BASE numbers are awarded to those who have made at least one jump from each of the four categories (buildings, antennas, spans and earth). When Phil Smith and Phil Mayfield jumped together from a Houston skyscraper on 18 January 1981, they became the first to attain the exclusive BASE numbers (BASE #1 and #2, respectively), having already jumped from an antenna, spans, and earthen objects. Jean and Carl Boenish qualified for BASE numbers 3 and 4 soon after. A separate "award" was soon enacted for Night BASE jumping when Mayfield completed each category at night, becoming Night BASE #1, with Smith qualifying a few weeks later.
During the early eighties, nearly all BASE jumps were made using standard skydiving equipment, including two parachutes (main and reserve), and deployment components. Later on, specialized equipment and techniques were developed that were designed specifically for the unique needs of BASE jumping.
[edit]Timeline of notable jumps
- In 1912, Franz Reichelt, tailor, jumped from the first deck of the Eiffel Tower testing his invention, the coat parachute. He died. It was his first ever attempt with the parachute and he had told the authorities in advance he would test it first with a dummy.[citation needed]
- In 1913, Štefan Banič jumped from a building in order to demonstrate his new parachute to the U. S. Patent Office and military.[citation needed]
- In 1913, a Russian student Vladimir Ossovski (Владимир Оссовский), from the Saint-Petersburg Conservatory, jumped from the 53-meter high bridge over the river Seine in Rouen (France), using the parachute RK-1, invented a year before that by Gleb Kotelnikov (1872–1944). Ossovski planned jumping from the Eiffel Tower too, but the Paris authorities didn’t allow that.[1]
- In 1965, Erich Felbermayr from Wels jumped from the Kleine Zinne / Cima piccola di Lavaredo in the Dolomites.[2]
- In 1966, Michael Pelkey and Brian Schubert jumped from the cliff "El Capitan" in Yosemite Valley.[citation needed]
- On 9 November 1975, the first person to parachute off the CN Tower in Toronto, Canada, was Bill Eustace, a member of the tower's construction crew. He was fired.[citation needed]
- In 1975, Owen J. Quinn, a jobless man, parachuted from the south tower of the World Trade Center to publicize the plight of the unemployed.
- In 1976 Rick Sylvester skied off Canada's Mount Asgard for the ski chase sequence of the James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me, giving the wider world its first look at BASE jumping.[3]
- In 1982, on the 22nd of February, Wayne Allwood, an Australian skydiving accuracy champion, parachuted from a helicopter over the Sydney CBD and landed on the small top area of Sydney's Centrepoint Tower approximately 300m above the ground. Within a couple of minutes of landing Allwood had discarded and secured his parachute and with spectacular style threw himself off the Tower using a full-sized reserve parachute to BASE jump into Hyde Park below. Video is available by searching 'Centrepoint Tower BASE jump 1982'
- In 1987 Steve Dines (Australian) BASE 157 Made the first jump from the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The jump can be seen on YouTube.
- In 1990 Russell Powell (British) BASE 230 illegally jumped from the Whispering Gallery inside St Paul's Cathedral London. It was the lowest indoor BASE Jump in the world at 102ft.[4]
- In 1990 Australian Mark Scott BASE# 165 / OZ BASE # 13 / SA BASE #1 made the first BASE Jump off London's Canary Wharf Tower 4 days before the topping out ceremony. [4]"
- On August 26, 1992 Nic Feteris and Glenn Singleman (two Australians) made a BASE jump from an altitude of 20,600 feet (6286 meters) jump off Great Trango Towers Pakistan. It is the world's highest natural BASE jump off the earth and the most dangerous one as well.
- In 2000, Hannes Arch and Ueli Gegenschatz were the first to dare a BASE jump from the imposing 1800-metre high north face of the Eiger, one of the most daunting peaks in the Swiss Alps.
