#and unfortunately they all died in a plane crash in 1996

[groundpear]

🌟Finally completed the "Mamonas but furry" drawing :D. But I still have no idea how do I start explaining this, sorry not sorry 🌟 . .

🌟 2023 carrd | ☕️ Ko-fi 🌟

[klutz-20]

The Man: A Leni Robredo Biography

“The best man for the job is a woman.” - Leni Robredo

Maria Leonor Gerona Robredo, an alternative lawyer and public servant, is the 14th Vice President of the Republic of the Philippines. After years of working with the poor and the marginalized, teaching the less fortunate about their rights under the law, Leni, as she is popularly known, emerged into national consciousness following the loss of her husband, long-time Naga City Mayor and Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo. Called upon to carry on his legacy of good governance, she stepped into the political arena in 2013, when she won as Representative of the Third District of Camarines Sur.

On April 23, 1965, in the lands of Naga, Camarines Sur, Philippines; a woman was born, a woman who in the future will fight against the biggest of odds a woman has ever faced. In the name Maria Leonor Santo Tomas Gerona, she was recognized to be first of the three children born to Naga City Regional Trial Court Judge Antonio Gerona (Father) and Salvacion Santo Tomas (Mother).

There is not much known about how Leni spent her youth or who she surrounded herself with but she is known to have attended the basic education department of Unibersidad de Sta. Isabel in Naga and graduated from elementary school in 1987, and from high school in 1982.

Leni lived a normal life, born as Filipina, and just like every Filipino, was dedicated at her passion and goals. She earned her degree in economics from the University of The Philippines Diliman in 1986, and proceeded to study law at the University of Nueva Caceres, graduating in 1992; she then passed the bar exams in 1997.

Leni knew the path she was taking, and realized her potential to help her fellow Filipinos. Not much is known about what inspired her to follow the path of politics, probably due to his father occupation but Leni chose to temporarily forego law studies and instead decided to work as a researcher for the Bicol River Basin Development Program (BRBDP) – it is a government agency tasked with integrated area development planning in the three provinces of the Bicol Region. During her work in the agency, there she met the man would finally make her heart skip a beat and someone that would impact her and give courage, one that she’ll forever treasure – Program Director Jesse Robredo. The two loved each other very dearly and was always together, helping people, providing support to those in need, and proving their capabilities as trust-worthy public servant to the masses. The wife and husband were eventually blessed with three healthy children named – Aika, Tricia, and Jillian.

Having passed the bar on her second attempt in 1996 and admittedly in May 1997, Leni served in the Public Attorney’s Office, a role in which she often took up the defense for cases pursued by her husband, who by then had become Mayor of Naga.

The family lived a very comfortable life and their children grew full of love and compassion, just like their parents but unfortunately, all this would come to pass as Jesse Robredo – Leni’s beloved husband – unfortunately died on August 18, 2012, when his plane (Piper PA-34 Seneca) a light aircraft he was traveling in crashed off the coast of Masbate Island. He was traveling back home to assist her daughter’s swimming competition.

This left Leni and her children devastated and lost. Just like any other family, they held each other dear. Jesse Robredo loved his children very much and taught them everything they need to know; it was no secret that Jesse was compassionate, kind, and warm – the way his beloved children grew up was proof of this. Jesse’s death left an impact on Leni and their children, one that would forever remain within them, even as Leni continues the fight.

Leni knew then that she needed to continue what her husband had started but even then; on her own, she was able to do good in the country by becoming the coordinator of Sentro ng Alternatibong Lingap Panligan (SALIGAN), founder of the Lakas ng Kababaihan ng Naga Federation, an organization that provides training and livelihood opportunities for women, in 1989; and being named the chairperson of the Liberal Party in Camarines Sur.

She continued on as she ran in Camarines Sur’s 3rd congressional district on 2013 and won, Participatory governance and transparency were the major objectives and thrusts of Robredo's legislative agenda. The first law Robredo authored in congress was the Full Disclosure Policy Bill (HB 19), which would have mandated all government agencies and their sub-units and projects to disclose their budget and financial transactions in a conspicuous manner "without any requests from the public.” Robredo also authored the People Empowerment Bill (HB 4911), which sought to allow more participation from Filipinos in decision and policy-making, and the Participatory Budget Process Bill (HB 3905), which sought to increase participation in budget-related decisions in government projects by locals. She also wrote the Comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Bill (HB 3432) to prohibit discrimination on the basis of ethnicity, race, religion or belief, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity and expressions, language, disability, HIV status, etc.

