BASE jumping

{{Short description|Activity of jumping from fixed objects using a parachute}} thumb|upright=1.2|BASE jump in Oman, 2013 [[File:BASE Jumping from Sapphire Tower in Istanbul.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|BASE jumping from Sapphire Tower, Istanbul]]

'''BASE jumping''' ({{IPAc-en|b|eɪ|s}}) is the activity of jumping from fixed objects, using a parachute to descend to the ground. BASE is an acronym that stands for four categories of fixed objects from which one can jump: buildings, antennas (referring to radio masts), spans (bridges) and earth (cliffs).<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.basenumbers.org/ |title=BASENumbers.org |publisher=BASENumbers.org |access-date=2014-02-03}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |author=Sangiro |url=http://www.basejumper.com/ |title=BASE Jumping Resource and Community |publisher=Basejumper.com |access-date=2014-02-03 |archive-date=2017-08-15 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815085600/http://www.basejumper.com/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Participants jump from a fixed object such as a cliff and, after an optional freefall delay, deploy a parachute to slow their descent and land. A popular form of BASE jumping is wingsuit BASE jumping.

In contrast to other forms of parachuting, such as skydiving from airplanes, BASE jumps are performed from fixed objects that are generally at much lower altitudes, and BASE jumpers only carry one parachute. BASE jumping is significantly more hazardous than other forms of parachuting and is widely considered to be one of the most dangerous extreme sports.<ref name="ch-trib-thrill">{{cite news |last=Dizikes |first=Cynthia |date=22 April 2011 |title=BASE jumpers fall for thrill-seeking lifestyle |work=Chicago Tribune |url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2011-04-22-ct-met-basejumping-20110421-story.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181018122637/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2011-04-22-ct-met-basejumping-20110421-story.html |archive-date=18 October 2018}}</ref>

== History == === Precursors === Fausto Veranzio is widely believed to have been the first person to build and test a parachute,<ref> Francis Trevelyan Miller, [https://books.google.com/books?id=MdDNAAAAMAAJ The world in the air: the story of flying in pictures], G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1930, pages 101–106</ref> by jumping from St Mark's Campanile in Venice in 1617 when he was more than 65 years old.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=TM2EAAAAIAAJ ''He's in the paratroops now''], Alfred Day Rathbone, R.M. McBride & Company, 1943, University of California.</ref> However these and other sporadic incidents were one-time experiments, not the actual systematic pursuit of a new form of parachuting.

=== Birth of BASE jumping === Precursors to the activity date back hundreds of years.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dewey |first=Caitlin |date=March 25, 2014 |title=The Freedom Tower skydivers weren't the first: Here's the insane, morbid history of urban BASE-jumping |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2014/03/25/the-freedom-tower-skydivers-werent-the-first-heres-the-insane-morbid-history-of-urban-base-jumping/ |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> In 1966 Michael Pelkey and Brian Schubert jumped from El Capitan in Yosemite National Park.<ref name="johnnyutah_com">{{cite web|title=Mike Pelkey – A BASE Pioneer| url=http://www.johnnyutah.com/mikepelkey.html|publisher=Paradigm Adventures, Inc.|access-date=26 March 2012}}</ref> The acronym B.A.S.E. (now more commonly BASE) was later coined by filmmaker Carl Boenish, his wife Jean Boenish, Phil Smith, and Phil Mayfield.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Rosenblatt|first=Roger|title=The Whole World Is Jumpable| magazine=Time| date=July 1999|volume=154|issue=3|page=94|issn=0040-781X}}</ref> Carl Boenish was an important catalyst behind modern BASE jumping and in 1978 he filmed jumps from El Capitan made using ram-air parachutes and the freefall tracking technique.<ref>{{cite magazine| last=McCallum| first=Jack|title=Who Needs An Airplane?|date=August 26, 1985|magazine=Sports Illustrated| volume=63| issue=9}}</ref> While BASE jumps had been made prior to that time, the El Capitan activity was the effective birth of what is now called BASE jumping.

After 1978 the filmed jumps from El Capitan were repeated, not as an actual publicity exercise or as a movie stunt but as a true recreational activity. It was this that popularized BASE jumping more widely among parachutists.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2009-05-04 |title=About BASE |url=https://www.blincmagazine.com/forum/wiki_index.php?title=About_BASE |access-date=2023-06-15 |website=BLiNC Magazine |language=en}}</ref> Carl Boenish continued to publish films and informational magazines on BASE jumping until his death in 1984 after a BASE jump off the Troll Wall.<ref name=":1" /> By this time the concept had spread among skydivers worldwide, with hundreds of participants making fixed-object jumps.

