Dean Potter, the legendary and controversial climber, wing suit flyer and slackliner, died Saturday in a BASE-jumping accident in Yosemite National Park.
Potter, 43, and Graham Hunt, 29, were reported missing late Saturday. The two had jumped from Taft Point, a scenic overhang, into Yosemite Valley, a descent of roughly 3,500 feet. The men had worn winged body suits for the jump, but it is believed their parachutes had not been deployed.
The 6-foot-5 Potter pursued rock climbing, slack lining and BASE jumping as a form of art, often against heavy criticism for the extreme danger of his feats and for performing them inside national parks and other places where such activities are illegal.
By his mid-20s, Potter became the first person to free climb three-quarters of the way up the face of Half Dome, a feat that took him just over four hours, significantly eclipsing the previous record by more than 16 hours. He later became the first person to free climb in less than 24 hours both Half Dome and El Capitan.
Potter's exploits often provoked controversy. The dangers of BASE jumping, which entails leaping with a parachute from the relatively low altitudes provided by ledges, buildings or antennas, prompted the National Park Service to ban the sport. He was also kicked out of Yosemite several times for staying beyond the park's two-week maximum.
His 2006 ascent of Delicate Arch, the most recognized natural landmark in Utah's Arches National Park, led Patagonia to drop its sponsorship of him. Patagonia at the time said his actions, “compromised access to wild places and generated an inordinate amount of negativity in the climbing community and beyond.” Potter defended his ascent, saying his intention was to inspire people to “get out of their cars and experience the wild with all their senses.”
Last year, Clif Bar withdrew its sponsorship of Potter and four other top climbers, after renouncing activities such as BASE jumping that were, “taking the element of risk to a place where we as a company are no longer willing to go,” according to a Clif Bar statement.
Many acclaimed extreme sports enthusiasts paid their respects to Potter online early this week.
“We as climbers are really good at justifying what we do. And those of us who push the safety aspect convince themselves that they are invincible,” climber Tommy Caldwell told Time magazine. “I definitely felt Dean was invincible and when something like this happens I get shattered and it makes me very introspective and makes us pause and take a reality check.”
Climber Doug Robinson told the BBC: “We're very sad about Dean Potter's death, but not very surprised. He was pushing the envelope all his life.”
“He always recognized how dangerous the sport was and at the same time how magical it was – the tension between those two things,” climber Chris McNamara told Associated Press.
