Daredevils to take a dive in 480ft plunge

A Fylde coast professional base jumper who has plummeted from dizzying heights all over the world is bringing the competitive extreme sport to the Fylde coast.

Julian Dipledge, 39, started base jumping 10 years ago and placed second in the world championships in Benidorm in 2014.

Now the father-of-two, who lives on Westbourne Road in Cleveleys, is welcoming a whole host of adrenaline junkies to the resort in an August competition on Blackpool Promenade.

Base jumpers from across the UK will leap from the top of a 480ft crane – just 38ft shy of the height of Blackpool Tower – before opening their parachutes and gliding safely to the ground below.

Julian said: “People have this perception that every base jumper has got a death wish and that we’re all energy drink-swilling teenagers, but I know one American jumper who is actually a professor at Harvard University.

“It’s a thinking person’s sport. You have to judge everything perfectly. If you don’t know what you’re doing you’re going to get hurt.”

This will be the second time Julian has brought the extreme sport to his home town, having jumped from the top of The Big One at Blackpool Pleasure Beach last year.

He said: “I’ve got 75 people already signed up to come down to Blackpool and looking for places to stay and eat. I’m hoping this can be the start of an extreme sports festival over the next few years that will become an annual event.”