Man, 95, becomes second oldest skydiver in Canada

Cassandra Drush
Canwes News Service
The Ottawa Citizen

GANANOQUE, Ont. - Saturday, June 28, 2008 - Lyall Gow has always wanted to jump out of a plane, but has never had the chance, not even with his time in the military.

That changed Saturday afternoon when, just a few weeks shy of his 96th birthday, the Ottawa resident skydived for the first time.

"This chance came up, and I jumped at it," he said shortly after landing. "And I'm not a bit sorry."

Gow jumped out of an airplane at a height of 3,300 metres at the Gananoque Sport Parachuting Centre, strapped to one of the centre's tandem diving instructors.

He's the oldest jumper in the organization's 37 years of operation, said Deb Lovegrove, marketing manager at Gananoque Sport.

He's also believed to be the second oldest skydiver in Canada, she said.

"It was a very worthwhile experience, I can assure you," Gow said. "I would do it again anytime."

A crowd of between 25 and 30 of his friends and family came out to watch the 95-year-old's free fall, said Karch MacLean, 20, who jumped alongside his great-grandfather. Gow has four children, 10 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren.

"He had the biggest audience we've ever seen here," Lovegrove said.

Gow was not at all nervous in anticipation of the jump, and is looking forward to skydiving in the future.

"Oh, maybe I'll do it again on my 100th birthday, which is not too far away," he laughed.

Ottawa Citizen