Hannes Arch: Aiming for Air Race glory on his own patch

Andy Lewis 17:12 23/10/2014
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  • High flyer: Hannes Arch is currently in second place in the Air Race season.

    He is a former paragliding world champion, an accomplished mountaineer, has conquered some of the biggest BASE jumps ever recorded in Europe, and this weekend Austrian adrenaline junkie, Hannes Arch, will attempt to win the second Red Bull Air Race title of his career on his own patch.

    Formerly sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority and a self-confessed lover of all things UAE, the 47-year-old spoke to Sport360° ahead of the big race in Spielberg.

    You head into the final round of the Air Race season in second place in the standings, five points behind leader Nigel Lamb, how do you rate your chances this weekend?

    I definitely still have a very big chance. If I win the race and Nigel comes third then I get the title.

    If I win and Nigel is second then he is the champion. But I still see a chance and I will try to take it and make the best of it.

    Nigel is the favourite. He has an advantage of a few points and he is a strong pilot so he has to be the favourite.

    If I had to back someone – as a neutral observer – then I would be backing him.

    But at the same time I know how quickly a pilot can mess things up. So I will really go for it. I will go for the win and the rest of it is out of my hands.

    The last round in Las Vegas was decided by qualifying results because of windy conditions; were you one of the pilots who found this quite controversial?
    No, I was actually quite happy with the decision because the conditions were not fair.

    The gusts were ugly for the pilots and it was getting too dangerous so I respected the decision of the race committee.

    Using the qualifying results was fair as it is in line with the rules. Pete McLeod deserved his win and the rest of us have to accept the outcome.

    This is now your home race in Austria, so what can we expect from the event? 
    The venue is an exciting one as it is also the Formula One race track. We will be flying right above it and in front of the main grandstand – it is a very cool arena for both the fans and the A shot at glory in his own back yard pilots. It will certainly be a difficult race for us because the land is uneven so the pylons which we fly through will be at different levels.

    That will make it more difficult for us to find the right line. The weather might also be a factor again as it unpredictable at this time of year. It could be foggy, windy or even perfect race conditions. We will have to be flexible. Whatever the weather, I am expecting some big crowds, lots of people.

    In Austria the people really appreciate air racing. I am not sure if it is because of me, because of Red Bull, or that the people love the sport. It is probably a mixture of all three but the people will come out and support it.

    How much pressure do you feel going for the title in your home race?
    For me there will be lots of pressure. I expect lots of fans and also all my friends and family will be there.

    It is a really special race for me and all of that, combined with the pressure on me in the championship, then it makes it my toughest race. But while I feel that, it is my home race so I am very, very excited.

    The season started in Abu Dhabi back in February this year and it looks like it will do so again in 2015, do you enjoy racing there?
    I really do. I was sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority so I got invited there a lot and I learned a lot about the culture of the country.

    I respect them so much, so for me it is always cool to go there. Racing in Abu Dhabi also felt like a home race for me because of my sponsor. I always felt comfortable and grew to understand a bit about the culture behind what you see as a visitor.

    Because of all that I think I always did really well there and it is always an exciting race for me.

    We also have lots of fans in the UAE, it is a country that sticks with us, sticks with the Air Race, and I think it also fits really well with the people.

    It is motorsports and the people there really enjoy it, so I think it is a great place for us to race and I am really excited to go back there again next season.

    You have a very colourful background with your involvement in a variety of extreme sports, but how did you end up becoming a race pilot?
    I started off very young with hang gliding and my background was always in adventure sports.

    I was a mountaineering guy, a climber, lots of extreme sports. I was the first guy to BASE jump from Matterhorn and also from the Eiger north face.

    I competed and won the world championships in paragliding and I was also European Master in aerobatics. All sorts of different sports.

    Flying was always right there, I love it and I just followed my dream. Then the Air Race opportunity came along and I went for it.

    I don’t think you can really plan to become an Air Race pilot but if you follow your dream then who knows what it can bring?

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