Among all the adventure sports available in the active tourism market, there's one that might just be the most extreme of all: a form of skydiving that involves jumping from great heights and opening a parachute just seconds later.
Do you dare to take the leap?
To practise this extreme sport, you must have experience as a skydiver, as without this requirement it would be nearly impossible to attempt. You need to master all the necessary techniques thoroughly, because otherwise... your life would be at stake!!
BASE jumping is an incredibly fun aerial sport, but it's also so risky that many countries have banned it due to the life-threatening danger it poses to jumpers. Fortunately, in Spain we've been able to host the World Championship (sponsored by Yumping) and enjoy this activity.
Where can you practise BASE jumping?
The acronym comes from the English words referring to the static locations you can jump from. Remember that unlike traditional skydiving where you jump from an aircraft in flight, BASE jumpers leap from fixed objects:
- Building: building
- Antenna: antenna (which can also include towers, chimneys, etc.)
- Span: bridge
- Earth: earth (ravines or cliffs)
If you think being a skydiver sounds exciting (which it certainly is), imagine a discipline where you only have seconds to open your parachute before reaching the ground.
From what height are the jumps made?
Each jumper decides their own limits, though the standard practice height is approximately 600 metres. This means a skydiver jumping from this height would be 22 seconds from impact...
Now, these were the standard measurements so to speak, but the truth is many jumpers leap from as low as 150 m., which translates to... just 5.5 seconds from the ground!!!
What equipment is needed?
Although it's a form of skydiving, the equipment differs. Why? Traditional skydiving uses two parachutes - the main one and a reserve. In BASE jumping there's only one parachute (if it fails, there wouldn't be time to deploy a second).
Experiencing extreme adrenaline has a name: BASE jumping. Do you dare?
Photographs: Yumping.com; Pixion.com