Leni’s passion to help and be of service amongst the Filipino people did not stop here. On October 5, 2015, after her three daughters set aside their initial objections, Leni announced that she would run for the post of Vice President of the Philippines under the Liberal Party in the 2016 election, as the running mate of presidential candidate Mar Roxas. She won the election with 14,418,817 votes, or 35.11 percent of cast ballots, narrowly defeating her closest rival, Senator Ferdinand Marcos, Jr, by 263,473 votes or by 0.64 percent.

During her term, Leni did things on her own but provided as much help as her accompanied President – Rodrigo Roa Duterte. Leni also showed strength and fulfilled her promises she made during her campaign such as her Angat Buhay Program – a program that focuses on six advocacy areas, namely: public education, rural development, food security and nutrition, women empowerment, universal healthcare, and housing and resettlement. From the beginning of her program in 2016 up until January 2022, the program has benefitted 622,00 families in 223 cities and municipalities across the country.

These feats, accomplishments did not go unnoticed and during the year of 2016, Leni received numerous awards from different universities, non-government organizations, and foreign acknowledgements; examples of these are: her being awarded the Honorary Outstanding Woman Award of the Year by the Thai government, coinciding with Thailand’s Women Day due to her work and advocacy on women’s empowerment and gender equality, the award as the Most Influential Filipina Woman of the World given to her by Filipina Women’s Network, and different doctorates from universities within the country such as: Polytechnic University of the Philippines, University of Saint Anthony in Iriga, Camarines Sur, and University of the Cordilleras.

However, despite these achievements, accomplishments, and good deeds she made count during her term; negative news, bad comments, and bullying were still thrown at her at the time. Many saw her as useless and found her to be not worthy of her position but she remained steadfast and loyal to her own morals, using her influence and power to continue helping those in need and provide a trust-worthy and corrupt free governance. She was a mother, not only to her children but also to the country.

On October 7, 2021; she announced her readiness to run for president and filed her candidacy as an independent, running with her is the Senator Kiko Pangilinan as vice president who filed his own certificate of candidacy under the Liberal Party. After all that she’s been through, the many people she’s helped, and the many challenges she’s faced; she is currently facing her biggest challenge yet.

Leni Robredo, in her own way, paved the way for women to start believing in themselves. Tested by life, circumstances, and challenges; she never lost sight of who she really is and remained steadfast to her ethics. She showed strength within her weakest moments, and showed compassion in the world full of hate. Many might hate her, see her as unworthy, and not fit for position but we all cannot deny that Leni did everything and more. Having lost her only love, becoming a single parent is not easy, let alone raising them to be fine young ladies but despite these odds, she kept a strong face, and confronted all the challenges, allegations, and judgements thrown at her all while proving her worth as the Vice President of the country.

[theparanormalperiodical]

The REAL Stories Behind Final Destination (2000) And The 10 Creepiest Times Celebrities Predicted Their Own Deaths

It must’ve happened sometime in the early 1980s.

‘81, or ‘82, perhaps.

Some 15 year old in the ass-end of Aberdeen, Washington, was stuck in the teen funk of wanting to ditch high school forever whilst simultaneously spray painting ‘god is gay’ on hick trucks.

But when he wasn’t pissin’ off the rednecks, he was telling his friends that he was pretty sure he’d become a famous rockstar, and end his life surrounded by fame and riches by committing suicide.

He was the emblem of the era. 

He would be the emblem for the next.

Kurt Cobain died on April 5th 1994 at the tender age of 27. He would not be the last person to have a premonition of his own death.  

In fact, the peculiar phenomenon of predicting one’s own death or sensing something foreboding is due isn’t just some forgotten urban legend. It’s been immortalised in a franchise that has achieved a cult status similar to Cobain’s band Nirvana:

Final Destination (2000).

