But the fact is surely that he risks death, and the risk is greater than zero, whatever the level of his skill, because some mishap of mental, physical or internal physiological performance is always possible, given that our bodies are not unvarying machines. So given the non zero risk of an unfortunate outcome, there is the possibility of Dean Potter’s brave adventure slipping out of control and ending his life with a gruesome splatter when his body meets rock thousands of feet below.

But this possibility is surely very small, given that good tightrope walkers can cook scrambled eggs on a stove and eat them high above Niagara Falls, as was done many years ago. It seems possible that the risk for Potter may not be greater than for the average senior citizen crossing the street.

The rest is imagination, which terrifies the couch potatoes here but doesn’t trouble the highly experienced. Would the naysayers object to setting up a video of their grandfather crossing a busy intersection? Presumably not. They wouldn’t even watch it.

That said, it does seem that the possibility of error is what charges Potter and sends his adrenaline pumping and his emotions sky high into the sublime, as his level of control has to be total at all times. That the possibility of error should be his ticket to ecstatic nirvana seems a little crazy by definition, since there are other ways of achieving it in life, such as doing really good and focused thinking on some constructive topic which will advance human understanding and happiness in some way, rather than just amaze them with the extent to which one human can push the edge solo.

On the other hand, so much of what fills human minds these days is fairly out of touch with reality, including most of what is written on the Web, and at least Potter is not ruining half the homesteads in America by pursuing fantasy for selfish gain, like the crooks of Wall Street. He is just showing the amazing edge of what can be done if you develop enough skill and control, just as the guys who loop the loop on crossed skis as they jump over snow.

In other words, he is achieving Nirvana his way, educating and amazing us in the process, teaching us that things we thought inconceivably dangerous can be controlled, and all at a very small risk possibly no greater than dying by kitchen fire.

The only thing one hopes for is that as his powers decline with age he will have the sense to stop before the risk expands too much.

[...]prAna blog » Dean Potter – on the line, solo at Taft Point[...]…