During the early eighties, nearly all BASE jumps were made using standard skydiving equipment, including two parachutes (main and reserve), and deployment components. Later on,{{When|date=June 2025}} specialized equipment and techniques were developed specifically for the unique needs of BASE jumping.

thumb|right|upright=1.1|Jumpers from a cliff wearing tracking suits

In recent years, recognizing the activity's growing appeal and the potential for high-impact marketing, companies such as Red Bull<ref>{{Cite web |title=BASE Jumping |url=https://www.redbull.com/us-en/tags/base-jumping |access-date=2024-04-05 |website=Red Bull |language=en}}</ref> have stepped in to sponsor athletes, further elevating the activity's profile.

=== BASE numbers === Upon completing a jump from all of the four object categories, a jumper may choose to apply for a "BASE number", awarded sequentially by Rick and Joy Harrison.{{By whom|date=June 2025}}<ref name="numbers">{{cite web|url=http://www.basenumbers.org/ |title=Base Numbers |publisher=Base Numbers |access-date=2010-05-18| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100511195457/http://www.basenumbers.org/| archive-date= 11 May 2010 | url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Quinones |first=Sam |last2=Wilson |first2=Janet |date=2006-10-23 |title=A legend of base jumping takes leap of faith -- his last |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-oct-23-me-jumper23-story.html |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref>

== Equipment == In the early days of BASE jumping, people used modified skydiving gear, such as by removing the deployment bag and slider, stowing the lines in a tail pocket, and fitting a large pilot chute.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bahney |first1=Anna |title=BEFORE YOU LEAP; Where, When and How to BASE Jump . . . or Not |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/10/25/travel/before-you-leap-where-when-and-how-to-base-jump-or-not.html |access-date=24 November 2025 |work=The New York Times |date=25 October 2002 |quote=use BASE gear as opposed to converted sky-diving gear}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Keenan |first1=Steve |title=BASE jumping pioneer recognized in Fayette County |url=https://www.fayettetribune.com/news/base-jumping-pioneer-recognized-in-fayette-county/article_a7b9bdec-1040-11ed-9655-db26ebe38561.html |access-date=24 November 2025 |work=Fayette Tribune |date=30 July 2022 |language=en |quote=...it's really inspiring to live in this era of BASE jumping knowing that people like him with really homemade, self-modified gear at the time...}}</ref> However, modified skydiving gear is prone to kinds of malfunction that are rare in normal skydiving (such as "line-overs" and broken lines). Modern purpose-built BASE jumping equipment is considered to be much safer and more reliable.

=== Parachute === The biggest difference in gear is that skydivers jump with both a main and a reserve parachute, while BASE jumpers carry only one parachute. BASE jumping parachutes are larger than skydiving parachutes and are typically flown with a wing loading of around {{cvt|0.7|lbs/sqft|disp=flip}}. Vents are one element that make a parachute suitable for BASE jumping.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://apexbase.com/buying-your-first-base-rig/ |title=Buying Your First BASE Rig |author=Apex BASE |date=16 August 2018 |access-date=2020-10-01}}</ref> BASE jumpers often use extra large pilot chutes to compensate for lower airspeed parachute deployments. On jumps from lower altitudes, the slider is removed for faster parachute opening.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.asylumbase.com/pages/resources/faq/ |title=Asylum Designs BASE jumping FAQ |publisher=Asylum Designs |access-date=2020-01-28}}</ref>

=== Harness and container === BASE jumpers use a single-parachute harness and container system. Since there is only a single parachute, BASE jumping containers are mechanically much simpler than skydiving containers. This simplicity contributes to the safety and reliability of BASE jumping gear by eliminating many malfunctions that can occur with more complicated skydiving equipment. Since there is no reserve parachute, there is little need to cut-away their parachute, and many BASE harnesses do not contain a 3-ring release system. A modern ultralight BASE system including parachute, container, and harness can weigh as little as {{convert|3.9|kg|lbs}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://squirrel.ws/equipment/base-jumping/cxul |title=BASE Jumping Harness Container CXUL |publisher=Squirrel |access-date=2020-02-14}}</ref>

=== Clothing === When jumping from high mountains, BASE jumpers will often use special clothing to improve control and flight characteristics in the air. Wingsuit flying has become a popular form of BASE jumping in recent years, allowing jumpers to glide over long horizontal distances. Tracking suits inflate like wingsuits to give additional lift to jumpers, but maintain separation of arms and legs to allow for greater mobility and safety.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025}}

