Photo: AJ Hackett Bungy NZ
By Gurbir Singh, Hamilton, May 25, 2017: A Kiwi bungy enthusiast, Mike Heard has shattered the Guinness World Record by bungy jumping 430 times in 24-hours from the Auckland Harbour Bridge in New Zealand. Mike Heard, 35, began his attempt at 7pm on 23 May from the AJ Hackett Bungy site on the bridge, and within 4.5 hours he had already smashed the 2014 record of 151 jumps set by Colin Phillips in Dubai.
Mike, however, did not stop after shattering the record and continued his jumps till the 24-hour timer stopped at 7.15 pm next day. By then, he had jumped 430 times from the bridge, two-and-a-half times the number of jumps set by the previous record holder.
Mike Heard a resident of Auckland works in the technology sector and apart from bungy, he is also a keen skydiver, rock climber and scuba diver. “Bungy is about overcoming barriers and challenging myself which has helped keep me positive since I made my very first jump”, he is quoted to have said.
Mike has previously set two world records for bungy jumping - the first in 2008 when he jumped 103 times in 24 hours from the same Harbour Bridge, and then again in 2014 when he jumped 80 times in 60 minutes.
This year, he took up this challenge to raise funds for the Mental Health Foundation, a free charity of New Zealand. His target was $50,000 and he has been able to raise $11,217 already.
The money raised would go towards publicity campaigns for the well-being of sufferers and prevention of suicides.
At time of start, Mike was hoping to do 200 jumps in 24 hours, but as he was able to do much better. In the very first hour he did 48 jumps and then adjusted his speed to 25 jumps per hour next day.
Between jumps, Mike took a few bathroom and food breaks to have bananas, energy drinks and power-naps. He took a sleep break of two hours just after midnight after doing 160 jumps and resumed his jumps at 5.30am next morning.
While bungy jumping, Mike was seated in a harness, not strapped in by the ankles as normally bungy jumping is done. He also used a shorter bungy rope to avoid hitting water.
Mike’s wife and family were there to support him alongside the team of AJ Hackett Bungy who are pioneers and icon of bungy jumping in New Zealand and also operate this Bridge site.
There were two jumping experts and one independent witness present at all times to record every jump. They were rotated every four hours.
Bungy is a very popular and exhilarating adventure activity for visitors and New Zealanders alike. Choices and locales are available to suit most requirements- including night jumping during winter.
You can jump from the 40 metres Auckland Harbour Bridge, or if you are a daredevil, you could chose New Zealand’s highest bungy – 134 metres above the Nevis River in Queenstown.
Bungy jump from the Auckland Harbour Bridge does not come cheap. An adult would have to pay a whopping sum of approx. IRS 7120 (NZ$160) for their jump. But this once-in-a-lifetime experience is worth every rupee, and should not be missed at any cost.
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Gurbir is a New Zealand-based feature writer & journalist. He can be contacted at :gurbir@journalist.com