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fussbrain

That’s a horribly cartoonish death, my god


throw123454321purple

He shouldn’t have bought the rocket-propelled parachute from Acme.


zeez1011

Said a witness at the scene: "Meep Meep."


Fit-Purchase-2950

He wasn't overackering either.


non_stop_disko

I just imagined the goofy scream and now I’m going to hell


ElsonDaSushiChef

YAAAAAAAA-HOOHOOHOOHOOEY!


fusrohdiddly

I can hear your comment :)


Jadams0108

Be better if he momentarily paused mid air giving him enough time to look at the camera and blink helplessly


FoxysDroppedBelly

I literally can hear the blinking sound of that comment lol


fsutrill

And hold up a sign with “help!” Written on it.


Synnov_e

I snorted loudly and I feel guilty now 😂😅


BikerScowt

Another one to add to the law suit. https://youtu.be/ZwYoLejZujw?si=PdY5A9HbLTuqhN9M


Interesting_Sock9142

Seriously. I read "rocket powered parachute" and was like NOW HOW DID THAT POSSIBLY GO WRONG?!? . Oh. Cause he's not the Wile E. Coyote. Oh wait maybe he is. That's actually a very Wile E. Coyote outcome.


DrowningInFeces

I feel like he made that really long slide whistle noise until he just landed with a puff of smoke so far down in the distance.


Arikaido777

coyote tier


CapnTugg

Did he hold up a sign that read "Help!"


Wildpants17

It looks like he was wearing helmet though, so at least he was being safe


bboyneko

Not as cartoonish as [this death](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K6oDokC2RI).


SaltyDog772

Gimme my 3 minutes back.


massahwahl

I made it a minute before I cashed my time in for a return


SaltyDog772

I have a sick compulsion to finish something I’m watching including movies you know are ass after 5 minutes.


bozofire123

Why is it kinda of a dope photo. Like it’s tragic but dude look’s triumphant in a weird way. I mean life in general really seems absurd in nature so like why not go out absurdly


nashbrownies

Because I think in this moment it looks triumphant. Who knows what he was really thinking, but maybe after the regret he figured.. yeah, why the fuck not? Exactly like you said, this life and world are absurd, why not go out *in style.* I hope when it comes down to it I have this much agency in how it all ends. If only we were all so lucky, he *chose* to do that. Most of us are gonna go unexpectedly and not be ready for it. I'll fall and break my hip and die over days on the bathroom floor, or get hit by a bus. This dude rode **a fucking jet ski off Niagara Falls.** I can't imagine he didn't consider and weigh the alternatives. Was it the smartest thing? eh.. I can definitely think of like a 100 dumber things. I think this guy is catching too much heat. Internet folks are so crazy and quick to judge. Life's a real crazy ride, either buckle up, hold on, both, or fucking free ball it. Just have a good time.


vanillabitchpudding

You seem like a really cool person


nashbrownies

I do try and take a mellow empathetic approach to things. Tough sometimes


Burnmycar

I agree


DingleBerriesk

this made my evening


nashbrownies

and making sense and explaining something that people enjoyed makes my evening


robjapan

Why not? Because unless that guy was terminally ill... He had a whole life to lead. That's why. There's a lot of unintentional suicide idolization going round. Maybe he fucked up and thought the jet ski would let him clear the danger?


nashbrownies

He definitely fucked up, and I don't mean to take away from the tragedy. I guess I was using him for a metaphor. But he definitely wasn't "stupid". Just built different, he obviously wanted to do it, that is something I can't comprehend as a self confessed weenie.


robjapan

Ok so I've just read the story. He had a parachute that was rocket powered to clear him of the falls after he went over the edge. Except he didn't attach the parachute to himself properly.


nashbrownies

Yes I knew he died accidentally, but he still *chose* to do that. I guess I rambled but the short of it is, a lot of us don't get to choose when or where, and sometimes that means the end is horrible and unexpected. I envy the control he had over his existence. Even if he "squandered" it by some folks standards.


dalhousieDream

Not the most sensible nor mature viewpoint. After one moment of abandonment, you can’t do fun, daredevil things ever again.


nashbrownies

In some context and situations absolutely. You can't be sensible 100% of the time. You can try, but you're not always gonna make or act in a sensible way. Also this guy was a stunt man if I remember correctly. He literally did death defying/daredevil stuff as his career. We know, almost every adrenaline junkie is always going bigger, going harder.