== Technique == {{unreferenced section|date=July 2023}} BASE jumps can be broadly classified into low jumps and high jumps. The primary distinguishing characteristic of low BASE jumps versus high BASE jumps is the use of a slider reefing device to control the opening speed of the parachute, and whether the jumper falls long enough to reach terminal velocity.{{Citation needed|date=March 2026}}

=== Low BASE jumps === Low BASE jumps are those where the jumper does not reach terminal velocity. Sometimes referred to as "slider down" jumps because they are typically performed without a slider reefing device on the parachute. The lack of a slider enables the parachute to open more quickly. Other techniques for low BASE jumps include the use of a static line, direct bag, or P.C.A. (pilot chute assist). These devices form an attachment between the parachute and the jump platform, which stretches out the parachute and suspension lines as the jumper falls, before separating and allowing the parachute to inflate. This enables the very lowest jumps—below {{convert|60|m}} to be made. BASE jumpers have been known to jump from objects as low as {{convert|100|ft|-1|disp=flip}}, which leaves little to no canopy time and requires an immediate flare to land safely.

=== High BASE jumps === thumb|Wingsuit pilots getting ready to jump

Many BASE jumpers are motivated to make jumps from higher objects involving free fall. High BASE jumps are those which are high enough for the jumper to reach terminal velocity. High BASE jumps are often called "slider up" jumps due to the use of a slider reefing device. High BASE jumps present different hazards than low BASE jumps. With greater height and airspeed, jumpers can fly away from the cliff during freefall, allowing them to deploy their parachute far away from the cliff they jumped from and significantly reduce the chance of object striking. However, high BASE jumps also present new hazards such as complications resulting from the use of a wingsuit.

=== Tandem BASE jumps === Tandem BASE jumping is when a skilled pilot jumps with a passenger attached to their front. It is similar to skydiving and is offered in the US and many other countries. Tandem BASE is becoming a more accessible and legal form of BASE jumping.

On 20 March 1983, Timothy Cousins performed a BASE jump from the West Gate Bridge in Melbourne, with Shane Sparkes.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.tandembase.com/about |title=About Tandem BASE |website=Tandem Base |access-date=Mar 15, 2026}}</ref> A subsequent tandem BASE jump was carried out in 1984 by Ted Strong from the New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mywvhome.com/more/bridge/Bridge2/tedstrong.htm |title=Ted Strong and Robin Heid's Tandem Base Jump 1984 |last=Waters |first=J. |access-date=Mar 15, 2026 |website=West Virginia Home}}</ref> In 2009, Mark Kissner and Abbie Mashaal began prototyping and manufacturing equipment designed for tandem BASE jumping and established a commercial tandem BASE jumping operation.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://tandembase.org/?#ModernTandemBASEhttps://tandembase.org/?#ModernTandemBASE |title=Tandem BASE Jumping : The Complete History |last=Heid |first=Robin |date=Nov 9, 2023 |access-date=Mar 15, 2026 |website=Tandem BASE}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://jumpbridgeday.com/tandem-base-jump-history |title=Tandem BASE Jumping |website=Jump Bridge Day |access-date=Mar 15, 2026}}</ref>

== Records == ''Guinness World Records'' first listed a BASE jumping record with married couple Jean and Carl Boenish's 1984 leap from Trollveggen (Troll Wall) in Norway. It was described at the time as the highest cliff jump.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sohn |first=Tim |date=May 22, 2015 |title=Capturing the Complexity of a Free-Falling Obsession |url=https://www.outsideonline.com/culture/books-media/capturing-complexity-free-falling-obsession/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230128095437/https://www.outsideonline.com/culture/books-media/capturing-complexity-free-falling-obsession/ |archive-date=January 28, 2023 |access-date=June 30, 2025 |website=Outside Online |language=en-US}}</ref> The jump was made two days before Carl's death at the same site.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=July 10, 1984 |title=Parachutist continues to jump after husband's death |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1984/07/10/Parachutist-continues-to-jump-after-husbands-death/1519458280000/ |access-date=June 30, 2025 |website=UPI |language=en}}</ref>

On August 26, 1992, Australians Nic Feteris and Glenn Singleman made a BASE jump from an altitude of {{convert|6286|m|ft}} off the Trango Towers in Pakistan. It was the highest BASE jump off the earth at the time.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/leap-from-the-top-of-the-world/2006/06/08/1149359863372.html| title=Leap from the top of the world|newspaper=Sydney Morning Herald|date=2006-06-08}}</ref>

