October and November are known to be the best months to fly long distances in northeastern Brazil, and every year pilots from all over the world migrate to the Sertão to chase big distances and watch the sunset from the sky.

The 2025 season was particularly good, and many pilots made amazing flights in the area.

In October, US pilot Matt Henzi managed to fly 576.14 km, even after bombing out on his first attempt.

“I never thought it was possible to fly (relatively) safely in high wind like this for over 11 hours. On the day of my personal best, I was averaging over 61 km/h up until km 425. Unreal speeds, and the air wasn’t even very rough that day.

I could have maybe made a couple of kilometers more if I had stayed in a 0.0 that I found on the last +40 km glide. I landed with maybe 20 more minutes to civil twilight, so an hour and 20 minutes were left on the table. Theoretically, at that pace and using the whole day, you could fly 650 km.As usual, the people of Brazil were nothing but friendly and helpful. I’ll definitely be back.”

On that same day, Team Pilot Marcella Uchoa broke her personal best after flying 490 km.

“This 490 km straight-line flight in the Sertão became my personal best, but more importantly, it marked a true shift in the way I experienced flying. After eight years flying this region, it was the first time I chose to fly purely for the joy of it — no race mode all day long, no pressure to chase records. I barely touched the speed bar; I took photos, enjoyed every thermal and the clouds, and stayed fully present in the moment.

Flying side by side with Erico Oliveira made the experience even more special, reminding me that partnership and connection can be as powerful as performance. On that same day, I had declared 507 km, and our team achieved the longest flight of the Sertão this year, with Matthew Henzi flying 568 km straight distance.

For a moment, I realized I could have pushed harder and possibly broken multiple records myself — but I wasn’t disappointed. This flight gave me something far more valuable: it brought back the pure joy of flying for flying’s sake.”

Team Pilot Veso Ovcharov was also busy racking up 500 km flights, placing him in the top 10 of XContest.

Here’s what he had to say about his last (and best) day:

“The sky exploded and was full of clouds, which is a sign of the right cycle. That helped me increase my average speed using only thermals and the quality of my equipment. In the middle of the flight, I had a new surprise and challenge: massive fires on the route, which forced me to fly away from the perfect cloud line. In the end, I managed to escape but lost a good 40 minutes there and, most importantly, fell out of the good cycle and pace.

Anyway, the day was good enough to bring me back up again, even off my desired line. I’m happy with my new personal best of 548.83 km straight and 555 km over three points. I landed at the last possible spot, next to a small house with kind people who gave me food and shelter, like always in Brazil. You land in the middle of nowhere and families come immediately to help. Something I believe I will remember even more than the flights at the end of the day.”

What an amazing season!