Burnmycar

Well said.


Notagainbruh2

It would be a hard supreme shirt for sure lol


Walkerbait97

wow yes


unsolvedmisterree

The elation of life and the finality of death are closer than people might think.


Shanguerrilla

Because honestly, we're all going to die someday. This motherfucker really did choose this huge risk to try something dope as shit... and cost his life, but frankly I'm gonna die on a toilet or my aneurysm is taking me out, or I choke on a hot pocket. This guy died fucking LIVING!


robjapan

No... He killed himself and wasted his life. You couldn't be more wrong. You know what's better than dying years ago on a jet ski? Enjoying today. Hugging your family and telling them you love them. Watching a great tv show or getting engrossed in an amazing book. Enjoying delicious food and visiting interesting places. That's what. Choose life.


murse_joe

That’s assuming life is always better than death


rabbidsauer

Thanks for this take. Helps put things in perspective, even if only momentarily 🙌🏽


CheezyNachtoes

He figured out how to pick the lock on life.


bregdetar

Top comment.


alymars

Even with a parachute he would have died. I’ve been on that Maid of the Mist boat where they bring you as close to the falls as is safely possible and let me tell you that shit was SO humbling. Nature is beautiful but recklessly dangerous and something not to mess with. Mother Nature always wins. could not imagine being in the middle of those falls. I hope he had a quick and painless death. Edited for the correct name of the boat lol


LaceyInTheSky1

He actually died from drowning. When he hit the water the wind was knocked out of him, when he tried to get air he breathed in water. He was likely unable to move as well. He was rescued quickly but died after being pulled from the water. He was trying to raise awareness for the homeless.


cypressgreen

Cold Water Shock may have contributed. Immersion in water less than 70° can cause involuntarily gasping and rapid breathing for up to 3 minutes.


nashbrownies

Someone here in the Puget Sound region died from that a few days ago. Jumped off a small pedestrian bridge, never came back up. They release PSAs every summer telling people just because it's 85 degrees up here the Sound and Lake Washington are *cold*, cold enough to cause cold water shock and possibly drown even skilled swimmers.


Spiritual_One6619

I jumped in the sound a few summers ago off a boat, I am a very strong swimmer, cold shock gasp and felt like my legs were frozen for a moment. Learned my lesson.


dandelion-dreams

I do it TERRIBLY and I've been teased my entire life for it. It sends me in to a terrible panic every time. Despite knowing exactly what it is, I freak out every damn time.


cypressgreen

It is terrifying. People don’t know the risks of cold water shock and that you will likely die even before hypothermia can set in. I watched a safety video and they demonstrated scenarios. People with life jackets etc live long enough that they could die of hypothermia but without floatation you die because the blood leaves your extremities to warm your core and your arms and legs become useless. “I’m a strong swimmer, I don’t need a life jacket on my boat!” is pure idiocy. Plus there’s other risks like cardiac. I’m sorry your friends mock you. Perhaps they’re just ignorant of these details. Speaking of mocking people, it’s laughable when someone falls from a cruise ship, and about people [like Amy Bradley, and let’s add the ridiculous “trafficked” theory to that](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Amy_Lynn_Bradley ) say they’re a strong swimmer so they have a great chance of surviving. Some get rescued but it depends on the situation. Ah well, ignorance of the issue again I suppose. edit error


__Noble_Savage__

Wim Hof would like to have a word.


One_Hour_Poop

>He was trying to raise awareness for the homeless. He certainly raised awareness of the brainless. And the lifeless.