The thing is, the 5 Final Destination films aren’t just based on this unexplained phenomenon of predicting one’s demise. They’re also based on several horrifying, infamous deaths that have haunted America for decades.

They’ve been mocked, marketed, and made out to be utter rubbish - but the luring call of the Grim Reaper might be more real than you think.

First, let’s recap the Final Destination franchise.

James Wong has made his name in horror. From the cutting-edge directing of Insidious, to his recapturing of the media-frenzy that was the caseload of Ed and Lorraine Warren, he has led the genre in a new direction that deals with supernatural phenomena which tend to be all too real.

His earlier work, Final Destination, was no different.

The Final Destination franchise consists of 5 movies and a couple limited edition comic books. It’s achieved cult status for its innovative plotline and Truman Show-like impact on the viewers. But the thing is, like most cult horror movies, it tends to be, well, trash.

And that’s what they were.

For 5 feature length movies we see the same plot play out:

(No, I’m not being cynical, it literally follows the same damn structure every damn time.)

A gaggle of high school or college aged friends head out on a trip. One of the crew has a mysterious premonition that they’re gon’ die in like a 4K-HD-put-your-3D-glasses-on-now-and-switch-off-your-mobile-phones worthy video clip.

That person then, understandably, flips out and somehow causes a fight. The group of friends then get asked to get off the plane, or aren’t allowed on the roller coaster, or are no longer partaking in the deadly activity.

The event that was seen in the premonition then takes place. For the rest of the movie we see a series of bizarre events that threaten and take the lives of those who cheated death.

A sixth instalment is in production and attempts to break the cycle by looking at EMT workers who face ‘death’ on a daily basis.

The following of this film can be traced back to a number of reasons: there’s the vibrant lives of the characters, there’s a lovable chemistry between the actors, and there’s that idea that fate might just have our lives set out for us.

But when the last unpopped kernels are left at the bottom of the bowl and the credits fade to black, we are left with only our faces to look at in the reflection of our laptop screens. From there, those laughable traps set by death themself don’t seem so hilarious.

They seem to be real.

Maybe we are fated to die at a certain time in a certain way? Maybe the Grim Reaper does exist? Maybe we have no control over our destiny?

Jeffrey Reddick, the writer of Final Destination, directly sought out to ask these questions. And he based the original film off a true story.

“[He] read a story about a woman who was on vacation and her mom called her and said, 'Don't take the flight tomorrow, I have a really bad feeling about it.'"

She switched flights, and the one she was supposed to be on crashed.

This urban legend taps into a haunting history of premonitions of death. For millennia humans have predicted the fates of themselves and those around them whether they boasted psychic powers or not.

(We will get to that.)

Unfortunately, this franchise is based on more than just an urban legend. Some of the most traumatic death traps left by the Grim Reaper are actually inspired by real life tragedies.

Many believe the original film featuring a flight fault and exploding plane was based on the TWA Flight 800 explosion - but this occurred 2 years after the original script (which was intended for 90s icon The X Files) was penned.

But there are 3 real-life events that inspired the franchise.

#1 - The 125 car pileup in Ringgold, Georgia

In 2002, approximately 120 cars and 20 tractor-trailers collided on the Interstate just south of Chattanooga as a result of the blanket of thick fog that Thursday morning. 4 were killed and 39 were injured.

It began when a tractor drove into the wall of fog and smashed into the back of another. It then crossed several lanes, and spread the wreckage. The visibility at the time of the collision was at most 15 feet.

Only an hour later, when the fog finally lifted, could the emergency services see the full extent of the disaster.

#2 - The Le Mans Motor Racing Disaster

It’s been labelled the most catastrophic crash in the history of motorsport. No CGI could do justice to what occurred.

On June 11th 1955, Jaguar driver Mike Hawthorn pulled to the right of the track and braked for a pit stop. Austin-Healey driver Lance Macklin was following closely behind and swerved out from behind the braking car into the path of another driver, Levegh. Levegh rear-ended Macklin, overriding Macklin’s car and launching his own into the air at 125mph.

The car collided with the spectator area several times and then disintegrated, throwing Levegh onto the track where he met his instant death.

The engine and bonnet was thrown into the crowd.

