If sports are a measure of endurance, of pushing the human body to limits previously thought unimaginable, of training, practicing, preparing and eventually succeeding, then Felix Baumgartner is one of the world’s premier athletes.
It isn’t often that Austrian skydivers make national news, but that is exactly what Baumgartner did on Sunday when he completed a dive from over 24.26 miles above the Earth’s surface.
After taking a practice jump from 71,580 feet on March 15, Baumgartner felt he was up to the task of breaking the records for the highest freefall and the highest speed generated during freefall.
He eventually did both, even with his visor fogging up. His maximum speed reached an unofficial 833.9 miles per hour, fast enough to break the sound barrier.
While BASE jumping or skydiving are not usually considered mainstream sports, Baumgartner brought them into the fold of the American media, captivating all that watched his four-minute, 20-second freefall from space.
In order to appreciate not only the actual fall, but all the preparation that went into making it happen, one must consider some of the metrics.
The current land speed record, achieved in a supersonic car, is 763 mph, or 70.9 mph less than Baumgartner achieved. Consider just how fast it feels to go 70 mph in a car, and attempt to imagine that feeling as you hurtle through space.
Twenty-four miles above Earth seems like a reasonable number until one considers it is over three times higher than an average airliner. It is also the approximate distance from the I-25 and I-70 intersection in Denver to downtown Boulder, a trip Google Maps estimates would take 30 minutes, rather than the 10 it took Baumgartner (including the parachute portion of his descent).
The idea to break the record had been in the works for Baumgartner for over seven years. According to the BBC, his revolutionary suit was manufactured by the same company that designs space suits for astronauts and features the same next-generation technology.
This jump is not only a pillar of scientific advancement in sports but also a tribute to the hard work and practice of an individual. In his lifetime, it is estimated that Baumgartner, also known as “Fearless Felix,” has made over 2,500 jumps.
While BASE jumping and skydiving aren’t always considered typical sports, Baumgartner deserves all of the recognition he is receiving – if not for the fearlessness he displayed in attempting such a feat, then for the preparation and dedication he displayed in making it happen.
In that sense, he should be as revered as Peyton Manning is for his game film study or any stereotypical “gym rat” NBA player is for his countless hours spent fine-tuning his profession. So today, find a video of Baumgartner’s jump and appreciate a feat that truly deserves the applause of all sports fans.