On May 23, 2006, Glenn Singleman and Heather Swan made a BASE jump from an altitude of {{convert|6604|m|ft}} off Meru Peak in Northern India, breaking Singleman and Feteris's previous record for the highest BASE jump off the earth. They jumped in wingsuits.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gibson |first=Jano |date=2006-06-08 |title=Aussies smash BASE jump record |url=https://www.theage.com.au/national/aussies-smash-base-jump-record-20060608-ge2hc0.html |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=The Age |language=en}}</ref> In 2015, they also made the first ever wingsuit jump across the Grand Canyon, flying approximately 11km from one side to the other.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2015-05-11 |title=Video: world-record wingsuit flight over Grand Canyon |url=https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/australian-geographic-adventure/adventure/2015/05/video-world-record-wingsuit-flight-over-grand-canyon/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=Australian Geographic |language=en-US}}</ref>

Daniel Schilling set the Guinness World Record for the most BASE jumps in a twenty-four-hour period, jumping off the Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls, Idaho, a record 201 times on July 8, 2006.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Alderman |first=Jesse Harlan |date=2006-07-10 |title=Soldier sets BASE jump landmark |url=https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2006/jul/10/soldier-sets-base-jump-landmark/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=The Spokesman-Review |language=en}}</ref>

On May 5, 2013, Russian Valery Rozov jumped off Changtse (the northern peak of the Mount Everest massif) from a height of {{convert|7220|m|ft}}. Using a specially developed wingsuit, he glided down to the Rongbuk glacier more than 1,000 meters below, setting a new world record for highest altitude BASE jump.<ref>{{cite web | title=Daredevil Makes Record-breaking Leap from Mount Everest| url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/nepal/10085870/Watch-record-breaking-Everest-base-jump-filmed-on-daredevils-helmet-camera.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130529132113/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/nepal/10085870/Watch-record-breaking-Everest-base-jump-filmed-on-daredevils-helmet-camera.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=2013-05-29 |date=2013-05-29 |website=The Telegraph |access-date=2013-05-29}}</ref>

On October 5, 2016, Rozov broke his own record for highest altitude BASE jump when he leapt from a height of {{convert|7700|m|ft}} from Cho Oyu, the sixth-highest mountain in the world, landing on a glacier approximately two minutes later {{Citation span|text=at an altitude of around 6,000 metres (20,000 ft)|date=June 2025}}.<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 25, 2016 |title=Valery Rozov BASE jumps from 7700m off Cho Oyu |url=https://www.planetmountain.com/en/news/alpinism/valery-rozov-base-jumps-from-7700m-off-cho-oyu.html |access-date=June 30, 2025 |website=PlanetMountain.com}}</ref> He later died while attempting another high-altitude BASE jump in Nepal in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Sterling |first=Joe |last2=Khan |first2=Omar |date=November 13, 2017 |title=A famed Russian daredevil is killed in a BASE-jumping accident |url=https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/13/world/valery-rozov-base-jumping-death-trnd |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240513232330/https://www.cnn.com/2017/11/13/world/valery-rozov-base-jumping-death-trnd/ |archive-date=May 13, 2024 |access-date=June 30, 2025 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref>

== Competitions == BASE competitions have been held since the early 1980s, with accurate landings or free-fall aerobatics used as the judging criteria. Recent years have seen a formal competition held at the {{convert|452|m|feet}} high Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, judged on landing accuracy.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://base-jumping.eu/what-is-base-jumping/|title=Base Jumping – history, informations and facts|website=base-jumping.eu|date=10 August 2011 |access-date=2016-10-10}}</ref> In 2012 the World Wingsuit League held their first wingsuit BASE jumping competition in China.<ref>{{cite web |title=Introducing the World Wingsuit League |publisher=Outside Online |url=https://www.outsideonline.com/1900311/introducing-world-wingsuit-league |date=2012-06-06 |access-date=2020-03-06}}</ref>

