Neiman Sevilla sat on one of the benches along SJ Walk, clutching a paper plane and pointing out the intrinsic folds that made up its design. The model was based on Takuo Toda’s Sky King, which in 2009 was named by Time Magazine as one of the 50 best inventions of the year. Sevilla had put a lot of work into this plane, which would explain the enthusiasm he had when describing it. For the students passing along SJ Walk to and from their classes, it may have seemed weird that this student had a smile that reached both ears because of a paper plane. You know—kid’s stuff. But the truth is, it was paper planes like these that took Sevilla and two other souls, Bryan Sayas and John Panis, all the way to Salzburg, Austria.
Gives you wings
Red Bull Paper Wings is just one of the crazy creative competitions the popular Austrian energy drink brings to the world. From the already more conventional Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series to the unpredictable Red Bull Flugtag, where competitors attempt to fly homemade human powered flying machines off a pier, Red Bull Paper Wings has found a unique place in all the craziness since it was first held back in 2006. The triennial event has representatives from multiple countries competing to see who can launch a paper plane the farthest, the longest, and with the most creativity.
To determine who would get the chance to represent their country in Salzburg, Austria for the finals, qualifiers were held in the different schools from different countries, including De La Salle University.
Qualifiers
Lasallians representatives Sevilla (II, AEI-MGT) and Sayas (III, BS CIV-TRE) have credited multiple people in helping them throughout the crazy ride. Sevilla tells the story of how he almost did not even join the qualifiers that were being held in the Enrique Razon Sports Complex. It required some convincing from a close friend, to which he is now eternally grateful.
The paper plane that won Sevilla the longest airtime was not the same Sky King inspired model that he eventually used in Austria. Instead it was a plane on loan from an org mate, Robert Paul Gustillo, who had just finished his own attempts moments before Sevilla’s turn. Sevilla even commends Gustillo for loaning the very same plane to another girl ahead of him.
Since DLSU was the last stop for the qualifiers, Sevilla was told just later on in the same day of the qualifiers that he would be flying to Austria to represent not just his school but also his country in the world finals. And it was all thanks to the special people who have helped him.
Sayas had a slightly different journey. He was competing in the Aerobatics category, which included an online voting portion on top of the judges’ scores. After getting high scores for his performance, Sayas explains how he had to rally the online troops to help support him. Although it proved to be a nerve-racking experience, he admits it was all truly worth it once the final results were in. He was successful, nearly tripling the vote count of the first runner-up.
With this the stage was set for Sevilla, Sayas, and Panis, who was the longest distance winner from UP. They marked their calendars and made the necessary arrangements. On May 9, they would fly to Salzburg, Austria where the real fun would begin.
Arnie Land
After the 18-hour airplane ride, Team Philippines was able to meet some of the other competitors like Team Singapore and the eventual overall team winners, Team Hong Kong. Together, they got to bond and explore the foreign country most commonly known as the setting for the Broadway musical, The Sound of Music, and the home to famous bodybuilder, actor, and politician, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
Sayas mentions that one of his favorite parts of the entire trip were the extravagant buffets with all the competitors from different countries. At one point during the trip, competitors were asked to arrive wearing their national costume, which made for a grand spectacle with all the colorful flags being waved along.
These were all held in the legendary Red Bull owned Hangar-7, where the world finals would be held. The unconventional Hangar-7, which is part-hangar and part-museum, houses multiple airplanes, helicopters, and racing cars. This would serve as the backdrop for the competitors’ practicing facility and stage for the world finals.
Sevilla and Sayas described the atmosphere and vibe of the competition to be full of energy, which should not come as a surprise. Despite the numerous Red Bull products that were always offered, of which Sayas had claimed to try every available flavor during the trip, the high level of energy was deeply rooted in the similarly high level of competitiveness the different countries had brought with them. Unlike Team Philippines, other countries had representatives who were present in the last Red Bull Paper Wings world finals back in 2012.
Some of the things to justify all the energy were the prizes being offered. Red Bull does not conform to the crowd with simple certificates and gift checks. The winners would get a special aerial experience closely related to the nature of their respective category. Long Distance winner Ivanov Veselin from Bulgaria got a chance to ride the Alpha Jet, Longest Airtime winner Karen Hambardzumyan from Armenia flew in a Bell T AH-1F Cobra helicopter, and the Aerobatics winner from Lebanon, Avedis Tchamitchian, not only got to ride the Extra 300l aerobatic plane but also got a chance to fly the plane himself for a bit.
The way back
Sevilla was able to place 20th in his category, but it seems that he and the rest of Team Philippines would be bringing back something worth more than a trophy. Sayas mentions that he will always remember the colorful people he had met throughout the entire trip, from the country representatives of Slovenia, Sweden, and New Zealand, among others, as well as the hospitable Red Bull team from the Philippines.
Both Lasallians have been grateful for the warm atmosphere that the Red Bull team here always seems to bring, stemming back from the sending off party that was held for them before they made their way to Austria, to the chance moments when they would run into each other around DLSU.
While both Sayas and Sevilla hope to find their way back to Austria for the next world finals, they agree that that may prove too difficult. Instead they decided to focus their attention in convincing their peers to start preparing for it as early as now.
Although the next Red Bull Paper Wings will be held in 2018, when it comes to once in a lifetime experiences like this one, a three-year preparation seems every bit worth it.
