This happened to a certified B-level paraglider from China, Peng Yujiang. This took place as he was soaring above beautiful Qilian Mountains in Gansu Province during an unforgettable paragliding experience. The recent accident reportedly catapulted him to a jaw-dropping height of 8,598 meters (around 28,208 feet). He did it all without using supplemental oxygen. This world-renowned adventurer has been paragliding for more than four years. With a six-month suspension from air traffic control for not filing a flight plan, he was now in a deadly bind.
The Singaporean’s hair-raising experience first started when he was trying out a second-hand paragliding harness he had recently bought. He was performing ground parachute shake testing when the wind came up and caught him, lifting him into the air. In an interview, he described the moment: “I had just bought a second-hand paragliding harness and wanted to test it, so I was conducting ground parachute shaking. After a few minutes, suddenly the wind switched and caught my kite just right and it took me into the air. I was attempting to touch down as quickly as I could, but I didn’t make it.
As Peng took off much higher than expected, he became an instant victim of many obstacles. He volunteered that he might have lost consciousness for a moment during the entire experience. He came to his senses and came out of the fog. …an enormous wave of relief came over me because I knew I was okay, I’d made it. The moment I broke out of those clouds, let me tell you, I was totally freaking excited that I survived. The scariest moment came when I tried to exit the spiral and couldn’t. My heart was pounding in those last moments as our canopy went into the dive. Now, what you saw is still terrifying to imagine,” he continued to remember.
The ascent to heights as dizzying as these took place at record speed. Because the ascent rate can bring them to altitude—even dangerous high altitudes—within minutes, experts said it’s critical that ascent be controlled. Worst of all, according to paragliding instructor Geoff Davison, it was a threatening environment. He explained, “If you keep that rate of climb for a couple of minutes, three minutes or four minutes, you’re going to go way, way, way high really fast.”
When you were on that flight, did you ever experience a rush of shock and fear? He was skeptical that he had made it to such a remarkable height. As a result of the requirement to write a reflection report, Anderson must consider the purpose of this troubling incident turned sobering policy decision. Given what he’s been through, Peng has announced that he is stepping away from the game for now. I can’t predict what will happen down the road, but today—no question—I’m done flying for quite some time,” he said.
The event commanded national headlines because of its grave and life-threatening implications. Further aggravating the situation, one of the other paragliding pilots, Gu Zhimin, ignited outrage by posting his video of Peng’s ill-fated flight without their consent. This new twist made an already tricky climate of safety regulations and individual responsibility in the world of adventure sports even more complicated.
Vocativ’s David Reddish speaks with Peng Yujiang about his terrifying ordeal. It’s a cautionary tale against the dangers of extreme sports and, more importantly, a story that provides insight into how safety procedures should be adhered to. His near miss between the clouds will surely inspire those in the paragliding world and far outside of it as well.
