Ducks Really Do Fly

Conduit’s “Around the World” competition, which kicked off at the start of summer, calls for Conduit employees to submit pictures of their Conduit mascot enjoying the summer vacation as they trot the globe.

As summer winds down and our mascot competition draws to a close, we’d like to take this opportunity to share a picture that has one of our favorite stories behind it. The picture we’re about to share with you really stood out to us not only because of the time and effort that went into it, but also for the personality it exudes.

The personality behind the photo is Alexander Leibzon, our data infrastructure engineer, who married his love for adventure with his passion of all things flight related. To test out his perfect idea for a picture, he dragged his poor wife all the way to Israel’s northern city of Haifa.

After a couple of test runs, he realized it was possible to launch Davina the Duck, one of many Conduit mascots, into the air —  and, with the aid of a homemade parachute, let her glide over the hills of Haifa.

Alex spent hours waiting for the perfect shot. And as we all know, good things come to those who wait. He finally managed to snap a picture of Davina soaring high above the temple of the Baha’i Gardens! I think you’ll all agree that the picture is something quite special.

The story, however, has a sting in the tail. Once Davina crash-landed right into the sacred Baha’i Gardens, the guards patrolling the area responded as if in fear of a mascot invasion. Davina was quickly arrested and taken for questioning. Needless to say, she was released with minimum fuss and was allowed to return to Conduit HQ, where she is now recovering from her ordeal.

While we don’t know whether this photo will win, we do know that it ranks among the best for creativity, audacity, and fearlessness (on behalf of Davina the Duck!).

Check out many other pics from the competition on our Pinterest or Facebook channels.