The skies over Barberton were filled with bright, butterfly-like wings last week as pilots competed in the SA National Paragliding Champs.
While the rest of the country shivered, the sun shone in this part of the Mpumalanga Lowveld, a favourite with paragliders, who came from as far afield as France, Poland and Cape Town. It’s one of the few good paragliding spots in winter, thanks to the way the hot air of the De Kaap valley collects around Barberton and creates thermals as it is pushed up by the Makhonjwa Mountains.
Paragliders took off from a koppie above the town and steered to predetermined spots each day to score points. It was a pretty hi-tech operation as each pilot carried a GPS to guide him or her, plus a tracking device linked to the base station at the local golf course. Unexpected winds made conditions tricky on some days, leading the day’s event to be cancelled on Thursday while they concentrated on getting everyone down safely. Recovery teams were kept busy dashing out into the countryside to collect competitors, and at one stage it looked like one guy was headed for the Kruger Park some 60 kilometres to the northeast.
Odds-on favourite Anton Naude took the open class title, while Khobi-Jane Bowden won the women’s class. For full results, go to www.xccomps.net
While they were in town, the paragliders raised R1800 for the St John’s Orphanage, which is home to about 30 children. Comic Stef Juncker is a guy with a big heart and did some clowning for the kids before handing over the donation. Check out his website at www.parapax.com
