Thoughts on BASE jumping

[Dantes 0]

I was hoping to get some feedback on the sport. As a Noob, I've always been fascinated by BASE jumpers.

To me, BASE does not make sense. I was hoping that someone could explain their thought process, and possibly change my mind.

All of us in the sport accept the relative risk of skydiving. The idea of danger is subjective. However, I almost feel that BASE jumping is too dangerous from an objective viewpoint...if that makes sense. I know that it sounds hypocritical. However, the most reliable numbers show that ~1/2500 BASE jumps end in a fatality and ~1/250 end in a non-fatal injury. Again, to me, that seems like there is almost pathological defect in one's self-preservation instincts. I know that Jeb Corliss stated that he got into the sport while he was suicidal.

It seems that most of the BASE jumping videos have some tribute to a fallen jumper at the end.

I am just curious...because I'd imagine if BASE jumping was more popular, BASE experts would be brought in front of congressional panels.

[Tink1717 2]

Put in a few hundred jumps, go watch a BASE jump in person and then reconsider. BASE isn't what you think it is.

Skydivers don't knock on Death's door. They ring the bell and runaway... It really pisses him off.
-The World Famous Tink. (I never heard of you either!!)
AA #2069 ASA#33 POPS#8808 Swooo 1717

[champu 1]

BASE jumping is not recommended.

[quade 3]

Tink1717

BASE isn't what you think it is.

Is it what I think it is?

BASE can be an acceptable risk or an unacceptable risk. It depends on the person involved and the location. Push the limits of both and it's a disaster that hasn't dialed 911 yet. On the other hand, done conservatively, I think it would be acceptable by a well trained individual.

That said, not me. Not at this point in my life.

quade -
The World's Most Boring Skydiver

[Boomerdog 0]

Quote

To me, BASE does not make sense. I was hoping that someone could explain their thought process, and possibly change my mind.

Well...I'm not going to try and change your mind. I would, however, ask you to consider the possibility that BASE jumpers made the decision that they were not being sufficiently challenged and see BASE as a means of achieving those ends. Me? No BASE in my future like SCUBA diving in caves. I've done caverns and wrecks and some other types of crazy diving in the oceans of the world (to exclude polluting it) but I draw the line at cave diving. My call, my choice and my limits of challenge.

[airtwardo 6]

Boomerdog

Quote

To me, BASE does not make sense. I was hoping that someone could explain their thought process, and possibly change my mind.

Well...I'm not going to try and change your mind. I would, however, ask you to consider the possibility that BASE jumpers made the decision that they were not being sufficiently challenged and see BASE as a means of achieving those ends. Me? No BASE in my future like SCUBA diving in caves. I've done caverns and wrecks and some other types of crazy diving in the oceans of the world (to exclude polluting it) but I draw the line at cave diving. My call, my choice and my limits of challenge.

I did a lot of cave diving years ago & I started BASE jumping back when sport skydiving gear was all there was...both are considerably safer now, but for me the reward just doesn't equal the risk anymore.

Dunno if i'm any 'smarter' than I was...it just that your 'values' change over time.

I have nothing but respect with what the BASE community has grown into & for the people in it - for me it's not worth the cost....at this time.

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[Arvoitus 1]

Dantes

I was hoping to get some feedback on the sport. As a Noob, I've always been fascinated by BASE jumpers.

To me, BASE does not make sense. I was hoping that someone could explain their thought process, and possibly change my mind.

All of us in the sport accept the relative risk of skydiving. The idea of danger is subjective. However, I almost feel that BASE jumping is too dangerous from an objective viewpoint...if that makes sense. I know that it sounds hypocritical. However, the most reliable numbers show that ~1/2500 BASE jumps end in a fatality and ~1/250 end in a non-fatal injury. Again, to me, that seems like there is almost pathological defect in one's self-preservation instincts. I know that Jeb Corliss stated that he got into the sport while he was suicidal.

