Press Release from Incredible Adventures
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IA Press
For Immediate Release: September 1, 2017
Contact: Gregory Claxton or Jane Reifert
800-644-7382 or 941-346-2603
info@sharkdiveadventures.com
Skydivers Enjoy View and Set Records During
August 21 Solar Eclipse
Florida-based Incredible Adventures teamed with a group of skydiving professionals led by Special Forces veteran Kevin Holbrook to deliver a series of rare and record-setting high-altitude skydives on the day of the eclipse.
September 1, 2017 - A series of rare, military-style, high-altitude skydives took place over Portland, TN on August 21, both during and after the day’s total eclipse. Accompanied by a team of elite jump professionals, an international group of adventurers made both tandem “HAHO” and “HALO” jumps, enjoying an unrivaled view of the sky and setting several records.
Accompanied by a team of elite jump professionals, three Canadians, including international businessman and philanthropist Frank Giustra, completed tandem HAHO jumps that kept them in the air nearly 30 minutes during the day’s total and partial eclipse. They became the first to ever make high-altitude tandem jumps during a total eclipse. They were fitted with special eclipse-viewing goggles and supplemental oxygen for their jumps.
In the military, the special-purpose skydives accomplish two different missions. “HAHO” jumps are performed by exiting at high-altitude and quickly deploying parachutes, and allow skydivers to remain airborne long enough to fly to a target 30 or more miles away. “HALO” jumps accomplish the opposite and get troops on the ground quickly. When performing a “HALO” jump, skydivers exit from high-altitude and wait to deploy chutes until they are the minimum safe distance from the ground. Skydivers fall toward earth at speeds that can exceed 200 mph, reaching their target on the ground quickly.
“It was surreal to watch a dark shadow cast over the ground below us as a halo of light remained on the horizon,” said Giustra, who skydived with friends, to celebrate his 60th birthday.
While Giustra and his friends were in the air, skydivers from Ohio, California and the US Virgin Islands watched the total eclipse from the airport, and prepared for their time under canopy. A record was set for the most high-altitude tandem jumps performed in a single day, and Ken Leblanc of Ohio became the oldest civilian to ever make back-to-back HAHO and HALO jumps.
The eclipse day skydives were arranged by Florida-based adventure company Incredible Adventures, in partnership with a team of military-trained skydiving professionals, led by Special Forces veteran Kevin Holbrook. Incredible Adventures is best known for offering MiG fighter jet flights to the edge of space and has been offering extreme skydiving adventures since 2003.
Due to the success of the first-ever high-altitude eclipse event, Holbrook and Incredible Adventures CEO Gregory Claxton have already started planning for 2024, when the next total eclipse is slated to take place over the United States.
For more information, visit www.skydivehigh.com.
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