About Us

As a kid I loved to lay in the front yard and watch as the occasional plane flew overhead. I'd think to myself; "some day I am going to do that." At the age of fifteen I made a very noble attempt to get my ticket. I didn't really fail, it just got put on hold for thirty years. It was a WSC trike flight in Tennessee that inspired me onward and upward. However, after that first flight, I wanted more than my ticket, I wanted to introduce others to this type of flight, the fun side of flying. Our fifteen hour drive home from that trip was spent laying the basic foundation for a flight school and on June 28, 2000, Cloud 9 Aerosports, Inc. was founded. Over the years we have moved from the Ultralight industry on to the Sport Pilot Program. We can boast of hundreds of satisfied customers (new friends) and a lot of very good memories. I honestly cannot think of a better way to get back into flying than being privileged to share the love of flight with others.

During my late teens I took some private pilot training and accumulated a handful of hours beyond solo. Then the hang gliding bug set in and remained for a number of years as a "Wishful Thinking" part of life. In 1982 I met Pat Denevan of Mission Soaring Center in Milpitas, California. We had been talking a while and looking over some used hang gliders when I non-chalantly commented, Some Day! Maybe. The next thing I hear from Pat is; "Exactly when is Some Day?" That question launched my 22 year hang gliding career. However, as chasing the wind got old, there was a natural gravitational pull toward weight-shift trikes. And again, it was that question that nudged me through the door of Ultra light Pilot, BFI, Sport Pilot and SP CFI.