Nik Wallenda's
Historic Wire Walk across Niagara Falls

The Historic Wire Walk across Niagara Falls!

Daredevil Nik Wallenda has successfully crossed Niagara Falls on June 15, 2012. The walk began at 10:16 pm from the US side of Niagara Falls and ended in the Canadian side at 10:41 pm. Although the weather conditions were good, mist swirled around him creating some difficulties during some parts of the walk. About the historic 25-minutes walk Nik says "The mist was so thick, so challenging, those winds hit me from every direction. There was no way to focus on the movement of the cable. If I looked down at the cable there was water moving everywhere. And if I looked up there was heavy mist blowing in front of my face. So it was a very unique, a weird sensation."

During the walk he spoke to his father and ABC broadcasters using a microphone. At the middle of the historic wire walk Nik Wallenda expressed fatigue. He said "I'm strained, I'm drained. This is so physical, not only mental but physical." He also thought about his great-grandfather and hero during the walk. He said "That's what this is all about, paying tribute to my ancestors, and my hero, Karl Wallenda."

He said "This is what dreams are made of, people". He further said this is the result of "a lot of praying, that's for sure. But, you know, it's all about the concentration, the focus, and the training."

Along the way, he prayed aloud. As he reached close to the finishing line, he smiled, run... and at last was greeted by his wife, children and a cheering crowd estimated over 120,000.

Many daredevils crossed Niagara Falls by walking over a wire since after The Great Blondin had walked in 1859. But no one could do a walk directly over the falls. Yes, this is a great feat of this century. Nothing spoils the greatness of this event. This is no doubt, historic!

"I am so blessed to be in the position I am, that I will be the first person in the world to walk directly over Niagara Falls on a tightrope," Nik said.

After the historic walk across Niagara Falls, Wallenda stated that he's now thinking of his next challenge to walk across the Grand Canyon, a steep-sided gorge carved by the Colorado River in the United States. And we wish him every success in his new venture!

The Iconic Tightrope Walk across the American and Horseshoe Falls

Unique one-time approval for the stunt

After a long waiting and time-consuming negotiations, the Ontario Parks Commission approved a one-time exemption in to allow Wallenda to attempt a single crossing, reversing the 128-year ban on stunts.

Niagara Parks chairwoman Janice Thomson had said the approval was a "unique one-time situation" and that Mr. Wallenda was able to prove he had proper controls and safety measures in place. She also said the commission would only consider requests for such events from skilled professionals once every 20 years.

Brief History of Nik Wallenda

Nikolas Wallenda, known as Nik Wallenda born January 24, 1979 at Sarasota, Florida. He began performing with his family at the age of two. He belongs to the seventh generation of the Wallenda Family. He began walking wire at the age 4. His first professional wire performance was at the age of 13.

At the age of 19, Nik participated in the re-creation of Karl Wallenda's seven-person pyramid on the highwire in Detroit, Michigan by his father. The Wallendas' zest for living life on the line has been passed down from generation to generation - over 200 years. It all started with great-grandfather, Karl Wallenda.

Nik Wallenda - Marriage

In 1999, Wallenda proposed to his future wife Erendira, on bended knee on a wire 30 feet (9.1 m) high during a performance. Nik says about this "Everybody climbed down," he said. "I stayed up on the wire. My girlfriend was in the audience. I walked to the middle of the wire, knelt and asked her to marry me in front of 25,000 people." His girlfriend, Erendira, said "yes," and now they have three children, - Yanni, Amadaos and Evita. Wallenda and his wife own and operate Wallendas Inc., a premier entertainment company.

Upon establishing himself as a highwire entertainer, In 2001, he appeared at Japan's Kurashiki Tivoli Park in a family troupe that set the Guinness World Record for an eight-person pyramid on the high wire. The Wallendas first came to America in 1928 at the behest of John Ringling. Legend goes, their net was lost in shipping, so they worked netless 55 feet high in Madison Square Garden. After the act, they heard yelling. The Wallendas thought they would be fired on the spot. Instead, they were given a 15-minute standing ovation. "They never used a net from then on," said Wallenda. "It's about carrying on the legacy and doing something I love and have a passion for," Wallenda said.

'Mother and Son'

Nik's mother, Delilah, probably, is his biggest fan. He uses suede-leather shoes, his mother makes for him, which doesn't become slippery when wet, and it become stickier with moisture. In 1978, when Nik planned to walk by himself across a 300 foot long wire, but his mother convinced him to let her join him on the fatal stunt. Initially he rejected a request by his mother, Delilah wallenda, to join him, "Just because of safety, "we have lost several family members doing this. But Delilah wallenda, who is in her late 50s, eventually won over him. He said: "I have mentally prepared my entire life for this. I have seen the great video of my great grandfather falling hundreds of times." Nik carried a 45-lb balancing pole, while Delilah wallenda carried a 25-lb pole. The 'mother and son' team walked slowly towards each other, balancing on a wire. Nik Wlallenda was wearing a shoe made by his mother. They met at the middle. Delilah wallenda sat on the wire while while her son stepped over her in slow motion.

Inspiration for Stunt

He cited his great-grandfather Karl Wallenda as his primary inspiration for the stunt. To quote him "My grandfather said, 'Life is being on the wire; everything else is just waiting.' To me, I'm alive when I'm on the wire."