paraglidingcapetown-blog
Paragliding Cape Town
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PARAGLIDING SAFETY TIPS
The sport of paragliding is an exciting and relaxing activity that everyone can enjoy. Of course, due to the fact that it involves flying through the air hundreds or thousands of meters above the ground it means you must take steps to ensure your safety.
The following are some paragliding safety tips for everyone from beginners to experienced paragliding pilots.
Paragliding in Cape Town is actually an activity that is really easy to learn. However, one of the most dangerous aspects to it is the period just after someone starts to feel comfortable in the air.
When you are brand new to flying, chances are you will be extremely careful and even have a feeling of vulnerability. On the other hand, if you have gone through paragliding training to become a pilot, and have gone out to fly by yourself, it can be pretty easy to develop a false sense of security.
Just when you really begin to feel at ease, it is very easy to take safety less seriously and make mistakes.
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6 Most Breathtaking Paragliding Destinations
Traveling is one of the best ways to broaden your mind. Not only do you get to meet new people and explore new scenic vistas, but as a paraglider you have a front row seat to some of the most amazing views on Earth. Heres a few of the best paragliding destinations for keeping your head in the clouds.
Paragliding-Chamonix
1. CHAMONIX, FRENCH ALPS
The Cham is one of the worlds mountain flying meccas, and for good reason. The high peaks and pristine glaciers of the French Alps offer a captivating backdrop for dozens of unspoiled alpine villages and hamlets dotting the landscape. Paragliders launching near Chamonix also get a birds eye view of Mont Blanc, the highest peak in Europe, towering over the landscape at 4,810 meters. Mont Blanc is also one of the turnpoints in the grueling Red Bull X-Alps adventure race (which Ill be competing in next July). Fliers with a little extra time can check out the birthplace of paragliding at the picturesque town of Mieussy, a mere 50 kilometers to the west as the crow or glider flies.
Kaminaki-Paragliding
2. KAMINAKI, CRETE
The island of Crete is the birthplace of perhaps the oldest story involving man and flight: the myth of Icarus. Now the Greek island is a haven for paragliders who enjoy its stunning panoramas of mountains and gorges all while competing with eagles for views of the sparkling Aegean. A sip of tsikoudia, the traditional Cretan drink, tastes particularly good after a day spent soaring over the scenic plateau of Lassithi.
Danyang-Paragliding
3. DANYANG, SOUTH KOREA
This scenic hideaway offers some of the best mountain and valley flying in East Asia. Located roughly a two-and-a-half hour drive from Seoul Airport, Danyang County is home to the scenic Namhan River as well as the Eight Views of Danyang a collection of natural sites that includes the famous Three Peak Island. Of course, the best view is always from the sky, and paragliders get to take it all in from the launch point at the peak of Mount Yangbangsan.
Atago-Paragliding
4. CROWN TERRACE, OTAGO, NEW ZEALAND
If you’re looking for scenic beauty, you cant go wrong with the country used as the backdrop for The Lord of the Ringsmovies. Crown Terrace offers excellent ridge soaring with heavy thermals and great mountain-to-valley views with an altitude limit of around 900 meters. Weather in Crown Terrace can go from balmy to downright scary in a matter of minutes, so knowing how to read the signs is crucial.
Lima-Paragliding
5. LIMA, PERU
The area in and around Lima remains one of the most versatile paragliding hotspots of South America. The crisp sands and azure waters of Costa Verde and Miraflores offer a good mix of urban and beach flying, while height-addicts can choose from any of the 37 peaks in Peru rated 6,000 meters or higher. For history buffs, there are also routes that soar over some of the oldest temples in the Western Hemisphere, including the 4,000-year-old Huaca El Paraiso just northwest of town.
Paragliding-Cape-Town-Table-Mountain-Martin
6. CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
We’d be remiss to leave out one of South Africas best destinations for flying. Cape Town offers a little bit of everything, from mountain flying at Table Mountain National Park to the beautiful vineyards of the Constantia Valley. Launch sites from Lions Head and Signal Hill offer fliers stunning views of both city and coast all while gliding over the scenic waterfront of Camps Bay at the foot of the Twelve Apostles mountain range. If you go, be sure you drop in at Fly Cape Town Paraglidingand say hello!
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4 FACTS YOU PROBABLY DON’T KNOW ABOUT PARAGLIDING SAFETY
1. STATISTICALLY, PARAGLIDING IS AS SAFE AS DRIVING
Each year, about 1 out of every 10,000 Americans is killed in a car accident – there were about 32,000 deaths in 2011, for example. In Germany, where paragliding is much more popular than in the States, about 3 people are killed per year, out of 33,000 pilots. That comes out to 1 out of 11,000 pilots, slightly lower than the driving fatality rate. The driving fatality rate would actually be much higher if you counted only the people who drive, instead of the entire population. On the other hand, statistics tend to show that paragliding is much safer on average than activities like motorcycling or even horseback riding.
