This paraglider had to handle some high-stakes inflation — but not the way you would think.
A 27-year-old named Michael recently faced what would be most people’s nightmare while doing any sort of activity in the air.
In a viral TikTok video with over 4 million views, shocked viewers can see the moment when a large “6” balloon drifted into his path during a motorized paraglider flight, nearly getting caught in his equipment, causing him to crash.
“Shortly after takeoff, I spotted something drifting across the sky,” Michael told the Daily Dot. “At first I thought it was another pilot, then maybe a big bird, but as I got closer it turned out to be a rogue n°6 birthday balloon.”
The risk taker explained to the Daily Dot that while he saw something drifting in the sky with him, he thought it was another pilot or a big bird. It wasn’t until he got closer that he realized it was a balloon.
Things took a dangerous turn when he tried to catch the balloon with his feet. The string became tangled in his risers — critical suspension lines that connect the wing to the pilot — leaving him 1,500 feet in the air with the balloon stuck in his lines.
He told The Post that he’s been paragliding for six years, but has never experienced anything as wild as his near-death experience with the balloon.
“Most of the time, my flights are calm and filled with beautiful scenery,” he said. “The craziest thing I’d experienced until now was when some cows stole my equipment, and I had to run nearly 2 miles to chase them down and get it back.”
“Luckily, I landed safe and sound, balloon in tow,” he told the outlet. “It now lives in my living room, and I’ve even painted a little balloon kill marker on the side of my paramotor as a tongue-in-cheek trophy.”
And while this is the first time Michael has had this terrifying of an experience — commenters on his video pointed out how common it is for balloons to get stuck in random places.
“One thing that’s really stood out from the responses is how many farmers commented about helium balloons ending up in their fields and harming livestock. It’s highlighted just how much of an environmental hazard these balloons can be,” he told The Post.
While Michael was able to land safely — other air-bound adventurers have not been as lucky.
Back in June, an experienced 48-year-old skydiver died when she knocked into another diver’s parachute right before landing in Georgia.
During the accident, Jasmine Black tried to “cut away” her parachute to deploy the emergency one, but it didn’t launch since she was so close to the ground — which caused her to die on the tarmac.
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