Daredevil David Blaine performed his latest stunt on Wednesday, ascending nearly 25,000 feet (7,600 meters) into the Arizona sky while hanging from a cluster of jumbo-sized balloons before parachuting safely back to earth.
“It’s like magic, it feels like I’m floating in the air,” Blaine said on a radio to his team of aides back on the ground after gently lifting off from a desert airstrip in Page, Arizona, connected to dozens of balloons.
The so-called “extreme performer” set off at around 7:30 a.m. local time. He gradually dropped small weights to speed his ascent, donned a parachute mid-flight and strapped on an oxygen mask as he neared an altitude where most commercial airliners travel.
Blaine, 47, has a history of performing high-profile and high-risk feats of endurance. His stunts include locking himself in a fish bowl, trapping himself in a block of ice for two days in Times Square, and standing freely atop a thin, tall pillar for 35 hours in New York City.
Wednesday’s stunt lasted roughly 30 minutes. Blaine released himself from the balloon cluster and free-fell for some 30 seconds before deploying a parachute to slow his descent.
{{/usCountry}}Wednesday’s stunt lasted roughly 30 minutes. Blaine released himself from the balloon cluster and free-fell for some 30 seconds before deploying a parachute to slow his descent.
{{/usCountry}}“Wow, that was awesome,” Blaine yelled into his radio as he stood back on land. The feat, broadcast on YouTube, appeared unmarred by glitches of any kind.