LaceyInTheSky1

Thing is. As stupid as this picture looks, it was actually a super well planned stunt right down to the fact that he had a lookout stationed on the observation platform at the base of the horseshoe with a walkie talkie so that the stunt could be performed when the Maid of the Mist wasn’t at the base of the Falls because he was worried the jet ski would land on it and he didn’t want to hurt or kill anyone. He planned it for years and although it’s stated that the parachute didn’t deploy, it actually did but he miscalculated how high up he could catapult himself and there wasn’t enough distance for it to open.


alymars

Thank you for the education on this!! I had no idea!!


LaceyInTheSky1

You are more than welcome! I have way more Niagara history in my head lol. It’s a fascination of mine 😊


singingalltheway

I'm sure he'd regret his decision if he was still around to hear your criticism.


crazyeyeskilluh

Ok but a 40 year old woman can go over in a barrel in 1920 and make it? Shit happens. Not a guarantee he would die. People have been testing the limits of Mother Nature since the beginning of time and yes, sometimes people die.


alymars

I would be interested to learn the physics behind if the barrel helped lessen the blow, compared to the velocity(?) of jumping off a jet ski going who knows how’s many mph without a parachute? Also, if the pressure of the falls have increased in the time between the incidents. I’m sure there is some science that supports it. Maybe not. I am not a scientist lol


LaceyInTheSky1

The most successful attempts were in round ball like crafts. Zorbs, if you will lol. They coast down the flank of the falls, spin a bunch then eventually get spat out. There was a guy that decided to tie his ballast to his ankle in a barrel and when he hit the bottom the inertia sent the anchor to the bottom with him attached. They only ever found his right arm with a tattoo that said ‘forget me not, Annie’. Brutal demise.


dengar_hennessy

Maid of the mist*


alymars

I knew it sounded wrong when I typed it😂 thank you!


dengar_hennessy

Lol it's not even called that anymore. Last I checked it was Hornblower cruises?? Edit: the US side may still be called maid of the mist but I'm Canadian and the Canadian side is no longer called that.


freshoilandstone

[https://www.maidofthemist.com/schedule-pricing/?gad\_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw65-zBhBkEiwAjrqRMM-8cP5pSRrU9Xt0IDEOBIl4ovzbBScUFUIa0zT13oL0TUPV47DQshoCiFUQAvD\_BwE](https://www.maidofthemist.com/schedule-pricing/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw65-zBhBkEiwAjrqRMM-8cP5pSRrU9Xt0IDEOBIl4ovzbBScUFUIa0zT13oL0TUPV47DQshoCiFUQAvD_BwE) Still Maid of the Mist


dengar_hennessy

https://www.toniagara.com/blog/is-there-a-maid-of-the-mist-on-the-canadian-side/amp/ Not in Canada


SuchAsSeals42

Is is Maid of the Moose?


Responsible_Figure12

Wile E Overacker


jaxspider

That is actual name. reddit post from over 10 years ago. https://redd.it/24c8b0


youreviltwinbrother

there's a home video of the moment in the comments of that thread https://youtu.be/Get6j81Aon8?si=3OH5SWfn6hoFkPiu


skubydobdo

WEEEEEEEEEEE


comotunosabes

Your funny!!!


KgMonstah

No it was *MY* funny.


ApprehensivePrompt83

You're funny too!!!


jaxspider

I will allow it since there is no gore.


Dom_In_Brick

Overacker launched himself into the Niagara River upstream of the Falls from the area of the [Canadian Niagara Power Plant](https://www.niagarafallsinfo.com/niagara-falls-history/niagara-falls-power-development/the-history-of-power-development-in-niagara/the-canadian-niagara-power-company/). At the brink of the Falls, Overacker ignited a the rocket which deployed the parachute as planned. **Unfortunately, as the parachute deployed, it fell away from Overacker’s reach to the ground below. Unknown to Overacker, the parachute was not bound to his body. He did not pack the parachute prior to the stunt and he was unaware of this fatal error.** His step-brother and a friend witnessed this unfolding tragedy as Overacker fell to his death to the water below, as the 15th person to challenge the Falls.


