The call of the wild

Friends thought Heather Swan was mad when she fell for adrenaline junkie Glenn Singleman, but the couple’s love took them both to new heights, writes Pip Harry.

Heather Swan was just another member of the audience when she first laid eyes on extreme-adventure enthusiast Glenn Singleman. The charismatic motivational speaker had recently returned from BASE jumping off the Great Trango Tower (the world’s tallest vertical rock face) in Pakistan, and was giving a talk about setting a new world record.

Heather admits she was impressed by Glenn’s speech, his passion for the wilderness and the way he had instigated huge changes in his life. Glenn had gone from being a doctor to competing in BASE jumping – an extreme sport that involves using a parachute to jump from a fixed object such as a building, bridge or cliff. (In fact, BASE is an acronym for the four categories of fixed objects BASE jumpers launch from: buildings, antennas, spans (bridges) and earth (cliffs). Heather was also struck by Glenn’s level-headedness and composure. “I really liked him,” she recalls. “I thought he was the most interesting person I had ever come across. Actually, I was in complete awe of him.”  

Heather admits she was a couch potato at the time, who knew virtually nothing about the extreme sports Glenn was involved in. “I had never seen or heard of BASE jumping,” she admits. “I didn’t know much about rock climbing or mountaineering either. I was quite overwhelmed by it all.”

Realising she couldn’t let the man of her dreams slip through her fingers, Heather approached Glenn and suggested a working partnership. “I had an advantage,” she laughs. “I was working for the talent management agency Harry M Miller, so I went up to Glenn and said: ‘Look – we’d love to manage you; I think our clients would love your story’.” Glenn agreed to sign on as a speaker and the pair worked together for nine months before either made a move.

It wasn’t exactly love at first sight for Glenn, who says he thought Heather was attractive and dynamic, but saw her primarily as his manager. “At the time I thought she was a pushy corporate type,” he laughs. Heather agrees it took time for their romantic relationship to develop. “I don’t think he saw past my work persona, initially. I worked a 60-hour week and was very focused on my career.”

In the early days, the pair was an unlikely match. “I fancied him from the word go, but didn’t think he’d be the slightest bit interested in me,” says Heather. “I thought he was the sort of person who would only look at women who had climbed Everest or jumped out of planes – which was not me at all.”

Soon Glenn and Heather found themselves talking about things other than work, and their friendship developed. When Heather expressed an interest in seeing more of nature and challenging herself physically, Glenn invited her to go rock climbing in the Blue Mountains. Although he knew the activity would be a test for Heather, Glenn felt it was the only way he could truly share the wonders of adventuring with her.

Meanwhile, Heather had no idea what was in store for her. “I thought rock climbing meant clambering over rocks,” she says. “So when he presented me with a vertical cliff face I was quite horrified. I remember getting not even halfway up… my legs were shaking and I was crying, but I was trying not to let him see that. It was awful. I thought: ‘Oh God, this dude is going to hate me.’.” But Glenn and Heather survived their first date, and Glenn was impressed by Heather’s determination. The seasoned adventurer also saw a spark in Heather’s eye and suspected she might be capable of much more.

The pair started to make regular trips into the wilderness and found their relationship strengthening with each increasingly difficult challenge. “We started going on canyoning and rock climbing trips,” recalls Glenn. “Initially they were incredibly demanding for Heather, but she really rose to the occasion. Our relationship became deeper and more meaningful. We started doing more and more things together and – it’s hard not to sound corny – we just fell more and more in love.”

Looking back, both Glenn and Heather admit they were wary about starting a new relationship. Glenn was in the process of separating from his first wife and Heather had also been married before and was living with her daughter, Lauren. “When I met Heather, my first marriage was falling apart. At the time, I wasn’t very receptive and definitely wasn’t looking for another relationship,” says Glenn. “I was actually desperately unhappy, but Heather helped me rediscover life just by being who she is and being supportive.”

Glenn credits Heather with helping him regain his spark. “When you go through a hard time in a relationship you can lose confidence in yourself and who you are,” he says. “Heather believed in what I was saying about the power of adventure and the human spirit and helped me reconnect with that.”

Meanwhile, Heather found Glenn’s encouragement allowed her to connect with her more adventurous side and found herself falling for his rugged, outdoorsy appeal. “To me, Glenn’s the ultimate man. He’s sensitive, but he’s very masculine at the same time. I loved being with him and I loved those environments. I hadn’t done that sort of thing before and the physical challenge appealed to me.”

Soon, Heather was holding her own with Glenn and realised she, too, was a thrill seeker. “She started to ski and rock climb and mountaineer. It was amazing to watch,” marvels Glenn. “She is an exceptional person and to see her really fulfill her potential was mind-blowing.”

