Kiwi paraglider Kinga Masztalerz fell in love with the sport the moment she tried it, and now she's flying among the best in Europe.
Sleeping in the European Alps with little but her paraglider to keep her warm is all part of the reason Kinga Masztalerz loves her sport.
“They say if your dreams don’t scare you, they’re not big enough,” the Kiwi paraglider says.
Masztalerz has just competed in the Red Bull X-Alps, a paragliding race through the famous mountain range. Racers paraglide and hike 1200 kms across the Alps during the European summer, and aim to be the first person to cross the finish line.
There’s no one route athletes must take, but there are several turn points they must pass through.
Deciding to hunker down and stay overnight in a snowfield shocked the race organisers, who gave her a 'yellow card' warning, but she contended she was safe and warm.
“I absolutely loved it, I was so happy there. It was an adventure with beautiful mountains all around,” she says.
Masztalerz, who lives near Queenstown with her Kiwi partner, first competed in the gruelling event in 2019 - even though she didn't believe she had enough experience.
“This was such a mental journey, because I felt so not ready," she says. "But you never feel ready, there’s always some excuses why you shouldn't, why it’s not yet the time but you have to let go and go for it.
“And suddenly you’ll come out on the other side and you’re different. It’s very empowering and a very, almost spiritual experience.”
READ MORE: * Kiwi rider leads the chase in thrilling foxhunt * Siblings and neighbour claim whitewater world crowns
Born in Poland, but an “adopted Kiwi”, Masztalerz spent a lot of time rock climbing growing up, before she injured her elbow and couldn’t climb for months.
Having committed so much to the sport, she didn’t know what to do with herself. So she started running more and doing endurance sports, and later ultra marathons and long distance mountain running.
“But also something was missing, and back then I didn’t quite understand what it was,” she explains.
“Now I know it was this vertical movement and feeling space under your feet. Everyone has their own element, there are people who love water or speed junkies or earth-bound people and for me, it’s the air, that’s my element.”
She took a paragliding course, starting with jumping off tiny hills and flying 10 metres off the ground.
“But from the very first moment when my feet left the ground, I was like completely hooked and like ‘Oh my god that’s what I want to do, and nothing else matters’,” Masztalerz says.
During her first year of paragliding, she met a Kiwi, who was in France on holiday. They started chatting while waiting to take off, and witnessed a paragliding accident.
The Kiwi, Chris Wright, gave the injured paraglider CPR and helped save his life. “From this moment, I was like ‘Woah, that’s a man!’” Masztalerz laughs.
After travelling together, Wright brought Masztalerz to New Zealand, and she fell in love with the country.
“New Zealand has really shaped me as a paragliding pilot, and not only changed who I am, but also who I am as a pilot,” she says.
Flying in the Southern Alps for the first time was an incredible experience.
“It really triggered something when I saw them for the first time from the air…if you’re high enough, you see the ocean, the peaks, the horizon, all the way to the West Coast and Mount Cook from there,” she explains.
“It really touched something deep in my soul and I really wanted to have the freedom of moving through the mountains, with just a paraglider and a pair of legs.”
That sparked her love of vol-bivouac (fly-camping). In Europe, there are plenty of villages and huts in the mountains, and most places will have civilisation nearby.
“The first time I went cross-country, flying some distance through the Southern Alps, I was really overwhelmed with how remote it is and how beautiful it is,” she says.
“But also how different it is, that you go a couple of kilometres into the mountains and you’re already hours of hiking out. And sometimes it actually makes more sense to just land as high as you can and spend a night and try and hike out the next day.”
Masztalerz will pack a bit of food and some camping gear into her paragliding harness and backpack in case she decides to camp in the mountains for the night.
“If you decide you’re not coming back for dinner, you can cover distance through the mountain and have that freedom of moving through the mountains. Being this aircraft cruising through the mountains using only the power of sun, wind and your decision making,” she says.
Vol-bivouac is her main passion at the moment, she explains as she packs to drive from Italy to France to coach pilots and introduce them to the discipline.
“I’m biased, but in my opinion, it’s the most beautiful way of flying,” she says.
“This freedom it gives you to decide ‘I’m going out for a weekend, or a week, or whatever’. If you are happy with carrying your food, the rest is easy, the rest is just a commitment.”
There are limitations to paragliding - too much wind or rain make it dangerous. That's why Masztalerz loves the freedom to simply settle in the New Zealand mountains for an evening if she needs.
After competing in the 2019 Red Bull X-Alps race, Masztalerz didn’t think she’d do it again.
“I was exhausted, I needed months to recover from this race,” she explains.
“I was so drained, but not physically. I had a few blisters, but I was so mentally drained after this race that for the first year, I was like ‘Never again’.”
The event is held every two years - Masztalerz jokes it’s because it takes a year to forget how exhausting it was, and to start training for the next.
“It was a very stiff learning curve, the first Red Bull X-Alps. And actually for the first couple of months after it, I didn’t even want to fly. 'Maybe I’ll just change my sport'... I hated it, I was so burnt out,” she says.
“You prepare as well as you can, but with this particular event, I knew I couldn’t prepare as well as the pro athletes from the Alps.”
The race has been held every second year since 2003, with Swiss athletes winning every edition. Chrigel Maurer has won all the races since 2009. Familiarity with the conditions, and huge support teams (some having their own meteorologist) give them a big advantage.
Masztalerz qualified for the 2021 race, but ended up with a stress fracture in her foot from training, and had to have surgery and pull out.
After a lot of reading and sports psychology, she decided to apply for the 2023 edition. The race has changed over the years, with more turn points added, so there's less freedom for racers, which isn’t Masztalerz’s preference. The added turn points meant it was “more little tasks than this one big creative journey”.
“Adventure is when we don’t know the outcome of our actions, so we just go for it, and live with the consequences,” she says.
“I came for an adventure, and not necessarily for racing. I believe I’m a way better pilot, and I was way better prepared than 2019.”
Masztalerz decided she was going to enjoy the adventure, at the sacrifice of her placing.
“I went for some adventures, and spent some epic nights in the mountains and flew some interesting lines,” she says.
“Often it happened at the cost of this really close ranking, but actually I had no regrets because it took me to some really beautiful places.”
One night, Masztalerz chose to sleep in the mountain valley, surrounded by snow fields and rocks - separated from her team, who had food and warm blankets.
“I thought well I will sleep here, and it’s not a big deal, even if it seems like it is,” she says, bundling up with her paraglider and down jacket.
Masztalerz bundled up during her night in the Alps.
“But for the European pilots and the Red Bull X-Alps organisers, it was absolutely mind-blowing that I could do it.
“They were calling us and arguing that I can’t sleep there because there’s no shelter etc. Well I’m already here, it’s already getting dark so I’m just gonna stay here."
Partner Chris brought her food and dry socks in the morning. Masztalerz was quite content, the camping similar to what she’d do in the New Zealand mountains. But she received a yellow card from the organisers - a warning that her behaviour wasn’t acceptable.
“But there was no risk. If I was in distress, if I was cold, that’s a different story. It was a little uncomfortable but nothing dangerous," she says.
Masztalerz didn’t finish the 2023 race, which ends 48 hours after the first athlete finishes. But she has no regrets.
“This is really true to who I am, and I want to pursue this adventure part of paragliding, as much as I can.”
