Try to imagine walking for hundreds of feet across a rope that is no more than an inch thick. Now picture that rope being suspended 120 feet in the air. There is no room for error, since you're not harnessed to anything nor is there anything soft to land on should you fall. It's something most people, including me, would never dare attempt. For Nik Wallenda, however, this more or less describes everyday life. The famed aerialist has been at it for years, crossing canyons, creating human pyramids, and riding bicycles across tightropes. Last weekend, he performed a historic skywalk across Palisades Credit Union Park, home of the Rockland Boulders.
Wallenda's family has been walking high wires for seven generations, dating back to the 1700s. High wire walking, which you may know as tightrope walking, is the act of walking across a rope or wire suspended in the air. In Nik's case, he uses no safety net and no harness, literally making his walks death-defying. He currently holds 11 Guinness World Records and his feats include walking a tightrope across the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls. He has also walked across multiple skyscrapers of Chicago, completing a portion of the walk blindfolded.
As part of my internship with the Boulders, I had the pleasure of being one of the people stabilizing Nik Wallenda's rope, so that it would be sturdy as he walked across the stadium on July 25th. Yes, I, along with over 50 other people, was actually on the ground making sure (or at least doing my best to ensure) that he didn't fall. The game was already highly anticipated, with the Boulders taking on the Cuban National Baseball Team, but the moments leading up to Wallenda's walk brought an even greater buzz of excitement rarely seen at any sporting event. He was able to complete the walk with ease, talking casually to the crowd throughout it and even throwing the first pitch from on top of the rope. I'd be lying if I said it wasn't nerve-racking once he started to approach my portion of the rope. Imagine having someone walking on a rope over 120 feet in the air above you and knowing that you were partly responsible for keeping it stable. But it was also without question one of the coolest things I've ever gotten to do. Being just a small part of something so extraordinary is pretty incredible and something I'll remember for a long time.
Although Wallenda admits to not being scared, that doesn't mean he isn't aware of precision required of his profession to protect himself. His great-grandfather, Karl Wallenda, died in 1978 after falling off a high wire. Other members of his family have been seriously injured as well, raising the question as to why Nik continues this dangerous and sometimes lethal family tradition.
"I hope what I do inspires people around the world to reach for the skies", he says. Although most people aren't likely to literally reach for the skies like Nik Wallenda, he hopes that spectators can use this message metaphorically. His motto Never Give Up is part of his mission to inspire people to go after their dreams and accomplish feats that may seem impossible.