It wasn’t always smooth sailing for Heather, who says there were times when she was well out of her comfort zone. “We went on a canyoning trip – and it nearly killed me,” she recalls. “The canyon was out in the middle of nowhere. It was a grade five, one of the hardest you can do.” The couple abseiled down the 180-metre canyon, only to find their ropes were stuck and they had no way of getting back up. “We had to climb back out with no ropes. We were about 100 metres up when I slipped and fell straight into a tree. If it hadn’t been for that tree, I wouldn’t be here today.”

Heather’s friends and family were concerned she might have picked the wrong man, and worried she was pushing herself too hard. “They thought I was mad. Before I met Glenn I had never even been camping,” Heather says. “My idea of camping was a four-star hotel. I’d come back from a weekend away with Glenn covered in bruises and scratches and they’d shake their heads and ask: ‘What’s going on here?’.”

But Heather loved spending time with Glenn and couldn’t be talked out of her exciting new lifestyle. “I was totally outside my comfort zone – so far, in fact, I couldn’t even see it any more. But it stirred something inside me and made me want to keep going.”

After three years together, Glenn proposed in February 1998. “Typically, we were in the Blue Mountains in the middle of some epic adventure at the time,” laughs Heather. “Glenn’s not a terribly romantic person, but he made it special in his own way. He had bought a gorgeous tanzanite and diamond ring. He took me out to dinner and said: ‘I really love you and I’d like to marry you’. Of course, I accepted. It was an amazing night.” Glenn was equally thrilled to have found his soul mate and someone he could share his adventurous life with.

The couple chose to marry in August that year in Thredbo, where they had spent many happy times skiing and exploring the Snowy Mountains. “We love skiing and love the wilderness, so it was a natural choice,” says Glenn. “Our wedding was fabulous,” sighs Heather. “I wore the most gorgeous cream velvet coat and the bridesmaids had matching blue ones.” The wedding turned into a big skiing party. “Because it was at Thredbo and so cold, all our older relatives declined,” says Heather. “So it was just our friends and we had a ball.”

A Buddhist monk from Vietnam married the couple, though they almost didn’t have a place to say their vows. The chapel caught wind of Glenn and Heather’s plan for a non-traditional ceremony, forcing a last-minute move to the community hall across the road. The couple chose a Buddhist monk to marry them because they identified with the religion’s spiritual beliefs. “We like the Buddhist belief that two halves fit together – like the Yin-Yang symbol,” says Glenn. “Heather and I are like those two halves. We’re so closely linked and intertwined – physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually.”

Since marrying, the couple set themselves amazing challenges and achieved more than they ever dreamed possible. “We’ve been trekking and climbing in Nepal and climbing in Pakistan, Europe, America and New Zealand,” says Heather. “We skydive, BASE jump, canyon, rock climb, mountain bike, ski, kayak and run. We’ve been married nearly nine years, but it feels as if we’ve lived almost a lifetime together with the amount we’ve packed in.”

As a testament to their work as a team, in May 2006 Heather set two new world records for the highest BASE jump and the highest BASE jump in a wingsuit (an outfit that slows your descent). Later that year, Glenn and Heather were given a prestigious Spirit of Adventure award by the Australian Geographic Society. The couple now works together making documentary films and speaking at corporate engagements. They’re also hoping to break a world wingsuit record by jumping out of a plane and flying as far as they can horizontally.

Even the couple’s domestic life is harmonious. They live in Sydney and share custody of Glenn’s two boys, David, 13, and Nathan, 12. Heather also has two children from her previous marriage: Ty, 23, and Lauren, 18. “We all get along really well,” says Heather. “My children are older now, but Glenn’s boys are with us half the week. It works very well.” 

Heather and Glenn agree it’s important to make an effort in a relationship on a daily basis, and say it’s the little things that count. “We take turns making each other a cup of tea and toast in bed,” says Heather. “Then we go for a run, meditate, and get on with our working day. We have a lovely relationship and a wonderful life. It’s never boring.”

Heather admits it scares her to think about how her life might have been if she hadn’t met Glenn, whom she counts as her best friend as well as her husband. “He and I have a really amazing connection. We like the same things, have the same values and really enjoy hanging out together. I think we were meant to meet. We have an unshakable connection. I don’t know about reincarnation, but it feels as if we’ve known each other for ever.”

As for Glenn, after spending more than a decade with Heather he is more in love with her than ever. “It seems to us now that we were always meant for each other,” he says. “Everyone has their ups and downs, but we’re so similar in our personalities, loves and interests. We enjoy doing the same things… we finish each other’s sentences all the time.”

And if, one day, they both decide to give up BASE jumping and extreme adventuring, Heather and Glenn are confident it won’t be hard to find other shared passions. “Life has so many wonderful challenges we can tackle together,” says Glenn. 

For more information about Glenn and Heather’s adventures  visit www.baseclimb.com. 

Adventure calls

Are you inspired to try your hand at skydiving, whitewater rafting or rock climbing? Aussie company, Adrenalin, offers adventure activities for beginners to seasoned adventurers. For more information, visit www.adrenalin.com.au.

 

Photography: Scott Hawkins. Hair & make-up: David Novak-Piper.