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Daredevil Stunts & Feats

MrRING

Android Futureman
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'Spiderman' Scales Hong Kong Skyscraper
2 hours, 32 minutes ago

HONG KONG - A Frenchman who calls himself "Spiderman" scaled a 62-story skyscraper in Hong Kong using only his bare hands on Saturday.

Alain Robert scrambled up the Cheung Kong Center in about an hour to find police waiting for him at the top. They checked his passport but did not arrest him, even though he had not sought permission to climb the building.

"I slipped only once," he said. "On a scale of one to 10 in terms of difficulty, this would be a five. I really enjoyed the ascent." Robert, renowned for climbing without ropes or other equipment, said the building stands 928 feet.

In December, Robert scaled the world's tallest building, Taiwan's Taipei 101. It took him nearly four hours to reach the top of the 1,679-foot building because it was raining. He has also climbed Malaysia's Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Empire State Building in New York.
news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050611/ap_on_fe_st/spiderman
Link is dead. The MIA news story (quoted in full above) can be accessed via the Wayback Machine:
https://web.archive.org/web/20050614001648/http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050611/ap_on_fe_st/spiderman
 
Last edited by a moderator:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/ju ... e-succeeds

Nik Wallenda has become the first person to walk on a tightrope 1,800 feet across the mist-fogged brink of roaring Niagara Falls.

A tethered Wallenda accomplished the feat on Friday night, saying he got through by "a lot of praying." He also credited his concentration, focus and training.

Wallenda said the feat "will be with me forever" and the worst part was waiting for TV networks to be ready as he crouched on the starting platform. "There were 10 painful minutes sitting on that platform. My legs started falling asleep and cramping up."

Asked what he would do next, Wallenda said: "I have permits to be the first person in the world to walk across the Grand Canyon so that's a process we'll start working on. I'd say within three to five years I'll accomplish that as well."

The seventh-generation member of the famed Flying Wallendas had long dreamed of pulling off the stunt, never before attempted. Other daredevils have wire-walked over the Niagara River but farther downstream and not since 1896.

An estimated crowd of 125,000 people on the Canadian side and 4,000 on the American side watched Wallenda's stunt. He hugged his uncle upon setting foot on solid ground again.

ABC televised the walk and insisted Wallenda use a tether to keep him from falling in the river.

I thought Blondin had done this way back in the 19th century but I suppose he just did the Niagara River as mentioned above? Wikipedia isn't very clear on the subject.
 
In these days of 'elf n safety, the tether is probably the only way he could get premission. :?
 
The tether wasn't his choice though, it seems.
 
gncxx said:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jun/16/nik-wallenda-niagara-tightrope-succeeds

Nik Wallenda has become the first person to walk on a tightrope 1,800 feet across the mist-fogged brink of roaring Niagara Falls.

A tethered Wallenda accomplished the feat on Friday night, saying he got through by "a lot of praying." He also credited his concentration, focus and training.

Wallenda said the feat "will be with me forever" and the worst part was waiting for TV networks to be ready as he crouched on the starting platform. "There were 10 painful minutes sitting on that platform. My legs started falling asleep and cramping up."

Asked what he would do next, Wallenda said: "I have permits to be the first person in the world to walk across the Grand Canyon so that's a process we'll start working on. I'd say within three to five years I'll accomplish that as well."

The seventh-generation member of the famed Flying Wallendas had long dreamed of pulling off the stunt, never before attempted. Other daredevils have wire-walked over the Niagara River but farther downstream and not since 1896.

An estimated crowd of 125,000 people on the Canadian side and 4,000 on the American side watched Wallenda's stunt. He hugged his uncle upon setting foot on solid ground again.

ABC televised the walk and insisted Wallenda use a tether to keep him from falling in the river.

I thought Blondin had done this way back in the 19th century but I suppose he just did the Niagara River as mentioned above? Wikipedia isn't very clear on the subject.
The Guardian article is most likely bunkum, since people were doing it all the time, unless they're meaning in some specific point. Maria Spelterini crossed four times in a three week period, including with peach baskets on her head and feet, blindfolded, and with her hands and feet manacled.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Spelterini

And no harness.
 
A Brazilian tightrope walker has set a new Guinness-certified record for highest slackline walk.
Daredevil walks slackline between hot air balloons, breaks world record

A Brazilian daredevil broke a Guinness World Record when he crossed a slackline suspended between two hot air balloons 6,236 feet over the ground.

Rafael Zugno Bridi said the hot air balloons were positioned 6,236 feet over Praia Grande in Santa Catarina and were about 59 feet apart when he attempted to cross the slackline suspended between the gondolas. ...

A video shared by Guinness World Records shows Bridi walking barefoot across the line from one balloon to the other.

The record was ratified by the International Slackline Association, which verified the altitude. Bridi was then awarded the Guinness World Record for highest slackline walk. ...
FULL STORY: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/0...r-balloons-breaks-world-record/9501651608605/

VIDEO:
 
This UK sailor is preparing for a 2023 attempt to cross the Atlantic in a boat measuring only 1m across and probably sailing at less than 3 mph. He'll be sustaining himself on a "protein-rich substance" molded onto the interior walls of his capsule craft.

BedwellBoat-2206.jpg
'Like being stuck in a wheelie bin, on a rollercoaster for 90 days': Daredevil will attempt to break record by sailing 1,900 miles across the Atlantic in boat that is just 3ft3in long and has top speed of 2.5mph

A daredevil father will sail 1,900 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in a tiny 3ft3in (1metre) boat he built himself, as he audaciously attempts to break a world record.

Andrew Bedwell, 48, who will set off from Newfoundland, Canada, next May, hopes to smash the record for sailing the smallest boat to cross the Atlantic.

