PARAGLIDER BASE JUMPS ASTORIA COLUMN

A gadabout former Utah gubernatorial candidate has been arrested for base jumping–paragliding off the top of the 125-foot tall Astoria Column over the weekend.  The jump was made Saturday, and a video was immediately posted on Youtube by the jumper’s friends.  Then, Del Schanze hung around town.  He was arrested after he was spotted at the beach, basking in the glory.  He was cited and released.  Outside the jail, he said the government was stifling his creativity.  The city attorney calls the stunt a Class A Misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a thousand dollar fine.  A local paragliding guide says only a skilled jumper could make the difficult flight.  He said Schanze set a terrible example that could get an inexperienced copy-cat killed.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 14th, 2011 at 4:14 pm and is filed under Latest News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.