[Rick Masters]

Paragliding Forum accident poll on Oct 26 2015
http://www.paraglidingforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=21399

8.4% of 506 soaring parachutists responding have broken their backs or become permanently crippled!

How does this compare with hang gliding?

[Bob Kuczewski]

Paragliding Poll From: http://www.paraglidingforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=21399

Have you ever been in an accident involving an injury?

Answer (below)          /          Years of Experience (right)	< 2 years	< 5 years	> 5 years
No, but have come very close	6.9% [ 35 ]	5.3% [ 27 ]	7.9% [ 40 ]
Nothing ever *Knock on wood*	6.1% [ 31 ]	5.5% [ 28 ]	8.5% [ 43 ]
Nothing serious/no injury sustained	6.3% [ 32 ]	8.7% [ 44 ]	6.9% [ 35 ]
Yes, debilitating injury sustained i.e. broken arm	8.3% [ 42 ]	6.5% [ 33 ]	5.3% [ 27 ]
Yes, major injury i.e. broken neck / spine or crippling	2.8% [ 14 ]	2.0% [ 10 ]	3.4% [ 17 ]
Yes, needed to go to hospital	3.0% [ 15 ]	2.6% [ 13 ]	4.1% [ 21 ]

Total Votes : 507

[Rick Masters]

This poll is nothing more than a curiosity.
Paragliding Forum is an English-speaking international forum.
Most soaring parachutists don't post to it.
Only a tiny percentage of paragliding injuries and fatalities are ever mentioned in Paragliding Forum.
For instance, I have verified reports of three broken backs from Sunday's paragliding.
California. Australia. Italy. No doubt, incomplete.
Added this morning is a horrific tandem collapse in Brazil at 50 meters on Monday.
"O acidente aconteceu em uma curva, quando a quantidade de ar não foi suficiente para inflar o equipamento."
Rescuers could not reach the two men, who lay suffering from "fractures of the femur, rib, pelvis" and internal injuries, until the next day.
Certainly, none of these and few others are in the poll.
Nor are the dead, like Saturday's fatality, also in Brazil.
Everyone participating in the poll is likely still flying.

[Bob Kuczewski]

Good points Rick!!

I guess the answers to the poll question "Have you ever been in an accident involving an injury?" couldn't very well include this one:

Yes, I am dead.

As you say, that leaves out an important portion of the statistics.