It seems that most of the BASE jumping videos have some tribute to a fallen jumper at the end.

I am just curious...because I'd imagine if BASE jumping was more popular, BASE experts would be brought in front of congressional panels.

Just because the numbers don't make the risk worth it to you doesn't mean every BASE jumper is borderline suicidal.

For instance, according to the Internets, underwater welding has a fatality rate of 3 in 20, which is 375 higher fatality rate then the number you gave for BASE. And people get paid to do that and its considered a valid job without any 'congressional panels' on the risks involved.

Your rights end where my feelings begin.

[RMK 3]

You’ve accidentally posted this is Speakers Corner, which is for guns, politics & religion discussion.

This is taking valuable space from our resident Bible thumpers, gun crazies & conspiracy theory nutcases - or as you refer to them in the US "Republicans"

"Pain is the best instructor, but no one wants to attend his classes"

[D22369 0]

I cannot respond as a Base jumper, I remain a sissy skydiver with a second chance when all goes fugazi.

but I was part of the base crew at a bridge near lodi when a friend went in with a partial canopy - he was lucky enough to live with a broken tailbone and ankle when he hit the only deep pool there and it was probably only 4' deep...

from what I saw of the seven jumpers not a one was suicidal, all so full of life that it was a rush to be a part of it. all measured the risks and packed their gear with extreme care.

to stand on a ledge and know you have one shot has got to put you into that moment so totally that skydiving pales in comparison.

Roy

They say I suffer from insanity.... But I actually enjoy it.

[hcsvader 1]

Yup it can be a good way to get dead quick. Ive lost 5 mates this year alone to BASE.

But Im still thinking about getting into it….

Im sure if Australia was a better place to learn i would already be doing more BASE.

Have you seen my pants?
it"s a rough life, Livin' the dream
>:)

[skydiver30960 0]

http://www.dropzone.com/safety/General_Safety/Risk_Homeostasis_and_Skydiving_663.html

The article above piqued my curiosity when it was first published, and I did some more snooping around online and finally ended up writing a school paper discussing risk homeostasis in the field of firefighting and EMS response.

It's incredible how well the principle is reflected in my life, in the ways activities (first tandem instruction, then skydiving as a whole) have just seemed to fade from my desire as other risk factors in my life have increased. Fascinating. <\Mr. Spock>

Elvisio "Bridge Days were a hoot, though" Rodriguez

[CanuckInUSA 0]

I'm not current right now, but I have my BASE # which means I have been off all four object types. I can think of only one time where I felt calm and cool thinking nothing was going to go wrong on my pending jump and ironically that was my one and only solo jump I made (Tombstone in Moab). In all my other jumps (including the safer jumps at the Perrine) I was always a little scared thinking to myself "Where did I go wrong in life, why am I here about to risk everything for this jump ... 3, 2, 1, cya).

So why was I so cool on that one solo jump from the cliffs in Moab? It was because I purposely timed my arrival in Moab as I traveled from metro Denver CO to Eloy AZ where I thought I would encounter the most optimal weather conditions. My plan worked out perfectly, there I was in Moab, at the Tombstone exit point and the weather was perfect for the jump just as it was all planned. For some bizarre reason I just was not scared. But for all my other jumps, I was scared and of course being a little, but not too scared is probably a good sign. It shows that you are aware of the dangers. BASE is a weird sport.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[craddock 0]

I kind of feel the same way. One other thing BASE taught me is that I would make a terrible criminal. All the sneaking and worrying about getting caught, hurdling things to gain access..., I am usually freaked out well before I get to an exit. Every noise or car light while I am climbing even an A in a field, ect. I am just to paranoid of getting busted to be a real bad ass BASE jumper. And that really surprised me. Too much anxiety on the heist part of it for me on anything but real remote or legal jumps

That spot isn't bad at all, the winds were strong and that was the issue! It was just on the downwind side.

