A base jump ‘flight’ was recorded on video this afternoon in Porto da Cruz.
Base Jumping, which is considered the most dangerous of extreme sports, is where people launch themselves from great heights and in mid-flight open their parachute (suitable for openings at low altitudes).
BASE is an acronym for Building, Antenna, Span, and Earth, the four types of arenas from which practitioners can launch.
It is unknown who the base jumper in the video is, whether he is a foreigner or even a Madeiran, a man or a woman, what is certain is that he captured the attention of those who live nearby.
The spectacularity of this human ‘flight’ is undeniable, as are the risks for its practitioners, also known as birdmen, because of the flight and the suit they wear.
The practice of base jumping is nothing new in Madeira, and there are videos on the internet of other ‘flights’ carried out in Porto da Cruz and Cabo Girão.
Mário Pardo, the man who threw himself from a motorcycle from Cabo Girão, was the first Portuguese base jumper. He died last year from an illness.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
