Sailing under canopy of stars
In A First, Parasailing Takes Flight At Night In Carnival
Shweta Singh | TNN

Ahmedabad: When adventurer Y Srinivasa Rao from Indian Parachuting Federation (IFP) donned the parachute at 7 pm on Tuesday night, he was attempting to create history.

And despite lack of wind, he created a record of successfully completing aquasailing at night at Kankaria Lake. Last time parasailing was done at night was around 10 years ago in Agra, but done on land.

Powered by Mercury115 boat and guided by PS Mehta from IPF and MF Dastoor, assistant chief fire officer, AMC, Rao performed a feat which was witnessed by over 50,000 people.

“With almost no wind, it was like going against nature. But, due to our experience we managed a successful show without injuries,” said Mehta, boat in-charge, after the night-ride.

A qualified mountaineer and ex-Air Force employee, 38-year-old Y Srinivasa Rao’s happiness knew no limits after being part of a historic moment. “It was a gamble to do parasailing at night without wind. An little extra stretch of run inflated parachute and lifted me,” said Rao after getting out of the rescue boat.

When asked what prompted para-troopers to undertake such an event at the lake, IPF founder and president Sanjay Thapar said that with right facilities and excellent rescue team, it was an golden opportunity.

“Floodlights were enough to light up the place and a dedicated team at AMC with enough boats, incited us to take the risk,” said the retired wing commander.

A spellbound spectator, Chetan Makwana confessed that his heart was in his mouth during the sail.

“When I did sailing during daytime there was enough wind, but it must have been difficult sailing without it,” Makwana told TOI.