Be careful with extreme sports

In recent years, besides traditional forms of tourism, adventure sports tourism has begun to develop strongly, meeting the needs of those who love challenges and exploration.

Despite being busy with work, Mr. Ho Si Trung (Lao Cai ward) still invested tens of millions of dong to buy a paragliding set and spent a large amount of money to learn flight safety skills in Hanoi . According to Mr. Trung, being able to fly in the sky of his homeland and admire the majestic mountains and forests is an extremely wonderful thing.

However, during a practice session, despite performing the flying movements quite skillfully, Trung unfortunately hit his foot on a cliff and suffered a serious ankle injury, having to go to Viet Duc Friendship Hospital for treatment. After the injury, Trung said goodbye to paragliding and switched to practicing safer sports such as badminton, pickleball, and soccer. Trung shared: Although I have many deep impressions of paragliding, the injury prevented me from continuing to pursue my passion. The feeling of flying over the terraced fields is wonderful, but I also face many dangers such as sudden changes in wind direction, air turbulence in the valley, or clouds obscuring vision, equipment failures, etc.

Lao Cai has many high mountain peaks, beautiful landscapes, fresh climate, and is a paradise for trekking enthusiasts. The most attractive mountain peaks include: Ky Quan San, Nhiu Co San, Fansipan, Ta Xua... However, arbitrarily carrying out experiential activities in high mountain and deep forest areas also has many potential dangers such as: getting lost because the trekking routes have not been marked in a standardized way; dense fog; risk of landslides, flash floods due to heavy rain, or hypothermia due to a sharp drop in temperature; exhaustion, injury due to complex terrain.

Most recently, on September 28, two German tourists, Mr. Winzing Moritz Wolfram and Ms. Waidner Kathrin Sophie, were trekking independently in Hoang Lien National Park. Due to heavy rain, the road was difficult to follow, both of them moved very slowly, forcing them to send their location coordinates and request emergency assistance from the rescue team. At about 11:00 a.m. on September 29, the rescue team found the two tourists in sub-area 274, Hoang Lien National Park, 2,200 m from the Rest Stop (Fansipan mountain climbing route), about 3 km of forest road. Fortunately, both of them were safe, in good health and in good spirits.

In order for Lao Cai to truly exploit the potential of adventure tourism while still ensuring the safety of tourists, there needs to be synchronous participation from many sides. The most important of which is to organize training courses and issue certificates of practice in adventure tourism. Mr. Nguyen Dinh Hai, an officer of the Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center, said: At the end of April, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Lao Cai province coordinated with experts from the Nouvelle Aquitaine Region (France) to organize an inspection and complete the skills training for the province's adventure sports coaches. Participating in this inspection, we were trained by French experts on many contents such as: practical skills of moving by canyoning, kayaking, rescue skills when participating in adventure sports activities, trekking on mountains...

In addition, to ensure the highest efficiency of adventure sports activities and avoid unfortunate incidents that may occur, the organizing unit must strictly comply with safety conditions. For tourists participating in adventure sports, they need to register for tours from reputable companies, have insurance and publicize information about the tour guide; fully declare their personal health status; purchase travel insurance that covers adventure activities; strictly comply with all instructions and safety rules of the tour guide; do not arbitrarily separate from the group or act recklessly.

Mr. To Tuan Dat - Director of the Provincial Sports Training and Competition Center emphasized: Before participating in adventure sports activities, players need to ensure good health. Consult a doctor if you have an underlying disease. Participate in professional training courses to master basic skills and improve the chosen sport. Absolutely do not arbitrarily perform dangerous stunts or play at a level more difficult than the trained level; always use full and correct protective equipment; always check weather forecast information, terrain and danger warnings in the area before participating. In particular, only participate in activities in licensed, suitable places and regularly checked for safety.

Adventure sports are a trend, contributing to both revenue generation and raising the status of Lao Cai tourism industry. However, the majestic landscapes of Lao Cai will only truly become an adventure paradise when the “safety” factor is put first, on a solid legal foundation, the professionalism of the organizers and the self-protection awareness of the tourists themselves.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/can-trong-voi-the-thao-mao-hiem-post884127.html