==Notable jumps== * February 2, 1912, Frederick R. Law parachuted from the top of the torch of the Statue of Liberty, {{convert|305|ft|m|order=flip}} above the ground.<ref>{{cite news |title=Parachute Leap Off Statue Of Liberty |date=February 3, 1912 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1912/02/03/archives/parachute-leap-off-statue-of-liberty-steeplejack-had-first-thought.html |newspaper=The New York Times |page=4 |access-date=June 4, 2020}}</ref> * February 4, 1912, Franz Reichelt, tailor, jumped from the first deck of the Eiffel Tower testing his invention, the coat parachute, and died when he hit the ground. It was his first-ever attempt with the parachute and both the authorities and the spectators believed he intended to test it using a dummy.<ref>{{cite news |title=Chute mortelle d'un inventeur de un parachute |newspaper=Le Temps |date=5 February 1912 |url=http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k240753c.zoom.f4.langFR |page=4 |language=fr |access-date=12 July 2013}}</ref> * In 1913, it is claimed that Štefan Banič successfully jumped from a 15-story building to demonstrate his parachute design.<ref>[http://www.cas.sk/clanok/291397/pred-100-rokmi-ziskal-stefan-banic-patent-na-svoj-padak/ "100 years ago Banic received a patent for his parachute" ("Pred 100 rokmi získal Štefan Banič patent na svoj padák")], 24.08.2014, cas.sk (Slovak)</ref><ref name="obit">{{cite web |url=http://www.mat.savba.sk/MATEMATICI/matematici.php?cislo=7 |title=Štefan Banič, Konštruktér, vynálezca (Stefan Banic, Designer, Inventor) |publisher=Slovenská akadémia vied, obituary |access-date=21 October 2010 |language=sk}}</ref> * In 1913, Russian student Vladimir Ossovski (Владимир Оссовский), from the Saint-Petersburg Conservatory, jumped from the {{convert|53|m|adj=on}} high bridge over the river Seine in Rouen (France), using the parachute RK-1, invented a year before that by Gleb Kotelnikov (1872–1944). Ossovski planned to jump from the Eiffel Tower as well, but the Parisian authorities did not allow it.<ref>Russian edition of GEO magazine, issue 11, November 2006, [http://www.geo.ru/ GEO] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060423134944/http://www.geo.ru/ |date=2006-04-23 }}</ref> * In 1965, Erich Felbermayr from Wels jumped from the Kleine Zinne / Cima piccola di Lavaredo in the Dolomites.<ref>[http://www.skydive-wels.at/fallschirmsprungverein-legende.htm Erich Felbermayr, eine Legende] {{webarchive| url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110813221601/http://www.skydive-wels.at/fallschirmsprungverein-legende.htm |date=2011-08-13 }} (in German)</ref> * In 1966, Michael Pelkey and Brian Schubert jumped from El Capitan in the Yosemite Valley.<ref name="johnnyutah_com" /> * On January 31, 1972, Rick Sylvester skied off Yosemite Valley's El Capitan, making the first ski-BASE jump.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tetongravity.com/story/ski/hot-dog-the-legacy-the-story-of-the-first-base-jump-in-ski-history |title=The Insane Story of Skiing's First Base Jump |date=July 21, 2014 |first=Christian W |last=Dietzel |website=tetongravity.com}}</ref> * On November 9, 1975, the first person to parachute off the CN Tower in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, was Bill Eustace, a member of the tower's construction crew. He was fired.<ref>{{cite news |last=Saltzman |first=Devyani |title=A towering work of fiction: Toronto's most famous structure narrates a novel that aims high |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_7019/is_4_18/ai_n55817272/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120708153835/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_7019/is_4_18/ai_n55817272/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 July 2012 |access-date=26 March 2012 |newspaper=Literary Review of Canada |date=May 2010}}</ref> * On July 22, 1975, Owen J. Quinn parachuted from the North Tower of the World Trade Center to publicize the plight of the poor.<ref name=fire-life-safety>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4BWyBELDQIwC&q=%22Owen+J.+Quinn%22+%2B+world+trade+center&pg=PA116 |title=High-Rise Security and Fire Life Safety |first=Geoff |last=Craighead |publisher=Butterworth-Heinemann |date=July 15, 2009 |page=116 |chapter=Daredevils, Protestors and Suicides |access-date=February 4, 2014 |quote=Quoting from: Gillespie, Angus K. "Twin Towers: the Life of New York City's World Trade Center." ''Rutgers University Press'', 1999 |isbn=978-0080877853 |via=Google Books}}</ref> * In 1976, Rick Sylvester skied off Canada's Mount Asgard for the ski chase sequence of the James Bond movie ''The Spy Who Loved Me'', giving the wider world its first look at BASE jumping.