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Audio By Carbonatix
Two men from Germany, Luka Irmler and Friedi Kuehne, just set a slackining world record (highlining) that is so outrageous it is potentially worth questioning the sanity of anyone willing to tackled a record like they. The set the ‘highline world record’ when they slacklined back and forth between two hot air balloons at approximately 8,202 feet (2,500 meters).
Their record-setting feat broke the previous ‘highest’ slacklining world record by almost 2,000 feet (600 meters / 1,968ft) when they went back and forth between the balloons well over a mile in the sky and high above the clouds. Footage from their world record attempt is wild. Seeing them up this high and NOT wearing a safety parachute is surreal.
More footage from his Instagram:
They are tethered to the slackline with a safety rope to prevent them from careening back to earth at terminal velocity if they slipped off the slackline but I can’t wrap my mind around them not wearing safety parachutes. There are so many moving parts here as well. The balloons aren’t perfectly even because they are so high up in the sky. Winds are ripping at that altitude. Yet they were able to somehow hold on.
This isn’t Friedi Kühne’s first slacklining world record. He has held multiple world records including the ‘longest waterline over a strong current,’ ‘longest urban highline,’ ‘longest free solo highline,’ and many more.
In fact, it wasn’t until diving into Friedi’s history that I knew many of these world records were even out there. Suffice it to say, this man has some of the best body control and balance of any person on planet earth.