- In May 2008, Hervé Le Gallou and a British man Darren Bull twice infiltrated Burj Khalifa, the tallest man-made structure in the world (around 650m at the time while still under construction), and jumped off a balcony situated a couple of floors below the 160th floor.[5][6][7]
- In 2009, three women, 20 year old Melody Morin, 28-year-old Venezuelan Ana Isabel Dao, and 32-year-old Norwegian Anniken Binz[8] base jumped from the highest waterfall in the world with a height of 979 metres (3,212 ft) and a clear drop of 807 metres (2,648 ft), Angel Falls, located in the Gran Sabana region of Bolivar State in Venezuela. Ana Isabel Dao was the first Venezuelan woman to jump off Angel Falls.[9]
- On 8 January 2010, Nasr Al Niyadi and Omar Al Hegelan, from the Emirates Aviation Society, broke the world record for the highest building BASE jump after they leapt from a crane suspended platform attached to Burj Khalifa's 160th floor at 672 metres (2,205 ft).[10]
However, these and other sporadic incidents were one-time experiments, not the systematic pursuit of a new form of parachuting. After 1978, the filmed jumps from El Capitan were repeated, not as a publicity exercise or as a movie stunt, but as a true recreational activity. It was this that popularised BASE jumping more widely among parachutists. Carl Boenish continued to publish films and informational magazines on BASE jumping until his death in 1984 after a BASE-jump off of the Troll Wall. By this time, the concept had spread among skydivers worldwide, with hundreds of participants making fixed-object jumps.
Comparison with skydiving
BASE jumping grew out of skydiving. BASE jumps are generally made from much lower altitudes than skydives, and a BASE jump takes place close to the object serving as the jump platform. Because BASE jumps generally entail slower airspeeds than typical skydives (due to the limited altitude), a BASE jumper rarely achieves terminal velocity. Because higher airspeeds enable jumpers more aerodynamic control of their bodies, as well as more positive and quick parachute openings, the longer the delay, the better.
Skydivers use the air flow to stabilize their position, allowing the parachute to deploy cleanly. BASE jumpers, falling at lower speeds, have less aerodynamic control, and may tumble. The attitude of the body at the moment of jumping determines the stability of flight in the first few seconds, before sufficient airspeed has built up to enable aerodynamic stability. On low BASE jumps, parachute deployment takes place during this early phase of flight, so if a poor "launch" leads into a tumble, the jumper may not be able to correct this before the opening. If the parachute is deployed while the jumper is tumbling, there is a high risk of entanglement or malfunction. The jumper may also not be facing the right direction. Such an off-heading opening is not as problematic in skydiving, but an off-heading opening that results in object strike has caused many serious injuries and deaths in BASE jumping.
At an altitude of 600m (2,000 feet), having been in free-fall for at least 300m (1,000 feet), the jumper is falling at approximately 55 m/s (190 km/h, 120 mph), and is approximately 10.9 seconds from the ground. Most BASE jumps are made from less than 600m (2,000 feet). For example, a BASE jump from a 150m (500 foot) object is about 5.6 seconds from the ground if the jumper remains in free fall. On a BASE jump, the parachute must open at about half the airspeed of a similar skydive, and more quickly (in a shorter distance fallen). Standard skydiving parachute systems are not designed for this situation, so BASE jumpers often use specially designed harnesses and parachute containers, with extra large pilot chutes, and many jump with only one parachute, since there would be little time to utilize a reserve parachute. If modified, by removing the bag and slider, stowing the lines in a tail pocket, and fitting a large pilot chute, standard skydiving gear can be used for lower BASE jumps, but is then prone to kinds of malfunction that are rare in normal skydiving (such as "line-overs" and broken lines).
Another risk is that most BASE jumping venues have very small areas in which to land. A beginner skydiver, after parachute deployment, may have a three minute or more parachute ride to the ground. A BASE jump from 150m (500 foot) will have a parachute ride of only 10 to 15 seconds.
One way to make a parachute open very quickly is to use a static line or direct bag. These devices form an attachment between the parachute and the jump platform, which stretches out the parachute and suspension lines as the jumper falls, before separating and allowing the parachute to inflate. This method enables the very lowest jumps (below 60m / 200 ft) to be made, although most BASE jumpers are more motivated to make higher jumps involving free fall. This method is similar to the paratrooper's deployment system, also called a PCA (Pilot Chute Assist).
The closest activity to skydiving that I have personally participated in was the indoor skydiving event at iFly. That was alot of fun, if you dont have any plans for your next birthday, its definitely something to keep in mind. You'll have a great time with friends, its just overall a great experience.
I dont think i'd have the courage to participate in real skydiving or base jumping. Just imagine willingly jumping over a ledge or out of a plane, down hundreds of feet, falling at over 100 mph. That takes massive cajones.
Good post Ryan, The amount of detail and description is really good and helps people understand the sport. Also the comparison that you showed between base jumping and skydiving help to separate the sports and let people learn more about them.
ReplyDeleteRyan, each entry grows in depth. This is one of the better blogs I've seen in terms of sheer improvement of the writing. Well done.
ReplyDeleteThe timeline looks very nice, but if it was borrowed, you should cite the original source. (If it's original, then take that as a huge compliment!)