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Parasailing , also known as parascending, is an exhilarating activity where individuals are harnessed to a modified parachute canopy that is designed to ascend into the air when towed behind a motor vehicle on land; or a recreational boat over water. Commercial parasailing operations can be found worldwide, with customized powerboats that can accommodate numerous passenger observers and up to three airborne parasailors at a time wearing specially designed Body Harness w/ Tow Bar and/or seated in a Customized Gondola
While parasailing is primarily enjoyed both as a recreational and commercial activity, it should not be confused with other similar sports such as paragliding, paraskiing, or parakiting. These activities are typically operated in different environments, such as open fields and mountain ranges.
In Europe, land-based parasailing has evolved into a competitive sport. In these competitions, the parasail is towed to a specific height behind a vehicle, and the driver and/or the parasailor releases the tow line to land in a specific target area. The first international competitions for land-based parasailing were held in the mid-1980s and have continued annually since then. These competitions have grown in both size and scope over the years, attracting more participants and spectators alike.
Spinnaker vs. parasailing
Spinnaker is a recreational activity that is commonly mistaken as parasailing. Both of them allow people to ascend on the ocean by using the wind force against a specially designed canopy. Parasailing includes ascending while spinnaker allows a person to swing at the front of the tow vehicle, i.e., boat.
Parachute vs. parasailing
Both the parachute and parasail can ascend and glide. The primary difference between the two is that the parasail is more stable and efficient during the ascent mode when being towed aloft with minimum or zero steering control by the parasailor. The parachute is not efficient when towed and is primarily used for skydiving where the parachutist can fully control the direction. In the descent mode, both are designed to slow the fall of a person during said descent at any given altitude.
Early years of Parakiting
There is at least one somewhat credible early-19c indication of a person being towed through the air on a kite; the instance is mentioned in passing as having been witnessed by an old sailor telling of it on the 1839-1841 cruise of the USS Constitution.[1]
Early years of Parasailing
The first ascending-gliding parachute was developed by Pierre-Marcel Lemoigne in 1962.[2][3][4] The same year, Lemoigne established an Aeronautical Training Center to introduce his new ascending-gliding parachute as a training tool for parachutists. The technique allows parachutists to train more efficiently by towing the parachutist to a suitable altitude, then releasing them to practice landings. This training method proved cheaper than—and just as effective as—an airplane. In 1963, Jacques-André Istel from Pioneer Parachute Company bought a license from Lemoigne to manufacture and sell the 24-gore ascending-gliding parachute which was trade-named "parasail."[citation needed]
Commercial Parasailing Equipment Inventions
In 1974, Mark McCulloh invented the first self-contained parasail launch and recovery vessel that incorporated a hydraulic winch and canopy assist mast that collectively launched and retrieved the parasail canopy and parasailors to and from the vessel flight deck. McCulloh's invention was patented in 1976 and later referred to as a "WINCHBOAT" which set the first parasail equipment industry standard that is utilized by all commercial parasail operations around the world.[5]
In 1976, Brian Gaskin designed, created, and tested the first 16-gore canopy design which he named "Waterbird". The Waterbird was revolutionary in its canopy design, its unique tow yoke harness arrangement, its construction, and the use of zero porosity fabrics which allowed it to be used over water safely. The majority of commercial parasail operators then moved to the 16-gore canopy arrangement. In 1976 Gaskin founded his company, Waterbird Parakites, which is still in operation today, producing commercial and recreational 16-gore parasails.[6]
In 1981 Marcel and Azby Chouteau of Westport, Connecticut, designed and built a pontoon-based craft with a fan-shaped back deck and a winch in the front and ran a commercial parasailing operation using their original technology. The company, Old Mill Airlines, offered flights on Long Island Sound during the summer of 1981.[7][8][9]
Commercial Parasailing Weather Standards
In April 2013, the ASTM established the first parasail weather standards for commercial parasailing operations.[10]
Improved Parasail Canopy Designs
In recent years, operators have moved from small (20-foot range) parachutes to large (30–40 feet) parachutes with high-lift, low-drag designs, enabling operators to fly heavier payloads in lower (typically safer) winds. Most operators now offer double and triple flights using an adjustable side-by-side bar arrangement. The side-by-side bar is aluminum attached to the yoke of the chute, allowing two or three passenger harnesses to be attached side by side.
Regulations
In 2014, the National Transportation Safety Board issued a press release in which it found the parasailing industry to be largely unregulated.[11] The report identified a number of safety concerns which included vessel operators who continued to operate despite hazardous wind conditions, use of inadequate equipment and unserviceable gear, and compromised strength of rope tied to the parasail. In a period from 1998 to the third of July 2013, there were six parasailing fatalities in the Florida area.[12] The great majority of deaths in parasail incidents have occurred when riders were unable to get out of their harness support system after an unplanned landing in water during high winds.[13]
Prior to the release of the NTSB report, Florida passed the White-Miskell Act which added strict regulations parasailing companies must follow including obtaining an insurance policy, and restrictions on parasailing in inclement weather.[14]
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The leading trade associations for parasailing are:
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