![]() ![]() Two of his previous televised tightrope walks - over the brink of Niagara Falls in 2012 and across the Little Colorado River Gorge in 2013 - drew about 13 million viewers each. Even grilling has been prohibited.Ĭhicago city officials ignored a state law requiring safety nets for aerial acts higher than 20 feet, saying the law wasn’t intended for “elite” performers like him. Residents of Marina City have been asked not to use laser pointers, camera flashes or drones that could interfere. Months of preparations have meant helicopters lifting cable to the rooftops, road closures and clearances from the Federal Aviation Administration and U.S. “Yes there’s some wind, yes it’s cool, but it’s not unbearable,” he said. At a fast clip, he made the stretch in little more than a minute.Īt around 6:40 p.m., just minutes before the anticipated start of his high-wire feat, Wallenda, who lives in Florida, said the chilly conditions in Chicago would not stall him. The next stage of Wallenda’s high-wire event he undertook blindfolded - a 94-foot walk, 543 feet from the ground, between the two Marina City towers, Chicago landmarks with Hollywood credits. “I love Chicago and Chicago definitely loves me,” said Wallenda as he walked the wire, with the crowd of thousands screaming in support. The tightrope began at 588 feet from the ground and ended at 671 feet - a 19-degree incline. It took him about six and a half minutes to walk the 454 foot stretch from the Marina City west tower to the top of a building on the other side of the river. Wearing a bright red jacket, Wallenda tested the tension of the first wire. The spectacle was telecast almost-live on the Discovery Channel so producers could cut away if Wallenda fell. Thousands of cheering fans packed the streets around the city’s Marina City towers to watch the 35-year-old heir to the Flying Wallendas’ family business complete the back-to-back walks, including one wearing a blindfold.Īs he stepped from the wire after completing the second leg, he tore off his blindfold and waved to the crowd below that erupted in cheers. His great-grandfather Karl Wallenda fell to his death while tightroping in Puerto Rico in 1978 (Wallenda completed his great-grandfather's walk in 2011), and two other family members were killed while performing a seven-person pyramid on a wire in 1962.Chicago – - Daredevil Nik Wallenda wowed Chicago and the world Sunday with two hair-raising skyscraper crossings on high wires without a safety net or a harness. Tightroping is in Wallenda's blood: he comes from a long line of daredevils known as the Flying Wallendas. Before that, he walked across Niagara Falls, but strapped to a safety harness since it was live on national television. Last year, Wallenda tightroped across the Little Colorado River Gorge outside Grand Canyon National Park, and more than 13 million people tuned in to watch it live on Discovery. “It’s mentally draining,” Wallenda said of doing the walk while blindfolded. The second walk broke the record for the highest blindfolded walk at more than 500 feet above ground. He set the record for steepest incline for a tightrope walk between two buildings, at 19-degrees, during the first crossing. Wallenda set two world records during the event. The event was streamed live with a 10-second delay (in case anything went awry) on Discovery and their website. On Sunday night, daredevil Nik Wallenda tightroped across two Chicago skyscrapers, without a safety net or a harness. Then, he walked toward another skyscraper, again without a safety net or harness-and while blindfolded. ![]()
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