Wire walker beats famous granddad's record
MASON, Ohio - July 5, 2008
Wallenda has walked 2,000 feet across a cable high above an
amusement park near Cincinnati to break the record his grandfather,
Karl, set there in 1974. Rick Wallenda says he doesn't think his
granddad would want anyone else to take his record.
Wallenda used no safety net or harness, but did have a 38-pound
balancing pole. All did not go smoothly as thousands below watched.
About 20 feet into the walk, rain began to mist the wire, so
Wallenda began walking a little faster. And he had to yell to
helpers below to pull tighter on stabilizing ropes. It all took 35
minutes.
Wallenda, who is 53, says, "It was a blast."