[baronn 111]

A couple things to consider;
What's the most dangerous part of your skydive?
How many parachutes are you relying on to save your life when you jump from the aircraft?

Lets see what kinda answers we get here

[grimmie 173]

Base jumping a properly packed rig hand held off of the Perrine bridge solo is way safer than skydiving at a boogie or a busy DZ. IMHO.

If you read the base fatality list, you will notice something dramatic. Early base jumpers died by using crummy gear, over delaying or doing some pretty all around dumb things. A few off heading openings and landing injuries also killed some folks.

When wingsuits came out, everyone wanted one. Not because of proximity flying, which no one even had thought of really, but because of the safety. Jump a cliff, get FAR away, over a safe , nice LZ with no chance of a cliff strike. But now it seems that ever base fatality is a wingsuit proxy flight gone bad. Check out the list. It will give you an idea of the current trend killing everyone.
http://www.blincmagazine.com/forum/wiki/BASE_Fatality_List

Base jumping is a great time, but it takes time to get to know your gear, the different set ups, your abilities and your risk factors. It helps to roll with some experienced good guys too. It also helps to have a lot of skydives under your belt for the canopy skills.

My good pal Marty Tilley, owner of Asylum Designs, taught me how to base jump. He said three things kill base jumpers. "Complacency, complacency, complacency."

[piisfish 135]

Dantes

I know that Jeb Corliss stated that he got into the sport while he was suicidal.

it was either for marketing, or he failed.

scissors beat paper, paper beat rock, rock beat wingsuit - KarlM

[baronn 111]

Suicide is the only felony that 1 can never be prosecuted for if you are successful.....

[flyhi 24]

Quote

resident Bible thumpers, gun crazies & conspiracy theory nutcases

Not to mention serial comma hooligans:

resident Bible thumpers, gun crazies, & conspiracy theory nutcases

Shit happens. And it usually happens because of physics.

[billvon 2,391]

>Base jumping a properly packed rig hand held off of the Perrine bridge solo is way
>safer than skydiving at a boogie or a busy DZ. IMHO.

While I agree that you can choose a skydiving scenario that is more dangerous than BASE jumping at the Perrine, I don't think you can make the argument on a boogie vs Perrine. The numbers just don't support it.

One of the reasons BASE has gotten safer is that the gear has gotten better. But the reason the gear has _had_ to get better is due to how dangerous BASE jumping is. There are several minor problems that a skydiver would barely notice (PC hesitation, line twist, sticky toggles) that can easily kill a BASE jumper, even from a site like Twin Falls or NRGB.

Take just one event, a boogie that happened at the Perrine on May of 2006. One dead (a good friend of mine) three injuries, two critical. I don't know how many jumps were made at that boogie, but I'd be surprised if if were more than a few hundred. Compare that to the WFFC events of the time, which were perhaps the least safe boogies I have ever attended. Hundreds of thousands of jumps were made, and the death/injury rates - at least from the skydiving - were comparable. (One jumper died like clockwork every year, there was occasionally a second.)

[JerryBaumchen 1,047]

Hi Rich,

Quote

A few off heading openings and landing injuries also killed some folks.

Yup.

http://www.fox19.com/story/26488210/portland-man-critically-injured-base-jumping-in-washington



JerryBaumchen

[base698 1]

I remember in 1998 there were like 4 fatalities at WFFC. The level of stupidity that goes on at the Perrine is equally mind blowing.

Cherry picking one boogie there isn't fair. I've been at least 10 times and never seen a fatal, only minor injuries. Have seem the same level of idiocy you see at WFFC.

BASE is way too diverse now to compare it whole sale to skydiving. Wingsuit BASE in Europe is nothing like slider down jumping which is nothing like slider up from moderate altitudes.

[billvon 2,391]

>Wingsuit BASE in Europe is nothing like slider down jumping which is nothing like
>slider up from moderate altitudes.

And wingsuiting is nothing like bigways which is also nothing like CRW. But overall some trends emerge from both sports.