Skydiving Legend/Pioneer of "Skysurfing", Sean MacCormac Becomes First Man to Grind The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge

The energy drink (and apparently high end designer clothing) marketing game is not for the faint of heart. I wrote this same blog last week about a German gentleman who executed double "Tsunami Backflips" between moving semi-trucks on the German autobahn.

Caffeinated beverages have been funding extreme behavior for decades. Clearly, market research goes to show that nothing makes people want to kickstart a day of cost accounting with 500mg of caffeine, 100g of sugar, and a bunch of chemicals that end in "-ine", more than seeing a X-Games athlete soar recklessly through the sky. 

In that last blog, I "joked" (although I suspect there might be some truth to this) that the big energy drink marketing departments are made up of wannabe Rod Dyrdeks snorting lines of coke as they shout EXTREME ideas at each other. But the problem is, in the X-Games style stunt department, it seems like pretty much everything has been done already. There are only so many places you can put a big ramp. But credit where credit is due. They got creative with this one. From what I can find, this is the first time a man has ever grinded the top of a large suspension bridge outside of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, and whatever GTA mode lets people to do things like this.

Sean MacCormac grinded the Bay Bridge. His feet were strapped into something that resembles a snowboard, and went board to rail. That's the definition of a grind. But if I'm mainlining meth in a competitive energy drink company bathroom, I'd say this stunt can be improved upon. I'd say, "Let's see him ditch that parachute."

Don't get me wrong. I'm not asking them to just drop a man out of a helicopter and hope he lands on the rail. Maybe we'll get to that point eventually, but it would be insane to try right off the bat. But after he's finished using his parachute to navigate his way onto the rail… how about we go ahead and pop off that backpack. Nothing diminishes a "death defying stunt" more than a built in safety net. If you really want to sell energy drinks, there needs to be real stakes. Somebody needs to grind that bridge raw dog, and to completion. And maybe we swap out the snowboard (or skysurf board) for a skateboard. Or else he's going to look foolish when he touches down in Oakland and just stops like an asshole. He needs wheels if he really wants to feel good about "landing" his trick.

Good trick, Sean. You'll forever be a pioneer in the bridge grinding game. It was a great first step. I bet you sold a lot of cold beverages. But it's only a matter of time before people get tired again. If you want your sponsor stay on the top of their minds when they're standing in front of that gas station cooler, you better up your game before somebody else does.