Base jumper’s last thoughts
First it was Uli Emanuele, then legendary base jumper Alexander Polli crashed into a tree, both dead within the same week.
Base jumping and wing gliding show scary fatality statistics so it’s surprising what Polli told a journalist before his accident:
“To be quite honest: I am extremely scared of dying – and I am scared of heights.”
Polli explained he prepared meticulously before each jump, pointing to base jumpers who’d been doing it for twenty years. In fact, Polli felt safer in the air than he felt climbing up:
“I’m not really a mountaineer,” he told the journalist. “Mountain climbing is quite daunting to me. It worries me much more than the actual dive. When I finally stand there with my parachute facing down just before I jump, that is when I feel safe again. It is the climb to get there that I see as dangerous and scary.”
Polli said he did it for the self-growth and camaraderie of the sport. But he also said he liked lots of adventurous things.
“Mountaineering is fascinating – I find those people really amazing and inspiring, what they do is really crazy. I’d really like to develop that skill – or surfing or white-water rafting or trekking large distances. There are many other adventures I could become passionate about.”
Check out the full interview here done by Pythom News Feed regular Stefan Nestler.
