14/octubre/2008
| Extreme parachuting over the Straits of Gibraltar |
| Redacción | |
| 23/junio/2005 | |
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Within the sports that we usually like in the magazine, we gather this news of parachuting. Alvaro Bulk, Santi Corella and Toni Lopez, of the equipment Network Bull, finishes crossing the Straits of Gibraltar in free fall of parachute. A flight from Africa to Spain. If you think that the man cannot fly, you would have to read the information that provides the Equipment to us Network Bull first. The parachutists of the Red Bull “Skydive Empuriabrava” Santi Corella and Toni Lopez and the sportsman of adventure Alvaro Bulk have managed their challenge to cross the Straits of Gibraltar in free fall with the help of a monkey of wings. The three saltadores have been able to cover 14,8 km with distance that separate the coasts of Morocco and the beach of Getares, in Algeciras. To 9,30 of today Thursdays 23 they jumped on 35,000 feet of height on the African coasts, landing minutes later in beaches located in front of the Rock of Gibraltar.  Finally, they have been able to unite the coasts of both continents third of the four days that they had programmed for the challenge. “We depended on the atmospheric conditions to obtain it”, explains Toni Lopez, “since we could not jump with face wind, because it would be like swimming con current. Today we have had luck with the climatology and winds and have been able to complete the jump. Something that we began to see difficult, since the forecasts for all this week were so bad that we saw it really complicated”. The three saltadores have been forced to change their initial plans to land in Tariff in favor of Algeciras, to be able to take advantage of tailwinds. The C-130 Hercules of the Air Force took off to 6,15 of Aerial Base of Morón of the Border, course to Morocco. Once there, the phase of ascent begins until the 35,000 feet. To that height, located already in the stratosphere, they are essential systems of auxiliary breathing. “We have received much formation on the part of the Army to dominate the oxygen equipment perfectly, including stays in a hypobaric camera to reduce the hypoxia risk during the fall (oxygen deficit in the organism that can take to lose the knowledge)”, precise Santi Corella. But a problem during the phase of previous breathing has been on the verge of aborting the mission. “We have had from the beginning to resume all the adaptation to the auxiliary breathing, delaying to the jump one hour and increasing the nerves by the fear to that everything was aborted”, it comments Alvaro Bulk. Once solved these problems, the jump has taken place to 9.30. “The first that we have felt has been a cold slap, something that already we waited for, because to that altitude the temperature was of -50º, and arrives until -70º with the factor of the wind”, tells to Toni Lopez. In order to resist it, they counted on four layers of clothes developed specially for this project. Yet, when landing all presented/displayed slight symptoms of freezing in their faces. “At the outset, we have felt somewhat displaced. We had never jumped to as much height, and between ice particles in suspension and the fog, as soon as we had vision of the coasts of Morocco”, Santi Corella explains. A vital factor, because when taking the completely prim arms, cannot consult no GPS in flight and have to resort to visual references to orient itself. “In addition, we have felt certain nervousness, because to as much height, we did not have speed sensation, to advance with respect to the ground”, it indicates Alvaro Bulk. Nevertheless, soon they have obtained the tension necessary to remove all the aerodynamic efficiency to the suit. “It has been a tension and enormous concentration. We have only been able to relax to us when we arrived at the Bay of Algeciras. By the knowledge euphoria that we had obtained the challenge, but also by the security to leave back the water. If we had not reached earth, the rescue with the 20 kg of material that we took is really complicated”, explains more relaxed Toni already Lopez. “It is as if still we had not digested it”, it confesses Alvaro Bulk. “They have been three years of hard training for this challenge, and still it seems to us something unreal. It has really been to fulfill a dream”. A dream that all we have felt sometimes: the old dream to fly. Monkey with wings: a suit to size The monkey of wings is almost as old as the sport parachuting. It had a first development between years 30 and 50, agreeing with the appearance of the first aerial spectacles in EE.UU. Pero 70 of the 72 pioneers died in the course of some aerial exhibition in those years. By its danger, this discipline fell in the forgetfulness until in the 80 Patrick de Gallardon, innovator French parachutist responsible also for skysurf (fallen it frees moored to a table similar to those of surf), adapted the monkeys to the modern technologies. It made wings that united arms and legs with the techniques of own air intake of the parachute. It advanced remarkably, but also it died proving his invention. “Years ago, I agreed in a symposium with a young Finn whom it loved to continue the work from where Patrick left” Santi account it. “It collaborated with a university, developing it in the tunnel of the wind to be able to jump with guarantees”. Since then, the three saltadores have been proving each prototype of the suit, until arriving at this fourth generation that they have used in his adventure. The present suits have a membrane that unites arms and legs and is able to diminish the fall remarkably. Whereas in a normal jump the speed of fall usually goes up to around the 200 km/h, and in the best one of the cases is reached 30 a approximate horizontal speed of km/h, the monkey with wings reduces the speed of 60 fall to km/h, and allows to advance horizontally to a 170 average of km/h., being reached even speeds of up to 257 km/h. “We have from within lived the development on the monkeys”, explains Santi Corella. “Nobody has given advice us, since we have not been able to base on the experiences of others. We have been proving, analyzing our yields, discovering failures and improving”. The flight technique also defers much from the traditional parachuting. “Once we jumped from the back door of the Hercules, must adopt the flight attitude and try to maintain to us rigid and tension to obtain the maximum yield”, it indicates Alvaro Bulk. Something tremendously exhausting, since the duration of its jumps goes up to around the 7 minutes, whereas a normal saltador as soon as it surpasses the minute in free fall. The sensations also are completely different. “Instead of falling, you have the perception of which truely you are flying. Mainly if you play between broken clouds or you animate yourself with some acrobatic maneuvers, as if you were a bird”, describes Santi Corella. “It seems lie that after as much time practicing this sport, still can be discovered new sensations and of as much intensity, so near which we have always persecuted: to fly…” Saltadores Alvaro Bulk (Barcelona, 1962) Sport multiadventure Champion Spain Motocross Champion Spain de Rallies Champion of the World of Maratón de Ríos Santi Corella (Calatayud, 1962) Professional Saltador 10 years in the Spanish National Equipment of free fall 17 titles of Nacional Champion Participant in 3 record of world and 2 Guiness record Toni Lopez (Sidi-Ifni, 1964) Professional Saltador 10 years in the Spanish National Equipment of free fall 17 titles of Nacional Champion Participant in 2 record of the world and 1 Guiness record Note of press and images provided by Red Bull |
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