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Gee, Glenn, lighten up on the Brothers . . .

NickD
BASE 194

Crane used for 'risky' BASE jump

By John Cleary

September 21, 2005

A LEADING Australian BASE jumper has accused a man charged over parachuting from a crane in central Brisbane of damaging the extreme sport's reputation.

Police charged a 24-year-old from Mount Gravatt, in Brisbane's south, after an alleged incident in the Roma Street Parklands on Monday morning.

He is due to appear in Brisbane Magistrates Court on October 10 on a charge of engaging in unregulated high-risk activities.

Dr Glenn Singleman, a world record holder for high altitude BASE jumping, today said it was irresponsible behaviour to jump illegally.

"There are plenty of places in the world where it is legal. There are plenty of places in Queensland where it is legal," said Dr Singleman.

"It's a shame ... it paints the rest of the BASE jumpers who want to do this responsibly in a bad light."

Dr Singleman, former president of the Australian BASE Association, said BASE (building, antennae, spans and earth) jumping was an increasingly popular sport in Australia.

"Like all extreme sports, BASE jumping is increasing in popularity while traditional sports like football and cricket are dwindling," he said.

He blamed the attitude of state authorities in Australia who refuse to issue permits to BASE jumpers for increasing the risk of illegal jumps.

"Where it is made difficult by authorities you get people who are doing irresponsible things like this," he said.

Three Australians have died in BASE jumping accidents over the past 12 months.

Brisbane man Jason Fitz-Herbert died jumping in southern NSW in October last year.

His friend Roland "Slim" Simpson had died three weeks earlier when a jump from a skyscraper in Shanghai, China, went wrong.

Darcy Zoitsas, 39, from Adelaide, died attempting a BASE jump from a 1000m cliff in Norway in July this year.

Earlier this month a BASE jumper had to be rescued by paramedics after injuring himself in an illegal jump in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney.

It was the second time in four months he had to be rescued and he became the first person in NSW to be charged over BASE jumping

http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/...5441-5001028,00.html

Is it just me, or is there something odd about that statement?

Ganja

Not just you.

Remember, Glenn also gave us such gems as "BASE jumping is as easy as stepping off a chair and pulling a handkerchief out of your pocket."

Agh, yeah that's just what he needs...

Stones and glass houses anyone? Aren't you guys supposed to support eachother?

A woman after my own heart.

rl

Your post is ambiguous… When you ask “Aren’t you guys supposed to support each other”, are you referring to Glen dogging his BASE colleagues publicly or us poking fun at his comments? Of course I’m hoping that you are questioning why Glen is dogging his BASE colleagues publicly...

Michael

The BASE community in Australia is not exactly renowned for getting along...

I'm sorry I wasn't more clear. I wouldn't bother posting in this section to show my distaste for some simple 'fun poking'. My post was in reference to Glen's statement to the media.

It's a shame that sometimes the idea of what is 'good for the sport' steps on the people who actually love it... The end doesn't always justify the means, but that's just my own outside opinion.

Lainey,

You don't have to hold a world record to get BASE... You just have to BASE for the right reasons, to understand BASE... Obviously, Glen just doesn't understand BASE... No worries, just his loss..

Michael

Regardless of ambition, all I know of BASE is theory, what i've read, seen or been told. I wouldn't, for a second, presume I know enough to agree that someone who jumps doesn't understand BASE... that is a stance you'll have to defend on your own my friend.

I guess the 'right reasons' to be jumping are, like so many things in this world, subjective. I'm definately not saying he's not jumping for the right reasons, i'm merely saying maybe the cause has become so important that the human element has been sacrificed in its favour.

SBC Mac is a fraud anyway. He doesn't even BASE jump... much... anymore.

Although I did watch some cleverly edited (probably computer generated) footage (that I shot) of him using ascenders to gain access to the roof of a building in rain and high wind...

Then jump from the corner and land (actually, to be fair it was not a landing any more than a meteor crashing to earth is a landing) in the street...

THEN, jump into a taxi cab and drive off into the sunset (well it was actually dark)...

Worst of all, he did it just to impress the girls (although there weren't actually any girls present)...



What a poser!


Michael, call me dude.

