The First to Break 200 Miles. The First to Break 300 Miles.
“It’s like chess. You build a strong position, you try to keep safe, and you anticipate where you want to be.”
— Larry Tudor
The Pilot
Larry Tudor is one of the most accomplished hang glider pilots in history. A quiet, contemplative competitor who attributed his extraordinary success to “luck,” Larry held 10 FAI world records over his career, was the 1996 US National Hang Gliding Champion, and pushed the boundaries of unpowered flight farther than anyone before him.
Born in 1954 in Denver, Colorado, Larry was a passionate chess player who achieved an expert ranking before discovering hang gliding in 1973 — in the pre-prone era, when pilots flew in a seated position. The analytical mind that made him a chess expert translated directly to the tactical demands of cross-country soaring. As Larry put it: “You build a strong position, you try to keep safe, and you anticipate where you want to be.”
Larry was a long-time member of the Wills Wing team, working at the factory and flying as a Wills Wing team pilot through the peak of his record-setting career. He set the 300-mile barrier on a Wills Wing HP AT 158, extended the record on a Wills Wing Ram Air, and won the 1996 US National Championship on a Wills Wing XC. The original Z-1 harness was the harness Larry used when setting his world record flights.
First to Break 200 Miles — July 13, 1983
On July 13, 1983, Larry launched from Walt’s Point near Horseshoe Meadows Road in the Owens Valley, California — the birthplace of long-distance hang gliding. Nine hours and fifty minutes later, he landed in Battle Mountain, Nevada, having covered 221.5 miles (356 km) — the first person ever to fly a hang glider more than 200 miles.
Larry flew a UP (Ultralight Products) Comet II on this flight. He was already the second person in history to break 100 miles, following Jerry Katz’s pioneering 103-mile flight from Cerro Gordo Peak in the Owens Valley in July 1977.
On the same day, Kari Castle flew the same route and landed at Austin, Nevada — approximately 200 miles — setting the women’s distance record.
First to Break 300 Miles — July 3, 1990
Seven years later, Larry shattered his own record and became the first person to fly a hang glider more than 300 miles. Launching from Hobbs, New Mexico on July 3, 1990, he flew 303 miles (~488 km) on a Wills Wing HP AT 158, landing at his declared goal in Elkhart, Kansas.
The HP AT (High Performance — Advanced Technology) was designed by Steven Pearson at Wills Wing and represented the state of the art in flex-wing performance. Larry’s record-breaking glider from this flight is now displayed in a farm museum in Elkhart, Kansas.
Fellow pilot Larry Strom was flying with Tudor that day and covered approximately 304 miles on the same flight. As Wills Wing noted at the time: “Wills Wing hang gliders are the only gliders ever to have flown cross country more than 300 miles.”
308 Miles — July 1994
Larry extended the open distance record again in July 1994, flying 308 miles (495 km) from Hobbs, New Mexico on a Wills Wing Ram Air — the successor to the HP AT in Wills Wing’s competition lineup. The Ram Air featured a distinctive air intake on the under-surface and represented another step forward in high-performance flex-wing design.
This record stood until Dave Sharp flew 311 miles (501 km) on July 19, 2000, on an A.I.R. ATOS rigid wing — a fundamentally different class of aircraft. In the flex-wing (Class 1) category, Larry’s distance remained the benchmark until Manfred Ruhmer flew 435 miles from Zapata, Texas in 2001.
Altitude Record — August 4, 1985
Larry also held the FAI world record for altitude gain in a hang glider. On August 4, 1985, launching from Horseshoe Meadows in the Owens Valley at 10:15 AM, he gained 4,343 meters (14,249 feet) of altitude — exceeding the previous record by 3%. The flight lasted 8 hours and 15 minutes, landing on Highway 361 south of Gabbs, Nevada. Larry flew an Ultralight Products GZ 155 on this flight.
The FAI described Larry as “part bird, part sky god.” This altitude record still stands decades later, as airspace restrictions in the United States effectively prevent higher climbs.
Mount Everest — 1986
In autumn 1986, Larry and legendary speed skier Steve McKinney became the first pilots to fly a hang glider from the West Ridge of Mount Everest. McKinney completed a flight from approximately 22,000 feet on the West Ridge, filmed for sponsors. The expedition was plagued by logistics — Chinese customs impounded their gliders in Tibet — and brutal weather. Larry spent three days and four nights in a tent at 22,000 feet enduring approximately 100 mph winds. Steve McKinney later died in a roadside accident in 1990.
Competition Record
Beyond distance records, Larry compiled an unmatched competition record in cross-country racing, particularly in the annual White Mountains events. He won the 1996 US National Hang Gliding Championship flying a Wills Wing XC (Cross Country), and his contest results through the 1980s and 1990s placed him at the top of the sport.
Larry left competitive hang gliding in 1999. He later returned to free flight through paragliding with his daughter Ariann.
Distance Records in Context
| Year | Pilot | Distance | Glider | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Jerry Katz | 103 mi | Alpine | First to break 100 miles — Cerro Gordo, Owens Valley |
| 1983 | Larry Tudor | 222 mi | UP Comet II | First to break 200 miles — Owens Valley to Battle Mountain, NV |
| 1985 | Larry Tudor | 14,249 ft gain | UP GZ 155 | Altitude record — Owens Valley (still stands) |
| 1990 | Larry Tudor | 303 mi | Wills Wing HP AT 158 | First to break 300 miles — Hobbs, NM to Elkhart, KS |
| 1994 | Larry Tudor | 308 mi | Wills Wing Ram Air | Extended distance record — Hobbs, NM |
| 2000 | Dave Sharp | 311 mi | A.I.R. ATOS | First 500 km — rigid wing, Zapata, TX |
| 2001 | Manfred Ruhmer | 435 mi | Laminar | Zapata to Lamesa, TX |
| 2012 | Dustin Martin | 475 mi | Wills Wing T2C 144 | Zapata to Ralls, TX — current world record |
Sources
- FAI: Larry Tudor “Part Bird” Who Flew Record 4,343 Meters
- Cloudbase Mayhem Episode 29: Larry Tudor — From Scary Origins to Radical Records (podcast)
- XC Mag: Thirty Years Ago, Larry Tudor Sets Height Record
- USHPA 50 Years — article by Steven Pearson
- Plane & Pilot: Hang Gliding Records
- XC Mag: Hang Gliding on Everest
- Hanggliding.org: Larry Tudor discussion