Russian extreme sports  dynamo Valery Rozov, hand in glove with Red Bull and the Extreme Russian Project, pulled off a stunning stunt. He became the first man to wingsuit fly into the mouth of an active volcano and land in its crater. Cocky and confident, he exited the helicopter with a backward salto and flew into the waiting mouth of Mutnovs (Smaragdmedia) – an active volcano on Russia’s  Kamchatka Peninsula.

“After the Russian made the safe landing in the crater, there was no time to celebrate because it was vital to quickly get back out on account of the poisonous gases contained in the volcano’s steam. Rozov was quickly pulled out of the crater with the help of a rope. Only later after returning safely to the base camp did the Russian celebrate the successful landing with his team in the hotel’s own geyser.”

45-year-old multitalented extreme sportsman, Valery Rozov is the founder and leading member of the Russian Extreme Project (REP) – the only independent team in Russia whose goal is to organize unique sports expeditions and events. The company was founded in 2000 and a highly-qualified team of extreme athletes, including himself, was gathered to make the perfect extreme team.

Rozov’s areas of expertise are climbing, BASE jumping, wingsuit flying and the comparatively recent discipline pretty well invented by him – BASE CLIMBING… more on this one later.

The pyschological reasoning behind extreme sports is always being questioned, prodded, probed and wondered about, but as psychologist Dr. Eric Brymer from the Queensland University of Technology says  “The reason (people do extreme sports) is because they understand the environment and the task and their own level of skill and ability – that is emotional, physical, psychological – so well, they are able to control the situation to such a high level that risk really doesn’t come into it.”

After looking at levels of risk taken in sports like sky diving, base jumping and big wave surfing, he has his doubts as to whether the participants of these sports are really taking an unacceptable level of risk. Jumping off the top of a mountain in a suit fitted with wings might sound like a death wish to most people, but there are others who call it the experience of a lifetime and a way to make a living.

Glenn Singleman, BASEjumper and wingsuit flyer, says “Contrary to popular belief, we don’t have a death wish, but we are motivated, driven people with high ambition and we want to know what’s possible.The real question is, ‘when you go beyond your fears, what is possible? What can we use technology to achieve?’ And with the level of technology that’s around now, you can do truly amazing things.”

“Everyone dies, don’t they – but not everyone lives” – Dan Witchalls

“It’s the closest to being a master criminal without committing a crime…” says Witchalls when asked what it is about the sport he loves so much. He has been bitten hard by the basejumping bug, but has no illusions about its dangers: “I think I might die every time…”

BASEjumping is not illegal in England, but trespassing is and it’s the combined thrill of the risk of being caught and the thrill of outwitting security systems to get onto a roof that is almost as big a buzz as the jump itself.

Throwing yourself off tall buildings is addictive to a basejumper, but since 1981 there have been 147 known deaths, including Witchalls’ best friend Neil Queminet.

The real risk with basejumping is not so much injury as death; most accidents are bad accidents, as one blogger on basejumping’s official website warns: “In my short time in this sport I’ve seen two life flight helicopters from the outside, two more from the inside, the back of a police car, several broken bones and a funeral. I’ve also spent three weeks in intensive care and 18 hours in neurosurgery.”

But is that enough of a deterrent? You would think so wouldn’t you, but “See that?” Witchalls says as he prepares to throw himself off a building but taking the time to scan the 360 degree view from his vantage point, “… The stock exchange. Done that,“ …  as he busies himself with some final preparations... “over there, The Shard. Done that. Wembley Stadium. We did that. Security got us when we landed on the pitch.”

Remember that the BASE in basejumping is an acronym for Buildings, Aerials, Spans and Earth. There is a much venerated numbering system for basejumpers: you can apply for an official “base number” when you’ve carried out all four types of jump successfully. Currently around 1,400 base numbers have been allocated.

Sam Wollaston of The Guardian describes BASEjumping as “Russian roulette disguised as extreme sport”. Basejumpers themselves might disagree, but to the idle spectator it certainly looks that way.

Base jumping started out as an underground hobby formalised for the first time in 1978 when a Californian called Carl Boenish made a documentary film of his wife and two friends leaping off a rock in Yosemite National Park. Before long Boenish and his friends were jumping off bridges and electricity masts. They coined the name using the word SPAN for Bridge otherwise it would have been a rather laughable Babe Jumping!

Word began to spread despite Boenish’s own death in 1984 when jumping off a bridge. Some headline moments followed: in 1985 the James bond film A View to a Kill brought base its first big screen appearance, a villainous chase-scene leap from the Eiffel Tower. Five years later the sport made waves in the UK when an Englishman called Russell Powell jumped from the Whispering Gallery inside St Paul’s, a terrifyingly short drop. Two years ago Hervé Le Gallou and an unnamed man from Darlington jumped off Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the tallest building in the world. Le Gallou was later caught trying to repeat the jump and was detained by police for three months.

