Dean climbs a mountain without any safety gear, then jumps off and lands via parachute.
Whether leaping from the world-renowned summit of Switzerland’s Eiger Mountain, wingsuit flying through the air, or tightrope walking across a 30-foot line suspended hundreds of meters above a river valley, American adventurer Dean Potter handles it all with ease.
At 38 years old, Dean repeatedly challenges the limits of human endurance. Highly respected in the extreme sports community, these incredible photos offer a glimpse into his abilities. Captured by his friend and climbing partner, Bert Kammerlander, the images showcase Dean performing a series of climbs, jumps, and highlines around the globe.
Most breathtaking of all is Dean’s first-ever ascent of Switzerland’s 13,000-foot Eiger Mountain using his freeBASE climbing technique—a fusion of free soloing and BASE jumping. FreeBASE combines free soloing (climbing a mountain without any safety equipment) with BASE jumping (leaping from skyscrapers, mountaintops, or bridges, gliding through the air, and landing with a parachute).
A standard parachute weighs 14 pounds, which is still too heavy for climbing. To solve this, Dean designed a six-pound parachute that fits into a small pack worn on his back.
With this new parachute, he can climb to previously unimaginable heights, knowing that if he slips or can’t continue, he has a safety net to ensure his descent.
As a result, in the summer of 2008, he became the first person to freeBASE climb to the summit of the Eiger and then parachute back to the ground.