Hang gliding is not a safe sport. Hang gliding involves taking
risks. There are plenty of opportunities to feel fear. A deep fear for your very
life.

And that's why males are more attracted to it than are females.

It is an activity the confirms men's perception of themselves as actually brave
in a real world, while the rest of their world is seen as increasingly filled
with soft cushions to prevent anything bad from happening.

It's real. It is not some virtual reality where, if you die, you just use up one
of your many lives. It isn't taking place in your mind fooled by images and
crashing sounds as you gain weigh lying on the old futon in the basement. It is
actually happening outside you, no matter how much you experience it on the
inside.

Men's identification with their masculinity is an internal struggle with
powerful social forces combined with our genetically transmitted inheritance.
Hang gliding is a powerful force that reminds us that we can overcome real fear
and live to tell about it.

And talking about it is a big part of that masculinity. Proclaiming yourself
brave to other men. Telling the story, providing the narrative that encourages
us to go back out again and face the fear.

Men hide their accidents and their injuries. That's why the accident reporting
systems don't work.

Hang gliding is a enclave in a world that is seen as controlled more and more by
women and feminized men.

Of course, I am aware that some women hang glide. And when they do, they behave
like men. I'm reminded of one ultra feminine female pilot who hid her injuries.
I am also reminded of another who was raised as a wild child.

Of course, we would take more chances with attractive women watching us:
http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/2967720.htm

Unfortunately, as hang glider pilots should know, it doesn't work:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn7276

Red Bull and toxic masculinity from a female researcher,
here.

Sport-related identity, masculinity, and risk taking are
components of the emerging portrait of a toxic jock identity, which may signal
an elevated risk for health-compromising behaviors. College undergraduates’
frequent consumption of Red Bull and comparable energy drinks should be
recognized as a potential predictor of toxic jock identity.

http://ozreport.com/13.098#0