Lucky Chance, professional badass, seems surprised himself to be alive. After flying off this cliff on the epically-named Death Swing, he did a triple backflip, counting on his chute to deploy. Only it didn't, leaving him to fall 590 feet to certain death.
But, miraculously, the parachute opened in the nick of time. Literally right before he hit the ground. Chance called the experience a true adventure. Fuck, man. Awesome as this was, I'd never want to have an adventure like that. [Vimeo]
Last year we here at Geek.com had a short obsession with wingsuit skydiving.The extreme activity pairs two awesome pastimes–jumping out of planes and wearing multicolored jumpsuits–into one incredible experience. Make sure to go back and check out that video if you want to be amazed by the jumpers’ accuracy and willingness to spit in the face of death.
The wingsuit fliers have continued working on their craft since then. In a recently posted video we can see that production values are up, the fliers are jumping in teams, and making they are even making formations. Jeb Corliss’ video makes this one look downright relaxing, but we still get a glimpse at the awesome control the wingsuits give the divers; their stability in the air is really fantastic.
The video’s maker, Richard Schneider told me the video above was filmed almost entirely with a Contour HD helmet cam. He recommends the Contour HD for its shape which he considers safer, thanks to less possible “snag points” where a parachute or cord could catch while being deployed. (The other popular camera with this sort of activity is the Go Pro.)
Side note: check out the propeller blades at 0:40. Their super fast motion combined with the sensor on the camera makes them look like they were made of rubber. They appear to be flopping sideways as they spin around. It’s probably the least cool thing in the whole video, but I do appreciate how the tech interacts with activities like this one.
From Vimeo: Helmet cam footage from wingsuit flights at the edges of the United States, including California (Lake Elsinore), Florida (Zephyrhills), Nevada (Mesquite), and Puerto Rico (Vega Baja). The last scene was from a vertical formation record organized by Flock University, 25 expert wingsuit fliers exiting from two airplanes.
See more footage of the 25 wingsuit vertical diamond record: vimeo.com/19552772
Wingsuit Pilots: Justin Shorb, Douglas Spotted Eagle, Matt Santa Maria, Joel Hindman, Joshua Sheppard, Abe Sheppard, James Raimar, Brian Voils, Tim Hedderich, John Kallend, Zach Schroedel, Alex Scheidt, Jason Carter, Kyle O’Donohue, Scott Callantine, Brian Snarr, Andreea Olea, Simon Repton, Ralph Kubicsek, Ben Lowe, Savage Sac, Cate Flies, Rick Hough, Greg Drogaline, Scott Bland, Michael Swearingen, Ryan Maher, Mike Masheff, Nick Wright, Dennis Sattler, Scotty Burns, Jt Valente, Jeff Donohue
Primary footage captured and edited by Richard Schneider, Lake Elsinore parachute deployment scene captured by Douglas Spotted Eagle.
Music: Undenied by Portishead & The Funeral by Band of Horses.
This man is living the dream everyone has, being able to fly! His name is Yves Rossy and he’s a retired military pilot from Switzerland that just had to fly in a different manner than that he was used to. Watch this video so you know what we’re talking about:
Yves has been developing his wing for more than ten years now, in which he tried to cross the waterways between France and the UK and between Spain and Morocco. The first was a success, the latter not so much. Even though a project like this brings its ups and downs, Yves seems to keep at it, something which we applaud. We can’t wait to hear more about Yves and his project, because who knows, we might me able to go out and book an afternoon flight ourselves one day.
Oh, and if you still think this guy doesn’t really fly but is just prolonging his fall then you might want to see this video of him doing loopings.
Photo: via whdfFrederic Weill diving off a cliff at the Algarve, Portugal
Tombstoning or cliff jumping has been in the news recently, unfortunately for all the wrong reasons. Every summer, many youngsters die or severely injure themselves because they dive off rocks and cliffs – often inebriated – into waters of unknown depths. Tombstoning, however, has a long tradition that goes back to ancient tribes – inhabitants of Easter Island or Hawaii, for example – that used cliff jumping as an initiation rite. Instead of condemning the activity, we say do it but do it with someone who knows and has carefully checked out the lake, pond or ocean they’re jumping into. Or simply watch the pros do it because as you’ll see below, there are plenty of cool cliff jumping sites and competitions around the globe.