He compared the journey to being 'stuck in a wheelie bin, on a rollercoaster for 90 days'. ...

The mariner came up with the idea after reading a book by current record holder Hugo Vihlen, who made the perilous passage in a 5ft4in (1.6m) boat 30 years ago. ...

During Andrew's expected three-month crossing, he'll survive off a protein-rich substance that's moulded around the internal walls of the cockpit to save space. ...

Andrew, of Scarisbrick, Lancashire, delivers yachts around the world and works as a sail maker. He has spent most of his life embarking on nautical adventures.

He previously sailed non-stop around Britain and has taken his small 6.5 carbon racing yacht across the Atlantic and up to the artic circle. ...

Andrew hopes trade winds will bring him to Lizard Point, in Cornwall, sometime between July and August next year, but admits there will be risks along the way. ...
FULL STORY (With Photos): https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...ing-1-900-miles-Atlantic-Ocean-tiny-boat.html
 
The chairman of the UK Diggerland theme park guided a digger across a pair of 30m long elevated "tightropes".


Man drives digger across tightropes at British theme park

The chairman of a construction-themed amusement park in Britain drove a more than 2-ton digger a distance of nearly 100 feet across a pair of tightropes.

Hugh Edeleanu, chairman of the Diggerland theme park in Strood, Kent, England, drove the Komatsu PC14 digger across two parallel ropes suspended about 13 feet in the air. ...

"A lot of people have done balancing stunts with diggers and I thought a couple of tightropes and a digger at high level sounded like a challenge," Edeleanu told KentOnline. "I practiced it on a bit of metal first at a high level but that was a solid piece of metal that didn't move." ...
FULL STORY: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/06/29/Diggerland-tight-ropes-digger-stunt/3791656515618/
 
A "human cannonball" circus performer was injured during a performance in Wales when he missed the safety net and crashed into a metal barrier or railing.
Caerphilly: Circus acrobat injured in human cannonball stunt

A circus acrobat has suffered potentially life-changing injuries after missing a safety net during a "human cannonball" stunt.

The 28-year-old man was taken to hospital from an event in Llanbradach, Caerphilly county, at about 18:15 BST on 29 June, Gwent Police said.

Phone footage shows the performer, dressed as Captain America, crashing into a metal barrier.

Uncle Sam's American Circus said he would "make a full recovery over time".

Footage showed the man being shot out of a cannon, missing a safety net and crashing into a metal rail on the perimeter.

"He was out cold on the floor," said audience member Cherokee Jones. ...
FULL STORY: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-62054488
 
'Spiderman' Scales Hong Kong Skyscraper

'Spiderman' (Alain Robert) is back in the news, having free-climbed the Tour TotalEnergies building in Paris to celebrate his 60th birthday.
French 'Spider-Man' scales skyscraper aged 60

A climber known as France's "Spider-Man" has marked his 60th birthday by scaling a 48-storey skyscraper in Paris without any safety gear.

Alain Robert climbed the Tour TotalEnergies in the Défense business district using no ropes or harness.

"I want to send people the message that being 60 years old is nothing. You can still do sport, be active, do fabulous things," he told Reuters news agency.

After reaching the top of the tower he was reportedly arrested.

Mr Robert has climbed the Tour TotalEnergies numerous times before. This time, it took him just 60 minutes to reach the top ...

"I promised myself several years ago that when I would reach 60, I would climb that tower again because 60 symbolises retirement age in France and I thought that was a nice touch," he said ...

Mr Robert is known for climbing tall buildings worldwide. His daring feats include reaching the top of Dubai's Burj Khalifa - the world's tallest building.

He usually does his stunts without prior notice or permission and has been arrested a number of times.
FULL STORY: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62943910
 
Nathan Paulin has supposedly set a new world's record for longest high line walk (circa 1.4 miles) at Mont-Saint-Michel.

Daredevil walks nearly 1.4 miles on high line in France

A daredevil high line walker broke a world record by walking nearly 1.4 miles on a line suspended at Mont-Saint-Michel in France.

Nathan Paulin, who made headlines in 2017 when he walked 2,198 feet on a slackline suspended between Paris' Trocadero Square and the Eiffel Tower, set a new record for highline walking when he walked a distance of 7,218 feet over Mont-Saint-Michel, a UNESCO world heritage site in France.

Paulin's walk was recorded by camera company Insta360, which posted the footage to YouTube. ...
FULL STORY: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/0...-mile-on-highline-world-record/2151663957419/
 
Two folks have set a new Guinness record for longest slackline walk over an active volcano.

Daredevils walk slackline over active volcano for Guinness World Record

... Rafael Bridi of Brazil and Alexander Schulz earned the Guinness World Record for longest slackline walk over an active volcano (ISA-approved) when they walked 856 feet across a line suspended 137 feet over the crater of Mount Yasur, a stratovolcano on Tanna Island in Vanuatu. ...

Slacklining is similar to tightrope walking, but uses a cable or polyester belt instead of a taut cord or rope.

Bridi also holds the Guinness World Record for highest slackline walk after he walked a 59-foot line suspended between two hot air balloons 6,236 feet over Praia Grande in Santa Catarina, Brazil.
FULL STORY: https://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2022/0...orld-Records-slackline-volcano/6221664291881/
 

The daring riders of India's 'well of death’

The well of death, called "maut ka kuan" in Hindi, is a jaw-dropping show where drivers almost defy gravity to ride their bikes and cars inside a giant wooden barrel-like structure.

These stunts are performed by trained professionals who have been doing it for decades. Only a handful of such performers are now left as young people are not taking to this profession.

The BBC's Anshul Verma spent time with some of these stuntmen in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh to find out what keeps them going in this dangerous job.
I’ve seen motorbikes do this but not cars. The largest one is 50’ deep. Video at link.

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