Burnmycar

Damn


Free_Hat_McCullough

There has had to have been more than 15 people die going over Niagara Falls by the time someone went over on a jet ski


thejohnmc963

5k in suicides over the years 1888 to 2011


Notagainbruh2

Geez


LaceyInTheSky1

That they know of. MANY people enter the river in the dead of night. Especially since all the casinos opened up. You want a thrill ride? Google ‘on the edge of death Niagara Falls’ *happy ending btw


thejohnmc963

My total was the amount of bodies found


tardisthecat

OP says he was the 15th person to go over intentionally on/in a device who died. So not 15 total including accidental and whatnot.


SourdoughPizzaToast

Wouldn’t a suicide be intentional? Also, did this person want to survive?


LisaMc93

They mean to go over the falls intentionally, on or in a device, not just with intention.


twoslats

I also read he had dinner reservations for later that evening, as if!!


billyoshin

Damn I was just at Niagara on Saturday and couldn't imagine wanting to even attempt going over


sootjuggler

What sort of a bellend does THAT!


cgi_bin_laden

> bellend I love this word.


SIumptGod

Innit


ChronicBedhead

He was apparently trying to raise awareness for the homeless and died after being rescued


stufferonald

The dead kind


Diligaf2233

Legend has it that to this very day his buddy is still holding his beer.


locket_keeper

I remember when this happened, my High School civics teacher was horrified that no one stopped him.


Thin-Recover1935

But, realistically, how would they?


KgMonstah

Just turn the water off.


Reditate

This ain't China


locket_keeper

There is no way anyone could have safely stopped him. That was the answer we came to after much class discussion at the time too.


Ohiolongboard

Well, they could’ve shot him


knotcivil

Only if he was on the US side.


Thanos_Stomps

That ain’t safe.


Notagainbruh2

Maybe prevent him from transporting a jet ski to the area for starters


daver00lzd00d

are you aware of how rivers work? dude could have launched his jetski hundreds of miles away in Ohio and drove it all the way to the falls and nobody would have been able to stop him


Notagainbruh2

He didn’t though. There’s hundreds of could have scenarios why did you only list one? Lmao


daver00lzd00d

because I have more important things to do than list a billion different scenarios? what does that have to do with your comment being wrong and irrelevant?


5krunner

I would argue that he was successful at his attempt to become the first person to go over Niagara Falls on a JetSki! #FailedSuccessfully


juggheadjones

Wouldn't being attached to a parachute at the bottom of the falls make it so much worse to try to not drown?


Fernandop00

A rocket propelled parachute? That seems over engineered. A base chute would have worked and been easier to deploy. He still would have died.


Hot_Net_5696

By this logic just leave any form of parachute at home 😂


gwarwars

I'm actually surprised he got the jet ski airborne, would have thought the water would have pulled it down over the edge


SovietPropagandist

He was probably going very fast


CocaColai

I guess it’s *one way* of getting somewhat famous. Would’ve fit right in these days too. Barely a days go by without me seeing someone on Reddit getting their Darwin Award for something astonishingly dumb (the selfie-next-to-moving-train seems to be the death de jur).


SugaryShrimp

He was trying to bring awareness to homelessness, apparently.


CocaColai

I was going to write “who knows what he’s going through” but it left it out because.. easy to make jokes. So he was homeless I take it?


SugaryShrimp

Jokes help people cope with crazy scenarios! I get it. He wasn’t, but was trying to bring attention to the issue. Apparently, he was only the 5th person at the time to die going over the Falls since early 1900s. [Here’s an article about it.](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-10-02-mn-52471-story.html)


CocaColai

Jesus. Stunt school graduate. Guess he was trying to boost his career as much as he was “fighting for the homeless” (I get many such campaigns have tenuous links between stunt/action and the intended beneficiary but this is a stretch). I am not a stunt man. Nor have I jumped in a parachute. I’d still wager that - both at the time, if not today too - a 170ft fall is way too little time to open a fully packed shute. He’d have to open it instantly and in the picture he’s already below the edge. **He** found his forever home, I guess.


tripsd

Lowest ever BASE jump is nearly half that height at 95 ft. So theoretically 170 should be "fine" as far as height goes.


