By Colin Lecher Posted 05.23.2012 at 6:18 pm 13 Comments

Gary Connery Before breaking a record from 2,400 feet up. The Independent

Gary Connery broke the record today for skydiving sans parachute and also, presumably, took home a gold medal in being a badass. But that wasn’t all: The 42-year-old father-stuntman-crazy-person gave Newton’s First Law one more slap in the face by diving from 2,400 feet above Buckinghamshire, England, and straight into 18,600 cardboard boxes.

Connery did it with help from a wingsuit, a la 'Jetman' Yves Rossy, but he still made it to speeds of 80 mph three seconds after his leap. He fell for about 30 seconds, flared his wings to slow down to the relatively bearable gliding speed of 50 mph and falling speed of 15 mph, then landed on the 12-foot-high makeshift landing strip almost a mile away.

Before the leap, Connery, a veteran of 880 sky dives and 450 base jumps, told reporters he was “a bit scared.”

And then he jumped from 2,400 feet without a parachute.

Even without breaking records, Connery already had a pretty solid resume before the jump, both professionally and recreationally. He’s jumped from the Eiffel Tower and London’s Tower Bridge, and as a stuntman he’s been in dozens of TV and movie roles, including “Batman Begins,” but also “The Beach,” which might make other people want to jump out of a plane with no parachute.

[via The Telegraph]

13 Comments

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3DTOPO
05/24/12 at 12:45 am

I want one of these suits under my airplane seat. 50 mph forward and 15 mph down is a very survivable fall. Looks like the suit weighs practically nothing, and the cost of the nylon if the suits are mass manufactured would be cheap.

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bhageman
05/24/12 at 12:46 am

That guy looks like Kenny F'ing Powers.

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drchuck1
05/24/12 at 2:44 am

he's gotta have the biggest cahonas this side of mars! ...better pack a parachute, i wouldn't call that a survivable fall, cheers

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porsche469
05/24/12 at 2:56 am

he also set the record for the worlds worst paper cut

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iambronco
05/24/12 at 7:17 am

If the numbers are correct, it would indeed be a very survivable fall. Certainly with potential for serious injury, but none the less survivable if you could go in on relatively flat ground without obstacles.

I've personally hit the ground at about 65 mph (motorcycle accident), and with only a light mesh crash jacket and a pair of regular jeans I walked away with nothing more than some light road rash on a knee and my shoulder.

If you hit anything at that speed though, like a tree or rock or building, that's a different story.

15 mph fall also isn't terrible. 15 MPH would be the approximate velocity at impact for about an 8 foot free fall.

Certainly, I'd be more comfortable with those chances than riding the soon-to-be-shrapnel passenger aircraft to the scene to the crash.

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Robot
05/24/12 at 7:59 am

He did a really fast horizontal landing and in the photo he is wearing a neck brace to help keep him from hurting his neck. Still, I wish we could have seen video later. I like to know if he walked away.

I could only imagine his nuts were scrapped off from the horizontal landing over several boxes and he and several other observers are still looking for the pieces.

.............................
Science sees no further than what it can sense, i.e. facts.
Religion sees beyond the senses, i.e. faith.
Open your mind and see!

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tnsurf88
05/24/12 at 11:44 am

The end of this video is strange. Those guys sitting on the scaffolding, just hanging out, texting. Dudes, a man just fell from 2400 feet and landed at 50 mph, literally 10 feet from you. Maybe a little check-in to see if he's ok? Maybe get a slow clap going?
I never did see those cardboard boxes move after he lands, nor did I see him emerge. Strange ending.

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pioneer10
05/24/12 at 12:28 pm

I've always wondered if a sport could be invented that let you land without a parachute wearing nothing more than this type of flying suit. Now if only I could believe beyond all doubt that the jump really happened as published!

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GarudaX
05/24/12 at 5:50 pm

That's crazy! Would've liked to know whether he was ok though, like everyone else wanted to know.

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Newbeak5
05/24/12 at 6:44 pm

I saw another video of the landing,in which he emerges from the boxes on foot : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpyNR97SnAw

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smrtieepak2004
05/27/12 at 1:10 am

I do not understand what they mean by stating that this stunt slaps Newton's first law in the face. Infact this could be utilized as an example that proves the law.

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johnysmith
06/01/12 at 3:35 am

hahaha Connery did it with help from a wingsuit, a la 'Jetman' Yves Rossy LOL
yeah he really looks like the jetman
http://airsoc.com/articles/view/id/4f4baa89c6f8fa092f000006/rossy-vs-rossi-it-s-the-jetman-against-the-doctor?ev=10&evp=tl



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