How dangerous is BASE really?

[CrazyThomas 0]

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That's some in depth thoughts there. Never thought about it that way.

But I still think you need to have a lot of courage (balls) to jump off of a BASE. You might not think you have balls, but I think any BASE jumper has balls. unless he is blind.

But what about the females? Surely they lack the BALLS to BASE jump. Should we then say,

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"They really have brass ovaries for jumping that!" ???

Cause some chicks just don't have the balls to be BASE jumpers, yet they Monkey Flip off of rocks?



Thomas

[ManBird 0]

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But I still think you need to have a lot of courage (balls) to jump off of a BASE.

Dude, they're only like an inch high and surrounded by sand.

"¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯"

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[BASE813 0]

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Generally, BASE jumping isn't banned at sites (e.g. nps) because of actual dangers. It's banned because the people in charge of such things look at the exit point(s) and feel their insides rebel -- "how could anybody jump from there?!?" -- and assume, therefore, that there must be something "wrong" with doing so. It's an emotional response: "I'm scared" gets confused with "that's immoral". This is a particular problem for BASE because fear of falling is deep-seated, visceral and immediate, unmediated by logic. Floating on a boat isn't particularly scary in and of itself, so, to be afraid of kayaking, most people have to think through to the potential consequences. Similarly, standing on a pair of skis as they move across the ground isn't by itself scary. Even climbing is less scary because the essence of it is hanging on (i.e. not falling). But to choose to fall from the exit point -- whoa!! I had a nightmare about that once!! Thus decisions about what is and is not "allowed" aren't predicated on any consideration of the actual relative risks involved.

i have never thought of it that way before and have to admit thats a pretty cool theory. From Childhood we are taught "dont go to close to the edge" - it is taught from an early age that standing on the edge of things we can fall off is wrong and not the thing to do - for years this has been the way we are conditioned - this is in most societies and peoples conditioning. So when someone breaks away from this conditioning the "normal" people feel threated and confused on why or how you can do this....... just think of the reaction from people around you at work or in life - always its about the fear of heights or the fear of falling that causes them to think "your insane" - these other sports we spout as being equally as "nuts" are acceptable as they dont break with any of the conditions that are ingrained in us - kids always climb trees. climbing frames, they sledge when the snow falls, they ride bikes and horses, they are taken on boat cruises, they go swimming and under water - all of these activities that kids do can be linked in someway to the other sports / activities - not one will be of the nature of going to edge and falling toward the planet............

i agree with you - its peoples fear and confusion that gives them a negative view of BASE jumping...........

just my worthless thoughts worth..........

[Spiderbaby 0]

Here are some recent facts concerning K2, the wicked mountain in the Himalaya.

Total # of ascents since 1954- 198

# of climbers to summit, and then die on the descent- 22(including BASE #44 Rob Slater)

Total deaths- 53

# of bodies still on the mountain-49

Kind of a gruesome quest, IMHO...

"It takes a big man to cry, it takes an even bigger man to make that big man cry"

[pullhigh 0]

So 27% of the people that attempt die? Or 27% of the people that succeed die?

Ganja

[ManBird 0]

Good call, Jalisco. Think about the perceptions of any "falling" sport -- skydiving, BASE, bungee jumping, etc. Totally makes sense. In addition to the fear of falling, I think a lot of people drastically underestimate gear and overestimate their own ability. People think they won't get have a serious collision skiing or snowboarding because they can "move out of the way". The won't fall rock climbing because they can just "hang on". They won't go over any edges where they can "hit the brakes".

People are under the illusion that they can handle a crisis situation because of their ability to become a deer in headlights. They realize that this wouldn't save them in a "falling sport". They don't realize that not everyone freezes up, and that not every "fall" presents a crisis. And they drink human blood.

"¯"`-._.-¯) ManBird (¯-._.-´"¯"

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[The111 1]

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And they drink human blood.

What is up with you ending every post cryptically? I still don't understand the relevance of the Knight Rider comment...

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[skibumhass 0]

Im with you its all relevent I had a ski patroller buddy with twenty years experience meet his end in the alps last year. He knew snow like no one else I've ever met and he died fully kitted, in bounds in a big spring slab. Then you see these muppets cruising around on wind loaded back country slopes with jeans tucked into their boots and it makes you realise that ignorance is bliss for many but ill take caution and knowladge any day
p.s I've done a bull ride I would like to say its a great 8 seconds but it was more like 3 followed by a hard winding good fun though

[freakydiver 0]

As with anything with a high rate of return - there is a high chance of failure. Whether it be finance, steep and deep powder, hucking etc. I think it is crazy how far base has come in the past 10 years.
But, have you seen what people are jumping off today on mountain bikes? Did you see the guy jump over the tour de france?? These guys are doing 75 foot drops nowadays on these bikes with 8-10 inches of suspension. They are not crazy but extremely careful about each huck. As they should be. If anything, I think base has gotten safer over the past 10 years, its odd how much closer to base a mountain bike can bring somebody in terms of consequences for error. I would never huck like those guys do. Honestly, I'm 98 percent sure I'll never huck like many of the people around the world involved in base because I have a family now. But man, do I have a sincere appreciation for a huckster WITH a bigger brain than balls.

