{"id":21482,"date":"2019-12-02T10:56:30","date_gmt":"2019-12-02T10:56:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.skydivemag.com\/new\/?p=21482"},"modified":"2019-12-02T17:41:31","modified_gmt":"2019-12-02T17:41:31","slug":"catching-up-with-ben-verde","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.skydivemag.com\/new\/catching-up-with-ben-verde\/","title":{"rendered":"Catching up with Ben Verde"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Ben Verde is one of the new generation of WS BASE jumpers who’ve embraced a calculated approach, using laser-inclinometers and GPS tracklog history analysis to make informed decisions in the mountains. With more than 800 BASE jumps since 2011, his experience ranges from urban to alpine and everything in-between. Ben\u2019s BASE courses embrace a spirit of good judgment and humble self-awareness.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Ben Verde \u2013 On Top of the World!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Interview by Matt\nGerdes<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, the other day when I saw your Mt Si video [below] I was impressed to say the least. That is a mountain that countless jumpers have looked at and no one ever saw an exit point on it or even thought there would be one. That\u2019s kind of the way things are going now huh?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Yeah, it’s pretty interesting to see how the Paradigm is\nshifting a bit. I’ve personally been looking at how to find a jump on\nthat mountain since I started BASE jumping, simply based on\nhow close it is. I love the idea that mountains that were appealing but not\npossible are now becoming extra-rad playgrounds. That type of thing seemed to\nbe the theme of 2019 around here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/vimeo.com\/372797695\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When did you realize that lasers and GPS were going to be\nsuch a big part of WS BASE?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

My second wingsuit season in Europe, James Yaru\nsparked my interest. I was doing a lot of jumping outside the valley\nand all of a sudden I realized that the lines which weren\u2019t\njust vertical cliffs were a lot more complex. I wanted to\nunderstand what I was looking at so that if I came across something I couldn’t\ndo I would know it before I was in the air.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Right and now years later, even with experience, some lines\nwhich look impossible, actually are.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Well it seems as though possible or impossible is a temporary state of mind. I don’t feel that improvements in suits are done with yet, and collectively wingsuit pilots keep discovering new capabilities hidden in the suits and in ourselves. So the future is unknown I suppose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s funny to imagine\u2026 you look over the edge and say \u201cno\u201d.\nBut then you shoot it with the laser and compare past exits, and realize… hey\nthis actually has a decent buffer on it even if my start isn\u2019t perfect.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Yeah, that can be pretty conflicting to the senses. It takes\nme a few minutes to let my brain calibrate to the idea of something that looks\nlike a bad idea actually being exactly what I’m looking for. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It takes me a few minutes to let my brain calibrate to the idea of something that looks like a bad idea actually being exactly what I’m looking for”<\/p>BEN VERDE<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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What thoughts are in your head when you\u2019re looking at one\nthat has less buffer, like red hot? How do you rationalize the fact that you\nmight f*ck it up?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Oh man. Well that one [Mt. Si] actually gave me a\nwave of anxiety when I realized I could do it and it had enough margin but only\nexactly enough. I knew I could make a mistake but not more than one, and\nnot a bad one. I think the anxiety comes from the fact that once I know I can\ndo it I feel obligated to, so I will have a hard time walking away and\nletting it sit here until next time. I know that a mistake could be\ncatastrophic but I choose to override that fact and focus 100% on being present\nand performing. That override feels like overcoming fear and believing in\nmyself which are both very satisfying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I knew I could make a mistake, but not more than one, and not a bad one\u201d<\/p>Ben verde<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Do you see yourself doing a lot of those? Or do you see your\ncareer being on a parabola of sorts… where risk is reduced over time?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Honestly I would like to prove to myself that these types of\njumps can be the new normal although I don’t know that I actually believe that\nyet. I would like to think that if we start conservatively and put all of our\neffort into performing consistently that we can make technical jumps become\nincredibly repeatable. Sort of like the way Brevent was considered a short\nstart and an expert only jump. Then a few years later it gets jumped in\ntracksuits. Insanity but I love it. With that said it’s difficult to say how\nmany more of those I might do. If I climb or hike somewhere and that’s all I\nget then I’ll take it if the conditions are favorable. If the weather is crap I\nmight not come back to it if the approach sucked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you feel like you\u2019re in your prime, or like whatever,\nnow?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I don’t know if I would say in my prime but I would\ndefinitely say hitting my stride. Maybe that’s the same thing but I think I’m\njust entering the pace and skill and mental space that I could and would like\nto maintain for quite some time. I feel like there’s a good chance I have a\ndecade of this in front of me, maybe more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tell us about Skydive Kapowsin. You don\u2019t seem to skydive\nmuch these days since I guess all the skydiving and BASE jumping have to happen\nin the same small season. But it has obviously had an effect on your\nflying and over the years it\u2019s become known as a wingsuit mecca.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I’m super-fortunate to have Kapowsin to call my home DZ.\nThat’s where I started and where I fell in love with wingsuiting and flying of\nall sorts. I don’t skydive much in the summer anymore unfortunately but I’ll\nsuffer through the cold days in the winter to get my reps in and I usually like\nto hammer down from February through May to get tuned up. I feel like\nall BASE jumping and no skydiving has a degrading effect on my\nstamina and skill so it’s super important to knock out at least a\nhundred skydives a year. I’m hugely grateful for people like\nAndy [Farrington] and Brandon [Mikesell] who were\nalways there to fly with me when I started wingsuiting seriously. There’s no\nway I would have a fraction of my capabilities without those guys. QR too.\nBig ups to QR [QR prefers to remain unnamed, but big ups to him for sure].<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ben and Brandon \u2013 Brothers from another mother<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Yeah those guys are awesome. We all owe a lot to Andy,\ndefinitely. Are you and Brandon actually brothers? Or just brothers from\nanother mother?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