Levegh’s severely burnt body lay on the track until someone finally lay a sheet over it.

It is estimated that 84 died, and 178 were injured. We still don’t know the full extent of the death toll.

This tragedy - which was blamed on the nature of the course for cars of such a speed - caused Mercedes-Benz to withdraw from racing for 44 years.

#3 - The collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge

4 months after the opening of the bridge to traffic, the Tacoma Narrows bridge collapsed as a result of an aeroelastic flutter initiated by a 42mph gust of wind.

Fortunately, there were no human fatalities, but the shocking collapse was caught on film. A dog named Tubby, however, did die from being abandoned in a car on the bridge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XggxeuFDaDU 

So we know that the most iconic scenes from the franchise can be traced back to shocking disasters and tragedies. But there’s another side to the reality behind Final Destination:

The well laid plans of the Grim Reaper.

What are premonitions of death and what do they mean?

To many, having a niggling feeling about when one may pass away or even seeing it in a vision or a dream is a common part of life. And to many more, they will deem this as something as simple as anxiety making us believe we are due to die soon. However, from a spiritual standpoint, premonitions of death have much more meaning.

According to psychic mediums and spiritualists, the nagging feeling of impending death or dreams or visions of death are common - and can be real. They believe that souls can choose when they depart this world and thus signal to us when this is due.

Those with souls that are more evolved and have been reborn many times have greater ability to sense this.

Even souls that have connected together for many years  - and even many lifetimes - and have formed bonds can have death premonitions regarding each other.

Whether it’s a specific date or a certain age, foreseeing your own or another’s passing can be a terrifying concept. But on the same note, this premonition could refer to a symbolic death, a bit like the death card in a Tarot deck.

Perhaps a part of yourself is dying.

(This certainly won’t be as graphic as a Final Destination death cameo.)

History has a different version of events, however.

Many have had premonitions of their own death. And many have been correct. It’s time to talk about them.

Here’s the 9 other times celebrities predicted their own deaths to an uncomfortable degree.

#1 - Tupac Shakur

This rap icon’s death wasn’t just a tragedy. 

It was a mystery, too. 

Many still believe that the death was faked and that Shakur is very much alive and well, whether he’s hiding in Mexico, New Zealand, or South Africa.

But the mystery surrounding 2Pac starts long before the drive-by shooting that took place in 1996 that would kill him.

“I been shot and murdered, can tell you how it happened word for word” is a line from a hit song with Ritchie Rich.

Sure, the rap genre is closely with such themes that highlight gang crime and gun violence, and sure, Tupac had been involved with violent interactions and assaults before, but this eerily accurate lyric is bound to raise eyebrows.

That being said, if he did fake his own death he would know how it would take place, right? This may be less a premonition, and more an actual plan.

#2 - Bob Marley

Music icons don’t just have a knack for writing a catchy hook and a couple verses, too. Turns out they have this habit of predicting when they will die.

Kurt Cobain’s prediction of his own passing can quite easily be overlooked by the typicality of this death within the rockstar lifestyle. But Bob Marley didn’t actually predict how he would die - he told his friends when he would die.

Marley claimed he would die when he was 36. He was right.

But the coincidence doesn’t end there.

According to Allan Cole, one of his closest friends who was told this secret, Marley had psychic abilities that he would often flaunt to the locals where he grew up in Jamaica. He was even deemed a prophet to those close to them.

#3 - John Denver

“Cause I’m leavin’ on a jet plane,/ Don’t know when I’ll be back again”

This singer-songwriter wasn’t just a keen musician - he was also an amateur pilot. Unfortunately, his second pastime would eerily echo his first, and foreshadow his death.

28 years after he first released Leaving On A Jet Plane, he took off on his last flight where he would ultimately have a fatal crash.

#5 - Mark Twain

As the father of American literature, Twain was used to creating universes to engage readers with timeless classics like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. But it's our own world that would provide as poetic an end to Twain’s own story as he would to his fictional characters.

Born shortly after the sighting of Halley’s Comet in 1835, Twain would often joke that he would go out with it.

“Now here are these two unaccountable freaks; they came in together, they must go out together.”

