Miles Daisher attempts to set the world record for most unassisted BASE jumps in 24 hours.
TWIN FALLS, Idaho – Around 10.40pm, on the longest day of the year, the last sliver of light finally disappeared over Idaho’s Perrine Bridge. World-renowned BASE jumper Miles Daisher strapped on his headlamp and hiked up the rugged, rocky terrain to throw himself off the 486-foot-high (148m) span for the 35th time. But, there was still 12 full hours of jumping and climbing ahead.
With a firm grasp on the world record for most career BASE jumps (4,520) as well as the highest yearly total (737), Daisher utilised the summer solstice to reclaim the one BASE jumping record that slipped away from him – the most human-powered BASE jumps in 24 hours, a record he just upped to a whopping 63 self-propelled launches.
A human-powered BASE jump is a leap of faith in which the jumper must hike, climb or somehow saunter back up to the structure they previously ejected themselves off of – without the help of any mechanized assistance. In fact, with Dasher’s record of 63 he climbed a total of 30,618 feet (9,332m) in 24 hours. For reference, Mount Everest – the tallest mountain in the world – towers at 29,029 feet (8,848m). Or, in Daisher’s case, 60 BASE jump cycles.
“I’m super excited,” Daisher said after achieving the record. “We got 63 human-powered BASE jumps in 24 hours. I’m so glad to have made them all because 60 jumps is more than 29,000 feet (8,839m), which is the height of Mount Everest from sea level. But it was a collective effort. I have my team-mates on the Red Bull Air Force and all the badass BASE jumpers on the planet here helping me.”
It’s no accident that Daisher lives a mile away from the Perrine Bridge. The 486-foot (148m) truss arch span in Twin Falls, Idaho is a mecca for BASE jumpers. Reason being, it’s one of the only man-made structures in the United States where BASE jumping is allowed year-round without a permit. Following each bone-chilling hurl, Daisher landed on the bank of the Snake River and climbed up the treacherous trail out of the massive canyon.
Fueled by high-fives, the occasional Red Bull and repetitive hits of free-fall adrenaline, Daisher managed to perform around 20 of the recorded jumps in the pitch dark. By the time morning dawned, he was closing in on his personal record of 57. That extra effort put him well above pace to surpass the current record of 61 jumps held by Danny Weiland. And at 9.35am – after 22 and a half hours of jumping, climbing and hydrating – Daisher returned to his throne as the most accomplished BASE jumper in the history of the sport by eclipsing his 62nd huck off the Perrine Bridge.
This miraculous feat is a well-deserved bookend to Daisher’s lengthy career as a professional skydiver, wingsuit pilot and BASE jumper. But considering the physical stamina and sheer determination Daisher displayed in this world-record effort, there’s no signs of slowing him down anytime in the foreseeable future.
