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A Queenstown speedflying fanatic is spending 12 months training for a 10-minute adrenalin rush – skiing off a Tibetan mountain.
Local Dugald Peters (pictured) and Wanaka-based Mal Haskins are leaving nothing to chance while preparing for their ultimate challenge.
The duo will scale 8000 metre-high Shishapangma in Tibet next May before skiing off the top and using speed wings to whip 2500m down the mountain in a 10-minute burst.
It’s potentially a world-first.
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What is speedflying?
It is similar to paragliding, except with a pair of skis thrown in. Participants climb mountains then ski off the top with speedwings – similar to a skydiving wing – deployed behind them. Pilots can fly at speeds of about100kmh just 30cm off the ground, while the skis let them play with otherwise inaccessible terrain.
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In the meantime, the speedflying nuts are throwing themselves off peaks in the Wakatipu and have set their sights on another world-first later this year – speedflying off the summit of Mount Cook.
Haskins aims to demo speedflying at the World Heli Challenge, kicking off tomorrow in Wanaka.
“Shy of walking through a minefield to do a base jump from an 8000m peak, what we’re doing is quite up there – a super big challenge,” Peters, 32, says.
You need to be close to the ground to get a real idea of the speed, he explains.
“You could fly to Auckland in a 737 but you don't really notice it – whereas we do get the benefit.”
Haskins and Peters expect the Shishapangma expedition to take about 15 days and are trying to raise a whopping $55,000 to cover equipment and expenses.
Peters says despite having limited experience as a mountaineer, fear isn’t a factor for him.
He's a former British paratrooper and now event manager for HQ New Zealand.
“For me it’s a mountain and I want to fly off it.
“I’ve got five simple rules, which are – look good doing it, enjoy doing it, don’t lose any body parts, don’t fall down any crevices and don’t get taken away in an avalanche,” Peters says.
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