Now that Vine is dead, people are back to “doing it for the Insta.” Because the validation of social acceptance isn’t a big enough rush for some people, here’s a list of Instagram users who need near death experiences and peer recognition to feel alive.
Vadim Makhorov
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You may recognise Vadim Makhorov from other such endeavours as Standing Precariously on Many Roofs and Actually Climbing the Eiffel Tower.
Makhorov climbs roofs and towers to get beautiful aerial shots of the cities below him. He’s even partnered with Converse because what’s better than climbing to skyscraper heights than climbing to skyscraper heights in shoes you’ve not worn in yet?
I’ll tell you what: being alive.
Tom Klocker
Tom Klocker isn’t the first Instagram user to pose on Trolltunga in Norway — as it turns out, many hikers make their way up to this peak every day. Visit Norway lists the hiking trail to get there as “expert” level, and claims that “every year there are search and rescue operations for hikers in serious trouble.”
Klocker is an outdoor photographer from Austria who takes spine-chilling pictures like this one seemingly once a week. He may be risking his life, but your Instagram feed is all the more breathtaking for it.
Dermott Burns
#kjeragbolten #Lysefjorden #Norway #Summer #biketour
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All things considered, this isn’t even a good Instagram. Many people take photos at Norway’s famous Kjeragbolten, so it isn’t novel. The jumping photo is obviously cooler than the standing one, but it has been squeezed to the side like an afterthought, when it should be the main focus.
But still Dermott Burns thought it was worth jumping on a boulder being held up by two mountains that at any moment could decide to crack and give way.
A for effort, C for execution.
Jason Paul
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Jason Paul is a freerunner who often partakes in activities that could get him injured, but he took this one to a whole new level. The fiftieth level to be exact.
Paul has done parkour through airports and backflips off glass railings on rooftops. But this handstand is just beyond comprehension.
That GoPro sponsorship must be quite something.
Ryan Sandes
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Ryan Sandes is a professional ultra runner, so maybe he didn’t just do this one for the Instagram. But it’s on the Gram so it’s being counted.
Here he is running atop a mountain in Cape Town, because apparently Lion’s Head just won’t cut it anymore. Who needs aerial views of the CBD when you have potential doom with every step?
Viki Odintcova
Full video (link in bio)! @a_mavrin #MAVRINmodels #MAVRIN #VikiOdintcova #Dubai
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If Sandes didn’t do it for the Insta, there’s absolutely no denying that Russian model Viki Odintcova did.
With a man holding onto a steel beam as her only safety, Odintcova dangled herself over the Dubai skyline so that she could pose for photo. That’s it. That’s the only reason.
Gotta admire the dedication, at the very least.
Feature image: screenshot, Victor Mahkorov via Instagram
