'It's the best thing ever': Peter Hart's passion for paramotoring

Mr Hart has, in his own words, become "addicted" to paramotoring - a faster, more controlled, and admittedly noisier alternative to paragliding.

Mr Hart discovered his passion three years ago, as he looked for a cheaper way to enjoy the skies.

"I've had a pilots licence for 15-odd years, but it's very expensive to fly planes," he said.

"I was looking for alternatives to fly more often and found paramotoring.

"Now I'm hooked on it. It's just the best thing ever.

"It is basically paragliding with a glorified go-kart engine strapped to the back.

"I don't know of any other aircraft that you can just put in the back of the car. It's pretty unique."

Mr Hart said paramotoring had several advantages to normal paragliding, with the noise of his motor one of the only downsides.

"You can fly when the air is nicest, in the early mornings or the evenings, because you don't rely on wind at all," he said.

"You can get that golden hour when things are at their most beautiful.

"The main downside is the noise, but I try to take off and head in different directions just so I don't annoy people."

Mr Hart - who is also the co-manager of Horsham Colour - can takeoff from his backyard and spend up to two and a half hours in the skies.

He said he enjoyed admiring the Wimmera's natural beauty.

"When you're up there, every direction is just beautiful," he said.

"You can just sit in your chair in the sky and admire the view.

"I like going out towards Taylors Lake, or across the Grampians. The views are really impressive.

"When you're flying regularly you notice changes too. It goes from brown to green with the seasons, and it's always different."

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Mr Hart said he also enjoyed the more high-octane side of paramotoring.

However his tendency to attempt acrobatics and fast-paced landings had occasionally worried onlookers.

"(There is) a really good way to descend very quickly, but it looks a bit out of control to the average person," he said.

"One day I came in to land and got a bit lower than I normally would. I landed, and four vehicles turned up thinking that I was crashing and expecting to see me crumpled up somewhere.

"There's a little bit of adrenaline when you do new maneuvers and that sort of stuff, but the appeal is more just the freedom of flight. I think that's the real attraction."

And best of all, Mr Hart can continue enjoying his beloved passion during Victoria's stage three lockdown.

"It's part of my instructor training. You have to maintain a high level of recency, so I am allowed to keep doing it under the provision of 'work'," he said.

"That's the 'essential' part of it - I reckon I've definitely got the social distancing part sorted anyway."

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