bdrake529
July 13th, 2011, 01:41 AM
I'm sorry to inform you that our friend Jeremy Graczyk has died while jumping the Eiger from the Mushroom exit.
The information we have is limited as the police are still not releasing all available evidence. Here is what we do know for a fact so far. More definitive information will be added when it is available from reliable sources.
Jeremy hiked the Eiger with one other jumper. Both men were in good physical shape and made the hike in 1 hour and 45 minutes, without fatigue. They were in high spirits when they reached the Mushroom. The weather conditions at the Mushroom were ideal as well as the in the landing zone, but they were jumping around noon and the face of the Eiger was in deep shadow. Jeremy filmed the first jumper's exit, who was using a tracking suit. Jeremy then exited by himself, also wearing a tracking suit. His body was found out of the bowl, on the talus. At this point, it is unclear whether there was intentional canopy extraction, as the police have not officially released the complete eyewitness account, nor allowed close inspection of the gear (the police have indicated they will do so this afternoon).
Jeremy was jumping a GoPro, but the police have yet to recover the video of the actual jump. The first jumper successfully tracked out of the bowl, and landed on a hill where his view of the jump was obstructed by terrain. About 8 minutes after he landed, he saw the rescue helicopter which was his first indication that something was wrong. There were some hikers that reportedly had direct view of the impact, but the police have yet to release their comments. Once the GoPro footage is recovered, the eye-witness account released, and the gear inspected (all anticipated to be done later this afternoon), we will have a better informed idea of what actually happened.
Jeremy was a relatively new jumper, but by all accounts, was very heads up and methodical and of average technical skill. Jeremy had jumped several terminal antennas, tracked a large terminal wall in the US, was in Kjerag tracking before coming to Lauterbrunnen, and had been tracking from Yellow Ocean, La Mouse, and High Nose with decent tracks.
Though the two jumpers had never jumped the Eiger before, they spent many hours planning the approach, the access to the exit point, and the jump. They watched videos of the jump and spoke in depth with jumpers who had jumped it before, including those with the most experience with this object. Those who knew these jumpers were confident that it was within their capabilities.
Those who would like to offer condolences/sympathies can please post on this thread:
http://www.blincmagazine.com/forum/bsbd-memory/48878-jeremy-graczyk.html
The information we have is limited as the police are still not releasing all available evidence. Here is what we do know for a fact so far. More definitive information will be added when it is available from reliable sources.
Jeremy hiked the Eiger with one other jumper. Both men were in good physical shape and made the hike in 1 hour and 45 minutes, without fatigue. They were in high spirits when they reached the Mushroom. The weather conditions at the Mushroom were ideal as well as the in the landing zone, but they were jumping around noon and the face of the Eiger was in deep shadow. Jeremy filmed the first jumper's exit, who was using a tracking suit. Jeremy then exited by himself, also wearing a tracking suit. His body was found out of the bowl, on the talus. At this point, it is unclear whether there was intentional canopy extraction, as the police have not officially released the complete eyewitness account, nor allowed close inspection of the gear (the police have indicated they will do so this afternoon).
Jeremy was jumping a GoPro, but the police have yet to recover the video of the actual jump. The first jumper successfully tracked out of the bowl, and landed on a hill where his view of the jump was obstructed by terrain. About 8 minutes after he landed, he saw the rescue helicopter which was his first indication that something was wrong. There were some hikers that reportedly had direct view of the impact, but the police have yet to release their comments. Once the GoPro footage is recovered, the eye-witness account released, and the gear inspected (all anticipated to be done later this afternoon), we will have a better informed idea of what actually happened.
Jeremy was a relatively new jumper, but by all accounts, was very heads up and methodical and of average technical skill. Jeremy had jumped several terminal antennas, tracked a large terminal wall in the US, was in Kjerag tracking before coming to Lauterbrunnen, and had been tracking from Yellow Ocean, La Mouse, and High Nose with decent tracks.
Though the two jumpers had never jumped the Eiger before, they spent many hours planning the approach, the access to the exit point, and the jump. They watched videos of the jump and spoke in depth with jumpers who had jumped it before, including those with the most experience with this object. Those who knew these jumpers were confident that it was within their capabilities.
Those who would like to offer condolences/sympathies can please post on this thread:
http://www.blincmagazine.com/forum/bsbd-memory/48878-jeremy-graczyk.html