Meet Rob and Dianne McKenzie of High Adventure in Inland Empire

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rob and Dianne McKenzie.

Rob and Dianne both started hang gliding in 1974. Dianne was living in California and Rob was in Canada. They had not yet met. In 1979 Rob moved to California and soon afterwards met Dianne.

In 1980, Rob received his Hang Gliding Association Instructor’s Certification and started teaching hang gliding using dual instruction, where the instructor and student fly together in the same glider. In 1981, Rob and Dianne teamed up both personally and in business and were married in 1984.

Their business, High Adventure, grew over the next 3+ decades with both Rob and Dianne also being very active supporting their local flying site. They have received numerous awards over the years including, 2000 USHPA Instructor of the Year, 2004 USHPA Exceptional Service Award, 2006 USHPA Commendation for volunteer efforts, 2008 USHPA Presidential Citation, 2014 Crestline Soaring Society Lifetime Membership Award, 2016 USHPA Rob Kells Memorial Award for lifetime Achievement.

Currently Rob and Dianne McKenzie now have rolled back their workload and are no longer providing the “start to finish” flight instruction but are still focusing on providing introductory tandem flights for people interested in trying hang gliding.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
For the most part High Adventure’s road was smooth. However, a major struggle was during the years 1989 through 1993. During that time, the privately-owned landing facility which all the hang glider pilots counted on to be able to fly, was being targeted to be closed by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR). The landing site was known as Line Crest Air Park and was owned and operated by husband and wife team, Andy and Juanita Jackson. Andy had died of cancer in 1985 so when news of the imminent closure by the DWR came, Juanita had been struggling with running the facility for some 4 years.

A grass roots effort among the pilots and local community, which Rob and Dianne spearheaded, managed to convince the DWR to relocate the existing landing facility to a new and permanent location. The local flying club, Crestline Soaring Society, of which Rob and Dianne have been the longest running members, manages the landing facility. With this new landing site, complementing the launch site they already had, the club has grown to a 200-member strong organization.

So, let’s switch gears a bit and go into the High Adventure story. Tell us more about the business.
The current focus of our business is to take passengers for mountain hang glider flights. We have developed a way to optionally roll a takeoff in event winds are too light for running the take off. Additionally, landings are done rolling on wheels for added safety. Passengers must weigh less than 210 lbs. and be at least 16 years of age. These flights are all conducted under an exemption granted by the FAA allowing two-place flights.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Rob says, “my greatest luck was in meeting Dianne”.

Pricing:

• Tandem Flights are $195 each.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.flytandem.com
• Phone: 909-379-9095
• Email: [email protected]
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HighAdventureHangGliding/

Image Credit:
Rob and Dianne McKenzie

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.