#7 Matt Blank: The psychology of BASE jumping

Have you ever wondered what would compel a human being to not only jump out of an airplane but to take it one step further and throw themselves off an inanimate object like a building or cliff with a parachute strapped on?

First, we get into how Matt grew up in Southern California and after earning a degree in Psychology from UC Irvine, became a professional athlete in the world of rock climbing and BASE jumping. Both of those gave him the ability to travel the world as he continued to refine his skills and long the way meet incredible people.

Matt then opens up about his experience watching his best friend die during a BASE jump in Turkey and the journey he went through afterward to celebrate that life which became the centerpiece of the 2016 award-winning documentary “When We Were Knights”.

There’s a lot more that goes into BASE jumping than just making a crazy GoPro video and Matt dispels some of the misconceptions about BASE jumping as well as explaining how he continues to refine his skill in the sport.

This episode gets a little deep at times but also has beautifully uplifting moments, especially when Matt describes some of his most memorable jumps!

Additional Links

When We Were Knights Film:

https://www.mountainfilm.org/media/when-we-were-knights

Matt Blank Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/mattblanket/

Next Level WS Website:

https://nextlevel.ws/courses/base-training

Beautiful Stories From Anonymous People Podcast:

Beautiful Stories From Anonymous People

Rockreation, Costa Mesa:

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