It is still a fairly shadowy sport because of the illegality of breaking and entering large buildings with the intent of jumping off the roof, but Witchalls is one of its least shadowy figures and the sport’s most visible public face in England. Previous portraits have tended to emphasise the contrast between his vertiginous hobby and the amiable normality of his daily life as an Essex roofer.

Twenty years on from its initial public emergence in the 1990s base jumping still feels like an act of personal rebellion, aligned in spirit with other extreme activities such as ultra-marathons, kitesurfing, and extreme skiing.

The bond of friendship between basejumpers is legendary. “You share incredibly intense moments, things that you don’t experience in normal friendships,” says Ian Richardson. The same sort of friendships can be found in war zones. Shared danger puts a whole new meaning to a good friendship; trust, support and back-up are part of the package.

Ian, however, has been injured twice in a year: a broken leg and battered head in Benidorm and then, having spent a lot of time mending, another injury in Switzerland where he suffered 3 broken ribs, a punctured lung and stuffed elbow. 12 months later, still too injured to jump, he has officially retired.

But they both agree, as would all basejumpers, that it’s like the most powerful drug in the world… despite injuries, it’s a difficult habit to break…

So it’s worth remembering this: if you are going to become a basejumper, it’s best to become a very good one!

Having discussed tombstoning AKA cliff jumping on Saturday, I thought I would show you how it’s done Red Bull style – this is a great video from  MojoSupreme.

Red Bull Cliff Diving Italy 2010 – Competition Highlights

Now that’s extreme!

Cliff diving is growing in expertise and popularity. Red Bull only became involved in 2009 but the sport has grown exponentially since then and high diving has reached a whole new level. These talented athletes continue to push the boundaries of this extreme sport.

We spent a wonderful day down in the Calanques south of Hyeres jumping off rocks of various heights and admiring those intrepid souls who chose the highest cliffs in that particular bay …

… and we got to musing about this sport, one which we had seen profiled on the Beeb not so many days before with various people bemoaning the fact that it was dangerous, extreme, put people’s lives at risk, etc etc etc but at the same time admitting that no-one will ever be able to stop it…

… phew …

That’s why we are all being driven to extremes. All because of Health and Safety stepping in like a bull in the china shop to stop anything that bears a remote relationship to fun with a hint of spice.

What is the modern world coming to?

But back to tombstoning – an attention grabbing name if ever there was one. The name  is thought to have come from the way the body looks – feet first with arms crossed over the upper body, sometimes, as it plunges into the sea, not unlike a body in a tomb or coffin. Plain old ‘cliff jumping’ lacks that certain ‘je ne sais quoi’.

General perception now perceives tombstoning as a foolish, dangerous and ill-thought action rather than a well planned and calculated ‘extreme sport’. It does not need to be an ill-thought action, and drunken louts throwing themselves off any high wall do not help the image of the sport.

Tombstoning can be done with a degree of safety – and the first obvious advice is: DON’T JUMP INTO THE UNKNOWN. It seems obvious doesn’t it but you would be amazed how many people do exactly that. To prevent a blanket ban on this sport some advice should be listened to.That one is numero uno.

The second is a knowledge of the area you are jumping in and taking advice from others. You might watch with admiration someone leaping from the highest cliff and, vipped up with enthusiasm, rush off to do the same – but tides change and you might have left it too late. Also watch the swell of the sea – you can jump safely then be dashed against the rocks. Not pleasant.

Drinking affects judgement and timing – always!

The temperature of the sea is important too – even strong swimmers have drowned and sometimes very close to the shore. It is wise to swim first to acclimatise your body to the temperature – and/or wear a wetsuit.

And you should have a friend nearby to raise the alarm should anything go wrong…

Don’t let that friend pressure you into doing a jump you really don’t want to do. And don’t jump merely to impress your peers…

Done correctly tombstoning is an example of people doing something they enjoy, but understanding that  it can be dangerous and doing what they can to minimise the risks. There’s a good video below, just follow the link:

BBC Radio 1 – About Tombstoning

As you can see, if the risks are mitigated, jumping into water is a relatively low-risk activity.

This sport need not be dangerous. Few of the adrenaline junkies go for the really high or dangerous jumps, and those you see doing such a thing, more often than not, are doing it sensibly – in experienced groups, wearing wetsuits and some form of sea shoes.

Really tombstoning is all about  escapism – never are you freer than when you’re rushing through the air to a relatively soft landing, the rush of adrenaline giving you a natural high that beats any drug.

So, a few words of advice, but now back to how much fun tombstoning, or good old fashioned cliff jumping, (StuartMorris7) can be…

The coast is littered with dangerous sports – surfing, kite surfing, windsurfing, to name just a few. Anything involving the water, if done irresponsibly, is dangerous, and loss of life is always tragic. But doctors don’t tell surfers they’re insane as did a Cornish accident and emergency doctor when describing the tomstoning craze as “utter and complete insanity” . To surf you need a board (£300 upwards), you need to learn to surf (lessons aren’t cheap), and you need, preferably, a 3ft swell or more. To tombstone you need high water, a sensible cliff ledge, and a great big pair of balls!

