US Paragliding Team - Tom McCune

Pilot Profile: Tom McCune

Height and Weight: 6'0", 185 pounds

Birthplace: Atwater, California

Marital Status: for over 21 years with one son and one daughter.

Occupation: Began auto body and refinish at the age of 15 in Roseburg, OR, and continued professional career until 2003. Recently earned my Business AAS Degree following lower back surgery.

Paragliding History: Began flying in 1997—just can’t get enough! I have approximately 800 flights and always want more. Living on Tiger Mt outside of Issaquah, WA; I love the challenge the Cascade Mountains offer. Considering myself a mountain pilot, I feel at home here. I broke our local site distance record on my second cross-country flight and several times since. After flying my first comp nearly 4 years ago, I realized I had been missing the best part of paragliding. Being challenge-oriented, I have always done well in competitions. A nice aspect about paragliding comps is the ability to compete while sitting down—just the thing for someone in their mid 40’s who still loves to compete. Nearly every flight in a comp is an adventure. From camping out to meeting new people to seeing wildlife after landing out, I love this sport!

I fly a Mac Para Magus 4 and an Ava Sport Samurai pod harness. Never had a paragliding accident, have not thrown my reserve, and hope I won’t need to. I will fly on active days but also will be one of the first to drive off the mountain when conditions appear dangerous. Having excellent natural flying skills and determination has brought me up in the national rankings quickly. Being on the U.S. team is a great honor. The support and camaraderie is priceless.

I am sponsored by: Skyco Sports, Mac Para

Top Results

2nd place Rat Race 2004
1st place Rat Race 2005
1st place Canadian Nationals 2005
several finishes in the top 10

For more information about the US Paragliding Team, visit

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Pilot Profile: Tom McCune

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