CHRISTOPHER WILKINSON

Christopher Wilkinson-Pearce of Skydive Austral, a tandem skydiving adventure company in Rivière du Rempart, moved to Mauritius from Zimbabwe. Being in Mauritius has allowed him to live out his dream --- in full colour!

Chris has had an adventurous spirit since being a young boy. His insatiable appetite for skydiving has allowed him to live in paradise and create a booming business that is increasingly popular among tourists. About Chris Chris, born in 1970, grew up on a farm in Umvukwes, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). His mother (an Indiaborn British woman) and his Dad (South African and British), were a little astonished at his initial profession choice of airdressing.

Growing up during the civil war was interesting, to say the least.Trips to town were escorted, curfews needed to be adhered to, and Chris and his cousin befriended many young troopies, in order to extort bullets from them for necklaces.Days on the farm were filled with endless amounts of hunting, fishing, horseback riding, and exploring. Abandoned pioneer mineshafts were explored, as were raptors nests atop huge trees. Peering into raptor nests while being at risk of an attack by unforgiving talons was addicting. Chris's insatiable lust for adventure began early.

Education and Early Career Aspirations Chris attended Plumtree boarding school and left in 1986, to begin his career in hairdressing. Chris was an
entrepreneur early on. At 13, he discovered that he had huge earning potential at a school with a client base of 500 boys that needed haircuts
on a regular basis. Being a hairdresser at school could finance his adventures, namely: smoking, fishing tackle, ammo (which financed the holiday
hunting soiree), and being able to keep him good and busy.

In 1986, when leaving school to be a full-time hairdresser, he discovered his true calling. Being an in-demand male hairdresser was a lucrative roposition and it afforded Chris the opportunity to seek out true adventure--- skydiving. Chris learned to skydive and after 1,000 jumps he was offered an instructor position in Spain. Deciding between the two wasn't an easy decision as both were close to his heart.

Chris & Louise

Chris met Louise while working in a salon.Their first date was a hiking trek and Chris came within inches of proposing after just two weeks. He
managed to wait until two months after they first met and says it was the beginning of many great milestones in his life. Chris and Louise regularly share dreams and do goal setting at the start of each New Year. They write down dreams and goals and set timeframes to bring their visions to
fruition.Dreams listed included: starting their own hair salon, building a great house in an indigenous woodland in the leafy suburbs of Harare,
travelling extensively around southern Africa, and spending a lot of time with close friends. Chris and Louise's goals have all blossomed. In terms of
their value system, they aspire to live a life which is filled with compassion and tolerance for all beings; striving for equality, honesty and being the
best parents possible.

From the start, though, there was a dream to start a new tandem skydiving company and that dream has also recently blossomed --- right here in Mauritius.
Mauritius Tandem Skydiving Biz Chris began to look into starting a tandem skydiving operation somewhere in Africa and after much research, felt Mauritius to be the perfect place. He met Gaetan Paquay, who loved anything to do with aeroplanes and who was moving from Zimbabwe to settle in Mauritius with
his family, so Chris proposed a partnership. Three years later and after much hard work by them both Skydive Austral was in flight. It took a lot of planning and meetings with the Director of Civil Aviation and all his officers, writing Operating Manuals, Standard Operating Procedures, meetings with the Minister of Tourism, and more. The hard work has been worthwhile.

Chris commends the Mauritius Department of Civil Aviation on the great job they do, "They are a great team of professionals who take their
responsibilities seriously. They have the heart to be approachable and caring. Skydive Austral is grateful to have such an authority behind it."
Chris firmly believes that fortune does indeed favour the bold and is happy that his dream of running a tandem skydiving business in beautiful
Mauritius has come true.

About Tandem Skydiving

Tandem skydiving involves the adventure of skydiving but with the aid of a skilled skydiving instructor attached to you.

SKYDIVE AUSTRAL LTD

Address: Z.I., Mon Loisir S.E., Riviere du Rempart, Mauritius
Cell: +230 4214987, +230 4995551
Fax: +230 4126520
Email: skydiveaustral@myt.mu,
chris.skydiveaustral@myt.mu

© Mauritius in your hands - Islandinfo. All rights reserved