A day after the comet was sighted once again in 1910, Twain died of a heart attack.

#6 - Pete Maravich

He will go down in history as one of the greatest NBA players to ever hit the court - and he left it in a mysterious manner.

Having played in the world-famous league for 4 years, he claimed in an interview that  “I don’t want to play 10 years [in the NBA] and then die of a heart attack at the age of 40.”

An injury caused him to leave the NBA 6 years later, completing the first part of his prediction. He died from a heart attack at age 40.

Even more intriguing, however, is what caused him to die: Maravich claimed he had a missing heart valve and should’ve died at the tender age of 20. His ability to predict his death which according to doctors would’ve been a bold assumption for such a heart problem is fascinating (and freaky).

#7 - Jimi Hendrix

He might’ve passed 4 decades ago, but the death of this guitarist is still tinged with as much mystery as the other legendary musicians and athletes populating this list. Shortly before claiming this status in 1965, he recorded The Ballad of Jimi.

“Many things he would try/ For he knew soon he’d die./ Now Jimi’s gone, he’s not alone/ His memory still lives on/ Five years, this he said/ He’s not gone, he’s just dead”

Hendrix died September 18th 1970. It was 5 years exactly to the day that he recorded that song.

#8 - Buddy Holly

On one evening in January of 1959, Buddy Holly and wife Maria had bad dreams. In fact, they had exactly the same bad dreams. They both involved a farm, an airplane, and Holly leaving Maria.

Weeks later Holly would tour the Midwest in an attempt to raise money for his family. Unfortunately, one of the airplanes he chartered for the tour crashed shortly after taking off into a cornfield. He was instantly killed.

#9 - W T Stead

The Titanic has been associated with many unexplained circumstances. This is one of them.

In 1886, Stead wrote a tale of an ocean liner colliding with another ship. Many of the passengers on that fictional ship would go on to lose their lives as a result of the lack of lifeboats.

“This is exactly what might take place and will take place if liners are sent to sea short of boats”

He would then go on to write a different story featuring a ship crashing into an iceberg.

In 1912, Stead boarded the RMS Titanic. And we all know how that ended - with a lack of a lifeboats causing excess deaths. He drowned with the rest of the victims of the tragedy.

#9 - Rasputin

As a former history student, I can boldly put forth a critical opinion of the dying days of the Romanov dynasty: Rasputin was one dodgy bloke. But what made him really dodgy was his ability to predict not just his own death, but that of the Russian monarchy, too.

Shortly before he was assassinated, he wrote a letter to the Tsarina claiming he would be killed by New Years. He also mentioned that her own family would die within 2 years.

Two days before New Year’s, he was poisoned in a rather messy assassination (no, seriously, look it up).

Within 18 months the Romanovs were dead.

Well that was a bit deathy.

Want to read something a bit more spooky and a ‘lil less sad? Check out the rest of the weekly articles on the paranormal, and stay tuned for a new real ghost story everyday by following this blog!

Are you obsessed with the supernatural? Be a part of the ultimate online ghost story experience.

[itsiotrecords-blog]

http://ift.tt/2rsoozg

Some world records are harmless, while others are downright dangerous. In fact, the Guinness Book of World Records doesn’t even encourage people to compete for dangerous records, out of fear of people killing themselves. With that being said, beyond the beer manufacturers’ bar bet settling book there are other records to be broken and as this list will prove, they can be deadly.

#1 Lowell Bayles The most dangerous records of all involve speed. Due to the amount of things that could go wrong, they make them both exciting and incredibly deadly. One of the earliest deaths in the race to be fastest person on Earth was Lowell Bayles. Bayles was originally a mine engineer before he started taking flight lessons from a former World War I pilot instructor. Eventually, Bayles became a stunt pilot with a team who performed across the country. At the 1931 National Air Races, he tried to break the speed record by going 300 MPH (482 KPH), which would make him the fastest human in history. While flying 246 feet (75 m) above the ground, Bayles achieved just that. In a freak accident, the fuel cap came loose, flew through the windshield and struck Bayles in the head, knocking him out. After losing the control of the plane, it crashed into a flame ball and Bayles was thrown 300 feet from the plane. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

