Abseil down the Spinnaker

It was one of the earliest Sunday mornings I'd had in a while, not because of nerves or anxiety like you'd expect, but because I wanted to make sure my Go! Rhino video and 'Blog the week' posts were uploaded at the start of the day. I also needed to shoot a couple more referee videos today before or after the stunt, so I prepped for those. In all of the excitement of the press activity, I hadn't even had a chance to consider the abseil and how I felt about it, truth is I'm not too concerned about heights and I've abseiled once before, so my focus is more on making sure the Go Pro sound is clear and everyone is in place to get the best angle!

Spinnaker in the distance

To allow plenty of time I left 2 hours to get from Eastleigh to Gunwarf Quays,  a journey that usually takes 40 minutes max. And I still arrived late, it was a stressful start. Everyone who was meeting me there was hitting traffic, I was turned away from the main car park as it was full and directed to another one I've never been to before, a good 10 minutes walk from Spinnaker! Not great preparation when I need to plan the shots and learn my script - I'm planning to narrate the abseil and tell the camera why I'm the best person for the Best Jobs Wildlife Caretaker position.


The view over Portsmouth Harbour

I found my friends and family and dumped my equipent, banner and flyers and passed on my camera and lens, good news was Mike Foyle the photographer has arrived on time. I met with Nicole from Naomi House, Super Woman and Banana Woman and we were rushed to the top of the tower, 15 minutes later than planned.


Don't look down! The view from the
glass floor at 100 metres

The view from the top of the Spinnaker Tower is nothing short of spectacular, at 170 metres tall its taller than the London Eye, Blackpool Tower and Big Ben, and the glass floor at over 100 metres high is not for the feint-hearted! There are 360 panoramic views over the Portsmouth Harbour, The Solent and The Isle of Wight.

Mike Foyle Photography

But no time to admire the views, we're rushed into our abseiling gear and taken to the launch site, with just a simple question of "have you done this before?" I can't help but feel underprepared for this, even if I have abseiled before it was nowhere near as high, and I've just noticed the crowds of people enjoying a pub lunch and a pint on a summers day at Gunwarf, not to mention my family and friends. No pressure then! I managed to switch my focus to the camera angle and what I was going to say as I went down.

Abseiling from that height makes you feel so free, it was a big adrenaline rush and I strongly suggest taking a few moments to admire the view. I was lucky to have such a beautiful day and clear blue skies. I didn't manage to remember my whole script for why I should be Wildlife Caretaker, but did enough that I hopefully explained a some of my key skills and demonstrated I can perform under pressure. My personal highlight was hearing the applause as I got around three quarters of the way down. At the bottom it was nice to be congratulated by my friends and family, who had successfully given out some of the flyers but completely forgot about my 6 foot banner! Still considering the start it all went well and sponsors are coming in fast for Naomi House, time for a quick photoshoot with Mike and a relaxing pint! Not a schooner Australia :)

Please help me raise money for Naomi House, a truly fantastic charity by donating on my justgiving page, even if very small every pound can help them care for children and young adults with life limiting disabilities.

www.justgiving.com/scottTisson

On the way home I squeeze in a flying visit to a 50th birthday party (happy birthday Innes!) - I became that guy who turns up late, eats the food and leaves! And also two more referee videos for the challenge, before an evening of editing, blogging and a couple more coldie's. Two days to go!

More abseil photos on my facebook page

Scott Tisson Twitter
Scott Tisson Facebook