From an outsiders pospective I think Glens comments were in the best interest of the sport as far as public image is concerned

what was he meant to say?
"yeah he jumped and got caught, he simply should have ran away faster" ????

he was more or less saying "hey don't bag us all out because of 1 persons actions"

even if they all jump ilegally, its best to make out not everyone does, as far as the sports public image is concerned, other wise it makes it easier for politicians to justify putting up more anti base fences

Apart from the black eye he inflicted with his other statements, I'm curious about this:

He blamed the attitude of state authorities in Australia who refuse to issue permits to BASE jumpers for increasing the risk of illegal jumps. "Where it is made difficult by authorities you get people who are doing irresponsible things like this," he said.

That excerpt doesn't seem entirely consonant with the quotes attributed to him, unless those quotes were taken out of context. I've seen too many people made morons by the media not to wonder about what was elided.

I'm sure that if a reporter were to mine this board for the discussions of site burning and legal access, he could come up with some stunning quotes to paint base black.

rl

There is unity and there is community. Both noble pursuits for one and all in this sport. If we always had both, we would all be much better off.

When ulterior motives kick in, both of the above tend to disappear.

I'll give you an example. Several years ago, I had an ulterior motive in the sport to put a bit of a clamp on the way people progressed in the sport. I was NOT stopping them from attempting various complex manouvres. Instead, I was attempting to ensure that people would progress in a realistic, logical, and safe manner. By definition, this is the role of a safety official. The end result is that many people were told to slow down, to go back into parachuting to develop skills that they bypassed, to realistiically assess their weaknesses and strengths.

The problem was that people did not like to hear reality. They did not like to hear the word don't, or no, or perhaps you are not quite as good as you think you are, or you need to work on this before you do that.

The end result of all of this was many people no longer wished to hear this. Communication dwindled and/or ceased. The psyche changed to lets just go do it. You see - ulterior motives splintered some segments of the jumping community.

There is also a push from some circles to "sacrifice" some sites to the authorities in the vain hope that they would offer up others for the jumping community. The building jumps are a classic example of sites given up.

When a jumper states things like "other" jumpers are irresponsible, illegal jumps, give the sport a bad name, etc, it adds fuel to the media fire and cements anti-jumper sentiment in the eyes of those already opposed to the sport. Perhaps a better response would simply be along the lines of "although I personally don't participate in those type of jumps, I am sure that the people concerned have conducted a thorough potential problem and safeyt analysis to mitigate most forms of risk to the themselves and certainly the public. It is not an easy thing to say the right things in the media all the time. Especially when they have the ability to edit.

Hence, I don't think some of the comments were in the best interests of the sport. I managed to accidently catch the last part of the interview and their were good components to it too.

Too funny bro ... I'll call you tonight...

Well said Tom.

But, as you might agree, any "illegal" jump (by which I mean, a jump without the owners authorisation ) seen or told about by media will influence the way the public sees our sport. This dilemma will never go away. Unless... we get authorisation to jump anything anywhere. Yeah, unlikely in the near future.

Take care,

Ronald

Of course Ronald - but I am not talking about the media. They do their own thing. I am talking about jumpers.

Think about perceptions. I'll give you an example:

Blah blah blah blah blah BASE jumpers blah blah blah blah irresponsible blah blah blah dangerous.

My point is, people hear what they want to hear. If you add the incorrect words in, there is a good chance that the public will filter out the meaning and content and only hear the words they want to hear. Hence a perception is created.

Hence, if a jumper calls another individual jumper irresponsible, that tag/title/perception/etc will be what people will think all jumpers are.

Jumpers should not be using those words in the media. Especially those that are VERY accomplished at dealing with the media and are professional speakers.

TVPB
Hence, if a jumper calls another individual jumper irresponsible, that tag/title/perception/etc will be what people will think all jumpers are.
Jumpers should not be using those words in the media. Especially those that are VERY accomplished at dealing with the media and are professional speakers
.---------------

I thought you were smarter than this ? There is a -Very Simple Solution- for this Problem.
Never Ever talk to the Media. Just do what I do when immediately seeing one of these freaks.
Immediately knife there automobile tires (and or) push them down a flight of stairs.
.
I think the negative perception is Quite Well Attached and Established all ready with BASE jumpers.
as example:
The first thing that usually come out of the Mouth of your average Human on this earth when hearing about or seeing a BASE jumper jump.
" He or She (does or did) What ? "
" Jumped off the Top of What ? "... " With What ?
" A Parachute ! "
.
I rest my case.
.

An interview is here;

http://www.triplej.abc.net.au/hack/notes/default.htm

Clicky

Direct Link to mp3 audio file of interview