It’s human nature to strike out of the comfort zone, and tombstoning isn’t going to go away. It’s time to put in place the same measures already taken with other sports to make them safer – such as marking out the spots which are more safe to jump, such as close proximity to beaches with lifeguards, areas where low swells and high tide bring a deep pool of safe water…  and not to berate those who feel the urge to do it and try to put in place a blanket ban.

As for us? Well, we’re planning another trip to the Calanques. The water’s deep, warm and crystal clear; the rocks and cliffs have something for everyone. It couldn’t be better…

If you are anywhere near Sauble Beach on Lake Huron or are looking for something interesting to do the second weekend of September  – then Sauble Beach is the place for you.

Sauble Beach is the setting for a kite festival – the Sauble Beach Kite Jam Festival which starts on Friday, 10th September and finishes on Sunday the 12th. This is a new festival that celebrates all and everything to do with kitesurfing and kiting.  It will be a weekend filled with live music, kite and kitesurfing demonstrations along with a family flying area for these new to the sport.

Lake Huron in Ontario has kilometres of the softest beach sand and most pristine waters in the state. It was voted  “Number one Beach in Ontario” by both the Toronto Star and Maclean’s Magazine. The beautiful sand dunes of Sauble are part of an ecosystem that has evolved over thousands of years.

There was a time following the Second World War when Sauble Beach was among the dancehall capitals of Ontario. Located on the beach, it was a romantic place, just right for Saturday night strolls or cutting a rug to the sounds of many a great band. This festival aims to bring back the strain of big bands to this fabled area.

The roots of the spectacular sport of kite surfing go all the way back  to the 13th century, when Chinese people used kites to harness the energy of the wind to power their canoes across the ocean.

Centuries later, in the 1800’s George Pocock (a British teacher and inventor) took this technique to the next level, by designing bigger kites and using them to propel carts over land.

In the 1980’s, the first kites to be flown over water were designed and thus began the rapid growth in popularity of this exhilarating extreme  sport. Every October,  off the coast of Maui in Hawaii, the world’s most famous Kitesurfing competition, known as ”King of the Air” takes place. During this prestigious event, the most experienced competitors from around the world  represent their country in a sport that is destined to become the most spectacular of this new millennium.

Sauble Beach celebrates the evolvement of this sport and is keen that kite clubs come to the festival to fly demonstrations. For more information please go directly to their website.

They might be hosting the 100% Pure Winter Games in 2011 but there are other attractions (PureNewZealand) to keep those winter sportsmen on a high throughout their visit to New Zealand…

6,000 kms of coastline and easily accessible beaches, points, reefs and bar breaks – that’s impressive for two such  small islands! Wherever you are in the country there is bound to be a good break nearby and because New Zealand is such a long island, you can easily scoot across from one side to the other trying out the left and right hand breakers.  All you have to do is stay tuned in to the local weather station and you’ll be able to tell which coast has the right swell.

The main source of swell for both North and South Island is from the low pressure systems of the roaring forties but New Zealand is fortunate to pick up swell from just about anywhere. Waves can be generated from the south, the west from the Tasman Sea, north from cyclone systems and east from depressions.

It’s a surfers paradise (networxnz) and with that much coastline the waves and beaches are seldom crowded.

And the variety of surf breaks is simply awesome – from clean barrels rolling onto pure white sand beaches on the east coast, to gnarly freight train sets pounding rugged west coast beaches. Check out the ‘supertubes’ with one kilometre long joy rides at Ahipara and the consistently perfect peelers at the hottest surf spot ever, Raglan – a superb left hand point that seems to go on forever and can be found on North Island half way down the west coast. Experience giant steamrollers and Malibu-style wave sets at Murderer’s Bay in Dunedin, as well as velvet-smooth tunnels at Gisborne. If you don’t want to do much driving head for Taranaki Peninsular. Here you’ll find loads of great waves and you can find the ideal wind conditions just by driving around the coast road – Surf Highway 45.

The North Island is  a little warmer than South Island, both in and out of the water, and in the summer you might get away with just your boardshorts.

The South Island, on the other hand, is cold and can get bitter in the winter, but the quality empty surf more than makes up for the temperature. Christchurch and Dunedin on the east coast attracts most of the surfers so if you steer clear of these you’ll pretty much have the rest of the island to yourself!  Top spots on the South Island are the variety of breaks around Dunedin and the powerful reefs and points of Kaikoura.

If you’re already a keen surfer then you’ll love what New Zealand has to offer. If you’ve thought about learning to surf, but never found the time, a New Zealand holiday is your perfect opportunity.

And on top of that, it’s a beautiful country (PureNewZealand) and besides the surfing there’s tonnes of other extreme adventures for you to try out…