Cheryl Stearns and some foreign guy are each trying to set up an attempt
to break the record. Funding and weather are the two major obstacles.
A very long wait for the ride up and no one to share the ride down with
would take some of the fun away but between the view at altitude and
setting that kind of a record would have to be something awesome.
24,000' is about as high as I have been and that is high enough for me.
No cumbersome pressure suit at that altitude nor carry-with oxygen
required. Much higher and you better have it - the higher you go the risk
increases exponentially and it do get colder. It was 30 below at 24k and
talk about wind chill factor at 200+ mph! The good news is you aren't there
long - about 2 minutes until you open at 2k. Kittinger had a drogue chute
for freefall stability - not really needed but that was an unknown then and
he had over 6 minutes of freefall but going over 600 mph before the thicker
lower air slowed him down.
The rigid wing escape suit is an interesting idea - not easy to get in and out
of and cumbersome, especially out of something going over 100 kts. I have
jumped the nylon wings and they are a blast to fly. I don't see many events
in a shuttle causing a bailout to give one time or reduced air speed to use any kind of a wingsuit. Maybe a ram air parachute but then they'd all have
to be skydivers!