<ref>{{cite book |first=Chic |last=Scott |title=Pushing the Limits: The Story of Canadian Mountaineering |location=Calgary |publisher=Rocky Mountain Books |year=2000 |isbn=0-921102-59-3 |via=Google Books |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=94TqO12vdKwC&pg=PA298 |page=298}}</ref> * In 1979, Santee, California skydiver Roger Worthington completed one of the first "Span" jumps when he successfully parachuted off the newly constructed {{convert|450|ft|m|order=flip}} Pine Valley Creek Bridge (A.K.A. Nello Irwin Greer Memorial Bridge) on Interstate 8 in San Diego County. Upon take off he held a red smoke flare in each hand. When interviewed afterward he claimed to know of no other "bridge jumpers" in the country.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Associated Press |date=8 April 1979 |title=Jumps for Joy |page=10 |newspaper=Santa Cruz Sentinel |url=https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SCS19790408.1.10&srpos=8&e=-------en--20--1-byDA-txt-txIN-%22pine+valley+creek+bridge%22-------1 |access-date=29 January 2022}}</ref> * On February 22, 1982, Wayne Allwood, an Australian skydiving accuracy champion, parachuted from a helicopter over the Sydney CBD and landed on the small top area of Sydney's Centrepoint Tower, approximately {{nowrap|{{convert|300|m|ft}}}} above the ground. Upon landing, Allwood discarded and secured his parachute, then used a full-sized reserve parachute to BASE jump into Hyde Park below.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVDlu7dvzGM |title=Centrepoint Tower BASE jump 1982 |publisher=YouTube |date=13 February 2010 |access-date=4 February 2014}}</ref> *In November 1983 Max Botto of Venezuela was the first person to BASE jump from Angel Falls <ref> Jerry Bird The Making of a Skydiving Legend - Linda Carlson {{ISBN|978-8-9852592-5-4}} P216 </ref> * In 1986, Welshman Eric Jones became the first person to BASE jump from the Eiger.{{citation needed|date=May 2026}} * On October 22, 1999, Jan Davis died while attempting a BASE jump from El Capitan in Yosemite Valley. Davis' jump was part of an organized act of civil disobedience protesting the NPS air delivery regulations (36 CFR 2.17(a)), which make BASE jumping illegal in national park areas.{{citation needed|date=May 2026}} * In 2000, Hannes Arch and Ueli Gegenschatz were the first to BASE jump from the {{convert|1800|m|adj=on}} high north face of the Eiger.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hannesarch.com/about/biography.html |title=Biographie – Hannes Arch |first=©2016 Hannes |last=Arch |website=Hannes Arch |access-date=26 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326143226/http://www.hannesarch.com/about/biography.html |archive-date=26 March 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> * In 2005, Karina Hollekim became the first woman to perform a ski-BASE.[citation needed] * In 2009, three women—29-year-old Australian Livia Dickie, 28-year-old Venezuelan Ana Isabel Dao, and 32-year-old Norwegian Anniken Binz—BASE jumped from Angel Falls, the highest waterfall in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://coolermag.com/blogs/anniken_binz/falling-angels |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091001044446/http://coolermag.com/blogs/anniken_binz/falling-angels |url-status=dead |title=Falling Angels &#124; Anniken Binz &#124; Blogs &#124; Cooler – snow, surf, life & style |archive-date=October 1, 2009}}</ref> * In September 2013, three men parachuted off the then-under-construction One World Trade Center in New York City. Footage of their jump was recorded using head cams and can be seen on YouTube.<ref>{{cite web |last=NYC B.A.S.E. Jump |date=24 March 2014 |title=NYC Freedom Tower B.A.S.E. Jump |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=441bLA2KY50 |via=YouTube}}</ref> In March 2014, the three jumpers turned themselves in.<ref>{{cite web |title=Four men arrested in One World Trade Center jump stunt |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2014/03/25/justice/one-world-trade-center-jump-stunt/ |website=CNN |access-date=29 March 2014 |first=Haley |last=Draznin |date=26 March 2014}}</ref> They were sentenced to community service and a fine.<ref>{{Cite news |last= |date=10 August 2015 |title=World Trade Center parachutists fined $2,000 for jumping off building |language=en-GB |newspaper=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/aug/10/world-trade-center-base-jumpers-guilty |access-date=1 April 2023 |issn=}}</ref>

