Dead Mike

May 24, 2002 1:01 PM

Dead Mike had an accident while skydiving and fell 80 feet to the concrete runway. He survived and put up this website to tell his story (warning: sound.)
posted by homunculus (7 comments total)

From the FAQ page:

Do you have insurance?

Oh yes! You better believe I have insurance! United Healthcare administers the plan, which is wholly funded by Enron. Enron 'rides' their own plan since they are big enough to be able to put that money to good use and ensure it meets the needs of it's employees.

Skydiving without insurance is not the best idea, at least not in my case it wouldn't have been. However, many skydivers don't have any kind of insurance should an accident like this occur.

Not only do I have insurance, but I have the best employer with Enron. No questions asked, ever. Every claim paid. Every doctor I wanted was in the plan. Just wonderful treatment all the way along.

Most importantly, I have disability insurance. This is the life saver here. The medical insurance puts me back together, but I've got a long recovery period when I won't be able to work. This insurance guarantees that I have income for up to 2 years after the accident. This was most important of all.

posted by corpse at 1:12 PM on May 24, 2002

I've jumped a few times and I think skydiving is no more dangerous than commuting to work in the morning as long as you're careful. And it is incredibly fun! But if something does go wrong, well...
posted by homunculus at 1:13 PM on May 24, 2002

I ran the stats on skydiving before my first tandem jump last month. A skydiving fatality on any given single jump is roughly equal to a driving fatality for any given 24 hours of driving. So yeah, it's a lot more dangerous than driving, minute by minute (a 7 minute skydive+descent equals 1440 minutes driving) but it's not so dangerous as to be reckless...
posted by kfury at 1:49 PM on May 24, 2002

I've heard tell that emergency room personnel refer to the face as the "crumple zone." The description and xrays of this poor bloke's face certainly show the truth of that. Functions just like a car's front impact design: keeps the occupants (brain) safe.

Ugly mess. Lucky to be alive, he is.
posted by five fresh fish at 2:06 PM on May 24, 2002

corpse - yeah, wonder if he's still an avid skydiver with the money he's making at his new job after enron (capitals, you do not deserve) layed him off.
posted by Why at 2:25 PM on May 24, 2002

Mike survived (brain intact)

Going by his web page, I have some doubts.
posted by HTuttle at 3:38 PM on May 24, 2002

Kind of reminds me of Col. Kittinger who actually "fell" from outer space (I am not kidding)

Kittinger jumped from an open balloon gondola at 102,800 feet, the highest man had ever gone in an unpowered flight. He plummeted to earth, travelling 16 miles in 4 minutes and 36 seconds, before his main chute opened, the longest free-fall in history... He was quoted as radioing back a frightening first hand view of space, "There is a hostile sky above me. Man may live in space, but he will never conquer it."
posted by vacapinta at 10:27 PM on May 24, 2002