#2 Bert Hinkler Bert “The Australian Lone Eagle” Hinkler was an aviator and inventor. During World War I, he worked as a gunner and observer for the Royal Naval Air Service. He invented many small gadgets that were used in planes up until the second World War. He was one of the pioneers in flight and manufactured his own planes. He was the first people to fly solo from Australia to England and the first person to fly solo across the Southern Atlantic Ocean. On January 7, 1933, at the age of 40, Hinkler took off from the London Air Park, Hanworth, England, heading towards Australia to beat the current time of 8 days and 20 hours. Later that same day, Hinkler’s plane crashed in the Tuscon Mountains in Italy. After his body was recovered, he was given a full military burial on orders of Benito Mussolini.

#3 Sailendra Nath Roy Sailendra Nath Roy was an Indian stuntman who held two bizarre Guinness World Records, both involving his hair. He managed to pull a locomotive with his pony tail for 8.2 ft (2.5 m), and he also rode a zip line 270.6 ft (82.5 m) by using his hair. On April 28, 2013, Roy was attempting to break his own zip line record on a 595.5 ft (180 m) line. About 300 ft (91 m) into the stunt, his hair became stuck for 30 minutes, after which he stopped moving. After hanging for 45 minutes, he was finally taken down. Roy had a massive heart attack and was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital.

#4 Javad Palizbanian One of the most famous long-distance jumps on a motorcycle was Evel Knievel, jumping over 14 buses in 1975 for a distance of 133 feet (40 m). It set the record for longest distance jumped, and also for most buses jumped over. Bubba Blackwell broke the record jumping over 15 buses in 1999. That brings us to 44-year-old Iranian, Javad Palizbanian, who was trying to break the record by jumping over 22 buses parked next to each other. The distance would have been about 209 feet (63 m). While being broadcast on live television from the Azadi Sports stadium in Tehran, on August 28, 2005, Palizbanian said “I am going to do something for my country to be proud of.” He then slammed into the 13th bus and died on impact.

#5 Brigitte Lenoir A Rebreather is a piece of scuba equipment that recirculates air, removing the carbon dioxide, giving the wearer clean oxygen. In Rebreather deep diving, the idea is to dive as deeply as possible while wearing a Rebreather and surface without dying. 40-year-old Brigitte Lenoir from Valais, Switzerland was Rebreather diving in Dahab, Red Sea, Egypt. She was trying to beat her own record of 505 ft (154 m). Her goal for her dive on May 16, 2010 was 656 ft (200 m). Unfortunately, at 482 ft (147 m), something went wrong. This was despite the fact that there many safety precautions, including oxygen tanks on a cable which Lenoir could access, and a team of experts helping her. The most likely culprit was a faulty valve in the pure oxygen valve which causes pure oxygen poisoning. The good news is that deaths like hers are almost immediate.

#6 Bill Warner 44-year old, Bill Warner, was a tropical fish farmer from Wimauma, Florida, and he held the world land speed record on a conventional motorcycle at 1.5 miles, which was 311 MPH (500.49 KPH). He achieved this world record on July 17, 2011 at Loring Timing Association’s Land Speed Races, which is held annually in Limestone, Maine. Warner came to the 2013 Loring Timing Association’s Land Speed Races to break the land speed record on a conventional motorcycle at a 1 mile distance. On July 13, Warner accomplished that record, hitting a speed of 296 MPH (476 KPH). The next day he tried to break his own brand-new record by reaching 300 MPH (482 KPH) but after hitting 285 MPH (459 KPH) he lost control of his bike, veered to the right, and slid for 100 feet. He was conscious and talking when he was taken to the hospital, where he died an hour later.

#7 Jessica Dubroff Jessica Dubroff was a 7-year-old pilot trainee who, at the behest of her father, attempted to become the youngest person to pilot a plane across the United States. She called her coast-to-coast flight “Sea to Shining Sea”. The cute girl with big ambitions was an instant media sensation. Since she was too young to officially hold a pilot’s license, a rated pilot had to be at the controls at all time while Dubroff flew the plane. On April 10, 1996, Dubroff, her flight instructor Joe Reid, and her father Lloyd Dubroff, took off in Reid’s Cessna 177B from Half Moon Bay, California. Their ultimate goal was to reach Cape Cod, Massachusetts. After 24 hours they landed in Cheyenne, Wyoming, for a rest. The next morning, the trio tried to take off in bad weather. The plane flipped and veered to the right, landing on a residential street and killing all three passengers. An investigation into the crash showed that Reid was in control of the plane when it crashed.