In case you were wondering – the term 'tombstoning' refers to the fact that many careless cliff divers have found an early grave. It is more commonly used in the UK and Europe than in North America, though, where cliff jumping or cliff diving is more commonly used to describe the same activity.
Dan Brown of tombstoning.com says of the extreme sport’s bad reputation: “General perception now frames tombstoning as a foolish, dangerous and ill-thought action rather than a well planned and calculated ‘extreme sport’... The news is awash with stories of people drunkenly jumping from piers and harbour walls. Visitors to the sea side finding the nearest cliff edge and hurling themselves from it.”
However, there are sites like tombstoning.com and associations like the World High Diving Federation (WHDF), already founded in 1969, that promote safe cliff diving opportunities and competitions around the world.
Cliff diving puts tremendous stress on the body. Even a low jump of 6 m (20 ft) will have the body hit the water at 40 km/h (25 mph) – an impact strong enough to cause people to suffer a concussion, compress the spine or break bones. Because cliff divers often experience the aforementioned injuries, plus bruises, dislocated joints, injured discs, paralysis and even death, the WHDF recommends that no one (not even professional cliff divers) jump from anything higher than 20 m (66 ft) unless professional scuba divers are available for rescue and stationed in the water.
With the necessary safety measures, competitive cliff divers dive from heights of 18-26 m (59 to 85 ft). The show divers in Acapulco who jump off the famous La Quebradas cliffs, which are 45 m (148 ft) high, only survive the impact and the surf because they've trained for years, know the area like the back of their hand and adjust their dives according to fluctuating wave and water conditions. Here's our list of 10 hair raising jumps and locations.
10. Kimberley, Australia With its many cliffs, waterfalls and mountains, Australia’s Kimberley region, in the west of the country, offers many cliff diving opportunities, some of them up to 28 m (84 ft) high. Known for its inland rather than ocean cliff diving, Australia will soon become popular with amateur cliff jumpers; however, only organized cliff jumps should be undertaken.
Locals of this Caribbean island put on spectacular show of jumps of between 12-21 m (40-70 ft) in the Blue Mountains, an ideal spot for cliff divers, and the limestone cliffs on Negril’s west side. However, as beautiful as these cliffs are, they are also treacherous and for serious divers only.
Unfortunately, with Jamaica being the chilled out place it is, safety warnings are often disregarded and visitors encouraged to attempt the same jumps by café and restaurant owners without providing adequate safety and rescue measures. The highest platform here is 11m (35 ft) at Rick’s Café. But many a happy vacation has ended with a serious injury that has impacted on the diver for life. Don’t do it unless you are a very experienced cliff diver!
8. Dubrovnik, Croatia This city on the Adriatic Sea has hosted the World Series Cliff Diving Competition twice already – once in 2000 and again in 2009. In 2009, the divers were really challenged when they had to complete eight consecutive dives from 26 m (85 ft).
7. Lake Verbano, Italy Lake Verbano was the site of the most spectacular cliff dive in 1998. At a height of 26 m (86 ft), WHDF foundation member Frederic Weill dove from a helicopter with an armstand double somersault pike with split head first entry into Lake Verbano. This provided him with an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Don’t do this at home though. And if you ever do go cliff diving, the first rule is: try to hit the water feet first and as straight as you possibly can to minimize the impact. Never ever dive head first; leave that to the few professionals who dare.
6. Polignano a Mare, Italy Polignano a Mare in Italy not only has a beautiful name but also a natural cliff diving arena. It recently hosted the 2010 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series – an event that drew 40,000 spectators. Cliff jumpers dove from a height of 26 m (85 ft).
Here’s a video with some amazing shots from the event. Watch until the end to see the spectacular jump of 2009 winner Orlando Duque, which shows how deep down divers are pushed into the water from the height and force of the impact. No wonder jumps into too shallow water are always almost fatal.
