Two skyfliers from Tooele County were among the 71 wingsuit fliers who set a world record for the largest flock formation last month in Lake Elsinore, Calif.

Veteran flier Douglas Spotted Eagle and newcomer Jason Carter, were part of the 71-member group which flew together for several miles in the “By-Way” formation. Spotted Eagle said if one flier would have broken the formation a record would not have been established.

Fliers from throughout the world participated in the event which took a year of planning and training from all the fliers who practiced nearly every week by flying in smaller flocks at airfields throughout the world. Then the smaller groups joined each other at Lake Elsinore for four more days of instruction and practice before they set the record on Nov. 12

Several skyfliers wanted to participate, but organizers needed only the top people in the sport. Spotted Eagle is one of the top wingsuit fliers in Utah and Carter is new to the sport. A person cannot start wingsuit flying until they have registered at least 200 skydives.

When Spotted Eagle learned of the event he was rejected at first, but was determined to be on the team and earned a spot.

Carter did not immediately earn a spot, but was selected as an alternate to practice in place of a Russian flier until the Russian arrived at Lake Elsinore.

“It was only my 69th wingsuit flight, the rest of the fliers were way more experienced than I was,” Carter said. “I did my first wingsuit jump in April and then I was able to be a part of the world record jump in November.”

Carter has logged 399 skydives including his wingsuit experiences.

“Flying looked a lot more fun than just falling straight down to the ground,” Carter said. “It seems like we’re going about 50 mph through the air, but we’ve been clocked at 140 mph. When we fly out of the Erda Airport it’s fun to get out over I-80 and fly down the freeway passing cars.

“More and more people are starting wingsuit flying. Wingsuits have been around before airplanes, but they weren’t safe. With the latest technology they are pretty safe and a lot less complicated than the early suits.”

During the world record jump four planes were used with about 18 fliers in each plane. “When we were ready to go it took about 8 seconds for all the jumpers to leave the plane,” he said.

Carter was not going to be a part of the world-record group, but after working as an alternate for a few days at Lake Elsinore, Calif., organizers wanted him in the group.

“Jason was a dark horse that came out of nowhere; no one expected him to climb out of the alternates pool. When he did, his team captain was incredibly impressed with his skill and attitude, and he was placed as a regular slot-holder on the team,” Spotted Eagle said. “It was a real pleasure to look to my right and see Jason in his slot, smiling like a kid at Christmas. He was about 30 feet away from me, but I could feel his excitement. We were the only two from Utah, and I can’t think of anyone with whom I’d want to share that incredible experience in the sky.”

The world-record flock was 265-feet wide and flying forward at 100 mph and dropping at about 50 mph.

Carter said he was in the “foreigners” group with fliers from Spain, Russia and Britain.

“Wing-suiting as we know it today is not quite a decade old and attracting a lot of people,” Spotted Eagle said. “With today’s modern technology, with the development of wind tunnels and parachutes it is safe. One of the reasons it is safe is because the wingsuits slow things down dramatically. You drop at 60 mph instead of 120 mph.”

People in Tooele County can learn more about skydiving at Skydive Utah at the Erda Airport.

Mark Watson: mwatson@tooeletranscript.com