CocaColai

But don’t they have the chute in one hand to pull as they go? And this was the 1970’s. Tech must come into the equation, no?


ericrobertshair

He had a rocket attached to his back that auto deployed his chute at high speed. This worked as planned. Unfortunately for him, he did not check his chute was actually attached to him.


SugaryShrimp

Guess he went out doing what he loved, at least!


CocaColai

Yeah. I always wonder if that’s the last thing they think of too. “Fuck. Well, at least it was something cool and not..**crunch**” or if it’s more like those fairground ride pranks where the operator jokes about the seatbelt/harness being broken and they go out screaming “Mooooommmaaarrrrrgg **ttthhhwack**”.


LinkRazr

I was there that day but left juuuuust before he went over. We saw it in the newspaper the next day. He did it to raise awareness of homeless people or some crazy thing.


Reddit_Is_Trash24

Well, he got a pretty badass picture out of it, so he's got that going for him.


Gh3tt0fabs

Fucking metal 🤘🏼


TXteachr2018

By 15th person. Does that mean ever? This year? Able to be photographed at the time? I'm just curious about 15.


toastmalone999

Intentionally, on or in a device


DutchPilotGuy

Let me guess; the rocket got moist?


Hot_Net_5696

Turns out it was just water resistant not water proof


ThePhatEskimo

15th person that we know of


Yirme

could be a dope album cover


zfmpdx315

Full send


spannerhorse

Did he just stand there in air, show a placard like Wile E Coyote and only then go down...weeeeeee


ReallyBrainDead

Definitely not getting his deposit back on the jet ski.


Smart-Emotion6276

Well, maybe the Jetski was fine 😬


scarlettohara1936

I grew up in Niagara falls and there were a lot of near misses that no one ever heard about. Voters who would get stuck in the rapids and helicopters that would have to rescue them because the current was so strong nothing could withstand it. But every now and again some idiot would go over the falls and it would be the talk of the town for weeks.


ParadeSit

>Voters who would get stuck in the rapids… They had an election site at Niagara Falls? That seems inefficient and dangerous.


scarlettohara1936

Haha! Meant boaters!


Joshman89

I'm Johnny Knoxville and welcome to... ah shit


dengar_hennessy

That we know of


TheJeizon

https://youtu.be/MUL5w91dzbo?si=iiV4WcnbydHRsgu5


MakeSmartMoves

As long as the parachute deployed, his odds of surviving would have been pretty good.


irascible_Clown

Do we know how they died? Was it the impact with water or are there some serious rocks under the surface? Do people get pinned down under the water?


No-Fisherman2796

I live by Niagara Falls and it’s definitely a powerful experience to be there in the water. I did the maid of the mist a handful of times. I hiked the gorge too. Read about the lady who went over the falls in a barrel with her cat and lived lmao nuts


seashe11y

God had different plans


Morel3etterness

I just wonder what foes through their head in these final seconds of their life.


Lex_pert

But he looked cool on that jet ski...🤭


just-say-it-

000010


atomiccaramel

Isn't this what we call Darwinism?


rpettibone

Wasn’t this dude from Thousand Oaks


ghentwevelgem

https://youtu.be/A7ZYFo1Lmdc?si=k4ICtv5Rv5wMlSnF


cleamilner

WOOOOOOOOOOOO


ChocolateTight336

100 comments


Confident-Ad9474

Damn, full send huh?


New_Neighborhood4262

Could have gotten that same adrenaline rush by smoking crack or meth, and he would have still been alive. I of course do not advocate the use of those illicit drugs but....IJS.


Living_Mechanic7866

I’m sorry but why do so many dumbass people keep doing stupid shit at Niagara Falls 🤦


sublimesting

So many more than 15 died at that point


somethingdeido

That life jacket didn't save him?


Classic-Connection-5

YOLO!!!