Bruce Kirk
Basic Instructor

If the video does not play, CLICK HERE Video by Clémence Boulloud

In the fall of 2004, Bruce Kirk joined Fly Above All as a basic Instructor. Bruce describes his flying roots and passion for instructing:

"Like many of you, I've dreamed of flying like a bird since I was a little kid. I played with model airplanes, then radio controlled airplanes. Just out of high school, I got my private pilot's license in a super cub and other small planes.

I loved flying planes, but it became more and more costly to fly and I always wanted something simpler, more convenient and more personal. I found Scott & Terri Johnson of US Airborne Sport Aviation Center in Eastern Washington. They were the closest paragliding school to me, since I lived in central Idaho at the time.

I got my start in paragliding by becoming a P2, then bought a motor unit from Scott and suddenly, I had my own personal aircraft I could carry with me in my car and have it out flying within 10 minutes! Where I lived in Idaho, I cound walk out of my house and launch in my back yard with my motor and fly whenever I wanted. What a joy! We are very lucky to have these personal aircraft available to us in this day and age. My dream had come true!

Anyways, winters became way too long in Idaho, and I just couldn't go for months without flying and I decided that life was short; I wanted to do something I loved for a living. So I came to sunny Southern California and started apprenticing with the local schools and got my USHGA Basic Instructor rating in Spring of 2005, and am very fortunate to be working with Chad and Lee Anne at Fly Above All in Santa Barbara.

It's really awesome to hang out with positive, happy people who are loving life, and that is the flying community. Paragliding and paramotoring is one of the easiest, simplest forms of flying that almost anyone can learn, but since it is flying, it is absolutely essential to have proper training and learn good solid basic skills and decision making abilities to build on, since mistakes and bad decisions can have bad results.

We provide excellent training and many choices in proper equipment to make yours a long, safe and enjoyable flying experience. I hope to have you fly with us here at Fly Above All!"

Bruce Kirk has taught and assisted in teaching over 100 people to fly since joining our instructor team. He is an avid free-flight pilot, enjoying the smooth, mechanical lift produced at our local ridge soaring sites as well as searching for active thermals in our local mountains. He is also a dedicated paramotor pilot, often catching an evening flight on his powered paraglider on his way home from a productive day at the training hill. Bruce has learned to fly the powered paraglider trike solo. He has also completed the TandemTrike certification, enabling him to take students with him flying on a Discovery Flight.

Fly Above All congratulates Bruce Kirk on becoming a Basic Paragliding Instructor and welcomes him to our instructor team. See Bruce teaching paragliding at Elings Park.

From one of our recent students:

"I had a great time today.  I loved it (and today was more work than play). :)

This is definitely something that I want to pursue, so that way it can be all play (fun). :)
 
Additionally, Bruce was awesome. Please give him my thanks!  He is a great instructor; very helpful, understanding, and did not rush.  I was very very pleased with him.  He was very helpful/encouraging.  Thanks again.  Hope to hear from you soon."

          -NW, Santa Barbara