Think Tank

Warning: BASE jumpers are coming to a turbine near you

In 1912 Frederick Law jumped from the Statue of Liberty in New York City and the modern-day sport of BASE-jumping was born. BASE, an acronym standing for the four categories of fixed objects from which one can jump: Building, Antenna, Span and Earth, has been gaining in popularity recently and it was only ever a matter of time before its participants headed towards the wind turbines of the US …

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BASE JUMP_B.indd 76 17/9/09 16:04:52 One has to see the inevitability of it all. designed harnesses and parachute Portland man who has completed about After all, a group of adrenaline junkies containers, with extra large pilot chutes, 700 BASE jumps. “You feel special, whose numbers have included a man and many jump with only one parachute, because you’re kind of cheating death.” who wanted to parachute from the 86th since there would be little time to utilize But, talking of ‘cheating death’, Jennings floor observation deck of the Empire a reserve parachute. If modified, by has now interestingly quit base-jumping – State Building in New York, is hardly removing the bag and slider, stowing the and his livelihood as an instructor – after likely to think twice about scaling a mere lines in a tail pocket, and fitting a large witnessing six people die in a 14-month 40-meter wind turbine before leaping pilot chute, standard skydiving gear can period. Extend those figures to the wind into the unknown. Yes, BASE-jumping is be used for lower BASE jumps, but is turbine industry and the negative fall-out here and it’s probably coming to a wind then prone to kinds of malfunction that could potentially be catastrophic for turbine near you – or worse – owned are rare in normal skydiving (such as the business’s otherwise bright-looking by you, soon! Packing a parachute ‘line-overs’ and broken lines). future. and hurling yourself from skyscrapers, mountains and bridges, “is living like a Another risk is that most BASE jumping Of course one way of preventing rock star”, said one reformed adrenaline venues have very small areas in which trespassers armed with parachutes and junkie. to land. A beginner skydiver, after intending to hurl themselves into the parachute deployment, may have a abyss beyond from your wind turbine BASE jumping is the adrenaline sport of three-minute or more parachute ride to might be to adopt the approach of our parachuting from fixed objects and is an the ground. A BASE jump from 500 feet cousins across the Atlantic and actually acronym that contains the major groups (150 meters) will have a parachute ride of organise a properly-run BASE-jumping of objects these jumpers generally use: Building, Antenna, Span (bridge), and Earth. It has traditionally been a highly What is of special interest to PES is that furtive activity, carried out by a closed set of radical enthusiasts. The YouTube it is an activity whose participants would website seems to add to its growing database of BASE jumping videos on a seem to have the regularly-increasing daily basis and that can’t but increase awareness and thereby attract more battery of wind turbines throughout the potential recruits to the sport. US firmly in their sights Moreover, what is of special interest to PES is that it is an activity whose participants would seem to have the only a few seconds. While a further luxury competitive event. That way, at least the regularly-increasing battery of wind that BASE jumpers dispense with is the dangers can be minimised, and a repeat turbines throughout the US, firmly in their margin for error in flight-orientation. of what happened during the Empire sights. Ideally, skydivers try to remain in State debacle avoided. the same orientation after canopy A BASE jumper has a similar experience deployment as before. If the skydiver is In 2008, a professional stunt jumper to that of a conventional parachutist, facing due north in free-fall, after canopy who was thwarted from leaping from but minus the added luxury of a 6,000- deployment, he should not rotate. the building’s observation deck decided foot plunge which, of course, buys time. to sue the famous New York landmark, Exiting the aircraft at 6,000 feet gives Sometimes, either due to unstable body claiming, with no little irony, that its the jumper approximately 36 seconds, at position, sloppy parachute packing, or employees had endangered his life. terminal velocity, before a fatal impact any number of other minor reasons, “My life was in danger the moment they with the ground. And while 36 seconds the jumper can rotate causing line touched me,” Jeb Corliss explained. “If may not sound like a lot of time, when twists or simply causing the jumper to my parachute had deployed when they your life depends upon it, it is plenty. The fly in a direction opposite to that which had their hands on me, I would have average BASE jump is from about 1,000 he intended. In a normal skydive, this been yanked off the edge of the building, feet and therefore the BASE jumper has generally will not matter. The canopy and I would have impacted the ledge no inbuilt margin for error. pilot can simply turn the parachute about four floors down, which most likely around and regain the intended would have killed me.” For example, a BASE jump from a 500 orientation. A BASE jumper is usually foot (150meter) object is about 5.6 only a few feet from the object from So how did the UK’s first British Open seconds from the ground if the jumper which he jumped. An off-heading BASE Jumping Championship address remains in free fall. On a BASE jump, the opening will usually be fatal. And these this problem, and how might you avoid parachute must open at about half the people could be heading our way. a law suit brought by some thrill seeker airspeed of a similar skydive, and more So what is its attraction? “You’re doing who should never have been on your quickly (in a shorter distance fallen). something everybody wants to do, but property and was certainly not invited in Standard skydiving parachute systems they can really only dream about. They’re the first place? The championship was are not designed for this situation, either too fearful, or else they don’t have held at Swaffham (pop: approx 7,000) so BASE jumpers often use specially- the gumption,” said Jim Jennings, a in Norfolk on the UK’s east coast in

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BASE JUMP_B.indd 77 17/9/09 16:04:54 Think Tank

September 2008. The town’s Ecotricity Turbine is the only wind turbine in the Only jumpers who had more than world with a viewing platform open to the public. Around 30 of the world’s leading 100 BASE jumps were allowed to BASE jumpers competed in the final leg of the aptly named ‘Who’s the daddy’ enter the championships. A bullseye, competition. the size of a tennis-ball, tested their Only jumpers who had more than 100 accurate landing skills after a very short BASE jumps were allowed to enter the championships. A bullseye, the size of a parachute ride tennis-ball, tested their accurate landing skills after a very short parachute ride (8-10 seconds), marks were also awarded for presentation and style and the title The 31-year-old Corliss, who had So maybe it’s time for positive action. was claimed by Christopher ‘Dougs’ previously jumped from the Eiffel Now could just be a good time for wind McDougal, a leading Australian BASE Tower, the Golden Gate Bridge and turbine operators to seriously think Jumper. the Petronas Towers in Malaysia, was about organising properly-managed arrested and charged by New York BASE events, inviting the top jumpers Mercifully, the whole event was properly prosecutors with reckless endangerment and daredevils from around the world to managed and supervised with safety the – a felony. All of which would seem participate and join in the fun. All of which prime consideration for all throughout logical and legal enough. But, as it has to be a viable alternative to having the proceedings. Contrast this, however, turned out, there is no law in New York these people jumping, unbidden, from with what happened at the Empire making it illegal to jump from buildings turbines around the US, risking potentially State Building and it’s easy to see that and in January 2007, a city judge ruled life-threatening injuries and engendering anyone involved in a wind turbine project that Corliss had not acted recklessly, nor more adverse publicity for a sector of the needs to be well aware of the potential counter-intuitively, had he broken any power industry that needs all the positive legislative dangers. laws. publicity it can, well, generate.

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