Extreme Sports And BASE Jumping

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Extreme sports are on the rise, and parents need to take a closer look at what’s going on with this type of risk-taking activity before children start practicing something known to be dangerous. BASE jumping is one extreme sport that is by far the most dangerous, but it is also one that young individuals are getting into at a frightening rate. Essentially, BASE jumping is leaping from a fixed object and descending to the ground using a parachute, and those who enjoy this type of thrill are usually referred to as insane in psychological circles. Learning more about the extreme sport can be helpful to know what our daredevil youths are dealing with.

Jumpers use four categories of objects to jump from, and these types of structures form the acronym for the name of the extreme sport: Buildings, Antennas, Spans, and Earth. The name was coined by a filmmaker, Carl Boenish, who filmed the first parachute jumps and freefall techniques of individuals at El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. In the Yosemite Valley, a three thousand foot vertical rock formation called El Capitan is a favorite for rock climbers and jumpers. El Capitan and rock formations like it are considered to be on the tamer side of BASE jumping, and some individuals practice the activity from structures significantly more dangerous with added risk factors.

In 1912, Frederick Law jumped from the Statue of Liberty. That was the first known BASE jump in history that was recorded and documented. Since then, there have been several examples of BASE jumping through history that has been highlighted by the fanfare and excitement of the event. In 1913, Stefan Banic jumped from a building in order to prove his patent on the parachute as a working mechanism. In 1975, a jobless construction worker jumped from the World Trade Center tower in order to draw attention to the plight of the unemployed in the area. In 1976, Rick Sylvester jumped from Canada’s Mount Asgard for publicity for the James Bond film “The Spy Who Loved Me” and gave the world its first formal look at BASE jumping on the big screen.

BASE jumping actually grew out of skydiving, which seems like the logical conclusion. There are three main technical differences to the two extreme sports, however. BASE jumping takes place from much lower altitudes than skydiving, for one. It also takes place in close proximity to the object that was jumped from. Finally, the BASE jumper tends to have a lower airspeed than a skydiver when falling from the jump.