[10] Pendry grew up in Brighton,[11][9] and started flying hang gliders whilst still a schoolboy aged 16 on the South Downs in Sussex, England.
[2][12][4] Pendry started competing with hang gliders in 1982, gaining second place and winning £2000 in a competition in Italy.
[12] From 1983 onwards he was sponsored by Planters Peanuts[1][2][13] and set an official World Distance record of 186 miles in July 1983 in the Owens Valley, Nevada, USA.
He received two Royal Aero Club Gold Medals following his World titles in 1985 and 1987 presented respectively by Elizabeth II[12] and Prince Andrew.
[2] In 2000 he created the kitesurf school and shop, Adrenaline,[11] in La Franqui close to Perpignan, France[18] and ran this until 2015.