==Comparison with skydiving== {{More citations needed|section|date=June 2025}} thumb|right|BASE jumping from an antenna tower BASE jumps are typically performed from much lower altitudes than in skydiving. Skydivers are required to deploy their main parachute above {{convert|2000|ft|m|order=flip}} altitude.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://uspa.org/SIM/2-1#1I |title=USPA Skydiver's Information Manual |access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> BASE jumps are frequently made from less than {{convert|486|ft|m|order=flip}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.highestbridges.com/wiki/index.php?title=Perrine_Bridge |title=Perrine Bridge |publisher=HighestBridges.com |access-date=26 January 2020}}</ref> A BASE jump from a {{convert|486|ft|m|order=flip|adj=on}} object is only about 5.6 seconds from the ground if the jumper remains in free fall. Standard skydiving parachute systems are not designed for this situation, so BASE jumpers use specially designed harnesses and parachute systems.

BASE jumps generally entail slower airspeeds than typical skydives (due to the limited altitude); a BASE jumper does not always reach terminal velocity. Skydivers use the airflow to stabilize their position. BASE jumpers, falling at lower speeds, have less aerodynamic control. The attitude of the body at the moment of jumping determines the stability of flight in the first few seconds, before sufficient airspeed has built up to enable aerodynamic stability. On low BASE jumps, parachute deployment takes place during this early phase of flight. If the parachute is deployed while the jumper is unstable, there is a high risk of entanglement or malfunction. The jumper may also not be facing the right direction. Such an off-heading opening is not as problematic in skydiving, but an off-heading opening that results in object strike has caused many serious injuries and deaths in BASE jumping.

BASE jumps are more hazardous than skydives primarily due to proximity to the object serving as the jump platform. BASE jumping frequently occurs in mountainous terrain, often having much smaller areas in which to land in comparison to a typical skydiving dropzone. BASE jumping is significantly more dangerous than similar sports such as skydiving from aircraft.<ref name="ch-trib-thrill"/>

== Legality == [[File:BASE jumping - Perrine Bridge.jpg|thumb|left|A BASE jumper leaving the Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls, Idaho]]

BASE jumping is generally not illegal in most places. However, in some cases such as building and antenna jumps, jumping is often done covertly without the permission of owners, which can lead to charges such as trespassing. In some jurisdictions{{Where|date=June 2025}} it may be permissible to use land until specifically told not to. The Perrine Bridge in Twin Falls, Idaho, is an example of a man-made structure in the United States where BASE jumping is allowed year-round without a permit.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2006-06-10 |title=More BASE-jumping laws unlikely in Idaho |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna13236197 |access-date=2025-06-30 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref>

In U.S. National Parks, BASE jumping is allowed pursuant to the terms of a special use permit.<ref>{{cite web |title=36 CFR 2.17a3 |url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CFR-2004-title36-vol1/pdf/CFR-2004-title36-vol1-sec2-17.pdf |website=govinfo.gov |access-date=28 November 2024}}</ref> There is no record of the U.S. National Parks granting a permit for BASE jumping, with the sole exception of a permit granted for the annual Bridge Day event in New River Gorge National Park.<ref>{{cite web |title=Has a permit been issued for parachuting from a mountain in a National Park in the past 20 years? |url=https://baseaccess.org/faq |website=BASE Access FAQ |publisher=BASE Access |access-date=28 November 2024}}</ref> Other U.S. public land, including land controlled by the Bureau of Land Management, does not ban BASE jumping, and there are numerous jumpable objects on BLM land.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.outsideonline.com/2092301/no-restrictions-apply |title=The Last Bastion of Outdoor Outlaws |date=22 Jun 2016 |publisher=Outside Online |access-date=2020-02-12}}</ref>

The legal position is different at other sites and in other countries. For example, in Norway's Lysefjord (from the mountain Kjerag), BASE jumpers are made welcome.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Iversen |first=Nicklas |date=2023-05-09 |title=BASE Jumping In Norway |url=https://thenorwayguide.com/base-jumping-in-norway/ |access-date=2023-05-26 |website=thenorwayguide.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Iversen |first=Nicklas |date=2023-05-02 |title=Lysebotn Travel Guide: Where To Stay, What To Do, And Where To Eat |url=https://thenorwayguide.com/lysebotn/ |access-date=2023-05-26 |website=thenorwayguide.com |language=en-US}}</ref> Many sites in the European Alps, near Chamonix and on the Eiger, are also open to jumpers. Some other Norwegian places, like the Troll Wall, are banned because of dangerous rescue missions in the past.<ref name=":0" /> In Austria, jumping from mountain cliffs is generally allowed, whereas the use of bridges (such as the Europabruecke near Innsbruck, Tirol) or dams is generally prohibited. Australia has some of the toughest stances on BASE jumping: it specifically bans BASE jumping from certain objects, such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/bridge-base-jumper-faces-charges-if-he-lives-20050415-gdl4r7.html|title=Bridge BASE jumper faces charges if he lives|date=2005-04-14|website=The Sydney Morning Herald|language=en|access-date=2018-10-17}}</ref>

== Safety == {{See also|List of fatalities due to wingsuit flying}}

Recent statistics reflect improved safety during the modern era of the activity. The 2024 Bridge Day Event which saw the participation of 325 BASE jumpers completing 755 BASE jumps resulted in zero jumper injuries, in contrast to two non-jumper related medical transports from the same event.<ref>{{cite web |title=What are the safety stats for the one day of permitted BASE jumping that takes place in a United States National Park? |url=https://baseaccess.org/faq |website=BASE Access |access-date=28 November 2024}}</ref> And in the year 2023 the United States saw zero BASE fatalities.<ref>{{cite web |title=United States BFL Statistics |url=https://bfl.baseaddict.com/list#BFL |website=BASE Fatality List |access-date=28 November 2024}}</ref>. There have been no rescues related to BASE jumping in the past four years in Yosemite National Park despite it being one of the highest volume locations for wingsuit flying in the United States<ref>{{cite web |title=BASE Jumpers took an illegal leap during the government shutdown|url=https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/exploration-survival/base-jumping-is-illegal-in-national-parks-yet-thrill-seekers-jump-from-el-cap-every-year-how/|access-date=25 December 2025}}</ref>.