#8 Pyotr Dolgov In 1962, at the height of the Cold War and the start of the space race, two Russians were attempting to break the world record for longest free fall.  Their method was to use a Volga Balloon, which is a pressurized gondola that looks like a Christmas tree bulb with a hot air balloon attached to it. Dolgov, a Colonel in the Soviet Union Air Force and Yevgeni Nikolayevich Andreyev, also a Colonel, boarded the balloon on November 1961. Andreyev jumped from 24,500 meters (80,380 feet). Dolgov stayed in the gondola a little bit longer because he was testing a new pressure suit. He jumped 28,640 meters (93,970 ft) but cracked his visor and his suit depressurized. Angdreyev claimed the record of 24,500 meters, which wasn’t beaten until Felix Baumgartner on October 12, 2012 who fell from a height of 39 miles (62.76 KM) above the Earth.

#9 Nick Piantanida Not to be outdone by the Commies, the Americans decided to step up the free-falling game. Nick Piantanida was selling pets when he discovered skydiving, which led to him going on hundreds of jumps. After learning the Soviets had the record for the longest free fall, Piantanida decided this was a record he had to beat. While Piantanida was an experienced jumper, he was not a professional, nor was he in the Air Force (usually the people who perform such feats are members of the Air Force). Regardless, Piantanida was able to get funding from sponsors. He was even granted permission to use the Air Force’s training  facilities, and they lent him a pressurized suit. On Piantanida’s first attempt, high winds tore the roof of his gondola, Strato Jump I, forcing him to jump at 16,000 ft (4,900 m) before parachuting into St. Paul, Minnesota city dump. On February 2, 1966, on his second attempt using the Strato Jump II, he reached 123,500 feet, flying higher than anyone prior to him. However, he could not detach his oxygen hose and had to detach the balloon from the gondola. According to Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, since he returned to Earth without the balloon, he didn’t get the official record. Also, since he didn’t jump he didn’t get a parachute record either. On his third attempt on May 1, 1966, at the 57,000 ft (17373 m) mark his suit depressurized. The control room immediately released the parachute on the gondola. Piantanida was alive when the gondola reached the Earth, but the lack of oxygen caused him to go into a coma, and he died 4 months later.

#10 Donald Campbell Donald Campbell was a British land speed and water speed record holder. In fact, he is the only person to ever break both records in one year. Campbell’s father, Sir Malcolm Campbell. was famous for his water speed records. When Malcolm passed away from a series of strokes, he was still the fastest man on water. Campbell carried on the tradition, using his father’s boat the Bluebird. Campbell eventually reached a record speed of 276.33 mph (444.71 KPH) on December 31, 1964. After conquering the water, Campbell wanted to get the land speed record, which was 394 MPH (634 KPH). To accomplish this, Campbell built Bluebird CN7, a car with a turbine engine. He then achieved the record, reaching a speed of 403.1 MPH (648.73 KMH). Campbell decided that progress needed to move quickly, so he started designing a car that could break the Mach barrier. He designed the Bluebird Mach 1.1, which was supposed to go faster than the speed of sound —  767 MPH (1,234 KPH). Using a rocket, the Bluebird Mach 1.1 was supposed to reach 840 MPH (1,350 KPH). In order to raise publicity for his Bluebird Mach 1.1 run, Campbell decided to break the water speed record. On January 4, 1967, Campbell took his first attempt to reach 300 MPH (483 KPH), but he fell short hitting an average speed of 297.6 mph (479 KPH). Instead of refueling, Campbell decided to try it again. On his second attempt, he did a somersault in the air before crashing back into the water, which killed him. After his death, Campbell’s design for the Bluebird Mach 1.1 was scrapped. No one reached the 300 MPH mark on water until 1978, and the sound barrier wasn’t broken on land until 1997.

Source: TopTenz