Skywire Live

***Skywire Live with Nik Wallenda*** is a live event special featuring Nik Wallenda as he prepares to walk a tightrope across the Grand Canyon. It was aired live on the Discovery Channel and in over 200 countries on June 23, 2013.

The event proved to be a ratings success for in the United States, generating Discovery's highest ratings ever for a live broadcast.

## Background

A member of the famed Flying Wallendas circus family, Nik Wallenda is an American highwire artist who has been walking the tightrope since age two and now holds seven records. In 2008, he set the record for highest and longest bicycle ride across a tightrope. In 2012, he became the first person to successfully tightrope across Niagara Falls, which aired live on ABC. To Wallenda's dismay, it was decided by the network that he would hear a harness for the event.

## Planning

Wallenda originally secured rights to cross the Grand Canyon in 2008 and planned to make the trip as early as 2009, but substantial logistical hurdles led to the walk being delayed. His agent, Winston Simons, commented that "There was no electricity, there's no hotels, and for the last half-hour there are no paved roads." Additionally, at a then estimated distance of 5,000 feet (1,500 m), the feat would be the longest walk of Wallenda's career by a significant margin. The Grand Canyon cross was put on hold when the opportunity to cross Niagara Falls arose. Shortly after that, Wallenda said he would try to make the Grand Canyon crossing within a year. In August 2012, he said he was ninety-eight percent certain that the walk would take place in May or June 2013 and announced he would get "something in writing" that no safety harness would be required for the walk.

On March 18, 2013, Wallenda announced to having come to terms with The Discovery Channel for television rights. While ABC also bid for the walk, they were concerned about the show being repetitive with the Niagara walk and was not prepared to pay as much as Discovery. Additionally, Discovery emphasized its international footprint and promised that Wallenda would not have to wear a safety device. After coming to terms with the network, Wallenda and his partners had to finalize permits with the Navajo. According to a tribal spokesperson, the decision to the walk was not taken lightly. Archaeological, biological, and environmental impact studies were also included in the process.

To prepare for the air temperature, which was expected to exceed 90 °F (32 °C) with the steel cable exceeding 100 to 110 °F (38 to 43 °C), Wallenda walked a 1,000 ft. (300 m) wire twice daily along the banks of a Sarasota River with fans watching. He practiced with wind machines and to simulate wind gusts up to 91 miles per hour (146 km/h), having practiced among 52 mph (94 km/h) wind gusts and heavy rain during Tropical Storm Andrea. His highwire shoes, custom made by his mother, had elk skin bottoms to counteract the heat.

On June 19, Discovery aired a special episode of *MythBusters* entitled "Duct Tape Canyon" to coincide with Wallenda's walk. On the episode, Wallenda appears to the show's team as a hallucination as they attempt to survive in the desert using only duct tape.

## Location

On June 23, 2013, Wallenda highwire walked across the Little Colorado River Gorge in the Navajo Tribal Park, which is located outside Grand Canyon National Boarders, about 40 miles east of the main tourist facilities. Discovery previewed the feat "Nik Wallenda... will traverse the majestic Grand Canyon." Other interpretations have varied on whether or not the Grand Canyon was the exact location. The Reuters News Agency described it simply as "the Grand Canyon", while the Associated Press described it as "a gorge near the Grand Canyon". Andrew Bender of *Forbes* said that it wasn't the Grand Canyon, but that the risks were as real and the visuals as spectacular at the location." National Geographic described it as the Grand Canyon but noted that the walk was taking place outside the park's borders as was done in previous stunts performed there.

According to the United States Geological Survey, the geological area of the Grand Canyon includes the Little Colorado River Gorge. A Grand Canyon National Park spokesperson said the walk would not be approved due to take place in the park due to regulations that "events must not unreasonably impair the park's atmosphere of peace and tranquility or have an unacceptable impact on the experience of park visitors."

## The walk

The event, titled *Skywire Live*, aired live on the Discovery Channel in 219 countries with a 10-second delay. It was produced by Peacock Productions and hosted by Natalie Morales and Willie Geist. Coverage began with an hour and ten-minute preview, followed by an hour and ten-minute main event. Five different cameras were used during the event. Wallenda had two cameras on him; one attached to his chest that aimed straight down, and another that faced straight ahead. A camera crew also filmed from the bottom of the Canyon. During the event, viewers were able to select from one of these five different angles online at SkywireLive.com.