5. Switzerland Although cliff diving is a seasonal activity, Switzerland has made a name for itself as a destination for the sport because of the World High Diving Federation championship, which has been hosted there several times. The cliffs in Brontallo are up to 26 m high (78 ft) and make the hearts of even professional athletes beat faster.
The most difficult dive to date was performed by Briton Blake Aldridge during the 2009 WHDF European Cliff Diving Championship in Ponte Brolla, Vallemaggia. He mastered a back armstand 2 1/2 somersault pike with 3 twists from 20 m (66 ft) at a degree of difficulty of 5.9. Here is some footage from the recent championship on 23rd and 24th July:
4. Big Island, Hawaii Hawaii is the birthplace of cliff diving. Though the very first jump is hard to trace, records have been kept of King Kahekili’s daredevil jump in 1770(!). He dove from a 19 m (63 ft) high cliff in Kaunolu and entered the water without even causing a splash. This regular activity earned the last king of Maui the nickname "birdman." To prove their courage and loyalty, even his warriors had to jump from cliffs.
Today, Hawaii is a favorite destination among cliff divers worldwide and not only because of its tropical climate, geared for cliff diving year-round. No, its numerous volcanoes and volcanic cliff banks with spectacular Pacific Ocean scenery make it a must among cliff-diving destinations. Most spots are on the Big Island, for example the Southpoint Cliffs, which are between 5-15 m (30-50 ft) high.
It was here, in 2000, at the WHDF Cliff Diving World Championship in Kaunolu, Hawaii that Colombian Orlando Duque’s double back somersault with four twists from 24 m (80 ft) earned him a perfect 10 and the title of most perfect dive to-date. Here’s a video of the record-breaking dive:
3. Acapulco, Mexico Though Hawaii may be the birthplace of cliff diving, it is Acapulco that made this extreme sport world famous. In the late 1950s, the ad world discovered Acapulco when Timex used cliff diving to advertise the durability of their watches. In a television commercial, Acapulco cliff diver Raul Gomez leapt 27 m (87 ft) into the ocean with a watch strapped to his wrist. Here’s the famous video:
The International Cliff Diving Championship held in Acapulco in 1968 further popularized the extreme sport. To date, Acapulco’s cliff divers are famous for their bravery and hair raising stunts. Though spectacular, this is for professionals only. Just take a look at the Timex video again and see the experienced cliff diver struggle against the surf if you need proof.
2. Ocean Park, Hong Kong The highest dive by a woman was performed by American Lucy Wardle in 1985 from a height of 37 m (120ft) at the World Record Dives at Ocean Park in Hong Kong. Randy Dickson, also shown in the video below, jumped from a height of 53 m (175 ft) and also fractured his leg in the process.
1. Villers-le-Lac, France This French town saw stuntman Oliver Favre’s 54 m (177 ft) cliff jump in 1987 – a double back somersault and the highest cliff dive to-date. Favre was severely injured but recovered. Today, he’s the organizer of the Oliver Show, a diving stunt show, and still performs many impossible stunts for movies.
One thing is for sure – cliff diving or tombstoning should best left be to the professionals. If you have to go, follow the following rules: never dive alone but with someone who knows the area, test the water and weather conditions first, and as we've said, always dive feet first. Last but not least, we want to leave you with a video warning of the dangers of tombstoning.
Being wannabe daredevil types here at Environmental Graffiti, we’ve got a bit of a penchant for the rush of extreme sports; and when trying to gauge the most radical of these fear-fuelled activities – the ones where the natural high really puts your stomach in your mouth – we’d have to say BASE jumping is right up there. Even as dangerous sports go, it’s is a pretty fringe sort of stunt, with a high fatality rate that has seen even experienced jumpers killed on a regular basis. Here we’ve compiled a selection of some of the wildest BASE jumps completed to date.