2. PILOTS ARE ALMOST NEVER INJURED BECAUSE OF EQUIPMENT FAILURE
Paragliders built today are uniformly very stable. They are designed to recover quickly in the event of glider collapse. So as long as you are using new paragliding equipment which you check before every flight, there is little risk of an accident resulting from equipment malfunctions. Almost all accidents happen because of mistakes made by the pilot, either in the air, or in their assessment of weather conditions before a flight.
3. NO NEED FOR SPEED
Paragliding is not really a sport for speed demons. (Hang gliding or Speedflying is probably better for those folks.) So if you’re getting freaked out because you picture yourself hurtling off a cliff like Wile E. Coyote – don’t worry! That’s not what paragliding is about. Instead, picture yourself gracefully floating on the breeze, with fantastic views of the landscape around you, a bit more like a butterfly.
If, on the other hand, you do want an adrenaline rush, paragliding can definitely deliver as there is nothing more exhilarating than doing paragliding aerobatics through the air and seeing the landscape beneath you in a completely new way.
4. FEELING VULNERABLE IS GOOD!
In general, we think paragliding is a very safe activity, as long as you are learning with a good instructor. It’s also relatively easy to get started. However, some beginners are lulled into a false sense of security because of how easy it can be. Instructors like to call this “intermediate syndrome.” So while we want you to have fun up in the air, don’t let your guard down just because things are going smoothly. Remember, more than 90% of injuries happen during the first ten flights a pilot makes. If you adopt the safety techniques your instructor teaches you during this critical period, you will greatly reduce the risk of accidents both in the short and long term.
If you want to have a chat about any aspect of paragliding – feel free to contact us and we can talk you through every aspect of the sport we are passionate about!
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THE PARAGLIDING EXPERIENCE
Paragliding is a great deal of fun, whether you are able to experience it once, or become a certified pilot and fly every weekend. Many people consider paragliding to be the purest form of human flight. All it takes is a basic paraglider and human ingenuity to get airborne although safety paragliding equipment is strongly advised. However, there are some misconceptions about what paragliding is and what it is not. Whatever the answer, the word that best describes paragliding best is experience.
What Is Paragliding?
Paragliding-Cape-Town-Clifton
Paragliding uses a specific winged apparatus known as a paraglider. Simple enough, right? Paragliding involves using the human body to launch yourself, and potentially a passenger, into the air from a high area. Typically, paragliding occurs in open areas with mountains as launch points. The design of the paraglider is light and a flight may last for several hours and cover hundreds of kilometers, but they are usually much shorter for novices. Paragliding is not exactly a thrill-seeking activity, at least once you become airborne. Most people actually find it very relaxing and enlightening because you have uninterrupted panoramic views of the world around you and the time to enjoy them.
What Is Not Paragliding?
For those new to the sport of paragliding, it may be difficult to define. Paragliding is often confused with some of the following activities, which vary in some way:
BASE jumping The acronym BASE stands for Building Antenna Span Earth, or basically objects that people jump from before pulling a parachute. Interestingly enough, the first recorded use of a parachute was really a BASE jump it just did not go by that name when it occurred in 1783. The term was first used in a movie in 1978.
Hang gliding There is a different design to the wing used for flight in hang gliding. Paragliders are made of a softer material, while hang gliders are solid.
Parachuting Also heaver than paragliders, parachutes are packed tightly into a bag and ejected. Parachutes are used in many of the activities listed here.
Parasailing A water sport in which a person is attached to a boat with a large parachute. While the floating that parasailers enjoy is similar to paragliding, the experience is much shorter and closer to the earth below.
Skydiving The origin of BASE jumping, skydiving is very similar. The major difference lies in the origin of the jumper. BASE jumpers use fixed objects as a starting point, while skydivers generally jump out of moving airplanes.
Chronicling The Paragliding Experience
Paragliding-Cape-Town-Constantiaberg -Pic by Niel Marx
If you type paragliding into Google or YouTube, there will be thousands of results showing both amateurs and experienced fliers paragliding. Some are simply raw video, while others have a more artistic feel. The most important thing to realize, however, is that all of the videos were posted because people wanted to chronicle their experience for themselves and share it with others. For many, it is an opportunity to share one of the most fun things they have ever done: seeing the world with a birds eye view.
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