BASE Jumping Essay Example

Imagine standing on a thin wire thousands of feet above New York City while cars and people rush around beneath you. This is exactly what happened when French acrobat Phillip Petit successfully walked across a thin metal wire that was strung between the Twin Towers of New York City's World Trade Center in 1973. This man took his life in his hands and endangered people below him which precisely demonstrates how extreme sports are unsafe and can be a danger for the athlete and the bystanders. Extreme sports have become increasingly risky as more athletes perform daring physical stunts. 

Extreme sports can also have mental consequences for an athlete. For instance, extreme sports focus on individual achievement rather than teamwork. One article points out that “Extreme sports typically focus on individual feats of athletic achievement rather than on teamwork¨ (Extreme Sports). Consequently, extreme sports emphasize personal accomplishment rather than teamwork like traditional sports. Extreme sports negatively affect individuals by not teaching them to be sociable and other valuable life skills. Furthermore, extreme sports can potentially expose athletes to dangerous physical stunts. For example, ¨In any event, around the time that extreme-style sports were becoming established, athletes were also performing increasingly daring physical stunts¨ (Extreme Sports). Extreme sports result in athletes performing risky stunts that can potentially injure the athlete. Moreover, a doctor claimed that one extreme sport involving motorcycles could cause injuries to an athlete and even result in death. He stated ¨I have treated several motocross riders who suffered broken necks that left them paralyzed. One of my patients lost his leg in an ATV accident. Massive head trauma that can cause permanent brain damage and even death is a genuine possibility. The most advanced protective equipment can't prevent injuries¨ (Thrill Seeking…). Evidently, this shows how extreme sports can cause severe injuries that even highly advanced protective equipment can’t prevent. 

Extreme sports can exponentially be more challenging and high-risk than traditional sports. A high-risk extreme sport is BASE jumping which is a very hazardous sport. ¨Other recent controversial events have involved BASE jumping, a form of low-altitude parachuting that is indisputably one of the most dangerous extreme sports¨ (Extreme Sports). BASE jumping can be very risky for an athlete as opposed to traditional sports. Athletes performing this sport are potentially endangering their lives. ¨Consequently, BASE jumpers run a heightened risk of injury or death if their parachutes do not open fast enough or if they collide with objects that they do not have sufficient time to avoid¨ (Should young people…). For that reason, if a BASE jumper's parachute does not open quickly enough or they collide with objects, they can have a higher risk of being injured or dying. BASE jumping can not only vastly endanger the life of the athlete performing the high-risk stunt. BASE jumping can also put any surrounding bystanders in harm's way. ¨Critics argued that BASE jumping was an irresponsible stunt, not an actual sport, that endangered both the jumpers themselves and any bystanders who happen to be in their landing areas¨ (Thrill Seeking…). For these reasons, BASE jumping is a reckless sport because they are putting themselves and others at unnecessary risk.