Glider Rider (2005)

This article is about 'the 2005 magazine story'. You may be looking for 'the 2004 magazine story'.

“Your stories are just pie in the sky, Percy.”

―Thomas

Glider Rider is a magazine story puzzle.

Plot

One day, the engines decide to play a game where they look out for things in the sky. As Percy waits at a signal, he spies an odd shape gliding silently and thinks it is a big kite. Percy races back to the main station to tell the others, but they do not believe little Percy.

The next day, Percy sees the object again. This time it is closer and Percy can see a man hanging underneath. The driver tells him it is a hang-glider that is coming into land. Sure enough the hang-glider dips close to the track and a gust of wind sweeps the glider into a shallow pond. Percy stops and his crew help the man out of the water. That night, Percy tells the other engines about his adventure, but they still did not believe him.

Next morning, the man with the hang-glider telephones the Fat Controller to tell him about a special event. The event is a hang-gliding display and the sky is full of hand-gliders. Percy has a pair of flags given to him by the Sodor Hang-gliding Club tied to his buffers. Percy asks Thomas if he believes him now. Thomas does and tells Percy he is flying something too.

Characters

Thomas
Percy
Sir Topham Hatt (does not speak)
James (cameo)

Trivia

This story is an altered version an earlier story of the same name. This version is shorter, incorporates puzzles into the story and has different illustrations.
In the final illustration, viewers could join the dots to make Percy's flag and colour in the picture.