Organisers of the inaugural Wānaka air sports festival MagicLand are already gearing up for next year’s event

The week-long festival, which took place in mid March at Glendhu Bay, included everything from paragliding, speed flyers and paramotors to aerial performance acrobats.

Organisers Vicki Zadrozny and Dan Pugsley said they were stoked with how the event went, from the sunshine and “perfect” flying conditions to the number of participants.

“We have kick-started something so unique and special for our sports and communities here in the South Island,” Vicki said. 

“That’s down to everyone that turned up, showed their support and believed in the vision.”

The festival officially opened with Brent Findlay skydiving in with a giant New Zealand flag that could be seen across Wānaka.

Vicki and Dan said the event was based on similar festivals in Europe, with the Veko-Extreme Sports Week in Norway and the Buttermere Bash Paragliding and Air Sports Festival in the UK serving as big influences.

Highlights of MagicLand included ‘Candy Man’, who released parachutes off lollies from the sky for kids to catch, and the ‘Skytek Expression Session’, which featured a mix of base jumping, wingsuit and tracking suit exists and “was a definite favourite of festival goers,” Vicki said.

The event also played host to the Acrofest Finals, New Zealand’s national aerobatic paragliding competition, which was well received by competitors and people watching the action.

There were also talks from industry trailblazers, plenty more flying of all sorts, and a celebration with live music and DJs to close the event.

Vicki and Dan are Upper Clutha locals and they said Wānaka was the perfect location for the festival with the broad range of outdoor enthusiasts who live here.

They thanked all the people who took part, travelling from all over New Zealand to attend, and gave special thanks to Alan Swann, Eric Pemberton, Sue Walsh and Nick Taber.

“It was this community of flying legends that made the festival the success it was,” Vicki said.

“We can’t wait to do it all again next year. Watch this space to join the fun in 2025.”

PHOTOS: Supplied