Jonny Durand flies the Morning Glory in late 2009. Brilliant.
A profile of Jonny “dynamite” Durand, by Hugh Miller. First published in Cross Country magazine in 2002
Jonny’s gangly frame lopes through the door, shoulders sagging, relaxed grin on his face, and you’d never guess that its the penultimate day of a competition and he’s clinging onto a lead by a mere 97 points out of 4800.
The man looks about as stress as a stoned lizard! It’s a rainy day at the 2002 New South Wales State Titles in Manilla, Australia, and Jonny’s been whipping the competition with his new kingpost litesport. He doesnt seem to have any worries about his nearest topless-flying rivals, despite their slight performance advantages.
Just 21-years-old, and the strains of competition seem to slip straight off his shoulders. I’ve set up an impromptu interview room in Kari Castle’s cabin in the Rivergum’s Caravan Park to try and work out what makes Jonny tick.
There’s a fair bit about the lanky lad that just doesn’t quite stack up. Take his name, for starter: a regular feature in recent top 10 results tables, from Brazil to Spain. Jonny Durand Junior might be an apt enough moniker for a young software entrepreneur or the son of a Texan oil tycoon, but somehow it doesn’t rest comfortably with a flying bum who doesn’t ever seem able to find a clean T shirt. (The Jr, by the way, is a necessity to allow clarity in the aforementioned results lists – his dad John enters most of the same comps as he does). And how about his drive to succeed?
Jonny caught his flying bug while at school, which was situated a kilometer up the road from Beechmont, the local flying site in Queensland. “I spent most of my education sitting at my desk next to the window staring out at the hang gliders,” he says in his slow Aussie drawl, ”and when dad learnt to fly he’d pick me up as soon as the school bell rang for an evening tandem.”
Every year Jonny would struggle to pick a base-bar off the ground, and every year his dad would say, Give it another few months mate. Then one Saturday his parents and siblings went away for the weekend. They came home to hear that Jonny had just done his first solo from the 1,500 ft site. The rest, as they say, is history.
Jonny’s upbringing was unconventional. His parents Jon and Judy emigrated from the States in the 1960s and built a home amongst the woods of Australias humid Gold Coast.
With wind and solar generators to power their electricity needs, a big vegetable patch for food and a thriving pottery business to support Jon Snr’s passion for flying, it’s easy to see where Jonny’s calm, easy going nature comes from.
But what about the competitive burn that has fuelled Jonny’s personnal flying improvement and resulted in so many comp victories?
Since I first met Jonny at his Australian team debut in the World Air Games, Spain, July 2001, the 21 year old has devoured the competition scene, ripping up the established hang gliding order like a discarded betting slip.
He enjoyed second place at the Spanish Nationals and Dutch Nationals in the 2001 Europeenn summer, followed by a top 10 finish in the Brazil pre-pre Worlds, and then a win back home at the highly competitive Canungra Classic.
Jonny then boarded a flight back for Brazil for their Nationals. “Ok, we didn’t fly much,” he says, confessing “but that was a relief most morning because we were so hungover from the partying .”
Since then, Jonny has boosted his flying CV as the top placed Aussie (4th) at the Australian Open, followed by a clean sweep of the Bogong Cup.
But it’s not just his ability that’s won Jonny respect. He can lose with the best of them, Kari Castle briefed me before Jonny arrived for the interview, and that’s a rare quality in such a young pilot.
Like most pilots in the early days of their competition careers, Jonny’s slowly learning to curb his race-to-death instincts and stick with the gaggles. “I hate flying with the gaggle, I know I can fly better than them and I want to be out on my own,” he says.
“But staying with the top gaggle is worthwile because you get to see the different styles of the top pilots,” he continues. “Guys like Oleg Bondarchuk, Gerolf Heinrichs and Gordon Rigg like to push hard, leading out to get away from the gaggle.
“Others climb well and stay on top, waiting to pick their moment like Rohan Holtkamp, Mike Barber. Paris Williams adopts both styles. I try and learn off them all, and I know that you’ve got to make the bold decisions at the end of the flight when you can win the day, rather than making them early and losing it all.”
And Jonny did a whole lot of learning during the unrelenting run of blue skies that characterized the Australian Nationals at Deniliquin and Australian Open in Hay this past December. ”My weakness is blue flying,” he says. ”I was really happy to come 4th at Deniliquin. At home in Queensland we have clouds every day and I can fly much faster with clouds, being able to see the lift. You can judge it pretty well.”
Flying blind during the blue contest days also helped hone Jonny’s visualization skills, something he believes is acutely important if you’re to develop your flying. ”When I go to bed I relive my whole flight, and I think about what I’ve done good or wrong,” he says. ”It’s like getting twice your hours. You’re analysing your flight. It all sinks into your head and then you go and make the same mistake again!”
His flying style would surely lend itself well to crack at the world distance record-and living just hours drive from Manilla, the number 700 (Manfreds magic 700km flight of last year) continues to beguile Jonny.
“I was driving home that day in January when Enda and Rhett flew 301 km on their paragliders,” he says, shaking his head miserably. “Godfrey Weness reckond we could have done 600 km easy. But the trouble with Manilla is you have a few good days scattered through three months, whereas places like Zapata are on for a whole continuous month. So you have to pick your days.”
With a solid sponsorship package from Moyes, Jonny has only just started. When he took up hang gliding, he told his parents he wanted to be world champion within 10 years. He’s since made that timescale a little more conservative, but my last question is whether hes set any goals for the future.
“Yeah, I’m trying to see the world, enjoy it while it’s there. I want to learn a few languages, please the girls!! And I really want to become Australian Champion one day. Its not going to happen this year, but may be next.”
To no-ones great surprise, Jonny went on to win the New South Wales Titles. He’s got that rare combination of qualities: the maturity of an experienced campaigner and the confidence of a pilot who hasn’t yet made the mistakes that might make him cautious.
Add to the equation the full support of a devoted family and an encouraging sponsor, and I cant see that much will stand in the way of Jonny achieving the highest successes in hang gliding.
Jonnys doing good!
*Latest update on Jonny…from the man himself..
….”Well where do i start, Since Manilla i returned home and started work finishing the New Crocodile Hunter movie. Then i just enjoyed some great flying at Canungra for a couple of months before heading off to the Japanese Nationals in April. After returning from Japan i have just been here (in Beechmont-Queensland) working at the house building the new bedroom with the occasional fly. As it is winter now the weather has not been really good for flying so i am trying to work as much as possible so that i can enjoy 4 or 5 weeks in Brazil for their Nationals and the Pre Worlds. I can not wait to get there and get some good flying again….
…..Jonny.”
Updated January 2011
• Got news? Send it to us at news@xccontent.local
Subscribe to the world’s favourite hang gliding and paragliding magazine
