Geezer wants to know if the fact that France has approximately 25,000 people who enjoy paragliding is a recommendation of the sport or a condemnation. The New York Times seems to cite it as evidence that the U.S. is, once again, behind the times. Still, the paper sees hope for us, and this interesting story, suggesting that paragliding is not nearly as dangerous as an intelligent person might assume, offers an encouraging account of the writer’s first flight. The piece quotes a family physician and paragliding pilot
who has studied accidents for Ushpa, saying he believes paragliding’s
injury rate is similar to that of activities like
motorcycling, horseback riding and snowmobiling. Read more in the Times, or visit Google’s first page of links to sites about paragliding, where, curiously, one finds sponsored links for life insurance.
Health, fitness and lifestyle tips for people over 50 who still like to play hard
Sunday, May 11, 2025
I went paragliding for the first time last September in the Swiss Alps and it was truly wonderful. Rather than jumping off of something, you just walk forward and the paraglider sail catches and you gently lift off. There is no big thrill of falling, just of flying like bird, soaring with the eagles in the high aeries. I had a 30 minute flight and then we gently touched down. I suppose if you have fear of heights it might be scary, but I felt completely secure the entire time. I did a tandem flight with a Swiss “pilot.” I got to steer the paraglider at times, although I would have been just perfectly content to be along for the ride. It was so beautiful and so wonderful to soar in the Alps.
I haven’t done any other sort of adventure sports – no bungee, hang-gliding, parchuting, etc.
second mortgage
Home Equity Loan Debt Reduction
Leave a Comment
Most Viewed
Most Commented
Categories
Post Categories