What is extreme sport paragliding?

There are many paragliding enthusiasts all over the world. In recent years, many young people in our country have also participated in extreme sports such as paragliding. Gliding is mainly achieved by taking off from a high mountain slope and then using a towed method to achieve takeoff. In addition, our country’s gliding community is located in the easternmost part of Tiexi District. Next, let’s take a closer look at the origin of the extreme sport of gliding, as well as some of its characteristics and gliding sports equipment.

origin

It is said that paragliding originated from the sudden whim of climbers in the Alps. In 1978, a French mountaineer named Betten, who lived in Chamonix at the foot of the Alps, took off from the mountainside with a high-altitude paraglider and successfully flew down the mountain. A new sport was born

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equipment

Paraglider

The shape of the paraglider wing is very different from that of airplane skydiving. The aspect ratio of modern paraglider wings is usually above 7:1, while the aspect ratio of the square parachute used for airplane skydiving is around 4:1.

Hanging Bag

This is where the pilot rides and is usually made of abrasion-resistant and stretch-resistant fabric. The harness is connected to the end of the parachute line via 2 suspension hooks. The height of the seat bag suspension hook relative to the pilot's center of gravity has a significant impact on the pilot.

Reserve parachute

Protective gear is an integral part of extreme sports equipment, and a reserve parachute is a must-have for paragliding. The structure of the reserve parachute is different from that of the main paraglider. Mainstream reserve parachutes are all perfectly round in shape, with air inlets on the top of the parachute, and usually fall at a speed of 5 to 6 meters per second. Usually the reserve parachute has strong anti-disturbance ability but no gliding function. When the main parachute collapses and cannot be inflated or enters a state that is beyond the control of other pilots, the pilot should immediately throw out the backup parachute.

Features

The powered paraglider is developed based on the paraglider. It is a paraglider with a power propeller added behind the seat. It weighs about 15-25KG, has a thrust of 40-80KG, and can fly for 1-5 hours. It can take off and land on flat ground, is less restricted by the site, and is more convenient. However, it makes a lot of noise during flight and is expensive (about 120,000 RMB). Mainly used for training and commercial flights. In comparison, ordinary paragliders are more affordable (about 10,000 to 20,000 RMB) and are more fun to fly. They usually take off from a hillside, and then hover and rise after finding a thermal or powered air current. When the air current is good, they can rise to 2-3 kilometers. The current world record for the time a paraglider can stay in the air is 24 hours, and the straight-line distance of flight is 350 kilometers.

The above is a detailed introduction to the origin of the extreme sport gliding, some of the characteristics of gliding and gliding sports equipment. I believe everyone has a certain understanding of gliding, one of the extreme sports. For some young people, they can try gliding according to their physical fitness. But it should be noted that when you start trying a sport, you must consider safety first.