It was in Namche Bazar in the year 2000 when I first met Iñaki. He strolled into the lodge and greeted us all with a huge smile. We were off to climb Ama Dablam and I have to say that it was definitely one of the most enjoyable expeditions of my life. From this time onwards, I kept in touch and saw him when I next came to Kathmandu in 2004. He was a man of extreme modesty and in Rum Doodles he always insisted on paying for his food even though, having climbed Everest, he was entitled to free food. I remember eating there with Ben and Joby and chatting away about life, filming, photography, climbing and, of course, the next expedition – we had had to turn around on Everest that year before the summit and Iñaki always said that if you want to climb it you will… there is no rush! He was always hugely encouraging and passionate and had dedicated his life 100% to the mountains and friends. His home in Pamplona was full of climbing books, prayer flags and photos. One particular photograph that stuck in my mind was him on top of K2.
He even had an exercise chart that he filled out every day which showed how long, the type of exercise, how much altitude had been gained etc. He was undoubtedly the strongest and most ambitious climber I had ever met. He was very clever and spoke fluent English, French, Italian and Nepali. He had stories of meeting with the Maoists on the way back from climbing Makalu – he and Joby thought they were going to get robbed or hurt but they ended up sharing their food with them before they helped carry their gear and heavy ruck sacks off their land! He thought the Maoists were friendly as he was able to communicate with them. He always said that Kathmandu was like his second home!
My brother Ben had climbed Cho Oyu in 2001 with him also topping out with him and Bob Jen.
In 2005, Diana and I went to visit him in Pamplona and he asked me if I wanted to run with the bulls with him. The following morning I met with him at the beginning of the run where we bought newspapers to roll up and then sang…
“A San Fermín pedimos, por ser nuestro patrón, nos guíe en el encierro dándonos su bendición…”
I was terrified, but Iñaki was a true local and ran every year for each day of the fiesta, so it felt strangely safe to be doing it with him! As we waited, he told me that his leg had been trampled on the day before by a bull. After the bull run we went and had a drink in the square before he drove with us in his car down to the seaside with him to relax on the beach and swim in the sea. When we got back to Pamplona, Diana and I went and had a drink outside in the scorching heat while Iñaki went and rode 100kms on his bicycle. Another example of his complete and total dedication. This day will remain with me always.
He only occasionally drank the odd half glass of wine and coffee was usually an expresso - he couldn’t understand why people had to drink buckets of it. He was passionate about Bob Dylan being fascinated by his lyrics. Dylan wrote a song called ‘Not dark yet’, where the lyrics sing, ‘behind every beautiful thing, there is some kind of pain’. Iñaki found the Himalayas both beautiful and painful to climb! He was a romantic and always had time for his friends who were more meaningful to him than mountains. He loved children and when our son Sebastian was born he said that this was better news than climbing any mountain. The other thing he enjoyed was Monty Python and the Life of Brian. At Camp 3 on Ama Dablam he starting quoting from it laughing and singing, “every sperm is sacred!”
He then said in his wonderful Spanish accent, “You remember that one? I went to a very special English Academy!”
In 2006, Ben and I once again found ourselves in Kathmandu. We checked into hotel Thamel. Iñaki was also staying here and it was always lovely to catch up before an expedition and then to meet up afterwards again. He was a world class mountaineer – we were just amateurs but this never mattered to him - he had time for everyone.
On 23rd May, 2008, Iñaki passed away suddenly whilst trying to climb Annapurna (8.091m) with friends. He had turned around very close to the summit. It is a devastating loss to us all who had the good fortune to know him.
Happy Birthday Iñaki (29th May). My heart goes out to all your family and friends. You are now in a better place at rest high above the mountains and clouds.
No te olvidaremos…
We spent the weekend in the country at Closewood. I took the motor down on the off chance using my homemade carrier for the car which works extremely well. 
The weather was perfect and the conditions were clear. I took off from the local farm and had an hour or so flying around. There were a lot of light aircraft about and I waved to them. Lots of cricket was happening and I flew as far as Corhampton Golf course, over Hambledon, Droxford (photo below) and Lovedean before flying over Closewood (above photo) before landing. Ben then had a go on my machine as he still has to pick his up from repair. I could clearly see the sea and the whole of the Isle of Wight which is where we want to fly next. Bring it on! 
