A paraglider is the simplest flying machine there is. Developed from parachute technology they fold up into a backpack and yet can be flown amazing distances in competent hands, and in the right conditions. The current cross-country distance record is over 300 miles.

The XC Open competition is a simple one. Each pilot takes off and tries to fly the greatest distance from the launch. The event is scored by downloading the flight logs from the GPS devices the pilots carry after the day is finished. On the 16th many pilots entered in the XC Open were practicing for the event. At the morning pre-flight briefing the pilots were warned about a line of developing storms to the north. The prevailing wind was out of the south and having no engine, a glider makes the fastest progress downwind. A gaggle of gliders was pushing north with the German female champion Ewa Wisnerska, a pilot with a great deal of experience at the top level of international competition, was at the head of that group. Thunderstorms are greatly feared by soaring pilots for the huge updrafts of air that go into pushing the cloud tops up to 50,000' above the ground. Since they have no engines, gliders are easily entrained into these updrafts (which can reach 120mph) and cannot easily escape. 747s avoid flying through thunderstorms. Small planes have been torn apart by them. Flying a paraglider into a thunderstorm is akin to taking a windsurfer to the North Sea in a winter storm.

Ewa made a very ambitious gambit by trying to fly between two large cumulonimbus clouds to save the time of flying around them. The Chinese pilot, He Zhongpin was attempting to follow the gaggle despite being a newcomer to the competition scene and by all accounts only a mediocre pilot. The Chinese, instead of judging the situation for himself, was foolish enough to try to follow while most of the rest of the field ran away to land safely. Ewa's bid to thread the needle failed when the two storms joined to form a single huge storm cell. She was pulled up to over 30,000' and managed to survive almost an hour above 20.000' while unconcious from hypoxia. The Chinese pilot was also pulled into the storm but was hit by lightning at 5,800m, causing his flight logging GPS to shut down. His body was found about 10 miles from where he was drawn into the storm. Early reports had him dying from exposure, hypoxia or being pummeled by baseball-sized hailstones. The local coroner has recently reported that the autopsy revealed the cause of death to be a lightning strike.

ibnnews.org

Note that the above report erroneously mentions the Chinese as Ewa's companion. In fact Ewa is flying on the German team in the upcoming Paragliding World Championships, Mr. He was listed as a reserve member of the Chinese team.

Submitted on 02/21/2007

Submitted by: Q. Nimb
Reference: http://www.newscloud.com/read/

Copyright © 2007 DarwinAwards.com

James said:
Neutral: Darwin Award
Call it beginner's bad luck, but this definitely deserves consideration. Most of the participants were smart enough to land and seek safety. Essentially, what you have is Ben Franklin's kite experiment with the soft chewy "key" dangling just below. A disaster waiting to happen, and this fellow's ambition certainly outweighed his wisdom! Thanks, Q!

Graham said:
Neutral: Lacks Excellence
I'm not sure about this on. Beats me why humans cannot simply enjoy a sport instead of Push, Push, Push to the limits, often resulting in death. Hypoxia was the likely cause here, not a "lightning strike.". Thanks, Q

Chip said:
Neutral: Darwin Award
While extreme sports involve risks, most times the participants are very smart and know when to take the risk and when to go home. Most went home. One took a calculated risk and almost lost her own life. This one was neither smart enough to go home or to calculate the risk. Instead he decided to follow the more experienced and it cost him his life. Thanks for the story, Q

Tracy said:
Neutral: Darwin Award
I think Ewa took a calculated risk, knowing her skills, which went wrong. Whereas He made a stupid decision, and paid the price by becoming a DA! Thanks

Jack said:
Neutral: Darwin Award
Generally, we don't give awards to participants in extreme sports (figuring that they know the risks and voluntarily choose to accept those risks), but in this case He didn't know as much as he thought he did. Hello Darwin!

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