Basejumping - We Have a Jumper!

Under normal conditions you would not want to jump off of a perfectly good building, bridge or mountain. This would seem counterintuitive to the survival instinct we all possess! However, if you are on a quest to earn your four BASE numbers then you must plunge headlong into the air from these places and more. Basejumping consists of those people who long for the thrill of free-falling from very tall places with no bungee, no water below and no fixed apparatus above to slow their descent.

Basejumping is an acronym for the four categories of structures you must throw yourself from - building, antenna, span and earth. The term was coined in the late 1970's following the filming of a jump (planned, of course) from El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. There are recorded jumps from the four categories dating back as far as the 1700's and continuing to the current day including one from the Statue of Liberty in 1912. The jumper has a parachute with a backup that they deploy, and here's the catch, once they achieve aerodynamic stability. Since basejumpers have lower airspeeds than skydivers, for example, it is much more difficult to "right yourself" while falling. If they are tumbling, parachute deployment can get tangled and the end result deadly.

Most basejumping occurs from heights of less than 2,000 feet. This is a double-edged sword - not too high and only seconds from impact. For example, it would take only 5.6 seconds to hit that ground from 500 feet - ouch! Toward this end, basejumping has its own specially made parachutes, harnesses and other gear. This is not something you should ever go purchase and just do on your own. The sport is still considered fringe by some and has no standardized criteria to measure performance. There is mention of the highest BASE jump as being from India at a starting peak of 21,667. I imagine they achieved maximum velocity!

Again, do not climb on the roof with a homemade parachute or worse, an umbrella, and attempt basejumping. Although it is not for the faint of heart, it is also not for light of brain! There are events around the world where you could train, talk to jumpers and prepare adequately so you are here for another day. One such event is held every October at New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia. This 876-foot drop draws over 400 jumpers and many times that many spectators. It is a sanctioned legal event - also a consideration for the basejumping community. This extreme sport has a high fatality rate even among professionals.

If you were the basejumping type of kid flinging yourself out of trees and off of walls at school to the protests of adults, you might just enjoy this extreme sport. If you did, then you also remember the pains from falling just these short distances. It is worse the higher you go! Do not attempt this alone or untrained. Done correctly and safely it can be the highlight thrill of a lifetime.