(Photos were all taken on my mobile phone)
Thank you Ben and Michel for support on the field - I'll be back!
While I was out, Ben spoke to the local farmer and he very kindly allowed us to take off from the field infront of his house near Denmead. I fluffed my first take-off, Ben then took off and flew for half an hour or so while I was trying to work out where the wind was coming from - it was so light and the sock was all over the place. Eventually I was airbourne, narrowly missing a large oak tree! I wriggled into my seat and soon was flying with Ben trying to break through the inversion layer. I had stupidly forgotten my radio so we had no radio contact at all but we had a basic flight plan... I had always wanted to fly over Closewood House, before we knew it, Ben and I were flying above the pig farm next to Closewood and surrounding area - what pure joy!
10 miles away, I could see the Radio mast on top of Butser... so, I put my Dudek ReAction wing onto fast trimmers and pointed that way... following the familiar roads, cutting corners where I could... Flew over the Warrens - did not look like they were home, past Catherington (where we used to tobbogan when we were small) over Clanfield and on to Butser. The wind was stronger up here and I was on full speed bar checking my ground speed. I saw them walking dogs and stopping to look up at me in this strange flying contraption! What a feeling! Something I have wanted to do for a long long time.
By the time I had returned to the farm, still airbourne, Ben had landed as he was cold - he was laying his wing out a second time and I watched him take off again from the air. I saw him head off towards Droxford so I followed and we flew together for a while, over the Griffiths' house where they were playing tennis! I wonder if they saw us? Over Hambledon and the church where we got married, on to Droxford over the Slaters' and then over the fields until we were over the Wilson-Youngs! The sun was setting in the distance, the engine was purring and we were LOVING this! Our first XC on a paramotor. My winter flying suit kept me warm but I could have done with some warmer gloves. My fingers are prone to the cold having previously had frostbite before in several finger tips..JPG)
Ben flies a lot slower than me due to his wing (APCO Karma) and he was making slow headway but I flew back over Creech woods to the golf course where we had walked that morning then did a low pass over Closewood again before flying back to the farmer's field. Ben landed first and then I came in rather fast; frighteningly fast actually. I turned to avoid Ben and ended up doing a downwind landing... luckily the ground was soft and I got away with it but I did fall flat on my face! I was more worried about my new machine!! What a day. Ben came over with a massive grin on his face... "I can't believe you forgot your radio" he said! I had been airbourne for about two and a half hours and only used 7 litres of fuel! These Bailey 4-strokes really do just 'sip' fuel!
On Sunday, I went down to Devils Dyke on the South Downs and had a lovely and smooth evening flight as the sun was setting in the west over the sea. The skies were red and it was special. I got back in time to feed Sebastian before putting him to bed. What a great end to a very memorable weekend. Roll on the Spring!
The wind swung round and we moved to a different corner of the huge field. Michel asked me if I felt ready to try launching - "you bet" I said... My mouth was dry with nervous energy. I chose to do a reverse launch as there was enough wind. Laura Beaumont (Female British No 1 pilot) helped me lay out my new wing (Reflex Reaction TST Dudek) which rose smoothly upwards. I turned and Michel gave the thumbs up. I ran and increased my throttle. I was soon in the air turning gently to the right due to the torque. I gained height and then reduced speed to allow me to turn left against the torque using weight shift as well. I flew over the A27 and looked down on the cars, horses, joggers and was able to see far down the South Downs. There was even a hot air balloon in the distance too. I was only up for 45 minutes or so. I only had a little fuel in the tank but what an amazing feeling. I did not want to land. The ReAction flies much faster than my usual paragliding wing yet feels so much more stable. Coming in to land was speedier than I was used to. I gently bled off the speed before flaring at the last minute - touching down nicely and under control. I had a big smile on my face! I love this new sport!
Taking off for the first time!
Michel's new toy was a Bailey trike. He has been lent an Ozone Viper wing for record attempts. It looks like a lot of fun and not so taxing on your back because the wheels take the strain. He was demonstrating down wind landings and some spectacular low flying at speed!
