, resulting in six fatalities, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report.

In 2011, there were 27 hang glider accidents reported, with nine fatalities.

This is a far cry from the number of auto accident deaths yearly, Jones said.

Of about 5,419,000 police-reported motor vehicle crashes, 32,885 people were killed in 2010, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

"We have not put a scratch on a soul," he said of his tandem gliding expeditions.

A 59-year-old man died from injuries received at the ranch in 2009.

The Vermont man with impaired vision flew with the group and crashed into a tree.

"If I knew that [his glasses were falling off] I wouldn't have let him fly," Jones said.

Jones boasts that his unit is so safe that media and movie officials who are extremely concerned with liability choose his outfit because of his safety record.

"If the only time you ever saw a picture of a car was when it was in a wreck, you'd be scared to drive, too," he said.

Taking proper safety measures, he said, severely limits the risk of injury.

Actress Kate Hudson filmed a scene for the movie "A Little Bit of Heaven" at Wallaby in 2011.

In 2007, the ranch was featured on "The Today Show" after weatherman Al Roker, traveled to Davenport to fly a hang glider for a segment of the show. Co-star Matt Lauer visited shortly after with his family.

"For some people it's everything they ever wanted to do. That joy they get is what keeps me going," Jones said.

Margarita Cambest reports on Lake Alfred and Davenport. She can be reached at margarita.cambest@newschief.com or at 863-401-6969.