Roy Dixon was in the air for less than a minute before he plummeted 50ft to Earth, breaking his back in two places as his horrified family looked on.

The 45-year-old thrill-seeker had bought the paraglider for £300 from the auction website eBay and has no experience of the dangerous pastime.

Roy admits he got “half way” through a book about paragliding before making his first attempt in the Northumberland countryside just south of Hexham on Sunday evening.

But he made what he now knows was a disastrous decision – using 50 feet of rope to tether the paraglider to his car in the hope it would act as an ‘anchor’. Instead, it meant he was slammed into the side of a hill by a stray gust of wind, having lost control of the glider in seconds.

Roy, of Juniper, near Hexham, said: “I was in pain like you’ve never known. I was in a sitting position when I landed, so it just went straight up through my spine like a hot poker. I tried to get in a position where I could land feet-first but I couldn’t.

“I remember being up there and suddenly going ‘whoosh’ over to one direction, and then ‘wham’ straight down to the ground.

Submitted on 05/25/2010

Submitted by: David King
Reference: http://www.journallive.co.uk 25th May 2010

Copyright © 2010 DarwinAwards.com

Bruce said:
Definitely Keep: Honorable Mention
He bought a paraglider on eBay, read half a book on paragliding, and decided to use his car as an anchor? Sounds like Darwinian thinking in its finest. Thanks, David!

Candi said:
Definitely Keep: Darwin Award
Darwinian idiocy as high as it can get. Thanks, David!

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