Wingsuits: For Extreme Skydiving

I went tandem skydiving once. After landing on earth, I trembled for an hour. It was terrifying and wonderful all at once. Who knew it could get more intense?

This short clip — ripped, I think, from Warren Miller’s epic 2001 film Cold Fusion — shows a man in a wingsuit zooming over snow-covered, shard-like mountains. Totally amazing.

Class time:

  • A wingsuit is a customized jumpsuit with flaps under the arms and between the legs that harness the wind, letting you engage in controlled falling/flying.
  • Sometimes called a “birdman suit,” a wingsuit makes you look like a flying squirrel — but not as hairy and rodent-like.
  • If you’re interested, you can buy your own wingsuit and take some wingsuit classes.

Three more very-worth-checking-out wingsuit vids after the jump:

Here’s a clip of formation wingsuit-ing: