How would you like to strap a harness and engine to your back, and take off and fly over some of the most amazing natural wonders on earth?
Tucker Gott calls that “Wednesday.”
Gott, 23, is a paramotoring phenomenon with nearly 850,000 subscribers to his YouTube channel.
And there’s little wonder why.
His adventures, from small to large, are amazing to watch – all recorded from full HD GoPro cameras.
Tucker Gott’s videos lead off our new JimHeath.TV series “YOUTUBE BEST “ featuring some of the most outstanding work being produced by people across the globe.
An extra GoPro camera on his shoe as he flies across Zion National Park.
Gott, who grew up and lives in New Jersey, won last year’s Icarus Trophy Race Series in five days, flying over 1,200 miles.
The Icarus Race, called “the toughest air race on earth,” featured stops on the Navajo Indian reservation and Monument Valley.
His adventures have taken him all over the country, and the world.
Beach time can “get boring” Gott says, but the views are spectacular.
Flying over a glacier in Iceland.
Barrel rolls and wingovers are part of the fun.
What’s most entertaining about Gott’s videos is not just the incredible scenery and locations, but the careful planning he makes and the step-by-step explanations of what he’s experiencing.
While he performs some stunts in the air, the truth is he doesn’t want to be a daredevil, always highly respectful of mother nature.
All it takes is a harness and a motor to fly.
“The story starts out at the young age of two years old,” laughed Gott in answering a question about his love for paramotoring. “Basically all my life my mom has been a commercial hot air balloon pilot, so my first real taste of flight was in her hot air balloon.”
Gott says his grandfather was also a huge influence.
“He was a fixed-wing pilot, he crewed on a B-17 as a mechanic, and he flew on little planes when he was younger,” said Gott. “The crazy thing is he would tell me these stories about ‘the good old days’ when regulations weren’t so strict and you could fly around and land in your buddy’s yard and no one cared. And I was jealous I wasn’t born in that generation, but that’s where the paramotor comes in because we can basically do all that.”
Tucker Gott’s social media selfies are like no other.
Gott said he was into aviation throughout school, and at 15 starting taking airplane lessons.
“During that year I got about 15 hours, and then soloed a couple days after my 16th birthday,” said Gott. “I got my pilot’s license when I turned 17, but I had seen paramotor videos on YouTube and knew I wanted to do that. It’s crazy now that it’s come full circle.”
Tucker Gott flying through The Fisher Towers in Moab, Utah.
Posting paramotoring videos is now a full-time job for Gott, who is making a “good living” off his YouTube adventures.
Here are just a few of our favorite videos:
Flying the Fisher Towers in Moab, Utah.
Flying over sharks and sting rays in the Florida Keys.
Flying to the Hoover Dam:
Flying with mom:
Flying to McDonald’s:
Demonstrations: What happens if a wing collapses?:
