BASE Jumping

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BASE jumping, simply put, is the fine art of using a parachute to jump from fixed objects. It is by far one of the most dangerous of the extreme sports and is becoming popular at an alarming rate among young daredevils and others with a wish to descend with a parachute from tall buildings. In psychological circles, these people are categorized as “nuts” or “crazy”. One wonders how much sanity remains in someone when they desire to leap from a fixed bridge or from a tall building with only a parachute, but the reality behind BASE jumping forces us to take a look at this extreme sport and learn more about it before our children start moving from leaps from the couch to leaps from the Sears Tower.

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.

BASE jumping, one of the extreme sports rising rapidly in popularity and also one of the most dangerous, involves the use of a parachute to jumping from something fixed, such as a building. This activity can certainly earn the label of being crazy, but whether or not sanity is involved in BASE jumping is second to the priority of understanding what today’s youths are moving towards undertaking. There’s a reality behind perceptions and labels, and it’s important to know what our children are becoming involved in first and foremost.

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.

BASE is actually an acronym that relates to the four categories from which a jumper may jump from. A Building, an Antenna, a Span, or Earth are all pieces of the BASE puzzle that make for jumping options for BASE jumpers. The acronym was created by Carl Boenish, a filmmaker that filmed the first jumps of El Capitan with ram-air parachutes and freefall techniques. El Capitan is a three thousand foot vertical rock formation in Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park. It is a favorite formation for rock climbers and BASE jumpers and got its name from Native Americans in the area. Jumping from rocks like El Capitan tend to be considered on the more controlled end of BASE jumping, but there are structures and factors involved that create significant danger for BASE jumpers that should be looked at.

What’s interesting is that the acronymic name of the extreme sport itself - BASE - brings to mind images of solidity; something rooted, secure, or even a heavy object. That image could be intentional, as BASE refers to the four types of objects individuals can jump from: Building, Antenna, Span, or Earth. Carl Boenish coined the term when filming jumps from El Capitan rock formation in Yosemite Valley. The Yosemite National Park three thousand foot vertical feature is a favorite for both rock climbers and BASE jumpers, though jumping from such types of rock formations is considered to be on the safer end of BASE jumping in general. Certainly, there is plenty of other structures jumpers’ use that is far more dangerous.

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.

Skydiving is related to BASE jumping, in that the extreme sport was born from the more recognized activity of jumping from a plane. There are some notable differences, such as the fact that BASE jumping is done from much lower altitudes and in close proximity of the object being jumped from. The speed of descent of a BASE jumper is also lower than that of someone skydiving.

While BASE jumping and skydiving closely resemble each other, there are some marked differences. Skydiving isn’t done in any proximity of the object being jumped from, and the altitude of the jump is much higher than anything done in BASE jumping. Also, because of the height involved, the speed of descent in skydiving is faster than someone jumping from a fixed object.