No I didn’t get to know Brandon until we met at the DZ.\nAfter that we had the paperwork drawn up to be brothers from another mother. If\nyou need that kind of thing done, I have a guy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ll keep that in mind, thanks. You and Brandon are actually\nbiz partners these days… the BASE school… Why teach BASE? Why with Brandon?\nI assume it\u2019s to get rich, what sick cars are you guys are you gonna buy?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I love sharing this activity with people and the only effect I can have on BASE that has more influence than establishing and opening new exits, is sharing my knowledge and experience. I also like the idea of having a platform to be a positive influence on for the ethics of BASE without having to be preaching at anyone. But if I do get rich I’m buying an airplane or a helicopter. Used though, not new. Let’s not get carried away with fantasies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“if I do get rich I’m buying an airplane”<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Nothing wrong with used. I\u2019ve never even been in an unused\nplane. Some people think their first BASE jumps are scary. Do you strike the\nfear of a gruesome death into your students, or tell everyone it\u2019s just\nhigh-fives and yahoos?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We actually like to take people right to their rev limiter\nand hold them there until the course is over. I want you to be scared\nbut not too scared \u2013 so you can be confident in the knowledge\nyou\u2019re ready. The course is designed not to let you feel too\ncomplacent. We try to find each student’s point where they acknowledge\ntheir fear, but we don’t want them to live there. We\nacknowledge it, think through it, then make a plan and perform. Then we have\nhigh-five time with snacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sounds about right. So how do you think attitude and\njudgement play into BASE safety?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Attitude and judgment are the tools every\njumper needs to stay alive in the long term. It\u2019s equally important\nas technique and execution on every jump, but I would say more important\nin certain scenarios. You can’t really teach those things that I’m aware of but\nyou can definitely help be a guide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attitude and judgment are the tools every jumper needs to stay alive” <\/p>BEN VERDE<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Not to keep hammering on this, but how do you guide them? Do\nyou guys believe that an instructor teaches just by example\u2026 like, teach people\nhumility just by being humble? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We try to guide with a loose grip. Base jumpers seem to\nnaturally hate rules being imposed on them so we try to nurture healthy ways to\napproach jumps. We want our students to make decisions on their own and defend\nthem with reason. If their idea is a bit too loose or foolish then we try to\npoint out the danger factors that they may be missing and we again ask them to\ncontinue defending their plan or adjust it to something more suitable. During\nthe course we back up our words by setting a good example. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want your students to leave with one piece of info,\nor one thought, what would it be? Ok, that\u2019s one of those stupid impossible\nquestions. What I mean is, when they walk away, what do you want them to be\nthinking as they are leaving your course and heading out to probably do\nsomething random and unsupervised?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We want people asking themselves how do I prepare for the\nnext goal and who’s my best local resource that will encourage me through a\nconservative progression. Most people want to go home with their new capability\nso their first step is to ask themselves who will take me and what’s the safest\nway it can be done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Makes sense. Hopefully they\u2019re thinking about that even\nbefore their course. I guess a lot of your students are local to you and now\nyou must be doing a fair bit of mentoring outside of courses eh?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I’m definitely more involved with the new jumper scene than\nI ever have been but there’s quite a few local jumpers now so we have kind of a\n“it takes a village” thing going on. That helps keep things a little\nmore balanced so I don’t have to be the ‘Fun Police’. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve made it this far without the basics like your full\nreal name. Also, what\u2019s your mother\u2019s maiden name and your social security\nnumber? The Evil Empire needs it just for our records.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Ah, yes. My government name, even my friends rarely have\nthat info.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ok then\u2026 well I already know you started in 2011 and you\nhave 800 BASE jumps. What\u2019s the lowest object you\u2019ve jumped?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

My lowest object was 137 feet to flat ground. Not sure if I’d be interested in anything much lower to flat ground. Although I have been eyeing a grain silo that sits about 115′ but I need to confirm that with a laser. It’s a 3-minute walk from my in-law\u2019s house.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What\u2019s the closest BASE object to your own house?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Twelve-minute drive, coincidentally it’s that 137′ object.\nIt\u2019s a bridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you wanna give a shout-out to anything like sensory\ndeprivation tanks, microdosing, great danes, or the joys of life in the PNW? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For sure, legal cannabis, wild psychedelic\u00a0mushrooms growing everywhere, dog-friendly businesses, the local jumpers getting after it and being super supportive of both Brandon and I. Should be obvious but absolutely Squirrel big time and the Farrington family including the Kapowsin machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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