Before the walk started, Wallenda and his family prayed with evangelist and family friend Joel Osteen. He was then helicoptered to an island in the middle of the Canyon to start his journey. The event was not open to the public to limit environmental impact. Members of the press were required to sign a waiver stating they would not sue due to post-traumatic stress disorder in the event that Wallenda fell. An armed security guard was placed at the bottom of the canyon to protect his body from animals.

The walk began at 7:38pm EDT. Wallenda realized that the wire had gathered dust and become slippery, and so spat on his hands and rubbed his shoes for a better grip. Shortly thereafter, he stopped and crouched down on the wire due to wind gusts. He later stopped a second time to break the bounce of the wire induced by his walking. Wallenda could be heard praying throughout the walk. He ran the last few steps then jumped off and kissed the ground. He completed the walk in 22 minutes, 54 seconds, covering a distance of approximately 1,400 ft. (430 M) and becoming the first person to highwire walk across a Grand Canyon area gorge.

The walk, at 1,500 feet (460 m), was the highest of Wallenda's career, about seven times as high as the Niagara crossing. He carried a 30-foot-long (9.1 m) balancing pole weighing 43 pounds (20 kg), saying it was important for him to vary his pace throughout the walk to prevent resonance effects. Mike and Terry were his safety coordinator and chief engineer, respectively, for the event.

A Navajo spokesperson commented on the walk, "We are honored to be a part of this historic event and showcase the beauty that exists in Navajo country." Tribel president Ben Shelley said he was grateful for the publicity. However, a group of Navajo and other Native Americans protested the event saying the tribe should not be promoting the risk of human life to promote tourism. The Navajos did not charge for the site, but Discovery did pay for the paving of a new road and parking lot to accommodate spectators.

After the walk, Wallenda said it was more difficult than he had expected and that "it took every bit of me to stay focused." He said that dust had accumulated in his contact lenses and called the walk unusually stressful. Additionally, he said an "optical illusion" made it hard to concentrate. However, he called the view breathtaking and said the opportunity was "a dream come true."

## Reception

### Ratings

*Skywire Live with Nik Wallenda* drew an average of 10.7 million viewers making it the highest rated program of that night. It beat out NBC's *Crossing Lines* (4.4 million) and CBS' *60 Minutes* (8.2 million) among other offerings. Viewership increased steadily throughout the program, with a spike as the walk began, during which 13 million people were tuned in. Those numbers named *Skywire Live* the highest-rated program in Discovery's history, easily beating the 4.21 million people who watched Felix Baumgartner's skydive in October 2012, and third highest overall. The 4.77 share during the actual walk was also the highest in company history, as well as the highest-rated special since *Walking with Dinosaurs* and *Raising the Mammoth* in 2000. Pre-coverage of the walk also pulled in high numbers, attracting 6.25 million viewers. *Naked and Afraid*, which debuted after *Skywire*, attracted 4.16 million viewers. Overall, Discovery had its fourth highest-ranked night ever.

### Critical

Commentary posted by Sally Hawkins in the *Washington Post* called Wallenda "The ultimate athlete, free of all law except gravity... Beyond criticism. Committing a pointless act - yet praying." Jenkins remarked, "We thought that daredevils were gone - too much science had reduced them to the predictable... But along has come this new breed." She also compared Wallenda's walk to Baumgartner's record skydive also shown on Discovery, speculating that the emergence of online media combined with "stale, stupid predictability" of television shows has led to a reemergence of interest in daredevil activity. She concluded "Wallenda's meaningless act restored the meaning of real." *The Telegraph*'s Ben Fogle decaled "I have never felt such fear for another person... I have a new superhero: not a superman with a cape, but a slightly tubby dad in jeans and a T-shirt."

The most popular topic of social media was Wallenda's prominent display of his faith. Conservative talk show host David Loesch tweeted "Evangelism via entertainment on a tightrope and a major walk across. Brilliant." Comedian and noted atheist Ricky Gervais poked fun in contrast, saying "Well done Jesus for getting that bloke across the Grand Canyon safely. I bet he feels silly for wasting so much time practicing now." Actor Dean Norris remarked "Regardless of religious belief or not, feel little happier 'bout life then had #wallenda kept saying thank you nihilists, life is meaningless." Piers Morgan, interviewing Joel Osteen after Wallenda's walk, called the event "an advertisement for the power of prayer and Christianity in America."

Blue jeans manufacturer Buffalo David Bitton was surprised that Wallenda wore a pair of their jeans for the walk. To celebrate, they erected a billboard showing the picture of the walk and reading "Dear Nik, Thanks for taking us to new heights. Buffalo David Bitton." The company also offered Wallenda and his immediate family free jeans for the rest of their lives.