My Profile

Claudio Mota, a native of Caracas, Venezuela, moved to Victoria, Canada, in the summer 2000. Prior to that, he completed a marketing degree in 1994 at the "Instituto Superior de Mercadeo" in Caracas and also studied computer programming. Claudio also ran a successful swimwear company for 10 years (1990 – 1999).

His first visual contact with paragliding was in 1991 at a music concert. Like many other pilots around the world, he immediately fell in love with the sport. Realizing a life-long dream, Claudio bought his first Paraglider in preparation for his first course. He tried the harness on and opened the glider numerous times in anticipation of beginning to fly. He began taking flying lessons in January of 1992 and became a Certified Flight and Tandem Instructor in less than 3 years, which enabled him to begin working for one of the first and most reputable paragliding school in Venezuela (YCC Paragliding School). 

Claudio is certified by the Hang glider and Paraglider Association of Canada (HPAC) as both a Senior Instructor and a Tandem pilot II. He is also certified by the Venezuelan Association of Free Flight as an Advanced Instructor and Advanced Tandem Pilot with over 4,500 hours of air time, over 2,500 tandem instructional flights logged and more than 400 students. He also enjoys an immaculate safety record - his number one emphasis is on safety and cautious decision-making. Because of his conservative approach, he has avoided any serious injuries to either himself, his tandem passengers, or his students, and has never had to deploy his reserve parachute unplanned during his 18-year paragliding career. 

Good things came out of all that enthusiasm. He won the Venezuelan Nationals in 1995-Advanced category in his first attempt and was in the top five the following years. He broke an altitude record in Baie St. Paul, Quebec, in 1995 reaching an altitude of 6,500 feet. Combining his love of flying and marketing studies, his university thesis "Aerial Advertising" led the way to 3 years of aerial advertising with a Paramotor for Pepsi.   

During his first year in Canada, he started the first paragliding school on Vancouver Island, won the “Chris Muller Cross Country Challenge”, won the “Top Pilot BC 2001”, won the "Hang Glider Rookie of the year" and finished 3rd in the "Lumby Cup".

Claudio's instructional background includes many years as a Karate teacher and a Karate coach for the Venezuelan team in 1989-1990 as well as a personal trainer. He has dedicating his life to sports. He may have  inherited the teaching attitude from his father who has been a Navy mathematical and physics teacher for the last 40 years in Venezuela. He brings dedication, a  passive personality, many years of experience, backed up by continuous practice. He continually aspires to keep ahead of current knowledge and technology in the field  of paragliding.

Claudio continues to be actively involved in all aspects of paragliding, as a competition pilot, instructor, working hard regulating paragliding activity, searching for new sites around Vancouver Island and improving the ones that we already have.  As a member of the Vancouver Island Hang glider and Paraglider Club his focus is to continue to improve paragliding in this area and to make paragliding friendly to everyone.