Adventurer BASE jumps with dog in backpack
May 28, 2014, 2:00 PM | Updated: 2:00 pm
Filmmaker and adventurer Dean Potter has done his share of BASE jumps, but he brought his dog along for the ride on his latest descent.
National Geographic posted video of Potter’s newest BASE jump on Tuesday, and the footage is not for the faint of heart. If you’re wondering why BASE is in all caps, it’s because it is an acronym, standing for building, antenna, span (bridge or beam) and Earth — the four surfaces off which people try to pull a death-defying leap.
Potter chooses the latter, Earth, for his latest jump, and his dog, Whisper, accompanies him in a backpack on the way down.
To Potter, the jump is probably a piece of cake. To his dog, now that’s no walk in the park. It does, however, look like Whisper has complete faith in his owner as the two start the dive in a wingsuit and then deploy a parachute.
It’s worth noting that Potter’s friend, Sean Leary, died two months ago in Utah while the two were doing a wingsuit BASE jump, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, so this latest stunt was probably personal for Potter.
If you can’t get enough of these BASE jump videos, here’s one we shared last month of two daredevils who leaped off the world’s tallest building.