{"id":604,"date":"2011-05-08T21:56:56","date_gmt":"2011-05-08T13:56:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mysabah.com\/wordpress\/?p=604"},"modified":"2021-04-16T09:09:17","modified_gmt":"2021-04-16T01:09:17","slug":"paragliding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mysabah.com\/wordpress\/paragliding\/","title":{"rendered":"Paragliding in Sabah"},"content":{"rendered":"

Paragliding has started in Sabah for quite some years but only recent years it becomes a popular sport. Last month I visited a paragliding team in Lohan (near to Ranau Sport Complex), a location between Ranau town and Poring (about 2-hour drive from Kota Kinabalu).<\/p>\n

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\nThe Lohan paragliding site on the hill offers a beautiful view of Kinabalu Park and Liwagu valley.<\/p>\n

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\n>> Click Here to see more photos of Paragliding<\/a>
\nAt the right is the view of Lohan Village (Kampung Lohan). Mejar (trainer) is standing at the take-off point of paragliding.<\/p>\n

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\nThere were a few paragliders there by the time we reached the site in the morning.<\/p>\n

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\nIt was windy on the hill. Armed with a wedge-shaped and the specially designed chute, the parachute had no problem gathering wind power. The pilot can go as far as 100 KM in a single flight!<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\nThen the paragliders ran and took off one by one. FYI, they didn’t jump off from a cliff (That one is base-jumping ok). There is a 45 degree slope in front, which is the best angle for running to take off. Other factors that make a good paragliding site include wind condition and topography in that area. Most are able to take off within 10 Meters of running distance, easier than flying a kite isn’t it?<\/p>\n

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\nDepending on the wind and their skill, some paragliders can stay high in the air for a long time. It looks so fun and free!<\/p>\n

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\n>> Click Here to see more photos of Paragliding<\/a>
\nHowever, I sweated when I saw a few of them almost ram into trees, tall building and other things.<\/p>\n

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\nThey practiced Spot Landing in the morning to prepare for Paragliding Accuracy World Cup<\/strong> (PGAWC), an aviation sport. It is very hard to land on a bull-eye only a few Meters wide. When you are up in the air, it’s also hard to tell if you are ascending or descending. That’s why they have a beeping device on the helmet that can tell if they are gliding up or down.<\/p>\n

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\nAbove: Preparation for tandem flight<\/p>\n

Don’t worry if you don’t know how to paraglide. You can join their tandem flight. The fee ranges from RM150 to RM200 per ride<\/strong>. Sabahans can negotiate for discount. They may not standby at the site unless there are someone book them for tandem flight.<\/p>\n

They say afternoon time is more suitable for tandem flight<\/strong>, because the thermal air allows them to soar high, and they offer me a free ride. At first I was excited, but a bit scared when I saw one of them made hard landing into the shrubs. Anyway, my worry is needless, because only the experienced and licensed trainers can provide tandem flight.<\/p>\n

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\nAbove: briefing before tandem flight. Just a few simple instructions to follow. Nothing complicated.<\/p>\n

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\nReady to glide… The wind was so strong that the parachute can drag you away.<\/p>\n

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\nAbove: tandem flight taking off!<\/p>\n

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\nAbove: tandem flight landing.
\nThey “passengers” looked so happy that they drove up to the hill and did a few more rounds again.<\/p>\n

Finally it’s my turn for tandem flight. The most scary part is the take-off moment. I was at the front and was asked to run down the slope during take off. Chris the trainer was shouting behind me, “RUN! Murphy RUN!!!!” I ran hard and fast, as if a tiger was chasing behind me. Then I felt that my feet were off the ground. Yay! I was flying!<\/p>\n

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\n>> Click Here to see more photos of Paragliding<\/a>
\nThen Chris said “Sit In!”, which meant I could retract my feet and sat in the tandem seat. I can enjoy the flight and take photos now.<\/p>\n

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\nThe feeling was great. I was a few hundreds feet up in the sky and everything looks so small on the ground. If I’m not mistaken, you can soar as high as a thousand feet. Wow.. I heard that some of them had tried paragliding from the peak of Mt. Kinabalu. The view must be magnificent.<\/p>\n

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\nAbove: Lohan Village under my feet
\n>> Click Here to see more photos of Paragliding<\/a><\/p>\n

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\nAbove: at the left is the take-off point of Lohan paragliding site. Can you see the “Ant” people on the hill? So tiny… Actually they have at least 3 take-off points in Lohan.<\/p>\n

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\n>> Click Here to see more photos of Paragliding<\/a><\/p>\n

You may watch the 2-minute video below to see the solo and tandem flight paragliding in Lohan:<\/p>\n