Going With The Flow

Guillaume Néry is a French freediver (underwater diving which relies on the diver holding his/her breath) who has been the world record holder multiple times, ultimately reaching -117m during a dive near Kalamata, Greece.

In case you're interested in knowing, the current records for constant weight apnea (like what Néry is practicing) is set at -128m, while the record for no-limits apnea (where they stand still and use a weight to take them down, and then an inflatable bag to bring them back up) is set at -214m! (source)

Here he is freely riding the current.





I'm amazed by how long he can hold his breath (yes, this might have taken multiple takes, but still very impressive).

When I go to use the restroom at work, sometimes there is this unimaginable stink from people doing number twos (seriously, what do these people eat, and why don't they go at home?), and I try to hold my breath as best as I can. Well, the best that I can seems to be only 20sec. Freedivers of this guy's caliber easily reach the 3min mark, and many can go beyond 5min, while swimming at the same time. Simply amazing.

Here's another great film featuring him, and based on the hallucinations he sometimes gets when diving:





(source)

Loop Da Loop

This reminded me of my childhood.
Although, I was more of a Matchbox fan than a Hot Wheels one.

Today I learnt (from Wikipedia of course) that the two used to be competitors until 1997 when Mattel (the owner of Hot Wheels) bought Tyco Toys (owner of Matchbox). I hate monopolies and soulless multinationals. No competition, no progress (or at most slow progress). 

In any case... moving along...

Here are Team Hot Wheels drivers, Tanner Foust and Greg Tracy, racing two vehicles through a six-story double vertical loop in 2012 at Los Angeles.




Mighty impressive! ^{(despite the dreadfully anticlimactic sound and editing)}

And here's Team Green driver (part of Team Hot Wheels I presume), Brent Fletcher, attempting a World Record Corkscrew jump in a revved up performance buggy. 






Finally, here's Team Hot Wheels (Yellow) driver Tanner Foust breaking the world record for a distance jump in a four-wheeled vehicle at the Indianapolis 500 on May 29th 2011. He drops almost 10 stories down (although I'm not convinced that that was actually necessary) and "flies" 101m through the air.





(source)

Felix Baumgartner's Record Breaking Jump (in HD)

From Wikipedia:

"On 14 October 2012, Felix Baumgartner flew approximately 39kilometres (24mi) into the stratosphere over New Mexico, United States, in a helium balloon before free falling in a pressure suit and then parachuting to Earth. The total jump, from leaving the capsule to landing on the ground, lasted approximately ten minutes. While the free fall was initially expected to last between five and six minutes, Baumgartner deployed his parachute after 4 minutes and 19 seconds.  

Reaching 1,357.64 km/h (843.6 mph)—Mach 1.25—Baumgartner became the first human to break the sound barrier without any form of engine power. Preliminary measurements show Baumgartner also broke two other world records. With a final altitude of 38,969 m (127,851 ft) (23.3884 miles), Baumgartner broke the unofficial record for the highest manned balloon flight of 37,640 m (123,491 ft) previously set by Nicholas Piantanida. He also broke the record for the highest altitude jump, set in 1960 by retired USAF Colonel Joseph Kittinger, who was Baumgartner's mentor and capsule communicator at mission control."

Joseph Kittinger is the voice guiding him in the video.

At 03:44 just wow.
Enjoy in HD of course.

(source)