Great weekend...

We had a wonderful weekend down here at the Med. FINALLY some decent wind - not Mistral, not gusts, just a good strong steady wind. The sun shone, there were white horses on the wave caps, and the friendly community of the kite surfing world were out in force. Of course I had to take some photos - here are 3 - needless to say there are tonnes more!

... well of course Blogger and Adobe don't seem to want to talk to each other at the moment. I will try later!

The Latest Extreme Sport - Baselining

These are INCREDIBLE photographs aren't they...






This is Dean Potter, one of the world’s best climbers, walking between ledges of a U-shaped rim above Hell Roaring Canyon, a 400-foot sheer sandstone wall on his right, a 900-foot drop to a dry riverbed on his left. He is using no leash to tether him to safety but is relying on a parachute to save his life if he should fall, as he says "now instead of dying, I am flying!" Even then there is danger involved. If he has an 'unplanned' fall his 'chute could snag against the rock sides or he himself could be blown into the cliff sides. It is better to jump when you realize that you are about to lose your balance so you have a controlled departure!'

At 35, Potter has long stirred wonder as a climber. Six years ago, in Yosemite National Park, he became the first person to free climb El Capitan and Half Dome together in less than 24 hours, meaning he used ropes only for protection in case he fell, climbing only with his hands and feet for a vertical mile. It was an effort requiring remarkable concentration and speed that would be unthinkable for an average weekend climber.

He is believed to be the first person to combine the adventure sports of highlining and BASE-jumping and renaming it Baselining.

Highlining is a high-wire version of slacklining which in itself is an extreme cousin of tightrope walking in which no pole was used for balance and the rope was elastic.

“When there’s a death consequence, when you are doing things that if you mess up you die, I like the way it causes my senses to peak,” Potter said. “I can see more clearly. You can think much faster. You hear at a different level. Your foot contact on the line is accentuated. Your sense of balance is heightened. I don’t seem to feel that very often meditating.”

Dean Potter is pioneering the new extreme sport of baselining!

Dean Potter - one of the world's best mountain climbers
Jim Hurst

Extreme Pothole !!!

I know we've mentioned somewhere that we would be talking about 'potholing' so showing this picture is going off at a bit of a tangent. However, how about "extreme potholes" ?!

I think this must be 'Pothole of the Month' - or can anyone offer some suitable competition?

Not for the Faint-Hearted

Have you ever thought of Wingsuit Flying? I would have thought you'd have to be fairly deranged to do this - but apparently not! Quite normal people are becoming seriously hooked on this seriously extreme sport. On the 29th February 2008 the Washington Times ran a story on 'the Gray Brothers' as they like to be called.

"We've been bitten by this bug," Mr. Gray said. "It's our passion now."

Scott and his brother, Chris, emulate Icarus although hopefully they have also learned from the lesson of Icarus and Daedulus. Fortunately they do not have to worry about their wings being melted by the sun as their suits are made from a specially designed fabric that is sewn between the legs and under the arms to allow divers to glide. The suit, when zipped up, makes the divers resemble a bat or a flying squirrel. What was once a 120 mph vertical free fall in a traditional sky dive now becomes a 30 mph diagonal glide, which allows a wingsuit pilot to cover up to six miles. Wingsuit flying allows skydivers to be able to control their flight in air and the Gray brothers are teaching students with more than 200 jumps how to use the suits.

The Brothers Gray have established themselves at Skydive Orange, in Orange, Virginia where they have so far trained more than 30 divers and, so great is there love of this sport, they are hoping to build a wingsuit community.

The lessons show you how to jump out of the plane into the frigid air then spread your "wings," slowing the downward velocity to an easy glide.

"Traditional skydiving wasn't enough for Mr. Gray, a Maryland man who served as a paratrooper in the military. He needed to fly."

WashingtonTimes 29.03.08 |Michael Farr

Kite Boarding in Mozambique

This is our first experience of land boarding - we were in Mozambique where there are miles of empty beaches, the sand so white and clean that it is crispy under foot and squeaks when you walk. Dhows sail past in elegant silence and the occasional vendor appears on the beach offering his fresh catch for sale - anything from crayfish to rock cod, sail fish to calamari. It is a gourmand paradise for both food and hobby sports.

DARTS - who said darts aren't extreme?!

I am sure Andy won't mind that I have 'blogged' his story - what a great game they must have had.

"just got to tell someone about what happened last night - i bobbed round to have a drink with a mate and so we had a game of arrows (darts) - now i know this sport may not be xtreme, apart perhaps from the quantity of ale supped by the enthusiastic supporters, but listen up cos it came to the last game, the score being 1 game each, my mate was on 80 and i had 82, up i stepped to the oche, first a 20, then 60, leaving me with a double 1 to finish the game and match. the tension was incredible, the non existent crowd were totally silent, the arrow flew through the air as though it had been launched by Robin Hood himself, and sure enough landed in the double 1 - game over with a three arrow finish. i've never done that before and probably never will again - so as you can tell i'm so xcited about this occurence that i felt i had to let the world know!! have a great day"

Way to go Andy. Keep us informed of the next match. And thanks for sharing your extreme talent with us!