-- (N.DG) "If all else fails – at least try and look under control." --

[RayLosli 11]

In Reply To :

And they drink human blood.

What is up with you ending every post cryptically? I still don't understand the relevance of the Knight Rider comment...
.........................................................

Hey... the111
Dude I share the same DZ with steve and jump with
him a little on the weekends.
I still cant figure him out half the time.
He is a true Geek.

If you figure him out let me know.

[udder 0]

No O2 big mountain climbing, and living in Joburg. Extreme

"In one way or the other, I'm a bad brother. Word to the motherf**ker." Eazy-E

[skipro101 0]

I was training with the Canadian Avalanche Association in canada two years ago. A week after I was there, 12 skiers died in an avalanche. They were experianced guides.

The white death, to me, is far more scary than something i can see (read: the ground!).

[c2278222 0]

ditto on that

[Dougiefresh 0]

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So 27% of the people that attempt die? Or 27% of the people that succeed die?

All of them die, the question here is how and when. 27% of attempts die during the climb. 11% die after reaching the peak.

Of course, these #s aren't representative of mountian climbing in general. It's like taking the number of people who die on one stretch of highway to represent all people who drive.

The point remains, climbing everest or K1 or Denali takes some cojones and a shitton of skill.

I still think BASE jumpers are nuts tho.

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. --Douglas Adams

[freefal 0]

You all should really check out the book "Falling, How Our Greatest Fear Became Our Greatest Thrill".
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0393054136/qid=1087485760/sr=ka-1/ref=pd_ka_1/002-1313200-7112804

There is a lot of discussion in the book about how "normal" people's veiw of sensation seekers causes alot of the tension between the sensation seekers and themselves and how this tension results in things like laws against activities like BASE. Most of this tension is associated with falling or gravity associated sports like BASE.

I read a quote in some other article about sensation seekers that went, "We know them as thrill seekers, and they frighten us because nothing at all seems to frighten them. Yet from the safety of our dens and patios in suburbia we owe them a great deal. They’re the groundbreakers and the trailblazers, and their adventures and misadventures alike are the backbone of history."

So I guess this all just validates the idea that we're wired differently and so we choose to do things that "normal" people think are absurd. To the outside observer (or even to some experienced skydivers) jumping off a rock with a parachute seems like the purest form of madness. Most people with any significant involvment with the sport of BASE jumping either directly or indirectly know that it's just the opposite though. We do these things only after careful observation of all the variables and try to limit the amount of actual danger as much as possible.

So I guess the answer to the original question of "How dangerous is BASE?" is that it's as dangerous as you make it. We all have our limits and for most of us BASE jumping is a personal journey to find out exactly what those limits are.

L8R
837

"Ignorance is bliss" and "Patience is a virtue"... So if you're stupid and don't mind waiting around for a while, I guess you can have a pretty good life!

[eyespyeye 0]

Have you ever tried a blindfolded BASE jump? Now that is scary! Not for the faint of heart.

Rob

[leroydb 0]

think i closed my eyes one jump..... haha joking

Leroy


..I knew I was an unwanted baby when I saw my bath toys were a toaster and a radio...

[Zoter 0]

I draw my limit line at extreme bungy kayak jumping.....

[park1231 0]

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So 27% of the people that attempt die? Or 27% of the people that succeed die?

Ganja

according to spiderbaby's stats 11% of the people who summit will die on the descent.

a figure for total number of attempts is not given so
a percentage for a climber to die during an attempt cannot be calculated with the information given. I would estimate that the number of attempts is in the thousands.

[youngpathy19 0]

just saw this post and had to say something. to me what makes skydiving and base more "extreme" is no matter how easy you take it in the sport you have to save your life.

[460 0]

i am convinced based on a mathematical analysis i did a couple years that approximately 1 in 15 jumpers will die base jumping. seriously.

Looks like a death sandwich without the bread - Steve Deadman Morrell, BASE 174

[VincentVL. 0]

Mathematically speaking, what is a (base)jumper?

Is it everyone who (hypothetically) got their BASE nr.?
Or does it require a number of jumps (of this or that category) during a number of years?

[460 0]

no it's anyone who has made a base jump with some general criteria that they do more than make a few bridge jumps occasionly. not just the one's with base numbers. make an estimate of the relative number of active/semiactive jumps without numbers and those with.

Looks like a death sandwich without the bread - Steve Deadman Morrell, BASE 174

[Ghetto 0]

An interesting excerpt from a review of that book:

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Research has shown that the "death wish" hypothesized by Freud is simply not working in those who take part in such activities, although it may seem to the rest of us that they are getting excitement by courting death. There are high-sensation types and low-sensation types, but the high-sensation types don't enjoy risk any more than anyone else. For instance, they use such things as seat belts and condoms at the same rate as most people. It turns out that high-risk people who are engaged in such things as free-solo rock climbing do the simple, rational thing: they reduce risk by increasing their skill. It may well be that the neural wiring of the highs is indeed different from the lows and may be able to process lots of incoming data more efficiently. Soden goes on to show that our languages reflect the negative nature of falls, as in "falling down on the job". Icarus fell, and Lucifer fell. Yet we chase the sensation of falling, or the danger of a potential fall. Soden's surprising book gives amusing insight into the paradoxical attractiveness of rapid descent.

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