On May 23rd 2006, Glenn Singleman and Heather Swan soared down from a record-high 6604 metre (21,667 ft) precipice of the Himalayan Meru Peak after a gruelling 22-day climb in sub-zero conditions. Aided by their wingsuits – which didn’t inflate easily in the rarefied air – the Australian couple took just two minutes to fly down to their base camp, though the feat was the result of 6 years preparation.
During the painfully slow ascent up the near-vertical Indian mountain face, Singleman and Swan endured altitude sickness, malnutrition, and temperatures as low as minus 20 degrees centigrade. However, the considerably quicker descent, in which they reached speeds of over 200 km/h before opening their parachutes, saw them swoop into the record books with the highest BASE jump in history – a record first held by the forefather of the sport, Carl Boenish, when he jumped off Norway’s Troll Wall, days before dying in the same location.
2. Highest Ever BASE Jump From A Building Image: Joi Ito
As dawn broke on April 9, 2008, a Frenchman named Hervé Le Gallou and an unidentified Englishman perched on the 155th floor of the tallest man-made structure on earth. The latter launched himself into the yawning sky over Dubai’s cityscape, swiftly followed by his more experienced friend, who skillfully glided down in a wingsuit, getting as close as possible to a nearby skyscraper before he too released his parachute.
Disguised as construction workers, the pair had snuck into the compound of the Burj Dubai while it was still dark. They took well over an hour to climb the stairs in sapping humidity and 40 degree heat, but by making it to the top, they would experience that little moment of eternity and total freedom in which the world was theirs. When they landed, they made their getaway fast, but they had done it: they had BASE jumped off the world’s tallest building. Gallou was arrested and held for several months for jumping the Burj again just a few days later.
Standing atop Brazil’s iconic Christ the Redeemer statue at in January 1999, stuntman ‘Fearless Felix’ Baumgartner braced himself for what was to be the world’s lowest BASE jump at 29 metres (95 feet). When he stepped off the edge, split seconds would extend as Rio de Janeiro opened up before his eyes. Those who make jumps that fall into the highest category may win more plaudits as well as freefall time, but it’s the lower jumps that are more dangerous because there is so little time for the parachute to open.
A good thing the Austrian self-styled “God of the Skies” is a perfect professional who himself formerly held the record for the world’s highest BASE jump from a building, the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur. To complete BASE dives from low heights, the jumper requires the help of an attachment between the parachute and the jump platform that stretches as the jumper falls, ensuring their chute inflates quickly.
In 2007, motorsports legend Travis Pastrana revved the throttle on his dirt bike and was answered by the loud snarl of the engine. The bike shot forward, the ramp reared up, and seconds later, man and bike were flipping into the gulf of the Grand Canyon. Pastrana continued to flip over as he plummeted, but was forced to delay the opening of his chute. He crashed into the steep-lying canyon side wall, his fall broken only by the mercy of cacti, just moments before a precipice.
Accompanied by his friends, Pastrina was following in the tire tracks of BASE jumper John Carta, who pioneered speeding off bridges into thin air with a motorcycle in the 80’s. Least green may sound a pedantic award in a sport that can’t be accused of too much in the way of harm to the environment – but once the canopy has opened, there is the small matter of a motorcycle crashing down in a spray of flying parts, oil and gasoline!
With gusts swirling around them, one by one the guys in the group balanced on the blades of the wind turbine and cast themselves into the breeze. This was not only to be another extremely low BASE jump, but one that must have surely required an inside man to give the crew access to climb up inside to the apex of the shaft, not to mention turn off the turbine so that it was ready for the jump.
In keeping with the fact that BASE jumping has always been something of a covert activity, tittle seems to be known about the motivation behind this stunt. Maybe it was some kind of green statement – though the way those guys kick off the blades it could equally be accused of being anti-green! Maybe, then, it’s simply a case that with most commercial wind turbines standing at least 80 metres (265 feet) tall, they were bound to attract the attention of the BASE jumping crowd sooner or later.
.
All you art collectors out there. Here is a chance to get a Giclee copy of some of Ian M Sherwin work. Ian is planning on doing a whole series of Marblehead, Massachusetts paintings. His work is amazing.
.
Posts