Data from the earliest pre-2010 era of BASE jumping reflects greater risk. A study of BASE jumping fatalities estimated that the overall annual fatality risk in 2002 was one fatality per 60 participants.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Westman |first=A |author2=Rosen, M |author3=Berggren, P |author4=Bjornstig, U |title=Parachuting from fixed objects: descriptive study of 106 fatal events in BASE jumping 1981–2006 |journal=British Journal of Sports Medicine |date=7 April 2008 |volume=42 |issue=6 |pages=431–436 |doi=10.1136/bjsm.2008.046565 |pmid=18523039 |s2cid=22586192 |url=http://bjsportmed.com/content/42/6/431.abstract |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120301214219/http://bjsportmed.com/content/42/6/431.abstract |archive-date=1 March 2012 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> A study of 20,850 BASE jumps from the Kjerag Massif in Norway reported nine fatalities over the 11-year period from 1995 to 2005, or one in every 2,317 jumps.<ref name="Soreide 2007 1113–7">{{cite journal| last1=Soreide| first1=K| last2=Ellingsen |first2=CL |last3=Knutson |first3=V|title=How dangerous is BASE jumping? An analysis of adverse events in 20,850 jumps from the Kjerag Massif, Norway|journal=The Journal of Trauma|date=May 2007|volume=62|issue=5|pages=1113–7| pmid=17495709|doi=10.1097/01.ta.0000239815.73858.88}}</ref><ref name="Risk of Dying">{{cite web| url=http://www.medicine.ox.ac.uk/bandolier/booth/Risk/sports.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120904102144/http://www.medicine.ox.ac.uk/bandolier/booth/Risk/sports.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-09-04 |title=Risk of dying and sporting activities |publisher=Medicine.ox.ac.uk |date=2003-05-26 |access-date=2014-02-04 }}</ref> However, at that site, one in every 254 jumps over that period resulted in a nonfatal accident.<ref name="Soreide 2007 1113–7"/> BASE jumping is one of the most dangerous recreational activities in the world, with a fatality and injury rate 43 times higher than that of parachuting from a plane.<ref name="Soreide 2007 1113–7"/><ref name="Risk of Dying" />

{{As of|2023|01|04}}, the BASE Fatality List records 480 deaths for BASE jumping since April 1981.<ref name="fatal-list">{{cite web |url=https://bfl.baseaddict.com/list |title=BASE Fatality List |access-date=2020-02-14}}</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== * ''[http://base-book.com/ The Great Book of BASE]''. BirdBrain Publishing. July 2010. * "[https://books.google.com/books?id=3iwEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA178 The Ground's the Limit]". ''Texas Monthly''. December 1981.

==External links== {{Commons category|BASE jumping}} * [https://archive.today/20130118061503/http://bjsportmed.com/cgi/content/abstract/42/6/431 Parachuting from fixed objects: descriptive study of 106 fatal events in BASE jumping 1981–2006] * [http://www.tmba.tv/broadcastanimation/stunt-junkies/wingsuit-base-jump/ Luigi Cani BASE jumps off a cliff] * [http://www.espn.com/espn/eticket/story?page=basejump&redirected=true A Sport to Die For] ESPN, Michael Abrams * [https://web.archive.org/web/20140529085749/http://surfandshare.com/worlds-first-base-jumping-dog-plunge-sky-name-whisper/ First Dog Ever To BaseJump] * [http://www.basejumping.co.uk BASE Jumping adventures in the UK & Europe during the late 1980s, 1990s & early 2000s by Doug Blane] * [http://www.basejumper.com/ Resources for Base Jumping] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170815085600/http://www.basejumper.com/ |date=2017-08-15 }} <!--NOTE TO EDITORS. Please read WP:ELNO BEFORE adding any links here as the addition are likely to be reverted. Thank you -->

{{Extreme Sports}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Base Jumping}} Category:Air sports Category:Articles containing video clips Category:Jumping sports Category:Outdoor recreation Category:Parachuting Category:Extreme sports