Lance Hopping - showing kids how to grow wings for years:

Roimata, pouring from the skies today, for Lance Hopping, who loved the sky, loved flying, loved his family. For his ten passengers, and all their families and friends. This is an utter, utter tragedy for our community, and for all the family and friends of all involved.


Lance always wanted to fly, so he grew wings and did it. He was a well qualified and experienced commercial helicopter and balloon pilot with an extremely good reputation for safety.  Having worked as health and safety officer for two other local helicopter companies with unblemished safety records I reckon I am qualified to hold such an opinion.  I also saw Hoppy flying overhead often, for eleven years or so, and always safely.

Hoppy also worked as a local truancy 'officer'. He showed all the little local kids that they can do what they love too. Hoppy knew it was important to give kids two things, roots and wings.  If I remember rightly Hoppy was adopted, and he knew what it felt like to feel not quite as good as the rest or as big as the rest or whatever, for one reason or another, and how it was important not to let that define who you are or let it hold you back.  He was a very humble man too.  


I note people have been searching this site for information on the Seven Day Club.  They reason they won't find any is because of Hoppy.  He was a good kind man who loved his family very much, and who set a good example to all the people who looked up to him, like the members of the 7 Day Club.  Although he was a quiet and humble man he was someone special in this town, everyone who knew him liked and respected him.  He understood about putting the Unity back in our Community, and why it's so important.  Photos of Hoppy don't show an egotist posing with a Harley, they show a kind and gentle man who loved his family, loved children, knew what was important in life.  I didn't like some things about the Seven Day Club, but I respected what Hoppy was doing and understood where he was coming from.

Here's a link to a facebook page where people can pay their respects to the families of Lance and his passengers.

He's greatly missed by our community, this is a huge loss to Carterton. Thinking of the families, and the people working out in the rain today to find out how this happened.  Of the poor local police and ambulance and fire crews who responded to the sirens and arrived at the scene to discover it was their mate, Hoppy.

The rain has suddenly stopped, and it's so quiet.



Here is a link to an interview with a witness, Bevan Lambess.

Here's a link to a news article about Hoppy, and his passion for flying.

And here's one that attests to his reputation for safety.

Nobody knows how this tragedy happened, but we all mourn the loss of  Hoppy and his passengers, and await the result of the investigation.

Update, 9 January 2012:  Brian Edwards has written an article regarding some of the appalling media coverage of this tragedy, it's worth reading.